The next day, from the moment he opened his eyes, Xu Shiqi was waiting for Wen Jialuo's call.
Wen Jialuo said that the plane would arrive in the morning and he would contact her immediately after returning home and wanted to see her right away, so he asked her not to go anywhere and it would be best to twist the string of time into a ball and tighten it so that there would be no distance between them.
After receiving such a message, Xu Shiqi really couldn't do anything. Even if she wanted to visit a relative's house today, she found an excuse to refuse. She prepared the hat and gloves that Wen Jialuo bought, and she thought the girl would be happier to see them.
But time just passed by, and it was already past noon, but Wen Jialuo still hadn't called.
Could it be that they were reluctant to let him go and wanted him to stay for a few more days? Even so, the girl would definitely call to let him know. After eliminating this doubt, Xu Shiqi's heart was "uneasy". Was he delayed in returning? Even if he was delayed, he would not have not informed her, unless it was an emergency or directly related to the girl.
The more he thought about it, the more restless he became. Xu Shiqi paced around the room. Finally, he sat on the bed and nervously called the girl.
After the phone rang for a long time, when Xu Shiqi was about to give up and hang up, a familiar voice suddenly came from the other end.
"Hello… "
Xu Shiqi straightened his back and said hurriedly: "Jia Luo, Wen Jia Luo..."
"It's me!" Wen Jialuo's voice was slightly lowered, and he repeated soothingly, "It's me!"
"You..." Xu Shiqi heard a little noise on the other end of the phone, "You haven't come back yet?"
"I'm back."
Xu Shiqi was stunned.
"Grandma's blood pressure suddenly rose on the plane, so she went straight to the hospital as soon as she got off the plane." Wen Jialuo exhaled, and said in a very suppressed voice, "I'm sorry for not contacting you in time."
"What?" Xu Shiqi jumped up from the bed and lowered his voice, "How could this happen?"
"Hmm..." Wen Jialuo seemed to have walked to a quiet place, and the background noise disappeared, "I... may not be able to see you for a while."
"It's okay." Xu Shiqi said quickly, "Which hospital are you in?"
“…Are you coming?”
Xu Shiqi hesitated for a moment: "Is it not suitable?"
"... No." Wen Jialuo said, "The doctor said she needs to rest. Many of us have come and are about to leave. But I will stay here. If you come... come later, it will be quieter then."
"Okay." Xu Shiqi knew her feelings for the old lady and couldn't help but ask softly, "Are you okay?"
He took a few quiet breaths and then said slowly, "I'm fine, I just... missed you a lot."
The three words were spoken very softly and as flexible as silk. They wrapped around Xu Shiqi's heart, making it tighter and tighter during the waiting time.
After receiving Wen Jialuo's text message, Xu Shiqi rushed out and took a taxi straight to Lu General Hospital.
When she got to the hospital gate, she realized that her hands were empty. It didn't look like she was going to see a patient, and she felt guilty for a moment. The old lady was nice to her, and she shouldn't have been thinking only about that girl.
After buying a basket of fruit at the fruit shop outside the hospital, Xu Shiqi followed the ward that Wen Jialuo told him to go to. As soon as he arrived at this floor, he saw the girl standing against the wall with her head lowered. From the side, she seemed to be thinner. The hospital always gave people a cold feeling, and the corridor was even colder. The girl didn't even wear a coat, standing alone like a thin stone, which made people feel distressed no matter how they looked at her.
Hearing the footsteps, Wen Jialuo turned her head and saw Xu Shiqi, wearing a windbreaker, carrying a fruit basket with both hands with difficulty, watching her walk towards him without blinking.
Wen Jialuo walked over, took the fruit basket, and moved closer to her. The familiar face under the familiar hat was filled with undisguised worry.
"Did you dye your hair?" Wen Jialuo reached out and picked up a few strands of her curly hair that hung in front of her chest.
"Ah... yes." Xu Shiqi had many words to comfort her, but he didn't expect that she would notice her changes as soon as she opened her mouth. It is undeniable that he did her hair before the New Year with the intention of giving her a surprise. New year, new changes, starting from scratch is a good choice. He also touched his chestnut curly hair and asked nervously, "Do you still like it?"
"I like it." Wen Jialuo slightly raised her eyebrows, with a lot of worries in her eyes. She tilted her head, "Hmm... more feminine."
Xu Shiqi felt a little hot: "Thank you, how is grandma?"
"She's sleeping, just watch her, let's not disturb her." Wen Jialuo added, "If you want to do something in the future, like get a new hairstyle, let me accompany you."
"I know." Xu Shiqi said quickly, and then laughed, "I spent from the afternoon to the evening to do my hair. It must be very boring." She tried her best to eliminate the gloomy look on the girl's face.
