Power and Wealth

The next morning.

Orthopedic inpatient ward.

The morning sky had just brightened up. It was the start of Autumn and the morning air was fresh. The nurse conducted her morning rounds and woke Dong Xuebing. He yawned and greeted the old man, with a fractured leg, in the same ward. Dong Xuebing slowly makes his way down his bed and poured himself a cup of warm water. He wore his slippers and was about to ask the nurse at the nurses’ station on what other checks he had today when his iPhone 4 rang. It was Qu Yunxuan’s number.

Dong Xuebing cleared his throat and swiped the screen to answer: “Hello?”

“Xiao Bing, where are you? How come you did not return home last night?”

Dong Xuebing was afraid Qu Yunxuan would be worried and did not want to let her see him lying in bed so pathetically. So, he did not inform her and his hospitalization. He called her yesterday and told her that he will be having dinner with his colleagues. “Ah…… We had dinner until quite late yesterday, and I stayed over at my colleague’s place. I had just wake up and is preparing to go to work now.” When he finishes this sentence, a nurse walked in with a few small plastic containers and shouted. “The medicine is here. Take it half an hour after breakfast.”

“What medicine?” Qu Yunxuan asked nervously. “Xiao Bing, where are you?”

Dong Xuebing stuttered: “Nothing…… nothing…… It’s the television.”

“You think I am stupid? Hurry up and tell me the truth!”

Dong Xuebing’s lies were exposed, and he could only tell her the truth. “Errr…… I am at Jiangong Hospital. It’s like this……. Yesterday there was a fire at my workplace, and there were some important documents in the office. I ran in to retrieve the documents and suffered some minor burns. It is not very serious. I will be discharged in one or two days. You don’t need to visit me. I am fine.”

“……”

“Aunt Xuan? What’s wrong? Why are you keeping silent?”

“……”

“Errrm…… I didn’t mean to lie to you.”

“Dooo…… dooo…… dooo……” The line was cut.

Dong Xuebing was sweating nervously. Was Aunt Xuan angry with him?

Dong Xuebing tried to call Qu Yunxuan again, but she did not pick up his calls.

Breakfast was ready, and Dong Xuebing kept his phone. He took out a 10 RMB food ticket bought by Zhuang Zhi yesterday and paid the lady pushing the food cart. After getting his breakfast, he slowly peeled the shells of an egg with one hand. He spent a long time removing the shell. The nurses in the hospital will not care for the patients other than doing their jobs of changing the drips, changing oxygen tanks, taking temperature, etc. They will not do anything extra for the patients. If you need someone to feed you, you will need to hire a caretaker, and it cost tens of RMB a day. Dong Xuebing did not want to spend that money and tried to do everything himself.

Half an hour after breakfast, he took his medicine, and he could hear the sounds of heels down the corridor.

Click, click, click, click, the footsteps were fast and strong.

A person’s figure rushed past the door of the ward, and the sounds of the heels stopped. The person turned back quickly, and push opened the door of Dong Xuebing’s ward. It was Qu Yunxuan.

Dong Xuebing, who was half lying on the bed, was nervous to see her. “Aunt Xuan, didn’t I told you not to visit me?”

Qu Yunxuan’s eyes turn red as she saw Dong Xuebing covered in bandages and burns wounds. She bit her lower lips and did not say a word.”

“Errr……. Aunt Xuan, take a sit.” Dong Xuebing pushes a chair next to his bed.

Aunt Xuan was still not saying anything and was still looking at his wounds.

Dong Xuebing’s whole body was covered with severe and minor injuries. He does not look like the type of men Qu Yunxuan likes now. Dong Xuebing tried to cover most of his wounds with his blanket, leaving only some minor injuries outside. “It is not as serious as you thought. I’m fine. All these are just minor injuries. I will recover in a few days.”

Qu Yunxuan seems to be mad, and she shouted at Dong Xuebing: “It is the job of the firemen to put out the fire. Why didn’t the others from your workplace go and put out the fire except for you? Are you the only person left in your entire workplace?” Qu Yunxuan lifted her hand and slapped Dong Xuebing’s exposed arm. “Try to be a hero? Huh? Who ask you to be a hero?” She slapped his arm more than 10 times.

Dong Xuebing had never seen Aunt Xuan so angry before. He did not dare to make any noise.

“I am worried sick for you.” Qu Yunxuan was snuffled and wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

Dong Xuebing panicked. “Aunt Xuan, I’m sorry. Stop crying. I will not try to be a hero the next time.” He felt good to be scolded by Qu Yunxuan. He could feel that she was anxious about him. “The next time I see a fire, I will run away. Really! I promise you.”

Qu Yunxuan looked at him and then touched the wounds on his arm gently. “Is it painful?”

Dong Xuebing laughed. “No.”

“Where else are you hurt? Let me see.”

“I only sprained my ankles. There are no fractures. I’m fine.”

Qu Yunxuan lifted his blanket and saw all the wounds on his body. She was about to start crying again before staring at Dong Xuebing angrily: “Xiao Bing, you must not hide anything from me in the future. If you dare to lie to me again, I will smack you on your buttocks!”

The old man and his son at the adjacent bed were laughing at Dong Xuebing.

Dong Xuebing blushed: “I will not lie to you again.”

Qu Yunxuan continued to nag at him.

Dong Xuebing just went along with her and agreed to whatever she said.

The old man with his leg in a cast laughed and interrupt: “Girl, stop scolding him. This young man had made a huge contribution. His leaders and colleagues had visited him yesterday, and I heard that he will be getting an exceptional approval to be a Party Member.”

Dong Xuebing also replied cheerfully: “That’s right. I will be a party member soon.”

Qu Yunxuan touched Dong Xuebing’s face gently. “Nothing is more important than your life. If something happens to you, how am I going to face Sister Luan?”

“Huh? Please don’t let my mother know about what happened.”

“Ok.”

Qu Yunxuan stayed by Dong Xuebing and took care of him for a while before going to see his doctor. She wants to ask about Dong Xuebing’s condition.

After she returns, Dong Xuebing said. “It’s late. Hurry and go to work.”

Qu Yunxuan shook her head and used a wet towel to wipe his face. “I had applied for leave. I still have 5 days annual leave left. I will accompany you these few days in the hospital.”

“No need. I am fine.”

“You can’t even walk by yourself, and you call this fine? The doctor had told me that you need someone to accompany by your side.”

“I am really fine.”

“If you say one more word, I will tear your mouth!”

Seeing that Qu Yunxuan could not be persuaded, Dong Xuebing could only accept her help.

Accompany by the bed? Sigh…… It would be better if she could accompany me in the bed……