The medicine worked quite well.

After massaging for a while, she felt the area where she had been hit starting to warm up.

The pain she had been feeling had faded, replaced by an indescribable sensation of relief, as if she could feel her cells rapidly recovering underneath her skin.

After taking a shower, Ning Qiuxiu still had time to spare, so she took out her talisman paper and brushes, preparing to draw some more talismans.

She recalled what the doctor had said: even though Zhan Qingyue had woken up, it would take a long time for him to regain full mobility, be able to speak, and walk properly.

He would need a lengthy rehabilitation period to gradually recover.

Therefore, she decided to draw some talismans to help him recover faster.

A fortification talisman would be unsuitable; she needed something that could strengthen and heal.

She remembered that the Tian Gang talisman they used in the past had such effects, so she decided to use that.

However, drawing talismans is easy, but nurturing them is not.

Since Zhan Qingyue was in the hospital, bringing the talisman there for nurturing seemed impractical.

The place was too exposed, and the chances of it being discovered were high.

It would be better to wait until he was discharged and back home.

She didn’t know when he would be discharged, and with him awake, it would be less convenient to nurture the talismans.

What if he caught her in the act?

How would she explain it?

She wouldn’t ask; she would just justify it by saying it was all for his benefit.

The next morning, she sent a pot of green bean and shrimp porridge and ginseng chicken soup to Zhan Qingyue.

Considering his previous resistance to being fed water, she had a sudden idea and volunteered to take it to the hospital herself, rather than having the family send it.

She didn’t have the driver take her; she drove herself.

On the way, she found a place to park and burned some talisman paper, mixing it into the ginseng chicken soup.

Hehe, didn’t see that coming, did you?

There was ginseng, chicken, and a rejuvenation talisman.

Ning Qiuxiu hoped it wouldn’t be too much of a boost and cause any issues.

When she arrived at the hospital, Old Master Zhan had already gotten up and done a round of exercises.

Seeing Ning Qiuqiu, he frowned and asked, “Why is your forehead looking even worse? Does it still hurt?”

Ning Qiuxiu rubbed her forehead. The bruising had spread and looked worse today.

She said, “It doesn’t hurt anymore. It looks bad, but it’s just the blood dispersing. It’ll heal up soon.”

“That’s good. I’ll have the kitchen make some Ganoderma lucidum, Chuanxiong, and Bai Zhi fish head soup for you to drink, to prevent any lingering issues.”

Rich people tend to be pampered, and Ning Qiuxiu agreed, saying, “Grandpa, you should go eat first.”

Although the hospital had meals prepared for patients and their families, Old Master Zhan preferred home-cooked food, so his meals were brought from home.

Zhan Qingyue had not woken up yet.

He still slept a lot, but when he was fed soup, he had some involuntary swallowing motions, so she fed him while he was asleep.

Ning Qiuxiu had added the talisman to the chicken soup, and the black residue was quite noticeable.

She asked Jingjing to set up the meal for Old Master Zhan while she fed Zhan Qingyue.

Jingjing grinned and said, “Maybe he’ll wake up while you’re feeding him. He’s woken up three times, and twice it was when you were here.”

“Please don’t jinx it!”

“Just set up the meal!” Ning Qiuxiu said. “By the way, Grandpa really likes you and wants to introduce you to a wealthy and handsome boyfriend. You should make a good impression, or he might forget about you.”

“Really?” Jingjing’s eyes lit up as she rolled up her sleeves. “I’m on it!”

Ning Qiuxiu’s reaction was a mix of relief and awkwardness.

It seemed that she had underestimated just how keen Zhan Qingyue’s senses would be, even in his groggy state.

“Really? And here I was thinking you were going to keep sleeping until the next century!” she joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Gradually Zhan Qingyue waked up again.

Zhan Qingyue’s eyes, now more focused, followed the spoon with evident curiosity.

His hoarse voice barely carried, but it was clear he was processing what was happening. “What are you doing?”

Ning Qiuxiu took a deep breath, holding up the spoon with the ginseng chicken soup. “Feeding you. You’re recovering, right? You need to eat well to get better.”

Zhan Qingyue looked skeptical but seemed to accept it.

He opened his mouth slightly, and Ning Qiuxiu carefully fed him the soup.

It took a few tries to get him to swallow properly, but he did so with noticeable effort.

“You’re very determined,” he managed to croak out after a few spoonfuls. “How long have you been doing this?”

Ning Qiuxiu smiled despite the awkwardness. “Just today. But I guess you could say I’m getting a crash course in feeding patients. How does it taste?”

He nodded slightly, the act of swallowing still seeming to be a struggle. “It’s good. Better than I expected.”

“Glad to hear that!” Ning Qiuxiu said cheerfully. “Just focus on getting better. And if you need anything, just let me know. I’m here to help.”

Zhan Qingyue’s eyes softened slightly, though his expression was still one of fatigue. “Thanks. I guess it’s better to have someone who actually cares.”

Ning Qiuxiu shrugged, trying to make light of the situation. “Well, I guess you’re stuck with me for a while, so you’d better get used to it.”

Their conversation was cut short as Zhan Qingyue’s eyes began to droop again, exhaustion overtaking him.

Ning Qiuxiu continued to feed him gently, feeling a mix of determination and awkwardness.

As she tended to him, she couldn’t help but think about the challenges ahead and the complexities of their evolving relationship.

Zhan Qingyue opened his mouth and made a four-character sound.

