When he was first brought back, actually wasn’t that attentive to him, just thought of how to be convenient how to come, didn’t even check his condition, also didn’t ask the other intern about his situation, only hastily glanced at the medical record, roughly knew that he had multiple slight fractures.
Slight internal bleeding in the five viscera and six bowels1Five viscera and six bowels: 五脏六腑, traditional Chinese term for internal organs: heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, stomach, intestines, etc., truly not serious, but so many injuries stacked together, it’s equivalent to pulling one hair and the whole body moves, still needs more attention.
Nan Zhi had a straight face, said: “Take off your clothes.”
She wanted to examine his body.
Song Qing’s face was like ashes, but still obediently pulled down the zipper of the windbreaker. Inside he was wearing a shirt, buttons undone, revealing a body full of bluish and purplish marks.
Some were due to impact, bruising and blood accumulation, some were scrapes from falling to the ground.
Nan Zhi let him take off his clothes, Song Qing hesitated for a moment, but still pulled his arms out from the shirt, baring his upper body openly and directly in front of her.
Nan Zhi almost couldn’t hold it, first glance entered her eyes was a body between youth and young man, slim, fair-skinned, beautiful; very quickly was drawn to the bluish and purplish marks on it.
Her brows involuntarily furrowed slightly, a little heartachingly said: “How come there are so many injuries.”
Song Qing instead comforted her, “Already mostly bett—”
He was glared at by Nan Zhi, only then remembered that he had just said this too, and ended up having his disguise seen through by her.
Nan Zhi’s gaze landed on his elbow area, there was a large scabbed-over blood scar, still not fallen off, thick piece, must have been a very heavy fall at the time.
She pressed it once, Song Qing clearly had a dodging reaction.
“Hurts?”
Song Qing shook his head, “Not really hurting…”
Nan Zhi’s gaze locked tightly onto him.
He had no choice but to change his words, “Hurts a little.”
“Here then.” Nan Zhi switched to another place, at his ribs below the chest, there was bruising, inside clearly was a fracture spot.
“Hurts…”
Song Qing already realized, if he didn’t tell the truth, he would get glared at by her, not the usual pretend kind, this time really a bit angry, about him hiding his condition.
So now when asked, he answered honestly all the way.
“This place then.” Nan Zhi again changed spots.
Song Qing’s body was being pressed, frequently being shifted around, pressed and pinched by her, had a kind of feeling like he was meat on the chopping board.
She was the one coming to buy meat, disliked this piece of meat, picked and chose, negotiated with the boss about whether the price could be a bit lower, or cut off the bad part of this meat.
The meat had absolutely no ability to resist, could only let her do whatever she wanted.
Still had to answer her questions.
Like telling her, which parts of this meat had problems.
“Hurts.”
Thinking things in his heart, but still honestly replied to her from his mouth.
Nan Zhi continued, practically checked all the bruised areas on his body, got a seven-eight understanding of his condition, confirmed no mistakes, no omissions, only then retracted her hands, told him no need to cook tomorrow, just order takeout, continue resting for a few more days then talk.
Song Qing’s expression carried some regret, but he still obediently nodded his head.
As long as he complied, everything could be discussed. Nan Zhi’s expression eased a bit and she continued going upstairs to buy clothes for him.
Along the way, she used Meituan to look for someone to take down that very, very big crystal chandelier.
It had always been a safety hazard, Nan Zhi knew, but she had never touched it before, also never thought of finding someone to remove it.
Maybe she had been hoping that one day this chandelier could be used, to put a period to her increasingly dull and suffocating life.
But recently, she had resolved a heart problem.
A very, very big heart problem.
She had always handled things with her parents with a cold approach, because she didn’t know what to do.
She saw that her older sister was educated so well, with high academic qualifications, high appearance value, even became the doctor that she herself had wanted to be. Her life was dazzling and beautiful.
