Chapter 12 : Drive back home

Today’s surgeries were all scheduled, but Tang Zhen had nothing to do with them.
At her level, she was just a gofer.
She was busy, but she didn’t really know what she was busy with.
Basically, she did all the odd jobs.
Liu Sisi said this was a necessary process for newcomers.
As for assisting in surgery… she’d have to wait.

She ran from ward to ward, to the nurse’s station, placed orders, notified families of surgical indications… round after round.
By the time Tang Zhen was finished with everything, her legs had turned to jelly.
When she finally had a moment to catch her breath, she looked out the window… the sky was completely dark.
She checked the time.
It was long past closing time, and in another half hour, a new day would begin.

It was so late, she couldn’t catch the last bus.
So there was no need to rush.
Tang Zhen propped her hands on the desk, buried her head in her arms, and decided to take a nap.

She had only meant to rest for a moment, not expecting to fall asleep.
In a daze, she heard a gurgling sound and subconsciously opened her eyes to see a straight back standing in front of the water dispenser.

The water dispenser in Chi Yuqin’s office was broken, so she had come over to get some water.
The first thing she saw when she entered was the person sleeping soundly at her desk.
A not-too-long, not-too-short ponytail hung loosely at the back of her head.
The half of her small face resting on her arm was exposed, flushed red… looking fresh.

Everyone had been through this.
Chi Yuqin understood and sympathized.
She hadn’t intended to disturb her dreams and was planning to leave after getting water.
But who would have thought that when she turned around, she would meet a pair of dazed eyes?
And then, her phone in her pocket rang unexpectedly.

Tang Zhen was startled, and the pen holder on the desk was knocked over by her—

Clang! It hit the floor!

Her mind jolted awake.
She was truly awake now, her eyes wide open.
But when she saw Chi Yuqin’s face clearly, she immediately closed them again.

Chi Yuqin was a little bewildered by Tang Zhen’s series of actions—

‘What’s wrong with this kid?’

Tang Zhen belatedly realized that it was inappropriate for her to pretend to be asleep.
Besides, why should she be afraid of her?
She hadn’t made any mistakes, and these past few days… her performance had been quite good.

So, she quietly took a deep breath.
Just as she was about to open her eyes again, she heard Chi Yuqin on the phone—

“I haven’t had time recently… if she’s really that impatient, then have her come find me.”

Chi Yuqin held a water cup in one hand and her phone in the other, leaning against the water dispenser.
Her slightly curved lips made it hard to tell if she was smiling or not.

Tang Zhen secretly squinted her eyes open and happened to see the dimple on Chi Yuqin’s left cheek.
Her heart immediately started pounding, and she buried her face even deeper.

She didn’t know what was wrong with Chi Yuqin, why she liked to talk on the phone in front of others so much, and why she always said things that were so easy to misinterpret.

Compared to being in a hurry to go home, Tang Zhen was now more anxious for Chi Yuqin to leave quickly.

What kind of person was Chi Yuqin?
Her eyes were like an eagle’s.
Even the likes of Liu Renzong were no match for her, let alone someone like Tang Zhen, who, at twenty-five or twenty-six, wore all her thoughts on her face.

That was just her personality.
If you were open and honest, she might not even bother with you.
But if you were so secretive, she would definitely have to drag you out.

“She was the one who wanted to see the movie. You were the one who asked me to eat with her. I never said anything.”
“I’m not interested in the stage play either.”
“A murder mystery would be fine. Why don’t you ask her? I’d be happy to share the structure of human anatomy with her.”

A blind date?

Tang Zhen wondered… was Chi Yuqin single?

Before she could figure it out, Tang Zhen heard the person on the other end of the line shout ‘scoundrel!’

Chi Yuqin wasn’t annoyed.
Instead, she laughed.

Her laugh was clear and pleasant, and she didn’t mind being scolded.

This phone call, with all its twists and turns, lasted a full ten minutes before it was hung up.

Chi Yuqin put her phone in her pocket and drank her water slowly, looking at the person still ‘playing dead’ on the desk.
Finally, she took a step.

