The door opened, revealing the warm yellow glow of the bedside lamp.
The room had light-colored wooden flooring, with a large bed positioned near the window. The warm white curtains were only half drawn, and through the glass, several night lamps could be seen glowing quietly in the courtyard outside.
A wardrobe, desk, sofa, and private bathroom were all provided.
To Chen Xu, this was merely a guest room that normally sat empty.
Yet Lin Wansu stood frozen at the doorway for a long time.
In truth, she had already begun feeling uneasy the moment the elevator doors opened.
Something had felt strange even when she was in the underground examination room. At first, she hadn’t understood the situation and had foolishly assumed that this was some kind of hospital. It wasn’t until she saw how respectfully the doctors treated Chen Xu, until the housekeeper brought over daily necessities, and until she entered the elevator that she belatedly realized just how unusual everything was.
‘They even have an elevator inside their house?’
Lin Wansu felt as though her brain was about to overload.
This bedroom alone was more than twice the size of the entire apartment she rented with her younger sister.
The spotless white bedsheets didn’t have a single visible wrinkle. The carpet beside the bed was thick and soft, and even the mirror in the bathroom was nearly as wide as the bathroom door in their rented apartment.
“Don’t like it?” Chen Xu asked.
“No.” Lin Wansu hurriedly shook her head. “It’s just… too nice.”
It was so nice that she couldn’t find the words to describe it. So nice that she wasn’t even sure whether she should step inside.
After hesitating for a moment, she asked, “Should I put on shoe covers or something? I’m afraid I’ll make the room dirty.”
Chen Xu immediately frowned. “If the floor gets dirty, someone will clean it. If the bedsheets get dirty, we’ll replace them.”
After a brief pause, he took Lin Wansu’s small hand and gently patted the back of it. “Right now, you only need to take care of yourself. Don’t worry about anything else. If you need something, call me. I’ll be right next door.”
Lin Wansu’s face flushed. She instinctively pulled her hand back and softly murmured, “Mm.”
Only then did she follow the nurse into the room.
Warm water had already been prepared in the bathroom, and a brand-new pair of pink slippers sat neatly by the entrance.
Considering that she had just survived a fire, the doctor advised against soaking in a bath and told her to simply rinse the soot from her body.
The female nurse adjusted the water temperature and placed a stool beside the nonslip mat in case Lin Wansu suddenly became too weak to remain standing halfway through her shower.
Chen Xu had originally intended to return to his own room, but he stopped at the doorway. “Can you shower by yourself?”
Lin Wansu hugged the bathrobe against herself, and her cheeks instantly turned red. “I can.”
“Are you sure?”
“I really can.”
Seeing even her neck beginning to turn red, Chen Xu finally realized that his question sounded somewhat inappropriate. His own ears grew warm as well. “It’s not like I said I was going in there to help you.”
“I know…”
“The nurse and Aunt Zhang will both be outside. If you feel dizzy, call someone immediately. Don’t force yourself.”
“Don’t lock the bathroom door.”
“Mm.”
“And don’t stay in there too long.”
Lin Wansu hugged the pajamas tighter against her chest and nodded seriously. “I understand.”
Only then did Chen Xu allow the nurse to wheel him away.
After the bedroom door closed, Lin Wansu entered the bathroom.
Warm water streamed over her skin, gradually washing away the soot clinging to her body before carrying it down toward the drain at her feet.
She lowered her head and looked at the injuries covering her body.
Dark bruises spread across her arms and waist, while the full-length mirror revealed even more severe marks across her back.
Some had been inflicted by He Man and the others today, while others had been there for a long time.
Yet the image clearest in her mind at that moment was the large injury on Chen Xu’s back where the doorframe had struck him.
When he rushed into the burning warehouse, he must have been afraid too. He must have felt pain.
Yet from the moment he rescued her until now, the thing he had asked about most was whether she was all right.
‘What could I possibly do to repay him for caring about me like this?’
