Chapter 54: With a swish, Ruan Jiu Jiu slammed the window closed.

With a swish, Ruan Jiu Jiu slammed the window closed.

She told herself not to repeat her past mistakes, not to be too softhearted. Cheng Jun wasn’t a little kid anymore, he would naturally head home once the snow started falling harder. He didn’t need her to worry about him.

Ruan Jiu Jiu pretended she didn’t see anything and changed her clothes to get dinner started.

Outside, the snowstorm picked up.

This was probably the biggest snowfall since the new year. The overcast sky glowed with a layer of orange light, and the whole world was buried in a sea of white snow. The window glass got fogged up, making it hard to see anything outside clearly. Ruan Jiu Jiu hesitated for a moment, then walked in front of the window and casually wiped a circle on the glass with her hand.

The fuzzy shapes and shadows of the landscape outside suddenly became distinct. She looked through the window down towards the street, and at first she almost missed Cheng Jun.

Just as before, he was sitting on those stairs. Such a long time had passed but he still hadn’t moved, and he wore a layer of snow over him like a coat. It was almost like he was about to become one with the snowstorm.

“Tsk…”

Ruan Jiu Jiu’s brow wrinkled in distress.

Had he gone insane?

She circled the room a few times aimlessly, until in the end, she still couldn’t harden her heart.

She didn’t know how long this snowstorm was going to last. If Cheng Jun really sat there for an entire night, she feared he would end up with a high fever. He never was one to cherish his health, like the pain and suffering his body endured had nothing to do with him.

Ruan Jiu Jiu put on a thick coat, filled a bottle with hot water and screwed the lid on tightly, and then quickly ran down the stairs.

Cheng Jun was still sitting on the steps like a statue made of stone. Given what an airhead he was, the fact that he was able to put on a down jacket without Ruan Jiu Jiu there to remind him to, was already an accomplishment.

Ruan Jiu Jiu walked over til she stood behind Cheng Jun and called out his name: “…Cheng Jun.”

“…”

He lifted his head, and some of the snow that had settled over him slid off with a rustle. His face was several shades paler than usual, his lips so pale they looked almost indiscernible, and frost had formed on his eyelashes. It was only when his pair of lifeless eyes fixed themselves on Ruan Jiu Jiu, did they finally gain a hint of life.

“Have you lost your mind? It’s snowing so hard now, why haven’t you gone home yet?”

A long silence passed.

In a hoarse voice, he finally responded, “I don’t have a home.”

His words were too forlorn, and it was like a slender needle pierced Ruan Jiu Jiu’s heart. For a moment, she couldn’t think of anything to say.

Ruan Jiu Jiu inhaled deeply, then let out a long sigh.

She squatted down next to Cheng Jun and patted off all the snow on him as she stuffed the warm and toasty thermos into his arms. Brushing against Cheng Jun’s hand, she couldn’t help but frown over how cold it was, like a block of ice.

From beginning to end, Cheng Jun didn’t say anything. He only gazed steadily at Ruan Jiu Jiu’s movements. But when Ruan Jiu Jiu’s gaze finally fell on him, it was like he was afraid he had irritated her and that she might be sick of him, and he lowered his head.

“Go find a hotel for the night.”:

Ruan Jiu Jiu stood up and straightened her body. “After you wake up, take the soonest flight back and never come here again.”

For a long time, Cheng Jun didn’t respond to her words.

He eventually asked, “Is it because of me.”

“What?”

Ruan Jiu Jiu didn’t know that Cheng Jun had arrived earlier than she estimated. He followed the directions to her address and found her, but saw that Ruan Jiu Jiu had cut off all her hair into a short bob. It was like she was determined to thoroughly break off from the past.

He had stopped and frozen in place, and for a long time he was unable to take another step forward until Ruan Jiu Jiu finally vanished behind a street corner.

“You really hate me pestering you like this.”

So, in order to hide from him, she would choose to expend a lot of time and effort to run away to a different city and change her hairstyle. All to totally cut off any ties between them.

“…” Ruan Jiu Jiu unexpectedly didn’t know how to respond, so she could only change the topic. “Hurry up and head back, the sun will set soon and it’ll be hard to call a taxi. I’m leaving first.”

She turned away.

