Mei, I Absolutely Won't Let Go

At this thought, she spoke.

"Actually, I haven't known Xu Qi for very long either, but I do know a bit about his past. Doctor Su, what do you think of a name like 'Xu Qi'?"

"Think?" Su tilted his head and shook it. "I don't know."

"It sounds like a girl's name."

Su froze, then burst out laughing, clapping his hands. Indeed, it did.

"How should I put it? Maybe because people often said that to him back when he was a student, Xu Qi really hated anyone saying his name sounded like a girl's."

"Mm, I can understand that."

"He had a coworker at his workplace. I think his name was—Li Fucong. The two of them were always on bad terms because of that."

At that, Mei cleared her throat.

"Xu Qi? That sounds like a woman's name. So he's actually a man..."

"What's wrong with Xu Qi being a man's name? I'm a man!"

Seeing Mei change her voice and deliberately imitate the scene, Su couldn't help his shoulders shaking as he laughed with extreme restraint.

"Ah?~~ So Xu Qi had such a cute side..."

Hearing the sudden voice beside her, Mei jumped. When she turned around, she discovered that Elysia had somehow already sat down beside her.

Beside Elysia, everyone from the Golden Courtyard was clearly holding back their laughter as they watched Mei's performance.

"You... When did you all get here?"

"Probably when Mei started talking about Xu Qi's past," the squint-eyed Su said, unable to resist teasing her.

"What!? Why didn't you tell me, Doctor Su?"

"Because it was interesting."

"Ah!... Don't say I was the one who told you!"

"Hahahaha!"

Mei, I absolutely won't let you go

"Xu Qi?~~ We came to see you!"

A voice as sweet as a skylark came from outside the door. There was no need to see the person to know who had arrived... Supervisor Xia had only just left, and this group had already come. Did I look like someone who couldn't stand being alone?

Elysia walked to the bedside and couldn't help reaching out to rub Xu Qi's head.

"What are you doing?"

"Worrying that your brain might be broken... Strange, it feels normal."

"Doctor, is it really all right for your hospital to let mentally ill patients run wild like this?"

Elysia's fist landed lightly against Xu Qi's chest. Su couldn't help laughing bitterly. Don't drag me into your bickering...

"Waaah!! Boss!!"

A huge cat suddenly squeezed out from among the people of the Golden Courtyard. With a sobbing voice that was obviously fake, she pounced toward the head of the bed and wailed mournfully.

"Wuwu! Boss!! Why did you lose hope like this?"

"Don't make it sound as if I tried to kill myself."

"Uh..." Neko stopped crying and raised her head. Her delicate, adorable face immediately lifted Xu Qi's mood. She wiped away nonexistent tears and tilted her head in thought.

"Is there a difference?"

"Fine, I know what you mean. Now! Right this instant! Get lost!"

"But speaking of which, Xu Qi..." Wearing the magic hat she seemed never to take off no matter where she went, Vil-V plopped herself down at the head of the bed and stared at Xu Qi with an indescribable look.

"You only put on a standard Exoskeleton Armor and dared to go stop a car... Do you know that if you'd arrived at the hospital even a little later, you'd have died?"

Xu Qi looked around at everyone from the Golden Courtyard. To one degree or another, concern and reproach filled every pair of eyes fixed on him.

Looking at their eyes, he could almost hear them saying the same thing: Xu Qi, you really don't take your own life seriously enough.

"At the very least..." Kevin folded his arms across his chest. "Wait until you can wear V2V."

Mobius's expression changed dramatically!

"Ke... Kevin, what are you talking about? What V2V?"

Vil-V also twitched at the corner of her mouth and tried to change the subject.

"Ri... right... V2V? What's that? Is it a nickname you gave me? When did that happen? I'm going to be upset, you know..."

Everyone stared at Mobius and Vil-V with strange looks.

Could you two look any more guilty?

"Don't worry, Boss Kevin." Xu Qi exhaled deeply. "I'm not completely reckless. It's just..."

"I understand." Yae nodded. "No matter what, it was still his own project. Even if someone else had snatched it away, he had completed ninety percent of the work himself. Of course he wouldn't want anything to happen to it."

As expected, Yae, who had once been a project supervisor, understood him best.

"But Xu Qi." Yae's expression turned solemn. "I still have to say this: in this world, nothing is more important than your own life."

I'm getting lectured by Sister Yae again...

Xu Qi nodded humbly.

In the Golden Courtyard, aside from Eden, who was still abroad, the people Xu Qi respected most were Kevin, Yae, and the doctors.

"Rest and recover." By the windowsill, Kalpas looked out the window, seemingly lost in thought.

"Don't do anything stupid."

