CHAPTER 75: CHAPTER 71: WHAT DID I PRETEND TO BE?

Xu Qingqiu lay weakly in the hospital bed, trying hard to appear at ease, but for some reason, she started crying as she spoke.

"Chu Tian... do I look very ugly right now?"

"Can you show me a mirror? Have I been disfigured?"

Chu Tian looked at her, speechless, not knowing what on earth she was thinking.

"How could that be? You hit your head, not your face. How could that disfigure you?"

"Really? But why does my face hurt so much? And look, it’s even bandaged right here."

Xu Qingqiu pouted, her eyes trying desperately to look up at her own head as she tugged at a loose thread from the gauze, a look of certainty on her face.

"Miss, that’s a bandage for the back of your head. Your face hurts because it’s swollen from the fall."

"Swollen? WAHHH, doesn’t that make me even uglier?!"

Seriously, Miss? You’re injured; why are you so obsessed with your looks? What kind of thought process is this?

Chu Tian really couldn’t understand her way of thinking. "Let’s not worry about that for now," he said. "I’ll go call the doctor to check on you, just to make sure everything is truly alright."

"Don’t! Can you please not go?"

Chu Tian had just stood up when she stopped him. He didn’t know if it was fear from the earlier injury or a lack of security afterward.

The thought of being left alone in the empty ward made Xu Qingqiu panic; she was terrified of Chu Tian leaving her sight.

Seeing her pitiful gaze, Chu Tian didn’t know why, but his heart suddenly softened.

"Alright, alright, I won’t go out. I’ll just stand by the door in the room and call a doctor, okay?"

"You can use the call button. There’s no need to go to the door." As she spoke, she playfully shook the call device in her hand.

Is it really that high-tech?

Chu Tian had never been hospitalized or attended to a patient bedside, so he genuinely didn’t know such a feature existed.

"Huh? How did you know about this? I didn’t even notice."

Xu Qingqiu rolled her eyes and said pointedly, "Of course, I knew. That year, I wonder who got so drunk they almost died at home? I was the one who took him to the hospital for a stomach pump and stayed by his bedside all night. The nurse specifically told me about it. How could I not know?"

"Did the nurse really say that?"

Chu Tian thought for a moment. It seemed Yiyi was the one who had brought Xu Qingqiu to the ward; he had been busy paying bills and getting test results at the time, so he wasn’t there.

As for the ’him’ Xu Qingqiu mentioned, why do I increasingly feel like she’s talking about me?

"You’re not talking about me, are you?"

"Guess."

No need to guess. It’s definitely me, or rather, my predecessor. He searched his memories for a long time and only found scattered fragments. The original owner of this body must have really blacked out from drinking back then, completely unaware this incident ever happened.

"Alright then, let’s call the doctor over now."

With Xu Qingqiu’s guidance, he finally managed to successfully call the nurse. After he explained the situation, the nurse quickly returned with the doctor.

"How many fingers am I holding up? And now? Let me check your pupils. Move your legs..."

After a series of checks, the doctor smiled and said, "There’s nothing seriously wrong. After two days of observation in the hospital, you should be able to be discharged."

"That’s good to hear. Thank you, Doctor."

"You’re welcome. It’s my honor to treat my idol. President Xu, hello, I’m a big fan of yours!"

"Really? Thank you. I apologize for my current unsightly state. I hope you won’t stop being a fan."

"How could that be? President Xu, you’re still so beautiful. Alright, I won’t bother you any longer. I hope to get your autograph once you’re feeling better."

"Okay, thank you for your hard work, Doctor. Also, could everyone please help keep this a secret? Thank you so much."

"Understood, understood. Don’t worry, it’ll be absolutely fine for at least these next two days. But I can’t guarantee anything for longer than that."

After the medical staff left, Chu Tian and Xu Qingqiu simultaneously sighed in relief. They looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"HAHAHA, she’s my fan. What were you so nervous about?" Xu Qingqiu said.

"That wasn’t nervousness; I’m just mentally exhausted," Chu Tian retorted.

"What do you mean? Is taking care of me that exhausting?"

"Not at all! I never said that!"

What kind of person is she? Still so contrary even when sick? And she just blurted out the truth like that. Of course, I’m tired from running around ever since she got injured! She’s not considerate of me at all.

Xu Qingqiu was likely exhausted. After everything she had been through and all the blood she had lost, she was still quite weak. As they were talking, she fell asleep.

She fell asleep already? Good. Chu Tian thought, touching his own growling stomach. This is a perfect chance to get something to eat. No, wait. I can’t leave her here alone. Never mind, I’ll just order takeout.

He picked up his phone, browsed through some options, found a restaurant that looked decent, and quickly placed an order.

"Chu Tian? How is Qingqiu doing?"

Just as he finished ordering takeout, Sister Hua and Yiyi arrived together.

"Sister Hua, are you okay? The doctor came by earlier and said it’s nothing serious. She also woke up once before. The doctor said that after two days of observation in the hospital, she can go home."

Only after hearing that Qingqiu was fine did Sister Hua finally breathe a sigh of relief, though her face was still somewhat pale. It looked like she’d had quite a scare.

"This must have been hard on you, Chu Tian. I don’t know what would have happened without you."

Thinking about the earlier scene, Sister Hua, for some reason, almost started crying again.

"Sister Hua, please don’t say that. After all, I’m her assistant. This is what I should do."

Chu Tian was truly exasperated. She’s supposed to be a strong, capable woman, so why does she cry at the drop of a hat? He’d known her for so many years and had never seen Sister Hua cry before. Yet today, he’d seen it happen twice. It was truly bizarre.

Actually, it wasn’t that Sister Hua wanted to cry, but rather that Chu Tian didn’t understand the depth of her bond with Xu Qingqiu. They had worked together for so many years, and their relationship had become incredibly close.

Whether you called them actual sisters or even mother and daughter, Sister Hua had long since come to regard Xu Qingqiu as her own family. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say their relationship was one of mutual dependence, almost as if their lives were intertwined.

When Sister Hua saw Xu Qingqiu lying in a pool of blood, her first reaction was as if her entire world had collapsed. It was a miracle she hadn’t completely lost her composure.

Thankfully, Xu Qingqiu was alright; otherwise, Sister Hua truly wouldn’t have known how she could go on living.

"Thank you. Can you tell me about her injuries?" Sister Hua asked.

"Okay, Sister Hua. The doctor explained some of it earlier. There are mainly two external wounds: five stitches on her head and over forty stitches on her leg. It’s likely she’ll have scars, but it won’t have a major impact on her physical health. She probably just lost a bit too much blood and is quite weak. She needs more nutritious food and plenty of rest."

"Over forty stitches?!"

"Where? Can I see?"

"Um, you can look yourself. It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to do it. She has five stitches on her head and forty-three on her left calf," Chu Tian said, pointing at Xu Qingqiu on the bed.

It really wasn’t appropriate for me to do it. I can’t just go lifting her blanket, can I?

For some reason, Sister Hua shot him a look and said cryptically, "Still pretending, even at a time like this..."

Pretending? What am I pretending about?

Chu Tian felt more wronged than Dou E, completely unable to understand how he was supposedly pretending.