Running Towards You - Chapter 5

When Dong Xiang came to visit and saw the cast on Ji Yin’s leg, he was startled: “Sis, how did it get this bad?”

“She fell off the bed and had to undergo another surgery,” the caregiver explained.

Dong Xiang looked horrified.

“It wasn’t surgery, just a cast to stabilize it,” Ji Yin said.

“Then how long until you can be discharged? You’re not getting worse the longer you stay, are you?” Dong Xiang asked worriedly.

Ji Yin froze for a moment before suddenly realizing with this cast on, could she still be discharged within a week?

She’d have to ask Dr. Lu later.

Unfortunately, Dr. Lu didn’t come for rounds today. Instead, a few other doctors arrived. Recognizing the head physician among them, Ji Yin asked, “When can I be discharged?”

After reviewing her medical records and assessing her current condition, the head physician said, “At least another half month.”

Ji Yin was visibly disheartened.

After the doctors left, Dong Xiang pulled a little yellow duck out of his bag: “Yanzi bought this for you.”

Ji Yin glanced at the duck but couldn’t muster any enthusiasm. “Forget it, just take it back.”

“Why don’t you want it now?” Dong Xiang asked curiously.

“Stop asking so many questions. Fine, just give it to that kid over there,” Ji Yin said impatiently, pointing to the bed by the door.

The little boy waved his hand. “Thanks, sis, but I already have this one from Dr. Lu.”

“What if I trade you for it?” Ji Yin asked.

“No,” the boy replied, hugging the duck protectively.

Ji Yin hadn’t expected to be unable to give it away. Tossing the duck onto the nearby table, she turned to business: “What about the info I asked you to look into?”

“Aside from drinking, Manager Chen also likes golf. He was invited to play these past couple of days.”

Given her condition, Ji Yin couldn’t play golf even if she wanted to, which only added to her frustration.

“Sis, do you really have to open a branch in his mall? The rent there is crazy expensive,” Dong Xiang muttered under his breath.

Manager Chen was the executive of a well-known chain of commercial properties. A new large-scale mall was about to open in a neighboring city, and Ji Yin was eager to secure a spot.

However, slots were limited, especially since a major supermarket chain had a long-standing partnership with Manager Chen. The odds weren’t in her favor, but Ji Yin still wanted to try.

She had been looking to open a new branch but hadn’t found the right location or timing. If she could get into this mall, it would undoubtedly attract a lot of customers.

“High rent means high foot traffic, and the customers there have more spending power,” Ji Yin reasoned.

If it were her old supermarket, she wouldn’t have had any confidence in competing. But after the recent upgrade, the influx of high-quality customers had reignited her ambition.

Even though e-commerce had crushed many small brick-and-mortar stores, the upgrade showed that many people still enjoyed shopping in person, especially those who valued quality of life.

These customers cared less about price and more about the shopping experience and product quality, which also meant higher profit margins.

“Manager Chen is a local, right?” Ji Yin asked after a moment of silence.

“Yeah, but his family settled in Shanghai.”

“I remember during drinks last time, he mentioned his mother hasn’t been well lately. He came back mainly to visit her. Find out where she lives for me.”

On Saturday, Li Chenyao visited the Lu household, bringing a tin of tea leaves for Professor Lu.

“Uncle, this is some Longjing tea my colleague brought back from Qiantang. My parents don’t really like it, so you can have it.”

“Thank you, I do love a good cup of tea.” Professor Lu accepted it with a smile, admiring the packaging before adjusting his glasses to read the label.

“You really don’t need to bring anything next time you visit,” Liu Jia called out from the kitchen, laughing.

“It’s no trouble. Besides, my family wouldn’t use it anyway. Back when I was in school, I ate at your place all the time.” Li Chenyao walked in to help, rolling up her sleeves and starting to wash the vegetables. “Is Zaozao still not up yet?”

“Nope. She came home late last night and sleeps like a log on weekends. Go wake her up, I’m almost done here.”

“Got it.” After finishing with the water spinach, Li Chenyao dried her hands and pushed open Lu Jiahe’s bedroom door with practiced ease. She grabbed a pillow and pressed it over her face.

“Mmph.” Lu Jiahe rolled over. “Li Chenyao, don’t make me fight you.”

“Go ahead, try to break my wrist again.” Li Chenyao yanked her upright. “We have guests, and you’re still lazing around like this. Get up.”

Lu Jiahe yawned, rubbed her hair, and shuffled to the bathroom in her slippers to wash up. When she came out, she found Li Chenyao trying on clothes from her wardrobe.

“Which one caught your eye this time?”

