Upon hearing this, Fu Hanchuan showed a surprised expression, looking somewhat anxious.
"%&￥..."
He furrowed his brows and stared at Zhong Pei, trying to speak, making Zhong Pei a bit embarrassed.
"Alright."
Yao Leyi held Fu Hanchuan's hand and patted it, "Don't worry. Zhong Pei is approved by Grandma, so you can rest assured."
She then smiled at Zhong Pei and explained, "Hanchuan, as the elder brother, is always concerned. He treats Xiangsi like his own sister. When his sister has a boyfriend, how could he not be anxious? He doesn't mean anything else."
"Yes."
Zhong Pei nodded with a smile, "I understand."
Turning to Fu Hanchuan, he said, "Hanchuan, don't worry. I am sincere with Xiangsi and will treat her well."
Fu Hanchuan calmed down, though his brows remained slightly furrowed.
…
After leaving the ward, Yao Leyi walked them to the door.
"I still need to take care of Hanchuan, so I won't be seeing you off. Thank you for coming to see him."
"Not at all," Zhong Pei replied, "You should go back in. We'll be leaving now."
"Okay."
With the door closed, Sheng Xiangsi remained silent throughout.
"Xiangsi?" Zhong Pei waved his hand in front of her eyes, "What are you thinking about? You seem distracted."
"Nothing..."
Sheng Xiangsi shook her head, coming back to her senses.
She just found Yao Leyi quite strange... There seemed to be something between her and her brother.
Never mind, why overthink?
Since her brother was awake, whatever it was, he could handle it. As for the truth from back then, only when her brother recovered could it be revealed.
"Let's go."
"Alright."
Zhong Pei drove Sheng Xiangsi back to West Twelfth Street.
As they passed a commercial street, they hit a bit of traffic.
The car stopped at an intersection, and Sheng Xiangsi leaned against the window, sniffing the air, "Smells so good."
Zhong Pei found her adorable, "What smell did you catch?"
The window was clearly closed.
"Look."
Sheng Xiangsi pointed to a stall not far away, "Over there, they're selling candied chestnuts. That smell is etched in my memory."
"Let me see."
Zhong Pei craned his neck to look and smiled, "Wait a moment."
When the light turned green, he slowly moved the car and parked near the candied chestnut stall.
"What are you doing?" Sheng Xiangsi asked as she saw him unbuckling his seatbelt.
Zhong Pei raised his eyebrows, "Buying candied chestnuts."
With that, he got out of the car.
"Hey!" Sheng Xiangsi hesitated for a couple of seconds before following him.
Sure enough, there was quite a line at the stall. Zhong Pei stood at the end and waved to Sheng Xiangsi who had followed.
"Wait a moment, we'll have some soon!"
"Really..."
Sheng Xiangsi couldn't help but smile. She had only mentioned it casually.
In the crowd, Zhong Pei's tall figure stood out. Sheng Xiangsi counted on her fingers, "There are six people ahead of him, now five..."
She couldn't help but think of Junjun, who also liked chestnuts.
But because they were hard to digest, she only allowed her to eat two at a time. She missed Junjun a lot, and although they could video chat every few days, she hoped the surgery could be scheduled soon so that they could reunite as mother and daughter.
Lost in thought, Zhong Pei's turn had come.
"I'd like a portion of maple-glazed chestnuts."
"Alright."
The store clerk smiled, "This is the last portion of maple-glazed chestnuts. You're lucky."
"What? The last portion?"
A girl behind him craned her neck to look, and the clerk nodded, repeating, "Yes, the last portion. This gentleman bought it."
"Hey, handsome!"
Seeing it was a man, the girl clasped her hands together and pleaded, "I really, really want to eat the maple-glazed chestnuts. Could you let me have it?"
"Well..."
If it were just for himself, Zhong Pei would have chivalrously given it up without hesitation. But this time, he couldn't.
He shook his head and apologized, "Sorry, I can't."
"Huh?"
The girl hadn't expected to be refused, "You're a man, what's the big deal about letting me have it? Are you that stingy?"
Zhong Pei just smiled and didn't argue, "Sorry."
"How about this!"
The girl bit her lip, "I'll give you an extra five yuan. Will you let me have it?"
"Sorry."
Zhong Pei still refused, "It's not about the money."
He glanced at Sheng Xiangsi, who was standing a few steps away, "I'm really sorry, you'll have to wait until next time."
"Sir, it's ready."
The store clerk handed him a paper bag, which Zhong Pei quickly took. He nodded and smiled at the angry girl.
Apologizing once more, he walked towards Sheng Xiangsi.
"Here!" Zhong Pei presented the chestnuts like a treasure, "Maple-glazed, the clerk said this flavor is the best. It's the last portion, go ahead and try it!"
With that, he pulled out a chestnut, which was a bit hot.
"Ouch!"
The hot chestnut made him retract his hand quickly, and he rubbed his earlobe, smiling sheepishly, "It's still hot, but it should taste good."
He carefully picked up the chestnut again, peeled it, and brought the meat to Sheng Xiangsi's mouth.
"Here, open up."
"Okay."
Sheng Xiangsi bent down and took a bite.
"How is it?" Zhong Pei asked expectantly.
"Yum!" Sheng Xiangsi, cheeks puffed out, gave a thumbs-up, "It's delicious."
"Great, I'll peel more for you."
Sheng Xiangsi remained silent. She had seen it all. That girl had pleaded with Zhong Pei, but he hadn't given in.
She pursed her lips and asked, "Why didn't you give it to that girl just now? Weren't you afraid of being called stingy?"
Zhong Pei paused, then laughed, "I felt bad for her, but I bought them for you. Why should I give them to someone else?"
Someone else?
Sheng Xiangsi was stunned, her eyes uncontrollably moistening again.
Finally, there was someone who put her first.
"What's wrong?" Zhong Pei saw her eating chestnuts with reddened eyes, about to cry, "Are you choking?"
He remembered chestnuts could easily cause choking.
"Do you need water?"
Zhong Pei scrambled, "There's water in the car, I'll get it for you!"
He took a step but then realized, "Xiangsi, come with me! It'll be faster!"
"Hehe."
Sheng Xiangsi laughed through her tears, "Don't worry, I'm not choking."
"Really?" Zhong Pei stared at her reddened eyes, "Then why are you..."
Sheng Xiangsi took another bite of the chestnut, "Because it's so delicious."
"Ah?" Zhong Pei blinked in confusion but then saw her radiant smile and felt relieved.
He had a guess about why she was emotional.
"Xiangsi, there will always be people who care for you. I might not be the first, but I believe I won't be the last."
Suddenly, Sheng Xiangsi's nose tingled, and she almost cried.
She took a few deep breaths, smiling broadly, and nodded, "Yes, I believe you."
No matter what the future held, she would never forget this moment.
…
Just a few days later.
Something happened.