Zhao Ziqiang was now in a semi-apprentice state. Whenever the boss returned to his hometown or was otherwise unavailable, he would take over the kitchen. Although the taste was sometimes off, there was still a distinct charm in his cooking that made it quite delicious overall.

At least, that’s what Sun Wanjue thought, and of course, Qian Wang agreed as well.

Zhao Ziqiang had been preparing delicious meals to take to the hospital for three consecutive days after finishing work, and today was no exception. He carefully packed the freshly made mulberry seed and black fungus porridge into an insulated container. Glancing at the sky, he planned to walk to the hospital before Sun Wanjue returned. After all, he felt too embarrassed to keep bothering the young boy for rides every day, no matter how thick-skinned he might be.

At that moment, the hospital had quieted down. The corridors felt eerily silent, prompting Zhao Ziqiang, who was usually unshaken by fear, to quicken his pace.

Just as he was nearing the door of Zhao mother’s hospital room, a hand suddenly patted him gently on the shoulder. Startled, he instinctively jumped and turned to see who it was. Upon recognizing the person, he let out a sigh of relief—it was a pale-faced man, Qian Wang.

Qian Wang looked weak and unsteady, swaying as if he might collapse against Zhao Ziqiang at any moment.

Zhao Ziqiang frowned, reluctantly helping the unsteady Qian Wang into Zhao Mother’s room. After all, he couldn’t just let the man fall to the floor, could he? he silently grumbled to himself.

As for the reason for bringing Qian Wang into Zhao Mother’s room—well, after some persistent coaxing from Qian Wang, his mysterious friend had managed to arrange for him to be placed in a bed next to Zhao Mother.

Zhao Ziqiang helped Qian Wang into the room, and as soon as they reached the bedside, he roughly tossed the man, who was clinging to his arm, onto the bed. Then, as if nothing had happened, he firmly placed the thermal container he had been juggling for a while on the bedside table beside his mother.

Zhao Zili had already been shooting daggers at Qian Wang since her brother appeared at the door. Now, she mimicked her brother’s attitude, smiling sweetly as she ignored Qian Wang and began to scoop the congee into a bowl.

Zhao Mother remained quiet, simply watching, though a slight smile could be seen in her eyes.

Seeing his sister busy, Zhao Ziqiang moved to the foot of the bed and slowly cranked it up. This time, her condition seemed to have really worsened. She had always been in decent health before, though she’d had the old issue of high blood pressure, it had never been severe enough to need immediate treatment.

So this time, her illness truly frightened her husband and two children, especially since her condition had been fluctuating badly over the past few days. Zhao Ziqiang and Zhao Zili discussed it and decided to arrange for a long-term stay at the hospital.

Being in the hospital was better for her; first, she had professional doctors continuously monitoring her, and second, if any issues arose, they wouldn’t have to panic and scramble.

At this moment, Zhao mother still had a needle in her hand. Zhao Ziqiang took the bowl from his sister and fed his mother spoonful by spoonful. The porridge looked and smelled exquisite, filling the entire hospital room with a delicious aroma.

Qian Wang watched, swallowing hard as he temporarily withdrew his relentless gaze. Seeing the happy family of three next to him completely ignoring his presence left him feeling frustrated. Yet, he thought it was still quite nice to watch Zhao Ziqiang busy himself and caring for his mother.

Tonight, Zhao Zili was going home to rest, leaving Zhao Ziqiang as the caregiver. Naturally, he felt it was terrible to be in the same room as Qian Wang. Just enduring the pressure of those watchful eyes following him back and forth was overwhelming. However, having his mother there provided a certain level of comfort.

By around eleven o’clock at night, both Zhao Mother and Qian Wang had fallen asleep. Zhao Ziqiang got up to turn off the lights in the hospital room, leaving only the corridor wall lamp on. As he passed by his mother’s room, he walked over to tuck her blanket neatly.

After fixing the blanket, just as he was about to lie down on his own bed, he heard a muffled groan from behind. Instinctively, he turned to look and saw Qian Wang sprawled out, the blanket nearly rolled up sideways on him.

