“Where are we going?” Xu You’s face was still tearstained as she was pulled along, hurriedly running with Xie Ci.
“To see your grandmother.” He didn’t look back.
The two of them sprinted across campus, causing people to turn and stare.
Running so fast made their hearts pound like they would burst from their throats.
After crying so heavily earlier, Xu You felt completely drained of energy.
“Xie Ci, Xie Ci.”
She panted, tilting her head up to say: “Stop first.”
“My ID card is still in the classroom.”
Xie Ci asked for the exact location and took out his phone to call Fu Xueli.
The call connected quickly. “Hello?”
Xie Ci: “Xu You’s ID card is in her backpack. Get it for her.”
Fu Xueli: …….
“Did you hear me?”
Fu Xueli asked: “What do you need her ID card for?”
“Not for getting married, anyway.”
“Marriage needs a household registration book, idiot.”
“Tch.”
Xie Ci frowned, “Damn, hurry up, it’s urgent.”
The two stopped at the school’s milk tea shop entrance. Xu You’s heart was pounding as she clutched her chest, feeling short of breath.
“Is this really okay…”
The wind cleared Xu You’s head a bit.
Rushing back like this, with neither the school nor their parents knowing. If she didn’t return home at night and wasn’t at school during the day, there would definitely be trouble.
No matter what happened, everything would become a mess…
Xie Ci glanced at her, “I’ve already booked the flight tickets.”
After a moment of silence, Xu You asked: “How did you book them?”
“By paying money.”
“I mean,” she looked into his eyes, “How did you know my ID information?”
“……”
Xie Ci covered up with a cough, looking away.
Xu You wanted to ask more.
A male student came out of the milk tea shop, nosily standing at the entrance with a knowing look: “Hey, isn’t this our Brother Ci? What are you doing here?”
They both turned to look.
Li Jieyi held a cup of milk tea, leaning against the doorframe: “Where did you two go just now? Look at you both sweating in this cold winter.”
Only when he appeared did Xu You notice there were quite a few people in the milk tea shop.
They were all students from First High School.
The boys and girls inside clearly knew Xie Ci, with two or three people calling out: “Brother Ci, come join us!”
Xu You lowered her head, standing silently to the side.
Noticing Li Jieyi’s observant gaze, she took a small step back.
Li Jieyi didn’t mind, giving a slight smile before turning to ask Xie Ci: “Are you two going on a date?”
He assumed Xie Ci and Xu You were already together.
Or rather, he thought Xie Ci had already successfully pursued Xu You.
Li Jieyi felt a bit of jealous admiration in his heart.
Why did Xie Ci always get all the good ones…
“Dating your ass.”
Xie Ci replied impatiently, reaching for a cigarette but seeming to think better of it halfway.
He turned his head slightly, glancing to the side before suddenly pulling Xu You’s down jacket hood over her head.
She was already small, with an even smaller face. The thick white fur of the hood nearly swallowed her whole, making her look like a buried hamster.
Quietly obedient, quite cute.
But too short.
He couldn’t help putting his hand on Xu You’s head. With her vision blocked, she waved her hands around trying to push his hand away.
After playing for a moment.
Xie Ci found himself smiling, but when he turned back, he saw Li Jieyi still watching them.
He immediately became unhappy, “Had enough of looking?”
“I wasn’t looking at you.”
Just then, a familiar voice called out from not far away.
Fu Xueli came running over with the ID card in hand.
She handed it to Xu You and asked: “Youyou, what’s happening? What are you going to do?”
“Nothing, don’t worry about it,” Xie Ci said.
“Shut up, don’t talk,” Fu Xueli rolled her eyes and put her hands on Xu You’s shoulders, “What’s wrong? Can you tell me if there’s something urgent?”
Xu You kept her eyes down, hesitating for a moment, “Something happened, my grandmother had an accident, I need to go see her.”
She didn’t say much more, just giving a brief explanation.
Fu Xueli understood and looked at Xu You with a complex expression, “Alright then, I’ll help explain to the teacher. With your grades, she won’t suspect anything.”
As for Xie Ci…
Even if he didn’t come to school for three days, no teacher would care.
The flight was at 6:30 PM.
Before takeoff, Xu You borrowed Xie Ci’s phone.
She called her parents.
Chen Xiuyun’s end was very noisy, her voice still hoarse as she asked: “Hello, who is this?”
“It’s me, Mom.”
Xu You sat in the innermost seat, covering the receiver as she asked quietly: “I borrowed a classmate’s phone. How is grandmother?”
Chen Xiuyun sighed and said: “She’s out of danger now, still under observation.”
At these words.
Xu You felt relief wash over her, tears almost falling again. The emotions that had been weighing on her chest finally eased.
