Shen Junyu bent down to pick up the things, and as he entered the door, Old Sir Shen glanced at the bag in his hand and said, "Lanlan, why did you buy so many things? We already have plenty at ho."
"Grandpa, I didn’t buy them. It was Shen Junze who brought them here. He didn’t dare to co in and just dropped the stuff and ran off," Shen Qinglan explained.
The smile on Old Sir Shen’s face faded, "Let’s just leave it there for now."
Sister-in-law Song stepped forward to take the things and put them away.
Chu Yunrong pulled Shen Qinglan to sit down and asked with concern, "Qinglan, are you cold? Mom will make you a cup of hot water to warm your hands, okay?"
"I’m not cold, Mom. Go on with your things, don’t mind . I’m at my own ho, not a guest," said Shen Qinglan, sotis overwheld by Chu Yunrong’s enthusiasm.
Chu Yunrong chuckled awkwardly, "Alright, then sit down and watch so TV for a while. If you need anything, just tell Mom."
Shen Qinglan watched Chu Yunrong leave, then turned to Shen Junyu, who shrugged, helpless in the situation, sothing even Doctor Zhou couldn’t handle.
Shen Qinglan chatted with Old Sir Shen in the living room, and not long after, Fu Hengyi and Old Sir Fu returned together.
"Where did you guys run off to this early in the morning?" Old Sir Shen asked when he saw them.
Fu Hengyi smiled, "Grandpa had a dream about my parents last night, so today we went to visit them."
Old Sir Shen spoke up, "Old Man Fu, co over for a ga of chess."
"Just co? I’ve always said you can’t stay away from . Without , you’d have no one to play chess with, right?"
Old Sir Shen scoffed, "Keep dreaming! As if I can’t live without you. If it weren’t for your pitiful look, would I even bother playing chess with you? Hengyi’s skills are much better than yours."
Within monts, the two old n were sparring again, which was nothing unusual to both families, and they didn’t take it to heart.
Shen Qian saw Fu Hengyi and imdiately took him away, obviously having sothing to discuss with him.
Shen Qinglan sat on the couch drinking a glass of milk, which Fu Hengyi had just handed to her.
"People who know you’re drinking milk wouldn’t get it; they might think you’re drinking poison. It’s just a glass of milk, is it that bad?" Shen Junyu couldn’t help but tease when he saw Shen Qinglan’s expressionless face.
Shen Qinglan glanced at him, "You can do the sa, drink one glass every day."
Shen Junyu lounged on the couch and chuckled lightly at her suggestion, "Forget it, I’m neither pregnant nor a growing child anymore. I don’t need to drink milk."
Shen siblings, aside from loving Aunt Zhao’s stewed dishes, shared another trait – a dislike for drinking milk, especially Shen Junyu.
Shen Qinglan’s eyes narrowed slightly, "Brother, where is the love between siblings?"
Shen Junyu grinned, "Brother not competing with you for milk is my way of showing love."
Shen Qinglan scoffed and shouted towards the kitchen, "Aunt Zhao, my brother said he hasn’t had milk in a long ti and wants to rember what it tastes like. Could you warm a cup for him?"
In the kitchen, Sister-in-law Song found it strange that Shen Junyu suddenly wanted to drink milk but responded, "Okay, right away."
When Shen Junyu saw the milk served to him, his face filled with distress, and he looked at Shen Qinglan, "Lanlan, brother is wrong."
Shen Qinglan turned away, remarking, "A good brother would share the hardships with his sister; that’s sibling love."
Sister-in-law Song, understanding that Shen Junyu had provoked Shen Qinglan, handed him the milk with a smile in her eyes, "This milk has been boiled; it doesn’t have a strong milky sll anymore. Drink it quick."
Shen Junyu really wanted not to drink it, but Shen Qinglan was watching, and the Shen family had a habit of not wasting food. With a grimace, he pinched his nose and downed the glass of milk.
After he finished, Shen Qinglan spoke, "It’s just a glass of milk, why did you act like you were drinking poison?" basically throwing Shen Junyu’s earlier words back at him.
Now with the taste of milk all over his mouth, Shen Junyu could hardly respond, took a big gulp of water to wash it down, then looked at Shen Qinglan with a bitter smile, "Lanlan, brother was wrong. I won’t tease you anymore."
Shen Qinglan cracked a slight smile, "Brother, don’t you know how petty won can be?"
Shen Junyu paused, wanting to claim ignorance, but faced with Shen Qinglan’s half-smiling gaze, he replied, "That’s other won. My sister is the most generous."
Shen Qinglan held up a finger and shook it gently, "Brother, you’re mistaken. I am a woman and a pregnant one at that, petty and fickle."
