Chapter 25

  That evening, Yuan Zhi had a fever. He caught a cold from playing in the snow and sleeping in a place with lower temperatures. The cold came on strong, and He Sheng wanted to go call Wu Shu, but Yuan Zhi grabbed her and said, "It's nothing, just take some antipyretics and I'll be fine. If it doesn't work, you can make me a bowl of ginger soup."

  "Have to go to the hospital." In case it gets serious, it'll be too late.

  "What hospital should I go to for a cold?" Yuan Zhi warned her, "Don't tell Aunt Wu, women get troublesome when they're older, all they know is to talk nonstop. If you dare tell her, I won't speak to you again."

  He Sheng twisted his fingers, "But even if I'm sick, I still have to tell the adults."

  "No matter what, as long as you dare to say it, I won't care about you." Yuan Zhi glanced at the bathroom and said: "Then I'll hide in the bathroom and die from a fever without coming out."

  "Hey, don't talk nonsense."

  "You can't tell Aunt Wu," he emphasized.

  "Got it."

  Two people climbed down from the chair to go downstairs for dinner, Wu Shu had already brought the dishes to the table, and saw people coming in with a puzzled expression: "Yuan Zhi, what's going on with your face? It's all red."

  "It's hot!" Yuan Zhi patted He Sheng's shoulder and pushed him forward, "I was just exercising upstairs!"

  "What sport?"

  "Going nowhere."

  Obviously just nonsense, Aunt Wu didn't believe it, but she also didn't press for an explanation.

  After dinner, Yuan Zhi picked up He Sheng's school bag and silently urged her to go upstairs first. He Sheng frowned and helped Wu Ayi clean the kitchen before quickly finding antipyretics from the medicine box and running upstairs as well.

  Yuan Zhi had already closed his eyes and was lying on his side in bed, with a slight frown between his eyebrows, looking very uncomfortable.

  He Sheng handed him a cup of medicine, walked to the bedside and squatted down, sat cross-legged on the ground, just in time with Yuan Zhi, looked at his delicate face and said softly: "The medicine is ready, drink it first."

  Yuan Zhi opened one eye and looked at her, "It's hard to drink."

  "That's also drinkable." He Song lowered his head and stirred again.

  "Not drinking?"

  He Sheng said seriously, "Then I'll go tell Aunt Wu."

  Yuan Zhi glared, cursed a sentence, "Dead kid!" Then he propped himself up to sit up, took the cup from her hand and drank it in one gulp, putting it on the side cabinet.

  He Shuang pulled out a piece of candy from his pocket and handed it to him, "Eat the candy, your mouth will feel better."

  "Hmph, you think I'm a three-year-old kid!" Yuan Zhi reluctantly took it and stuffed it into his mouth, muttering, "The taste is just so-so."

  He Xiang smiled and let him be willful, picked up the cup and said, "I'll go downstairs to make you some ginger soup."

  He quickly got up and walked out, soon disappearing from view. Yuan Zhi looked at the door, making a sound of disapproval with his mouth, and for a long time, his eyebrows and eyes were filled with a warm and fuzzy feeling like a spring morning in Jiangnan.

  He Sheng didn't take long to come back with a half cup of steaming hot water, Yuan Zhi had just finished bathing and changed into his pajamas. "Has Wu Shu come out yet?"

  "No, she's watching TV in her own room, I spoke very softly." She put the cup into his hands, "Drink it while it's hot, but be careful not to scald yourself."

  Yuan Zhi sat in the quilt, leaning against the head of the bed and sipping sweet and spicy ginger tea. He Sheng helped him tuck in the corner of the quilt and sat down on the floor as before, taking out a notebook to do his homework. The air conditioner in the room was turned up high, so it wasn't cold at all.

  "What are you doing sitting on the floor?" Yuan Zhi said displeased, "Come sit on the bed."

  He Shuang looked up at him and said, "It's nothing."

  "The floor is too hard, where can you sit and do your homework? Either go to bed or go back to your own room."

  Yuan Zhi was running a fever, and no matter how good or bad the situation was, she had to stay with him, otherwise He Sheng wouldn't be at ease. Especially since there were no elders around, so she had originally planned to stay and take care of him, but then he came up with this, leaving her in a difficult position, sitting on the bed looking like a fool, they two weren't young anymore.

