Later, she no longer remembered him, but he couldn’t quit the habit.

Sheng Sui was shocked into speechlessness for a long time, frozen in place.

Both ends of the call fell silent. After a while, the man chuckled lowly: “You sound very surprised.”

After speaking, suppressed coughing sounds arose. Sheng Sui instinctively looked over and saw Zhou Shiyu slightly turn his head, holding his phone away so she wouldn’t hear.

As if awakening from a dream, she quickly walked toward the corner where the man sat. Standing in front of him, she blurted out: “I have a blanket here. Do you want to put it on?”

After speaking, she handed over the cream-colored thick blanket in her hands.

Zhou Shiyu was slightly stunned. He looked up to meet her eyes and suddenly frowned, as if in disbelief. His injured right hand touched the blanket as he murmured to himself: “…It’s real.”

“Yes, not a hallucination,” Sheng Sui sat down beside the man. “My brother is sick and needs care. I went home to get the blanket.”

In the brief seconds of speaking, Zhou Shiyu had already collected his emotions, returning to the composure Sheng Sui was familiar with. He didn’t presumptuously ask why she appeared here.

Sheng Sui didn’t want to discuss family matters either. Knowing that high fevers caused chills, she spread out the blanket in her hands and leaned over to cover Zhou Shiyu properly.

“Wait a moment.”

Zhou Shiyu’s gaze swept over her thin outer shirt. He picked up the black windbreaker covering his front and handed it over with a slight smile: “I’ll use your blanket, you wear my coat—fair exchange.”

Sheng Sui didn’t argue with someone who was ill. After carefully covering the man with the blanket, she put on the coat and sat down next to him.

Rather than go back to face her mother, she preferred to stay here and care for Zhou Shiyu. At least she didn’t have to be cautious about everything.

While lost in thought, Zhou Shiyu took out a small wooden box from his pocket, placing what he had planned as tomorrow’s excuse to see her beside Sheng Sui:

“Birthday gift. I forgot to give it to you during dinner.”

Sheng Sui took the wooden box and opened it, looking down at the red cord bracelet lying quietly at the bottom. A small wooden bead hung from the end, engraved with the four characters “joy and health,” as if purchased from a temple.

“It’s not expensive,” Zhou Shiyu once again saw through her thoughts and spoke first: “If it’s really a burden, I’d be very happy if you gave me a matching one.”

“…Thank you.”

Sheng Sui picked up the bracelet to examine it carefully. Remembering how the man had also wished her “joy and health” on the phone, she suddenly smiled.

Zhou Shiyu asked what she was laughing about.

“I thought you businesspeople would have a different set of blessing phrases.”

Sheng Sui was amused by her own stereotypes, shallow dimples appearing at the corners of her lips: “Like ‘rolling in wealth’ or ‘instant riches’ and such.”

Zhou Shiyu removed his mask, revealing his striking features. The flush on his pale skin was quite alluring upon closer inspection, his voice low and husky:

“Health and happiness are the best blessings I can think of.”

“Besides,” he paused deliberately, waiting for Sheng Sui to look up before continuing, “I’m already very wealthy, so those blessings don’t mean much.”

“……”

Such a capitalist tone.

Seeing Zhou Shiyu could still joke, Sheng Sui’s worried heart settled slightly.

The IV bag was almost empty. After slowing the drip rate, she got up to find a nurse to change the medication and borrowed a thermometer. When she saw the numbers on the screen, her eyelid couldn’t help but twitch.

39.6 degrees—even higher than Xu Yanze’s temperature when he was brought to the hospital.

She couldn’t imagine that the person receiving IV treatment now was the same one who had been chatting and laughing with her during dinner. She couldn’t help saying: “…You’re not feeling well. We could have met another day.”

Seeing him persist despite illness made her feel guilty.

“That would increase the possibility of you changing your mind,” Zhou Shiyu stared intently at the woman’s worried expression, his smile deepening: “I don’t like taking risks.”

A benchmark figure in venture capital saying he didn’t like taking risks—faced with the contradiction between the man’s identity and words, Sheng Sui just assumed Zhou Shiyu was delirious from fever and quietly sat down beside him.

Her mother soon called.

“Have you arrived? Was everything okay on the road?”

“I’m fine. I’ve reached the hospital,” Sheng Sui turned sideways and lowered her voice, not wanting Zhou Shiyu to hear the conversation: “…I’m keeping a friend company.”

Probably still feeling guilty, Yu Xuemei only reminded her to be safe: “Yanze will finish his IV soon. Come over when you’re done with your business.”

“Okay.”

After hanging up, Sheng Sui knew she had no more reason to stay. She took off the coat to return it: “Keep the blanket for now. I’m not in a hurry—”

Before she finished speaking, a burning slender hand grasped her wrist. Zhou Shiyu’s sword-like brows furrowed slightly as he refused to take the coat: “I think borrowed items should be returned on the spot.”

Was he going to return her blanket? Sheng Sui was puzzled.

The hand around her wrist was very gentle—she could easily break free with a light struggle.

Sheng Sui didn’t move. She looked down at the man’s deep, dark eyes looking up at her in his feverish state, with unfathomable emotions churning like an abyss.

“What I mean is,” Zhou Shiyu frowned and pondered silently. After a few seconds of pause, he asked in a low, hoarse voice:

“Teacher Sheng, could you stay and keep me company?”

Sheng Sui didn’t hesitate: “Okay.”