Ning Qiuxiu was a bit puzzled at first, but after thinking for a moment, she understood.

He was saying, “Don’t feed secretly.”

Ning Qiuxiu: “???”

What did he mean by “secretly feeding”? She was clearly feeding him openly!

However, the word “secretly” did make Ning Qiuxiu feel a bit guilty.

It seemed to carry a deeper meaning, not just referring to the present but possibly hinting at the past as well.

The past…

Ning Qiuxiu didn’t dare to think too much about whether Zhan Qingyue had any awareness during his coma.

Such thoughts were troubling.

Nevertheless, Zhan Qingyue cooperated and drank two small bowls of ginseng soup.

When Old Master Zhan learned that his grandson had woken up, he came to check on them in the middle of his meal.

Seeing the attentive feeding and Zhan Qingyue’s obedient eating, Old Master Zhan felt very comforted and said with a smile, “Qiuxiu has worked hard lately, taking care of Qingyue.”

Zhan Qingyue paused for a moment upon hearing this, but he didn’t show any reaction and continued drinking his soup calmly.

Ning Qiuxiu was very curious about how Zhan Qingyue viewed her now.

After all, as a wealthy young lady, taking care of an injured person like him was quite unusual.

However, Zhan Qingyue seemed to accept her presence without much surprise.

Even if he didn’t accept it, he had no choice since he couldn’t speak.

But Zhan Qingyue’s reaction was much calmer than she had expected!

Is this the calm of someone in a high position, the relaxed attitude of “if the enemy doesn’t move, I won’t move”?

Or maybe it’s because his brain hasn’t fully recovered yet, and this so-called calmness is just his brain not reacting properly…

Forget it, whatever the reason, it’s just calmness.

Who can’t be calm?

“It’s not hard,” Ning Qiuxiu’s said with a smile. “Grandpa, go ahead and eat. I’ll call you when I’m done.”

“Alright.” Grandpa Zhan, seeing that his grandson didn’t mind being alone with Ning Qiuxiu’s, said cheerfully, “Take your time eating, and I’ll talk to you later.”

Zhan Qingyue nodded slowly, indicating his agreement.

After finishing the soup, Zhan Qingyue ate a few more bites of porridge but couldn’t eat any more.

Due to his long bed rest, his appetite was very small, and he couldn’t eat much.

While Grandpa Zhan was still eating, Ning Qiuxiu found herself with nothing to do, and the atmosphere between them became awkward again.

As she wondered why Grandpa Zhan was still eating, she suddenly had a thought and said, “You’ve been unconscious for so long; you probably don’t know what time it is or what’s happening now. Do you want me to fill you in?”

Zhan Qingyue’s gaze paused noticeably, then he slowly lifted his eyes to look at the injured part of her forehead.

Ning Qiuxiu guessed he was thinking that since she was injured, shouldn’t she be resting?

“It’s nothing serious,” Ning Qiuxiu replied. “It doesn’t hurt, just looks scary. It should go down by tomorrow.”

Zhan Qingyue nodded, accepting her role as the informant.

“You’ve been unconscious for two years,” Ning Qiuxiu continued. “Things at home haven’t changed much, but Brother Qingyuan has taken over your business and has been supporting the entire Zhan family. So far, things look pretty good. Grandpa Zhan has been in good health these past two years, and Brother Qingyuan has grown a lot…”

As Ning Qiuxiu spoke, she felt like she was just repeating things Zhan Qingyue already knew, as if she didn’t really understand the Zhan family at all and had nothing new to say.

Other details about Zhan Qingyue’s social circles, career, or romantic interests were even less clear to her.

Zhan Qingyue probably wasn’t interested in news or national affairs.

Uh…

It was quite awkward.

“So, is there anything you want to know?” Ning Qiuxiu finally asked with a sigh, feeling stuck.

Zhan Qingyue glanced at her.

Ning Qiuxiu’s alarm bells went off.

“You.” She heard him utter this syllable.

Ning Qiuxiu: “……”

She knew it!

“Well,” Ning Qiuxiu twisted her fingers, “I’m the only child of the Ning family. You know Ning Shixian, my dad…

When you were in trouble, I was still in college.

I had visited your home before, so you should remember me.

Later, I entered the entertainment industry and became a small actress, just doing some acting jobs.”

Ning Qiuxiu deliberately downplayed things, mainly because she didn’t know how to explain their current relationship.

She couldn’t exactly say that she was marrying him to bring good fortune because she was interested in his health, and now she was his legally unacknowledged wife who had slept in the same bed and fed him talisman water mixed with her saliva.

Zhan Qingyue would probably be furious.

After hearing her, Zhan Qingyue gave her a deep look, clearly dissatisfied with the answer, but he didn’t say anything.

At that moment, Grandpa Zhan also finished his meal and came in.

Ning Qiuxiu let out a big sigh of relief.

She really couldn’t come up with anything else!

She decided she would never be alone with him again.

However, due to Ning Qiuxiu’s persistent efforts in feeding him the talisman water, Zhan Qingyue’s health improved day by day.

By the time Ning Qiuxiu returned to the film set, Zhan Qingyue’s speech had improved significantly.

His waking hours had increased from less than an hour a day to two or three hours, and his physical movements improved daily.

The doctor performed simple rehabilitation exercises daily to help him regain control of his body.

The doctor said his brain was recovering well, with clearer eyes and noticeably smoother thinking.

Ning Qiuxiu felt that their relationship was becoming more and more difficult to keep under wraps.