Running Towards You - Chapter 20

“What exactly happened to your leg?” Lu Jiahe returned to the main topic.

“It’s a long story…”

“Then keep it short.”

Ji Yin coughed and cleared her throat. “Do you remember my mom passed away from breast cancer?”

“Mm.” Hearing the heavy topic, Lu Jiahe’s expression immediately turned serious.

“Oh right, this has absolutely nothing to do with that.”

“…”

Lu Jiahe’s fists were practically clenched.

Watching her expression change, Ji Yin couldn’t help but laugh. “Anyway, back to the point. I was busy at the supermarket this morning, and after lunch, I was planning to come to the hospital. But then I suddenly got a call, someone from my hometown came to visit.”

“Relatives?”

“No, neighbors. Old neighbors from over twenty years ago.” Ji Yin lowered her lashes. “Actually, it was my stepmom who had breast cancer. My biological mom drowned herself when I was five or six.”

Lu Jiahe was slightly surprised. She remembered last time Yanzi mentioned Ji Yin’s mother had abandoned her when she was five or six.

Could it be that this “abandonment” meant her mother had left her by passing away?

Lu Jiahe hesitated. “Why did she.”

“Because she couldn’t take it anymore. My dad, that bastard was an alcoholic. When he got drunk, he’d beat people. My mom tried to take me away several times, but she never succeeded. After that, my dad started hitting me too, threatening that if she tried to run away with me again, he’d beat us both to death. She never dared to try again, but in the end, she just couldn’t take it anymore, so she jumped into the river.” Ji Yin said.

Lu Jiahe stared at her in disbelief.

“After my mom died, no one took care of me. The villagers couldn’t stand to see it, so they often invited me over for meals. A few years later, we left our hometown, and I didn’t see them again until a couple of years ago.”

Ji Yin paused before continuing. “At first, I ran into them by accident at the supermarket. When I found out they’d come to the city for medical treatment, I helped arrange everything for them. After they went back, they bragged to the whole village about how well I was doing in the city, how successful I’d become. And then more and more people started coming to me for help.”

Lu Jiahe sighed softly. “So why did they come looking for you during the New Year?”

“Vacation. The whole family came here for a trip. Hotels are too expensive, so they wanted to stay at my place.” Ji Yin explained.

“Couldn’t you just refuse?”

Ji Yin shook her head. “Everyone just assumed I’d take them in. They even brought local specialties* as gifts. I couldn’t just kick them out after all, the villagers really did have my back back then. If it weren’t for them, I might’ve starved to death or been beaten to death.”

“Social obligations really are a pain.” Lu Jiahe had never experienced anything like this, so she couldn’t fully relate. After a moment of silence, she asked, “So how did you get hurt?”

“On my way here, I saw a pile of snow and kicked it, turns out there was a huge rock inside. My toes are killing me.” Ji Yin winced in pain.

“…” Lu Jiahe deadpanned, “You’re just asking for a beating.”

“I know, I messed up.” Ji Yin lowered her head in apology, then stretched out her injured foot. “Can you do anything about my toes here?”

“Take off your shoe. Let me see if you broke anything.”

Ji Yin took off her sock and extended her foot, then suddenly worried about the smell and made up an excuse. “I might not have washed my feet in three days.”

(*Note: In Chinese culture, bringing local specialties as gifts is a common gesture of goodwill when visiting someone’s home.)

Lu Jiahe looked up and glared at her. “Well, aren’t you something.”

He put on disposable gloves, took hold of her foot to examine it, and pinched her toes.

“Ahahaha, that tickles!” Ji Yin instinctively pulled her foot back.

“Stop squirming,” Lu Jiahe said, pressing down on her ankle.

“Mmm.” Ji Yin kept taking deep breaths. After a while, she suddenly blurted out, “Dr. Lu, your eyelashes are so long.”

Without batting an eye, Lu Jiahe replied, “Yes, they are.”

Ji Yin was taken aback for a moment, then laughed. “Talking to you is really fun.”

Originally weighed down by a heap of troubles, for some reason, after chatting with Dr. Lu for a while, she had forgotten all about them.

Even talking about her personal background felt effortless, something that would never happen with anyone else.

Finding someone you can truly open up to is really rare.

“Fortunately, there’s no bone damage, just swelling. I’ll prescribe some medicated oil for you to apply at home,” Lu Jiahe said, then pointed to her other leg. “Lift it and bend your knee.”

Ji Yin obediently complied. “I think this leg is almost healed. It hasn’t been bothering me much these past few days.”

“Mmm. Get another X-ray in two weeks, then come back so we can check the recovery progress.”

“Okay.”

Ji Yin went out to pay the bill and collect her medication.

Lu Jiahe glanced at the time, already six minutes past closing so he packed up and left. As he stepped out of the outpatient building, he spotted someone crouching by a pillar.

He walked over, circled around to face the person, and seeing their troubled expression, asked, “What are you doing crouching here? Can’t find the restroom?”

Ji Yin was startled and jerked her head up. Recognizing Dr. Lu, she broke into a smile. “No, I’m looking for a hotel.”

Lu Jiahe noticed the string of hotel listings on her phone screen. “You’re planning to stay at a hotel?”

“Yeah. Letting them stay at my place was already going above and beyond. I really don’t want to go back and play hostess for them. Ugh, why are these hotels so expensive?!”

Lu Jiahe genuinely hadn’t expected someone to be forced to hunt for a hotel to spend the New Year in.

He leaned down, glanced at the prices on her screen, all in the hundreds or even thousands. Seeing her start to scroll through budget homestays, he blurted out, “Come stay at my place.”

Ji Yin looked at him, overjoyed. “Really? Would that be okay? Would it be convenient for you?”

“Yeah. Stop crouching there, it’ll be more convenient at my place.”

Ji Yin froze for a few seconds, then suddenly stood up. “I wasn’t crouching here to ugh, never mind!”