Chapter 21

The next day, Tang Feiwan was still asleep when she was awakened by Jiang Junli knocking on the door.

“It’s time to get up, we’ve bought all the ingredients.”

“Hmm, what time is it?” Tang Feiwan, who usually slept on her back, had to sleep on her side last night. She wiggled her feet outside the blanket and mumbled.

Jiang Junli’s strong voice penetrated the wooden door: “8:30, you’ve had enough sleep, haven’t you?”

“Okay, Director Jiang, I’ll get up right away.” At home, Tang Feiwan often addressed her parents by their professional titles, like calling Tang Anhua “Teacher Tang” and Jiang Junli “Director Jiang.”

“After I wash up, I’ll ice it for you.” Back home last night, Tang Feiwan couldn’t escape Jiang Junli’s sharp eyes. She had to ice her injured back for 15 minutes.

Around 9 o’clock, Tang Feiwan, who had finished icing, sat at the dining table, slowly eating noodles. Jiang Junli chatted with her: “How are you going to settle the medical dispute at your hospital?”

“We’ll wait for the autopsy report. The patient’s father insists it’s the hospital’s fault.”

Jiang Junli asked her: “What do you think caused his sudden death?”

Tang Feiwan took a sip of soup and replied: “We suspect acute pulmonary embolism leading to cardiac arrest. His ex-girlfriend said he had a minor fracture two months ago and didn’t need surgery, but he stayed in bed at home all day, so he probably had a blood clot for a while.”

“What about his dad? Did they catch him?”

Tang Feiwan looked up and replied: “Around 2:30 am, the police found him in a suite at a five-star hotel, saying he was drunk.”

“Well, we won’t settle it. Let him be detained for a few days.” Last night, Tang Feiwan had her injuries examined and it was considered a minor injury. If they couldn’t settle it, he could be administratively detained.

“I think so too, unless he promises not to go to the hospital every day to make trouble and won’t hurt my colleagues again.” Tang Feiwan finished a mouthful of noodles and continued, “His daughter, who studied law, called to mediate, saying she lied to her father. If he keeps bothering us, it will affect her future job search.”

Jiang Junli shook her head: “We absolutely cannot let him off easily. If the hospital didn’t make any mistakes, the usual way to handle it is to give him some money out of humanitarianism. Then, we should separate the issues. He also beat someone up, so he should be administratively detained for a few days. Administrative detention won’t leave a criminal record.”

“Okay.” Tang Feiwan was worried about Lin Ye and afraid that Dong Guo’s father would be detained and come back to bother them again. After all, you never know what a violent person will do next.

Jiang Junli urged her: “Eat quickly. After you finish, go back to your room to rest. We need to clear the dining table and set the plates.”

“Who are we having over?” Today was Tang Anhua’s 55th birthday, not a big birthday.

Jiang Junli didn’t look up, her voice a little low: “Your dad’s friend.”

Tang Feiwan didn’t care: “Oh, okay. I ordered a cake, it will be delivered at 4 pm. I’ll stay with you to finish the cake, then go to the hospital.” After finishing her meal, she took the dishes to the kitchen. Jiang Junli told her to just put them in the sink. She thought that her daughter rarely came home, so it was fine to spoil her occasionally. Besides, her daughter was still injured. Tang Feiwan agreed, placed the dishes in the sink, and then went back to her room to read and watch videos.

Close to 11:30, Tang Feiwan, who was immersed in watching surgical videos, was interrupted by a series of greetings.

“Have a seat, have a seat. I’ll go to the bedroom and call Tangtang. She loves reading books, figuring out surgeries.” Tang Anhua’s voice got closer and closer. He stood outside the door and knocked. “Tangtang.”

Tang Feiwan frowned. How long had it been since Teacher Tang called her by her nickname? What was he doing? She left her computer chair at the desk and went to open the door. As the door opened, Tang Anhua, with a smile on his face, appeared in front of her. He instructed, “Quickly, change into another outfit before you come out. Don’t wear short sleeves or shorts, it’s too casual.”

“What for? My knee is injured, I can’t wear long pants.” Tang Feiwan didn’t understand, but thinking about Tang Anhua’s birthday today, she let him have his way. “Okay.” She closed the door behind her and went to the closet to find clothes. Due to her personal preferences and her motorcycle riding, Tang Feiwan rarely bought dresses, so she only found three. Finally, she chose a light-colored denim skirt that was almost knee-length, neither too short nor touching the wound, and paired it with a beige shirt. She tied her hair up, leaving two strands hanging down on either side of her glasses, making her look more refined than her usual work makeup.

After tidying up a bit, she opened the door and went out. She had only taken a few steps when she heard Tang Anhua talking about her with someone.

“Tangtang is highly educated, our Zhang Bo can’t compare.”

Tang Anhua laughed: “Where, where, Zhang Bo also graduated with a doctorate from a double-first-class university.”

Tang Feiwan instantly understood what their conversation meant. She had repeatedly used her busy work as an excuse to refuse blind dates, but now, they were invited directly to her home. How desperate was he to get her married? The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Tang Feiwan’s face immediately turned dark, and she really wanted to go back to her room and say she wasn’t feeling well and didn’t want to see anyone. However, she was also afraid of losing face for Tang Anhua, thinking that she should at least send them away and then find an opportunity to reason with him.

Thinking about this, she lifted her right foot with difficulty, each step feeling unusually heavy.

