As Bo Xinghang left school, he glanced across the street out of habit. Unsurprisingly, the familiar car was nowhere in sight. Only a few hours had passed since Doctor Ji had sent the message “1,” so he understood why Doctor Ji hadn’t come. Still, he couldn’t help but lower his gaze.
“Hang-ge!”
A heavy slap landed on his back, snapping Bo Xinghang out of his thoughts. He turned to find Xu Yi. “Xu Yi, do you have a death wish?”
Though his tone was calm, the words were enough to make anyone shiver.
Driven by survival instinct, Xu Yi quickly shook his head and explained, “I saw you spacing out and wanted to ask what you thought of my suggestion.”
Suggestion?
Bo Xinghang had been so preoccupied with searching for the car that he hadn’t registered anything Xu Yi had said. However, maintaining his composure, he confidently replied, “Repeat it for me.”
“…” Xu Yi stared at Bo Xinghang for a couple of seconds, seemingly processing what he’d just heard. When it finally clicked, his face filled with grievance. “You weren’t listening to me again!”
The weight behind the word “again” was clear, but Hang-ge was nothing if not Hang-ge. Without missing a beat, he replied, “I was listening.”
Xu Yi: “You weren’t!”
“I was.”
“You…” Xu Yi began, but Bo Xinghang cut him off, growing impatient. “Enough. Just be quiet for a moment.”
Their exchange resembled the playful banter of children, and if they kept going, passersby might think they were out of their minds.
Bo Xinghang glanced at his watch and urged, “If you have something to say, spit it out.”
Xu Yi noticed his actions and asked suspiciously, “Are you in a hurry?”
In a hurry?
Bo Xinghang paused, momentarily confused. Then he realized.
In truth, looking at his watch had been a reflex. He just wanted to get to the office early to wait for Doctor Ji to finish surgery. Every time Doctor Ji was called for an emergency, it happened suddenly and lasted hours. Morning surgeries often extended late into the night, and Bo Xinghang always imagined it must feel lonely, facing such long hours alone.
So when Doctor Ji finally stepped out of the operating room, Bo Xinghang made sure he was always there.
He wasn’t really in a rush; it was just that emergency surgeries ended unpredictably. He worried Doctor Ji might finish early and find the office empty.
But he couldn’t explain this, so he simply said, “Yeah, I’m in a hurry.”
“…Oh.” Xu Yi blinked but didn’t press further. He just nodded and smiled. “Alright, if you’re in a hurry, I won’t keep you.”
With that, Xu Yi headed in the opposite direction, clearly not wanting to intrude.
Bo Xinghang watched him walk away in silence.
Xu Yi wasn’t as carefree as he appeared. Bo Xinghang often called him foolish, yet deep down, he never considered Xu Yi to be an idiot. Perhaps because Xu Yi was a little older, he was more perceptive than his peers.
This wasn’t a big deal. Even if Xu Yi had asked about it, Bo Xinghang could’ve easily brushed it off with an excuse. But Xu Yi didn’t ask anything.
Bo Xinghang wasn’t surprised; he knew Xu Yi well.
It was just a fleeting thought as he watched Xu Yi leave, and he soon dismissed it, paying it no further attention.
He hadn’t expected that his casual remark about “being in a hurry” would turn out to be true.
When he hung up the phone and rushed to the hospital, his mind went blank. He never imagined that the “1” in Doctor Ji’s message referred to his grandmother—the same grandmother who had already been discharged from the hospital.
…How could this happen?
There was no time to dwell on the details. Bo Xinghang sprinted toward the familiar hospital with all the strength he had. At that moment, he was grateful he had taken a cab, which allowed him to get there quickly after the call.
Upon rushing into the hospital, he suddenly felt like a lost child, disoriented and spinning aimlessly in the corridor.
His palms turned pale from the pressure of clenching them too hard, and even his face drained of color. He no longer felt any physical pain; all that remained was a numbness that ran through his entire body.
Minutes passed swiftly, yet they felt agonizingly slow. It wasn’t until Nurse Xiao Meng called his name several times that Bo Xinghang finally turned around.
His expression remained vacant. He stared blankly for a long time before his eyes gradually focused. Eventually, he seemed to snap back to reality. He asked blankly, “Xiao Meng-jie?”
It was a pointless question, but it was enough to make Xiao Meng breathe a sigh of relief.
The situation had unfolded so suddenly that she was afraid the young man might do something rash.
“It’s me.” Thinking of this, she relaxed a little. “There’s no need to worry. Your grandma isn’t seriously injured. She fainted mostly from shock. Considering her age and her past health issues, it’s not surprising.”
“…” Bo Xinghang said nothing.
“Your grandma has a kind heart; she’ll pull through.” Xiao Meng reassured him, patting his shoulder. “And besides, Doctor Ji is here.”
“…”
Doctor Ji.
Bo Xinghang still didn’t respond, and his face showed no emotion. However, his tightly clenched fists gradually loosened. He no longer applied force, but he kept his hands balled up.
Yes, he thought. Doctor Ji is here.
This special “1” displayed in surgery was his grandmother, and his Doctor Ji would save her.
