The Gentle, Sickly Beauty Is Won Over By The Loyal Big Shot - Chapter 13

Yu Shen: “What’s wrong? Have I not made myself clear enough?”

Gu Han only replied several minutes later: “Shen, am I really that bad?”

These words left Yu Shen stunned. Gu Han’s uncharacteristic behavior made him worry, and he quickly scrolled up through their chat history. He snapped to his senses instantly and hurriedly changed his tune: “Chairman, please don’t be like this. It’s my fault, I was too aggressive with my words. Don’t be upset. You are an exceptionally successful person, everything that happened today is on me.”

Yu Shen had been frazzled by the day’s events, and because of his close relationship with Gu Han, he had spoken without thinking. Now that he realized what he’d done, it was too late. Gu Han’s single sentence was enough to keep Yu Shen from sleeping.

After that, Gu Han didn’t reply for a long time, leaving Yu Shen pacing in circles with anxiety. Everyone said Yu Shen had a high EQ and never offended his boss, he had always been cautious in his dealings with Gu Han, and their partnership had been pleasant for years. But this time, even Yu Shen felt he had been incredibly arrogant and had caused a major disaster.

Yu Shen wanted to call Gu Han to explain, but then he remembered Gu Han saying Qi Ran was asleep. He had to abandon that impulse and wait anxiously for a reply. About ten minutes later, Gu Han replied: “I’m fine. Get to work, the company must have a lot of things to deal with.”

After this reply, everything Yu Shen sent was like a stone sinking into the ocean. Gu Han offered no further response.

Yu Shen was truly about to lose his mind.

On the other side, Gu Han had indeed spent five minutes in internal turmoil after seeing Yu Shen’s words. However, seeing Qi Ran sleeping peacefully in his arms, his mood brightened again. He set his phone to “Do Not Disturb,” placed it on the nightstand, and focused entirely on accompanying Qi Ran. Qi Ran looked so well-behaved while sleeping. Gu Han had never noticed before that Qi Ran’s eyelashes were so black, thick, and long, and his eyebrow shape was particularly beautiful. Looking at Qi Ran’s refined and lovely appearance, Gu Han couldn’t help but think that if he were Qi Ran’s family, he would never have the heart to argue with him over work. He would surely pamper him, giving him whatever he wanted, even if it meant spoiling him rotten.

While Gu Han was lost in these thoughts, quietly watching Qi Ran’s sweet sleeping face, the phone by Qi Ran’s pillow suddenly rang. Qi Ran was startled awake. His pale hand pressed against his heart as he curled his body into the crook of Gu Han’s arm. Seeing this, Gu Han rubbed Qi Ran’s back and asked urgently, “What is it? Is your heart uncomfortable again?”

“Mm,” Qi Ran pressed his chest, nestling in Gu Han’s arms, and said softly, “My heart isn’t good. It hurts when I’m startled awake from sleep. President Gu, it really hurts.”

“Little Qi Ran, take deep breaths,” Gu Han massaged Qi Ran’s back while simultaneously pressing the call bell. “Be a good baby, just hold on a little longer. The doctor will be here soon.”

Qi Ran’s body went limp in Gu Han’s arms as he struggled to breathe. Gu Han held him close, soothing his emotions. While waiting for the doctor, his heart was filled with resentment toward the person who had called.

The doctor arrived after hearing the bell and asked Gu Han to carry Qi Ran for an EKG and other tests. When Gu Han picked Qi Ran up, he took both his and Qi Ran’s phones with him.

As Gu Han carried Qi Ran toward the examination room, Qi Ran grabbed Gu Han’s hand and called out softly, “President Gu.”

“Yes, Little Qi Ran,” Gu Han leaned down, helping to tuck the stray hairs at Qi Ran’s temples. “I’m right here.”

Qi Ran’s eyes were full of reluctance: “Is President Gu coming back to get me later?”

