Chapter 194: Unexpected Event

The sun set in the west, casting a blood-red glow over the city.

The window in Ye Xingmian’s bedroom was open, and the sunlight lay peacefully on the desk, illuminating the test papers on its surface. It wasn’t glaring, but rather warm, yet it brought an inexplicable sense of fatigue.

“Do you understand this problem?”

Liu Yinuo pointed at an equation with her pen and asked.

“…Mm.”

Ye Xingmian nodded, half-understanding.

Seeing her like that, Liu Yinuo figured she probably hadn’t grasped it.

She couldn’t help but press her hand to her forehead.

Strange. When she tutored her that afternoon, she was pretty sharp—not stupid at all. So why was she so dull today?

She couldn’t figure it out. Was she in bad shape? Or was there something special about Ye Xingmian that day? Or were these two problems just inherently difficult to understand? That shouldn’t be the case.

“These are all basic problems. You just need to apply the formulas. Why don’t you get it?”

She was getting a bit irritated herself, her tone rising.

“Sorry…”

Ye Xingmian bowed her head in apology.

“You…”

Liu Yinuo sighed.

“Forget it.”

“Sorry, Yinuo. I’m too stupid.”

“Don’t say sorry or not sorry. You’re tired too, right? Let’s stop here for today.”

“…Okay.”

Ye Xingmian nodded obediently.

Liu Yinuo packed up the books. After all, the other girl had been busy tutoring her all day, so it was only natural for her to handle this small task. Since these were Liu Yinuo’s books, she naturally helped Liu Yinuo tidy them up.

Liu Yinuo stood beside her, watching. Ye Xingmian could faintly sense a hint of dissatisfaction in Liu Yinuo’s gaze. This made her feel a little down, but she didn’t show it.

After putting away her schoolbag, she forced a smile.

“Um… Yinuo, are you hungry? I’ll cook for you.”

“Okay.”

Liu Yinuo nodded.

So they left the room. Liu Yinuo sat on the sofa scrolling through her phone, and Ye Xingmian was about to head into the kitchen when suddenly everything went black.

She quickly steadied herself against the wall, nearly losing consciousness. It took a while before she recovered.

Her body… so heavy.

Strange… What’s wrong with me? I took my medicine, so is the fever still not gone? Or do I need to take something like antibiotics?

But since I’m fine now, I’ll just keep cooking.

It felt like she had been standing by the wall for ages. Ye Xingmian secretly glanced toward Liu Yinuo.

Luckily, she hadn’t noticed anything was off.

After all, she was already exhausted and had done so much for her today. Cooking was something she’d volunteered to do. If she couldn’t even manage that, what use was she?

She staggered into the kitchen.

***

On the other side, Liu Yinuo was still thinking: isn’t this progress a bit too slow? At this rate, could she really get Ye Xingmian to catch up to her grades before the Gaokao?

After mulling it over for a while, her conclusion was:

Doubtful.

No, I can’t lose heart. I have to work hard. Otherwise, we’ll end up separated, right?

She couldn’t tolerate that happening.

But as time passed, she gradually began to feel something was off.

Wasn’t Ye Xingmian cooking? Why hadn’t she heard the sound of the stove lighting after so long? Or any noise of food being prepped?

At first, she was just a little suspicious. But soon, she heard a sudden noise from the kitchen.

Clang!

It sounded like a knife hitting the floor.

Her heart lurched. She quickly stood up and ran to the kitchen.

What she saw shocked her deeply.

Ye Xingmian had collapsed on the floor, seemingly unconscious.

Her hand had apparently been holding a kitchen knife, which now lay on the ground. Thankfully, it hadn’t hurt her.

“Xingmian? Xingmian?!”

She ran over, lifting Ye Xingmian’s upper body, calling her name twice. No response.

What happened?

Holding her breath, she touched Ye Xingmian’s forehead with her hand.

So hot!

She’s running a fever again? When did this happen?

The bruise on the girl’s neck hadn’t faded, standing out sharply.

Anxious, she called her mother. After all, she was still just a child; faced with such an emergency, she lost her sense of direction.

Her voice trembled with fear.

“Mom! Ye… Ye Xingmian! She suddenly fainted!”

It sounded like someone was talking.

But it also seemed far away, hard to make out.

There was some surrounding noise—many people talking.

A dream…?

What’s… wrong with me?

Her eyelids felt heavy as lead, sore and astringent, completely unable to open.

In her daze, Ye Xingmian seemed to see someone.

That person was…

“Mom?”

Had she heard her call?

The “Mom” in the dream turned back and smiled at her, then walked away without looking back.

The figure of “Mom” grew smaller and smaller, fainter and fainter.

Panicked, she reached out.

“No… don’t go…”

“Don’t leave…”

“No… leave… you…”

Suddenly, light flooded her vision.

At some point, her eyes could open.

Harsh light stabbed into her pupils, painful.

She squinted painfully, peering at her surroundings through her fingers.

A white ceiling, and a pungent smell of disinfectant lingering at the tip of her nose.

Where am I…?

Was that just a dream?

As I thought…

Mom…

Well, I’ve never actually met her…

But…

Her body ached, sore, as if crushed by a car. Every movement brought a sharp pain.

“Awake?”

Who spoke?

Ye Xingmian turned her head through the pain and saw the person. Her pupils contracted.

“Class Monitor…?”

It seemed she had accidentally used the more familiar title.

Liu Yinuo appeared to have been standing there for a while. She held a plate with some fruit on it. At this moment, she was looking at Ye Xingmian with a complicated expression.

“What… happened to me?”

Ye Xingmian tried to sit up, but a strange sensation came from the back of her left hand.

She looked down and saw that she was receiving an IV drip.

Her eyes immediately dimmed.

“You suddenly fainted while cooking. This is the hospital. You’re on an IV now. Don’t move too much.”

Hospital?

Fainted?

Why…

Countless questions popped into her mind, but Ye Xingmian’s first reaction was still to apologize.

“S-Sorry… for causing you trouble again.”

She belatedly realized she might have said the wrong thing, but this time Liu Yinuo didn’t scold her. She just sat silently in the chair by the bedside.

“It’s my fault you fainted too. I was too impatient. You had a high fever. The doctor said your body isn’t in good shape, plus you have hypoglycemia. Fainting isn’t your fault—it’s mine.”

“Huh?”

Seeing Liu Yinuo become so dejected, Ye Xingmian inexplicably felt anxious, but didn’t know what to say.

“Maybe… forcing you to study with me was wrong from the start…”

“No… no, h-how could it be?”

Ye Xingmian shook her head, desperately wanting to say something.

But the sound of footsteps outside the door stopped her.

The arrivals were Liu Yinuo’s mother and a nurse coming to change the IV bag.