Chapter 22: Does He Know About My Illness?

Does Li Jingshen really love Shen Zhichu?

If he does, then why did he just stand there, cold as ice, when she knelt in the rain in front of everyone, throwing away all her pride?

But if he doesn't, why has he been here, keeping watch over Shen Zhichu for two days and nights without a wink of sleep?

The nurse shakes her head and says she doesn't know.

Li Jingshen stays silent, lost in his thoughts again, as if he wasn't the one who just asked the question.

The nurse wheels her cart out of the ICU. Around noon, Zhao Qian comes in with a stack of documents to report to Li Jingshen.

After going through them, Li Jingshen signs a few urgent papers and hands them back to Zhao Qian. Then he asks, "What's the situation with Shen Changnan?"

"We've submitted the evidence as you instructed. Shen Changnan is off the hook, at most he'll have to pay some fines," Zhao Qian says, scratching his head in confusion.

He doesn't get it. They went through all that trouble to put Shen Changnan behind bars, and now they're proving his innocence? What was the point of all that effort?

Zhao Qian has been with Li Jingshen for years and knows that the boss never makes a bad deal. He's ruthless in business, a real shark. If he can take someone to the cleaners, he won't leave them a dime.

Li Jingshen's eyes drop. "Alright, you can go."

Zhao Qian hesitates, then says, "Boss, Miss Xia has been trying to reach you. She called me since she couldn't get through to you. She's asking when you'll be back…"

"Don't worry about her. Keep an eye on Shen Changnan's case. Also, clean up any videos or news about Shen Zhichu kneeling in the rain," Li Jingshen orders.

"…Yes, sir." Zhao Qian didn't expect a simple question to cause so much hassle. He rubs his nose and quietly leaves.

Li Jingshen gets up and pours a cup of warm water. He takes a cotton swab, dips it in the water, and gently moistens Shen Zhichu's cracked lips.

He lets out a bitter smile. Not just Zhao Qian, sometimes even he can't figure himself out.

He was supposed to let Shen Changnan rot in jail, but now he's working to get him out. Why the change of heart?

Maybe he just doesn't want to upset Shen Zhichu, doesn't want to see the disappointment in her eyes.

She can't die. She has to live. She shares the same blood type as Xia Mingyue, and they have an agreement. If Xia Mingyue is in danger, he needs her…

Li Jingshen throws the cotton swab away and walks to the window. He cracks it open. After days of rain, the sun is finally shining. The sunlight streams in, casting a golden glow on her blanket.

Being indoors for so long, the sudden sunlight makes his eyes squint. He looks out and sees a rainbow.

He turns back to Shen Zhichu, who's still lying there with her eyes closed. "Shen Zhichu, it's sunny outside and there's a rainbow. When you wake up, I'll take you out to see it," he says softly, so softly he didn't realize it himself.

"Don't worry, everything you're worried about won't happen. The Shen family is fine, your dad won't die or go to jail, and I'm not going anywhere. I'll stay here with you."

Shen Zhichu's fingers twitch, and the machines by her bed start beeping.

Li Jingshen's heart skips a beat. He rushes over and grabs her hand, leaning in close to her face and calling her name.

Her eyelashes flutter, and her dark eyes slowly open, just a sliver…

The first thing Shen Zhichu sees as she opens her eyes is the white ceiling.

Her brain feels like scrambled eggs, and she can't focus. She stares at the ceiling for a while before she notices Li Jingshen standing by her bed.

She tries to speak but can't. She watches as he frantically presses the call button, shouts for help, and then comes back to her side, holding her hand and talking non-stop.

This side of Li Jingshen is foreign to her. For a moment, she thinks she's dreaming. But then she moves her hand and feels a sting from the IV needle. That's when she realizes this is real.

She frowns and looks at the IV needle in her hand, connected to a tube that's hooked to a bag of milky-white liquid dripping slowly.

Soon, Qin Mo arrives with two nurses and shoos Li Jingshen out of the room.

"Zhichu, are you in pain?" Qin Mo asks, noting that her vitals are stable.

She tries to speak but can't, so she shakes her head to tell him she's not in pain.

In reality, her body aches all over. Her hand is cold, her body feels weak, and her wounds throb. But she's used to hiding her pain, not wanting to worry those who care about her.

Qin Mo gently pats her head. "You've been out for 46 hours. It's normal that you can't talk. You can have a sip of water to moisten your throat."

She just had surgery and can't eat, so she has to rely on IV fluids.

Shen Zhichu nods.

Qin Mo gets a cup of water and helps her sit up a little to take a sip.

"Feeling better?"

"Better… a little better…" Her voice is hoarse, and it hurts to talk, like there's a thorn stuck in her throat.

Shen Zhichu's voice is so soft that everyone in the room goes quiet to hear her speak. The room becomes so silent you can hear her slightly heavy breathing. She turns her head towards the door and asks in a raspy voice, "Does he know about my illness?"