The man lay unconscious, his body covered in large and small wounds, his face pale and haggard, with bloodstains scattered over it.
Jiang Tan furrowed her brow and looked away, walking towards Su Yue. She grabbed Su Yue's arm and urged anxiously, "Su Yue, let's not delay. Let's go quickly!"
Zhou Yinghuai stood by the window, out of sync with everything around him.
His aura was too powerful and he was so aloof, only turning his head slightly when Jiang Tan started speaking.
"Go where?"
Jiang Tan was taken aback, only then realizing that Zhou Yinghuai was speaking to her.
She said, "To donate blood. The hospital is running out of blood, and I am type A."
The blood bank had been consistently low for years, shortages were the norm.
Zhou Yinghuai's face was impassive, his thoughts unknown.
Su Yue was no fool. She could tell that Zhou Yinghuai did not want Jiang Tan to donate blood. But with her own brother lying in a hospital bed, she couldn't bring herself to say it wasn't necessary.
Zhou Yinghuai stepped out, taking hold of Jiang Tan's arm. As she let go instinctively, she softly called his name.
"Zhou Yinghuai...."
"I'll go with you."
The blood donation room was in a different building. At night, the hospital was brightly lit, and many frazzled faces could be seen along the way. Zhou Yinghuai held onto Jiang Tan's shoulder, protecting her from bumping into anyone.
All Jiang Tan could hear was the sound of the passing wind and Zhou Yinghuai's steady heartbeat.
When the two walked into the building and waited for the elevator, Jiang Tan raised her head in Zhou Yinghuai's arms and asked, "Zhou Yinghuai, have you ever donated blood?"
Zhou Yinghuai looked down. Under the light, his skin was pale like a noble in a vintage painting, an aura of forbearance around him. He said coldly, "No, and I never will."
Jiang Tan thought it made sense. Zhou Yinghuai's blood would likely shorten someone's lifespan.
She lengthened the final syllable, giving a "Oh." in response.
Zhou Yinghuai slightly curved his lips but remained silent.
Jiang Tan had a health check, then was scheduled to have her blood drawn.
Zhou Yinghuai stood outside the blood donation room, frustrated. The young girl who was usually so delicate now showed her fearlessness in her willingness to sacrifice herself for a friend.
It was the middle of the night, and they took a full 200ml of Jiang Tan's blood. When she left the blood donation room, she felt a little dizzy.
She saw Zhou Yinghuai standing at the door, his gaze fixed on her as his expression gradually turned cold and aloof. He usually maintained a strong distance, but now he seemed even more remote.
He rarely got angry, let alone obviously so, leaving Jiang Tan at a loss.
She suddenly felt less dizzy, panicking and pulling on Zhou Yinghuai's sleeve with her hand that hadn't been pierced, her voice was soft and faint. "It hurts...."
The lights in the hospital hallway were as bright as daylight. Zhou Yinghuai looked at Jiang Tan's porcelain-like face and said coldly, "It would serve you right if it killed you."
Jiang Tan thought that Zhou Yinghuai seemed more like the one who had just had 200ml of blood drawn.
Su Yue carefully escorted the two to the door, not daring to make a sound.
Jiang Tan got in the car and saw a message sent by Su Yue. Su Yue said: "Jiang Tan, your boyfriend seems very cold."
Jiang Tan couldn't help but chuckle.
This coldness, it truly was just right.
She was still laughing when she suddenly heard Zhou Yinghuai say, "You can still laugh, Jiang Tan. Do you even know what it means to act within your abilities?"
Jiang Tan understood what he meant but wasn't angry. She favored him with a sweet smile and snuggled closer to him.
When she laughed, her eyes curved into crescents. They were very black and shiny, making her look cute.
"Are you worried about me? Zhou Yinghuai, are you?"
Zhou Yinghuai looked at Jiang Tan's lively face, held her chin and kissed her fiercely.
