The little nurse’s face turned pale in an instant and she hurried out of the ward. She even stumbled when she got to the door and was obviously frightened. Yi Hang stared at the closed door and whispered gleefully, “Since you dare to make me unhappy, I"ll scare you all to death.”
Qi Le smiled, “Only you could think of something like this. Aren’t you afraid to go to the psychiatric department again?”
Yi Hang looked dazed, “………That won"t happen right?”
Qi Le thought that this man was a little dumb. He raised his eyebrows and asked, “Why were you released?”
Yi Hang asked sadly, “Can we not talk about it?”
Qi Le merely threw him a sentence, “I can always tell the nurse that you"re sick again.”
“…” Yi Hang cried, “You"re too cruel!”
He mournfully recalled, “After I was sedated, I had already been forced into the psychiatric ward. Of course I had to resist. The doctors and nurses came in again but suddenly there was an extra member in my group of family members. From one glance he looked like a man with a successful career. To put it bluntly, he was Mr. Perfect – tall, rich and handsome. He held a medical tray as he calmly explained to the doctors and nurses that my head was injured plus I wasn"t fully conscious yet, so if they gave me another pat on the head, I would be fully awake.”
Qi Le nodded to himself. He guessed that he must’ve been frightened by that man and had finally accepted his fate. He was about to speak, but he heard him say with despair and heartache, “Then he actually gave me a smack. It f.u.c.king hurt! After that, I was obedient."
Qi Le, “……”
Qi Le comforted, “It’s ok. Look, aren"t you out now?”
Yi Hang weakly pointed to his bed, “Move it back, I want to sleep.”
Qi Le responded, slowly making the bed flat again and got back to business, “What surgery did you get? Was there any risk? Do you think….. you"re still alive?”
Yi Hang was silent for a long time before he said, “I don’t know either. I was involved in a car accident and brought into this hospital. I heard the doctor say that the patient needed an operation when my head was still fuzzy. Then I was pushed into the operating room and when I opened my eyes again, I was like this. What about you?”
“Heart surgery with a low success rate.” Qi Le hesitated, “My former ward….. is on the sixth floor upstairs.”
Yi Hang was a little stunned but didn"t say anything. Whatever they had encountered was an unavoidable life and death situation. And now, they really wanted to know what the result was, but…… they were afraid to face reality.
Qi Le felt rather dismal as he picked up his hospital gown, “Go to sleep. I"m going to the bathroom”
After he was finished, he washed his hands, and then properly looked at the strange face in the mirror. This original owner was very young, about the same age that he was. He looked very good – handsome and graceful, but his eyes slanted slightly upwards. He rubbed twice and then frowned. Perhaps it was his illusion, or perhaps he had subconsciously thought of the word "gay" in his head, but he felt that looking at others with such eyes only elicited an undercurrent of seduction and allure. He couldn’t help turning away and then looking at that face again until he noticed the strange looks coming from the people nearby.
He quietly comforted himself that temperament was the most important thing, then turned back to his ward but just when he was about to reach the ward, he couldn"t help but stop. He stared at the elevator ahead, struggling. Then considering that Ye Shuichuan might come back at any moment, he went back to his ward. Yi Hang had already fallen asleep so he didn"t wake him. He sat quietly in bed for a while and soon, Ye Shuichuan came in with his food.
Ye Shuichuan still had work to do and couldn"t stay. He took out something from his bag, “Here"s your cellphone and wallet. My number"s inside. Call me if something comes up. I don’t know when I"ll be able to visit tomorrow. If you get hungry, go to the cafeteria and buy some food.”
Qi Le held the two items in his hand and immediately felt a peace of mind, “I got it.”
“I"m going to go now,” Ye Shuichuan said uneasily, glancing at Yi Hang who was sleeping. “There"s a b.u.t.ton on the side of the bed. If he starts to act up, just press that b.u.t.ton and the nurse will come.”
“Mmm, I can take care of myself.” Qi Le got up to send him off. From the corner of his eye, he casually swept a glance at his soiled clothes and added, “Bring me some clothes tomorrow.”
Ye Shuichuan nodded, told him get some rest, and left.
Qi Le stood in a quiet ward for a while. Finally, he took a deep breath, opened the door, and took the elevator to the sixth floor.
He looked at the familiar corridor as he walked one step at a time, until he reached ward 606. He could feel that his heart was beating really fast and his fingers were cold. He put his hand on the door handle for a long time without moving, then closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths, and turned the door handle hard.
This was a single ward; the afterglow of sunset came in through the window and dyed the sheets a beautiful orange. Only, there was no one staying here. He opened his mouth but couldn"t make a sound.
“Who are you looking for?” A little nurse happened to pa.s.s by and couldn’t help coming forward.
Qi Le turned around and tried to steady his voice, “Is there a man named Qi Le staying here? Where is he now?”
“Oh, him….. His operation failed and he pa.s.sed away,” said the little nurse. Seeing how ugly his expression was, she nonchalantly comforted him before she walked away, “Don’t be too sad.”
Qi Le hadn’t heard anything she said after the word “death” had crashed into his ears. He felt as if his chest had been stabbed; that prolonged moment of suffocation made him feel like he was experiencing death once more. He stood motionless, silent for a long time, until his body was a little stiff before he moved slightly to lean against the door frame.
He died; he was gone. There was no him in this world anymore. Everything he used to have – his clothes, his paintings and his computer had all become mementos that would never fail to remind others the fact that he was dead. He was Zheng Xiaoyuan now. He had no choice but to wear this body to start a new life. And the person Qi Le, including everyone’s memories of him, would be frozen in the past.
His mind was blank as his trembling hand took out his cellphone. He subconsciously hit a string of numbers. It took a long time to connect. After a while, the voice of Gu Bai, his best friend, sounded out from the other side, his voice hoa.r.s.e and low. He was obviously not in a good condition, “……h.e.l.lo, who is this?”