Cen Huai’an looked up at Chuxia with his big, watery eyes and shook his head, instinctively sensing something was wrong.

“Then I’ll take you in to have a look,” Chuxia said with a more amiable smile.

Cen Zhengnian finally realized Chuxia’s intention. He turned his head away, covering his smile with his hand.

He played along with Chuxia, “Yes, An An, let’s go in with Mom.”

Caught off guard, Cen Huai’an found himself being led by Chuxia and Cen Zhengnian, each holding one of his hands, into a small clinic.

The clinic was extremely basic.

Patients and the doctor were in the same room, with no partitions.

Patients waited on a narrow, shabby bench, covering their mouths as they watched the doctor use tweezers and a dental drill, producing a buzzing sound.

When they heard the door open, the doctor didn’t even look up and said, “If you’re here for dental work, just sit and wait.”

Chuxia didn’t have Cen Huai’an sit down but instead pulled him closer to the doctor’s station. To make sure he could see the dentist at work, she turned to Cen Zhengnian and said, “Pick him up.”

Cen Zhengnian complied, his face showing a knowing smile as he lifted Cen Huai’an, ensuring he could clearly see the dentist working on the patient.

“Cen Huai’an, do you see? The doctor will do the same for you. First, he’ll use that drill to work on your tooth, drilling and drilling. Don’t worry; he’ll give you anesthesia, so it won’t hurt, just feels a bit sore. Then, he’ll make your mouth wide open like this and fill the tooth. If the filling is done well, it will last longer; if not, it will fall out quickly, and you’ll need to get it refilled.”

“This isn’t the worst part. The worst part is if you don’t take care of your teeth, they’ll get worse, and it will hurt so much that you’ll be rolling on the floor. At that point, the only option is to pull out the tooth. Do you know how it’s done?”

Cen Huai’an felt uneasy just listening and started to swallow nervously. “How?”

Chuxia smiled and said, “It’s simple. First, they break the bad tooth into pieces.”

As soon as Chuxia started with the first part, Cen Huai’an covered his mouth, but Chuxia’s smile only grew gentler as if she hadn’t noticed his action, and continued.

“Then they clean out the broken pieces, make an incision next to the tooth, and use forceps to pull it out. Generally, the tooth doesn’t come out all at once; it takes a long time to clean it up. The blood from the extraction will flow out of your mouth…”

Cen Huai’an tightened his mouth even more, as if he could see the extraction process in front of him. Especially since the patient in front of them was having a tooth pulled, and a lot of blood was coming from their mouth.

He couldn’t hold back any longer and quickly shook his head. “Mom, I won’t eat so much candy anymore!”

He didn’t want to have more decayed teeth or undergo tooth extraction.

Cen Huai’an was quite strong not to cry despite his fear.

Although he looked terrified and almost cried, he managed to hold back and clung tightly to Cen Zhengnian.

Chuxia saw his reaction and met Cen Zhengnian’s concerned eyes, as if asking, “Is this enough?”

She was also heartbroken but felt it was necessary to show Cen Huai’an the consequences of tooth decay to make him take it seriously.

She nodded. “Okay, let’s go out.”

Cen Zhengnian carried Cen Huai’an out, and Chuxia followed behind.

The dentist noticed their departure and tried to retain them, “Are you leaving? Aren’t you getting your teeth checked?”

Chuxia waved her hand. “No, we’re done. The child is scared.”

As they stepped out of the clinic, the brightness outside was a stark contrast to the dim, cramped space inside. Chuxia, a doctor herself, felt uncomfortable in the unsanitary environment of the clinic.

When Cen Huai’an stepped out into the sunlight, he was stunned and turned to Chu Xia with a dazed expression: “Mom, aren’t we going to see the dentist?”

Chu Xia rubbed his head and said, “We are, but not here. The environment here isn’t good. I forgot to mention, if you get dental work done here, the tools might not be properly disinfected, and the dentist might not pay attention to hygiene, which could lead to incurable diseases, which is very scary!”

Cen Huai’an thought of the old man with a bloated stomach who had died on the street.

That must be an incurable disease.

He quickly shook his head. He didn’t want a bloated stomach or to catch any disease.

Cen Huai’an was frightened and felt dejected.

Chu Xia touched his growing hair and reassured him, “Don’t be afraid. Daddy and Mommy will take you to a clean hospital. Remember to take good care of your teeth and don’t eat so much candy in the future.”

“Mm.” Cen Huai’an became very obedient without needing much more persuasion from Chu Xia.

He slowly forgot the dark and dingy little room, the frightening tools, and the bloody mouths with extracted teeth once Chu Xia and Cen Zhengnian took him to the dental hospital.

Liangzhou was the provincial capital and had a specialized dental hospital long ago.

Although the building was old, the environment was clean, and the doctors were very responsible.

The dentist who treated Cen Huai’an was a woman in her forties or fifties, smiling and very kind.

After examining his teeth, she said, “Oh dear, little one didn’t take good care of his teeth, resulting in cavities.”

Cen Huai’an covered his teeth, feeling a bit embarrassed.

“Should we fill the cavity?” the doctor asked Chu Xia and Cen Zhengnian.

“Please do.”

The doctor started the procedure.

The whole process wasn’t as frightening as Cen Huai’an had imagined.

It wasn’t painful, just a bit uncomfortable having to keep his mouth open.

The doctor kept talking to Cen Huai’an with a smile to distract him, and he didn’t realize how quickly the time passed.

The cavity was small and at an early stage, so the procedure was finished quickly.

When it was over, Cen Huai’an looked back at the clean little room and couldn’t quite believe it.