"It doesn't matter. I will bear it with you no matter what happens." Wen Jialuo took her hand and squeezed it hard. Before she could react, he said, "Come on, go in."
This is a high-end ward with complete facilities. It actually looks like a hotel, except that the colors are more plain. It was warm as soon as I entered the room. The old man lying on the bed was sleeping with his eyes closed. Next to the bed sat Mr. Wen, who probably never knew what hunchback was.
You didn't tell me your grandfather was there too.
As soon as Xu Shiqi entered the room, he pulled his hand away and spoke with his eyes.
Unfortunately, Wen Jialuo was a little absent-minded and didn't see it. She put the fruit basket aside.
Mr. Wen turned his head and glanced at Xu Shiqi, who stood with his legs together, leaned towards him and nodded. "Happy New Year" didn't seem appropriate to say in this environment, and even a smile didn't fit. The old man's frown was so tight that it could really kill a fly.
The old man remembered who she was, and he didn't expect that the girl got the news so quickly and came to the hospital. He also raised his chin, and then turned back to look at the old lady on the bed.
The Wen family usually wants to gather together during the Chinese New Year. But this year, the two elders went to visit their roots, so the brothers spent the Chinese New Year apart for the first time. The eldest brother and his wife happened to be abroad for an academic seminar; the second brother and his family stayed in the old house; the third brother and his wife stayed in the province to celebrate the Chinese New Year.
Everyone knew that they were coming back today, so they were all waiting in the old house. However, what they got was the news that the old lady was about to faint on the plane, and everyone was immediately nervous.
Fortunately, the hospital received a notice before the old lady got off the plane and prepared a group of experts to drive to the tarmac in an ambulance. As soon as the old lady was lifted off, they began to rescue her. However, everyone was on high alert, and it turned out to be a false alarm. The old lady did not have high blood pressure and had no problems on the last flight. But there seemed to be no other explanation, just that her blood pressure suddenly rose to the point of dizziness and speechlessness because she was not used to the change in air pressure at high altitude. Fortunately, she recovered quickly, and after examination, there were no other complications.
When the old lady regained consciousness, she was already in the hospital. She rolled her eyes to look around the room and asked where Wen Yu was.
The boss hurriedly said that Wen Yu was still out of town, he had taken a fancy to a bar and was eager to buy it, and he was already on his way back.
The old lady seemed relieved that her grandson was not around, but also seemed even more tired. She just waved her hand and closed her mouth and said nothing. The old man understood her intention and sent the sons and daughters-in-law who were gathered in a circle back. The old lady raised her eyes and just glanced at her granddaughter. She naturally couldn't leave. When she was on the plane, she sat with the old lady. The only way to know why the old lady's blood pressure suddenly rose, apart from the external reason of high altitude air pressure, was to ask her.
The adults were relieved to see the old lady wake up. When they wanted to ask Wen Jialuo about what happened at that time, they had already been sent back home by the old man.
The old lady was sleeping peacefully, but suddenly, as if she had been stung, she frowned uncomfortably and slowly opened her eyes. She saw her granddaughter who had put the fruit basket, and seemed startled to see that she had woken up, and she couldn't help but feel pain all over her body. The old lady turned her eyes uncomfortably and saw her husband.
"Old man, you should go home too. Jia Luo stays here."
Mr. Wen continued to frown: "Why, is there anything you can't say in front of me?"
The old lady glared at him weakly: "You want to raise my blood pressure again, don't you?"
These words really worked. The old man curled his lips and looked at his granddaughter who was standing obediently beside him: "Take good care of your grandma, okay?"
"Got it." Wen Jialuo nodded, "You can go back and rest."
When the old man passed by Xu Shiqi, her heart almost stopped beating. Everything in front of her was clear at a glance, and she suddenly realized that there were only three people left in the ward: the old lady, her, and Wen Jialuo.
What was going on? The old lady didn't mention her name. Did she not notice her standing here yet, or did she deliberately want to keep her? As for why she wanted to keep her, the words the girl had said before she came in flashed through Xu Shiqi's mind like lightning.
That's right, Wen Jialuo and the others also took a plane when they returned, and they didn't hear that the old lady had any discomfort. Why did she suddenly develop high blood pressure? Was she suddenly hit by something, which caused it? What could it be...
Xu Shiqi looked at Wen Jialuo with pale lips. The girl's face had become calm and cold, as if she had already foreseen what would happen next.
"Hey, little girl Xu, when did you come?" The old lady's voice suddenly rang out, "I'm really old and blurry, I didn't see you."
