Cheng Yue bent down and gently touched Ji Xu’s eyelashes with his trembling hand.
“Ji Xu…”
The person lying down showed no response.
Cheng Yue lightly patted Ji Xu’s face again. “Ji Xu… wake up.”
Ji Xu vaguely heard Cheng Yue calling him but struggled to open his eyes without success.
Cheng Yue heard his own rapid breathing and saw his uncontrollably shaking hands.
He pinched his thigh hard to force himself to calm down quickly.
Then he hurriedly called for emergency help and went to the bathroom to get a towel soaked in warm water to place on Ji Xu’s forehead.
Next, he searched the entire house for the medicine cabinet, tripping over a chair in his haste and falling, but immediately got up again.
Cheng Yue eventually found some alcohol and carefully used gauze soaked in it to wipe Ji Xu’s neck, chest, limbs, and palms and soles, mimicking the methods his mother used on him when he was young.
After changing the towel on Ji Xu’s forehead, Cheng Yue looked at Ji Xu’s increasingly flushed face, his hands nervously clenched into fists. He was about to call and hurry the ambulance but feared that answering the phone might delay help.
While pacing around the bedroom, the door was finally knocked on.
Confirming that it was medical personnel outside, Cheng Yue quickly opened the door and, together with them, helped lift Ji Xu into the ambulance.
On the way to the hospital, Cheng Yue also took the time to call Tang Jing.
At the hospital, he was overwhelmed, only knowing to stay by Ji Xu’s side, paying whatever needed to be paid and signing whatever needed to be signed.
When the doctor finished examining Ji Xu and he was taken to the ward for an IV drip, Cheng Yue finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He had just sat down beside the bed, barely settling into the chair, when the ward door was suddenly pushed open with a bang.
“Ji Xu! How is he?!” Tang Jing, panting heavily, had traded his usual neat suit for a white tank top and big shorts, though he was still wearing his regular dress shoes, looking mismatched.
“It’s… not too serious…” Cheng Yue spoke with difficulty, feeling as if his throat was blocked.
Tang Jing came over to check Ji Xu’s condition on the bed. Seeing that there wasn’t anything too serious, he was relieved but turned to look at the pale Cheng Yue with concern. “You’re not too scared, are you?”
Cheng Yue shook his head, sitting down and continuing to watch Ji Xu.
“You…” Tang Jing paused, then sighed, giving Cheng Yue’s shoulder a firm pat. “It’s okay, your Uncle Tang will take care of them.”
Cheng Yue said nothing.
“Your voice sounds awful,” Tang Jing remembered how Cheng Yue’s voice had sounded earlier. “You should see a doctor.”
Cheng Yue glanced at him, his hand still holding Ji Xu’s, unmoving.
Tang Jing, understanding that Cheng Yue was worried, said no more. He went outside to ask the attending doctor about Ji Xu’s condition and then returned to the ward to accompany Cheng Yue.
Tang Jing stayed until midnight. Since there was no bed for him, he let Cheng Yue rest properly and finally went home.
The next morning, Tang Jing rushed over, bringing a thermos of hot water, towels, toothbrushes, and other daily necessities, placing them on the bedside table. He also set down the breakfast he had bought in front of Cheng Yue. After wiping his hair, he looked at Ji Xu, still unconscious on the bed, and his brows furrowed. “Still not awake? Has he woken up at all?”
Cheng Yue tightened his grip on Ji Xu’s hand when he heard this question.
“Damn it…” Tang Jing looked at Cheng Yue’s pale face and the dark circles under his eyes and couldn’t help but curse. “I’ll go ask the doctor. Why isn’t he waking up from the fever? Don’t worry.”
Tang Jing found Ji Xu’s primary doctor and hurriedly inquired about Ji Xu’s persistent unconsciousness.
“The knife that injured the patient’s hand wasn’t clean, containing a lot of bacteria and rust,” the doctor adjusted his glasses. “The high fever is a normal response, but if the fever persists and the patient remains unconscious, it might…”
Tang Jing’s face darkened as he listened to the doctor, and he barely managed a strained smile when he returned to the hallway.
When Cheng Yue heard the door open, he quickly turned his head.
“That…” Tang Jing looked at Cheng Yue’s expression, choosing his words carefully. “The doctor said this is a normal reaction. Once the fever goes down, everything will be fine.”
Cheng Yue stared at him for a moment, then reluctantly nodded.
Tang Jing patted him on the back, noticing the neatly made bed in the other room. He was surprised and asked, “Did you stay up all night?”
Cheng Yue seemed not to have heard and continued to stare at Ji Xu.
“That’s not right. You need to sleep. I’ll stay here with Ji Xu. You should eat breakfast and get some rest.” Tang Jing took out the porridge and buns from the plastic bag and handed them to Cheng Yue.
Cheng Yue said nothing.
“Have some water, at least.” Tang Jing, with no other choice, handed him a bottle of mineral water.
Cheng Yue finally looked up, took the water, drank a few sips, wiped his mouth, and then took Ji Xu’s hand again.
“Hey…” Tang Jing sighed heavily, sitting beside Cheng Yue while contacting people at the company, and kept watch over the two.
At noon, when Tang Jing returned from buying lunch, he saw several men surrounding the ward and Cheng Yue in the middle of it. Anxious, he pushed through with his plump belly, blocking Cheng Yue and shouting, “What’s going on here! What’s going on!”
“Hello, we are…”
“No matter who you are, you can’t block someone’s ward like this!” Tang Jing yelled.
“Sorry, we are…”
“I don’t care who you are…” Tang Jing didn’t finish his sentence before he felt Cheng Yue poke him in the back. He quickly turned around. “What’s wrong? Don’t be afraid.”