Just then, a hand grabbed onto the corner of Ruan Jiu Jiu’s clothes, preventing her from leaving. The amount of strength he used was very small. If she just pulled forward slightly, she would be able to get free.

“Don’t try your old tricks with me.”

If he said something like “Don’t go”, Ruan Jiu Jiu would never be able to soften her heart towards him again.

“I love you.”

“…”

The abrupt confession left Ruan Jiu Jiu dumbfounded.

He sat on the steps, frozen stiff, and the breath he exhaled instantly condensed into a white mist. Yet he was so attached to her, and pitifully clung to a corner of Ruan Jiu Jiu’s sleeve. Which part of this looked like a declaration of love, he was practically begging her, hoping that Ruan Jiu Jiu could spare him just a little crumb of affection; that was enough for him.

The air between the two of them was deathly still. Only the sound of the wind blowing broke up the silence.

“Go back.”

The tone of her voice suddenly grew cold and indifferent. “Don’t come again.”

Ruan Jiu Jiu pulled away from his grasp, and started walking towards her building with apparent heartlessness. She believed that she needed to be more cold to him, in order to prevent Cheng Jun from preserving a remnant of his feelings for her.

Faced with such a clear-cut rejection, Cheng Jun, who was so withdrawn with his emotions and afraid of being hurt, would definitely not have any lingering entanglement with her.

Right at this time, Ruan Jiu Jiu heard the sound of the thermos bottle fall to the ground with a clatter.

She didn’t even have time to glance back before her body was tightly wrapped in a taut embrace. He hugged her strongly from behind, like he was afraid that Ruan Jiu Jiu would run away. He didn’t seem to have any intention of letting go. Ruan Jiu Jiu was quite startled. She bumped into Cheng Jun’s chest, frozen stiff, her mind a total blank.

This kind of behavior was totally unlike Cheng Jun.

“You…”

“Please, I’m begging you.”

His attitude was extremely humble, the tone of his voice weak and plaintive. If Tu Nan and the others happened to encounter Cheng Jun pleading like this, they would probably all get heart attacks.

Ruan Jiu Jiu now found it very difficult to ruthlessly reprimand him, her mind only focused on the sensation of his ice-cold skin, which was so cold it almost felt like a scalding fire. It was so abnormal that warning bells went off in her mind.

Was he feverish?

Ruan Jiu Jiu didn’t have the time to ask Cheng Jun when right then and there, his arms slackened and he slumped over onto the ground, unconscious. The sight of him slamming into the snow frightened Ruan Jiu Jiu to death.

“Cheng Jun!”

Cheng Jun had a high fever and was brought to the hospital by emergency services.

Ruan Jiu Jiu burned with worry. Thankfully, it was confirmed that Cheng Jun didn’t have any major issues, it was only his fever compounded by not having eaten anything for too long, plus his emotional turmoil, that caused him to faint.

Sitting by his bedside, Ruan Jiu Jiu let out a long sigh. She really didn’t know what to say.

“How’d you survive up til now? You’re old enough to know how to take care of yourself.”

Cheng Jun was hooked up to an IV drip, and hadn’t awakened yet.

His forehead was still burning hot. His fever hadn’t receded yet, and he occasionally mumbled some nonsense under his breath. It was only when Ruan Jiu Jiu came closer that she was able to make out what he was saying. All along, he was still saying “Don’t go”, and even his hand weakly fluttered.

Ruan Jiu Jiu was afraid that the needle stuck into the back of his hand would be bumped into a different blood vessel by his constant movements, so she grabbed Cheng Jun’s hand that had the IV drip.

When their fingers came into contact with each other, Cheng Jun moved before she could react and suddenly grabbed onto her hand. It was practically like a stubborn tortoise had latched onto her with how tightly he refused to let go.

Like suddenly being interrupted mid-sentence, he no longer mumbled gibberish, but that hand seemingly had no intention to release her.

“…”

Ruan Jiu Jiu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “I must owe a debt to you from our past lives.” So she was forced to come here to repay it.

Ruan Jiu Jiu’s hand was soft and delicate, and felt slender and boneless. Cheng Jun’s hand was big and sturdy, and when held hers, he covered the back of her hand in his. His palms were so hot, Ruan Jiu Jiu’s heart trembled and she inwardly cursed that Cheng Jun this bastard really was unconsciously taking advantage of others.

