Chapter 73: Lin Li

Lu Weizhu stood in place, gently stroking the top of Lu Weiyu’s head as her gaze shifted toward another hospital bed not far away.

The figure at the bedside grew more familiar the longer she looked. Had they met somewhere before?

Pushing aside unnecessary thoughts for now, Lu Weizhu focused her attention on her younger sister in front of her.

“I like being pretty too. Isn’t it normal to dress up?”

Lu Weizhu blinked.

In fact, she didn’t care about beauty at all—dressing up was merely a way to hide her own filth.

Whenever she thought of her relationship with those two patrons, Lu Weizhu became even more reluctant to face her feelings for Bai Yun, and even less willing to let Lu Weiyu know her true self.

“So, was big sister abnormal before?”

“Mm… It’s just that I didn’t feel like it before.”

Lu Weizhu shook her head.

“By the way, big sister, your voice sounds so weird.”

Lu Weiyu let go, spreading her arms and lazily lying back on the hospital bed. The girl’s lively spirit was obvious in her every movement.

Staring at the ceiling, a darker thought crossed Lu Weiyu’s mind.

Last night, her sister hadn’t been by her side, had gone out with Bai Yun, and this morning came back hoarse. What had they done?

Lu Weiyu didn’t want to think too much about it.

“Well, the AC in the rental was turned down too low. I caught a bit of a cold.”

Lu Weizhu scratched her forehead.

She was getting better and better at lying the more she did it.

“Oh.”

Lu Weiyu nodded.

“Yesterday, did you have fun with Sister Yun?”

Lu Weiyu suddenly sat up, her legs dangling and swinging.

“Ah, it was fine, I guess. Walked around with her, ate some barbecue, then came back.”

Lu Weiyu sat down in the chair.

She hadn’t actually been happy last night.

“You two…”

“Weiyu.”

Lu Weizhu cut her off.

“What is it?”

“I have some good news about you.”

Lu Weizhu remembered what Bai Yun had told her the night before.

“About me?”

Lu Weiyu clutched the bedsheet, suddenly nervous.

Was it about her illness?

“If you stay in the hospital for another six months to a year, you’ll be able to leave.”

At last, a faint smile appeared on Lu Weizhu’s face. “Sorry… Weiyu, I’m just too useless. It took me this long to get you your first surgery. If I’d been more capable, maybe you could have left here and gone back to school sooner.”

When her words ended, Lu Weiyu stared dazedly at her sister.

“Really, I can get better?”

Lu Weiyu could hardly believe it. Honestly, after so long, she’d given up on the idea of being cured.

“Mm, of course. I wouldn’t lie to you.”

Maybe.

As she said this, Lu Weizhu couldn’t help but feel a little guilty.

How many times had she lied to Lu Weiyu? She couldn’t even remember anymore.

Lu Weiyu opened her mouth, the lively mask slipping away, the usual smile on her face vanishing.

Upon learning that she might live, of course she was happy. She could stay by Lu Weizhu’s side for many more years. But as she felt that happiness, a pang of regret crept in—had she been too hasty in trying to match Bai Yun and Lu Weizhu together?

All kinds of feelings were hidden under her calm surface as Lu Weiyu sat up straight, needing a little time to process it all.

Seeing the change in Lu Weiyu’s expression, Lu Weizhu knew she needed time to digest the news, so she left her alone.

Lu Weizhu’s gaze shifted once again toward the other hospital bed. The orange-yellow figure was still crouched at the bedside, unmoving. The more she looked, the more familiar she seemed. Who was she?

Lu Weizhu walked over to the bed, standing at the foot.

On the bed, a middle-aged woman in a patient’s gown lay quietly, short black hair streaked with plenty of white.

A bag of medicine and a yellow helmet sat atop the nightstand.

By the bed, a girl in yellow squatted, her long pale yellow hair messy and unkempt.

The girl squatted there, hands on the bed, head tilted, eyes closed, heavy dark circles under her eyes.

Lu Weizhu stared for a while before realizing—this was the delivery worker she’d seen many times. Hmm… This delivery girl had even seen her at her most disheveled.

Lu Weizhu pressed her lips together. Such an unexpected meeting—she wasn’t exactly pleased. She wondered if the delivery girl would tell Lu Weiyu anything embarrassing about her.

“She probably doesn’t have the time to say anything, right?”

Lu Weizhu muttered to herself.

She thought, a delivery girl meets so many people every day. Maybe she’d already forgotten all about her.

As Lu Weizhu pondered, the girl’s shoulders twitched. She opened her eyes.

In her brown eyes was a deep exhaustion. Compared to Lu Weizhu, the delivery girl wasn’t as pretty—but not ugly, just ordinary.

Her face was slim and long, with a rounded chin and small brown eyes.

JF

She grunted, not fully awake, and after a long moment, the delivery girl raised her head. She shook it, her hair following the movement.

Staggering to her feet, the delivery girl grabbed the helmet from the nightstand. Just as she was about to put it on, she noticed Lu Weizhu standing there.

“Hello.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Lu Weizhu greeted her.

“My name’s Lu Weizhu. My little sister is also staying in this room, so… please take care of us.”

Thinking about how their loved ones were in the same hospital room, Lu Weizhu tried her best to show basic politeness.

“…My name’s Lin Li. I remember we’ve met a few times. Pretty coincidental, huh?”

Unexpectedly, the delivery girl remembered Lu Weizhu.

Lin Li nodded at Lu Weizhu and put on her helmet.

The first time she’d seen Lu Weizhu, Lin Li had guessed her line of work from her disheveled clothes. Now, hearing Lu Weizhu’s hoarse voice, Lin Li could roughly guess what the girl had done yesterday.

She glanced at the other girl in the bed—her sister was also hospitalized. Thinking of that, her profession didn’t seem so hard to accept after all.

Even knowing what Lu Weizhu did, Lin Li didn’t dislike her. Maybe because they each had their own difficulties?

When she’d brought her mother here, the doctor had mentioned that someone else in this room had cancer.

“Ha ha…”

Lu Weizhu gave a slightly awkward laugh—she hadn’t expected to be remembered.

Her worries only deepened inside. “That’s my mother. She’s very quiet. Don’t worry about her being disturbed.”

Pointing to the middle-aged woman on the bed, Lin Li fastened her helmet strap and took out her phone to check the time.

“Mm, okay…”

Lu Weizhu glanced once more at the woman in the bed. She wanted to ask about her condition, but before the question left her lips, she swallowed it back. They weren’t that familiar—asking too much would just be annoying.

Standing there, Lu Weizhu watched Lin Li adjust her helmet and straighten her clothes.

Lin Li glanced at Lu Weizhu but said nothing as she walked to the door of the hospital room.

Lu Weizhu sensibly stepped aside.

“She’s probably going to work, huh.”

Being a delivery worker wasn’t easy. It was exhausting, really exhausting.

Lin Li’s heavy dark circles flashed through her mind, making Lu Weizhu’s mood sink a little.

Before she met Bai Lu, her own state had been much the same as Lin Li’s.