Chapter 21

Grabbing Chi Zhihan’s ankle took almost all of Qi Cheng’s strength.

He was in intense pain – a sudden, knife-like pain below his sternum that came without warning. At first, he thought it was just an illusion, believing that if he endured it, the pain would pass. But it only grew worse, eventually making him nauseous.

This seemed unrelated to his psychological issues; it was purely physical.

With relief, he wanted to call for help, but his legs gave out and he collapsed. Before falling, he glanced at the time, confirming that Chi Zhihan would bring dinner in a few minutes. He allowed himself to lie there until he saw those fuzzy slippers.

She seemed shocked by his condition. Unfortunately, he had no strength left to cover his face, only managing to weakly move his hand that was gripping her ankle.

The real pain in his abdomen combined with the burning sensation in his palm from holding her ankle made his whole body convulse in agony. Yet he still desperately clung to Chi Zhihan’s ankle. Drenched in cold sweat and dizzy, he was surprised by his own survival instinct.

Why had he… suddenly become so afraid of death?

…

“I won’t leave, just let go of me first.” Looking down at the increasingly trembling hand gripping her ankle, Chi Zhihan quickly recalled the three major taboos Dr. Zhao had mentioned.

“I really won’t leave.” She softened her tone while frowning at the man lying on the floor.

He looked… so unfamiliar.

He appeared to be in great pain, eyes tightly shut, eyelashes quivering, occasionally convulsing while biting his lips – the sight was strangely alluring enough to make her swallow hard.

This was truly bizarre…

“Where does it hurt? I’ll call Dr. Zhao first.” Chi Zhihan pushed aside the inappropriate primal thoughts triggered by Qi Cheng’s strikingly beautiful appearance and took out her phone to seek help.

“No need.” Qi Cheng curled up, enduring another wave of pain. “It’s not psychological. Help me get my phone.”

So… unfamiliar.

As Chi Zhihan followed his instructions mechanically, these words kept flashing through her mind like a marquee.

He didn’t look anything like the frail man trapped in shadows anymore.

The way he asked for help seemed… commanding.

“Speed dial five.” He instructed through gritted teeth to the seemingly dazed Chi Zhihan.

Had he scared her?

“Oh!” Chi Zhihan snapped out of it and quickly dialed the number.

She was really seeing ghosts today…

…

It wasn’t until this moment that Chi Zhihan truly appreciated how well-equipped this villa was. Within five minutes of her call, Qi Cheng’s room was quickly occupied by several people in white coats. With the addition of equipment being wheeled in over the next ten minutes, Chi Zhihan believed that except for not being sterile, the room now functioned fully as an emergency room.

She hadn’t left, standing where Qi Cheng could see her.

The lead doctor glanced at her when he entered and nodded to her.

Somehow, this gave her the sense of being Qi Cheng’s guardian. When the doctor was about to insert an IV, she instinctively blocked Qi Cheng’s view of his own hand.

Qi Cheng was slightly stunned.

No one had ever made this instinctive gesture for him before.

When he was sick as a child and needed IVs, his father insisted he watch the needle, saying a real man must have courage.

Even though he really hated the visual of the needle entering his body, over the years he had developed the habit of forcing himself to watch it happen.

He had been sick for so long that his hands were covered in needle marks, which would heal briefly only to be filled again.

Looking up, meeting Chi Zhihan’s eyes in normal lighting for the first time, his pupils trembled uneasily.

He had actually forgotten the exact appearance of the girl he had crushed on years ago, but psychological tests told him she was a sweet-looking girl, and Chi Zhihan before him was typical of that type.

A slightly round oval face, large eyes, upturned nose tip, and naturally upturned corners of her mouth that showed dimples when she spoke or smiled.

Psychologically, men tend to remain attached to the first woman who rejected them, and some men, due to compensation psychology, continue to date women of the same type.

If he were that type of man, he should find Chi Zhihan’s features beautiful.

The increasingly intense waves of pain in his body plus the inevitable burning sensation from the doctor’s examinations made him unusually fixated on Chi Zhihan’s eyes.

He found her beautiful, especially now when she looked so helpless.

Realizing that such thoughts were crossing his mind while in such pain-induced delirium, Qi Cheng’s face turned even paler.

He quickly turned away, not daring to look at Chi Zhihan again, his mind in turmoil over his previous thoughts.

Equally troubled was Chi Zhihan, who had been unnerved by his intense stare.

Would someone with social anxiety stare at people like that…

Chi Zhihan, who knew nothing about psychological disorders, felt that everything had been strange, like seeing ghosts, ever since she saw Qi Cheng’s face.

“I’ll call Qi Peng and the others!” Finally remembering she had important things to do, seeing that the doctor had finished setting up the IV, Chi Zhihan stepped aside and started making calls.

“Call Qi Ning first,” the doctor interjected. “She’s the most level-headed one. Qi Peng won’t do, he’s too noisy.”