"Mm-hmm! Brother Jie is right!" Pardofelis nodded repeatedly beside the bed. "Boss, if you weren't around, no one would go stock up with me anymore..."

You call that stocking up?

"Xu Qi, may the rest of your life be free of recklessness." Aponia clasped her hands together and prayed.

Little Griseo beside her imitated her as well. "May Brother Xu Qi never be reckless again."

"..."

"Come try the medicine once you're healed."

"Right, right, right! And don't forget my grand magic show at noon!"

"Brother Xu Qi, when a person dies, everything ends. To everyone in the Golden Courtyard, you are far from insignificant."

"I don't want to see you on the operating table again, Xu Qi."

"That's right, Xu Qi." Elysia slowly stepped forward. For once, there was no playfulness on her face, only solemnity. "You're our family, you know?"

His eyes grew slightly wet... The warmth in his heart was impossible to describe.

Xu Qi turned his head away, seemingly unwilling to let everyone see him cry.

But how could that escape the eyes of everyone in the Golden Courtyard? They all smiled without saying anything. After all, it was rare to see Xu Qi like this...

"Oh, right! I almost forgot!~~" Alysia pulled a phone from her bosom. On the screen was Eden, who was still at the hotel.

"Ah! Sister Eden?"

Without even having time to deal with his reddened, moist eyes, Xu Qi exclaimed, "You're there too..."

"Xu Qi, you heard what everyone said, didn't you?"

"...Mm. I've taken it to heart."

On the phone, Eden smiled. "Then I won't say much more. Xu Qi, I hope that the next time I return home, I'll see all fourteen of us reunited together."

"Don't worry, Sister Eden. I won't do anything foolish again."

"All right, all right!~~" Alysia put away the phone with a bright smile. "Everyone, cheer up~~ At least nothing serious happened to Xu Qi, right? And judging by how quickly he's healing, he should be discharged before long."

"Mm, I agree with that." Su nodded from the side. "Xu Qi's recovery ability is truly among the most exaggerated I've ever seen."

"Don't make me sound like I'm not human..."

"What? You don't think that after testing medicine for me for so long, you can really count as human?"

"Don't make it sound so terrifying, Professor!"

"Hahahaha!"

At last, long-missed laughter filled the hospital room.

In the corridor outside, Mei held Xu Qi's lunch in her hands and leaned against the doorway, her eyes filled with relief.

It's just like he's surrounded by family, Xu Qi...

······

Everyone from the Golden Courtyard left that afternoon.

After all, they each had work or school to attend, and with Mei there, everyone was truly at ease.

As Kevin put it: "Mei? Mm, with her around, we probably don't need to worry about anything."

Indeed, she always noticed every little detail, and... most of the time, Xu Qi only needed to give her a look for her to understand him completely.

No one would ever be willing to let go of a girl like that.

Xu Qi was no exception.

"Mei."

"Mm?"

"I don't think it's good to keep taking up all your time like this. I can basically get out of bed by myself now. Once I'm better in a few days, you should go back to school and attend your classes."

Mei's hand stopped in the middle of peeling the apple.

"My final exams are in a few days, and you're telling me this now?"

"Uh..." Xu Qi scratched his head. She has a point.

Mei set aside what she was doing, stood up, and gently placed a hand against Xu Qi's cheek. "If you really want what's best for me, then let me stay with you."

I'm doomed... I've completely fallen into Mei's tenderness...

"But speaking of which..."

Mei paid no attention to Xu Qi's gaze. After all, the VIP room held only the two of them. She stretched, displaying her graceful figure before him, nearly making his eyes pop out.

"I really do have to return to school in a few days. I'll take the exam, then we'll see."

"Can you pass?"

"Pass? What do you think I've been doing whenever I wasn't taking care of you?" Mei walked to the small table in the room, picked up a workbook, and waved it at Xu Qi.

"It's not a question of whether I can pass. It's a question of whether I'll get full marks."

She was just as confident as Xu Qi had been back in university.

Xu Qi smiled and turned to look out the window.

His conversation with Supervisor Xia that morning had already been cast aside. No matter what, he had to recover from his injuries first. Besides, there were still some matters that had to be put on the agenda.

Xu Qi looked at Mei. He had to keep this girl by his side, because he had finally realized... just how much he liked Mei.

From now on, Mei was my prey

A week had passed since the surgery, and the nurses at the hospital were all amazed by Xu Qi's postoperative recovery.

They had never seen anyone recover so quickly after suffering such severe external injuries. Xu Qi could now even walk without anyone supporting him.

The word "miracle" was not enough to describe what had happened to Xu Qi.

After his stitches were removed that morning, Mei finished her exam in the afternoon and came to the hospital. She happened to see Xu Qi leaning in the corridor, chatting with a girl.