"Tang Su, I apologize to you, can we not go to the police station?" Ye Sichen stood up, his tone much softer.
"Apologizing is fine, but how does Mr. Ye plan to apologize?" Thinking of mediating now?
"I'm sorry, is that enough?" Ye Sichen's patience was almost at its limit, and a vein throbbed on his forehead.
"I've gone deaf and can't hear Mr. Ye's apology. If Mr. Ye is willing to have the apology letter published on the front page of the Hua City Metropolitan Newspaper in front of the police, then I might consider not pursuing economic compensation from Mr. Ye."
"Tang Su, don't go too far." Ye Sichen's eyes narrowed, full of warning.
"Then let's meet at the police station."
Tang Su turned to leave, and at that moment, Lu Han stepped forward.
Seeing him, Tang Su was very surprised, and her voice instantly softened, "Doctor Lu? What a coincidence."
"Quite a coincidence." Lu Han nodded. He then looked at the duty officer, "Comrade officer, as it happens, Miss Tang visited our hospital this afternoon for a consultation, and I am her attending doctor. I can cooperate with your investigation."
"Good, then we'll trouble Doctor Lu to come with us."
"No problem." Lu Han agreed readily.
Lu Han turned to pick up his phone from the table, pocketing it, and said to Jiang Shanshan, "Doctor Jiang, I'm sorry, please enjoy your meal. I'll cover this one, also, happy birthday."
Tang Su: "..."
Uh?
Haven't I ruined something good for Doctor Lu?
Amitabha, my fault, my fault.
**
In the police station, the two still accepted the officer's mediation in the end.
Not only did Ye Sichen apologize, but he also agreed to compensation, covering Tang Su's medical expenses, subsequent follow-up costs, mental distress damages, nutritional expenses, and travel expenses, totaling fifty thousand yuan.
In the words of the officer, the fact that Ye Sichen was willing to pay her this amount showed a lot of sincerity.
Tang Su agreed to the mediation simply because she did not want to continue entangling with Ye Sichen.
She knew full well that given Ye Sichen's pride, he would never agree to publish a written apology letter.
She was aware that Ye Sichen couldn't do it, yet she made such a demand simply because she couldn't stand to see him cozying up with Shen Tian immediately after she failed to appear at the civil affairs office, just to annoy them both.
It had nothing to do with jealousy, she simply found it distasteful.
Ye Sichen's slap had erased the little emotion she initially had for him.
Shen Tian was really not bad to Ye Sichen; with Shen Tian's current popularity, she was actually willing to accompany Ye Sichen to the entrance of the police station. Her loyalty and affection for him were deep.
However, all of this had nothing to do with Tang Su anymore.
What surprised Tang Su was that she had unexpectedly encountered Lu Han for the third time in such a short period?!
If they had run into each other this frequently over the past eight years, there would have been no chance for Ye Sichen.
"Doctor Lu, I'd like to donate this money to your hospital's aid fund account. If you don't mind, let's add each other on WeChat. I would like to donate anonymously, and I'd appreciate your assistance, Doctor Lu."
Both of her parents being doctors, Tang Su was aware that hospitals now had special aid funds for patients in urgent need of surgery who temporarily could not afford the costs.
There were also cases of abandoned babies in gynecology and pediatrics departments that the hospital would temporarily aid; such funds couldn't always be expected to come from the doctors and nurses.
She wasn't short of money, and by accepting Ye Sichen's large compensation, she wanted him to understand that he should not casually slap people in the future.
A slap in the face for fifty thousand yuan, was truly not cheap.
"Okay."
Lu Han agreed to help her.
On the spot, they added each other on WeChat, and Tang Su promptly transferred the money to him.
Lu Han's WeChat name was [想吃酥心糖].(Craving Crispy-Heart Candy)
Tang Su's WeChat name was her nickname [糖宝].(Tang Bao/Candy Treasure)
Once the matter was resolved, the four people came out of the police station, Ye Sichen's side was just him alone, while Tang Su's was a group of three.
Seeing them come out, Shen Tian, wearing sunglasses, got out from the passenger seat, worriedly looking at Ye Sichen, "Sichen, are you okay? Is everything resolved?"
"Yes." Ye Sichen nodded, then after descending the steps, he turned to look at Tang Su, "Tang Su, don't regret this."
"Regret my ass. Hurry up and take your white lotus away––" Sun Qing exploded angrily.