He kissed her hard, prying open her teeth to taste every inch of her breath. His intrusion was intense.
Jiang Tan had just had her blood drawn and had no strength left. She gave in to him like a fish out of water.
Zhou Yinghuai's breathing was slightly uneven, yet his demeanor remained aloof. Looking at Jiang Tan's entranced expression, he slowly said, "Jiang Tan, one must cherish their life."
For some unknown reason, Jiang Tan felt a sudden surge of emotion, and her eyes welled up with tears. Zhou Yinghuai didn't expect such a strong reaction from her and let go of his grip, stopping there.
The entire journey was silent. The car got onto the highway, Jiang Tan looked at the scenery outside the window and said in a husky voice amidst the silence, "Zhou Yinghuai, it's when I say I like you that I really don't cherish my life."
The speed of the car increased, heading straight towards a red light.
Zhou Yinghuai pressed the brake, lit a cigarette, and took a deep drag.
He looked at Jiang Tan and suddenly laughed, his laughter cold and indifferent.
He collected his smile and looked serious, "Jiang Tan, I don't want to hurt you."
Jiang Tan didn't turn her head, her gaze lowered, her eyes already red.
The night at Mingyuan was cold enough to sting. Jiang Tan went straight upstairs without saying a word, without even glancing at Zhou Yinghuai. As soon as she laid down, she fell asleep.
The place where her blood had been drawn hurt. A small lump had formed where the needle had pierced through her vein. Jiang Tan held her hand against it, feeling indescribably gloomy.
In her mind, she kept replaying the image of Zhou Yinghuai standing outside the blood donation room, wondering humbly whether this counted as him caring for her a little bit?
Downstairs, Zhou Yinghuai sat on the couch with his eyes closed, deep in thought.
After a while, he called Zheng Heng.
He was truly at a loss with Jiang Tan. Watching her from a distance, it was as though he was torturing himself.
Zheng Heng was a normal person, sleeping soundly at 3 a.m. when the call came. Understandably, he wasn't pleased.
"Zhou Yinghuai! Are you trying to kill me in the middle of the night?"
Zhou Yinghuai said, "Mingyuan is too far. It's troublesome to have stuff delivered at this hour."
Zheng Heng scratched his head, frustration evident on his face. After taking a deep breath, he sat up, dark circles under his eyes. He said sarcastically, "You're not expecting me to deliver things, are you?"
Zhou Yinghuai didn't respond, implicitly confirming it.
Zheng Heng put on his jacket, grumbling, "Tell me! What do you want me to deliver to you, Lord Zhou? Just say it and I'll pluck the stars from the sky for you!"
Zhou Yinghuai simply said, "An old hen and some ginseng."
Zheng Heng was so shocked he almost tripped, nearly dropping his phone. Before he could begin to curse, Zhou Yinghuai had already hung up.
Zheng Heng was furious, thinking, 'In this day and age, am I less valuable than a chicken?'
He valued his sleep time, which apparently was less important to Zhou Yinghuai than a chicken.
Zheng Heng had known Zhou Yinghuai for many years. He had seen him at his peak, and he was there when Zhou Yinghuai had a falling out with Zhou Family while establishing the Weixi Group.
All sorts of things...
But he had never seen Zhou Yinghuai looking up recipes on his phone and making chicken soup in the kitchen before.
Zheng Heng was drinking the excessively sweet peach juice from the fridge, his brow furrowed. "You're 28 now, you should eat healthily! What is this junk food!"
"Jiang Tan likes this brand had one bottle, that's enough for you." said Zhou Yinghuai as he clumsily chopped the ginseng.
Zheng Heng couldn't help but laugh, "I traveled all the way to bring you an old hen, and you won't even share a bottle of junk food with me?"
Zhou Yinghuai continued to focus on chopping the ginseng. Just when Zheng Heng thought he would get no reply, Zhou Yinghuai said, "Tantan is petty, don't steal her stuff."