There was a hospital near Peking University, but with flu season in full swing, Gu Xiuyi was worried that taking Ji Ruan there might expose him to cross-infection. Since Ji Ruan’s fever wasn’t too severe, Gu Xiuyi hesitated for a moment, then decided to take a slight detour and brought him to his own private hospital instead.
The VIP lounge was quiet. Ji Ruan had just finished his blood test and was pressing a cotton swab against the crook of his arm. Looking drained, he leaned against the sofa.
The door was gently pushed open. Li Sui’an had specially run up from the third floor to check out the situation. Seeing Ji Ruan looking so pale, he teased,
“How are you sick again, little patient Ji Ruan?”
Gu Xiuyi stirred a cup of sugar-saline water, took over holding the cotton swab for Ji Ruan, and handed him the paper cup. “Drink some.”
Ji Ruan lifted his eyelids, took the cup, and greeted Li Sui’an first, “Hello, Dr. Li, we meet again.”
Li Sui’an chuckled at Ji Ruan’s expression—this kid clearly didn’t want to run into him in a place like this and looked slightly resentful about it.
Without even looking up, Gu Xiuyi patted Ji Ruan’s head. “Ignore him. Drink some water first… Do you feel dizzy?”
Ji Ruan sniffled. “Not too bad, just weak.”
Li Sui’an took two steps closer and looked at the crook of Ji Ruan’s arm, clicking his tongue. “Still having trouble with your platelets?”
Even a simple blood draw took a long time to stop bleeding—several cotton swabs had already been stained red.
Gu Xiuyi finally spared him a glance. “Why is an ENT specialist hanging around here?”
Li Sui’an patted the white coat he was wearing. “Obviously, I came to check on my former patient. Fevers can affect the ears too, you know.”
Gu Xiuyi was silent for two seconds before calling a nurse over to put a medical adhesive bandage on Ji Ruan’s arm. Then he asked Li Sui’an, “Does he need to get checked out by you?”
“No need for now,” Li Sui’an waved his hand. “Let me ask him a couple of questions first.”
Gu Xiuyi moved aside slightly to give him some space.
Li Sui’an pulled over a chair and sat down in front of Ji Ruan. Reaching behind Ji Ruan’s left ear, he felt the implant under the skin.
“Does it hurt? Have you experienced any sharp pain or spasmodic stabbing pain in the ear canal or under the skin here?”
“No, it doesn’t hurt. Hmm… actually, I do get a bit of a headache, but my ear feels fine.”
“What about tinnitus? It doesn’t have to be a sharp ringing—have you heard a fine sand-like sound after the fever started? Even a very faint one?”
Ji Ruan pursed his lips, focused carefully, then shook his head. “No, I can hear everything clearly.”
“Alright, that’s not bad,” Li Sui’an straightened up and looked at Gu Xiuyi. “No need for him to come to my department. Nothing serious.”
Gu Xiuyi took the empty paper cup from Ji Ruan and asked, “Then why was his pain so severe last time?”
Li Sui’an chuckled. “Don’t overthink it. A fever doesn’t always trigger neuralgia. Last time was probably just because his fever was too high.”
There was a knock on the lounge door, and a slightly chubby doctor bustled in, holding a lab report. Seeing Li Sui’an, he let out a surprised “Yo!”
“You’re here too, old Li?”
Li Sui’an nodded in greeting. “Came to check on a friend.”
The chubby doctor grinned. “Perfect timing then. How about dinner tonight? A new hotpot place just opened across the street.”
“Sounds good.”
After making the invitation, the chubby doctor turned to Gu Xiuyi and resumed a professional demeanor.
“President Gu, your spouse is fine. He doesn’t have the flu this time, and it’s not viral. He just caught a cold and got exhausted. His weak constitution is what caused the fever.”
Gu Xiuyi nodded and asked, “Thanks. Does he need to be hospitalized?”
“No need,” the chubby doctor said with a smile. “Kids his age usually just need some medicine and a good night’s sleep to recover.”