After a long silence.
“That’s good… Oh right, Mom.” Xu You unconsciously bit her finger, “I won’t be coming home tonight, I’ll stay at school.”
“Why? Isn’t your dad still at home?” Chen Xiuyun was momentarily confused.
Xu You quickly said: “I thought you wouldn’t be back, so I already made plans with my classmates.”
She was always so well-behaved, never causing trouble since she was young, obedient and rarely lying. So Chen Xiuyun believed her without much suspicion, just giving a couple brief reminders before hanging up.
When Xu You returned the phone to Xie Ci, she met his teasing gaze.
Her face reddened.
Xie Ci lifted one corner of his mouth in a smile, “Who would’ve thought?”
“What?” Still congested from crying, Xu You’s voice was very nasal.
“I thought you only knew how to act cute, not how to lie. Turns out you’re good at both.”
Xu You wanted to argue back but felt embarrassed, looking around instead.
“Do you still want your phone?” she asked.
Xie Ci held out his palm.
Xu You suddenly thought of a serious question, “Oh right, you still haven’t told me how you knew my ID information?”
“You’re pretty persistent, aren’t you?”
Xie Ci leaned his head against the seat, looking at her lazily, “The physical exam report posted at the back of the classroom, next to my seat, you know?”
Xu You nodded.
“It was on there.”
Xie Ci’s eyes were dark, his voice low, “I took a picture of it early on, it’s in my phone.”
As for why he took the picture.
Xu You didn’t ask further.
The announcement began reminding passengers to turn off their phones.
After a while, the plane started taxiing.
Their seats were by the wing, and when they took off, Xu You felt tremendous pressure in her eardrums.
It was a two-hour flight from the city to Xi Town. The plane had the heat turned up high.
Xu You felt stifled in her down jacket.
Since the lights were dimmed and no one could see clearly anyway, she quietly undid her seatbelt and took off her coat.
Xie Ci suddenly asked: “Tsk tsk, feeling hot?”
Xu You jumped in surprise, putting her finger to her lips with a “Shh.”
The middle-aged man sitting in their row by the aisle had already closed his eyes to rest.
Afraid of disturbing others, she deliberately lowered her voice, “Keep your voice down.”
Xie Ci leaned close, blowing a breath near her ear, deliberately saying: “Is this okay?”
Xu You ignored him, lowering her head to refasten her seatbelt, laying her coat across her knees.
Due to the flight delay, they would probably arrive around 9 PM.
Fortunately dinner was provided on the flight. The soft yellow lights came on one by one as flight attendants pushed carts down the aisle, distributing mineral water and airplane meals to each row.
The quiet cabin gradually became noisy.
When they reached Xu You’s row, Xie Ci said: “Just one serving.”
He took the hot meal box and put down Xu You’s tray table, placing it in front of her.
Xu You watched his actions, startled, “You’re not eating?”
Xie Ci shook his head.
This person… is really too picky…
Xu You picked up the chopsticks and peeled back the cover of the meal box.
Inside was curry beef with potatoes, steaming with a fragrant aroma.
She tried a couple bites and was surprised to find it quite tasty.
Xie Ci lowered his gaze, watching Xu You quietly eat while holding the meal box, taking small bites very slowly, like a little white rabbit feeding, her cheeks puffing out slightly.
The soft yellow light fell on her, with a few strands of hair naturally falling down to cover half her profile.
Xu You had a small appetite and was full after eating just a portion.
She stuck out her tongue to lick the residue from her lips. Looking up, she met Xie Ci’s gaze.
Xu You immediately felt embarrassed, her soft pink lips parting slightly, “Are you hungry?”
Xie Ci’s throat felt dry as he shook his head, staying silent for a while.
She repeatedly examined the packet of cookies in her hand.
“What is this?” Xu You asked curiously.
Xie Ci glanced at it, “Cookies.”
“Oh oh.”
Xu You smiled sheepishly, “This is my first time on a plane…”
“First time?”
“Mm…”
“Oh right.” This reminded her of something else, “We need to buy return tickets.”
“After I secretly visit grandmother at the hospital, we can take the midnight flight back to the city, that way we can still make it back for morning self-study tomorrow.”
Xie Ci casually picked up the half-empty water bottle she had just drunk from and took a sip, saying indifferently: “Sure, I’ll buy them after we land.”
“Mm mm.”
After another moment, Xu You said softly: “I still need to pay you back for the flight tickets. Thank you so much for this time.”
Thank you…
It seems like… recently she had said these words to Xie Ci many times.
Xu You was momentarily stunned.
Although he was usually joking around and unreliable, he was always by her side during her hardest moments.
The person beside her didn’t respond.
She was about to say it again when Xie Ci asked casually: “Where would you get money from?”
