Cheng Simian didn’t know when she fell asleep. When she woke up, daylight filled the room. Her arm had already been treated—wrapped in a cast, completely immobile.
The ward door opened, and she saw Su Xianyan walk in carrying a bag.
“You’re awake?” He set the bag down and took a seat.
She hummed softly and tried to sit up. Su Xianyan pressed a hand to her shoulder, signaling her not to move, then raised the head of the bed.
“You must be hungry. Eat first.”
She glanced at his clothes. She remembered clearly—he’d been wearing the same outfit last night.
Had he stayed at the hospital all night?
“Did you not sleep all night?”
Lowering his gaze, Su Xianyan opened the food container. “I slept a little on the sofa.”
“The sofa?” Cheng Simian looked to the side. The sofa in the ward was only big enough to sit on. “Here?”
“Mm.” He handed her a spoon. “Both you and Cha Yiguan were in the hospital. Someone had to stay.”
She slowly tightened her grip on the spoon, her heart filled with both gratitude and happiness.
“That must’ve been really uncomfortable. Remember to go back and rest later.”
Su Xianyan looked at her, then lightly tapped her forehead.
“Stop worrying about others and take care of yourself first. Cheng Simian, how could you go to a place like that alone?”
“I told you though…” she muttered. Besides, she had never thought going to bars or clubs was a big deal—despite being underage, she’d gone before.
“If you notified me, you should’ve waited for me—not rushed in alone,” he said disapprovingly.
“And you still dared to help Cha Yiguan? Fighting? With your tiny frame, how could you take on those people?”
“Then what was I supposed to do?” she grumbled.
“I couldn’t just watch Cha Yiguan get beaten to death.”
Su Xianyan stared at her, clearly dissatisfied.
She coughed lightly and tactfully changed the subject.
“Oh, right—where’s Cha Yiguan?”
“Next door.”
“Is he badly hurt?”
“Thick skin, tough bones. He’s fine,” Su Xianyan replied. “You, on the other hand, have a fracture.”
“…Oh.”
“I’ve already told your uncle about this,” he added.
“What?!” Cheng Simian’s eyes widened.
“How could you tell my uncle?! He’s definitely going to scold me to death!”
“And you’re afraid of being scolded?” Su Xianyan sighed.
“With your condition, I wouldn’t know how to explain it to him otherwise.”
She pouted and muttered, “There’s no need to explain anything to him anyway…”
“Enough. Eat first.”
“Oh…”
Her right hand was injured, so she could only use her left. Scooping food unsteadily, she failed three times trying to pick up a piece of meat. Frustrated, she tossed the spoon aside.
“Tsk. Annoying.”
Su Xianyan had been looking at his phone and hadn’t noticed her struggle. He looked up in confusion.
“What’s wrong? Don’t like the food?”
“How am I supposed to eat with my left hand?” she complained.
She had been sulking, but when her eyes met his, they suddenly lit up—an idea flashed through her mind.
A trace of mischief flickered in her gaze as her expression instantly turned pitiful.
“Su Xianyan, I’m starving… I really want to eat…”
“And?” he asked.
“But I’m not left-handed,” she said, blinking her big eyes at him.
“So… help me, okay?”
Those clear, pleading eyes—tinged with a girl’s natural, gentle allure—made Su Xianyan pause. He calmly looked away and asked,
“You really can’t eat?”
“Yeah, yeah. Look—my right hand can’t move…”
“Then… will you feed me?”
He looked at her. Her eyes were full of hope. He shook his head helplessly with a soft laugh.
“You little troublemaker…”
Even so, he picked up a pair of chopsticks.
“You eat the rice yourself. I’ll pick the dishes for you.”
She nodded furiously and hurriedly picked up her spoon.
For some reason—maybe because Su Xianyan was picking the food—Cheng Simian felt that this meal tasted unbelievably good.
“I want this bacon.”
“Meat—ah, not fatty meat.”
Su Xianyan: “This piece?”
“Mm, mm.”
…
“One more piece of meat.”
Seeing that she had already wiped out most of the braised pork, Su Xianyan ignored her request and instead picked up some vegetables.
“Eat this.”
Cheng Simian lost her appetite the moment she saw the bright green vegetables.
“I want to eat meat.”
“Eat some vegetables,” Su Xianyan said, firmly bringing the vegetables to her mouth. “Be good.”
Not wanting to embarrass him, Cheng Simian reluctantly opened her mouth and ate them.
Su Xianyan raised an eyebrow. “Are they really that bad?”
“I just don’t really like vegetables…”
He chuckled. “You eat so much meat, yet you still don’t gain any weight. You’re still so skinny.”
Cheng Simian choked slightly and muttered to herself, Who says I don’t gain weight? I’ve grown just fine where it matters!
After that, Su Xianyan stopped listening to her instructions. One bite of vegetables, one bite of meat—no hesitation at all. When Cha Yiguan limped in from the next room, he was greeted by this unexpectedly harmonious scene.
Their Boss Su was actually playing the role of a caretaker!!
Tsk… why did this scene suddenly feel kind of adorable?
“Eh? Cha Yiguan?” Cheng Simian was the first to notice him.
Cha Yiguan shuffled over to the sofa and sat down. “Ow, ow, ow… that hurts…”
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I—I’m fine.” He scratched his head awkwardly. “Xiao Mianmian, are you okay?”