Cheng Yue frowned, opened his mouth but didn’t make a sound.
He hesitated, cleared his throat, and managed to say, “Police…”
“What about the police? Can the police just…” Tang Jing started to respond but was caught off guard. His smile immediately returned. “Oh, I see. You’re police officers! Well, the comrades from the bureau didn’t come. I’m friends with them.”
“He’s dealing with things at the bureau.” The leading police officer smiled as well. “We’re here today to ask the victims if they saw the suspect’s appearance clearly. We’ve reviewed all the surveillance footage and found that the suspect was very cunning, avoiding all blind spots and disguising his face.”
“Appearance?” Tang Jing was stunned, turning to Cheng Yue. “Did you see clearly?”
“It’s likely not clear. The suspect was wearing a mask. We mainly want the victims to describe the criminal’s main features, such as visible eyes and any distinctive marks,” the leading officer said, and a man with a piece of paper and a pen walked up behind him.
“I’ll ask, you answer.” The man with the paper and pen said, and Cheng Yue took the paper and pen from him.
“Hey!” The man called out, reaching to stop Cheng Yue, but was held back by the leading officer.
“Wait a minute,” the leading officer instructed, watching as Cheng Yue began drawing on the paper.
Tang Jing watched the situation in a daze for a while, leaning over to look at the increasingly detailed portrait Cheng Yue was drawing on the paper. It suddenly struck him that Cheng Yue could draw.
However… being able to draw is one thing, but drawing a whole face and full-body image with a mask on is something else entirely…
Tang Jing sighed as he watched, wondering how someone so good-looking, young, and talented could end up with Ji Xu.
In the end, the leading police officer and the man with the paper and pen were both stunned when they received a full-body drawing and a clear portrait from Cheng Yue.
The man with the paper and pen examined it for a few minutes before seriously nodding and confirming with the leading officer.
“This kid is impressive. Have you considered attending a police academy?” The leading officer said, marveling at the drawing.
Cheng Yue, seemingly not hearing, sat back down beside the bed.
“Alright, thanks for your cooperation. We’ll be leaving now,” the leading officer said with a smile, not taking it to heart. He and Tang Jing exchanged a few more words outside the ward before leaving with his team.
Cheng Yue stayed by Ji Xu’s side until late afternoon, almost evening. Tang Jing was getting anxious, worried that Cheng Yue was overdoing it and would exhaust himself.
Finally, when Tang Jing was determined to drag Cheng Yue to sleep, Cheng Yue suddenly stood up from beside the bed.
Tang Jing quickly went over to see what was happening.
Ji Xu had woken up.
Ji Xu immediately noticed Cheng Yue’s extremely poor condition and said in a hoarse voice, “I’m fine, don’t worry.”
Hearing his voice, Cheng Yue’s eyes immediately turned red, and he nodded.
“Oh, you’re awake?” Tang Jing came over and smiled.
“The situation…” Ji Xu began to speak, but Tang Jing, understanding, continued for him.
“The situation is going smoothly. We’re just waiting for you to recover.” Tang Jing glared at him. “You’ve slept long enough; hurry up and get up. Cheng Yue has been watching over you for two days.”
Ji Xu, feeling weak, managed a faint smile and slowly reached up to touch Cheng Yue’s face. “You’ve worked hard. You must sleep, understand? Be obedient…”
Cheng Yue held his hand, nodding each time Ji Xu spoke.
Ji Xu quickly fell back to sleep after speaking a few words, but just waking up was enough to reassure Cheng Yue and Tang Jing.
When the doctor came for an examination later, he said that as long as Ji Xu was awake, there was really nothing serious.
Watching Ji Xu close his eyes again, Cheng Yue’s long-held anxiety slowly eased, and he slumped against the edge of the bed and fell asleep.
Tang Jing, seeing that Cheng Yue was asleep, finally felt relieved. After getting Cheng Yue onto the bed, he went to find the doctor to inquire about the situation.
After the doctor came and confirmed that Ji Xu was fine, Tang Jing happily went home.
The first to notice something wrong with Cheng Yue was Tang Jing.
The next morning, after bringing breakfast, he observed Cheng Yue eating in silence and then glanced at Ji Xu, who still hadn’t woken up. He joked, “Ji Xu must be taking advantage of the opportunity. If he doesn’t wake up after seven or eight days, it would be a problem for me.”
Cheng Yue ate the buns without responding.
“By the way… the case is basically settled. We’re just waiting for Ji Xu to wake up.” Tang Jing smiled. “This time, Ji Xu really needs to be moved to the prison.”
Cheng Yue looked at him, smiled faintly, and drank some soy milk.
Tang Jing, while smiling, suddenly realized that Cheng Yue hadn’t spoken a single word in the past few days, not even when Ji Xu woke up yesterday.
Tang Jing was startled by this thought, though he maintained his composure. Carefully choosing his words, he said, “Could you talk with me for a bit?”
Cheng Yue stiffened, turned to look at him, but remained silent.
“Please say something…” Tang Jing was frightened, gently shaking Cheng Yue’s shoulders with a trembling voice. “Is your throat not feeling well?”
Cheng Yue swallowed the bun, looked at him with a furrowed brow, and opened his mouth to say something.
Tang Jing closed his eyes, feeling dejected, and then slapped himself on the head.
Cheng Yue was startled and quickly grabbed his hand, speaking to him.
But no sound was heard in the ward.
Tang Jing stared at Cheng Yue, whose mouth was moving without any sound, his eyes wide and cold sweat breaking out.
Cheng Yue couldn’t speak.