Glancing at the test results, he added, “But since your spouse’s physical condition is a bit unique, we recommend giving him a fever-reducing injection. It’ll bring his fever down faster, and if the medicine doesn’t work well enough, we won’t have to bother ENT later if it affects his ears.”
Gu Xiuyi also thought it was best to get Ji Ruan’s fever down quickly. He looked at Ji Ruan. “Then let’s go with the injection?”
Ji Ruan had already been poked once when he arrived, having had two vials of blood drawn. At this point, he wasn’t afraid of another shot. He nodded. “Alright.”
“Fever-reducing injections are usually given in the upper arm or the buttocks. Where do you want it?” The chubby doctor clapped his hands, offering the choice.
“Most people get it in the butt, right?” Li Sui’an, ever the troublemaker, chimed in with amusement. “The gluteal muscles are thicker, so it won’t hurt as much. Ji Ruan’s skinny arms don’t look like they have much muscle at all.”
He exaggerated his tone like he was trying to scare a child and looked at Ji Ruan. “Getting it in the arm will hurt a lot.”
"That's enough,” Gu Xiuyi blocked him.
Then, recalling that Ji Ruan’s waist was so slim that one hand could wrap around it, and that he barely had any flesh on his entire body, Gu Xiuyi frowned.
“But his gluteal muscles aren’t very thick either.”
…?
Ji Ruan doubted his own ears. “Are you calling me flat?”
Li Sui’an burst out laughing.
Gu Xiuyi, who had absolutely no such intention: “...?”
Meeting Ji Ruan’s incredulous gaze, he was momentarily at a loss for words.
What is this kid even thinking?
“Of course not, I…”
But Gu Xiuyi found himself unable to continue.
Ji Ruan’s expression was just too amusing—those big dark circles under his eyes, his chapped lips, his overall sickly appearance—yet he was trying so hard to defend the dignity of his gluteal muscles.
Gu Xiuyi sighed and made the biggest compromise he could. “Alright, you’re… well-padded.”
Ji Ruan: “?!”
Li Sui’an laughed even harder.
Ji Ruan made a swift decision and turned to the chubby doctor. “I’ll take it in the butt, please.”
The doctor could barely hold back his laughter. “Alright, alright, come with me—hahaha!”
Even after the door to the treatment room closed, Li Sui’an was still laughing so hard he could barely stand upright.
Gu Xiuyi silently distanced himself, crossing his arms and leaning against the doorframe, looking at him like he was an idiot. “What exactly are you laughing at?”
Li Sui’an, clutching his sore abs, slung an arm over Gu Xiuyi’s shoulder. “This is hilarious.”
Gu Xiuyi, completely unfazed, removed his arm. “Ji Ruan is indeed an amusing kid.”
“I was talking about you!” Li Sui’an laughed, slapping Gu Xiuyi’s chest before his laughter gradually turned meaningful. “The way you and Ji Ruan interact is really interesting.”
Gu Xiuyi’s cold eyes met his teasing gaze.
“Mm.”
Li Sui’an truly found it entertaining.
At first, he had thought that Ji Ruan would be the one to fall first under Old Gu’s charm, which made him feel so guilty on Gu Xiuyi’s behalf that he had even pitied Ji Ruan for a while.
But looking at everything that had happened recently… it was obvious that Old Gu was the one who was completely hooked.
Li Sui’an smacked his lips, deciding not to remind Gu Xiuyi again. It was about time this guy got a taste of love’s hardships.
“Yesterday was Lao Duan’s birthday, and you didn’t show up. Do you know how much you missed?” Li Sui’an changed the topic.
Gu Xiuyi adjusted his collar. “What happened this time?”
“It’s nothing major,” Li Sui’an sighed. “Just another failed confession.”
Gu Xiuyi frowned slightly, thinking for a moment. “Still that Lin… something? Finally rejected him?”
“Lin Qing. No, not yet,” Li Sui’an said. “Didn’t accept or reject—just said they had concerns but wouldn’t say what… Tsk, Lao Duan’s completely obsessed.”
Gu Xiuyi tugged at the corner of his mouth but didn’t comment.
Li Sui’an suddenly thought of something and added, “Oh, right, I think he goes to the same school as Ji Ruan.”