Tang Zhen heard the footsteps and thought she was leaving.
Just as she was about to breathe a sigh of relief, she heard two taps by her ear.

“If you’re awake, don’t sleep. If you want to sleep, go home and sleep.”

Chi Yuqin tapped on her desk twice.
Without waiting for Tang Zhen to open her eyes, she turned and left with her water cup.

Tang Zhen, with her dog-like nose, smelled a hint of honey and goji berries.

Even in such an embarrassing situation, she could still tell what the other person was drinking.
Tang Zhen felt she was beyond saving.

Fearing that Chi Yuqin would come back, she swept all her things into her bag, got up, and left.
In the elevator, she pressed the close button repeatedly until the doors were sealed shut.

She had slept for too long.
It was almost two in the morning now.

The sky was dark, with no moon and no stars.
The air was filled with the earthy smell of soil, as if it was about to rain again.

Tang Zhen used an app to call a cab, but no one accepted the request for a long time.

A single young woman, at night, at the entrance of a hospital.
The sign of the guesthouse across the street glowed with a faint blue light.
A sudden gust of wind blew, rustling the bushes.

Tang Zhen thought of a horror movie she had seen before.
The ghost had appeared in a place just like this.

Chi Yuqin was driving.
As she came out of the underground garage, she saw such a scene through the car window—

A young and beautiful female doctor, shoulders hunched, looking around.
One moment she was frantically tapping on her phone, the next she was waving her arms at a passing taxi.

Unfortunately, all the taxis passing by at this hour were occupied.

She couldn’t get a cab through the app, and she couldn’t hail one either.
Even in the dim light of the night, Tang Zhen’s fear was palpable.

Her head was bowed, her back hunched…

The little poplar tree had wilted.

This person really had some problems.
She wasn’t anxious when she was pretending to sleep at her desk, but now that she couldn’t get a car, she was scared.

Chi Yuqin held the steering wheel and drove straight over, pulling over to the side of the road.

As she rolled down the window, she turned her head and said, “Hey—”

“Get in.”

Tang Zhen hadn’t expected it to be Chi Yuqin.
She thought she had left long ago.

Now she stood on the curb, stunned.

Chi Yuqin was very tired.
She had only eaten a sandwich all day, and she had even picked out the lettuce and tomato slices and thrown them away.
Now, besides the king-size bed at home, nothing else could lift her spirits.

“Don’t know how to open the car door?”

“I do.”

“Then are you waiting for me to invite you in?”

“No, it’s just that I live a bit far.”

Tang Zhen should not have said that.

Chi Yuqin wanted to curse.
Living far away and still pretending to be clueless in the office—

“Are you sure you’re not getting in?”

Tang Zhen was stunned again.
The wind was still blowing, even stronger than before.
It might start raining at any moment.
And she saw a few bare-chested men with yellow and green hair walk out of the dark guesthouse across the street.
They were arm in arm, swaying as if they were about to cross the road.

If she was afraid of ghosts before, now she was really afraid of people.

“Are you getting in or not? If you’re not getting in, I’m leaving.”

“Don’t! I’m getting in!”

Tang Zhen pulled open the car door and quickly sat down.

But after she was settled, she realized she had made another mistake.
Why had she sat in the front passenger seat?
She should have gone to the back.
Tang Zhen knew that the front passenger seat was a relatively private space, and some people would mind if someone they didn’t know well sat there.
She didn’t know if Chi Yuqin would mind.
But the car had already started, and looking at Chi Yuqin’s expression, it didn’t seem like there was anything wrong.

Tang Zhen thought for a moment and said—

“Could you please drop me off at the subway station up ahead?”

“Do you live at the subway station?”

“I don’t live at the subway station. I mean, it should be easier to get a car with the app there. If it’s convenient for you, you can drop me off there.”

“This road goes straight to the subway station you’re talking about. It’s all one line. Do you think you can’t get a car here, but you can if you walk five or six hundred meters ahead? What? Does the ride-hailing app specifically skip you?”

Chi Yuqin said this with her hands on the steering wheel, seemingly no different from usual, but in reality, she was starting to get annoyed.

“Enter the address.”