Zhou Shiyu had helped her many times, and tonight he had kept their appointment despite being ill. Both emotionally and logically, she should stay to care for the patient.

Compared to being cared for, Sheng Sui was obviously more accustomed to the role of caregiver. She raised her hand to point toward the center of the main hall: “I’ll be over there. If you feel uncomfortable, you can call me anytime. I’ll come over when I’m done.”

Sheng Sui’s wrist was still being held, her skin clearly feeling the man’s burning temperature. She bent down, using one hand to properly cover Zhou Shiyu with the blanket and coat.

“You wear the coat.”

Zhou Shiyu sat up straight on the long bench. The moment he leaned forward closed the distance, his thin lips stopped by Sheng Sui’s ear, his breath falling particularly hot due to the high fever:

“If Teacher Sheng gets sick from taking care of me, I’ll probably pester you out of guilt for a very long time.”

The man’s word choice was ambiguous, his seductive low voice completely unlike his usual elegant demeanor. Sheng Sui felt her ears burning and couldn’t help backing away slightly, saying tactfully:

“Mr. Zhou, I’ve noticed that sometimes you’re a bit, a bit—”

“Frivolous in words and actions?” Zhou Shiyu helpfully supplied.

“……”

Seeing her tacit agreement, Zhou Shiyu wasn’t annoyed but instead curved his lips in a smile. From the corner of his eye, he saw Sheng Sui’s pink ear tips—no longer the distant awe of their first meeting. Though her watery eyes held some embarrassed annoyance, they were more lively and bright.

He could see that Sheng Sui no longer guarded against him. When she wore his coat to see her mother and brother, she didn’t even think about the implications.

Sheng Sui indeed hadn’t thought of it, nor had she expected her mother’s strong reaction.

Yu Xuemei looked at the men’s coat she was wearing and said in shock: “This coat—is it from that friend you mentioned on the phone?”

“Yes,” after confirming her brother’s fever had broken, Sheng Sui was worried about leaving Zhou Shiyu alone: “I’ll call a car for you to go home.”

The emergency room was bustling with people coming and going. Yu Xuemei couldn’t find the so-called “friend” for a long time. Before getting in the car, she asked: “Is that person the one you mentioned you were ‘getting to know’ last time? How is he?”

“He’s very good,” Sheng Sui didn’t want her mother to interfere again: “You don’t need to worry. Go home and rest quickly.”

Watching the car drive away in the distance, Sheng Sui felt completely relaxed on her way back.

Returning to the emergency room, she immediately spotted Zhou Shiyu looking at his phone for work.

The man had put his black mask back on, looking down as he replied to emails. He ignored the continuous gazes from young girls around him, and even when the blushing young nurses showed enthusiastic concern, he remained indifferent with downcast eyes, exuding an aura of coldness.

This was completely different from his gentle demeanor when he had leaned over to speak with her just minutes ago.

The contrast reminded Sheng Sui of their first meeting—the man always appeared noble and aloof from a distance, but was actually warm and considerate upon contact, even somewhat unrestrained and roguish in private.

Sensing her gaze, Zhou Shiyu put down his black phone and smiled at her, the distant coldness melting away like glaciers, his dark eyes behind the glasses giving off a spring-like warmth.

Sheng Sui walked forward and asked: “Are you feeling better?”

“I’m fine now,” Zhou Shiyu removed his mask. Seeing her face return to a healthy flush from its previous frozen pallor, his eyes softened: “Did auntie go back?”

“Just left.”

Sheng Sui didn’t believe his words. She borrowed a thermometer to check—sure enough, the numbers had risen instead of falling. She said helplessly: “Why don’t you sleep for a while? Don’t push yourself too hard.”

“Okay.”

Zhou Shiyu was too tall. The space between his seat and the front row was narrow, leaving no room for his long legs to stretch. He had to change positions shortly after closing his eyes, his handsome brows furrowing lightly.

Wanting him to sleep more comfortably, Sheng Sui moved closer to the man, sitting up straight and raising her shoulder. She said softly: “If you’re uncomfortable, lean on my shoulder.”

Zhou Shiyu didn’t act coy. He rested his head on her shoulder, then after a while took out candy from his pocket and asked: “Want some?”

Two flat, round hard candies lay quietly in his palm, wrapped in transparent colored paper—the fruit candies Sheng Sui used to eat most often before getting diabetes.

When she was young, her pocket money was limited. These were the cheapest candies in the supermarket—she could buy a whole bag for one yuan.

Later when she grew up, she learned these candies were full of artificial coloring and mostly poor quality, so she stopped eating them.

Moreover, as conditions improved, cheap fruit candies were gradually replaced. They were now hard to find in the market—you’d have to specifically look for them if you wanted some.

Zhou Shiyu actually carried this type of candy with him.

Sheng Sui thanked him and took a candy, looking down at the man unwrapping his and eating it. She couldn’t help being curious: “Do you really like the taste of this candy?”

From her angle looking down, the man still had his eyes closed. After several seconds of silence, a slight curve appeared at the corner of his lips: “When I was sixteen and hospitalized, someone gave me a piece of fruit candy.”

That was thirteen years ago, Sheng Sui calculated silently: “And then?”

Zhou Shiyu didn’t reply this time.

It wasn’t until much time had passed—when Sheng Sui thought the man had long fallen asleep—that she heard a low, unclear murmur by her ear:

“…Later, she didn’t remember me anymore.”

But he couldn’t quit the habit.