“Of course, I’m going to carry Little Qi Ran back,” Gu Han leaned down, flattening his palm to gently stroke Qi Ran’s chest. “I know you’re afraid of the exams. Don’t worry, I’ll be with you the whole time.”

Qi Ran squeezed Gu Han’s hand tightly: “I’ll listen to President Gu.”

Though Qi Ran’s hands were thin, his palms were soft and slightly cool. That firm squeeze touched Gu Han deeply, igniting a powerful protective instinct within him.

“By the way, Little Qi Ran, I brought your phone,” Gu Han gently asked for his permission. “Can I see who called you?”

“Mm,” Qi Ran nodded. “You can.”

“Then I’ll head out first.”

Gu Han carefully wiped the cold sweat from Qi Ran’s forehead. “Be good, Little Qi Ran. I’ll come get you as soon as the tests are done.”

The doctor closed the door to the exam room. Gu Han’s heart remained suspended, terrified that Qi Ran might have another serious issue. He was so worried that even his usually warm hands turned cold, and his well-defined fingers trembled occasionally.

Gu Han was so nervous he could barely catch his breath.

Taking a few deep breaths, he remembered the phone call. He pulled Qi Ran’s phone from his trouser pocket. The wallpaper was a photo of him and a small dog named Hamburger. Gu Han stared blankly at the gentle smile Qi Ran wore while holding the dog until the screen timed out. He snapped out of it, remembered what he was doing, and lit the screen again. The missed call was from a contact named “Zhou Cheng.”

“Zhou Cheng,” Gu Han’s face turned cold. “Just you wait.”

If anything happened to Qi Ran, Gu Han would never let Zhou Cheng off the hook.

The examination lasted over half an hour. The moment the doctor stepped out, Gu Han rushed over. The doctor explained that Qi Ran had paroxysmal tachycardia. He didn’t need medication, but if he wanted a full recovery, he should undergo a minor surgery. If he didn’t want surgery, he would have to visit the hospital frequently, as timely treatment would only alleviate the symptoms, not cure them.

Gu Han said, “I still need to discuss this with the patient. I can’t make the decision for him. I’ll take him back first and give you an answer later.”

When Gu Han entered the room, Qi Ran had already finished his injection and was on oxygen. Seeing Gu Han enter, Qi Ran opened his arms toward him, looking delighted: “President Gu is here to pick me up?”

“I never left. I was waiting for news about you.”

Gu Han waited for the doctor to remove Qi Ran’s oxygen tube before leaning down to embrace him, pulling him tightly into his arms. “Let’s go back and rest.”

As Gu Han carried Qi Ran back to the ward, Qi Ran whispered, “President Gu, the doctor said he doesn’t recommend surgery for now because my health is too poor.”

“Surgery depends on your own wishes,” Gu Han said softly. “Since the doctor cautioned you and you aren’t keen on it, we’ll stick to conservative treatment. If you feel unwell in the future, I’ll drive you to the hospital myself, okay?”

Qi Ran gently hugged Gu Han’s neck. “President Gu, you’ve gone to so much trouble.”

“I should,” Gu Han smiled. “Because I want to take good care of you, so doing anything for you is only right.”

“President Gu is so kind.” Qi Ran felt shy again, burying his small face in the crook of Gu Han’s neck, blushing from his cheeks to the tips of his ears.

Gu Han’s expression shifted. “By the way, it was Zhou Cheng who called you earlier.”

“Ah, the jinx,” Qi Ran laughed. “President Gu, I’ll call him back in a bit.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll use your phone to call him.”

Gu Han asked, “Little Qi Ran, is your leave paid?”

Qi Ran nodded. “Yes.”

Gu Han asked again, “Is there a medical subsidy?”

This time Qi Ran shook his head. “I don’t think so. Ruihao has never had anything like that.”

“Your illness is entirely because of Zhou Cheng, so I’m going to get some money from him for you.”

Gu Han carried Qi Ran into the ward. “If it weren’t for your lack of rest and the work exhausting you to the point where you couldn’t eat or sleep well, your stomach problems wouldn’t have reached this stage.”