Su Xianyan had already told him about everything that happened last night. Knowing that his drunken mess had dragged a young girl into it, he wished he could bury himself on the spot.
Cheng Simian glanced at her arm. “Does this look like I’m fine?”
Cha Yiguan was filled with guilt. “Heroine, I owe you my life! From now on, this life of mine belongs to you!”
She snorted. “I don’t want you.”
Su Xianyan also shot him a glance. “If you’re fine, go back and lie down. Why are you wandering around?”
Cha Yiguan sighed dramatically. “First, I came to make sure Xiao Mianmian was okay. Second, I’m starving to death. Xianyan, where’s my lunch?”
Su Xianyan calmly picked up a piece of egg and placed it in Cheng Simian’s bowl.
“There isn’t any.”
“There isn’t?!” Cha Yiguan looked wronged. “Don’t be so biased…”
One person not only had food, but was being fed—while he couldn’t even see a single grain of rice!
Cheng Simian leaned back against the pillow smugly.
“You’ve got so many girlfriends. If you’re hospitalized, let them take care of you.”
“That reminds me!” Cha Yiguan shot Su Xianyan a glare.
“As if I’d have trouble finding someone to look after me!”
With that, he limped back out.
Only after he left did Cheng Simian ask, “You really didn’t prepare any food for him?”
“Mm.” Su Xianyan nodded expressionlessly, not the least bit guilty. Normally, he turned a blind eye to Cha Yiguan’s reckless behavior—but this time…
He glanced at Cheng Simian, who was eating happily. This incident had involved someone who never should have been dragged in.
Unaware of what he was thinking, Cheng Simian “sympathized” with Cha Yiguan.
“Sigh, he’s really miserable.”
Su Xianyan smiled faintly and reminded her, “Drink the soup too.”
“Okay.”
Cha Yiguan had only suffered superficial injuries, and Cheng Simian had merely had her arm put in a cast. Neither needed to stay in the hospital, so they drove home the next day.
That evening, Cheng Qin rushed back from out of town.
The moment he walked in, he started beating up Cha Yiguan.
“You little bastard! Looking for death, huh?! You still dare to pull that kind of crap! I’ll beat you to death!”
“Ow! That hurts! I’m injured!”
“Like I care what you are!”
“Oh my god! Xianyan, help—this lunatic! Ah!”
Cha Yiguan staggered toward Su Xianyan. Su Xianyan glanced at him sideways and said with a pleasant smile,
“Lunatic? Where?”
Cha Yiguan glared. “You—you’re all bullying me!”
Cheng Qin yanked him back. “Yeah, we’re bullying you—so what?!”
“Ah! Oww!”
Cheng Simian was resting in her room. Hearing the commotion, she opened the door and stepped out. Standing at the top of the stairs, she saw two grown men wrestling in the living room—while Su Xianyan sat off to the side calmly sipping tea, as if he hadn’t noticed the chaos at all.
Her face filled with question marks.
“Uncle?”
The living room fell instantly silent.
Cheng Qin released Cha Yiguan and turned toward the stairs.
It really was Cheng Qin. Cheng Simian was surprised.
“Uncle, why did you come back early?”
He took the stairs two at a time and stared at her arm.
“This—this is okay, right?”
“It’s fine. Once the cast comes off after a while, it’ll be all better.”
He let out an “oh,” clearly relieved.
She narrowed her eyes, a mischievous smile curling at her lips.
“Uncle, you rushed back early because you were worried about me, right?”
He paused, then glared at her.
“Nonsense! I finished my work early, that’s why I came back. You little brat—what do I have to worry about…”
Muttering, he went back downstairs. Cha Yiguan, having just been beaten up, dared not speak up—You’re not worried? Then why beat me up the moment you got back?!
Cheng Simian raised an eyebrow. Hmph. Saying one thing and meaning another.
Night fell.
After hesitating for a long while, Cheng Simian finally knocked on Su Xianyan’s door.
“Come in.”
She pressed the handle and opened it a crack. Su Xianyan was seated behind his computer. Seeing her peeking in, he said, “Come over.”
She nodded, closed the door, and walked over to his side.
Three computers were running at once, filled with dense lines of letters—it looked like something out of a spy movie.
“Are you working?” she asked.
“No. What is it? Just say it.”
She pressed her lips together.
“I wanted to ask… are you leaving tomorrow? I mean, are you going back home?”
“Probably,” Su Xianyan replied.
“Can you not go?” she blurted out.
He paused, his gaze sharpening slightly. “Why?”
“Well… it’s really boring for me to be home alone.”
Thinking that sounded too weak, she hurriedly added,
“And I’m injured! My uncle and Cha Yiguan are totally unreliable!”
Su Xianyan looked at her quietly. Under the glow of the computer screen, her delicate face seemed to shimmer.
“Cheng Simian, I’ll instruct them to—”
“So you are definitely leaving?” she interrupted. “Then… can I trade my reward for a few days of you staying?”
Su Xianyan paused.
Her eyes were bright. “Didn’t you say there’d be a reward if I did well on my exams? You said it yourself—you can’t take it back. I want to cash it in now. I want you to stay here. One month—uh… ten days! Ten days!”