Morning Run

An Zhiwu picked a few comments from the scrolling chat to answer.

The atmosphere in the livestream returned to its usual harmony.

By the time she ended the stream, it was already past eight in the evening.

The best time to livestream was actually between eight and eleven at night, because people were freest then. Most had eaten dinner and were lying in bed.

An Zhiwu had usually started her streams at around eight in the evening too.

Now, considering her health, she felt it wasn't good to eat dinner so late and decided to livestream at around six in the evening from then on.

Her life was at stake, after all.

After cleaning up the kitchen and taking the medicine Song Yihe had prescribed, An Zhiwu took her pajamas and went to shower.

Once she'd showered and dried her hair, she brought out the footbath she'd only used once since buying it.

An Zhiwu soaked her feet for another half hour before getting into bed. She glanced at the time. It was only ten thirty.

She decided to set herself a fitness plan starting tomorrow.

Get up at six and go for a morning run!

After setting her alarm, she scrolled through Little Green Book for a while.

At around eleven, she remembered Song Yihe telling her to go to bed early and started forcing herself to sleep.

Whether it was because she was tired or because she'd soaked her feet, she didn't know.

Before long, An Zhiwu fell fast asleep.

Six in the morning.

The alarm rang right on time.

An Zhiwu got out of bed, quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face, got herself ready, applied a thick layer of sunscreen, changed into running clothes, and headed out.

There were lots of old men and women doing their morning exercises in Lakeside Park.

An Zhiwu started running around the park.

This was her first time going for a morning run. As she recalled, the last time she'd run had been in her final year of high school.

After half a lap, she was exhausted and panting for breath.

An Zhiwu bought a bottle of green tea from a self-service drinks machine, found a bench in the park, and eagerly sat down.

Then she unscrewed the cap and started gulping down the drink.

If only this drink were cold.

As she was thinking that, she caught a flash of white out of the corner of her eye.

An Zhiwu looked over and saw a pair of white sneakers. Looking up from there... she saw fairly thick leg hair.

Higher up were white athletic shorts and a white athletic top.

Then An Zhiwu saw Song Yihe's face.

Beads of sweat dotted Song Yihe's forehead, trickling down his perfect jawline and dripping onto his neck.

He looked a little sexy.

They said men with thick leg hair had stronger sex drives. She wondered if that was true.

It's probably not true, right~

Song Yihe looked like the picture of abstinence.

Though An Zhiwu didn't know why Song Yihe had stopped to look at him, she greeted him anyway. "Dr. Song, what a coincidence! Do you live nearby too?"

Song Yihe gave a faint "Mm."

His gaze then fell on the bottle of green tea in her hand. "You shouldn't drink that when you're running."

Huh?

An Zhiwu didn't understand at first.

After a moment, she realized he was talking about the green tea. Since he was her attending physician, she explained awkwardly, "I ran for a while and got tired and thirsty, so I bought it."

Song Yihe nodded. "You can drink mineral water, or if you really want a beverage, you can have a sports electrolyte drink or soda water."

As expected of a doctor, he's so particular!

An Zhiwu humbly took his advice. "Thank you, Dr. Song. I understand."

Song Yihe looked at her with an expression that said, "This child can be taught." "You can't guzzle it like you just did. No matter how hot or thirsty you are, drink in small sips."

"Okay, Dr. Song."

Seeing how readily she took his advice, Song Yihe was somewhat satisfied. "Get up. Let's keep running."

Huh?

More running?

Did Dr. Song mean he was going to run with her?

She'd wanted to rest a little longer...

"Dr. Song, are you going to run with me?"

Song Yihe glanced at her. "Sure."

An Zhiwu was speechless...

That definitely wasn't an invitation just now...

An Zhiwu stood up from the bench and threw the half-finished green tea into the trash. "Dr. Song, shall we start now?"

Song Yihe nodded.

The two of them began jogging slowly side by side.

As they ran, Song Yihe gave her pointers. "Don't land on your toes when you run. Land on the part of your heel closer to the middle of your foot, then roll forward onto your forefoot. Don't take big breaths or open your mouth. Breathe rhythmically through your nose."

As An Zhiwu ran, she adjusted how she applied force according to his instructions, and gradually felt she was getting more and more of a feel for it.

At first, the two of them ran side by side.

But after most of a lap, An Zhiwu gradually found herself unable to keep up with him.

Song Yihe noticed and slowed down to match her pace.

By the time they finished five kilometers, An Zhiwu felt she had used up a lifetime's supply of the Force.

Just as she was about to sit down, Song Yihe caught her by the arm. "Don't sit. Walk a little, and remember to stretch, or your legs will get thicker."

With Song Yihe holding her arm, An Zhiwu felt a little embarrassed for a moment.

As soon as she heard her legs would get thicker, An Zhiwu perked right up and walked a short distance, then stretched under Song Yihe's guidance.

By the time she finished the whole routine, it was already past eight.

An Zhiwu thought Song Yihe must be an especially responsible doctor. Even when he ran into his patient in the park, he took the time to look after her and give her pointers.

To express her thanks, she made a token invitation. "Dr. Song, thank you for your guidance. Have you had breakfast? I'm going to get some now. Would you like to join me?"

She was just asking casually and was already prepared for him to refuse.

To her surprise, Song Yihe nodded. "Sure."

An Zhiwu hadn't expected him to accept.

For a moment, she didn't know where to take him for breakfast.

So she asked Song Zhihe for his opinion. "Dr. Song, where would you like to have breakfast?"

"Anywhere is fine. Somewhere around here."

Song Zhihe didn't know how he had ended up accepting her invitation to have breakfast. He often came here to run, and he'd been quite surprised to see her here earlier.

He thought she might have started running in the mornings because of what he'd said.

He felt a little guilty. If he'd known, he wouldn't have scared her.

But when he thought about how she'd taken his words to heart, he actually felt a little pleased.

So he couldn't help correcting her improper running form.

An Zhiwu took Song Yihe to a nearby congee shop.

"Dr. Song, what would you like to eat?"

Song Yihe looked at the menu. "I'll have a serving of shiitake mushroom and beef congee."

An Zhiwu ordered him a serving of shiitake mushroom and beef congee. Considering the state of her stomach these past two days, she ordered pumpkin congee for herself.

Then she ordered a steamer of soup dumplings.

Both servings of congee were brought out shortly afterward.

An Zhiwu looked at the diced radish on the table, and her mouth began to water.

"Dr. Song, can I have some diced radish?"

"It's best not to for the next couple of days. Once your stomach has recovered, you can eat anything that isn't particularly irritating. There aren't that many restrictions."

All right~_~

An Zhiwu gave up on the idea of eating the diced radish and sipped her sweet pumpkin congee.