Chapter 60

Feng Yu walked out of the cold, frosty moonlight, his face pale and aimless. The nurse thought he had aggravated his injury and quickly approached, asking, “Do you need help?”

“No.” He shook his head. Such a minor injury didn’t bother him. After thanking the nurse, he walked back to his ward, his silhouette lonely.

The phone on the bedside table lit up and went dark repeatedly. He closed the door, walked slowly to the bed, and, after a long pause, picked up the phone. After a moment of thought, he dialed a number. A male voice quickly answered the call: “Are you okay?”

“What do you mean?” Feng Yu frowned.

“The Luo family caused quite a stir,” the man said. “I heard that Luo Chong was punished by family law and is barely alive. I thought it might have something to do with you?”

“I don’t know.”

Feng Yu clearly had no interest in discussing this topic. “I’ll investigate after I’m discharged.”

He knew exactly what kind of person Luo Chong was. Although impulsive, angry, and irritable, he wouldn’t recklessly cause trouble for the Feng family. There must be a reason behind this. However, he couldn’t figure it out for now. If it was for Luo Xuan, it didn’t make sense either, as she was about to get married.

“Discharged?” the man was shocked. “What happened to you? Are you hospitalized? Are you okay?”

Feng Yu sat by the bed and calmly said, “It’s just a minor accident. I’ll be discharged in a few days.” He then briefly explained the events leading up to the accident, glossing over what happened in the car.

“What about your brother?”

Feng Yu, a bit impatient, replied coldly, “Don’t ask.”

The man said meaningfully, “I told you, blood is thicker than water. Deep down, you still acknowledge him as your brother. You’re afraid he’ll get hurt if something dangerous happens, right?”

Feng Yu took a deep breath, clenching his hand, “Stop talking nonsense.”

“Alright, alright. Take care of yourself. Do you want me to investigate the Luo family for you? You don’t want to deal with those people again. It would be awkward if you ran into them.”

After a moment of silence, Feng Yu tiredly replied, “No, without what happened five years ago, today wouldn’t exist. I have to solve the trouble I caused.”

“Alright then.” The man, seemingly curious about his personal affairs, tentatively asked, “What about her? Has she shown any concern for you?”

“I’m hanging up.”

“Hey—” the man hurriedly called out, “Or maybe you should take this opportunity to reconcile with your brother? Family shouldn’t be—”

Feng Yu expressionlessly pressed the hang-up button.

The ward fell into dead silence once again.
…

Click—

Feng Chengze reached out and turned off the lights in the entire room. Only the light from the corridor outside seeped through the door crack, preventing the room from being completely dark, but the light was very dim.

In the past two days, Ji Qingyu figured out that he always turned off the lights not because he was being strict. It was because she would be here with tears wetting her eyelashes, softly sobbing, and he wouldn’t know what expression to put on. He couldn’t show an apologetic face—that would be too fake. Nor could he reveal even a hint of joy in her gaze.
She was like a tree clinging to the edge of a cliff, needing to hold on tightly to avoid falling into the abyss.

Feng Chengze held her and, amidst her sobs, walked step by step to the sofa. Each step made her, this tree, root deeper into the rock on the cliff.

“Do you still want some water?” He finally stopped, looking down, his lips touching her sweat-dampened cheek as he asked.

“I…”

Even her voice was trembling, shaking, “I…”

She couldn’t find the words, only managing to say those two words before losing her strength. He chuckled, affectionately rubbing her face with his high nose, “Then drink later, let’s continue.”

…

At that moment, not just every nerve in her body but even her bones were filled with pleasure. It was like dying once and coming back to life.

Ji Qingyu was drenched in sweat as if she had just come out of a steam room. The air conditioning in the ward was set very low, but she hadn’t felt the chill yet. He had already dressed her in the hospital gown and carried her to the bathroom. Feeling refreshed and clean, she returned to bed and reached for her phone on the bedside table. When she turned on the screen, the light made her reflexively close her eyes. It took a while for her to adjust, and when she looked again, it was already past eleven.

How long had it been?

Her mind felt like mush, so she opened the WeChat interface. Yuan Bao had a regular schedule, and their video call ended around 8:40.

Afterward, she and Feng Chengze chatted about various things. She spoke sweet words, and he listened. Even if that took half an hour, it was still not even 9:30…

No wonder her legs were still trembling. After lying down to rest for a while, she heard the water in the bathroom stop. The number one villain finally finished his shower. A few minutes later, he came out wearing only long pants, “Not asleep yet? Should I turn on the light?”

“Dead already. Burn some paper if you have something to say.” She replied irritably. She didn’t know how he had the nerve to talk to her.

He turned on the small night light again, the soft light dispelling the darkness. “Are you sure you want to talk about this in the hospital?”

