Director Shi stayed in the hospital ward until the afternoon before leaving, as there were matters to attend to at the factory. Shi Yang’s mother went to see him off and turned back to instruct Zhao ii, "I’ll go buy so food in a bit and co back. ii, you take good care of your Brother Yangyang here. If anything happens, go outside and call a nurse, okay?"
Zhao ii nodded in agreent. After Shi Yang’s mother left, she closed the ward door and ran back to the bedside. Her eyes darted around mischievously as she stared at her Brother Yangyang.
Shi Yang looked at her and asked with amusent, "Why are you staring at like that?"
Zhao ii moved closer, "Brother Yangyang, earlier your mom said your ribs are cracked. What does that an? Does it an your ribs are broken?"
Shi Yang: "Pfft... Ouch!....
Shi Yang frowned, staying silent because he was in pain. The laughter had jolted his ribs, and it was agonizingly painful.
His rib fracture wasn’t severe, but he had really taken a few punches. He couldn’t move comfortably, and it was only when he heard his mother complain that he realized he was bruised over a large area. No wonder every slight movent hurt so much.
Shi Yang waited for the pain to subside before speaking. His chest felt weak due to his condition, and his voice was soft with a slightly hoarse tone, "You’re the one who looks like ribs."
Zhao ii’s eyes twinkled with a smile, narrowing into slits, and her mouth revealed two uneven rows of small chipped teeth.
Shi Yang looked at her two crooked front teeth and calculated that by the next New Year, they should grow pretty evenly.
Shi Yang couldn’t lift his arm, so he could only look. When he saw the bruise on Zhao ii’s face, his heart ached, and his expression slowly darkened. He scolded her coldly, "Zhao ii, why don’t you behave?"
Zhao ii was laughing, but she stopped when she heard this, "I wasn’t disobedient, was I?"
Shi Yang tried to control his anger, afraid that he might shout and aggravate his wound, "Didn’t I tell you to wait for in the stationery store? Didn’t you agree? Why did you run off?"
Zhao ii was taken aback by the reprimand and quickly explained, "I finished picking the erasers, and you weren’t back, so I went to look for you."
Shi Yang was angry, but his voice was feeble, "Did I ask you to look for ? Didn’t I say to wait there for !"
Zhao ii bit her lower lip, her eyes darting around uneasily, "I just wanted to find you!"
Shi Yang exploded, coughing twice in anger before cursing, "You’re such a troublemaker! Why did you rush when Brother Chaozi was fighting? Why do you keep ddling? You’re always involved in everything!"
Even now, when Shi Yang thought about seeing Zhao ii getting slapped and sent flying, his heart twisted painfully. It brought tears to his eyes, and he cursed, "And yesterday, how dare you bite soone! Are you a dog or sothing? Aren’t you afraid he might slap you to death?"
Zhao ii saw Shi Yang was genuinely angry and quickly ingratiated herself, hurrying to placate him, "He was going to hit you! He dared to hit you in my presence! If I were a dog, I would’ve bitten him to death!"
"Zhao ii!" Shi Yang shouted, feeling the wound on his ribs crack open and his face turn pale from the pain.
Zhao ii was frightened. For the first ti in her life, Shi Yang was this mad at her, not faking anger like usual but truly angry and cursing.
Shi Yang was both in pain and angry, a rare flash of agitation in his eyes. His suppressed anger hadn’t dissipated, and he was angry enough to want to swear.
Shi Yang waited for the pain to subside, glaring at Zhao ii, "Do you think you can bite soone to death? Look at the bruise on your face! You need to protect yourself first if you want to protect others! If you hadn’t ddled recklessly, would Chaozi have started a fight? The guy didn’t even know Chaozi! This whole thing happened because of you, do you understand?"
Zhao ii stared at him, at a loss, her expression turning suddenly dejected. She slowly lowered her head, saying nothing.
Shi Yang: "Do you realize your mistake?"
Zhao ii’s thin eyelids shifted sideways, her stubbornness rising, "I dragged Brother Chaozi into this, so that’s my fault, but protecting you wasn’t wrong!"