  He Sheng thought for a moment and started packing his things to head back to his own place. It's not like it made a difference, he could just come over again after a while.

  "You finish drinking and get some rest early, I'm going back to my room."

  Yuan Zhi's face looked unpleasant, seeing someone carrying a backpack and walking out without hesitation. Just as he was about to reach the door, he suddenly raised his hand and knocked over a small ceramic cat cup on the bedside table. Although it didn't shatter, He Shuang still heard the faint sound and quickly turned around, seeing him with a dark expression on his handsome face, she was taken aback for a moment before walking back. "What's wrong?"

  He bent down to pick up the smiling little cat and put it back in place, looking at him, "Are you very uncomfortable?"

  "Aren't you going back to your room? Why are you back again? Go!" Yuan Zhi glared at him and shouted, turning his head away in a huff.

  He stared blankly at the back of his head, wasn't he fine just now? How did it suddenly catch fire?

  The backpack was very heavy, and my hand hurt a bit from carrying it. I put it back on the ground, stood still for a few seconds, then slowly took out my books and stationery again and climbed onto the other side of the bed.

  Yuan Zhi stared at her with a silly smile, "Then I won't leave, you drink and sleep quickly."

  "I'm not interested!" Yuan Zhi muttered, and it took him a while to calm down. He slowly finished drinking the water, put down the cup, lay down, and snuggled into the quilt. After a moment, he leaned against He Song again.

  He Sheng turned down the lights to make him sleep more comfortably, and Yuan Zhi soon fell into a deep sleep. His sleeping posture was very good, and he rarely moved or ground his teeth, nor did he talk in his sleep, and he slept soundly without any disturbance.

  He Shuang occasionally helped him pull up his quilt and touched his forehead. It wasn't until he started sweating that he finally felt relieved.

  Yuan Zhi woke up in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, and his bedding was all wet. He looked at He Sheng with a confused expression, then got out of bed and ran to the bathroom. The sound of water could be heard coming from inside soon after. When he came out again, he had changed into new clothes, his hair was dripping wet, and his rosy cheeks had lost their earlier pallor.

  Stretched his muscles and bones, "Feels much better."

  He Shuang climbed down from the bed and looked at him, "Remember to wipe your hair dry, lest you catch a cold again."

  Yuan Zhi's gaze swept over the neatly arranged backpack by her feet, and he lazily said, "Too lazy to wipe, it's a hassle." Then he flopped onto the bed, buried his face in the quilt, and mumbled, "You help me wipe!"

  He Xiang also wanted to sleep at this point, but looking at the wiggling Yuan Zhi on the bed who looked like a caterpillar, he couldn't get up. He hesitated for a moment before going to the bathroom to grab a towel and resignedly wiped Yuan Zhi's hair.

  One lying down and one sitting, Yuan Zhi closed his eyes and comfortably enjoyed her moderate service. "Kid, are you tired?"

  He Sheng frankly said, "A bit."

  Yuan Zhi chuckled and then turned sideways to hug her waist, burying his face in the softness of her abdomen, muttering: "It's late, sleep here!"

  His fingers, which had been weaving through her damp black hair, froze. He Song's eyes widened slightly in shock, and she was slow to react to his sudden proposal. The other person's inexplicable closeness made her feel awkward and stiff, causing her movements to slow down as well. After a long time, she stuttered out: "I... I recognize the bed."

  He didn't even lift his head, "You don't look like someone who can recognize a bed."

  He Sheng thought of retreating at this time, but the other party's hands used a bit more force and said discontentedly: "What's going on? Can't I even lean on you?"

  "Oh no, it's so crowded!"

  "Then squeeze!" After finishing, he bumped his head against her belly again.

  He Sheng's face was full of awkwardness, and it took a while for him to resign himself to relaxing and continuing to wipe his hair.

  Yuan Zhi buried his head in someone's belly, as if he had fallen asleep.