Tang Zhen didn’t dare to say any more and quickly entered the address into the navigation.
Chi Yuqin took advantage of the last three seconds of the green light and stepped on the gas.

The night was deep, the fog and dew heavy.

The earthy smell that had been lingering in the air earlier had now turned into fine raindrops falling from the sky.

The windshield wipers clicked back and forth.
Chi Yuqin didn’t know what small road she had turned into.
Both sides of the street were residential buildings, dark without a single light.
Tang Zhen heard the sound of cats mating outside the car window, one cry after another… clawing at her heart.

Tang Zhen secretly glanced at the rearview mirror in front.
Chi Yuqin’s expression was fixed forward, making her feel that she should not make any sound at this moment, not even breathe.
She was afraid that if she disturbed Chi Yuqin, she might be thrown out of the car.

On a dark and windy rainy night, if she were really thrown out here, besides calling 110 and asking the police to take her home, Tang Zhen didn’t know what else she could do.

But if that happened, she would probably be on the news headlines tomorrow—’Doctorate-holding female doctor, doesn’t know her way home.’

The thought of it made her want to die.

To prevent that from happening—Tang Zhen was very well-behaved.
The leather seat was so big and comfortable, but she didn’t dare to lean back.
She only sat on the front two-quarters of the seat, breathing lightly and quietly looking out the car window.

The sky was dark, the wind was blowing, the rain was falling.

She was mesmerized by the sight, her nerves relaxing a little.
Her shoulders were no longer as tense as before, but had a kind of slumped, languid look.

Red light for 60 seconds.

Chi Yuqin’s hands rested on the steering wheel.
Her gaze shifted to the drowsy face of the person in the passenger seat.
Tang Zhen’s eyes were unfocused, her head nodding slightly, her body swaying back and forth with the rhythm of her nodding.

The dampness after the rain, the stuffiness of a midsummer night, a faint fragrance filled the air.
The source of the fragrance was the girl beside her.
Restless factors darted around in the enclosed space of the car.

This scene seemed to have a hint of boundless romance.

Chi Yuqin’s hand on the steering wheel suddenly tightened.
Her thumb pressed down on the knuckle of her middle finger, and with a hard press, the knuckle made a crisp clicking sound.

She looked away, her throat dry.
She quickly grabbed the soda water from the storage compartment, twisted the cap with her left hand, her right hand gripping the bottle so tightly it deformed.
She tilted her head back and took a big gulp, quick and fierce.
A drop overflowed from the corner of her mouth, dripped down her chin… along her long neck until it disappeared into her collar.

“You…”

“Hmm?”

“Do you want to sleep for a while?”

Tang Zhen was indeed sleepy, but her subconscious reaction to this question was to immediately tense up again.
Your boss is driving you home, and you’re sleeping in the car?
What a rebel!

“No, no, I’m not tired.”

Chi Yuqin didn’t say anything more.

…The more you try to control it, the more out of control it gets.

The raindrops seemed to be getting bigger, the car windows covered with water stains.
The humming of the engine filled the enclosed car.

Tang Zhen was almost falling asleep.
Several times she felt she was in a daze, her consciousness completely out in space.
Finally, after the third time, she made a small request—

“Could you turn the air conditioning up a little?”

Chi Yuqin didn’t answer but reached out and turned the temperature down to the lowest setting.

Tang Zhen immediately felt much better.

She wasn’t so sleepy, and her mind was clearer.

Chi Yuqin drove very steadily.
Even over speed bumps, it was a gentle bump, almost no sensation.

Tang Zhen was originally looking out the window, but as she looked… for some reason, she looked at the right rearview mirror.
The mirror reflected Chi Yuqin’s eyes and brows.

This person really rarely smiled.
In all the time she had been here, she had only seen her smile twice.
Was it a requirement for a chief surgeon to be so serious?
But other chief surgeons weren’t like this.
Or was it that she was too stupid, and she couldn’t smile at her?

“Do you have something to say to me?”
“If you have something to say, say it. Don’t just stare at people like that.”
“If you don’t say it now, don’t say it ever.”

