Running Towards You - Chapter 11

Dong Xiang walked into the hospital room and was stunned by the sight before him.

It wasn’t just him, everyone else in the room was also gaping, their eyes fixed on Bed Six.

Early in the morning, and this person was already doing sit-ups.

Her leg was injured, so she decided to go all out on her abs instead, huh?

This was downright insane! Absolutely outrageous!

Dong Xiang raised his phone in shock, quickly dialing Yanzi on video call as he walked over. “Quick, look at what your sister’s doing.”

“My dear sister, what in the world are you doing?” Yanzi exclaimed, her Mandarin slipping into a dialectal twang from sheer surprise.

“Working out,” Ji Yin replied without pausing her movements.

“What kind of sudden fitness kick is this?”

“I’ve gotten fat. Might as well take advantage of the free time I have now to exercise more.”

“Fat my foot!”

“Besides, Dr. Lu is so busy during the day, yet she still hits the gym before showering at night. She’s practically our role model. You should start working out too.” Ji Yin had been on the phone with Dr. Lu late last night and asked why she hadn’t showered yet. Dr. Lu said she still had to squeeze in a workout first.

Now that was a true overachiever!

“Gotta go, bye.” The moment Yanzi heard the word “exercise,” she ruthlessly hung up.

Dong Xiang sat nearby for a while until Ji Yin finally finished.

Usually, when they came to visit, the caregiver would take the opportunity to do laundry or handle other tasks.

“Sis, the duty roster for the pool hall is out. Want to take a look?” Dong Xiang handed her the schedule.

After scanning it, Ji Yin nodded and pulled out her phone to check the revenue for the second half of the year. Business was neither booming nor failing.

After deducting rent and staff wages, the profits were just barely enough. On slow days, they even had to cover losses out of pocket.

The pool hall business wasn’t what it used to be when she first started working. At fifteen, she took her first job, helping out at a small clothing store during the day and working as a server at a pool hall at night.

Back then, entertainment options in their small town were limited, and the pool hall was packed every evening. If she sweet-talked the customers who won games, she could even earn a little extra in tips.

Every time she saw the boss counting money on payday, she dreamed of one day opening her own pool hall.

The first couple of years after opening were profitable, but nowadays, there were just too many entertainment options. Pool halls weren’t exactly a hot commodity anymore.

“If the deal with Mr. Chen goes through, we’ll transfer the pool hall,” Ji Yin said.

“Seriously? Just like that?”

“Yeah, expanding the supermarket will require cash flow.”

Yanzi always said that since Ji Yin had money now, she should enjoy life more, things were different from before.

But running a supermarket demanded liquidity. She didn’t dare spend recklessly; every penny had to stay in the bank as a safety net.

Besides, only the money in her account gave her a sense of security.

She needed a lot a whole lot of that security.

“What if the deal falls through?” Dong Xiang asked.

“We’ll still transfer it and use the money for another business. Hey, what do you think about you and Yanzi doing livestreaming?”

“We’ve never done that before.”

“Since when does that stop anyone? Were we born knowing how to run a supermarket?”

Dong Xiang scratched his head. “Sis, are you serious about this?”

“Dead serious. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. Too bad I have camera shyness, but you two are perfect for it,always shamelessly snapping selfies the second you pick up your phones.”

Dong Xiang:

“We’ll discuss this after I’m discharged from the hospital.”

“Ji Yin.” Lu Jiahe called out.

“Here!” Ji Yin sat up straight as a spring.

The doctors entering the ward all chuckled. Lu Jiahe stepped forward, removed her external brace, and said, “Try bending your knee.”

“Yes, madam!” Ji Yin saluted.

“You’ve been watching too many Hong Kong dramas.”

“True.” Ji Yin had been binge-watching old Hong Kong series these past two days, finishing three shows. Her mind was filled with lines like:

Yes, madam.

In life, the most important thing is to be happy.

With money, you really can do whatever you want.

She slowly bent her knees.

“Lift this leg, straighten it,” Lu Jiahe pointed to her injured leg.

Ji Yin complied.

“Does it hurt?”

“No.”

“You can lower it now.”

Lu Jiahe pressed both hands on her leg, carefully examining it before gently squeezing several spots around her knee joint, observing her reaction. “Does this hurt?”

“Not really.”

“Good. If there are no issues, we’ll change the dressing one last time today, and you can be discharged the day after tomorrow.”

“Discharged?!”

“Yes. After discharge, make sure to rest well. Avoid strenuous activities too soon, and be mindful of your diet. Don’t push yourself recklessly.”