Lin Wansu closed her eyes and allowed the water to stream down her cheeks. Her tears blended into the warm water until even she could no longer tell whether she was crying.
Outside the room, Chen Xu did not immediately return to his bedroom.
He had the nurse park his wheelchair beside the corridor and leaned back against it as he waited. After thinking for a moment, he turned toward the housekeeper.
“Prepare a glass of warm water, and have the kitchen make some light porridge. She definitely hasn’t eaten tonight.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“Don’t make too much. She can’t handle anything greasy right now.”
“Understood.”
The housekeeper turned and left, unable to suppress the faint smile that appeared on her face.
She had worked for the Chen family for many years, yet this was the first time she had ever seen the Young Master care so much about a girl.
In fact, whether it was the housekeepers or the doctors, after working for the Chen family for so many years, they had long since become experts at reading the room.
For example, back in the examination room, Han Zheng and Dr. Zhou could easily have asked the nurse to take Chen Xu somewhere else to treat his injuries. Instead, they deliberately treated him right in front of Lin Wansu so that she could clearly see just how badly Chen Xu had been hurt for her sake.
Otherwise, who was supposed to see all the injuries Chen Xu had suffered while heroically rescuing a beauty? His father?
Chen Xu might not care whether Lin Wansu repaid him or felt grateful, but Han Zheng and the others couldn’t simply ignore it.
Since the Young Master appeared to be interested in Lin Wansu, they naturally didn’t mind giving things a little push in the right direction.
More than 10 minutes later, the sound of running water from the bathroom finally stopped. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
Lin Wansu dried herself, changed into the clean white pajamas, and opened the bathroom door.
Hearing the movement, Chen Xu knocked on the bedroom door from outside.
When the door opened, an entirely different Lin Wansu appeared before him.
The loose clothes still hung somewhat emptily on her body, making her slender figure look even more delicate. Her damp, long hair clung to the sides of her face, and after the soot had been washed away, it revealed a delicate and gentle face.
Lin Wansu’s features were naturally soft. Her clear almond-shaped eyes were pure and bright, her nose was small and delicate, and although her pale lips had little color, none of it diminished the gentle warmth about her that made people instinctively soften toward her.
A brand-new pair of pink slippers covered her feet. Their surface was soft and spotless. The hot water had left a faint pink flush across the fair skin of her feet, and her toes curled slightly as though they weren’t accustomed to the softness of the slippers. A few droplets of water she hadn’t dried slid down her slender ankles and fell onto the edges of the slippers.
Chen Xu stared blankly for a moment.
The original novel hadn’t spent much time describing Lin Wansu’s appearance. It had only mentioned that she and her younger sister looked almost identical.
Later, countless people called Lin Wanning the most beautiful woman in Jiangnan Province.
Looking at Lin Wansu now, Chen Xu realized that description hadn’t been exaggerated at all.
Lin Wansu grew uncomfortable beneath his stare. She lowered her head to look at her feet and couldn’t help asking, “Is there something dirty on my feet?”
“No.”
Chen Xu immediately looked away and changed the subject. “Why is your hair still wet?”
“I dried it with a towel.”
“You call that dry?”
Lin Wansu didn’t dare argue and could only remain standing where she was.
Chen Xu watched the water continuously dripping from the ends of her hair. Then, noticing how she still refused to approach the bed, he immediately understood the reason.
“Don’t tell me you’re afraid you’ll get the bedsheets wet.”
With her thoughts exposed, Lin Wansu gently bit her lip. “If I sit for a while, it’ll dry on its own.”
“Sit there until morning?”
Chen Xu gestured for the nurse to push his wheelchair over to the dressing table, then asked the housekeeper to bring over a hair dryer.
“Come here.”
Lin Wansu hesitated before walking over to him.
“Sit down.”
“I can dry it myself,” Lin Wansu said softly, reaching out to take the hair dryer.
She didn’t want to trouble Chen Xu any further. He had already done far too much for her.
Chen Xu glanced at her but didn’t insist. Instead, he simply handed the hair dryer to her.