My Past Self

"Your body is fine for now, just a little out of shape," the doctor said to Zhao Yu, glancing at the physical examination report.

"Thank you, Doctor. I'll be more mindful in the future," Zhao Yu nodded and left the medical center with the report.

"Sigh~ I didn't expect Lord Yu to be a homebody who lacks exercise too~" Yuuka's teasing voice chimed in.

She had an unusually free day with no classes, so she had been video calling Zhao Yu like this.

"I've just been a bit lazy lately. I'll definitely be back in peak condition soon," Zhao Yu replied stubbornly.

"Oh~ really? Then you should work hard, Lord Yu who lacks exercise~" Yuuka said, moving her mouth closer to the microphone as if whispering to Zhao Yu.

"Otherwise, you won't be able to protect me~"

BOOM! The words struck Zhao Yu like lightning, leaving his mind in a mess.

Yuuka's words echoed in his ears, her upward-turning tone like a fox's tail, lightly tickling his heart. His earlobes inadvertently turned red.

"Don't, don't worry! I'll start exercising properly as soon as I get back today. With my physique, it'll definitely be fine!"

With her saying that, what reason did he have not to exercise? A real man never says no!

"Pfft, Lord Yu is really so cute!" Yuuka couldn't help but laugh. Her eyes sparkled like agate.

"Huh? Hey! Are you messing with me?" Zhao Yu finally realized he had been teased by Yuuka, and a wave of shame washed over him.

No, how could I be so easily manipulated by Yuuka? Recalling his confident declaration just now, Zhao Yu felt like he had created a piece of black history.

"How could I? I'm being serious~" Yuuka blinked her eyes and said with an innocent expression.

"Where did you learn these tricks?" Zhao Yu grumbled.

"Well~" Yuuka glanced at the shojo manga and child psychology books beside her.

"It's a secret~"

"You've changed. I remember you weren't like this before..." Zhao Yu didn't know how to describe it. Saying Yuuka used to be dumb and was now smart felt a bit rude.

"Hehe, this is all your fault, Lord Yu..." Yuuka said.

"Huh? How is it my fault again?" Zhao Yu looked confused.

"Because you always indulge me like this," Yuuka said seriously.

"...I'm not talking to you anymore. I'm going downstairs." Zhao Yu, stiffening his body, quickly headed downstairs.

After Yuuka said that, he even forgot to take the elevator and walked down the stairs to the first floor.

"Are you shy?"

"No!"

"Lord Yu is so easy to read~"

Damn it! So that's how we're playing, huh? Let me think about how to get back at you later! Zhao Yu fell silent, mentally plotting how to make Yuuka feel the same way he did now.

"Ms. Li, if your child doesn't have surgery, their condition might worsen."

A conversation suddenly drifted from the stairwell, making Zhao Yu stop in his tracks.

He looked down along the handrail and saw a woman, looking somewhat haggard, talking face-to-face with a doctor.

"Can you give me a little more time?" the woman's voice was weary.

"I'm sorry, I've already tried my best to get you more time. If the surgery isn't done now, there's a high possibility..." The doctor didn't finish, but the meaning was clear.

Another unfortunate soul... Zhao Yu looked at their faces with a hint of complexity.

He rarely came to the hospital after his father passed away. He always saw partings and reunions here, and Zhao Yu instinctively resisted such things.

"How about this, I'll go talk to the director again, but I still hope you can agree to the surgery as soon as possible, otherwise..." The doctor sighed and turned to leave.

The woman stood stunned for a moment, then leaned against the wall and cried silently. After a while, she took out her phone and started making calls.

"Brother Wang, how have you been lately? Can you..."

"Old Li..."

"Auntie..."

Zhao Yu stood by the stairs, listening to her make one desperate call after another. Yuuka, though not understanding most of it, keenly sensed Zhao Yu's unease and remained silent.

Call after call was met with her growing despair. After being rejected one last time, she walked towards the ward like a zombie.

Zhao Yu hesitated for a moment, then followed the woman's steps into the corridor filled with the smell of disinfectant.

Only when he saw the woman arrive beside a child did he stop outside the hospital room, quietly observing the scene inside.

"Mommy, will I get better? I really want to go back and see my classmates..."

A little boy lay on the hospital bed, looking weak and receiving an IV drip. His eyes gazed at his mother with a naive look.

The woman, however, was completely different from before. A gentle smile graced her face as she reached out and stroked the boy's head.

"It's okay, Tongtong, be good. In a few more days, you can go back to school. Look what Mom brought you today?"

As she spoke, the woman took a Kamen Rider figurine out of her bag.

"It's Kamen Rider!" The boy's eyes lit up.

"This is your reward for getting first place. When Mom's not around, let it keep you company, okay?" the woman said.

"Where is Mom going?" the boy asked, a little uneasy.

"Mom's just going to take care of some company matters. She'll be back soon..." The woman turned her head, a complex expression on her face.

Seeing this, Zhao Yu couldn't bear to watch any longer. He looked up at the room number on the hospital door, then turned and left.

"Lord Yu, what's wrong?" Yuuka finally spoke up cautiously.

"It's nothing. I just saw something that reminded me of the past," Zhao Yu said.

When his dad was sick, his mom had also borrowed money everywhere, but in the end, she couldn't save him.

In this world, no one understood the weight of a hundred thousand yuan better than Zhao Yu. That's why, when he earned his first sum, he unhesitatingly sent a hundred thousand to his mom.

Zhao Yu remembered telling Yuuka that in this world, it wasn't just children who needed heroes; adults did too...

When he was little, a hero hadn't appeared. His mom became his hero, raising him silently. Now, perhaps it was time for him to become a hero.

Meanwhile, after comforting the boy, the woman finally borrowed ten thousand yuan from a colleague and hurried to the payment counter.

"Your surgery fee? It's already been paid." The nurse at the counter had a strange look on her face.

"Paid? It's just me and my son here. We don't have any other relatives," the woman was stunned.

"Let me see the payment slip. There's a signature on it," the nurse said, picking up the slip and frowning.

"What's wrong, nurse?" the woman asked.

"See for yourself..." the nurse handed the payment slip to the woman.

On the spot where a signature should have been, a small line of text was written.

A passing Kamen Rider.

At the same time, Zhao Yu had already ended his video call with Yuuka. He had returned home and was on the phone with his mom.

"Son, did you do something bad?" his mom's worried voice came through.

Hearing his mom's voice, Zhao Yu calmly began to explain what had happened recently.

"Mom, you don't have to worry about money anymore. This is the first hundred thousand, and there will be many more to come."

"You... Son, are you still thinking about your dad?" his mom sighed.

"No, it's just... I wish I had money sooner," Zhao Yu's voice choked up.

Sometimes, people have regrets that can never be mended. Precisely because of this, he didn't want to see others suffer the same fate.

Although his actions today were a bit impulsive, Zhao Yu didn't feel like he was saving that little boy.

He was only saving the mother who couldn't afford the surgery fee back then, and his powerless younger self who could only watch his mother cry silently.