He had already seen through her.

She was brave but also timid, afraid of snakes and ghosts. A few nights ago, while he was working late in the study, she kept asking when he would be done and thoughtfully brought him a midnight snack. He told her she didn’t have to wait and could go to bed early, but she insisted on waiting. He hurriedly finished his work, and when he returned to bed, she clung to him like an octopus. She then honestly told him that she had read some scary stories online and kept feeling like there was someone on or under the bed.

Ji Qingyu’s face stiffened at his words, “…”

After saying this, Feng Chengze returned to the bathroom. His hospital gown was dirty, but he didn’t need to wash it himself. He could just throw it into the dirty laundry basket, and someone would collect it the next day and bring him clean clothes. However, it might have a smell. He was afraid that the familiar doctor would gently remind him the next morning.

During the hospital observation period, he needed to be restrained. So, he decided to wash it himself. He saw the silk nightgown thrown aside, already crumpled into a ball. He picked it up and bent over the sink, casually scrubbing it.

Hearing the sound of slippers, he felt like laughing. He didn’t intend to scare her, but she was too timid.

Ji Qingyu moved cautiously, holding her phone, and came to the bathroom door. She pursed her lips and made small talk, “Washing clothes?”

A minute ago, she was still cautiously looking around the ward. Now, the fear in her heart was gone. She seemed to have discovered a treasure, taking pictures of him with her camera. The scene was indeed very pleasing to the eye, worth capturing for future reminiscing. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, his shoulders were broad, and there were marks on the back of his neck from when she had scratched him with her nails.

In his large hands was a pink silk nightgown, and his serious expression when not smiling… it at least struck her.

If it weren’t for Yuan Bao occasionally stealing her phone to use as a prop to contact business tycoons from various universes for birthday parties, she would have set it as her screensaver.

These photos reminded her of the one she saw on the plane, where he was sitting on the sofa with just a towel around his waist, looking at his computer. Very similar, but it gave her a completely different feeling.

“Have you washed clothes before?” she asked curiously, taking a step inside. When she looked up, they both appeared in the same mirror.

Feng Chengze found her question strange and replied, “Of course.”

“Really?”

“Forgot? I told you, I spent twelve years abroad.” Although everything was arranged for him, including a driver, housekeeper, and nanny, living alone for a long time meant that not everything went smoothly, and there were always minor things he had to handle himself – like frying eggs and steak in the kitchen when studying late.

Ji Qingyu giggled, “I find that men are not only handsome at work but also quite charming when washing clothes for their wives.”

Feng Chengze didn’t comment.

Ji Qingyu’s smile faded as she remembered the question he hadn’t answered earlier. Wait, what did she ask? Had he washed clothes before? He said, of course. Who knew if he washed for himself or for someone else.

She casually asked, “So you had a great time abroad, doing whatever you wanted without anyone controlling you. When I was preparing for the college entrance exam, I almost wanted to go to another city.”

“Didn’t want to stay in Jing City for university?” he asked. Coincidentally, he also returned to China the year she went to university. He had passed by Jing City University more than once, but at that time, he never imagined that his future wife might be riding a bicycle around the campus.

“Tired of staying in Jing City, like many classmates, I wanted to be far from home, free from constraints, that was freedom.”

Feng Chengze nodded, “Had an appointment with a classmate?”

“A classmate really liked Shanghai,” Ji Qingyu smiled. “Shanghai also has excellent universities. She was guaranteed admission, but my mom wouldn’t let me go, saying that I would be like a wild horse if I left home. I couldn’t argue with her.”

“And then?” he asked casually.

“That winter vacation, a singer I liked had a concert in Shanghai. I got tickets and went, and played with her for a few days.”

Talking about this friend, Ji Qingyu felt a bit sentimental. She had always been popular, but life seemed to be a constant process of addition and subtraction. The number of very good friends was fixed. Meeting new ones meant less time for old friends. After all, there are only twenty-four hours in a day. With less contact, relationships inevitably fade. Over time, very good friends you saw every day became friends you saw a few times a year, and eventually, friends you only liked posts from on social media.

When Feng Chengze turned off the faucet, Ji Qingyu snapped out of her brief reminiscence. She suddenly realized that the conversation seemed off. First, she was trying to probe him, but he had diverted the topic. Second, he usually only responded with “hmm” to topics he wasn’t interested in, so asking meant he wanted to know…

“…” Six years older, with eight hundred more tricks?

“Mr. Feng, you’re too cunning,” she smiled.

Could this matter remain an unsolved mystery? That wouldn’t do.

Feng Chengze hung up the nightgown, glanced at her, and reminded, “I’ve already done the thing you wanted to exchange with.”