Tang Anhua saw her come out and pointed to the empty seat to the right of Zhang Bo: “Tangtang, sit here. Chat with Zhang Bo. He studied biology and medicine and works in the government. You should have something to talk about.”

Tang Feiwan’s face became even darker, but she still sat down as instructed. Zhang Bo tried to strike up a conversation with her, and she responded woodenly, not knowing what she was saying. Her negative attitude was too obvious. Tang Anhua noticed and, taking advantage of going to the kitchen to help serve the dishes, closed the kitchen door and gave her some advice: “Even if you don’t want to, give him some face. Zhang Bo’s father is my colleague.”

“Why didn’t you tell me beforehand?” Tang Feiwan didn’t buy it.

Tang Anhua was furious: “If I told you beforehand, would you come back? You would definitely say you had something to do at the hospital and couldn’t come.”

Tang Feiwan had a lot of pent-up anger. She lowered her voice: “Teacher Tang, you are a teacher who educates and inspires others. You should know the importance of respect.”

At this time, Jiang Junli came back from the bathroom, opened the door, closed it again, and said solemnly: “What are you arguing about? If you keep talking louder, people outside will hear you. Tang Anhua, what did I tell you? Don’t you know your daughter’s temper? You always have to act first and then ask for forgiveness.”

Jiang Junli could control him, so Tang Anhua didn’t say anything. Jiang Junli turned around, looked at Tang Feiwan’s angry eyebrows, didn’t take sides, lowered her voice, but her tone was firm: “Also, Tang Feiwan, today is your dad’s birthday, and your dad’s friend is sitting outside. You should give him some basic face. You are 30 years old and have received a higher education. Don’t you understand?”

Tang Feiwan took a deep breath, calmed down her extreme emotions, and agreed: “Okay.”

The three of them adjusted their moods, carried the dishes, and pushed open the kitchen door. Jiang Junli said with a smile: “We counted inside, there are only ten dishes. We’re worried that we won’t be able to take good care of you.”

“Where? 5 people eating 10 dishes, you’ll be stuffed!” Zhang Bo’s father said cheerfully as he came over.

Dinner was alright. At the rectangular dining table, Tang Feiwan sat next to Jiang Junli on the right, Zhang Bo and his father sat on the left, and Tang Anhua sat at the head of the table.

After dinner, Zhang Bo took the initiative to add Tang Feiwan on WeChat. Tang Feiwan saw Tang Anhua winking at her and reluctantly opened his business card, letting him scan the code to add her as a friend.

At 2:30 pm, the family saw the father and son off. As the security door closed, Tang Feiwan immediately slumped her face and turned to walk towards the bedroom. Tang Anhua called out to her, wanting to talk to her, but Jiang Junli stopped him: “Let her rest, she’s still injured.”

Tang Feiwan returned to her bedroom, closed the door and locked it, then sat down at her desk. She gripped her phone tightly, as if venting her dissatisfaction. For a long time, the knot in her heart continued to build up. A name flashed through her mind, a name that could save her even if she heard her voice right now…

Tang Feiwan stared blankly at Lin Ye’s phone number in her contacts and pressed the call button.

The phone rang for ten seconds. When she thought the other party wouldn’t answer, a voice she longed for suddenly came through the receiver: “Hello.” Tang Feiwan froze again and didn’t respond immediately.

Lin Ye on the other side vaguely heard her heavy breathing and raised her voice: “Hello, Doctor Tang.”

“Hmm.” When the other party called her name, Tang Feiwan could no longer hold back. She didn’t dare to cry out loud, but just trembled slightly.

Lin Ye clearly heard her sobbing, but she didn’t want to ask directly, so she just said: “You… what’s wrong?”

“I… I…” She couldn’t tell the truth, she couldn’t transfer her pain to Lin Ye. Tang Feiwan stammered for a while, but in the end, she said nonsensically, “I was supposed to go to the skills competition with you today, but now I’m injured and have to stay at home.”

Lin Ye, naturally, didn’t believe it, so she didn’t speak and remained silent. Tang Feiwan knew that this kind lie was too fake, so she bit her lip and blurted out: “Lin, Director Lin, my wound hurts so much, more than last night.”

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds. Tang Feiwan thought Lin Ye must have nothing to say to her. She sighed quietly in her heart. Making this call didn’t make her feel better, but instead made the other party unhappy. But the next second, Lin Ye’s voice, like a clear spring, rang in her ears: “After I finish my shift tonight, I’ll change your dressing. Changing the dressing will also hurt.” Then she added, “Or you can take leave and stay at home to recover for two days?”

Tang Feiwan hurriedly said: “No, I have to go to work.”

“Okay, get some rest.”

“Okay, see you tonight.” Tang Feiwan sensed the woman’s hesitation, but she still got the result she wanted.

Through the phone, Lin Ye’s tone was calmer than the previous few sentences: “See you tonight.”

Waiting for the other end to hang up, Tang Feiwan’s heart pounded like a drum. Ever since she decided to return to China, she had been preparing. The spark hidden in her heart was now uncontrollably spreading like wildfire. Thinking about it a thousand times was not as good as taking action. This was a principle she had always adhered to. She opened Jiang Junli’s We Chat, typed a message, and sent it: “Mom, I have something to tell you.”

Three minutes later, Jiang Junli knocked on the door and came in. Seeing her daughter’s red eyes behind her glasses, she asked with some concern: “What’s wrong?”

Tang Feiwan looked directly into her mother’s eyes, without any hesitation, her expression firm: “Mom, I’ve always been against blind dates because I like girls.”