  When her hair was almost dry, He Xiang was about to move away or return to her own room. But unexpectedly, Yuan Zhi's hand around her waist suddenly tightened and rolled onto the bed with a swift motion, instantly pulling the unguarded person onto the bed. Restraining He Xiang's instinctively flailing limbs, he buried his face in her shoulder pit, soothingly stroking her face, and chuckled to say: "Goodnight."

  He Sheng was so scared that his heart almost jumped out, and his body stiffened in the arms of the person holding him, unable to move. The heat on his face rose rapidly with each breath he exhaled.

  He Shuang struggled with her hands, but to no avail. She blinked at the ceiling for a while before finally giving up and lying down in defeat. She thought to herself, "I'll just wait a bit longer, until I've gotten familiar with Yuan Zhi, then I can sneak back to my room." With this thought, she felt her mind relax, and her exhausted body quickly fell into a state of sleep. Before she could even deceive Yuan Zhi, she had already fallen asleep herself.

  After she breathed evenly and calmly, Yuan Zhi, who was pretending to sleep beside her, slowly opened his eyes. His long eyelashes lightly brushed against He Sheng's neck. With his elbow supporting the bed, he propped himself up, his gaze sweeping across He Sheng's face before leaning in close to her ear and softly calling out, "He Sheng."

  He scratched his chin, slightly opened his mouth, tilted his head, and didn't react.

  Yuan Zhi got up and carefully moved her a little further in, then helped her cover herself with the quilt. He stroked her forehead, gently brushing away the loose hairs, and then sat down beside her to watch her sleep.

  It was already past midnight, but he didn't want to sleep. He leaned against He Shuang and sat at the head of the bed, with his right hand beside her head, occasionally pulling the person who was about to burrow into the quilt back up to prevent suffocation.

  He has never been a meticulous person, so he pays extra attention to He Song. From the initial animosity to the current peaceful coexistence, thinking back carefully still feels quite magical. Since when did he start to change his impression of this person?

  When was it that I saw her alone on New Year's Day and she was still doing very well?

  He has been lonely for too long, on the day of the year that should be spent with family and joy, he always spends it alone, perhaps already used to it. So many years have passed without any expectation, nor has he ever put down his prejudices, just getting by. He never thought that in this world, someone could still spend such a day very well alone.

  He Sheng, she was the first one who gave him the best example of life.

  Although he was two years younger than him, his perseverance was unmatched by anyone.

  Later, I didn't have the heart to tease her anymore, or maybe I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Every time, she would put on a helpless and resigned attitude, but as soon as she turned around, she would be smiling with pursed lips again. Although she seemed to be laughing happily, there was something about it that didn't feel right.

  The smile is such a warm word, but when it's on He Sheng's face, it makes people want to cry.

  Isn't she suffering? The happiest people are often the most painful, it's just that the heavy emotions won't be easily shown to outsiders.

  Then the warehouse was closed, and the little girl didn't even cry in such a harsh environment. Then she helped him take that stick, and her pale face at that moment is still vivid now. What followed later is now, and there aren't many major events when thinking back, but they are unforgettable. If someone dares to touch her again, Yuan Zhi thinks he will definitely fight with the person to the death.

  How can our own daughter be bullied by others?

  Yuan Zhi lowered his head and gently touched her warm face with his fingers, he himself couldn't bear to part with her.

  The author has something to say: Why haven't my clicks recovered yet? So annoying!! Comments, favorites, and earnings are all there, but the clicks aren't!

  I think I saw an old friend! pp?

  PS: I thought my article wouldn't be stolen, and even if it was, it wouldn't be so fast. As a result, it seems to have spread widely, so I still need to take anti-theft measures. The anti-theft chapter is only a few words, but if you don't want to buy it in advance, please pay attention when subscribing. I will put it directly on Chapter 65, and later use an extra chapter as a replacement. After subscribing, going back to read it is free, so even if you've bought it, I won't let you lose out. Formal anti-theft measures start from the next chapter onwards. Today's announcement is just a declaration. The process of this article will definitely be abusive - one chapter without abuse would be boring! However, the ending must be harmonious; looking at Yuan Zhi's good deeds, it's hard not to have a happy ending, right?

  That's all for today, happy reading! ^_^