Whether it was trust or something deeper, hearing that Doctor Ji was present helped Bo Xinghang regain his composure.
He and Xiao Meng headed to wait outside his grandmother’s operating room. After passing through the long hallway, Bo Xinghang’s mind began to clear, and he realized something didn’t add up.
His grandmother had been discharged in good health. Why had she suddenly returned, only to faint from shock?
The answer came soon enough.
Xiao Meng explained, “Grandma said she came here for something. But when I went to meet her, I saw her… being struck several times by a mentally unstable man with a cane.”
It was a bizarre situation. Being attacked by a mentally ill patient had never happened at Q University Hospital before.
The hospital wasn’t specialized in neurology, and the psychiatric patients they treated were mostly mild cases—aware of their actions, and they would never attack strangers without reason.
Bo Xinghang frowned as he repeated Xiao Meng’s words, “Mentally unstable… a cane…”
There weren’t many people who fit both descriptions, so he asked, “Do you know the man’s name?”
Seeing that he remained calm, Xiao Meng felt relieved enough to explain further. “I’m not too familiar with the psychiatric patients, but I do remember him a bit.”
“Hmm?” Bo Xinghang raised his eyebrows, looking at her.
Xiao Meng continued, “He had issues with both his legs and his mind, but the only person looking after him was a little girl. With that kind of situation, accidents were bound to happen.”
Bo Xinghang’s frown deepened.
“Not long ago, he sneaked out in the middle of the night. The girl had fallen asleep and didn’t notice. When nearby nurses asked him where he was going, he cheerfully said he was just headed to the restroom. Everything seemed normal. But who could have guessed…”
“Guessed what?”
An inexplicable sense of familiarity surged within him, growing stronger instead of fading. Now desperate to hear the rest, he urged her, “What happened next?”
“Who could have guessed he’d actually snuck out of the hospital and was hobbling toward the middle of the road.”
He wanted to end his life.
The moment Xiao Meng finished her sentence, those words flashed through Bo Xinghang’s mind. It seemed ridiculous; he didn’t know this mentally unstable man, but instinctively he felt it.
Bo Xinghang took a deep breath, searching his memories for any recollection of the man.
Mentally unstable…
Cane…
Suicidal…
Little girl…
Attacked grandmother…
These seemingly unrelated pieces clicked together, pointing to one person.
—Nan Ming.
The same man who had driven his father to suicide, pushed his mother into madness, and shattered his family.
A chilling coldness crept back into Bo Xinghang’s limbs, and his breath grew heavy with anger.
As the realization dawned on him, he suddenly didn’t know how to process it all.
His mother, in her moments of madness, had once told him that Nan Ming was also at Q University Hospital, even asking if he wanted to see him. Now it made sense… Of course, he had seen him before.
The little girl was the one with the phoenix eyes he had met on his first visit to the hospital. And Nan Ming was the man in the wheelchair.
Xiao Meng had mentioned that the incident where Nan Ming tried to end his life had been something Doctor Ji personally intervened in to save him.
Bo Xinghang had spent so much time at the hospital, likely crossing paths with that man more times than he could count, even if unintentionally.
The thought of meeting the man, only to part ways as strangers, felt like a thousand needles stabbing into his chest, making it hard to breathe.
Nurse Xiao Meng quickly noticed something was wrong with him. Her expression grew serious. “What’s wrong?”
Bo Xinghang panted heavily, remaining silent.
“What’s going on?” Nurse Xiao Meng had never seen him like this, and without understanding the situation, she raised her voice slightly, sweating anxiously.
The operating room was silent, the corridors empty. Xiao Meng’s voice echoed sharply through the hall.
Finally, Bo Xinghang’s slightly hoarse voice broke the stillness.
He asked, “What’s that man’s name?”
“…” Xiao Meng was momentarily stunned, not understanding the reason for his reaction, but she still answered, “I think it’s something Ming… I didn’t really pay much attention to his name.”
Something Ming.
There was no need for her to say more. Bo Xinghang already knew the answer.
He used to believe the world was vast, and despite searching with tear-filled eyes, he had never been able to find him. Now, just when he wanted to let go, fate had deliberately brought them together.
Bo Xinghang closed his eyes, trying to steady himself. When he opened them again, the corners of his eyes were tinged with red.
“Xiao Hang, you—”
“It’s nothing,” he replied in a low voice, shaking his head. He stared at the operating room for a few seconds, as if making a decision. “I want to see him.”
“I know you’re upset that he hurt your grandmother, but let’s calm down first. We should wait until she wakes up before—”
“I want to see him now.” Bo Xinghang stood up, his gaze fixed on Xiao Meng. “This is something I need to face.”
Uneasy under his intense stare, Xiao Meng instinctively shrank back. She blinked, considering that anything too extreme wouldn’t be allowed in the hospital, then sighed in resignation. “Alright.”
The words “This is something I need to face” were directed at Xiao Meng, but it felt as if Bo Xinghang was speaking to himself.
She knew that even if she hadn’t agreed, he would have gone on his own.
Never mind. Xiao Meng sighed. At least with her around, things wouldn’t get too out of hand.
