Chapter 61.2

Jiang Nian didn’t sleep well, and when she woke up in the afternoon, there was a red mark on her left cheek, making the surrounding skin look even whiter. Her eyelashes were long and fluttery. Lu Yu, resisting the urge to ruffle her hair, asked, “Did you sleep well?”

“Mm,” Jiang Nian yawned.

Chen Yao teased her, “Sister-in-law, did you fight someone in your dreams?”

Zhou Ji laughed beside him.

Jiang Nian: ???

She had slept soundly, knowing nothing about it, except that her right arm and leg felt a bit numb. She stood up to stretch and saw Lu Yu looking down, his eyes seemingly smiling.

Jiang Nian: …

Great, her poor sleeping posture had been exposed again.

Lu Yu took three oranges from his coat and handed them to Jiang Nian, “They’re warm.”

Jiang Nian was startled, looking in surprise at the oranges in Lu Yu’s hand. Zhou Ji said, “Lu Yu kept them warm in his coat for you. You two have such a good relationship, caring for each other. It’s better than my relationship with my sister-in-law.”

Jiang Nian: …

There were unspeakable secrets between her and Lu Yu.

After eating the oranges, Jiang Nian stood up with the lunch boxes, “I’m going back to make dinner, I’ll bring some over later.”

Lu Yu said, “You don’t have to come tonight. The hospital has a cafeteria that can deliver food to us.”

Jiang Nian knew he was worried about her, so she nodded, “Okay.”

On her way back, she bought a few groceries, planning to make more food to bring over tomorrow morning. When she returned to the dormitory, she forgot about the flour. The door was opened from the inside, and Zhai Peipei poked her head out, “Oh, you’re back.”

“Come in,” she opened the door wider.

Jiang Nian walked in with the groceries. Zhai Peipei was kneading cornmeal dough. Seeing the vegetables Jiang Nian brought, she smiled, “Today’s the first time I’ve had your cooking. Your mixed noodles were really good.”

Jiang Nian smiled, “I’ll show you more of my cooking skills.”

Zhai Peipei handled the vegetable chopping while Jiang Nian made many corn pancakes. Zhai Peipei said, “Director Ge called last night.”

Jiang Nian turned her head, “Why?”

Zhai Peipei said, “From what she said, it seemed Director Wang called her to ask about you. You mentioned yesterday that you didn’t plan on taking any embroidery task for now. Director Wang is probably worried you’ll quit and wants Director Ge to persuade you.”

Jiang Nian: …

She actually did have such plans.

If Lu Yu received a transfer order, she would leave with him. Even if she continued embroidery in the future, it would be at another state-run embroidery shop in another city. This wouldn’t affect Sister Zhai and Sister Lu, though. On the contrary, Peng Yin might treat them better. If they also quit, Peng Yin’s position as director would be jeopardized.

However, Sister Zhai and Sister Lu relied on this job to support themselves and wouldn’t easily leave.

While cooking, they heard another argument from next door, this time involving several people, some arguing and some trying to mediate.

Jiang Nian felt a headache coming on.

She asked Zhai Peipei, “Sister Zhai, do they argue at night too?”

Zhai Peipei was also annoyed, “Of course. Since they moved in, they haven’t stopped arguing for a single day. I’ve heard enough over the past two months to know why they fight.”

Jiang Nian’s curiosity was piqued, and Zhai Peipei couldn’t help but laugh, “I knew you’d be curious.”

Jiang Nian smiled.

Zhai Peipei said, “Zhao Lin pursued Sun Yuan because of her family background. They often mention Wu Hao, who is from Sun Yuan’s family compound and is better off than Zhao Lin. They work at the same factory. Zhao Lin is jealous and can’t stand Sun Yuan talking to Wu Hao. Just a few words and he feels she’s wronged him. This kind of man is overly suspicious.”

So that’s how it was.

Jiang Nian thought Zhao Lin’s inferiority complex was at play.

His family background wasn’t as good as Sun Yuan’s, and Sun Yuan was beautiful, with someone like Wu Hao around her. Zhao Lin felt inferior and started finding faults with Sun Yuan. Even their dormitory was arranged by Sun Yuan’s father. Sun Yuan probably regretted marrying Zhao Lin, trying to escape Sun Ying’s mother by choosing marriage, but ended up with a man like Zhao Lin.

After dinner was ready, Lu Xiaoqing and the others returned.

The neighbors had left, and the lights in their room were on, but it was quiet inside.

Since Zhang Xiao was pregnant, Jiang Nian, worried about her own restless sleep, shared a bed with Lu Xiaoqing, while Zhang Xiao slept with Sister Zhai.

