Lu Yan stared at the numbers on the screen without moving. A meaningful smile from Lu Jizhou just now flashed through his mind. The hand holding the phone paused for a few seconds before he put the phone into his pocket. 

Xia Fei took Xia Ruan to the hospital for a re-examination and finally breathed a sigh of relief after confirming she was not seriously injured. 

Lying on the bed, Xia Ruan felt much better. He looked up at Xia Fei: “Brother, I think I’m already much better. When are we leaving?” 

Xia Fei didn’t answer. He simply took a cup, filled it with water, and walked over to her. “Do you want me to feed you, or can you do it yourself?” 

“I can do it myself.” Saying that, she reached out to take the cup from his hand. Seeing this, Xia Fei felt much relieved and took his phone to the window to call Zhou Jingyi and Xia Longchuan. 

Zhou Jingyi and Xia Longchuan arrived quickly. As soon as they entered, Xia Longchuan scolded Xia Fei, “Ruan Ruan got hurt! Why are you only telling us now?” 

Xia Fei looked at Zhou Jingyi a bit wronged: “Didn’t I notify you after sending her to the hospital?” 

Zhou Jingyi also gave him a reproachful look: “You should have informed us immediately.” 

Xia Ruan reached out to tug Xia Longchuan’s sleeve at the bedside: “Dad, don’t blame brother. He’s been busy running around and didn’t have time to make a call.” 

Xia Longchuan’s eyes softened when he saw her slightly swollen forehead. “How much time would it have taken to make a phone call? What did the doctor say?” Before Xia Fei could answer, he continued, “No, I still want to ask the doctor myself.” 

Xia Ruan enjoyed their care very much. Although they were staying in a high-class ward, she felt a bit resistant to the hospital itself. In the past, because of poverty, she couldn’t even afford to get sick. She still remembered once when she had appendicitis and was admitted to the hospital but had no money to pay, which embarrassed her deeply. Since then, she had been very resistant to hospitals. She thought that even with a different body, she still couldn’t overcome this psychological barrier. 

Xia Longchuan soon returned to the ward. Zhou Jingyi rushed to asked, “What did the doctor say?” 

“Nothing serious, just keep her under observation overnight,” Xia Longchuan said, but he still looked uneasy. 

Seeing this, Xia Ruan pouted and looked at Zhou Jingyi. “Mom, the doctor said I’m fine. Can we go home? I really don’t like hospitals.” 

“Ruan Ruan, be good. We have to listen to the doctor. We’ll all be here with you, don’t be afraid,” Zhou Jingyi comforted. 

Xia Ruan was about to say something, but when she saw the way Zhou Jingyi looked at her, it felt like she was being scolded for acting like a child. She quickly composed herself and sweetly said, “I understand, Mom.” 

At that moment, Xia Fei was called aside by Xia Longchuan, who asked sternly, “What happened to Ruan Ruan?” 

“She was accidentally hit by a basketball,” Xia Fei truthfully said. 

Xia Longchuan was a bit suspicious: “Really?” He hadn’t forgotten the last incident. 

Xia Fei looked at Xia Longchuan with dissatisfaction: “Hey, Old Xia, are you accusing me of lying?” 

Xia Longchuan pointed at his forehead: “Have you been using your brain to raise fish? I meant this injury has nothing to do with last time, right?” 

“Of course. I’ve already handled the last incident,” Xia Fei said proudly. 

Xia Longchuan nodded: “Good then.” 

Still looking worried, Xia Fei patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Ruan Ruan is with me. No one can bully her.” 

Just then, Zhou Jingyi, who had just walked over, stopped and looked at Xia Fei: “Xia Fei, why don’t you put this kind of energy into your studies? Look, Ruan Ruan has been focusing on her studies lately. You need to work hard at your tutoring classes too, okay?” 

Mentioning studies, Xia Fei inevitably thought of Fang Yinan. Facing Zhou Jingyi’s expectant look, he reluctantly nodded: “Mom, I’ll do my best.” 

❖❖❖ 

There was a knock on the door. Lu Yan, who had been distracted, put down his phone and opened the door to find Lu Yuwei standing there. “Mom, what’s up?” 

“If it’s nothing, can’t I just come talk to you?” Lu Yuwei shot him an annoyed look. 

Lu Yan stepped aside to let her in, then said slowly, “Of course not. Aren’t you always saying you don’t visit unless it’s important?” Usually, Lu Yuwei didn’t enter his room, claiming it was to protect him. 

Lu Yuwei snorted. If he hadn’t eaten and locked himself in his room, how else would she have come back? 

Seeing her ready for a long heart-to-heart talk, Lu Yan felt a bit headache. Was she going to tell him stories again today? 

Lu Yuwei could tell she was being disliked, so she got straight to the point: “Come on, what’s bothering you? Anything upsetting at school?” 

Lu Yan looked at her in confusion: “No.” 

Lu Yuwei snorted coldly: “I purposely left my script to listen to your troubles, and you give me just three words as an answer?” 

Lu Yan was at a loss: “Mom, there’s nothing to say. What do you want me to say?” 

Lu Yuwei’s expression clearly showed disbelief: “Then why did you come back and lock yourself in your room all the time? You’re not usually like this.” 

