Running Towards You - Chapter 46.1

The car jolted, and Lu Jia carefully held her arm, pressing an ice pack against the injury.

“Did I fracture it?” Ji Yin asked, her face pale.

“Most likely. As for how severe the fracture is, we’ll need to see the scans,” Lu Jiahe replied.

“Can I register under you? I don’t want another doctor.”

“Don’t talk for now. We’ll be there soon.” Lu Jiahe wiped the sweat from her forehead with a tissue, then glanced at her swollen arm, his heart aching.

Watching her fall earlier had nearly scared him to death.

“It doesn’t hurt that much,” Ji Yin said, noticing the worry in his eyes. She smiled weakly. “I won’t die. Surviving a disaster means good fortune follows.”

Lu Jiahe smoothed the strands of hair sticking to her face and said nothing.

The man who had attacked her was also in the car, his expression dark. Every time he crossed paths with this woman, something bad happened. He glared at the two of them, sensing something off.

After observing them for a while, he finally figured it out their gazes were too intimate.

“Are you two. into women?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he was met with two icy glares.

Unfazed, the man turned to Lu Jiahe, his tone light. “If you’re into women, then I get why you wouldn’t give me your number. It’s because of your orientation.”

Lu Jiahe replied coolly, “What does orientation matter to you? Whether it’s men or women, who would ever like you?”

“…” The man took a few seconds to process the insult. “Damn it!”

Ji Yin, despite the pain, couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

At the hospital, the emergency department took scans of her arm, reset it, and performed a series of treatments.

Lu Jiahe examined the scans. “Avulsion fracture of the greater tubercle of the left humerus. No significant displacement or misalignment. Conservative treatment will suffice.”

Relieved that surgery wasn’t necessary, Ji Yin let out a sigh, only to tense up again when Lu Jiahe began discussing hospitalization with the nurse. “Do I really have to stay?”

“Yes. You’ll need to be observed for two weeks,” Lu Jiahe said firmly.

“But my work.” Ji Yin trailed off under Lu Jiahe’s stern gaze, her voice growing smaller. “Never mind. I’ll stay. Okay?”

“That’s more like it. What’s more important than your health?” Lu Jiahe handled her admission and made sure the man paid the bill.

“Un-fucking-believable. She hit me too! Why don’t I get compensation for emotional distress?” the man grumbled as he handed over the money.

“If you have complaints, we can call the police and settle it officially,” Lu Jiahe said coldly.

“Forget it. I’ve got things to do.” The man paid up and stormed off, visibly annoyed.

Ji Yin was taken to her room, her arm in a sling. When she saw the caregiver Lu Jiahe had arranged for her, she couldn’t help but grin. “Hey, sis. Fancy meeting you here.”

“Oh, it’s you! Back in the hospital again?” The caregiver smiled warmly at the familiar face.

“Got into a fight with someone.”

“Impressive.”

“…” Lu Jiahe rubbed his temples in exasperation, then told Ji Yin to call Yanzi and the others.

Before long, Yanzi burst into the room in a panic. “Ji Yin! What the hell happened?! Why are you hospitalized again?!”

Lu Jiahe nodded in agreement, thinking to herself that this was what a responsible family member should be like. She instructed, “Yanzi, make sure you keep a close eye on her in the hospital these next few days. Don’t let her run around or move recklessly. She doesn’t need surgery this time, so recovery depends entirely on her staying still and resting.”

“Got it. Thank you, Dr. Lu,” Yanzi replied with a deferential bow.

Lu Jiahe checked the time and walked over to Ji Yin. “I have to go now. I’ll come see you tomorrow when I’m back at work.”

“Okay. goodbye,” Ji Yin said, watching her leave. The moment the door closed behind Lu Jiahe, she immediately started groaning, “It hurts so much, ahhh! Next time I see that bastard, I’m gonna chop him into pieces, damn his ancestors*

“Ahem! Ahem!” Yanzi coughed frantically.

Ji Yin turned her head and saw Lu Jiahe standing at the doorway, having returned unexpectedly, her expression unreadable.

Ji Yin lowered her head guiltily, her eyes darting from the trash bin by the bed to the patient in the neighboring bed. Only when Lu Jiahe’s shoes appeared in her line of sight did she awkwardly look up.

Lu Jiahe bent down to meet her at eye level.

Ji Yin blinked, covering her mouth with her hand. “I won’t swear next time ”

“Does it still hurt a lot?” Lu Jiahe asked quietly, her gaze fixed on Ji Yin’s arm.