Although he found that filling the cavity wasn’t so scary, he couldn’t forget the scene at the small clinic with the tooth extraction.

He decided from now on to take good care of his teeth.

Cen Zhengnian carried Cen Huai’an while Chu Xia walked beside him.

The three of them exited the dental hospital.

It was still early, so Chu Xia said to Cen Zhengnian, “Let’s go to the city hospital next.”

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” Cen Zhengnian immediately became concerned, frowning. “There are general doctors at the dental hospital too. Let’s go back and see.”

Chu Xia often looked tired and sometimes felt exhausted after walking a few steps.

Cen Zhengnian had noticed her poor health over the past few days.

He had asked her about it when she and Cen Huai’an took Chinese medicine, and she told him it would improve gradually.

Seeing that she only seemed to be easily tired and had no other issues, he was somewhat reassured.

However, he had always paid attention to her health, so when he heard she wanted to go to the hospital, he thought something might be wrong.

“No, it’s not that. Huai’an and I need a follow-up appointment. It’s a good opportunity to have the doctor check us out.” Chu Xia smiled and interrupted Cen Zhengnian, signaling him not to worry so much.

Cen Zhengnian relaxed and asked as they walked, “How’s the doctor you’re seeing?”

He was thinking about whether Liangzhou had any highly skilled doctors.

Since both Chu Xia and Cen Huai’an were not in the best health, it was better to have another check-up.

“He’s good. He’s an experienced traditional Chinese doctor with excellent skills. Over the past month, Huai’an and I have been improving. If you had come back a month ago, you might have been so shocked you’d have rushed us to the hospital immediately,” Chu Xia joked.

Cen Zhengnian, however, was imagining that scene, his brow slightly furrowed and his expression filled with concern.

“I…”

Chuxia could tell what Cen Zhengnian was thinking just by looking at his expression and waved her hand, saying, “This isn’t your fault.”

Indeed, Cen Zhengnian had not fulfilled his responsibilities towards Cen Huai’an and the family, but the primary issues with An An’s and Chuxia’s health were due to the original host and her mother.

Cen Zhengnian had no reason to blame himself for that.

Li Guanzhong remembered Chuxia and An An and could gauge the patients’ adherence to medical advice just by their demeanor.

Nonetheless, he still took their pulses and adjusted the prescription: “Continue taking the medicine. An An should recover well and might not need medication soon. However, you, Madam, have sustained significant damage and require long-term care.”

Cen Zhengnian’s face became very serious, his brow furrowing deeply as he asked, “Doctor, what is wrong with her health? Will she recover with proper care?”

He spoke cautiously, his worried gaze fixed on Chuxia, genuinely afraid that her health wouldn’t improve.

“Yes! As long as you follow my advice, take the medicine regularly, and eat well, she should be fine in about a year. If her condition is managed well, the recovery time could be shorter.”

Hearing the doctor’s assurance, Cen Zhengnian’s frown gradually relaxed.

He asked Chuxia to wait and went to fetch the medicine for her and An An.

On the way back, Cen Zhengnian hesitated, wanting to ask many questions but unsure how to start.

Once they were home, while Cen Huai’an went to practice Go, and Chuxia sat down with a book, Cen Zhengnian stood next to her, his tall figure impossible to ignore.

Chuxia, unable to concentrate on her reading, put the book down and directly asked him, “Just say what you need to say.”

Cen Zhengnian wanted to ask about their past, but he had already learned about it from the neighbors, and asking would only reopen old wounds for Chuxia.

He opened his mouth but then closed it again.

After a long pause, Cen Zhengnian spoke with some difficulty, “Do you blame me?”

He wondered if she resented him for marrying her without taking proper care of her and An An, for not being home, and for not providing the companionship they needed.

“No, I don’t.”

Cen Zhengnian immediately looked up, the gloom in his eyes lifting somewhat.

Chuxia was not the original host, so any blame wasn’t directed at her.

Besides, what good would blaming do?

She was in this state now, and Cen Zhengnian still had to return to his work.

Moreover, she was quite happy now.

Cen Zhengnian had a lot of money, little work, and was responsible.

Aside from not being able to be with her all the time, she couldn’t find fault with him.

“Don’t overthink it. I understand your work.”

Just these words made Cen Zhengnian’s heart race uncontrollably.

He suddenly straightened up, his voice becoming more strained, “Chuxia, thank you.”

Chuxia didn’t know what he had imagined again but figured it was probably harmless to her.

She smiled and said, “You’re welcome,” then continued reading her book.

Taking advantage of having Cen Zhengnian as a free, excellent tutor, she asked him more about difficult problems in physics and mathematics.

The exam papers sent by her grandfather from the capital were quite challenging, and sometimes when she got stuck, asking Cen Zhengnian for a hint would often clear things up, speeding up her learning progress.

In the afternoon, Cen Zhengnian took Cen Huai’an to his Go lesson.

On the way back, Cen Huai’an talked more with Cen Zhengnian.

Even though Cen Zhengnian wasn’t very skilled at Go, his grandfather was an expert, and he had learned some basics when he was young.

He had stopped playing due to the adverse circumstances later on.

Since Cen Huai’an was also a beginner, their conversations became much more frequent, and sometimes they even played games together in the evening.

On Monday, during her afternoon break from work, Chu Xia went to the school to drop off the papers she had been working on and to collect other papers.

The results of the monthly exam were already out.

When Chu Xia met the homeroom teacher, the teacher’s expression remained as serious as ever, with no hint of a smile.

She adjusted her glasses and handed Chu Xia a piece of paper: “Here are the results of the monthly exam. You can check your own score.”