Falling Sick

After dinner, Shen Xinde and Gu Zhuoling spent a long time doing puzzles in the playroom before getting ready for bed.

"So sleepy." Shen Xinde lay down on the bed, feeling groggy, and couldn't help yawning.

Gu Zhuoling tucked him in and smoothed down his messy hair. "Go to sleep."

"Kiss me."

Shen Xinde felt a little dazed, but he still didn't forget to ask for a goodnight kiss.

Gu Zhuoling was still a little embarrassed. He tapped Shen Xinde's cheek, hoping to get away with that.

"You're tricking me."

Shen Xinde opened his eyes to show his displeasure.

With no way out, Gu Zhuoling lowered his head and kissed Shen Xinde on the cheek. "A doll."

So delicate.

"Cute." Shen Xinde thought he was being called cute. With his eyes closed, he murmured a couple of times. "Haohao will kiss you."

Gu Zhuoling hadn't lifted his head, so Shen Xinde took the opportunity to kiss him on the cheek.

"Are my eyes closed?"

"They're closed."

"I can't open them."

"Because you're too sleepy."

Gu Zhuoling sighed and leaned over to turn off the bedside lamp. "Good night, Haohao."

"Good nigh, Zhuolin."

Shen Xinde really did feel groggy and tired, and he couldn't even get his words out clearly anymore.

The torrential rain, like countless silver needles, pounded mercilessly against the branches. Water splashed against the window, blurring the already dim view.

For some reason, Gu Zhuoling felt a little uneasy. He reached out and took the hand of the boy beside him, relaxing a little only when he felt the boy unconsciously squeeze back.

The night grew deeper, and the rain had begun to ease.

The wind outside the window didn't come often, but each gust seemed full of malice, fiercely driving the rain against the trees. The leaves trembled in the gale, torn off one by one as if by the merciless hand of fate. They drifted down, leaving the trees looking particularly bedraggled, as though the wind had shaved off several tufts of their hair.

A rumble of thunder startled Gu Zhuoling awake. He gasped for air, fine beads of sweat breaking out on his forehead.

He hadn't been dreaming, yet he had been startled awake.

His heart pounded, and a hint of foreboding rose in him.

He hurriedly leaned over to turn on the bedside lamp, then turned to look at Shen Xinde.

His face was far too red, and there was even more sweat on his forehead than on Gu Zhuoling's. His delicate brows were tightly furrowed.

Gu Zhuoling hurriedly reached out to feel him. Hot, so hot.

Shen Xinde seemed to feel unwell too. His little mouth moved as he murmured, but Gu Zhuoling couldn't make out the fragmented syllables at all.

"Haohao? Haohao?" Gu Zhuoling tried to steady himself as he shook Shen Xinde.

Shen Xinde was already delirious with fever. No sound from the outside could wake him.

Gu Zhuoling realized it was serious. He threw back the covers and rushed out of the room.

"Mom! Mom! Dad!"

He reached his parents' room as fast as he could and pounded on the door. Having just woken up, his voice was still a little hoarse, but he shouted as loudly as he could.

Zhou Jingyi heard him in a daze. The next shout woke her completely, and she nudged Gu Ruize beside her before quickly getting out of bed.

"What's wrong, Aling?"

When she opened the door, she saw her little son standing there, the hair on his forehead damp with sweat and his face full of anxiety.

"Haohao has a fever, Mom. Get a doctor." Gu Zhuoling was agitated, and a few tears glistened in his eyes.

Zhou Jingyi immediately understood. She turned and told Gu Ruize to contact Gu Zhuoling's family doctor, then picked up her son and carried him back to the room on the third floor.

When Zhou Jingyi entered, she saw Shen Xinde curled up alone on the large bed. His forehead was burning hot to the touch, and he was unconscious from the fever.

She went into the bathroom and came out with a towel soaked in warm water. It was Gu Zhuoling's first time encountering something like this, and he was already like a headless fly, knowing only to follow Zhou Jingyi around.