Ji Yin paused, then met her eyes. “It’s bearable.”

“Take the painkillers first,” Lu Jiahe said, then turned to Yanzi and explained all the medications on the table. “These are all the meds. Make sure she takes them. If anything happens in the meantime, call me.”

“Understood,” Yanzi nodded. Glancing at Ji Yin, who was now unusually docile a rare sight, she couldn’t help but wish Dr. Lu could stay and look after her.

But that was impossible. Dr. Lu was just a doctor, just Ji Yin’s friend, and had her own responsibilities.

“I’m leaving now,” Lu Jiahe said again, bidding Ji Yin farewell.

Ji Yin nodded. Once Lu Jiahe left the room, she poked Yanzi and gestured for her to check if she was really gone.

“She’s really gone,” Yanzi confirmed after glancing at the door. She poured water and handed Ji Yin the pills. “You can scream and curse now.”

“I won’t,” Ji Yin muttered, still wary of Lu Jiahe making another surprise return. She obediently took the medicine, then craned her neck toward the window. Unfortunately, her bed wasn’t by the window, so she got up and walked over to look outside.

“Hey! What are you doing? Get back in bed!” Yanzi scolded.

“My legs are fine, and I’m not moving my arm recklessly,” Ji Yin retorted, standing by the window. She watched until Lu Jiahe’s figure appeared downstairs and disappeared beyond the hospital gates, only then returning to bed under Yanzi’s disapproving grumbles.

Lu Jiahe hailed a cab and headed straight to her parents’ place.

Her phone buzzed with multiple messages urging her to hurry back for a send-off.

Her cousin’s wife and daughter were leaving for their hometown today. Her parents had gone out to buy gifts for Shuangshuang, stopping by a bookstore where Liu Jia wanted to pick up some books for her. But right at the entrance, they had witnessed Lu Jiahe, her friend, and a man in the middle of a fight.

“Dad, Mom,” Lu Jiahe began as soon as she stepped inside, ready to explain, but Liu Jia stopped her.

“We’ll talk about it later. Shuangshuang and her mom are about to leave go see them off.”

“Alright, but my car’s still at the bookstore,” Lu Jiahe said sheepishly.

Liu Jia shot her an annoyed glance and handed over his car keys.

After dropping Shuangshuang and the others at the airport, she drove back, wanting to speak up several times but never finding the right moment Liu Jia had his eyes closed the entire way, whether genuinely tired or pretending to sleep, she couldn’t tell.

“What should we have for dinner?” she asked casually as she opened the front door.

“How about a whipping with willow branches?”

“…”

Liu Jia sat down on the sofa, and the two of them assumed the posture of presiding over a courtroom.

“The friend you saw today, her name is Ji Yin. She didn’t mean to fight with that man. I looked into it he had harassed her colleague before, and today he messaged me on WeChat. I ignored him, but he kept pestering, so Ji Yin ended up in a confrontation with him,” Lu Jiahe explained. “She’s not the kind of person you think she is.”

“Is she the one you like?” Liu Jia asked.

“Yes.”

Professor Lu fell silent for a moment before asking, “Is she the woman from the photo you showed me last time? The one reading?”

“Yes.”

“Does she also own a motorcycle?”

“How did you know?”

Professor Lu closed his eyes, took off his glasses, and rubbed his temples incessantly.

Liu Jia frowned. “Even if there’s a reason, fighting isn’t the only way to handle things. It shows she’s either impulsive by nature or just used to resorting to violence.”

Lu Jiahe couldn’t argue that was Ji Yin. Impulsiveness was her nature; violence was her habit.

“We’ve only met her once, and already we’ve seen her fighting with someone. That’s not exactly a low probability. Does she usually act like this?”

“Today was an exception. She’s not normally like this. You can’t define her based on one isolated incident,” Lu Jiahe insisted.

Professor Lu put his glasses back on and asked, “Then what kind of person is she?”

“Impulsive, stubborn, carefree, foul-mouthed…” As the older couple’s expressions darkened further, she continued, “But she’s also passionate, optimistic, protective of her colleagues, and devoted to her family. She’s the kind of person who, even if she’s trapped in an abyss, can twist a piece of rotten straw into a rope, claw her way out, and then hand you a bouquet of flowers.”

Professor Lu and his wife exchanged glances. After a long pause, he finally said, “Be more specific. What does she do for work? How did you meet?”

“She works at Yanhua Supermarket. She used to be my patient.”

The two of them: “…”