"Sichen, let's go," Shen Tian glared coldly at them.
Ye Sichen walked away with Shen Tian.
Tang Su exhaled deeply, feeling much lighter, and she introduced Sun Qing to Lu Han.
"Doctor Lu, I'm sorry to trouble you, this is my childhood friend, Sun Qing."
"Miss Sun," Lu Han greeted her with a smile.
Sun Qing's chivalry and straightforwardness, her brave and passionate nature, were quite admirable.
"Hello, Doctor Lu," Sun Qing greeted Lu Han cheerfully.
For people she disliked, Sun Qing was harsh and critical, just like how she had been earlier with Ye Sichen, that pretentious scoundrel.
For those she liked, Sun Qing was warm and pleasant, like how she was with Lu Han.
"I'm sorry for interrupting Doctor Lu's dinner with his girlfriend just now. Doctor Lu, you were..." Tang Su remembered that Lu Han was having dinner with a female doctor and vaguely heard him wish her a happy birthday.
Now that Lu Han is a doctor, it actually makes sense for him to have a doctor girlfriend, considering they're in the same circle and would probably have more to talk about.
That's really nice.
At that moment, Tang Su genuinely thought so.
"She's not my girlfriend, just a colleague from the hospital. A whole bunch of us were there to celebrate her birthday, but as doctors, we often need to be on call 24 hours." Lu Han denied and explained.
Tang Su understood; when she was a child, she'd often get up in the middle of the night needing to use the bathroom, only to find her parents weren't home.
"Well, if Doctor Lu isn't in a rush, Sun Qing and I are planning to go have some wontons. If Doctor Lu doesn't mind, why don't you join us?" Tang Su invited.
Previously in Lu Han's office, she had said that if they ran into each other again, she would treat him to a meal. She couldn't go back on her word.
Although, she hadn't expected their chance encounter to come so soon, the day wasn't even over yet.
"Okay," Lu Han agreed again.
Lu Han had also driven here, while Sun Qing had driven Tang Su's car.
"You guys lead the way, I'll follow behind. Don't worry, I won't lose you," Lu Han said.
"Okay."
"Doctor Lu, it's the seafood wonton shop at the Culture Street intersection. It's easy to find, that wonton place is quite famous," Sun Qing informed him of the shop's name.
"Got it," he replied.
Just as they were about to get in the car, Sun Qing received a call from her supervisor, "Sun Qing, where are you? The boss called for an impromptu meeting. I'm giving you half an hour, hurry over."
After saying that, the supervisor hung up.
Sun Qing: "..."
She was pissed.
"What happened?" Seeing Sun Qing getting so angry her face turned pale, Tang Su asked.
Meanwhile, Lu Han was ready to go but he patiently waited for the ladies to go first, ever the gentleman.
"The she-devil is making me work overtime. It's Friday, and I'm supposed to be off today," Sun Qing said, out of words.
The key point was, it was a rare chance today to have dinner with a handsome doctor like Lu Han, which would have made for a lovely weekend.
That she-devil really knew how to ruin the mood, boo hoo hoo, she didn't want to go back.
"Then you should go back to work. I'll ride with Doctor Lu," said Tang Su as she unfastened her seatbelt, speaking in a cheery tone.
"I really wanted to dine with such a good-looking, eye-pleasing doctor like Doctor Lu, waa waa waa, Tang Bao, tell me, why am I so unlucky?"
"If you want to see Doctor Lu, just accompany me to my follow-up appointment in three days."
"Forget it, the she-devil is tough to talk to. She's summoning me on my day off as it is. If I ask for leave, won't she just find more ways to torment me?"
"Sun Qing, if you're not happy with your job, just come and work with me. We'll split the profits fifty-fifty."
"Miss Tang, I don't have the money to invest with you. You know I made a one-year bet with my grandfather, and it's only the second month. No worries, don't fret for your sister. I chose this path, so I'll walk it. I haven't hit a dead end yet."
"Okay, if you can't hold up, come to me."
"Sure, then please tell Doctor Lu for me, I'll treat him next time."
"Will do."
Tang Su unfastened her seatbelt and got out of the car.
When Lu Han saw Tang Su coming over, he rolled down the window and poked his head out, "What's going on?"
"Sun Qing's supervisor asked her to rush back to the company for overtime, so she can't join us. I'll have to take your car to get there," Tang Su explained.
"Come on in," he said.
"Thank you, Doctor Lu."
"You're welcome."