"Anxin Private Hospital. I don't know the details. I followed them downstairs, then came back."
"All right, thanks."
With that, Jiang Ye headed outside.
No wonder he hadn't gotten up... or replied to my messages. I should have thought of it sooner...
As Jiang Ye drove, he berated himself for not knocking on the door that morning. Could he have noticed the other man was unwell sooner if he had...?
It was nearly three in the afternoon when Jiang Ye reached the hospital.
In the hospital room, Wen He had unknowingly drifted back to sleep under the effects of the medication. Ji Chi turned off the projector, lowered the hospital bed, and walked out of the room with small steps.
Even his breathing had inexplicably quieted inside the room. Now that he was outside, he took great gulps of air.
Jiang Ye spotted Ji Chi standing outside the room from a distance and walked toward him, carrying fruit.
Just as he was about to push the door open, Ji Chi put out an arm to stop him.
"He's already asleep. What are you doing here?"
His tone was decidedly hostile.
But Jiang Ye didn't care. Through the glass in the door, he looked at Wen He, who was curled up beneath the covers, sleeping peacefully, and lowered his voice. "I came to see him."
Ji Chi stepped forward, blocking him with his whole body. "You've seen him now, haven't you? You can leave, right?"
Jiang Ye took a step back and raised a hand to adjust his glasses, meeting Ji Chi's disdainful gaze.
"Ji Chi, this is fair competition. He doesn't belong to you alone." His unspoken meaning was, What right do you have to stop me from going in?
Ji Chi chuckled. He lowered his head and brought his face close to Jiang Ye's ear, his tone practically overflowing with contempt. "You want to talk fairness with me? Are you worthy?"
Then he swiftly pulled away, as though the other man were something filthy.
Jiang Ye closed his eyes, his fingers tightening around the plastic bag, the smile on his lips unchanged. "You don't get to decide. Wen He does."
Ji Chi spoke impatiently. "Why do you think he has a fever? What right do you have to come here?"
Jiang Ye knew the fever was very likely caused by the sea breeze last night, but... how did Ji Chi know? Remembering yesterday's phone call, everything seemed to become clear.
"You made that call on purpose?"
Ji Chi raised an eyebrow and looked at him indifferently without a word, but the provocation on his face said it all.
I did it on purpose. So what?
He raised a hand to stroke his diamond stud, watching the other man's stiff smile. His mood brightened, and the corners of his lips lifted slightly.
"Anyway, as long as I'm here, I'm not letting you in. If you're not afraid of waking him, feel free to make a scene and force your way inside."
Jiang Ye took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the bag of fruit. Just as he was about to speak, the phone in his side pocket rang.
His blanched fingertips gradually regained their color. He placed the fruit on a chair outside the room, still wearing a broad smile.
"In that case, sorry for the trouble, but please take good care of him. I have something to attend to, so I'll be going."
Leaving the fruit behind, he answered the call and hurried away.
The case this time wasn't particularly complicated, but the client was a wealthy man, and he was the defendant.
That made the situation somewhat complicated, and this client was very stupid...
Jiang Ye hated people like that most...
Ji Chi watched his retreating figure and cursed under his breath, "What a piece of work." He carried the fruit the other man had left on the chair to the nurses' station at the front desk and distributed it among them.
After falling ill, Wen He always grew less talkative. Seeing his pale face, Ji Chi gradually lost the desire to tease him.
He fell asleep very quickly, lying on his side beneath the covers, his long eyelashes thick and curled.
Ji Chi quietly watched his profile like that, his gaze gradually softening. He already knew...
He knew the other man had come to find him of his own accord that day...
Little Wooden Head really is Little Wooden Head... He never says anything. He really has turned into a block of wood.
Ji Chi sighed softly. By the moonlight, he did nothing but stare at Wen He's cheeks, as though he could never get enough.
Looks like I'll have to tie him to my side for the rest of his life before I can get my fill...
The more he thought about it, the more he felt that was exactly how it should be. Jiang Ye, Zhou Siyu, that damn dream-it was all fake.
Ji Chi turned over indignantly, putting his back to Wen He. He lowered his head to check the time on his phone. It was already 02:57...
Not the least bit sleepy, he got up again and reached out to touch Wen He's forehead.
The fever hadn't returned... After tucking the covers around him, he adjusted the air conditioner to twenty-six degrees, then lay back down and closed his eyes, ready to sleep.
Wen He slept dreamlessly through the night. Under the effects of the medication, he slept very comfortably, better than on any day in the little house.
Ji Chi was still staring wide-eyed at his phone, scrolling through muted videos.
The bloodshot eyes and his haggard appearance made Wen He wonder whether he had stayed awake all night.
"Ji Chi... Ji Chi," Wen He called softly.
Ji Chi turned his head toward the little figure curled up beneath the covers. Only one night had passed, yet his face seemed to have lost a great deal of flesh, and even his jawline had grown sharp.
"What?"
His voice was still impatient. That was very Ji Chi, but Wen He wasn't frightened, because he knew Ji Chi was a good person.
"Did you sleep?"
Ji Chi turned up his phone's volume, letting the sound from the video play aloud. He looked at Wen He, faint bluish crescents beneath his eyes.
"I slept. What about it?"
Liar.
"Nothing. Just asking whether you slept..." Seeing that he didn't seem particularly inclined to pay him any attention, Wen He guessed he might be in a bad mood, or perhaps he was irritable after staying up all night.
But that was nothing. Anyone would be like that after a poor night's sleep.
Ji Chi looked down at the time on his phone. It was past eight in the morning. "Tsk... hungry?"
Wen He nodded and climbed up from the hospital bed. His body felt warm, and his head was no longer as dizzy as yesterday. It was just... his nose seemed a little blocked, and his voice came out thick and stuffy.
"A little."
A little again. Can't he say anything besides a little?
Ji Chi frowned and got up, turned on the projector, then left the room.
Wen He didn't follow him out. Instead, he turned and went into the bathroom to wash up.
The bathroom in this room seemed especially large. Two disposable toothbrushes sat on the sink, and the clean, bright mirror reflected the bathtub behind him. It looked less like a hospital and more like a hotel.
A luxury hotel, at that.
Wen He gave himself a quick wash, then fiddled with his hair, which was already getting a little greasy. His limp cowlick had collapsed...
Although the air conditioner had been on last night, Wen He hadn't showered for a day. His body felt sticky and very uncomfortable.
Wen He felt like a middle-aged man returning home with a hangover, greasy and dirty, and unable to walk.
His body felt a little weak. After taking care of his daily needs, he flopped back onto the bed. The hospital nurse arrived before Ji Chi did, along with a thermometer.
"Thirty-seven point six. You still have a slight fever. You'll need another bottle of IV medication today. Have you had breakfast?"
The nurse put away the thermometer and asked her routine questions.
"Not yet. I'll eat in a bit."
"Then I'll give you the IV at noon. You'll feel much better with some breakfast in your stomach."
"Okay."