Her younger brother also got full marks in every subject, won many excellent awards. Mother was elegant, father was modest. That whole family didn’t look like the type to make unreasonable trouble, so she kept reflecting nonstop—was it that she was wrong?
She shouldn’t have gone to get that obviously different pink-colored small bowl during dinner. Clearly it was so special, how could she not have noticed?
Also shouldn’t have reached for the chicken drumstick when there were only two on a table with three children.
Shouldn’t have given Mom such a cheap gift. Also shouldn’t have taken the drumstick and then not eaten it. That way she wouldn’t have been scolded by Dad.
But ever since Song Qing came, she started to have different thoughts.
The way she and Song Qing were now—what difference was there from when she had just arrived at her parents’ home back then? The only difference was that the roles had switched. She had become the parents, and Song Qing had become her.
Song Qing was just like she had been back then—cautious, eyes lowered obediently, reading facial expressions and watching for moods.
She didn’t think much of it, just felt a bit heartache for him. What had he gone through to become like this? Also worried she might scare him, so she was careful in every way to maintain and protect.
But back then she had overheard her parents talking in the kitchen, saying she was spoiled by Grandma, just like Grandma, stingy and narrow-minded.
Didn’t know if she could change.
The look they gave her also carried deep disappointment.
At the time, she observed that the one cooking was Mom, the one washing dishes and scrubbing pots was Dad. She had wanted to go into the kitchen to help them.
Because of that sentence “stingy and petty,” she returned to her room disheartened, and did nothing.
She stayed a few days and no one paid her any attention, so she always couldn’t help going downstairs to see what Song Qing was doing, whether he needed anything.
Because she knew Song Qing was the same kind of person as her. Even though she had told him, “If you need anything, just let me know,” he wouldn’t. Sure enough, he deliberately walked barefoot, making no sound going downstairs, and when she saw him trying to reach the water cup at the head of the bed but couldn’t reach it, he still didn’t say anything—just quietly crawled a long distance, propped up his upper body, and stretched his arm very far to reach the cup outside the sofa bed.
She didn’t believe her parents hadn’t experienced being under someone else’s roof. Both of them started from nothing, when they were poor they had also stayed in other people’s homes, also begged others for help. No way they didn’t know what that feeling was like.
But they didn’t spend time or energy to protect her. She wasn’t even as good as a stranger.
Nan Zhi wouldn’t treat even a stranger like that.
Song Qing boiled a kettle of water for her, and she was deeply moved by it. She didn’t feel it was cheap or lowly at all.
Song Qing had never done anything wrong, but in her heart she understood clearly—there was nothing here that he couldn’t touch or couldn’t do. Even if he smashed her computer, she wouldn’t say anything.
So back then, they really had not given her even a little bit of tolerance.
It wasn’t her fault, it was just that they didn’t love her.
She was not wrong. No one had ever told her that among those small bowls stacked high together, one was special, exclusive, not to be touched. She had only taken the one at the top in order. She didn’t pick it deliberately, nor did she purposely choose that particular bowl.
The reason she took that chicken drumstick was because none of the dishes made to welcome her suited her taste. They didn’t even know she liked light flavors. She had only wanted to eat something she could eat.
She hadn’t blamed them for not caring enough about her, hadn’t thrown her sleeves and stormed off when the dishes were served. But instead, they blamed her for taking a chicken drumstick. Truly ironic.
If she wasn’t wrong, then why should she feel guilty and keep reflecting?
There was no need for those burdensome thoughts. One heart problem faded away naturally; with one worry less, she felt much lighter on her body, like one burden had disappeared.
That crystal chandelier was no longer needed. It could now retire from this home.
Nan Zhi looked at the reservation order on her phone, and thought.
Helping him—wasn’t it also helping herself, saving herself?
His arrival truly came at just the right time. At her lowest point, when her emotions were at their lowest, he told her: It wasn’t your fault. You don’t need to blame yourself anymore. Walk out.
So she walked out.