Sitting at his bedside, she carefully looked over his appearance.

She didn’t know whether it was just her misconception, but seeing him again after several days, Cheng Jun looked like he had lost weight, and he looked slightly more wan and sallow than before.

Once again, Ruan Jiu Jiu let out a sigh.

The thing she was weakest against was seeing other’s pitiful appearances when they were down and out. If Cheng Jun stayed in this condition, how was she supposed to continue to ruthlessly reject him?

……

After Cheng Jun regained consciousness, he still didn’t have any intentions of letting go of her hand, making the nurse who came to change his IV drip both envious and humored.

Ruan Jiu Jiu had thin skin, and her face awkwardly flushed red. She tried to get Cheng Jun to let go, but Cheng Jun immediately pretended like he didn’t understand.

“…You’re going to start bleeding!”

Cheng Jun finally unwillingly relaxed his grip after undergoing a round of scolding.

After that, wherever Ruan Jiu Jiu went, he followed with his eyes. If Ruan Jiu Jiu went out to fetch his medicine, Cheng Jun would definitely follow behind her with his IV drip. It was like he was afraid she would run away. Even someone afraid of being robbed wouldn’t stick to her so closely like he did.

Ruan Jiu Jiu felt like she was under even more pressure.

As she peeled fruit for Cheng Jun, he watched her like he wasn’t able to look away. A random passerby might even think that he was watching TV or something.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“I’m going to go buy you something to eat.”

“Don’t go.” He automatically grabbed her wrist again.

Ruan Jiu Jiu: “…You need to eat something.”

Cheng Jun’s response to her was his silent gaze.

Finding no alternative, Ruan Jiu Jiu could only buy food from the hospital’s cafeteria, asking the young lady who was the attending nurse to deliver it to them. Cheng Jun had already been staring fixedly at her for a long time, making Ruan Jiu Jiu feel uneasy. If it wasn’t that he was sick, Ruan Jiu Jiu would have directly gone up and slapped him.

After the meal, Ruan Jiu Jiu was just getting up when Cheng Jun immediately followed.

“I need to go to the restroom.”

“I’ll go with you.”

Ruan Jiu Jiu sent him a glare. “Sit down!!!”

During the time that Cheng Jun had been unconscious, burning up a high fever, Ruan Jiu Jiu had sent Tu Nan a message. Thankfully she still had Tu Nan’s phone number recorded, otherwise she would have been totally unprepared. She reported their location and was now waiting for Tu Nan to show up and fetch his ward.

When Tu Nan showed up, Cheng Jun was asleep. Ruan Jiu Jiu quietly left the sick ward. Meeting Tu Nan, she saw that he was blinking back tears. Someone who didn’t know what was going on might even think that some crisis had occurred.

“Sister-in-law…”

Ruan Jiu Jiu: “?” It had only been a couple days since they last saw each other, did Tu Nan regard her as such a close friend? Why did he look like he had gone through a near-death experience?

How could she have known that in Tu Nan’s mind, she had already died once.

“You need to take proper care of Cheng Jun.”

“Sister-in-law, where are you going?”

“You guys shouldn’t come after me again, and don’t call me ‘Sister-in-law’ anymore.”

Ruan Jiu Jiu’s thoughts were in a mess.

Seeing Cheng Jun like that, how could she not feel distressed? But she needed to harden her resolve and firmly sever the last thread of Cheng Jun’s feelings, and make him give up any intentions towards her. The passing of time would take care of everything else.

“No, you can’t go.” Tu Nan’s face was creased with worry, “Boss, he…he’s already gone several days without eating or sleeping. If this goes on, his life will be in danger.”

“He’s just taking it hard right now, but after some time passes he’ll recover. When he’s hungry, he’ll naturally eat, when he’s tired, he’ll sleep. His body will help remind him what to do.” Ruan Jiu Jiu turned her face away. “We’re all adults, the idea that you can’t survive without someone is nonsense.”

“Not for the boss.”

“…”

To her shock, for a moment Ruan Jiu Jiu unexpectedly couldn’t refute him.

Author’s Note: Finally, Tu Nan has done some HR work ╮(╯▽╰)╭