Volume 1 Сhаpter 20: Рrelude tо thе Ваttlе оf the Suitоrs
“Lа-lа-la~”
Jiаng Xining wаlked briskly dоwn thе hosрital соrridоr, holding а lunсhboх in hеr аrms.
Wеn Мingzhu wаlkеd besidе her, tеаsing, “So happу—did yоu win the lоttеrу?”
Аctuallу, it wasn’t that shе wаntеd tо cоme. It wаs mainly bесаusе, in thе entirе family, she wаs thе оnlу оne who had sееn thrоugh Fu Huаixu’s “wоlfish ambitions.” Jiаоjiао was toо nаive, and if shе didn’t keeр аn еуe оn things, shе was afraid something might go wrong.
Just аs Jiang Хining wаs аbоut tо spеak, she seеmed tо remеmber sоmething, her bright eyes sparkling.
“Of course I’m happy—Xingxing is being discharged today!”
Xingxing said she couldn’t tell anyone, and she was obedient—she wouldn’t say a word.
“Your birthday is in a couple of days. Has Fu Jinghao done anything special?” Wen Mingzhu had a reason for asking this. Last year, on Jiang Xining’s birthday, Fu Jinghao happened to be away on a business trip.
She had looked forward to it all day and night, but in the end, he had been so busy that he completely forgot—not even a birthday wish.
If it weren’t for Fu Huaixu sending a gift from abroad on time, this poor thing would probably have been heartbroken.
In previous years, it seemed there had been similar delays for one reason or another.
Wen Mingzhu felt it wasn’t a matter of being busy or not—ultimately, it was just a lack of care, worse than any of her ex-boyfriends. So, she didn’t have much fondness for that guy.
Jiang Xining thought for a moment, “Dou Dou said he prepared a surprise for me.”
Wen Mingzhu didn’t comment.
Not bad—at least he remembered to send a surprise this year.
The SVIP wards were on the top floor of the inpatient building. As soon as the two stepped out of the elevator, two boys around eight or nine years old came running down the hallway, roughhousing without looking where they were going and cursing loudly. They were about to crash into a doctor coming around the corner.
Jiang Xining instinctively stepped aside but quickly moved forward, bravely shielding the doctor.
Her sister had told her that when she was outside, as long as she ensured her own safety, she could try to help others more.
The boy’s body, like a firecracker, slammed into Jiang Xining, and the lunchbox pressed against her stomach, causing her to stagger back a couple of steps.
Wen Mingzhu’s expression changed, “Jiaojiao, are you okay?”
The SVIP floor was spacious and quiet. Aside from doctors making their rounds, few outsiders ever set foot there. The hallway entrance actually had a glass door installed, requiring a card to enter.
It was just that these days, it was under maintenance. No one had expected this little incident to happen.
Su Qianxun quickly put away the medical records and supported Jiang Xining, “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
The child had clearly been heading straight for her. She had been walking hurriedly, momentarily distracted, and hadn’t seen him.
Jiang Xining looked down at the lunchbox—Xingxing’s breakfast hadn’t spilled. She breathed a sigh of relief.
“I’m fine, I’m fine! It doesn’t hurt at all.”
Jiang Xining patted her stomach, a particularly relieved, childlike smile spreading across her face. “Dr. Su, I’m okay!”
“You know me?” Su Qianxun was slightly surprised.
Jiang Xining pointed to her name tag, reading it out slowly, “Su, Qian, Xun. I can read, you know.”
Her appearance was stunningly beautiful, almost bewitching, but her movements and demeanor held a touch of childlike innocence. Su Qianxun noticed this but didn’t say anything.
“Thank you.”
Jiang Xining proudly waved her hand like a little seal, “It was nothing~”
Su Qianxun turned to face the “culprits,” inevitably feeling annoyed. “No loud noises are allowed in the hospital. Whose children are you? Why are you running around?”
Doctors and teachers seemed to have a natural air of authority in the eyes of children, especially Su Qianxun, who carried an aloof presence and spoke with not a trace of warmth.The two children were the apples of their parents’ eyes at home, never having been treated like this before. Pouting, they were on the verge of tears.
Su Qianxun had a deep-seated aversion to children, ingrained in her DNA—especially to such unruly brats lacking discipline.
It almost reminded her of the “good old days” she had endured since childhood. Whenever Su Tianyou opened his mouth to wail, no matter the reason, what followed for her were curses and beatings.
“No crying.”
The words had no effect.
The shorter one glanced at her reaction and burst into tears, “Waaah—I want Mommy!”
