novelHe's Old and Frail Now. His Strength and Energy Can't Compare to Us Young Men's
| ← Ch.271 | Ch.273 → |
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
He did not utter a word, he just patted and stared at Song Yu. Song Yu blushed slightly and puckered her lips bashfully.
"Come here quickly, " Qi Chengzhi urged. His voice was melodic and intoxicating even when prodding. His voice sounded righteous and firm, which did not suit his actions at all.
Song Yu smiled bashfully. Carefully, she sat on the bed and lifted her legs. The top of the bed was inclined upward so when she leaned back, she was in a semi-sitting position.
While looking after Qi Chengzhi in the hospital these two days, Song Yu barely got any rest. Now, she finally got that chance. She felt like her legs were all swollen.
Qi Chengzhi could not turn his body. He could only put his arms around her, letting Song Yu rest her head on his shoulder. Qi Chengzhi leaned his head and pecked her forehead again and again. He was grateful for being alive and being able to hold Song Yu. He felt lucky.
Song Yu looked up and stared at him submissively. She puckered her lips, inviting him into a kiss. Qi Chengzhi smiled. He never planned to kiss her on her lips—he wanted to let her rest. Nonetheless, since she took the initiative, Qi Chengzhi accepted her invitation and kissed her. They made out gently. Now that he was injured, he could not kiss her intensely. He let her go.
"You haven't rested this whole time. Go to sleep." Qi Chengzhi whispered in a smoky voice.
Indeed, Song Yu was feeling tired. She was finally free of worries and responsibilities. Thus, she found a comfortable position on Qi Chengzhi's shoulder and closed her eyes.
Qi Chengzhi kissed her forehead again before he moved her head onto the pillow. He closed his eyes and slept too.
...
...
It was after some time since Qi Chengzhi had long fallen asleep. Suddenly, he felt the body in his arms struggle. Beside his ear, a soft but hurried mumble sounded, "Chengzhi! Chengzhi! No, Chengzhi, don't!"
When he noticed that his shoulder was wet, Qi Chengzhi woke up in an instant. He looked down and saw Song Yu shifting anxiously on his shoulder. Her face was blanched. Qi Chengzhi did not know how long has she been crying but his hospital pajama was soaked.
"Song Yu. Song Yu!" Qi Chengzhi quickly shook Song Yu around. After a long while, Song Yu eventually woke up.
Song Yu's mind was still trapped in her nightmare. In a daze, she stared at Qi Chengzhi with confusion in her eyes. The tears welled up in her eyes poured out before she knew it.
"Nightmare?" Qi Chengzhi whispered. Seeing her frail and feeble appearance, his heart ached.
Her chalk-white face was stained with tears. Her nose was red and her lips were swollen. As she sobbed, she still appeared disorientated.
After a long time, she finally sniffled and explained, "I dreamt about that day... You... you took a knife and stabbed yourself. You fell and never got up again."
"It's okay. It's over. I'm fine now." Qi Chengzhi held her tight, gently stroking her hair. He leaned in to kiss her tears away.
Her tears flowed like a creek. As his lips pressed against her cheek, they were soaked in her tears. His mouth was filled with the taste of salt.
"Hush now. I'm fine. Aren't you in my arms right now? I'm fine." Qi Chengzhi cupped his hand on her cheek and wiped her tears. As he kissed her, her frigid lips regained some warmth.
Qi Chengzhi had some porridge in the morning, giving him energy. He held her hand firmly and pulled it to his face, which had blood, flesh, and warmth.
Song Yu clutched onto his neck. She took a deep breath close to his neck, feeling his warmth. Eventually, she calmed down.
Qi Chengzhi pressed his lips into a tender line and wiped the tears from her face.
"Chengzhi, promise me you'll never do something like this again. Don't hurt yourself for me. Please. I'm begging you. Okay?" Song Yu placed her hands on his face. Her pupils were trembling.
She told him the same thing yesterday night. She even pretended to be mad at him, but he never promised her anything. This time, however, she was truly afraid.
Seeing her pale face, Qi Chengzhi was worried she would stay fearful and anxious forever if he did not promise her. If she kept herself on edge like this, she would eventually fall sick. Thus, Qi Chengzhi sighed and replied, "Fine, I promise."
Song Yu let out a sigh of relief. Her twitching lips curled up a little. She rubbed her tears away with the back of her hand then turned to kissed Qi Chengzhi on the corner of his lips.
There was a knock on the ward's door. Song Yu glanced at the door. Getting off the bed, she grabbed a tissue to dry her tears and clean her nose.
