When the old lady brought down the items, Jiang An realized why Gao Chuan had spoken that way earlier. She looked at the box that the old lady forcefully handed to her—the pair of jade bracelets from the period of the Republic of China, glimring translucently. She quickly tried to refuse them.
"Keep them, keep them, here, let Grandma put them on for you." The old lady directly slid the bracelets onto Jiang An’s delicate wrists, happily examined her hand for a while and then said with a smile, "They look really good on you. These were originally ant for my granddaughter-in-law. Now that you and Gao Chuan are married, of course, they should be worn by you."
Faced with the old lady’s pressing kindness, Jiang An had no choice but to silently accept them, thinking of handing them back to Gao Chuan once they returned, since her marriage to Dr. Gao was just a temporary arrangent to fill a role. She turned back and looked at Grandma’s kind face, thinking that such a gentle elder had only limited days left, and couldn’t help but silently lant the unfairness of fate.
Jiang An always got along well with elders, and she had a heartwarming afternoon chatting with the old lady. When Gao Chuan ca down from the study, he saw Jiang An massaging the old lady’s shoulders while making her laugh – the old and the young together presented a harmonious scene.
It wasn’t until Gao Chuan walked into the living room and ntioned leaving that Jiang An reluctantly bid the old lady farewell, with the old lady repeatedly urging her to visit often.
Once they were in the car, Gao Chuan took the driver’s seat and glanced at Jiang An next to him. Her cheeks were fair and delicate, a soft cherry lip sat below her high nose bridge, and her casually draped hair gently brushed her cheeks, making her seem innocent and cute.
He noticed the green hue of the jade bracelet on her wrist but remained silent, trying to find a topic of conversation, "Did you find the old lady a bit annoying?"
Jiang An shook her head at his question, "How could I? Grandma is so adorable. I really enjoyed chatting with her," as she spoke, her eyes curved into a smile and she radiated happiness, "Dr. Gao, is there really no cure for Grandma’s illness?"
Hearing her question, Gao Chuan fell silent for a few seconds, rotating the steering wheel slightly, "She has already completed the second phase of chemotherapy. Now, all we can do is do our human best and leave the rest to fate."
Jiang An lowered her head, picturing the always smiling old lady, and showed a look of loss. After a while, she looked up and said to Gao Chuan, "Dr. Gao, can we co back often to visit grandma?"
Gao Chuan turned to see Jiang An’s sincere face, paused, and then agreed, "Okay."
Gao Chuan dropped her off at her ho at eight in the evening. Despite having registered their marriage that day, they were still preparing to return to their respective hos as if they were single. It wasn’t until Gao Chuan called Jiang An, who was about to get out of the car, that she stopped. She had just unbuckled her seatbelt and hadn’t yet stepped out, when she turned to hear Gao Chuan say, "Pack up your things tonight, I’ll take leave tomorrow to help you move in."
Jiang An: "?"
Before the girl could argue, Gao Chuan started explaining on his own, "The flat I have in the city center is quite spacious, two bedrooms and a living room. You can move in there for the ti being."
Jiang An was still stunned on the spot, with a whirlwind of thoughts in her mind, then she heard Gao Chuan’s calm voice, "Jiang An, we are married now."
Jiang An understood he was reminding her, right, they were married now, and in order to deceive others, it was natural for them to start living together.
"Don’t worry, I won’t do anything to you, you only need to help deal with my parents’ side of things," Gao Chuan’s statent broke through the endless flights of fancy in Jiang An’s mind. She blushed faintly, feeling a bit like ’protesting too much might reveal the truth.’
"Okay." Jiang An opened the car door and fled.
Gao Chuan stared at the girl’s hurrying figure, his tongue touched his cheek, his lips curved up a subtle arc.
The next day at noon, Jiang An packed up the things she needed to move early. She only organized simple clothes and usual daily necessities. Two suitcases piled up in the corner were all her belongings. She had agreed to et Gao Chuan downstairs around one o’clock.
Gao Chuan was driving to et her when he received a call from the hospital midway, saying that a patient under his responsibility had an ergency. The man had to turn back to the hospital and called Jiang An on his way to inform her. The girl on the phone didn’t bla him at all, asking him to focus on his work, "It’s okay, Dr. Gao. I don’t have much stuff, I can move them myself. You do your work!"
Gao Chuan drove the car with the fragile sound of the girl’s voice coming from the Bluetooth earpiece, bell-like. He frowned and said, "Okay, you take a taxi over. I’ll send you the location."
"Okay, Dr. Gao, keep it up!"
The two hung up the phone. Gao Chuan sent his ho location to Jiang An via WeChat and hurried to the hospital.
Jiang An organized her two large suitcases, ordered a Didi, and was already out of breath dragging the heavy suitcases down the stairs by herself. The driver helped her load the suitcases into the car. On the way, heavy rain started pouring outside, the raindrops hitting the car window with a ’ping pong’ sound, disturbing her heart.
Jiang An fell asleep on the road and reached the neighborhood shown by Gao Chuan’s address around three o’clock. The driver helped her move the luggage to the entrance, Jiang An constantly thanking him. She realized she only knew Gao Chuan’s door number and did not have the neighborhood pass, so the security guard stopped her to verify her identity.
Jiang An told the security guard that she was moving in today, but was still rejected, "Miss, we have rules here; you need a card to get in. Call your family!"
Jiang An thought of Gao Chuan, who might be in surgery, and chose not to call; she awkwardly smiled saying, "No worries, I’ll wait for him to co back!"
By the ti Gao Chuan finished dealing with the patient with acute shock, it was evening. The man, exhausted, walked out of the ward, removed his mask, took a few breaths of fresh air, his forehead covered in sweat. After washing his hands and repeatedly explaining post-operative care to the patient’s family, he finally left.
He thought by that ti Jiang An would have moved in, so he wasn’t in a rush but instead stopped by a restaurant near the hospital to pack so wontons, driving back when it was almost dark and the rain hadn’t let up.
Sitting in the car, Gao Chuan saw from afar the girl squatting by the luggage at the neighborhood entrance, probably drenched, her face wet, holding herself and looking down at the ground, until Gao Chuan held a black umbrella over her head, and she slowly looked up at the tall man in front of her, her voice hoarse, "Dr. Gao."
Gao Chuan looked at her helpless state waiting for him, his heart inexplicably tightened, his voice deep, "Why didn’t you go up?"
The girl had been squatting for too long, her legs were numb, and despite several attempts, she couldn’t stand up. Lastly, it was Gao Chuan who extended his hand to pull her up. She held his hand for several seconds before letting go, whispering, "I couldn’t get in without a pass."
Gao Chuan paused, realizing he had forgotten about this situation as he was only focused on going back to sort things out. Moving closer, his gaze fell on the girl’s frail body, his eyes intense, "Why didn’t you call ?"
Jiang An lowered her head, pinched her skirt, and quietly swept the wet strands of hair behind her ears, softly replying, "I didn’t want to disturb your work."
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