Only then did Gu Xiuyi glance at him.
“And I heard he’s learning Han embroidery from some master. A top student and an artist—probably has a bit of an ego… Tsk, no, wait…”
Li Sui’an shook his head, denying his own words. “Your little treasure is also a top student, but he’s nothing like that.”
Just then, the treatment room door opened. Li Sui’an was about to say something else, but in the next second, Gu Xiuyi had already disappeared.
Li Sui’an: “...”
Sure enough, that little treasure inside was the only one who really mattered.
Ji Ruan pulled up his pants, rubbing his sore butt absentmindedly. Did he really not have much muscle there? It hurt so much...
Seeing Ji Ruan’s pitiful expression, Gu Xiuyi immediately knew what he was thinking. He walked over, brushed against Ji Ruan’s cheek, and helped him up. Casually, he asked, “How is it? Doesn’t hurt, right?”
Ji Ruan’s hand, which had been covering his butt, stiffened. He slowly moved it away and forced a relaxed tone. “Of course not. I don’t feel a thing.”
Gu Xiuyi turned his head slightly to suppress a laugh. “That’s good. Let’s go home.”
The chubby doctor reminded them, “This shot might make you drowsy. Get some good sleep when you get back. Once the fever goes down, you’ll be fine.”
Ji Ruan suspected that his body was really sensitive. Just from one injection, he was already uncomfortable sitting in the car. Even lying down at home didn’t feel right.
In the end, Gu Xiuyi brought him a warm compress to help with the pain.
Ji Ruan had never heard of using a heat pack on his butt before. His face immediately flushed as he held it, too stunned to react.
Gu Xiuyi was still smiling as he asked, “What? Need me to help you apply it?”
Ji Ruan shuddered and shrank under the blanket, covering his face. “No need, thank you. You can go now. I’m going to sleep.”
Gu Xiuyi chuckled again but didn’t tease him further. He quietly closed the door and left.
Despite the embarrassment, the heat pack really worked. As the fever-reducing injection took effect, Ji Ruan quickly drifted off to sleep.
When he woke up, he had no idea what time it was. The pain in his butt was gone, and he felt a bit lighter, though still weak.
Ji Ruan closed his eyes for a moment, gathering some strength. Then he adjusted the bed to sit up slightly and reached for his phone.
It was almost dinnertime, and Han Xiaolin had sent Ji Ruan several messages.
Ji Ruan pulled the blanket up over his shoulders, covered his mouth, and let out a few low coughs before opening the chat window.
[Damn, bro! I saw your paintings—seriously, they’re freaking amazing!]
[I used to think you were just showing off when you doodled random stuff in your notebook. Turns out you’re actually legit!]
[That kid Li Yu said he wants to be your apprentice—I'm dying. A guy who studies fine arts wants to take lessons from you, who studies literature? Does he even have any shame?]
Han Xiaolin always talked in an overly excited manner. Even through text, Ji Ruan could practically hear his loud voice. He chuckled, pressed the voice message button, and replied, “It was a group effort. The senior students contributed even more than I did.”
Then he continued scrolling.
[It even got a bit of traction online! Everyone’s amazed that none of you are art majors, and they’re praising Peking University for being a hub of multi-talented geniuses. I was laughing so hard…]
[Apparently, the actual exhibition hall was empty because everyone was crowding around your display in the hallway. In the end, security had to come and ask people to go inside and take a look. I swear, I’m about to die laughing.]
[By the way, where did you go? Why can’t I find you?]
[Ji Ruan?]
[Ji Ruan, are you still alive?]
[At least make a sound!]
Ji Ruan couldn’t stop laughing at his messages and replied with a smile, “I have a bit of a fever, so I went home. Still alive.”
Just as he sent the message, Gu Xiuyi walked in, carrying a bowl of porridge.
“Woke up and already so happy?” Gu Xiuyi turned on the light.
Ji Ruan put away his phone, still smiling. Maybe because he was sick and weak, his whole demeanor was soft and lazy. “Han Xiaolin couldn’t find me and was asking where I was.”
Gu Xiuyi placed the porridge on the small table by the bed, then reached out to feel Ji Ruan’s forehead—the fever was gone.