Song Yu opened the door to see Liu Dui standing outside. She quickly invited him in.
"Mr. Qi, Mrs. Qi." Liu Dui came in."How is Mr. Qi's wound?"
"It's still healing, " Song Yu answered as she poured a glass of water for Liu Dui.
Liu Dui did not want to trouble Song Yu, especially because she was pregnant."Mrs. Qi, don't trouble yourself. I'm here to check up on Mister Qi. Is it a good time to record your statements?"
"Sure." Qi Chengzhi was quite alert after sleeping for a while just now.
Once the two of them gave their statements, Liu Dui explained, "Jian Yi is still recovering in the hospital. We have our eyes on him so don't worry. Once he gets discharged, perhaps in a month or so, you two should be able to testify in court."
Song Yu nodded."Do Jian Yi's parents know?"
Song Yu had always had a good impression of Jian Shibo, especially when Jian Yi and Qi Chengyue were getting a divorce. At that time, Jian Shibo apologized to Qi Chengyue and the Qi family. He even wanted to divorce Zhou Mingyan.
At least the Jian family still had Jian Shibo who one could talk sense with.
"I've contacted them. Nevertheless, even though Jian Yi is in the hospital, he isn't allowed any visitors. Jian Shibo goes to the hospital every day and watches him from the window, " Liu Dui revealed."Anyway, I'll be leaving now."
Song Yu saw him to the door. Suddenly, she remembered something."That day, I heard your colleague shouting that Jian Yi's gun had no bullets in it."
Liu Dui nodded."Indeed, it was empty."
Song Yu kept quiet.
After Liu Dui left, Song Yu returned to the bed. She and Qi Chengzhi did not discuss the Jian Yi's incident anymore.
At five o'clock, Yu Qianying brought porridge and Song Yu's dinner which she cooked. Aunt Yang had been in the hospital for two nights. She wanted to bring them dinner tonight but Yu Qianying stopped her, claiming that she should stay home and rest due to her age.
"You can only have fluids now so I crushed the rice grains while cooking. It goes down very smoothly. It's also easy to digest." Yu Qianying poured out the porridge from a thermos."I'm afraid that the food outside might have some added substances, so everything I bring is home-cooked."
"Thanks, Mom." Qi Chengzhi said in his elegant voice.
She smiled and handed the porridge to Qi Chengzhi."We're family, no need to thank."
Qi Chengzhi knew that Yu Qianying not only forgave him but wanted to write off everything as the past—as though it never happened. As she did not want to bring it up, Qi Chengzhi did not either.
Seeing that Yu Qianying had completely forgiven Qi Chengzhi, she said, "Mom, we want to invite you and Dad to Grandma's birthday."
"Of course, " Yu Qianying nodded gleefully. She took out the dinner she made for Song Yu."Hurry up and eat. I'll be going. I still need to cook for your father when I get home."
"Mom, wait here for a while. I'll call Chang Lai to come and send you home, " Qi Chengzhi offered.
"No, there's no need." Yu Qianying waved her hands."I can get a ride at the entrance. Now that there's an app for cabs, it's much easier to get a ride."
"I'll see you to the entrance, " Song Yu offered as she saw Yu Qianying to the door.
"No, you should stay here. Don't simply go out. While passing by so many wards and riding the elevator, you might get some sort of infection. Be good and stay here. Don't go walking around." Yu Qianying stopped Song Yu in haste."Not only your grandmother is worried about you—so am I. Nonetheless, seeing that you two had just been through an incident this big, I won't nag you, but don't you dare be so stubborn next time."
Song Yu was forced to stop at the doorway. In a low voice, she replied, "Okay. Call me when you reach home. Otherwise, I'll be worried."
Yu Qianying patted Song Yu's shoulders then left. Song Yu stood at the doorway and stared at Yu Qianying as she walked away. She noticed that Yu Qianying had indeed gotten older. Suddenly, her heart ached.
...
...
As Yu Qianying was walking out of the outpatient department, she saw Yan Beicheng, Chu Zhaoyang, Han Zhuoli, and Gui Zhiqian walking toward her. There were three employees from Yan Beicheng's hotpot restaurant following behind them. Each of them was holding a large box.
"Auntie?" Yan Beicheng was walking at the front saw Yu Qianying first.
"Are you all here to see Chengzhi?" Yu Qianying inquired.
"We're here to see how he's doing and have dinner with him, " Yan Beicheng answered smilingly.
Yu Qianying glimpsed at the three workers standing at the back. Would it be alright to have hotpot in a hospital ward?