“…Oh.” Chi Zhihan quietly changed the number she was about to dial.

It took Qi Ning a long time to answer, and when she did, there was a lot of foreign chatter in the background, quite noisy.

But Qi Ning’s voice was very calm. After listening to Chi Zhihan, she began a remote conversation with the busy doctor through Chi Zhihan.

Only then did Chi Zhihan realize she had been so dazed that she hadn’t even asked what illness Qi Cheng had.

Mild acute edematous pancreatitis – a name she wouldn’t have understood even if she had asked.

“We’ve basically confirmed the diagnosis. He ate too little recently, then resumed eating while staying up late drawing. His immune system was weakened, and when he felt feverish, he took aspirin on his own, resulting in an allergic reaction to the medication,” the doctor explained, glaring at Qi Cheng. “It’s not a major problem, not serious, but he needs to abstain from food and water for fifteen days.”

…

Chi Zhihan paused before relaying this to Qi Ning.

Fifteen days without food and water… wouldn’t that kill someone?

“Miss Chi,” Qi Ning’s voice remained extremely calm, though her next words made Chi Zhihan truly shudder, “I’m currently in labor, so it’s not particularly convenient to continue following up. Please call Dr. Zhao directly; he will discuss the treatment plan with Dr. Li here.”

…

She’s… in labor?

“Regarding the food and water restriction, we might need to trouble Miss Chi to provide close care. You remember the three taboos Dr. Zhao mentioned last time, right?” Qi Ning seemed to take a breath, then her voice returned to its calm state.

She’s… giving birth right now?

“Yes,” Chi Zhihan answered with chattering teeth, wondering why she was the nervous one when Qi Ning was the one in labor.

“The most important is the no-touching rule. Remember that anything with body temperature, even through clothes, is forbidden. During these fifteen days without food and water, his body will be weak. If necessary, we’ll have to trouble you to dress warmly. I don’t know if we can avoid it completely, but at least it will make things easier for him.”

“I understand. I’ll ask Dr. Zhao about the rest,” Chi Zhihan heard a doctor screaming at Qi Ning in the background about whether she was going to make phone calls or give birth, which terrified her into a cold sweat. “You focus on giving birth, I’ll handle things here.”

“Thank you for your help,” Qi Ning said softly.

…

Actually, there wasn’t much Chi Zhihan could help with. Dr. Zhao arrived quickly after receiving the call. Acute edematous pancreatitis didn’t require surgery, and Dr. Zhao only discussed with Dr. Li the dosage of medications related to nerves, like painkillers. Otherwise, it was just endless IV drips to maintain Qi Cheng’s vital signs.

After that eye contact, Qi Cheng had been avoiding her gaze.

And Chi Zhihan discovered for the first time how greatly someone’s appearance could affect one’s perception.

Qi Cheng really didn’t talk much; besides those concise instructions about how to get help, he only spoke a few words when answering Dr. Li’s questions. But because of his appearance, his silence didn’t make him seem ill; rather, he looked more like a bad-tempered young master from a wealthy family.

All her previous impressions of him being pitiful, lonely, and helpless had vanished due to his appearance. Now, when Chi Zhihan looked at Qi Cheng, her first reaction was to see him as a strange man rather than a patient she wanted to try to save.

This realization made her very uncomfortable.

So while the two doctors were arguing red-faced about whether to use strong medication to save his body first or think long-term about avoiding nerve damage, she quietly moved a few steps to position herself behind Qi Cheng’s head.

It was completely instinctive, but after she could no longer see his face, Chi Zhihan quietly sighed in relief.

Looking only at the back of his head, his hair had grown long and was unkempt from lack of care. The two doctors were still arguing endlessly about the proper dosage of painkillers, and without painkillers, his body was still slightly trembling from pain.

“Qi Ning is in labor, wonder if it’s a boy or girl.” This angle made Chi Zhihan feel more at ease, and her words flowed more naturally.

She should have been talking to him earlier to help distract him from the pain. This time back, her job was to participate in treatment, not just be a private chef.

But facing that face, everything she said seemed like she was trying to curry favor with him.

How could someone look like that? Just his features alone made people feel like he was superior, and just because of that face, it seemed unscientific to think he shouldn’t be a patient, but rather should naturally stand in the spotlight, high above others.

How could someone be born with such an unrealistic, dramatic face…

“It’s a girl,” that head of hair moved slightly.

“Oh…” Chi Zhihan responded weakly.

Someone with such a face, paired with that slightly breathless, sickly low voice, was dramatically perfect to an extent that seemed to leave no room for survival.

She wasn’t particularly focused on looks, and due to her work, she occasionally cooked for some popular male celebrities. She had seen many handsome men and had her fair share of fangirl moments.

But Qi Cheng wasn’t just handsome.

He really… didn’t seem human.