Chapter 7.1 Waited Six Hours for Her

Shi Miao glanced at the exquisite bracelet on her wrist, then at him. He was focused on removing the tags, seemingly aware of her gaze but choosing not to meet it. Remembering his earlier words, “You don’t have to be so formal with me in the future,” she swallowed the habitual gratitude rising to her lips.

The faint floral scent from the vase on the side was completely overtaken by the fresh, crisp aura he carried.

After removing the two tags, Min Ting casually tossed them into the trash bin beneath the desk, closed the empty velvet boxes, placed them back in the bag, and tucked it into a space on the bookshelf.

He picked up his phone from the table, pulled out the chair, and sat down to start browsing for dinner options.

“Anything in particular you want to eat?” he asked.

Right now, she craved a bowl of wontons, but he might not be into that.

He saw right through her hesitation. “Don’t worry about me.”

Meeting his deep and tranquil gaze, Shi Miaoreplied, “I suddenly feel like having wontons.”

“Alright.”

Min Ting’s sister, Minxi, also loved wontons—especially the ones their father used to make by hand.

He texted Minxi: “Any good wonton places near the hospital?”

While waiting for a reply, Shi Miaounfolded a small dining table. She usually ate alone at the desk, so this foldable table hadn’t been used for six months. Setting it up in the room’s more spacious area, she noticed the lack of chairs and said, “I’ll grab a stool from the office.”

Before she could leave, her phone rang sharply. It was an urgent call from the ER.

Shi Miaocould sense it: there was no way she’d get to eat wontons tonight.

“Dr. Shi, the patient is on the way—should arrive in five minutes. Suspected aortic dissection.”

“I’ll be right there,” she replied, quickly donning her white coat. “Don’t order food just yet,” she told Min Ting. “Let me check the situation first.”

The door shut with a resounding thud, her hurried footsteps fading into the distance.

As she walked, Shi Miaocarefully removed the bracelet and slipped it into her pocket.

Back in the room, Min Ting’s phone buzzed. Minxi replied: “So, my sister-in-law likes wontons?”

“Yes.”

Minxi: “Too bad—Dad’s wontons are all gone. You should’ve asked earlier!”

“Stop dodging. Just tell me where to go.”

Minxi chuckled before finally sending three restaurant names.

Minxi: “By the way, you should be nicer to Fu Yanzhou.”

Min Ting: “I personally delivered bread to him. How is that not nice?”

Minxi: “…You mean the leftovers?”

He didn’t reply.

With nothing to do, Min Ting reached for a medical book on the desk. It read like a foreign language, so he gave up after a few pages and shifted to processing emails.

By the time he had finished three emails, Shi Miaotexted: “Sorry, dinner’s off. The patient has an acute type A aortic dissection—surgery is urgent, and I won’t be free until after midnight. You should head back. I’ll treat you next time.”

On the operating table for nearly six hours, Shi Miaomanaged to stave off her hunger with a coworker’s raisin bread. Returning to the ward, she found it unusually quiet. The wall clock read 1:22 a.m.

Opening her chat with Min Ting, she saw his reply from six hours ago: “Don’t worry. Focus on the surgery.” He hadn’t messaged her since.

Stopping by the nurses’ station, she asked, “Did someone leave my room key here?”

The nurse shook her head. “No one mentioned a key during the shift change, but I’ll check.” After a thorough search, it was clear no one had left anything.

It was past one in the morning—too late to call him—so Shi Miaosent a message instead: “Where did you leave the key to my room?”

She typed as she walked toward her room, assuming he’d already gone home. But before she reached the door, it opened from the inside.

There he was, standing in the doorway in his usual white shirt and black trousers.

She froze, utterly stunned. “Why are you still here this late?”

Min Ting ignored the question. “Come in. Eat something.”

Without waiting for her response, he turned and walked back into the room.

Shi Miaofollowed, setting her phone on the bed after two failed attempts to slip it into her coat pocket.

Standing at the microwave, he was heating wontons. “Did you eat?” she asked.

“No. I waited to eat with you.”

“You don’t have to wait next time. Just eat first,” she said.

He didn’t reply.

The wontons and soup had been packed separately. After reheating them, he poured the wontons into the soup and began setting up the table. She noticed his movements were surprisingly adept. “You cook?”

“No, but I can take care of people.”

Years of looking after Minxi had turned this into second nature.

Shi Miaofetched a stool from the office and returned to find the table already set—with two bowls of wontons and several light side dishes.

They ate in silence, sitting opposite each other at the narrow foldable table. The shrimp and pork wontons were perfectly seasoned, their freshness undiminished despite the delay.

The quiet room and the closeness of their seats made his presence almost stifling. She focused on her bowl, finishing every wonton without once looking up.

Afterward, Min Ting tidied the table and organized the room while Shi Maio stood beside him. She wasn’t used to being taken care of but found herself slowly adapting to the feeling.

When everything was in order, Min Ting glanced at his watch. It was almost 2 a.m. “I’ll head back now,” he said.

Shi Maio picked up the room key to escort him downstairs, but he waved her off. “No need to see me out.”

At the door, he paused as if remembering something. “I’ll be traveling for work next week. Might be gone one or two months. Call me if anything comes up.” After a brief pause, he added, “I’ll reach out when I’m back.”

Meeting his gaze, Shi Maio nodded. “Okay.”

“Get some rest,” he said, leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

The sudden stillness left Shi Maio feeling oddly empty.

She washed up and reflected on the evening. Despite its simplicity, the encounter had a lingering impact. She felt a twinge of guilt for making him wait six hours.

Six hours on the operating table didn’t feel long, but waiting for someone? That stretched endlessly.

Shi Maio shook off the thought, turned off the faucet, and prepared for bed.

After eating, she knew she couldn’t go to bed right away, so she applied a face mask while looking in the mirror.

When Min Ting was around, she hadn’t noticed anything unusual about the bed. But now, with only herself in the room, her steps suddenly paused as she passed by. He had folded her quilt perfectly.