“This red one. Let me borrow it. Finals are coming up, and I need some of ‘Academic Ace Lu’s’ red luck to rub off on those little brats.”

“Since when did borrowing clothes come with so much superstition?” Lu Jiahe yawned again.

“You spend, what, four or five nights a week at your parents’ place anyway. Why even bother living separately?” Li Chenyao mused, checking herself in the mirror.

“Can’t be helped. They say they need their own private space.”

Back when housing prices were still reasonable during college, her parents had bought her an apartment. But she still preferred coming home to eat and sleep, her new place felt more like a hotel, just somewhere to crash.

By Friday, she’d move back in, ready for the weekend.

“My mom’s always gushing about how you’re like a warm little coat, still clinging to your parents even at thirty-two. Not like me, running around like a wild monkey, never home. I told her, you guys were too busy to care about me when I was little, and now you want me to stick around? Yeah, right.”

Lu Jiahe chuckled and shooed her out, closing the door to change. When she picked up her phone, she noticed a few unread messages from last night.

Aside from a few from coworkers, there was one from a patient.

[Ji Yin]: Dr. Lu, this cast feels off. I can’t move my foot at all. [crying]

[Ji Yin]: Dr. Lu?

[Ji Yin]: Okay, fine, I’ll stop complaining. The cast is great. Please don’t be mad, Dr. Lu.

Lu Jiahe couldn’t help but laugh. She must’ve fallen asleep at some point last night and missed the messages.

And this guy actually thought she was angry?

“Am I the kind of person who gets mad easily?” Lu Jiahe asked as she sat down at the dining table.

Li Chenyao: “You usually don’t get mad. When you do, you just dislocate someone’s shoulder outright.”

Lu Jiahe grinned. “You brought that on yourself.”

“And it’s only you. Anyone else, even my parents, I’d have cracked their skulls open.” Li Chenyao huffed.

“Filial piety at its finest.”

That afternoon, the two went out to catch a movie. The weather was nice, so afterward, they strolled around the area.

Passing by Yanhua Supermarket, they went in to pick up a few things.

“What are you looking for?” Li Chenyao noticed her glancing around repeatedly.

“There’s a patient who works right here, and her family is around too. Didn’t see her today though,” Lu Jiahe said.

After settling the bill, Li Chenyao checked the time. “We still have some time. How about you drop me off first so I can put these things away before we go eat?”

“Sure.”

Li Chenyao had organized a dinner gathering that evening to introduce her to some colleagues.

“Come here, let me touch up your makeup,” Li Chenyao called out as soon as they got home.

“Do we really need to be this formal?”

“Of course! I’ve been hyping you up as a celestial beauty, can’t have people calling me a fraud now.”

“Who told you to exaggerate like that?”

“Well, you’re practically a celestial beauty anyway. Hold still, let me work my magic.”

Lu Jiahe burst into laughter unexpectedly.

“Ugh, you smudged the eyeliner! Gotta start over!”

After being held down for a half-hour makeup session, Lu Jiahe checked the time. “If we don’t leave now, we’ll be late.”

“Wow, someone’s eager.”

“It’s not eagerness, I just don’t want to sit here any longer.”

“Alright, let’s go.” Li Chenyao set down the makeup brush, hurriedly packed her bag, and rushed downstairs. “This colleague of mine is just like you gentle, soft-spoken, and well-educated. She’d be a perfect match for you.”

“Weren’t you just saying I’d rip your arms off this morning? Now I’m ‘gentle’?”

Lu Jiahe followed her downstairs. As they passed the pavilion in the complex, they saw a group of elderly women dancing to music.

“I can’t wait to retire and just sing and dance all day,” Li Chenyao mused.

Lu Jiahe chuckled, then suddenly froze, pushing Li Chenyao aside.

“Hey ?” Li Chenyao nearly stumbled. “What’s wrong with you?”

Lu Jiahe’s pupils contracted as she strode toward the pavilion, her gaze fixed on a figure up ahead.

A tall, slender girl leaned on a crutch, swaying her hips as she sang, “Turns out I’m just a drunken butterfly”

The elderly women beside her doubled over with laughter, clapping their hands in amusement.

“Lu Jiahe, where are you going?” Li Chenyao called from behind.

Hearing the name, the girl turned around in confusion. When she saw the woman suddenly standing before her, she recoiled in shock.

She hopped backward on one foot, nearly toppling over, but Lu Jiahe stepped forward and caught her by the waist, steadying her.

“Holy crap, Dr. Lu?! What are you doing here?!” Ji Yin looked horrified.

Lu Jiahe gritted her teeth. “I was about to ask you the same thing. Why are you out here again? Is your hospital bed on fire or something?”