Xu Shiqi suppressed the breath in her throat, and was surprised to find that a layer of cold sweat had appeared on her back just at that moment. Her mind was blank for a moment, and she completely forgot what actions to take and what words to say.
"Girl?" Seeing that she was just standing there looking at her stupidly, the old lady had no choice but to say to her little granddaughter, "It's New Year's Day, tell them what to do and ask them to come to the hospital."
Wen Jialuo also stood there like a fool. She originally just wanted to bring Xu Shiqi to see her, because she knew that woman would be restless if she didn't. Unexpectedly, grandma woke up again just after she fell asleep. When she found that there were only three people in the ward, she almost thought that grandma had figured it out. Then, shouldn't it be time to lay it out? Her knees were soft at this moment, and she was actually ready to bear the guilt. As long as the old lady opened her mouth, she would kneel down, whether she was beaten or scolded, she couldn't escape today anyway.
She had chosen the worst time to say what she wanted to say the most. She thought at the time that there would be at least some certainty and hope. She didn't expect that her grandmother gave her an illusion that it was real, and she got this result.
In fact, before boarding the plane today, Wen Jialuo had no intention of telling her grandmother about her and Xu Shiqi.
But maybe the words were too hard to hide in his heart, and he missed that woman too desperately, so once there was a tiny crack, the flood would rush out and break the embankment.
This crack seems to have been caused by the old lady.
In the first class cabin, the old lady sat next to Wen Jialuo. The old man sat on the other side of the aisle. He never liked flying. As soon as he got on the plane, he put on his headphones and slept on the sofa.
There was a huge roar when the plane took off. Once the noise died down, the old lady began to chat with Wen Jialuo.
"Jia Luo, what are your plans after you return?"
Wen Jialuo was confused: "It will be almost time to go to work when we get back."
"Your class is boring." The old lady shook her head. "I don't think you like that job. You just want to find a stable job to kill time."
The old lady guessed correctly, but Wen Jialuo would not say it out loud: "If I don't like it, I won't bother to take the exam."
"Since you like this kind of plain life, why do you choose to live alone?" The old lady sighed, "After this trip, you can guess what your mother said to me before she left. Parents are so pitiful, you have to understand them."
"Yeah." Wen Jialuo's nose was slightly sour. If she had heard this before, it would only make her more determined. It was because she was too considerate that she didn't want to drive her innocent and simple mother crazy. Now, she was trapped in the choice of whether to say it or not, and she felt it was even more difficult.
Sure enough, if there is only one road, it doesn’t matter if you walk until dark; but once there are two roads, you will wander endlessly.
"Jia Luo, I actually think..." The old lady suddenly said cautiously, "Are you in love with someone now?"
Wen Jialuo was stunned, and turned to look at her, her movements were stiff.
The old lady thought that she had guessed it right. She decided to continue testing her granddaughter and try to open her heart as much as possible when the journey was about to end: "You see, you are actually a little different recently than before. You seem to be more energetic. And although you don't say it, you are eager to go back, right? I haven't seen you always holding your phone to make calls or send text messages before. Is there someone you are worried about?"
Wen Jialuo felt like she was in deep water and fire. Her grandmother had eaten more salt than she had walked, what kind of life experience was that. They were together all day these days, and of course her every move was in the eyes of the old lady. She must not say... But how should she answer her grandmother's words now
While she was struggling, the old lady added a handful of firewood to the stove: "But you didn't say it, so it's not going well? Otherwise, I believe you will tell grandma, which is a good thing, right? Can I guess this way?" The old lady slowed down and said softly, "Grandma doesn't know whether what you said before still counts. Sometimes I think about it and can't guess whether it is true or not. But at that time, I thought you must have fallen in love with someone you shouldn't like, and there were many obstacles preventing you from being together. You felt that you couldn't overcome it at all, so you didn't say it."
"The children of the Wen family are all smart. You all know what you should and shouldn't do, what you can and can't do, and you have enough self-control. Since you have denied it yourself, there is no need for me to say anything." The old lady sighed, "Even if you hurt yourself, that is your choice. But recently I see that you seem to be in love, but you still don't say anything. I don't know whether you have walked out of the previous relationship or picked it up again. If you have a new relationship, you don't say it now, maybe the time is not right, then grandma will quietly wait for the day when you bring that person to her. But if you still like the person before, and you get back together..." The old lady slowed down her tone and said slowly, "I changed my mind. Life is short, why should you embarrass yourself? True temperament is the most difficult thing to find. You have given up once, and if it appears again, it is a destined fate. Jialuo, if it is what you want, go for it. Don't care what others think. You have to be happy."
"Don't worry, grandma will be your solid backup."
The old lady's voice was soft, but powerful.