Zhao ii pouted, her eyes gradually filling with tears, feeling both wronged and sad. She had never been scolded like this, not even when her mother yelled at her, it was always mixed with indulgent scolding that she never took to heart.
But now the one scolding her was Shi Yang, her Brother Yangyang, the person she liked, relied on, and trusted the most. Being reprimanded and scolded by him was unbearable, and her stubborn streak felt her pride had been hurt.
Zhao ii looked at Shi Yang, her lips pressed tightly, tears falling, looking pitiful.
Shi Yang glared at her, a faint blush appearing on his pale face, furious and red in the face.
The two stared at each other, their dark pupils clearly reflecting each other’s image.
After so ti, Zhao ii’s eyes softened first. She cheekily leaned forward, ignoring whether Shi Yang agreed, and pecked him on the face.
Shi Yang’s eyes already had a hint of laughter, but he tried to keep a straight face, "What are you doing? Stop kissing !"
Zhao ii bit her lip, "Hmph!" She leaned forward and pecked him again, "I’ll kiss if I want to!"
Shi Yang was helpless, his mouth slowly curving into a pleasant arc, "You’re all dirty, getting my face full of saliva."
Zhao ii asked with a quiver in her voice, "Will you still be good to in the future?"
Shi Yang suddenly laughed, unable to hold it back, giving Zhao ii a sideways glance. His eyes and brows carried a hint of charm, but paired with his swollen face made him look ridiculous.
Zhao ii didn’t find it funny, but when she saw Shi Yang laugh, she imdiately breathed a sigh of relief and reached out to touch Shi Yang’s neck, "Brother Yangyang! Can I co up and lie with you?"
Shi Yang snorted, "Now you want to cling to ?"
Zhao ii saw the smile in Shi Yang’s eyes, feeling reassured, and instantly returned to her clingy nature, moving forward, "I’m tired of standing. I want to lie down for a while. Let co up?"
Shi Yang pursed his lips and smiled, "If you want to co up, co on, but don’t press on my wound."
Zhao ii grinned, quickly removed her shoes, and turned to climb onto the hospital bed, being careful not to bump into Shi Yang, curling up beside him on her side.
Once Zhao ii lay down, she reached over to lift Shi Yang’s shirt. His chest had a layer of lean muscles, developed from playing basketball and swimming regularly. She looked at the white bandage on his chest, biting her lip, and asked, "Does it hurt a lot?"
Shi Yang didn’t pretend to be strong in front of Zhao ii and honestly nodded, "It hurts quite a bit. Talking, laughing, basically any movent hurts."
Zhao ii’s eyes were red, "When you were getting hit, I was scared to death. I saw you being carried away all bloody and wanted to chase after you, but the teacher stopped , holding on firmly. I was so anxious."
Shi Yang suddenly laughed, his pretty double eyelid flipping as he asked, "Were you that afraid of getting hurt?"
Zhao ii nodded earnestly, reaching out to cover her chest, "It scared right here! It hurt so much!"
Shi Yang grew up by his mother’s side, having only ever been close with Qu Chaozong besides her. He had no siblings or close relatives, and his near-single-parent upbringing forced him to mature quickly and beco independent. He had to learn to take care of himself while also caring for his mother.
Throughout his life, no one had ever liked him purely and relied on him as Zhao ii did. She was willing to protect him at all costs, yet occasionally needed his care, protection, and tenderness.
Shi Yang’s mouth slowly curved into a smile as he watched Zhao ii’s hand covering her chest. His heart felt warm, and he tilted his head, focusing on Zhao ii, and said gently, "I won’t behave like this again. I’ll protect myself first before protecting you."
Despite her young age, Zhao ii was very perceptive, skilled at reading adults’ thoughts. Seeing Shi Yang’s softened gaze, she knew this matter had been resolved completely, and she couldn’t help but chuckle foolishly, imnsely relieved and happy.
Watching her laugh, Shi Yang couldn’t help but smile, bending his brows and lightly scolding, "You little fool!"
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