“I have money, I’ve saved up.”
Xu You rested her forehead against the seat in front, thought for a moment, and told him: “From school scholarships and competition prize money over the years.”
Her serious little expression was quite proper.
Xie Ci made a sound of acknowledgment, feigning surprise: “Oh, didn’t know you were so rich.”
Xu You was taken aback, then heard him say: “Well that’s great, you’re the boss now, I’ll follow you.”
Xi Town wasn’t very big, with just one central hospital.
As soon as the plane landed, Xu You took Xie Ci to quickly hail a taxi straight to their destination.
It was quite late, and there weren’t many people coming and going in the hospital lobby. Under the daylight lamps, a few scattered people were handling paperwork at the counter.
Xu You rushed to the front desk to ask: “Did you admit an emergency patient from a car accident today?”
The young woman in a nurse’s uniform frowned, flipping through the record book beside her, “What time are you talking about, morning or afternoon?”
“Morning,” Xu You replied hurriedly.
After flipping through for a while, the young nurse asked: “Are you Wu Yun’s family?”
Wu Yun was her grandmother’s name.
Xu You nodded, “Yes, that’s her.”
Xie Ci sat in the hospital corridor, his elbow propped on the chair back, watching Xu You standing in the white fluorescent lights of the lobby.
She stood helplessly in the center of the hall, her porcelain-white face completely bloodless.
The smell of disinfectant gradually permeated the air.
“What’s wrong?” Xie Ci saw her hovering by the elevator for a long time, stood up and walked over to ask about the situation.
Xu You had experienced extreme emotional ups and downs that day.
She looked up, her expression showing exhaustion after relief, “My grandmother isn’t too seriously injured, she’s already been moved to a regular ward.”
“That’s good then, go see her now.” He raised his hand to press the elevator button.
“Which floor?”
The elevator doors opened in front of them, and a couple walked out.
“Third floor.”
She took a step back to avoid blocking others’ way.
“Then let’s go.”
Xie Ci stepped into the elevator first, pulling the still-dazed Xu You inside.
She struggled slightly, saying: “But… I’m afraid of running into my mom.”
“What are you afraid of?”
Xie Ci: “I’ll keep watch for you, you just go in and say a few words to your grandmother then leave.”
“My mom or aunt will definitely be watching, I won’t be able to get in…”
In the end, Xie Ci came up with a bad idea. He took off his coat and gave it to Xu You.
The pure black coat was very large, completely covering Xu You’s entire body.
With a whoosh.
The zipper was pulled up to above her chin, near her nose bridge, leaving only her eyes exposed. Xie Ci stepped back two steps to look her over, then came forward and pulled up the hood.
This coat was several sizes too big for Xu You, the sleeves hanging down her sides completely covering her hands, making her look like a plump penguin.
“There, now even your own father wouldn’t recognize you. Just go to the door to look at your grandmother, I’ll wait for you at the hospital entrance, come find me when you’re done.”
He bent down to take out his cigarettes, lighter, and phone from his pockets.
Xu You’s mouth opened slightly, about to say something, but Xie Ci had already turned to enter the elevator.
As the elevator doors closed, he seemed to smile ever so slightly.
In the end, Xu You still went to her grandmother’s hospital room.
Chen Xiuyun wasn’t there, and her grandmother was sleeping soundly in the bed.
Xu You quietly stood by the bedside for a while. Not daring to stay long, she tucked in her grandmother’s blanket and silently left.
The night seemed even colder.
She went out through the hospital’s main entrance, the wind stinging her cheeks. Xu You circled around several times before finally finding Xie Ci in a windbreak by the parking lot.
Only a bit of light fell on him.
He was leaning sideways against a pillar, head lowered looking at his phone, a cigarette between his lips.
She emerged from the shadows, stopping two or three steps away from him.
Xie Ci hadn’t noticed.
Xu You reached up to take the cigarette from his mouth, saying softly: “Don’t smoke.”
“Oh.”
He raised an eyebrow, lifting his finger to hook under Xu You’s chin, laughing hoarsely, “Trying to boss me around?”
But Xu You frowned, looking down and grasping his hand, “Your hand is so cold.”
Really very cold, like ice.
Her heart clenched as she realized his coat was on her body.
Xu You hurriedly unzipped it and took off the coat, handing it back to Xie Ci.
“Put it on quickly, be careful not to catch a cold.”
“Finally showing some conscience.”
Xie Ci lingered near her lips for a moment, coughed twice, and took back his coat.
After a long silence.
Xu You threw the cigarette in her hand into the nearby trash can, her eyelashes trembling slightly as she said quietly in the silent night: “Are you hungry? I’ll take you to get something to eat.”
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