She glanced at Chu Zhaoyang and thought about how convenient it was to know the owner.
"Alright, go ahead. I was here to bring him dinner too. I'm leaving now, " Yu Qianying said with a smile."Luckily, I brought quite a lot of food, so you guys can have some too."
Hearing that, Yan Beicheng asked, "How are you going home?"
"I'll take a cab, " Yu Qianying replied with a smile.
"Please wait for a while, " Yan Beicheng said as he took out his phone."Shao Huai, turn the car around. Come and fetch Song Yu's mother home."
"Ah, I don't want to trouble you, " Yu Qianying said hastily the moment Yan Beicheng hung up.
"It's no trouble at all. After all, we won't be leaving for a while. Besides, Shao Huai is idle. Since he's here, it's also convenient for him to send you home." Yan Beicheng insisted. He smiled faintly. At that moment, his expression was different from when he joked with Qi Chengzhi and his friends—it was stern.
Since he ran into Song Yu's mother here, he could not let her go home alone.
Yu Qianying watched as Yan Beicheng stood straight with an air of authority. He had one hand in his pocket and his lips were curled into a faint smile. He looked calm and composed. In her mind, she thought about the fact that everyone in Qi Chengzhi's social circle was at the top.
Shao Huai arrived. Yu Qianying did not decline his offer anymore. Instead, she thanked him, said goodbye to the others and left with Shao Huai.
Song Yu was holding the bowl of porridge, wanting to feed it to Qi Chengzhi. Although Qi Chengzhi had more energy now, the wound in his abdomen was still preventing him from sitting up. Additionally, the hospital bed could only be inclined upward to a certain degree—it was inconvenient for him to feed himself.
"Eat your food first. You can feed me once you finish yours, " Qi Chengzhi said. He was afraid she would get sick from hunger.
"I'm not hungry yet. Besides, drinking porridge doesn't take long." Song Yu had already sat down and scooped a spoonful of porridge. Even though the porridge was in a thermos, the journey to the hospital was quite long so the porridge was at optimum temperature. Song Yu did not have to blow on it. She moved the spoon straight to Qi Chengzhi's mouth.
"Blow on it for me, " Qi Chengzhi demanded coolly in a deep voice. He was clearly being needy yet he said it with a straight face. His stern lips pressed together tightly, refusing to drink the porridge.
"..." Song Yu moved the spoon closer to his mouth."It's not even hot."
"Can't you be a little more scrupulous?" Qi Chengzhi raised an eyebrow at her.
Speechlessly, Song Yu retracted the spoon and blew on it just for the sake of satisfying him. Only then did Qi Chengzhi drink it. He was like a child.
After he drank around half a bowl of the porridge, the door suddenly swung open. Song Yu realized that she did not lock the door when she saw Yu Qianying out. They did not know who came or why they did not bother to knock. Turning their heads, they saw Yan Beicheng and the three coming in one after another.
"Why are you all here?" Qi Chengzhi questioned coolly, raising an eyebrow.
"We wanted to come see you after work and have dinner in the meantime." With a simple gesture from Yan Beicheng, the three workers came in and set up the hotpot.
"I can only have liquid food now." Qi Chengzhi squinted.
"We know. You can just sit there and watch us eat—the important thing is that we're all together, creating a rowdy atmosphere, " Han Zhuoli stated. They were clearly here to tempt Qi Chengzhi.
He watched as the waiters placed bowls after bowls of ingredients onto the table. They even brought their own induction cooker. After plugging in the cooker, the split pot was placed on the cooker. Once the soup base was poured in, a delicious aroma diffused from the pot.
"Song Yu, come eat with us." Gui Zhiqian waved at Song Yu.
How could Song Yu not notice that the group of men was doing this on purpose? She felt pity toward Qi Chengzhi. Therefore, she did not move an inch from her seat by the bed and continued to feed Qi Chengzhi his little bit of porridge left."I can't have heaty food now. You guys go ahead and eat. My mom brought me dinner just now."
"You can have the bone broth. I had someone stew this especially for you. It's full of collagen." Yan Beicheng went around the table and sat down. Eating hotpot was such a peasantly activity, yet sitting there, he could still maintain his air of luxury. His voice was clear and natural."It's good for your body."
Han Zhuoli came out of the washroom. When he passed by the bed end, he caught sight of the lunchbox Yu Qianying brought. He opened it and looked inside."Song Yu, it looks like your mom is quite an excellent cook. We ran into your mom downstairs just now. She heard that we're going to have hotpot so she said we can have some of her food too."
