Chapter 29: Re-encountering Ding Ning

  Just as I was about to collapse, the medicine in the bottle finally ran out. So, I hastily called the nurse over to remove the needle from Qin Ke's arm. I supported her as she got off the bed and then we walked out of the infusion room, step by step, towards the orthopedic department.

  The orthopedic doctor was not very old and seemed to be an intern, showing unusual enthusiasm as soon as Qin Ke Yi walked in. When examining Qin Ke Yi, his hands kept playing with her feet, as if giving her a foot massage, which reminded me of the "pervert doctor" image that was widely reported by the media recently.

  The doctor, after having his fun, gave a conclusion of "basically no big deal", but still asked us to take an X-ray, so I had to support Qin Ke Yi again as he hobbled along. Since it would take half an hour to get the results, I first helped Qin Ke Yi back to the orthopedic clinic. When the doctor saw Qin Ke Yi enter the room again, he immediately became enthusiastic once more, starting to chat with Qin Ke Yi about some topics that seemed very boring to me. He introduced himself as a graduate student at Medical University and said he still didn't have a girlfriend.

  I'm not sure what his true intention was when he inadvertently revealed the second sentence. If he wanted to show off his academic qualifications to win Qin Ke Yi's heart, then he could only be considered unlucky. In the eyes of a girl like Qin Ke Yi who has been living in a honey jar since childhood, there is almost no difference between a man with a bachelor's degree and a master's degree. These days, even graduate students themselves don't take themselves seriously. I had originally planned to sit quietly in the corner and endure this unbearable half hour, but when I heard some nonsense that would be considered ridiculous by someone as cynical as me, I felt an urge to refute him. However, considering Qin Ke Yi's injured foot, I had to suppress this urge and ultimately decided to go outside for some fresh air.

  After wandering around outside for a while, I found a chair to sit down and stared blankly at the people coming and going. Ever since Tong Chen left, I've become infatuated with this feeling of being in a daze, often staring at something when I'm alone, recalling or replaying scenes with Tong Chen in my mind, trying to make them more beautiful, sometimes even confusing what's real and what's fabricated. And now, I've also placed all my emotions towards Tong Chen into this state of being in a daze.

  A familiar ringtone broke my emotional attachment to Tong Chen, it was a song that both Tong Chen and I liked, to be precise, it was a song we liked under Tong Chen's influence - "At Least I Arrived Earlier Than You"; when Tong Chen and I bought our couple mobile phones together, we coincidentally set this song as the ringtone, now my phone still has this song as the ringtone, but I don't know what Tong Chen's current ringtone is?

  I never thought I'd run into someone who likes the same song as me here, so I looked in the direction of the sound. The result should have been predictable, but I suspect it's because I often get distracted and my brain is slow to react - if it were a few years ago, I would have immediately thought that this person was Tong Chen, or maybe she should be called Ding Ning. At this moment, she was standing not far in front of me, with her back to me on the phone. I slowly got up and walked towards her step by step, doing so to confirm that I hadn't mistaken the person - until I stood behind her, I was only 99% sure it was her, except for her name which I couldn't be certain about. So I just stood silently behind her, while she was fully focused on the phone call, completely unaware of my presence.

  The phone call finally ended under my nervous mood, she hung up the phone and naturally turned around, but was startled by me standing behind her. From her expression, it can be seen that my appearance was beyond her expectation.

  "Hey! What a coincidence!" After eyeing each other for several seconds, she broke the silence first. Judging from her reflection, it should be Ding Ning whom she met last time.

  "Really? You... came to see a doctor?"

  "Oh! No. I'm here to give some medicine to a friend." She said, shaking the medicine in her hand at me.

  "Ah!" We both responded to each other's questions with extremely unnatural tones.

  "What's wrong with you? Are you here to buy medicine too?" After another few seconds of silence, Ding Ning was the first to break the silence.

  "Oh... no, I'm not, I came to visit a friend who's ill." After that, there was another period of silence.

  "I... called you... but nobody answered." A few seconds passed again, this time I broke the silence first.

  "Oh! The day after we met last time, I went out of town, so I changed my card." Although I don't know whether Ding Ning's words are true or false, I'd rather believe they're true.

  "Tonight...do you have time?" I suddenly asked Ding Ning directly.

  "Oh... what's up?" She heard my question and her eyes widened, then she stuttered and replied.

  "How about we grab a meal together, I think we're quite compatible?" I said with a smile to Ding Ning.

  "Okay, where are we going?" After hesitating for half a day, Ding Ning finally made the choice I was expecting.

  "Let's meet at Hans'! The one next to Walmart. I'll be waiting for you at the entrance at 6 o'clock, okay?"

