Chapter 687 - 460: Little Ningning Wants to Go to the Bathroom

"I can’t," Wan said, shaking her head. "I only have today off. I have to work tomorrow. That’s the life of a corporate drone..."

She seemed utterly resigned, and her expression darkened considerably.

"Alright, that’s all for now. I’ve covered everything I needed to. Once it’s all completely sorted out, I’ll send you the list," Lawyer Gu said suddenly.

"That would be wonderful. I’ll have Chen see you out." Jiang Ning looked at Lawyer Gu, her eyes filled with gratitude.

"No, that’s not necessary."

Declining the kind offer, Lawyer Gu and the short-haired woman with her picked up their bags and left.

That left Wan, with whom they were more familiar.

Chen Yuan immediately felt more at ease. After all, Wan was an ally he had won over. In contrast, that Lawyer Gu woman’s stare had made him quite uncomfortable.

He knew she didn’t mean any harm, though. She was probably just looking out for Jiang Ning.

"I just finished the paperwork for a hospital transfer," Chen Yuan said, waving the forms in his hand. "We’ll pack up in a bit and move to another hospital."

"Huh? Why?" Jiang Yao asked, not quite understanding.

"I asked the doctor last night. This place isn’t very specialized in scar treatment. Plus, their medical staff is stretched thin, so they can’t provide round-the-clock care. I looked into another private hospital... and besides, it’s a little cramped here."

He had a point.

Even though it was a premium ward, the entire room could barely fit three or four beds, and the bathroom was tiny.

A private hospital would have better facilities. They really should go.

After all, what girl doesn’t care about her looks? It would be best if they didn’t have to be scarred, of course.

Chen Yuan didn’t want Ningning’s arm or Yaoyao’s foot to be left with an ugly scar. It filled him with a deep sense of guilt, as if he had failed to protect them.

"I don’t want to stay in the hospital. It’d be so much better to go home." Jiang Yao flopped back onto the bed dejectedly, her lips forming a slight pout.

"You should go," Wan chimed in, trying to persuade her. "Good hospitals even have dedicated staff in charge of meal plans. I’ve heard that if you’re not careful about what you eat, the scars can turn out darker."

"Wan’s right," Chen Yuan said, nodding quickly.

"So, at a private hospital, are the rules restricting patients’ freedom less strict?" Jiang Ning suddenly asked.

Chen Yuan just shrugged in response to her question.

He knew Ningning couldn’t stop worrying about things at the company and wanted to go supervise in person, which was why she was asking.

"We’ll find out when we get there."

"I don’t wanna get out of bed!" Jiang Yao rolled over and covered her face with a pillow in protest.

"That hospital is way more fun than this place. They have everything. Didn’t you say you were bored here?" Chen Yuan moved closer to Yaoyao’s bed and gave her shoulder a gentle nudge. "I’m not kidding, it’s true."

"What’s the point of it being fun if there’s no one to keep me company? My sister was busy with other things all morning, and I was just sitting here staring at my phone..."

"But you have me."

"You?" Jiang Yao scoffed. "Easy for you to say. You didn’t even reply to a single message all morning. What, are you trying to play the part of the super-thoughtful, warmhearted boyfriend now?"

"..." Chen Yuan scratched his head in embarrassment. "I promise, I won’t go anywhere this afternoon. I’ll stay right here with you two, at your beck and call."

"You’re the one who said it. I didn’t force you, you know."

"Completely voluntary."

"Then carry me. I don’t want to use the wheelchair."

"But if you don’t use the wheelchair, how are we supposed to get to the parking garage?" Chen Yuan was momentarily stunned.

"Carry me there. Is that so hard?"

She had an expression that said it was the most natural thing in the world, blinking her big, sparkling eyes as if to question whether Chen Yuan was even willing.

An image flashed through Chen Yuan’s mind: him, princess-carrying Jiang Yao, enduring the stares of everyone in the hospital corridor, downstairs, and in the parking garage, walking step by step... Okay, yeah, that picture was indeed a bit mortifying.

After taking a moment to mentally prepare himself, Chen Yuan agreed.

"It’s not hard. What’s so hard about it? I’m a grown man. Forget carrying you downstairs to the parking garage—I could carry you through a marathon without breaking a sweat," he said, waving his hand with a show of nonchalance.

"Oh, that impressive?" Jiang Yao said, trying to suppress a smile.

A marathon was impossible. Jiang Yao was 1.7 meters tall; she wasn’t some petite lolita he could just throw over his shoulder and run with effortlessly.

This was, in a way, one of Chen Yuan’s standards for a partner: he didn’t like short women.

In a sense, his relationship with Ningning and Yaoyao truly was a match made in heaven.