Once Gu Han settled Qi Ran steadily onto the hospital bed, Qi Ran suddenly wrapped his arms around Gu Han’s waist, burying his face in Gu Han’s stomach, and acted spoiled. “President Gu.”

“Mm,” Gu Han rubbed Qi Ran’s hair. “What is it, Little Qi Ran?”

Qi Ran began to act clingy: “Could President Gu stay with me a bit longer?”

“Of course,” Gu Han coaxed him. “If you like, I will stay by your side. Even when you’re discharged, I will stay with you and go nowhere else.”

“Great,” Qi Ran was very happy. “Then will President Gu stay at my house first?”

“Okay,” Gu Han promised. “And then you can bring the dog to stay at my place. A change of environment will be good for your recovery. No matter where we go, I will be by your side.”

Qi Ran nodded, his tall, pale nose moving close to the shirt at Gu Han’s waist, lightly sniffing. “President Gu smells so good, so sweet.”

“You’re the one who’s sweet, Little Qi Ran.” Fearing Qi Ran would get tired, Gu Han only held him for a moment before helping him lie back down. Just then, the doctor arrived and suggested Qi Ran use oxygen for a while longer. After the doctor fitted the oxygen tube, Gu Han took Qi Ran’s phone out of his pocket and handed it to him. “Call Zhou Cheng, and let me have a private word with that animal.”

Qi Ran obeyed and dialed Zhou Cheng back, handing the phone to Gu Han. The call was answered almost instantly: “Hello, Qi Ran? How is your health? I want to come to the hospital to see you.”

Gu Han’s tone was terrible: “Zhou Cheng, Qi Ran can’t take the phone right now. I’m asking on his behalf, did you know he has a heart condition? When you called, Qi Ran was resting, he was startled by the ringtone and had to be rushed for emergency care. Zhou Cheng, are you even human? Qi Ran’s body is already riddled with problems, his stomach, his heart, his neck, and his back. You wouldn’t let him take leave to rest, and you wouldn’t even let him seek treatment. Tell me, after hurting him like this, don’t you deserve to die?”

Zhou Cheng was startled. “Really? Is… is it really that serious?”

“Didn’t you say you wanted to visit?” Gu Han suddenly exploded, roaring at him. “Then come! Come see with your own eyes if it’s really that serious! Qi Ran is right here in the ward. Zhou Cheng, as a leader, you can’t even take responsibility for your subordinate’s safety. You useless waste!”

“Okay, okay,” Zhou Cheng shrank back at Gu Han’s roar, answering tremulously. “I’m coming right now, President Gu.”

Gu Han hung up. When he looked up at Qi Ran, the younger man was completely stunned. His misty, puppy-like eyes were wide with fright, staring at Gu Han by the bed.

“I’m sorry, I was just too angry,” Gu Han sat by the bed, gently rubbing Qi Ran’s chest. “Did I scare you? Is your heart okay? Does it hurt?”

“It doesn’t hurt,” Qi Ran whispered. “But… President Gu won’t be that scary to me in the future, will you? Wuu, that was terrifying.”

“I would never be mean to you, baby,” Gu Han raised his hand, his thumb gently caressing Qi Ran’s soft, warm cheek. “In my heart, how could you ever be like Zhou Cheng? Little Qi Ran, no one can compare to you.”

After Gu Han repeatedly promised to always be gentle, Qi Ran finally relaxed. As Gu Han chatted with him, he casually began unbuttoning his shirt. “Little Qi Ran, I’m going to take a shower. Even though my friend’s hospital has central air conditioning set to a comfortable 23.5°C, I’m a bit of a clean freak. I feel miserable if I go more than a day without washing. Wait for me; I’ll be back soon.”

“Ah, President Gu!” Caught off guard by the sight of Gu Han’s half-exposed abs after unbuttoning his shirt, Qi Ran covered his eyes shyly. “I… am I allowed to look?”