“What if his hands get injured? He’s a doctor who performs surgeries. How precious are his hands!”

“Leg injuries would be troublesome, too. He’d need a wheelchair, and no one could take care of him. I don’t know how to care for people, and I always make him angry…”

“Brain injuries would be even worse. He’s so smart—in high school, he ranked first in every monthly exam. No matter how much money a driver has, they couldn’t compensate for that.”

“I shouldn’t have drunk yesterday. Who opened that bar anyway? Why did they have to open it in that particular place? If I hadn’t seen it, I wouldn’t have gone in.”

Chi Yue: “…”

He had only come to get his helmet. How did someone else’s accident on the road end up being his fault and his bar’s fault?

“Ahem, ahem,” Chi Yue coughed twice.

“Stop rushing me! I’m looking!” Cheng Wanyue snapped irritably. She was very agitated, having turned the entire room upside down in her search, as if it had been ransacked by thieves.

Cheng Wanyue continued muttering while searching for the helmet. The door was open, so Chi Yue could hear her, and naturally, so could Qing Hang.

He had taken a two-hour leave to come here, but buying flowers alone had taken over half an hour.

After getting out of the elevator and seeing Chi Yue in the corridor, he thought perhaps he shouldn’t have come.

But now, with her voice faintly reaching his ears, he thought that even if they only had a minute together, it would be worth it.

“Finally found it,” Cheng Wanyue said, carrying the helmet out and thrusting it into Chi Yue’s hands. “I haven’t used it, but you’d better check it. If there’s any problem, find me again, but I’m not free today, nor tomorrow…”

Before she could finish, she froze.

One second her foot was still on the non-slip mat at the doorway, the next she was running to Qing Hang, one of her slippers flying off in the process.

Qing Hang had smoked many cigarettes last night and today as well. Before coming, he had only taken a quick shower at the department. Cheng Wanyue was very sensitive to cigarette smell, but her mind was so preoccupied with him that she didn’t notice.

“Who told you to run around? If you’re injured, you should stay in the hospital. You’re a doctor yourself, how can you be such a disobedient patient?” Cheng Wanyue felt him all over from bottom to top. “Legs are still there, hands too. Thank goodness, just a little scrape. Face is fine. What about the head? Your brain wasn’t damaged in the crash, was it?”

She cupped Qing Hang’s face with both hands, standing very close to him. He could see that her eyes were still a bit swollen.

Yan Ci had said she cried for a long time.

She wasn’t wearing shoes, so Qing Hang lowered his head slightly to match her height. “It wasn’t a car accident, just a rear-end collision.”

The air suddenly fell into an extremely awkward silence.

Meiqiu came out from the living room and meowed softly a couple of times. Chi Yue, who was allergic to pollen, coughed more severely than before. Meiqiu was startled, and Cheng Wanyue came back to her senses.

She stepped back twice, glared at Qing Hang, turned around to pick up Meiqiu, went inside, and slammed the door shut.

Perhaps Chi Yue realized he was superfluous at this moment, or the pollen was making him uncomfortable—he left without saying goodbye to Cheng Wanyue. As he passed by Qing Hang, he raised an eyebrow and smiled ambiguously.

It was either a challenge or a silent declaration of war.

At his carefree age, he carried an untamed, competitive spirit.

Qing Hang knew there was a security monitor inside, and Cheng Wanyue could see everything in the hallway. He didn’t knock on the door. “Cheng Wanyue.”

The corridor was quiet.

He lowered his voice. “Wanyue, I was wrong.”

After a while, the door opened a crack, and she held out his phone.

“Catch it before I throw it,” she waved her arm, and the phone screen lit up.

Qing Hang noticed the phone’s wallpaper wasn’t the previous photo. She had changed it to a new one—in the new wallpaper, she was holding Meiqiu in her arms.

Instead of taking the phone, he grasped her hand. “Yesterday, I shouldn’t have left you there alone. My attitude was bad, and I didn’t explain clearly.”

Cheng Wanyue stood behind the door, turning her head to glance at the security monitor. “I haven’t forgiven you!”

“I understand,” Qing Hang knew she was still angry. “I can’t stay long. I need to get back to the hospital before five. Tomorrow… or the day after, I’ll come again.”

“I’m not talking to you anyway, so why come?” She struggled slightly, but his grip was firm, and she couldn’t break free.

Qing Hang said, “Even if you don’t talk to me, I’ll still come.”

“…Don’t come tomorrow.”

He looked as though he hadn’t slept all night.

Cheng Wanyue added, “Don’t come the day after tomorrow either.”

“Alright,” Qing Hang would nod to any of her requests. “Then I’ll leave the flowers here.”

Cheng Wanyue felt embarrassed, remembering her earlier behavior. It was bad enough that outsiders had seen it, but it was also recorded by the security camera. “No, take them away.”

“My arm hurts, I can’t carry them anymore,” Qing Hang placed the flowers at the doorway and took his phone from her hand.

