Because of his words, Shu Nian remained silent for a while, choosing not to comment on what he said. She felt that bringing up the height topic herself was simply inviting humiliation, but she wasn’t angry about it.
Though she felt somewhat embarrassed, Shu Nian good-naturedly pretended not to hear his words.
The spacious room suddenly fell silent.
Only the occasional reminder from the rehabilitation therapist could be heard.
Shu Nian couldn’t help, she could only stand by and watch.
She didn’t know how Xie Ruhe felt during rehabilitation.
Would it hurt?
Sometimes those sudden world-weary emotions he displayed, those reasons for not wanting to persevere—were they because he felt that despite all his hard work and effort, the results he had imagined hadn’t materialized at all?
What a powerless feeling that must be.
Shu Nian squeezed her fist tightly and called out to him: “Xie Ruhe.”
Xie Ruhe, breathing slightly heavily with fine beads of sweat on his forehead, responded: “Mm?”
“After you can stand up, is there anything you want to do?”
Hearing this, Xie Ruhe looked over at her. Sweat from his hair tips slid down his cheeks, falling from his jaw. Perhaps due to the heat, his cheeks had gained some color, and his eyes glistened with moisture from the sweat.
He answered honestly: “Yes.”
Shu Nian asked: “What do you want to do?”
Xie Ruhe didn’t respond, just quietly looked at her. Though he stood in a higher position with the advantage of height, looking down at her, there was no sense of pressure at all.
Shu Nian didn’t mind his aloofness.
“When that time comes,” at this point, Shu Nian stood on tiptoe and patted his shoulder, as if comforting him, looking inexplicably righteous, “I can accompany you.”
Hearing this, Xie Ruhe curved his lips, his almond eyes narrowing slightly before his expression relaxed. This time, he no longer spoke word by word as before.
Because he was panting, his voice carried a certain sensuality, filled with an overwhelming crisp clarity.
“It’s a promise,” he said.
By the time Xie Ruhe finished his rehabilitation, the hour hand on the wall clock had turned to ten.
Shu Nian returned with him to the sixteenth floor, planning to gather her things and go home.
Probably because it was New Year’s Eve, fireworks were being set off outside, making lively popping sounds. The sky was bright, with luminous flowers blooming in the night sky. From this high floor, the view was excellent, and one could see most of Ruchuan City’s night scenery.
Shu Nian watched for a while, but didn’t stay much longer: “Then I’ll be going home?”
Xie Ruhe had no reason to keep her that late, so he nodded: “Be careful.”
Shu Nian responded with an “Okay,” and repeated once more: “Happy birthday.”
“Mm.”
But Shu Nian wasn’t going back alone. Just like before, Fang Wencheng drove her home.
The two walked to the entryway, changed their shoes, and were just about to leave when Xie Ruhe suddenly came from the living room, holding a bag.
Shu Nian blinked: “What is it?”
He handed the bag to Shu Nian.
Shu Nian was slightly taken aback. Looking down, she realized it was the bag that Fang Wencheng had brought back earlier.
Xie Ruhe said: “For you.”
Shu Nian took it, somewhat confused: “What is it?”
The bag wasn’t small, and it felt quite heavy when lifted as if it contained many items. The opaque plastic bag made it impossible for her to guess what was inside.
Xie Ruhe didn’t hide it, honestly saying: “Cold medicine.”
“…”
Although Shu Nian had told him she had a cold recently, she couldn’t think of a reason why Xie Ruhe would suddenly give her a big bag of cold medicine. She could only regard it as his New Year’s gift to her.
Thinking about it, apart from buying a cake for Xie Ruhe today, she hadn’t given him a gift either.
Instead, the birthday boy had given her something.
Shu Nian felt a bit guilty and planned to make up for it with a belated birthday gift in a few days. After getting into the car, she hesitantly asked Fang Wencheng: “Is there anything Xie Ruhe wants?”
Fang Wencheng started the car: “Anything he wants?”
“Yes.”
“I haven’t heard him mention anything.” Fang Wencheng pondered hard for a while before quickly concluding, “The teacher doesn’t lack anything; if he wants something, he’ll buy it himself.”
“Ah.” Shu Nian scratched her head dejectedly, “Then if I were to buy him a gift, what would be appropriate?”
It happened to be a red light, and Fang Wencheng stopped the car, waving his hand at her.
“No need to buy anything, it’s unnecessary.”
“Is it not necessary…”
“Yeah.” Fang Wencheng said very seriously, “Previously on the teacher’s birthday, Old Mr. Ji said he wanted to buy him a house, but he refused. He doesn’t like receiving things from others.”