Ji Yin: “…”

“What’s going on? Who’s this?” Li Chenyao ran over, bewildered, and stared curiously at Ji Yin.

“One of my patients,” Lu Jiahe said.

“Pretty bold, dancing with a cast like that,” Li Chenyao remarked, noticing Lu Jiahe’s displeasure. She grinned at Ji Yin. “Aren’t you afraid Lu Jiahe will rip your arms off?”

Holy crap? That’s terrifying?

Ji Yin instinctively touched her arms.

“Get back to the hospital. Now,” Lu Jiahe ordered.

Ji Yin pleaded, “Later, I’ll go back later, I promise! Right now, I still have to dance with the aunties”

“You’ve got a cast on, what kind of square dancing is this?! Come with me!” Lu Jiahe’s expression darkened as she guided her firmly toward the exit.

Li Chenyao quickly stepped in to help.

“Wait, I, ugh” Ji Yin turned back and called out, “Aunties, I’ll come see you another day, okay?!”

“When were you planning to come back?” Lu Jiahe immediately asked.

“When I’m discharged?” Ji Yin replied softly.

After getting into the car, Li Chenyao asked, “What’s the plan now?”

“I’ll take her back to the hospital. You go ahead and eat first apologize on my behalf.”

“Fine.” Li Chenyao was already used to being delayed by hospital matters at any moment. “Then I’ll drive myself over. Remember to come once you’re done here, or I won’t know how to explain it.”

“Got it.”

Ji Yin watched as Li Chenyao got out of the car, leaving an oppressive silence inside.

As they neared the hospital, Ji Yin couldn’t help but ask, “Dr. Lu, do you have something else to do?”

“Yeah.”

“Then just drop me at the entrance. I can ask the nurse to come down and get me.”

Lu Jiahe didn’t believe her for a second, she was convinced this girl would slip away the moment she got the chance.

After escorting her back to the ward, Lu Jiahe questioned the nurses and caregivers about how she had managed to sneak out again.

Nurse: “We’re so busy, we didn’t even notice she left.”

Caregiver: “I just went to the bathroom, and she was gone. She texted me saying her family came to pick her up.”

Multiple pairs of eyes fixed on Ji Yin.

Ji Yin guiltily tugged at the blanket. “Sorry, I really had something urgent. But I was careful this time, didn’t touch my injury at all. This cast works great, hahaha…”

“Please keep a closer eye on her these next few days,” Lu Jiahe instructed. “Let me know if anything comes up.”

The nurses and caregivers agreed. Lu Jiahe pressed on Ji Yin’s leg. “Does it hurt?”

“No.”

“I’m checking your injury. If it hurts, say so, don’t hide it.”

“Dr. Lu, it really doesn’t hurt.” Ji Yin smiled, but when she saw the concern on Lu Jiahe’s face, a pang of guilt hit her. “Did I mess up your plans again?”

Lu Jiahe didn’t answer, focusing instead on inspecting the cast. It was intact, clearly doing its job, no signs of overuse.

“Dr. Lu, I’m itchy. What should I do?” Ji Yin suddenly said.

“Where?”

“Inside the cast.” Ji Yin pointed to her calf.

“Sweat trapped under there of course it’s itchy.” Lu Jiahe removed the cast and looked around. “Where’s the caregiver?”

“I’m in the bathroom!” the caregiver called out.

Lu Jiahe sighed, picked up a towel from the basin under the bed, and went to fetch some warm water. When she returned, she found Ji Yin scratching the itchy spot incessantly.

“Serves you right. Still planning to run off like this?” Lu Jiahe pressed the towel to her calf, gently cleaning it.

“Dr. Lu, you’re really so patient.” Ji Yin had been hospitalized before, but she’d never met a doctor this dedicated, meticulous, and patient.

“Not that patient, just know that getting angry won’t solve anything.” Once Ji Yin stopped itching, Lu Jiahe reattached the cast. “No more moving around. Can you manage that?”

“Probably.”

“‘Probably’?”

Ji Yin looked up, meeting the seriousness and responsibility in her gaze, and nodded. “I can.”

After a pause, she added, “Dr. Lu, you look really nice today. Got a date?”

“Don’t think sweet talk will make up for your disobedience.”

“What if I give you apples?” Ji Yin pulled two big apples from the fruit basket. “Dr. Lu, happy New Year’s.”

“You can keep them for yourself, eat more fruits.” Lu Jiahe had more than enough fruits at home, so he placed them back, but noticed her expression seemed a little down. After a moment’s thought, he took one anyway. “One is enough for me. Happy New Year.”

Ji Yin’s eyes curved into a smile again. “Mm, Happy New Year.”