  "Uh-huh! Alright!" Ting Ning nodded and said.

  "Whatever... I'll go first, see you next time!" At this moment, I suddenly remembered Qin Ke Yi and that I should have gone to get her X-ray results. So, with some reluctance, I ended the conversation.

  When I walked back into the orthopedic clinic with my X-ray, Qin Ke Yi was still listening to the doctor's nonsense. From her facial expression, I could tell that if she hadn't sprained her ankle, she would have also chosen to escape like me. As soon as Qin Ke Yi saw me enter, she quickly showed enthusiasm and excitement, while the doctor's enthusiasm disappeared instantly upon my arrival.

  "How come you're back so late?" Qin Ke asked.

  "Ah... I just ran into a friend and chatted for a bit." As I said this, I handed the X-ray to the doctor. He took it and looked at it for a long time before furrowing his brow and saying slowly, "The situation is a bit complicated."

  "What's wrong? Doctor, is it a fracture?" I felt tense as soon as I heard the doctor's words.

  "There's a slight fracture, but it's not too serious. However, she needs to rest for a long time and can't do any strenuous exercise or get angry. She should pay attention to eating nutritious food to nourish herself, and also massage her feet every day to improve blood circulation."

  After hearing the doctor's words, I felt confused. From a young age, I've had over a dozen sprains, but I'd never heard that emotions could affect the recovery of a sprain. However, considering that the doctor is a professional, his words have some credibility, so I can only accept them.

  At this time, Qin Ke Yi was the happiest person. Although she had sprained her foot, she had gained a life like that of an immortal, which was beyond her expectations. When I turned my head to look at her, she was immersed in a joyful atmosphere and couldn't extricate herself.

  "Doctor, do I have to massage her? I'm not good at it and my hands are rough. What if I accidentally hurt her and she becomes disabled for life? I'll have to take care of her for the rest of my life."

  "You're so beautiful, what else can I do! Listen to the doctor, don't talk nonsense." Qin Ke Yi was still happy, but didn't forget to argue with me.

  "This is easy, you'll learn it in no time, come on, I'll show you." He said, walking over to Qin Ke Yi who was sitting on the bed, lifting up his foot and massaging it a couple of times, demonstrating for me to see. But from my perspective, he's just taking advantage of Qin Ke Yi before he leaves, since they probably won't meet again anytime soon. Qin Ke Yi also showed disdain towards this behavior, but couldn't bring himself to get angry about it. I wonder if this kind of behavior is a sign that the more educated someone is, the more depraved their thoughts will be? A kind of depravity armed with knowledge.

  "Alright, alright, I've got it, no need to bother." I timely stopped his hand that was about to trample on Qin Ke's foot. Then helped Qin Ke put on his shoes and socks, and supported him down from the bed. As they were leaving, Qin Ke didn't forget to turn back and smile at this doctor with a graduate student aura, saying "Thank you, Doctor, goodbye."

  "You're quite interested in this graduate student, aren't you? Don't forget to say goodbye before leaving!" I said to Qin Ke as we were walking out the door.

  "Cut! What's wrong with you! I'm a graduate student at Medical University, with a bright future ahead of me. Unlike you, who is so sloppy. Besides, basic politeness is still necessary, which shows our fundamental quality as university students in the new century."

  "Didn't expect a sprained foot to stir up the long-lost moral values in your brain?"

  "Scram! I'm telling you, the doctor said not to make me angry. During my recovery, strictly follow the doctor's advice, or else, if there's even a slight mistake, watch out or I'll kill you!" Qin Ke glared at me with an evil expression, as if he had just received an imperial edict from the emperor himself, and was acting arrogant and domineering.

  "Oh, really? Must I follow every single one?" I asked with a smile.

  "Of course, today's situation is entirely due to you, are you trying to shirk responsibility?"

  "Don't be afraid! Come on, you lean against this first!" I helped Qin Ke to the hospital entrance and had her lean against a pillar.

  "What are you going there for?" Qin Ke asked strangely.

  "Don't get angry or anything. The doctor just told me that I shouldn't let you get angry, ensure your nutrition and also give you a massage, right?"

  "Not bad! Looks like you still have a guilty conscience!" Qin Ke said with a smirk.

  "Whatever! I'll follow the doctor's advice. But the doctor didn't tell me to hold your hand while walking, so you can walk by yourself. I'll wait for you in that taxi up ahead, no need to rush, take your time, I'm very patient!" I said as I turned around and walked towards a taxi at the entrance. Just then, I heard Qin Ke's long-awaited yelling voice "Kang Jian! You bastard......!"