“Have some porridge. Aunt Zhao added minced meat; it tastes good.”
Ji Ruan had already smelled the aroma. He propped himself up, sat straight, and slowly started eating.
Gu Xiuyi sat on the edge of the bed, folded his arms, and after a moment of thought, said, “Ji Ruan, I want to discuss something with you.”
“Hm?” Ji Ruan looked up, signaling him to continue.
Gu Xiuyi brushed his hair aside and carefully said, “The flu has been getting worse lately, and your immune system is already weak. Why don’t you move back home for the rest of the semester?”
Ji Ruan slowly swallowed a mouthful of porridge, thinking that his words made sense. “But… it’s almost the final exam review period.”
“That’s exactly why. Classes are basically over, so you can review at home, right?” Gu Xiuyi said. “I’ll take you to school on the day of the exams.”
“I…” Ji Ruan hesitated for a moment, just about to speak, but then covered his mouth and started coughing.
Gu Xiuyi quickly held his shoulder and gently patted his back. “Slow down… Feeling better? Here, drink some water…”
Ji Ruan’s throat was itchy. He took the water and drank several sips before clearing his throat. “Alright…”
“But I still need to go to school tomorrow,” he looked up at Gu Xiuyi. “I need to bring back my study materials.”
Gu Xiuyi casually wiped away the tear stains at the corner of his eye. “I have something to do tomorrow. Can Uncle Zhang take you instead?”
“Anything’s fine.”
“Okay,” Gu Xiuyi helped him sit properly in front of the small table. “But your fever just went down, so don’t stay outside too long.”
Ji Ruan was amused by how much he was nagging like Aunt Zhao and helplessly said, “I know.”
The next morning, Ji Ruan bundled up completely—scarf, gloves, down jacket, and even the wool hat that Aunt Zhao had knitted for him.
The hat was warm, but it had a fluffy pom-pom on top. Aunt Zhao said it was adorable, but Ji Ruan thought it looked like something a little girl would like, so he had never worn it before.
But since his cold wasn’t fully gone, he was afraid that going out would make it worse, and then he’d have to trouble Aunt Zhao to take care of him again. After hesitating for a while, he gritted his teeth and put the hat on.
Uncle Zhang was already waiting outside the school. Ji Ruan didn’t want to take too long—he quickly gathered his books from the dorm and then waited for two minutes under the clock tower. Soon, Cheng Zizhang came running over, holding a large document folder.
“Sorry, Xiao Ruan! Did you wait long?” She was slightly out of breath. Seeing Ji Ruan, she couldn’t help but laugh, pointing at the pom-pom on his hat. “That’s so cute.”
“Not at all,” Ji Ruan scratched his nose, a little embarrassed. “I just got here too.”
Cheng Zizhang exhaled and glanced at the pom-pom a few more times before handing him the folder. “That’s good… Here, these are last year’s materials from our department. You can look through them.”
Ji Ruan quickly took it, delighted. “Thank you, Senior.”
Cheng Zizhang smiled. “No need to be so polite.”
Lin Qing followed behind Cheng Zizhang as they walked out of the clock tower. Upon seeing Ji Ruan, he gave a slight nod before turning to Cheng Zizhang. “Senior, are you leaving now?”
“Soon,” Cheng Zizhang explained to Ji Ruan, “We’re heading to our master’s place.”
Ji Ruan immediately realized she was referring to the legendary master. “I see… I didn’t delay you, did I?”
“Not at all,” Cheng Zizhang waved her hand with a smile. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she asked, “By the way, Xiao Ruan, why didn’t I see you yesterday?”
Ji Ruan tugged at his scarf. “I had a bit of a fever yesterday, so I went home early… Why?”
He noticed that Lin Qing’s expression had turned somewhat unpleasant.
Cheng Zizhang didn’t seem to notice and continued with a smile, “It’s nothing major. It’s just that our teacher saw the paintings yesterday and really liked your style. She said your brushwork has a bit of a Han embroidery artist’s touch and wanted to meet you.”
Ji Ruan was startled.
As expected of a master—her eye was sharp.