"Then wait until my IV drip is finished," Jiang Ning said to Chen Yuan, looking down at the needle in the back of her pale hand. "I asked the nurse just now. She said it would be at least another half hour."

"Does your hand still hurt?"

"It’s okay. Just a little swollen."

She tried to push up the sleeve of her hospital gown on her other arm, but a slight movement reminded her that her hand was hooked up to the IV, so she looked at Chen Yuan.

He took the hint and helped roll up Ningning’s sleeve.

Instantly, the arm that was once as fair and slender as a lotus root was now swollen like a giant daikon radish.

"Can we put some ice on it?" he asked, his heart aching for her.

"The doctor said not to."

"Okay. It should get better after the surgery."

Chen Yuan studied Ningning’s arm for a moment before his gaze shifted to her face. Their eyes met. Ningning blinked and, slightly shy, turned her face away to avoid holding his gaze for too long.

It wasn’t that she was overly shy.

It was just that whenever their eyes met, her gaze couldn’t help but drift from his face to his lips.

And then she would remember that night with her sister, when they were testing their... ’acceptance level.’

Ew~

"Are you a little cold? Why do you have goosebumps?" Chen Yuan asked, rather puzzled.

"N-No, it’s nothing."

After making the trip over, Wan could see that the two sisters didn’t have any major problems. Yaoyao, in particular, was still in good spirits, even if she couldn’t jump around like usual.

And so, Wan had nothing left to worry about.

She suddenly felt like she was a bit of a third wheel.

"Um... It’s about time. I have to go catch my flight," she said abruptly.

"Huh?" Jiang Yao frowned. "You’re really leaving?"

"Wan, we feel so bad for making you go through all this trouble. Why don’t you stay the night here? Chen Yuan can take you tomorrow morning; he’s heading to Linzhou anyway," Jiang Ning added, trying to persuade her.

"Yeah, we can go together tomorrow morning."

"But how long would the drive be? We probably wouldn’t get there until almost noon," Wan said, looking troubled.

"No, we’re taking an early morning flight. The driver will take us to the airport."

"But I checked. There are no flights tomorrow morning." Wan took out her phone and scrolled through it, confused. She was sure she had checked several times when she was planning her trip over.

"Uh... It’s a private jet. You don’t need to check the flight schedule," Chen Yuan said, scratching his head.

Wan: "..."

But they couldn’t change Wan’s mind. Perhaps she felt that all the back-and-forth was too much trouble and that staying the night was completely unnecessary. In the end, she was determined to leave.

Chen Yuan could only arrange for someone to take her to the airport; it wouldn’t be right to insist she stay.

...

When Chen Yuan returned to the hospital room after seeing Wan off, he was surprised to find Jiang Ning staring at him. He grew a little confused.

"What is it? Is there something on my face?"

"No, I want to... um..." Jiang Ning’s cheeks were flushed red, as if she had applied rouge, and her gaze was unfocused.

"What?" Chen Yuan’s eyes went wide. "Which ’um’?"

He looked at Jiang Yao, then back at Ningning.

"I... I need to use the bathroom. Can you help me?" Jiang Ning said with difficulty, biting her lip.

She had been holding it all morning and hadn’t gone to the bathroom once.

The fluid from the IV drip still had to come out eventually.

The day before, she had asked a nurse to help her go to the bathroom, but it ended up being quite awkward. Jiang Ning didn’t like that feeling, even with another woman. She’d rather ask Chen Yuan than a nurse.

"You scared me for a second. So that’s what you meant."

As he spoke, Chen Yuan quickly walked to her side, lifted the IV bag off its stand, and supported her with his other hand.

"It’s fine, you don’t need to support me," Ningning said, her eyes lowered, hiding her expression. "In a minute... you’ll have to help me pull down my pants."

Chen Yuan swallowed hard.

"I understand."

He pulled open the bathroom door and followed closely behind Jiang Ning, taking in the sweet fragrance of her hair. To say he wasn’t nervous would be an understatement.

「A moment later.」

Jiang Ning turned around, her face as red as an apple, and stood there meekly.

"O... Okay, you can... you can pull them down now."

"You got it."

Chen Yuan briskly reached out his hands.

However, before he could pull them down, Jiang Ning jerked back so hard she almost fell, her beautiful eyes wide as she exclaimed:

"Close your eyes!"

"I have to close my eyes?"

"Well, duh..."

"We’re boyfriend and girlfriend, what’s the big deal?" Chen Yuan muttered, but he obediently closed his eyes and went by feel.

He felt a silky smoothness at his fingertips, a texture like touching the finest white jade.

Then, Jiang Ning said, "Okay," and only then did he raise the IV bag high and straighten up.

"SPLASH..."

The clear sound of flowing water followed.