Cheng Wanyue watched him enter the elevator on the monitor, then waited a while before opening the door to bring the flowers inside. They were different from the last bouquet—the fragrance was more intense.

She deleted the security footage. Cheng Yanqing wouldn’t check the monitors without reason, but when he returned from work and found roses in the house, he guessed that Qing Hang had visited.

…

Cheng Wanyue wouldn’t let Qing Hang come see her, so he didn’t go for these two days, but he would find time to send her messages.

Each time, she only replied with a few words or just an emoji. The one she used most frequently was the animated GIF of the yellow Teletubbies on a swing.

The more physically exhausted he was, the more absurd his dreams became.

As soon as he turned off the lights and lay in bed, he would constantly think of her, of their first time together. He remembered her every expression and every soft moan. He had made her angry, made her cry, and in his dreams, she tormented him even more intensely.

Despite working overtime late into the night and having to go to the hospital early in the morning, with very little time to sleep, why did each night still feel so long?

But strangely, after Cheng Wanyue had slept in this bed, he never suffered from insomnia again.

Even sleeping only four or five hours, he could work normally the next day.

After a meeting, everyone was eating lunch in the conference room, including Director Li, who ate from a lunchbox just like them.

Qing Hang stayed until the end to clean up the table. Director Li was quite approachable in private and would occasionally joke. Although he had promised Li Yu not to interfere in her affairs, what parent doesn’t care about their daughter’s relationship? He couldn’t see anything special between Qing Hang and Li Yu, and Li Yu had never talked about it in front of them, so he wanted to test the waters with Qing Hang.

“Qing Hang, when young people have stable jobs, they should gradually start thinking about love. Your parents have passed away, so there’s no one to worry about these things for you. Let me nag a bit.”

Qing Hang prepared tea and handed it to Director Li with both hands. “Thank you for your concern, Director. I have someone I like, have liked for many years. Without her, I would have no love.”

Director Li was surprised.

In his experience, Qing Hang was flawless at work. Even the most demanding patients could be handled by Qing Hang, who had also interned in his department during graduate school.

During rounds, he habitually asked a few questions. Students who hadn’t graduated yet inevitably experienced nervousness, stumbling, unfamiliarity with theoretical knowledge, and inability to answer. But Qing Hang always stood at the front. He dared to answer what others didn’t dare to. He wasn’t proud when he answered correctly, nor timid when he answered incorrectly—neither arrogant nor servile, but humbly seeking guidance. After formally starting work at the hospital, he became more excellent with each passing day.

Qing Hang’s personality was well-suited to being a doctor, but in personal life, he seemed somewhat uninteresting.

Not just Director Li, but other colleagues in the department saw Qing Hang this way.

So Director Li hadn’t expected him to so directly express that he had someone dear to his heart.

“Some time ago, I was thinking of introducing my niece to you. I didn’t know you already had a girl you admired,” Director Li smiled. Li Yu and Qing Hang had indeed known each other for many years. Background wasn’t the most important thing, but it was often the biggest issue in a relationship. “Fortunately, this old-fashioned man didn’t try to play matchmaker.”

Qing Hang said seriously, “It’s my good fortune that you care about me, Director.”

For someone who had never been favored, even a little extra care and goodwill from others would be remembered for a long time.

“Take it slow, don’t rush. Step by step builds a solid foundation for an unshakable future,” Director Li patted Qing Hang’s shoulder. “Come to our home for dinner sometime; my wife’s cooking is quite good.”

This month, he had noticed that Qing Hang had become somewhat impatient.

But Director Li didn’t know that Qing Hang just wanted to give Cheng Wanyue as much as he could. Right now, he had nothing—no car, his apartment was rented, and nice things were expensive. She didn’t lack love, but if he couldn’t give her better, he would only make her suffer.

Zhou Heng was still at the outpatient clinic. He got off work earlier than Qing Hang. Xu Qian came to the hospital to find him and invited Qing Hang to join them for dinner.

Whenever they ate in the cafeteria, regardless of how the food tasted, Qing Hang would always clean his plate completely. Xu Qian admired him for this.

“Qing Hang, you’re off tomorrow, right?” Zhou Heng showed Qing Hang photos on his phone. “Isn’t the environment nice? It’s not too far, convenient to drive to. Many people go camping there. We were thinking of renting a barbecue grill and spending the day there.”

Qing Hang rarely had a day off. “You two go ahead. I have other plans.”

“Wanyue has agreed to come with us,” Xu Qian had been watching Qing Hang before speaking, and noticed his expression change when he heard Wanyue’s name. “Qing Hang, if it’s not something urgent, come with us. You can leave early if needed.”

Qing Hang nodded. “Alright.”

Zhou Heng was stunned. “What does this mean? I couldn’t persuade you, but Xu Qian did it in just a few words?”

Qing Hang’s expression remained unchanged. “I’ve never been there before. I’d like to check it out.”