Lu Xiaoqing poked Jiang Nian’s arm, “Stay still, I want to see the sunrise tomorrow.”

Jiang Nian: …

She had slept all afternoon and wasn’t sleepy now, staring at the dark beams of the ceiling until she began to feel drowsy. Just as she fell asleep, a loud “thump” from next door woke her up.

Jiang Nian: …

She was really fed up!

Turning over to sleep again, Lu Xiaoqing and Zhai Peipei were also awakened. Zhai Peipei said, “Probably arguing again.”

She yawned.

Lu Xiaoqing, annoyed, said, “I want to report them to the Revolutionary Committee.”

Jiang Nian closed her eyes, trying to fall asleep. After a while, there was the sound of a door opening from next door, and soon their dormitory door was knocked on. A weak woman’s voice came from outside, “Help… help.”

Jiang Nian instantly got up.

She put on her shoes and opened the door. Sun Yuan was sitting on the ground, leaning against the door frame, one hand on her stomach, a pool of blood underneath her, trailing from their dormitory to the next door. Jiang Nian’s hand trembled in fear. Zhai Peipei quickly got out of bed and urgently said, “She’s having a miscarriage. We need to get her to the hospital!”

Sun Yuan weakly grasped Jiang Nian’s pants, her face pale, “Help me…”

Jiang Nian bent down to support her, “We’ll take you to the hospital.”

Zhang Xiao wanted to go too, but Zhai Peipei told her to stay put to avoid harming her own baby, which scared Zhang Xiao into lying down quietly, holding her stomach. Lu Xiaoqing climbed out of bed, put a coat on Jiang Nian, and the three of them helped Sun Yuan. Lu Xiaoqing carried Sun Yuan on her back to the hospital while Zhai Peipei and Jiang Nian supported from behind.

It wasn’t a short walk from here to the hospital. It takes half an hour for one person to walk there, not to mention carrying someone on one’s back. So Lu Xiaoqing and Zhai Peipei took turns carrying Sun Yuan. Zhai Peipei didn’t let Jiang Nian carry her, thinking Jiang Nian was too small and might accidentally drop Sun Yuan. When they finally arrived at the hospital, Zhai Peipei urgently shouted, “Nurse! Nurse! Someone is bleeding!”

Sun Yuan was carried into the emergency room by the nurses. The doctor told them to notify her family, and Lu Xiaoqing ran back to the dormitory but couldn’t find Zhao Lin. So, Jiang Nian and the others had to handle everything. Eventually, the doctor came out and said that the patient had miscarried due to severe abdominal trauma, and they suspected domestic violence by her husband. They reported the case to the Women’s Federation and the Revolutionary Committee.

Jiang Nian recalled the “thump” she heard in her half-asleep state.

She didn’t know if Sun Yuan had hit herself or if Zhao Lin had done it.

Sun Yuan was still unconscious when the Women’s Federation arrived first, asking about their identities. Learning they were from a state-run embroidery shop and lived in the same dormitory building as Sun Yuan. They inquired about Sun Yuan and Zhao Lin’s relationship, why they fought, and other details, asking very thoroughly.

Jiang Nian didn’t know much since she had only been there for a couple of days.

Zhai Peipei and Lu Xiaoqing cooperated with the inquiry. Not long after, the Revolutionary Committee also came to understand the situation. They left only in the middle of the night. Lu Xiaoqing, angry, cursed, “Why do I have to encounter such vexing matters!”

Zhai Peipei was also annoyed.

Sun Yuan was transferred to a ward on the third floor. With the New Year approaching, many people were visiting the hospital, and even late at night, coughing could be heard in the corridors. They couldn’t leave Sun Yuan alone, but Zhai Peipei and Lu Xiaoqing had to work on embroidery the next day. So Jiang Nian told them to go back, and she stayed to take care of Sun Yuan.

In the ward with three beds occupied, Jiang Nian sat on a bench, looking at Sun Yuan’s pale face. Now that it was quiet, she felt her legs trembling, partly from running and partly from fright. She had never seen such a bloody scene in her life.

Her hands were sticky. Looking down, she saw they were covered in blood. Besides her hands, her pants were also stained with blood from where Sun Yuan had grabbed her.

Jiang Nian: …

Suppressing her fear, she walked to the bathroom. The long, narrow corridor was lit by a row of old-fashioned glass bulbs, and it was silent, with the wooden doors of the wards closed tightly. Occasionally, coughs could be heard from inside.

Jiang Nian looked down at the blood on her hands, her mind uncontrollably recalling horror movies she had seen.

Ghost hospitals…

Scary corridors…

She kept telling herself it was all fake, forcing herself to walk past the stairwell. The railings in this era were walled off, painted green below and white above. Passing by, the fourth ward was where Lu Yu was. Thinking of Lu Yu being inside, she felt much more at ease.