Zhao Ziqiang furrowed his brows, contemplating whether he should help this person fix the blanket. After a long pause, he sighed in resignation and walked over. Since he couldn’t truly harden his heart and let someone catch a chill, why bother being stubborn with himself?

As he thought this, he reassured himself that although the hospital room had no air conditioning, it could get quite chilly at night. Even for a stranger, it would be a simple act of kindness.

He knew Qian Wang slept deeply and didn’t bother to be overly gentle. Instead, he skillfully pulled the blanket out and covered the man properly.

Before Zhao Ziqiang could finish adjusting the blanket, the man who should have been sound asleep suddenly reached out and yanked him down onto the bed.

Qian Wang turned to his side and wrapped his arms around Zhao Ziqiang from behind.

Zhao Ziqiang twisted his body, trying to elbow the person behind him, but the limited movement rendered his attempt ineffective.

Qian Wang, embracing the long-lost warmth of the body in his arms, felt overwhelmed by the pleasant scent surrounding him and yearned to bury his entire face in Zhao Ziqiang’s neck.

Zhao Ziqiang clenched his fists in anger, but ultimately, Qian Wang was stronger. To avoid waking his mother, he couldn’t make any sudden movements or loud noises, so he could only quietly threaten the person restraining him.

“Qian Wang! If you keep doing this kind of shameless thing, just wait and see how you’ll regret it! I mean what I say!”

Qian Wang paused for a moment, his breathing becoming slightly ragged, but he still showed no sign of letting go. His voice was hoarse and shaky.

“I already regret it so much… what else could make me regret it even more?”

Zhao Ziqiang’s face gradually turned red, not just from anger but also from embarrassment. He realized that the upper hand he had finally gained seemed to slip away from him in an instant. Whenever he faced the unruly Qian Wang, he always felt powerless. This time, he couldn’t even think of leaving; he couldn’t even manage to get up!

As Zhao Ziqiang was lost in thought, he suddenly shivered, feeling a warm tongue repeatedly licking the same spot on his neck, as if were intent to penetrate through his skin.

Even his lower abdomen was being touched by the hand of the tongue’s owner, grazing over sensitives areas that made his face flush and his body felt weak.

His heart seemed to leap into his throat. At that moment, Zhao Ziqiang couldn’t care less about weather his mother would wake up. He swung his fist back with all his strength, landing a hit. Qian Wang let out a muffled groan and released his tight grip around his body.

The person who was released quickly turned over, and his first reaction was to look back at his mother. After noticing that she was still, he turned back, glaring in annoyance at the pitifully curled-up man.

Qian Wang reached out and turned on the dim bedside lamp, pulling Zhao Ziqiang’s hand back before he could retract it. He lay sideways on the hospital bed, the hem of his patient gown splitting apart from his chest to his abdomen.

Qian Wang’s body had a pleasing shape, with all the abs that a mature man should have. However, Zhao Ziqiang’s attention was clearly not on that. He initially squinted but then widened his eyes slightly when he noticed that almost every visible part of Qian Wang’s body was covered in bruises. Concerned words slipped out before he could think:

“What happened to you?”

Qian Wang, however, seemed unconcerned as he glanced at his own body, his eyes filled with delight as he looked at the person who showed such care.

Seeing that Qian Wang was just staring at him with wide eyes and had no intention of answering, Zhao Ziqiang decided not to press the issue any further. He yanked his hand back forcefully, turned away with a cold expression, and quickly walked back to the other side of the nursing bed, swiftly taking off his shoes and getting into bed.

………

Qian Wang unconsciously sniffed the empty palm of his hand, letting out a sigh as the feeling of joy quickly faded away.

In the next moment, there was a snap, and the hospital room was plunged into complete darkness.

Qian Wang slowly lowered his gaze, filled with a sense of loss.

Why is it that people only learn to cherish what they have after they’ve lost it?

He had always thought that such worn-out phrases were quite pretentious, until he found himself in a similar situation. Only then did he understand the feelings of those who uttered such words, a sense of helpless sorrow gradually spread from his heart throughout his entire being.

While he vaguely felt that there had been some progress, he was also plagued by a sense of emptiness, feeling restless and uncertain about how far he still had to go to return to the past.

Perhaps, from the moment the mistake was made, it was impossible for them to fully return to how things were.