Tang Zhen was startled by Chi Yuqin’s words, her nerves tensing.

“I… I wanted to ask you, that day you said I had a ‘textbook-style handover,’ what did you mean?”

“I was praising you.”

“Dr. Chi, I’m asking you seriously.”

Chi Yuqin’s fingers paused.
The annoyance came out of nowhere, a sudden loss of patience.

“Do you know what common sense is?”

“The common daily consensus of society on the same thing.”

“Wrong. It should be the things you learned in books before you were eighteen. That’s called common sense.”
Chi Yuqin asked again, “Do you know why people go to college?”

“Why?”

“To break that common sense.”

“But unfortunately, you’ve never broken it.”

Chi Yuqin held the steering wheel, turning it casually, just like her… the words she said were also casual, but they could easily hurt you.

“The old lady is eighty-five. You told me we could do a valve replacement. I asked you if you had anything to add, and you said no… so what were you thinking at that time?”

“…”

“You were thinking about what was in the books. The books told you to do it that way, so you said you had nothing to add. If you had used your brain a little and thought about it, you would have known… eighty-five years old, how can you open her chest? Do you think her physical condition can withstand such a huge burden?”

“We can use TAVI.”

“You thought of it now, why didn’t you think of it then?”

“…”

“Because you’re used to it. You’re used to prioritizing the first thing the books tell you. Someone has to point it out to you before you can look at the second option. If you were in any other profession today, this wouldn’t be a problem at all. But you’re a doctor, dealing with living people. Careful consideration should be your reflex. A walnut is what you hit to make it move, not a doctor.”

Chi Yuqin didn’t think she had gone too far, nor did she think she had been too harsh.
If you wanted to hear the truth, you had to face the facts first.

Tang Zhen couldn’t refute it because Chi Yuqin was right.
She had indeed done just that.

The green light was counting down.
Chi Yuqin always stepped on the gas at the last three seconds, as if she had calculated it perfectly.
Every brake, every acceleration, every intersection.

Too fast or too slow wouldn’t work.
Too fast, and it wouldn’t be the three-second countdown.
Too slow, and she would be left behind.

There were countless green lights on the road.
What about in the hospital?
Probably only those three seconds, or even less.

…

They had arrived at Ronghuali.

The car stopped at the entrance of the alley.

Tang Zhen unbuckled her seatbelt.
As she pulled open the car door, she looked at Chi Yuqin again—

“I’d like to ask you one more question.”

“Go ahead.”

“So you think I’m not good enough, right?”

“Whether you’re good enough or not… is up to you. If you are… it has nothing to do with me. But if you’re not, I will immediately let you go. It’s that simple, understand?”

Tang Zhen’s expression froze.
For a moment, her brain was completely shut down.
She didn’t even know how she managed to say that clear and articulate “thank you.”

Chi Yuqin was the same as always.
Without even lifting her eyelids, she replied— “No need.”

After the person got out of the car, Chi Yuqin turned on the high beams, illuminating the dark alley.
Only then did she look up—

A small back, narrow shoulders, wedged in a narrow gap.

Lonely and stubborn.

Tang Zhen returned home and collapsed on the bed, not even wanting to change her clothes.
She knew Chi Yuqin wasn’t joking.
If she continued to be so unimproved, it was only a matter of time before she was let go.
Her heart ached terribly.
She desperately wanted to cry out loud, but she was afraid of disturbing Chen Min next door.

…

Meanwhile, Chi Yuqin was driving home.

On the way, she received another call from her mother, Liu Yi.

“You’re not willing to do this, you’re not willing to do that… you’ll just end up old and alone!”

“That’s fine too.”

Liu Yi hung up in a huff.

Chi Yuqin didn’t take it to heart at all.
That was just who she was, with that foul temper.
It wasn’t aimed at anyone in particular, it was just that she happened to have a little ability and achievement, which allowed her to live a little more freely than others.

Anyway, no one could control her, and she didn’t want to be tied down by anyone.

She pulled over to the side of the road, rolled down the window… and lit a cigarette.

After being single for a long time, she could control her psychological reactions, but her physiological reactions were difficult to control…