Zhou Jingyi gently wiped the sweat off Shen Xinde with the towel, then folded it and placed it on his forehead. When she turned around, she found her son's face full of tension.

"It's okay, Aling. The doctor will be here soon. Could I trouble you to pour some warm water? Haohao needs fluids."

Zhou Jingyi reassured him softly and touched his forehead, wiping away the sweat. When she looked down, she met her son's slightly reddened eyes.

Zhou Jingyi was a little surprised. "Why are you crying?"

Actually, when Gu Zhuoling was very little, he had been a complete crybaby—so little that he could barely walk.

He would cry whenever something upset him or didn't go his way. He looked pitiful when he cried. He never wailed, only secretly wiped away his tears.

She hadn't seen Gu Zhuoling cry since he'd grown older, and had assumed he was no longer a crybaby.

Gu Zhuoling said nothing. There was a small water dispenser in the room, so he poured a small cup of water and rubbed the sides with both hands. Only after deciding it wasn't too hot did he hand it to Zhou Jingyi.

Meanwhile, Zhou Jingyi called Xia Wanqing next door and explained the situation.

Zhou Jingyi braced herself as she fed Shen Xinde some water, while Gu Zhuoling leaned over the edge of the bed, watching Shen Xinde closely.

When Gu Ruize arrived with the family doctor, Xia Wanqing and Shen Qiming came with them.

Gu Zhuoling's room was suddenly full of people.

Because Shen Xinde needed to be examined, Gu Zhuoling could only move to sit on the other side of the bed.

"Thirty-nine point five," the family doctor said, glancing at the thermometer.

"He's delirious with fever." The family doctor turned to the parents. "The child doesn't have any drug allergies, does he? He's in poor health and can't have an injection, so we can only give him some medicine first and see if it brings the fever down."

"Yes, doctor." Xia Wanqing had rushed over. Hearing that her child was sick had scared her wide awake.

"Haohao got caught in the rain this afternoon." Shen Qiming was standing beside Gu Zhuoling. "I was afraid he'd get sick, so I hurried him off to take a bath."

How did he still get sick?

Shen Qiming looked at the boy before him, who was the same age as his son. He had probably been frightened badly by Haohao's high fever. His eyes were red all around, and his usually expressionless face was now full of regret and self-reproach.

"It's okay. Haohao is frail; you can't be blamed." Shen Qiming crouched down and patted Gu Zhuoling. "You took very good care of Haohao. You were the one who noticed he was sick right away, weren't you?"

Gu Zhuoling pursed his lips and said nothing, only staring at the child on the bed.

Gu Ruize stood beside Gu Zhuoling. Seeing how sad he was made his heart ache a little, and he reached out to pat his son's head. "Go rest in the guest room first."

Gu Zhuoling didn't move, making his position clear.

"Go get some rest. We'll watch him here. Get up early tomorrow and ask Auntie to make some porridge for Xinde, then come keep him company early." Gu Ruize knew how stubborn Gu Zhuoling could be.

But they couldn't let him stay up all night with the adults. His body wouldn't be able to take it.

Shen Qiming understood that too and joined in persuading him.

In the end, Zhou Jingyi carried him away.

Gu Zhuoling hadn't been carried in a long time. Now, lying in Zhou Jingyi's arms, his mind was in a jumble.

"Will Haohao be better soon?"

"He'll be better as soon as he takes his medicine," Zhou Jingyi reassured him softly. "You rest first. We adults will be on duty tonight, and you can come on duty tomorrow morning, all right? You'll be in charge of watching Xinde."

"Is Haohao okay now?"

Gu Zhuoling's nerves had been taut all this time. Now, leaning against his mother, he slowly began to relax.

"The doctor is looking after him."

Zhou Jingyi lay beside Gu Zhuoling and softly soothed him. It took a long time before he finally fell asleep.

Even in his sleep, Gu Zhuoling was still worried, murmuring Shen Xinde's name on and off.