“You bad woman, who are you to tell me what to do? I’ll cry if I want to, waaah!!”
Wen Mingzhu was the first to cover her ears; otherwise, she might have been tempted to slap them.
Having worked a night shift, she was already exhausted, and now she had to deal with this. Su Qianxun’s already limited patience had run out.
“I said, no crying.”
Her words were as cold as the biting wind blowing in from Siberia, not to mention the disgust in her eyes. Children of eight or nine were already adept at reading people’s expressions. Realizing she wouldn’t indulge them, the two trembled all over, not daring to wail anymore.
What a way to start the morning. Su Qianxun dialed the internal line, asking the nurse to check the surveillance and return these brats to their parents.
If this had happened a few years earlier, her attitude would not have been this mild.
The soundproofing here was good, but nothing was absolute. If she accidentally offended someone, the blame would cascade down to a whole chain of people.
“Dr. Su, I’m so sorry, it was my oversight…” The nurse who hurried up felt as if the sky had fallen when she saw the scene.
Though Su Qianxun was relatively young among the doctors, she had been hired at a high price by the hospital director from abroad. Her resume was so outstanding it seemed almost inhuman. Not long after joining the hospital, she handled a complex surgery that had troubled other department heads in cardiothoracic surgery for over half a month.
Only she dared to do it, and only she could do it. Everyone was genuinely impressed.
Geniuses often had their quirks, and Dr. Su was no exception. She visibly disliked all boys under the age of fifteen, equally and unmistakably.
The nurse quickly escorted the two children away.
Honestly, if they had stayed any longer, she couldn’t guarantee what might have happened.
HPCAT Hospital could afford to lose a couple of patients, but it absolutely could not afford to lose Su Qianxun.
With peace restored in her line of sight, Su Qianxun’s expression softened slightly. “Thank you for today.”
Jiang Xining didn’t like mischievous children either—they were noisy, rowdy, and would call her stupid. Although she never saw them at home again afterward, it left a deep psychological scar.
Now, seeing the naughty children being scolded into stunned silence, though it wasn’t exactly kind, she felt a little happy.
“You’re amazing!” she said in an admiring tone, her eyes sparkling.
Su Qianxun couldn’t help but chuckle.
If any other doctor had behaved like this, they wouldn’t be considered qualified.
But it didn’t matter. She had never cared about such things. From a very young age, she understood that as long as you reached the top of any profession, you could effortlessly gain privileges that seemed impossible.
If men could do it, why couldn’t she?
“Here’s my business card. If you need anything, you can come find me.”
Su Qianxun glanced at the time. “It’s time for me to finish my night shift. Maybe we’ll meet again someday.”
Jiang Xining only then noticed it was almost nine o’clock and hurriedly said, “I need to go deliver food to Xingxing too. Goodbye, Dr. Su!”
She didn’t allow Xingxing to order takeout, and since breakfast hadn’t been delivered, he must be starving.Su Qianxun went downstairs, while Jiang Xining and Wen Mingzhu headed toward the ward. Just as they were about to reach the door, she unexpectedly caught sight of a familiar figure in a hurry and couldn’t help but exclaim.
“Dou Dou?”
Recognizing it was Fu Jinghao, Jiang Xining instinctively hid the lunchbox behind her back. “What are you doing here?”
Hearing her voice, Fu Jinghao paused his steps as he was about to go downstairs.
Turning around, his eyes met Jiang Xining’s. For a moment, his gaze flickered with panic, but he quickly composed himself.
“What are you doing here, Jiao Jiao?”
Jiang Xining pouted and hummed, “I asked you first.”
Fu Jinghao stopped a few steps away from Jiang Xining, his eyes shifting. “An elder of a friend is hospitalized. I came to visit.”
That was the same as her.
Jiang Xining blinked at Fu Jinghao, her eyes full of anticipation. “Is there anything you want to say to me?”
Fu Jinghao didn’t immediately follow her train of thought. “Say what?”
Jiang Xining felt a little disappointed. Dou Dou clearly had no intention of apologizing to her.
“Now it’s my turn to ask you. Why are you at the hospital too, Jiao Jiao?” Fu Jinghao glanced at the lunchbox behind her. “Also visiting a friend?”
“I, I…” Jiang Xining hesitated, unsure whether she should say.
Dou Dou seemed to dislike her spending time alone with Xingxing and had even asked her to call him “little uncle,” but she didn’t like that title.
Suddenly, the door to the ward diagonally behind them opened, and Fu Huaixu’s voice came through.
“Jiaojiao, who are you talking to?”