Lu Yan was momentarily stunned, then explained, “I was just hesitating about something.” 

Lu Yuwei said openly, “If you want to do it, just do it. If you don’t, then don’t. What’s there to hesitate about? Life is short, just follow your heart.” 

Lu Yan was taken aback for a moment, then a faint smile flickered in his eyes. That’s right, it’s such a simple thing. Seeing this, Lu Yuwei patted his shoulder and spoke in a rare serious tone: “Yan Yan, if you want to do something, just go for it. Mom will always be behind you.” 

Lu Yan raised his eyebrows at her: “I know.” 

After Lu Yuwei left, Lu Yan didn’t hesitate to pick up his phone and send the message he had just edited. 

❖❖❖ 

Xia Ruan looked helplessly at Zhou Jingyi, Xia Longchuan, and Xia Fei beside her: “Mom, Dad, you should go back. The nurse is here, so it’s fine. You need to work tomorrow, and Xia Fei has school.” 

Zhou Jingyi, with a gentle expression, tucked her blanket in. “It’s fine. You can still sleep, right?” 

Although it was a high-end ward, clearly it couldn’t accommodate so many people, so Xia Ruan directly said, “If you don’t go back, I won’t sleep.” Saying this, she was about to sit up from the bed. 

Finally, after everyone negotiated, Zhou Jingyi and Xia Longchuan went back to rest, and Xia Fei stayed to accompany her. Seeing them repeatedly remind her, Xia Ruan was both touched and a little amused. She was actually fine now. 

After they left, Xia Ruan glanced at Xia Fei, who was yawning, and said, “Brother, I’m fine now. You should go to sleep.” 

“I’ll wait a bit,” Xia Fei said, still not entirely reassured. 

“I really am fine, and the nurse auntie is here. If anything happens, I’ll call her. You should go to sleep,” Xia Ruan gently persuaded. 

Xia Fei rubbed his tired eyes and finally agreed, but before he left, he warned, “If you feel unwell, call me immediately. I’ll be right outside.” 

“Got it. Go to sleep,” Xia Ruan waved him off. 

After Xia Fei left, Xia Ruan remembered the vibrating phone under her pillow and took it out to check. 

It was a WeChat message from Fan Shujuan asking if she was feeling better. After replying, Xia Ruan found a text from an unknown number: “Feeling better? What did the doctor say?” 

She hesitated for two seconds and then replied, “Who is this?” 

The other side quickly responded, “Lu Yan.” 

Xia Ruan was so surprised she almost dropped her phone on the table. Had the male protagonist taken the wrong medicine? Or was he secretly behind this whole thing? Just as her mind went wild with possibilities, her phone chimed again. It was a friend request on WeChat, and the message was brief, as usual: “I’m Lu Yan.” 

Originally, Xia Ruan didn’t plan on accepting it, but then she remembered his vengeful personality and quickly clicked “accept.” 

The other side soon sent another message: “What did the doctor say?” 

Xia Ruan thought maybe it was normal since he was the one who sent her to the clinic, so she replied: “It’s nothing serious. I should be able to go home tomorrow.” 

After getting her reply, Lu Yan hesitated for a moment before typing: “Then rest early. Good night.” 

Xia Ruan stared at the “Good night” on the screen in disbelief—the male protagonist actually said good night to her. Was he half-asleep or not awake at all? Well, whether he was awake or not, she decided to pretend she didn’t see that message. 

Lu Yan stared at his phone screen absentmindedly, and only after confirming there would be no further reply did he get up to wash. 

Xia Ruan was about to put down her phone but was still curious, so she opened Lu Yan’s Moments (social feed). To her disappointment, there was nothing there. 

The next morning, Xia Ruan didn’t go to school with Xia Fei. She had to wait for the doctor’s checkup before being discharged, so she’d only be going in the afternoon. 

Just as Xia Fei put down his school bag, a girl grabbed his sleeve: “Is Xia Ruan okay?” 

Xia Fei looked down at the girl holding his sleeve—it was Fan Shujuan, Xia Ruan’s deskmate. He raised an eyebrow. Since when did Ruan Ruan have such a good relationship with the class monitor? 

Fan Shujuan, feeling a bit uncomfortable under his gaze, let go of his sleeve and shyly explained, “Well, I was just a bit worried.” 

Xia Fei glanced at the wrinkled sleeve she had grabbed, then told her about Xia Ruan’s situation: “Ruan Ruan is fine. She should be able to come to school this afternoon.” 

Fan Shujuan immediately felt relieved. Although Xia Ruan had said she was okay last night, she was still a little worried. Now, she could finally relax. 

After hanging his bag on the chair, Xia Fei suddenly remembered something and turned to Fan Shujuan: “Class monitor, please mark any notes that need to be done for Ruan Ruan as well. I’m just a bad student and won’t get involved.” 

Fan Shujuan nodded in agreement. After Xia Fei turned and walked away, she suddenly felt a bit envious of Xia Ruan having such a good brother. 

Since Xia Fei appeared, Lu Yan hadn’t flipped any pages of the book in front of him. He took out his phone and glanced at the chat window. The latest message was still the “Good night” he sent last night. He pursed his lips, hesitated for two seconds, then sent another message.