Chapter 145: Can’t Hold On Anymore

In reality, the rice porridge had only cooled on the surface and didn’t need reheating. Su Yuqing was just so worried about Chen Mo that she felt the need to do everything perfectly for him.

Since Chen Mo asked to eat something cool, Su Yuqing didn’t insist.

After carefully feeding the rest of the meal to Chen Mo, Su Yuqing took a tissue and gently wiped the rice porridge from the corners of his mouth.

After eating, Chen Mo felt the cold wind blowing in from the window and had the sense that he was feeling much better.

He wasn’t sure if it was just an illusion created by the cool air on his feverish body, or if he was genuinely recovering.

He just sat there quietly, propped up against the headboard.

After washing the dishes, Su Yuqing returned to the room, sat in the small chair by Chen Mo’s bed, and continued to keep him company.

However, knowing Chen Mo’s throat was sore, Su Yuqing didn’t try to start a conversation. Instead, she quietly worked on some practice questions beside him.

Seeing this, Chen Mo turned onto his side, propped his cheek on his hand, and quietly watched her.

Su Yuqing’s grades were currently about average, so she was still making a fair number of mistakes on the problems.

When Chen Mo saw one, he would simply point to it without saying a word.

The moment Su Yuqing saw Chen Mo point, she realized her mistake. The tip of her pen glided across the scratch paper, making a soft rustling sound as she worked hard to correct her error.

In that moment, time itself seemed to stand still.

Outside, sycamore leaves were lifted by the wind before fluttering down again, casting fragmented, wavering shadows on the windowpane. It was a picture of perfect, quiet years.

She would occasionally bite her lower lip as she pondered a problem, her brow furrowing deeper whenever Chen Mo’s finger tapped gently on the page.

Chen Mo’s fingertip slid silently across the workbook, tapping gently on the inflection point of a function’s graph.

A faint blush crept up the tips of Su Yuqing’s ears. She hurriedly covered the wrong answer with correction tape. Amidst the soft whir of the roller on the paper, she could only sense the faint, youthful scent from Chen Mo mingling with the warmth radiating from his body due to his fever.

It made her own body temperature rise in response.

Doing practice problems alone was usually a lonely, boring affair. But with someone keeping her company, Su Yuqing suddenly felt that even studying could be a wonderful experience.

A short while later, Chen Mo saw another of Su Yuqing’s mistakes. With a faint smile, he suddenly pulled her notebook closer as his fountain pen left a trail of ink on the pale page.

Su Yuqing watched his knuckles, flushed red from the fever, as they gripped the pen. Chen Mo’s Adam’s apple bobbed, and suddenly the nib began to race across the paper, the steps for differentiating the function flowing quickly from his pen.

’So that’s it, I have to use substitution...’ Su Yuqing nodded in understanding as she took back the notebook and pen, then refocused on her work.

She kept writing, but soon came across a problem that seemed ambiguous. Just as she turned to ask Chen Mo about it, she found that he had fallen asleep, his head tilted against the pillow, his palm still propping up his flushed cheek.

Holding her breath, she gently adjusted his seemingly uncomfortable position. The instant her fingers touched his palm, his own fingertips curled unconsciously.

Su Yuqing immediately moved even more gently, carefully laying his head flat on the pillow so he could sleep more comfortably.

Chen Mo’s sleeping face was nestled in the goose-down pillow, his flushed cheeks pressed against the cool, silky pillowcase. For the moment, there was no sign he had been disturbed.

Only then did she sit back down in her chair and resume her studies.

In what felt like a blink of an eye, the sky began to grow dark.

Su Yuqing glanced at the sky outside, then got up to close the window and draw the curtains.

The room had grown dim, but to avoid disturbing Chen Mo, Su Yuqing didn’t turn on the lights. After finishing, she tiptoed back to his bedside. As she sat down in the small chair, she finally felt a wave of exhaustion wash over her.

She subconsciously folded her arms on the edge of Chen Mo’s bed, rested her head on them, and groggily drifted off to sleep.

「Late into the night.」

Having slept so much during the day, Chen Mo found himself wide awake in the middle of the night.

He woke to a pitch-black room and immediately switched on the lamp.

Only then did he notice the quiet figure sleeping beside him.

Seeing Su Yuqing slumped over as she slept, Chen Mo was tempted to wake her and tell her to go sleep properly in her own room, but he was afraid of disturbing her sweet dreams.

Resigned, he could only get up quietly, find a warm blanket in the living room, and carefully drape it over Su Yuqing. Only then did he take stock of his own condition.

After the entire day, it seemed his condition hadn’t improved much.

’Looks like I have no choice but to go to the hospital.’

Chen Mo felt his forehead with the back of his hand and sighed in resignation.

Glancing at Su Yuqing, Chen Mo weighed his options. ’Should I leave Yuqing here by herself and sneak off to the hospital, or should I take her with me?’

’This house isn’t an impenetrable fortress, but it’s close,’ he thought. ’It’s filled with security cameras, and all the doors and windows are burglar-proof.’

’Yuqing would probably be safer if she stayed here.’

’Besides, I’m sick right now. Even if I brought her along, it’s questionable whether I could protect her if any real danger arose.’

With that, Chen Mo decided to leave Su Yuqing at home alone and go to the hospital himself.

If he wasn’t better by tomorrow, Yuqing would have to go to school by herself, and he didn’t dare let her travel alone.

Chen Mo quietly changed out of his pajamas and into a set of casual clothes. He left a note for Su Yuqing, then secretly slipped out of the house.

’I hope she sleeps until I get back,’ Chen Mo prayed silently.

The moment he stepped outside, Chen Mo’s expression darkened. It was as if the weather itself was conspiring against him.

He already had a cold and a fever, and now, just as he was about to leave, a light, drizzling rain began to fall.

With no other choice, Chen Mo put on his least favorite raincoat and headed out.

After all, his condition didn’t allow him the luxury of being stubborn.

On his way to the hospital, Chen Mo remembered to text Blade, asking him to keep watch over the house—and more importantly, to ensure Su Yuqing’s safety.

Blade’s original assignment had been to protect Chen Mo.

This sudden request put Blade in a difficult position.

But after Chen Mo’s earnest request, he ultimately agreed to stay behind and watch over Su Yuqing.

After receiving the confirmation text, Chen Mo finally felt a sense of relief and quickened his pace toward the hospital.

Back at the house, Su Yuqing was still fast asleep.

Although it might have seemed like she hadn’t done much all day besides cook two meals, she had, in fact, worried herself sick over Chen Mo’s illness and was mentally and physically exhausted.

Since the morning, she had been constantly researching how to make someone with a cold and fever more comfortable and what the best ways to care for them were. She had poured all her heart and effort into making sure Chen Mo was as comfortable as possible while he was sick.