She reached the end of the corridor, the water room beside two rooms: the men’s and women’s toilets. Trying not to think about horror movies, she turned on the tap, and the sound of running water echoed in the quiet water room.

The sound became increasingly eerie.

“Cough cough—”

The coughing from the old man in the next ward made Jiang Nian’s scalp tingle. She felt as if a hand might reach out and touch her shoulder, coldly asking, “Do you want yellow paper or white paper…”

“I want neither!”

Jiang Nian didn’t finish washing her hands and ran off, a small figure darting quickly.

Lu Yu’s ward was next to the bathroom. The corridor was silent, but Jiang Nian’s voice was clear to Lu Yu.

Almost immediately upon hearing Jiang Nian’s voice, Lu Yu got out of bed, disregarding his injury, and quickly opened the door, only to see a figure run past with bloodstained hands.

Lu Yu’s expression darkened as he clutched his injury and hurriedly caught up.

He didn’t know why Jiang Nian was at the hospital so late. Seeing her disappear into the ward across the stairwell, he followed and pushed open the door to find her sitting on a bench, clinging to the bedside, her whole body shaking, with bloody hands laid out.

“What’s wrong?!”

Lu Yu’s deep voice startled Jiang Nian.

She blankly looked up, still not fully alert, when a strong arm yanked her up, and she was pulled into Lu Yu’s warm, firm embrace. His hand gripped her waist while the other gently patted her back, “Tell me, what happened just now?”

With Lu Yu holding her tightly, her fear dissipated. She regained her composure and whispered, “Nothing, it was just dark, and I got scared.”

Lu Yu finally let her go, checking her thoroughly. Besides the blood on her hands and pants, she seemed uninjured. Jiang Nian quickly explained, “It’s not my blood. It’s Sun Yuan’s. She lives next door to our dormitory and had an incident tonight. Sister Zhai, Sister Lu, and I brought her to the hospital.”

Lu Yu glanced at Sun Yuan on the bed, frowned, and said nothing, gripping Jiang Nian’s wrist, “I’ll help you wash your hands.”

He couldn’t stand seeing blood on her.

With Lu Yu accompanying her, Jiang Nian’s fear vanished, but she hadn’t forgotten about Lu Yu’s injury and tried to support him instead, “Let me help you.”

Holding hands, they walked out of the ward. Chen Yao came out, seeing Lu Yu clutching his wound and holding Jiang Nian’s hand. He was stunned, “Sister-in-law, was that you who ran past?”

Jiang Nian awkwardly lowered her head, “Sorry for disturbing you.”

Chen Yao said, “You didn’t.”

He approached and supported Lu Yu with his uninjured hand, frowning, “You shouldn’t be walking around. Go back to bed.”

Lu Yu pulled his hand away, “I’m fine. You go back.”

“But…”

“If anything happens, I’ll call you.”

Chen Yao, seeing Lu Yu’s insistence, couldn’t argue. He noticed the blood on Jiang Nian’s hands and pants, his brows furrowing, “Sister-in-law, are you hurt?”

Jiang Nian quickly shook her head, “It’s not mine, it’s from someone in the dorm next to the embroidery shop. I helped bring her to the hospital.”

Jiang Nian wanted to support Lu Yu, but he held her firmly, not letting her go.

She looked up and whispered, “You should go back and lie down. Let Chen Yao accompany me to wash my hands.”

“No need.”

Lu Yu sent Chen Yao back to the ward and took Jiang Nian to the bathroom himself. The bathroom, which had felt eerie and frightening earlier, seemed much better now, mainly because Lu Yu was standing next to her, providing a sense of security. The light in the water room was dim, casting the shadows of two figures on the wall, one tall and one short.

The sound of running water was clear in the bathroom.

Jiang Nian cleaned her hands, and as she lifted her head, she saw their shadows on the wall engulfing her. Before she could react, her back collided with Lu Yu’s warm body. His rough fingers grasped her chin, tilting her head back. Her neck was forced into a high arch.

His lips pressed firmly against hers, with an unyielding presence that filled her senses.

His teeth broke through her defenses, and his unique scent, like a fierce wind, invaded her. The arm around her waist tightened, as if trying to fuse her into his bones.

“Mmm…”

Jiang Nian’s eyelashes fluttered continuously, her arched neck making it hard to breathe.

Lu Yu kissed her for a long time before letting her go, his fingers gently brushing her reddened lips. His eyes held a deep, dark intensity, as if wanting to tear her apart inch by inch. “I missed you.”

His voice was hoarse and rough.

It was like he had swallowed burning coals, with his gaze radiating heat.