Shen Junyu chuckled bitterly but his eyes, looking at Shen Qinglan, were filled with indulgence. Having such a lively sister who would joke and tease him was wonderful.
**
Xueli City.
The day Yan Shengyu left, Ya Xi fell ill, developing a high fever. Despite it being the height of sumr, she was sweating coldly and shrank into her blankets, wrapping herself into a cocoon, yet still shivering.
She hadn’t gotten out of bed early in the morning. When the maid ca up to knock on the door, Ya Xi responded once then fell back asleep. Knowing her mood had been off these past few days, the maid thought she wanted quiet and left without further investigation.
Ya Xi’s head felt heavy and foggy. She’d fall asleep for a while then wake up briefly, with many images floating through her mind that vanished as quickly as they appeared, slipping away before she could see them clearly.
When the phone rang, she fumbled for it and managed a groggy "Hello," unsure of who was on the line or what they said. All she felt was discomfort all over; she wanted to cry.
And cry she did, softly sobbing into the phone, "It hurts so much, it’s unbearable."
Doug had intended to call Ya Xi to wish her a happy new year, as it was Chinese New Year’s Eve, the beginning of their new year. But no sooner had the call connected and he’d spoken a few words than Ya Xi started crying.
Hearing Ya Xi’s weak cries, like those of a small kitten, on the other end of the phone, Doug’s heart tightened. He asked, "Ya Xi, where are you now?"
She heard him clearly this ti and replied softly, "At ho."
"Ya Xi, stay ho and don’t go anywhere. Wait for , I’m coming over right now."
Doug’s place was quite a distance from Ya Xi’s. By the ti he arrived, an hour had gone by. The maid answered the door. Seeing a stranger, she imdiately beca wary, "May I ask whom you’re looking for?"
"My na is Doug, I’m a friend of Ya Xi. I’m here to see her. I just called her," Doug explained, showing his phone with the call log to Ya Xi.
The maid did not let him in but said, "Miss is upstairs, please wait here while I check with her."
"Sure, please go ahead," Doug responded, his worry resurfacing as he rembered Ya Xi’s crying over the phone.
The maid went upstairs, knocked on Ya Xi’s door again, "Miss, a Mr. Doug is here looking for you, claiming to be your friend. Would you like to see him?"
Luckily, Ya Xi had a mont of clarity and recognized Doug’s na. She said to let him in but had no strength. She managed to sit up but fell back down imdiately.
When Doug arrived, he saw Ya Xi’s face unnaturally flushed; placing his hand gently on her forehead confird she was feverish and quite hot.
Seeing Doug, Ya Xi managed a smile, "Doug, you’re here."
Doug helped Ya Xi sit up, "Ya Xi, you’re sick. I’ll take you to the hospital."
At the ntion of the hospital, a previously calm Ya Xi suddenly began to struggle violently, "No, I won’t go, I don’t want to go to the hospital."
Seeing this, Doug quickly tried to calm her, "Okay okay, we won’t go to the hospital. Do you have any dicine at ho? Let’s take so dicine first." He looked towards the maid, who imdiately understood and went downstairs to fetch dicine for Ya Xi.
Hearing they wouldn’t go to the hospital, Ya Xi cald down. Doug adjusted her blankets and was about to get her a glass of water but Ya Xi grabbed his arm, "Don’t go, don’t leave alone."
Doug paused, returned to sit by the bed, and softly comforted her, "I’m not going, I am here, I’ll stay with you."
Ya Xi didn’t let go of his hand, and seeing this, Doug did not insist on leaving and remained beside her.
The maid brought in the dicine box, and Doug picked out so fever-reducing pills. He helped Ya Xi sit up, "Ya Xi, be good, open your mouth."
Leaning against Doug, Ya Xi obediently opened her mouth. Doug fed her the dicine and gave her so water.
Ya Xi lay back down and fell asleep again but was restless, mumbling sothing. Doug leaned in to listen but couldn’t make out the words.
Ya Xi gripped his hand tightly, and Doug maintained that position, staying by her side. Into the night, the previously quiet Ya Xi began convulsing slightly. Alard, Doug opened his eyes and turned on the bedside lamp.
Ya Xi’s face was covered in tears, her complexion pale and her expression terrified. Her hands flailed wildly as she began to scream, "Get away, you all get away. Don’t co near, big sister, save !"
Doug’s expression darkened instantly. He was all too familiar with this scene from when he first rescued Ya Xi. It shouldn’t be happening; Ya Xi had been successfully hypnotized, and logically such incidents should not occur unless...
Looking at Ya Xi, his expression grave, Doug took her hand and leaned close to her ear, whispering gently, "Ya Xi, don’t be afraid. I am here. No one can hurt you..." His voice was soft, like a gentle breeze, blowing into Ya Xi’s ear, calming her gradually.
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