Ji Ruan had learned to paint from his family, and his entire family worked in Han embroidery. Since they had spent years sketching embroidery patterns, their brushwork naturally carried the essence of Han embroidery.
For Ji Ruan, painting was just a fundamental skill. He had never intentionally studied other styles, so whenever he picked up a brush, his strokes inevitably followed his family’s traditional techniques.
“That’s a bit of a pity then,” Ji Ruan said, his eyes curving in a half-joking manner. “I would love to meet the master too.”
“I saw your paintings as well,” Lin Qing suddenly said. “They were really well done. No wonder our teacher liked them.”
Cheng Yunxiu’s disciples currently only included Cheng Zizhang and Lin Qing. Since Cheng Zizhang was her biological daughter, she often worried that Lin Qing might feel that her mother was biased. Because of this, she always made a conscious effort to refer to her mother as “teacher” rather than “mom” when speaking with Lin Qing.
Now that Lin Qing had brought it up, Cheng Zizhang felt a little awkward. “Ah Qing, don’t overthink it.”
“I’m not,” Lin Qing brushed her hair aside and smiled, though there was a hint of melancholy in her expression. “I just feel like… the teacher guided me so carefully while I embroidered my winter landscape, but I still didn’t do well…”
Her winter landscape piece had been placed in the most prominent position inside the exhibition hall. Yet, the entire afternoon, no one had stopped to look at it. Instead, the crowd had gathered in the hallway, admiring the paintings by Cheng Zizhang, Ji Ruan, and the vice president of their club. Everyone only praised them.
“……”
The atmosphere turned slightly heavy.
Perhaps because Ji Ruan was an outsider in this situation, Cheng Zizhang wasn’t sure what to say. Lin Qing still seemed downcast and remained silent.
A cold gust of wind blew past, and Ji Ruan instinctively covered his mouth, coughing.
“Xiao Ruan, are you alright?” Cheng Zizhang quickly patted his back. “You shouldn’t be out in the wind. You should go back inside.”
Ji Ruan pulled his scarf up to completely cover the lower half of his face and said apologetically, “Then I’ll head off first. Senior, you should go home soon too—it’s getting cold.”
“Eh, alright.”
Ji Ruan waved goodbye to them, tightened his coat against the cold wind, and walked toward the school gate. Once he got back into the car, he finally let out a breath of relief.
Talking to someone like Lin Qing was honestly exhausting sometimes. He had no idea how Cheng Zizhang had managed to get along with him peacefully for so many years.
“Yo, Xiao Ji, are you feeling unwell?” Uncle Zhang started the car and glanced at him through the rearview mirror.
“No,” Ji Ruan pressed his fingers to his temple. “Just a bit sleepy.”
Uncle Zhang chuckled. “Alright then, I’ll get you home quickly so you can crawl into a warm bed and sleep.”
A sweet smile spread across Ji Ruan’s face. “Thanks, Uncle Zhang.”
Back home, Ji Ruan really was feeling a bit drained. His temples throbbed faintly, and all he could think about was lying down in bed.
As Aunt Zhao took his bag at the entryway, her expression looked somewhat displeased.
Ji Ruan coughed lightly and asked in a hoarse voice, “Is something wrong, Aunt Zhao?”
Aunt Zhao sighed, motioned toward the living room with her eyes, and lowered her voice. “Madam and Young Master Fang are here.”
“……”
Ji Ruan even took a moment to seriously think about who Madam and Young Master Fang were.
Nothing came to mind.
In the end, it was only thanks to Aunt Zhao’s reminder that he remembered—it was Gu Xiuyi’s stepmother and her eldest son.
Ji Ruan changed into his slippers, took off his scarf, and walked toward the living room. Sure enough, he was greeted by Fang Lan’s overly fake smile and his hot-tempered older brother Fang Qiming, whose face looked like he owed five million in debt.
His headache instantly worsened. He leaned close to Aunt Zhao’s ear and whispered, “Where’s Gu Xiuyi?”
The author has something to say:
"Hey— I just wanna sleep, but your family showed up. What do you think I should do?"
"Go to sleep."