Chapter 4: Hospital, I’m Back Again
When Li Wanbai opened her eyes again, she was greeted by an unfamiliar ceiling. Her temples throbbed violently, with occasional sharp pains shooting through her head.
The person keeping vigil by her bedside brightened upon seeing her awake: “You’re finally awake! I thought you might…”
Li Wanbai smiled at Su Chengzi, unfazed: “Don’t worry, I’m not that fragile. I’ve had pollen allergies before – why weren’t you this panicked back then?”
“Well, back then there was… that person around.” Su Chengzi’s words trailed off strangely as she clenched her teeth. “That Mu Sang is truly despicable! It’s like he doesn’t understand human language. I clearly told him you’re allergic to pollen, yet he insisted on shoving those roses in your face!”
Li Wanbai stared at her for a long moment before finally managing: “Who is Mu Sang?”
She genuinely didn’t know who Mu Sang was. Why did Su Chengzi seem so familiar with him?
She didn’t find it particularly strange, just genuinely puzzled. It made sense that she’d made new friends over the past ten years, but this new friend seemed to have a rather strained relationship with Su Chengzi.
Su Chengzi looked at Li Wanbai, hesitating to speak. Just as her lips began to tremble, Mu Sang’s loud voice suddenly echoed from outside the hospital room.
“I’ve said I don’t know! I don’t know what my relationship with Xiaobai is! If I knew she was allergic to pollen, why would I have brought such a huge bouquet of roses? Yu Baichuan, stop making false accusations!”
No sooner had he spoken than the door to the premium hospital room swung open. Yu Baichuan stood there with a dark expression, his gaze immediately falling upon Li Wanbai in the hospital bed. His stern expression softened slightly, though his voice remained as cold and hard as ever: “You’re awake.”
Following closely behind him emerged the young man they’d seen earlier at the café, grumbling and complaining. When his eyes landed on Li Wanbai, he still seemed somewhat resentful: “Xiaobai, you’re clearly allergic to pollen – why did you never tell me?”
“Maybe because you never cared to ask.” Li Wanbai tilted her head, regarding him with confusion. “Besides, who are you to me? Why should I tell you about my personal matters?”
It stood to reason that she’d make new friends over ten years. Ye Xiruo was also someone new she’d met. While she didn’t know her own movements and activities from the past decade, she absolutely knew her own tastes.
This young man called Mu Sang stood tall and graceful like jade, with delicate and striking features. Rather than conventionally handsome, his face leaned more toward a kind of beauty. In terms of appearance alone, Mu Sang certainly couldn’t be considered ugly – one might even call him an unconventional beauty.
Unfortunately, he just wasn’t Li Wanbai’s type. She still preferred cool, refined handsome men like Yu Baichuan, so she naturally assumed Mu Sang was just an ordinary friend.
Unexpectedly, after she finished speaking, Mu Sang’s expression shifted. He smiled and said: “Xiaobai, no need to be upset with me. I was wrong before – I shouldn’t have pressured you like that.”
Here, he glanced up at Yu Baichuan, his face still wearing that gentle smile. “You can decide what you want to do without me interfering. I was wrong.”
“So that’s why I came to apologize today, isn’t it?”
“Then why did you give me roses?” Li Wanbai asked, genuinely perplexed.
Flowers were something too unfamiliar to her. She had never received any since childhood. The only bouquet she had ever received in her life was during middle school, when she had a falling out with Yu Baichuan. He somehow managed to find daisies that shouldn’t grow in Haicheng. It was also that time she discovered she was allergic to pollen.
Pollen allergies can be mild or severe.
Some people experience nasal discomfort even from a distance across the street during summer. Li Wanbai’s case wasn’t that serious – she wouldn’t develop allergic symptoms unless she had close contact with flowers.
However, Li Wanbai’s allergic reactions were quite severe, just like the last time.
After that incident, Yu Baichuan and Su Chengzi had been strictly guarding against such situations. Who would have thought that ten years later, someone would break this prohibition so easily.
Yu Baichuan looked at Mu Sang with terrifying eyes, seemingly wishing he could punch him flying. But in the end, he did nothing, just coldly stared at Li Wanbai: “Your own health is your capital! No matter what, take good care of yourself! Anyone who encourages you to harm your body to achieve some goal doesn’t truly care about you! Li Wanbai, you’d better think carefully!”
He must have said this many times before – Li Wanbai could detect a hint of frustration in his tone, as if disappointed she hadn’t lived up to his expectations.
She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say anything, Mu Sang interrupted from beside her: “Senior Yu, there’s no need to beat around the bush or make insinuations. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures! If the person Xiaobai is facing is stubborn and difficult to deal with, leaving only that one method, then no matter how absurd or painful it might be, we have to try it! This doesn’t mean the person giving Xiaobai advice is bad. In fact, quite the opposite – the one who forced Xiaobai to resort to such methods is the real villain!”
The implications were quite obvious. Though Li Wanbai’s mind worked slowly, she wasn’t stupid. Her gaze shifted between the two men before she suddenly understood: “Do you like me? Or are you pursuing me?”
She stared directly at Mu Sang as she spoke. The person under her gaze shuddered and forced a dry laugh: “Xiaobai! What are you saying in front of Teacher Yu?”
“Who’s your teacher!” Su Chengzi couldn’t take it anymore and burst out, “Since when are you his student? Stop putting on airs! We could tolerate you calling him ‘senior’ before, considering you had some sense of respect. But now you’re calling him ‘teacher’? To put it bluntly, if Xiaobai hadn’t been blind enough to take a liking to you, what qualifications would you have to speak with us? What qualifications would you have to talk face-to-face with the renowned Movie Emperor of the entertainment industry? Ultimately, it’s all because of Xiaobai – what does it have to do with you personally?”
Li Wanbai sat on the hospital bed, her mouth agape enough to swallow an egg. What? I like him?
Are you insulting me or mocking me?
Would she give up someone as excellent and perfectly suited to her preferences like Yu Baichuan, only to entangle herself with Mu Sang?
Now she understood where all the previous discomfort in their conversations came from, and belatedly realized why Yu Baichuan wanted to divorce her.
If her head had turned green, and they still didn’t divorce, that would be true love!
What she couldn’t figure out was why it seemed like she was the one clamoring for divorce. Could it be that after ten years, her taste had undergone such earth-shattering changes, going from one extreme to another?
“Miss Su, what you said is both right and wrong.”
The part that’s incorrect is that I myself am quite talented and have recently wanted to venture into the entertainment industry. In that case, wouldn’t Teacher Yu be considered my mentor?
The correct part is that I truly have won Xiaobai’s affection. While Xiaobai herself might not be particularly remarkable, her favor is something many people aspire to gain. Don’t you agree, Teacher Yu?