“Sorry, but with money, you really can do whatever you want.”

“Hmm?”

Ji Yin blinked at the suddenly close face before her, then snapped out of it with a laugh. “I wasn’t arguing with you just quoting. Those lines are stuck in my head.”

Lu Jiahe straightened up. “You’d better follow what I just said.”

“Okay.”

Noticing her subdued expression, Lu Jiahe asked curiously, “Why do you seem a bit unhappy?”

“Not at all. In life, the most important thing is to be happy, right?”

Ji Yin had been counting the days until discharge, but now that it was imminent, she felt oddly unprepared.

A few seconds later, her face lit up. “Wait, I can really leave?!”

“Yes. Just behave for one more day.”

“Yes, madam!”

As evening fell, Ji Yin wanted to go out for a nice meal to celebrate her impending discharge.

“What are we eating today?” The nurse wheeled her out the door.

Ji Yin scanned the row of food stalls, debating her options, when an excited voice called out: “Ji Yin!”

She turned to see a man striding toward her and immediately frowned. “Go, go, hurry!” she urged the nurse.

Before the nurse could react, the man was already in front of them.

“I asked your staff and found out you were hospitalized. Why didn’t you tell me? I came as soon as I wrapped up my work.” Xu Changxu flashed her a smile.

Ji Yin looked him up and down. “You came empty-handed?”

“I just got back from a business trip and rushed straight here. Didn’t have time to pick anything up,” he explained.

Are you seriously this oblivious to sarcasm?

“Nothing worth seeing here. Scram I’m busy.”

“Is there anything I can help with?”

“No.”

Ji Yin waved her hand impatiently, but the man stubbornly refused to leave, persistently inquiring about her recent situation and rambling on: “I heard you were hospitalized. Do you know how worried I was? What exactly happened? Can you tell me? If there’s any problem, you can just tell me, what if I can help?”

“You really want to help?”

“If it’s within my power, I’ll do everything I can! What’s the problem you’re facing now?” Xu Changxu declared resolutely.

“Financial problem. Lend me two million.”

“…” Xu Changxu fell silent for a few seconds before awkwardly replying, “You know my salary, I can’t come up with that much all at once.”

“Then stop blocking me from eating!”

Even after being snapped at, Xu Changxu remained unruffled and continued, “What do you need the money for? If I managed to scrape together two million, would you be willing to date me?”

“No. Do you see the words ‘trash can’ written on my face? Are you dry waste or wet waste?” Ji Yin asked.

“…”

Xu Changxu was long accustomed to her sharp tongue, but, there seemed to be onlookers gathering around them, forcing him to quickly change the subject: “By the way, you”

Before he could finish, he noticed her gaze fixed on something in the distance, slowly tracking its movement. Just as he was wondering what she was looking at, he saw the corners of her lips curl up as she called out loudly, “Dr. Lu!”

Lu Jiahe paused mid-step, glanced back at her, and after a moment’s thought, walked over.

Xu Changxu looked at Lu Jiahe in confusion. “And this is.?”

Ji Yin couldn’t be bothered to answer him and instead said directly, “Dr. Lu, where are you headed? Don’t tell me you’re here to drag me back again?”

Lu Jiahe was silent for a few seconds, meeting her unwavering gaze before nodding. “Mm. Go back now. I need to reapply your medication.”

“Okay.”

Lu Jiahe turned and led them back toward the hospital. As they passed through the entrance, Ji Yin glanced back, the man hadn’t followed.

“Alright, he’s gone.”

Ji Yin sighed in relief. “Thank you, Dr. Lu… You saw everything just now, didn’t you?”

“Hard to miss,” Lu Jiahe replied with a laugh.

The moment he stepped outside, he noticed passersby looking in one direction, drawn by the commotion. When he followed their gaze, there was Ji Yin.

“No wonder you played along so well, Dr. Lu. We really have great chemistry,” Ji Yin chuckled.

“Then I’ll head back now. You go take care of your own business. Rest early tonight, don’t stay up late,” Lu Jiahe reminded her.

“I’m not staying up late. I’m just keeping the moon company,” Ji Yin argued.

“Mm. The moon doesn’t sleep, so you don’t sleep, and the hospital waits for you to pay the bills.”

Ji Yin burst into laughter. “I’m getting discharged tomorrow. Where else am I going to find a doctor as funny as you? I’m actually a little reluctant to leave. Will we see each other again?”

“All good things must come to an end,” Lu Jiahe smiled. “But you can treat me to a feast.”

“Let’s go!”