"..." Song Yu did not know whether he was telling the truth or not. Nonetheless, seeing Han Zhuoli's expectant look, she could not refuse."We can all have it."
Han Zhuoli beckoned Gui Zhiqian and Yan Beicheng. Then, he brought the lunchbox over to the table and dragged Song Yu with him."Come on, let's go. Come eat with us. You gave us your dinner—we can't just let you starve."
Being pulled by Han Zhuoli, Song Yu turned to Qi Chengzhi. Qi Chengzhi did not have the heart to let her starve."Go ahead and eat."
During the meal, Gui Zhiqian and Han Zhuoli were quite considerate. Gui Zhiqian filled a bowl of bone broth for Song Yu.
"Lao Chu, if there's anything on your confinement center's menu that would suit Song Yu, please have them bring it here." Qi Chengzhi had nothing to do while lying on the bed. He grabbed a magazine from beside him and flipped through it. The aroma of the hotpot was making him hungry; especially after having to eat bland porridge for two days.
Chu Zhaoyang called the confinement center instantly. Since Chutian Confinement Center was right behind Chutian Hospital, a healthy meal was swiftly sent to Song Yu.
Song Yu could not stand leaving Qi Chengzhi on the lonely bed for too long, so she quickly filled her stomach and ran back to Qi Chengzhi.
"Look at you two lovebirds sitting on the bed. Ah, I can't stand looking at you two." Han Zhuoli shook his head and clicked his tongue.
"..." Song Yu was getting uneasy sitting there. Embarrassed, she decided to sit on the chair by the bed instead. However, Qi Chengzhi grabbed hold of her.
"I'm a patient—you have to take care of me, " Qi Chengzhi declared righteously as he lied on the bed with Song Yu.
Yan Beicheng and his gang had finished their hotpot. Han Zhuoli could not stand it anymore. He suggested, "Why don't we play cards for a while? We'll have six players including Qi Chengzhi and Song Yu. I just learned a new game in T City."
Qi Chengzhi said nothing.
Did anyone realize they were here to visit a patient?
Gui Zhiqian glanced at his watch."Yo, it's almost nine; don't play and let's go. Let Qi Chengzhi rest. He's old and frail now—his strength and energy can't compare to us young men's.
Qi Chengzhi kept mum.
Chu Zhaoyan glanced at the little table in front of him in disappointment. Han Zhuoli pulled him up."Let's go."
Yan Beicheng had his workers clean up the table. They removed everything and wiped the table clean.
Song Yu saw them out the door and upon coming back, she said, "They're usually so solemn toward outsiders. Who would've guessed they behave like this in private?"
Seeing Qi Chengzhi grinning, Song Yu thought that in the past she did not know Qi Chengzhi was such a shameless person behind the curtain. Song Yu could not help but smile. She turned on the exhaust to suck out the smell of hotpot.
"What are you smiling at?" Qi Chengzhi tossed the magazine away. He had been holding it for a long time but in truth, he did not read a page.
"Nothing." Song Yu felt that it would be better if she kept it to herself. Seeing Qi Chengzhi squinting at her, she quickly announced, "I'm going to shower."
After more than half an hour, Song Yu came out with half-wet hair. Before this, she accompanied Qi Chengzhi in not showering. She could feel her body starting to give out odors and her hair was oily.
Now, she felt clean and refreshed. Her body was fragrant. Only now could she be with Qi Chengzhi peacefully. Before, she was afraid that he would be repelled.
Song Yu came back and adjusted the bed so that it was flat. She climbed onto the bed and nested herself in Qi Chengzhi's arms. Qi Chengzhi embraced her cotton-soft body and sniffed at the fresh fragrance coming off of her. He raised his hand and smelt his arm."I must smell bad by now."
Song Yu leaned toward his neck and took a whiff."No, you still smell quite good."
"What were you smiling at just now? You were looking at me, then you abruptly started grinning." Qi Chengzhi was hugging her. He kissed her face.
"Why do you still remember that?" Song Yu wiggled around in his arms and pillowed her head on his shoulder."Will you feel tired if I lay my head on you like this?"
"No. Stop changing the subject. What is it?" Qi Chengzhi squeezed her shoulders. He did not actually want to know but he enjoyed lying with her serenely like this.
He could chat with her continuously, stick close to her and smell the fragrance of her body.
Song Yu felt his warm breath falling on the corner of her eye and her ear. It was hot and numbing. It made Song Yu's heart race, her face flushed and her breathing jumbled.
He even clawed at her ear with his lips, sending a shiver down Song Yu's spine."Stop messing around."
| ← Ch. 271 | Ch. 273 → |