Chapter 49: A Suspiciously Convenient Rescue

“He’s been recovering at home recently. He still has some personal items in his bar locker.”

Li Xiao said, “I’ll go pick them up tonight.”

“Sure, sure.”

The manager quickly agreed and added a few flattering words before they hung up.

Putting down his phone, Li Xiao started the car. Instead of heading back to the villa, he drove straight to a high-end supermarket in the city center.

Over an hour later, Li Xiao walked out of the supermarket pushing a cart piled high with items.

The car was stuffed with all sorts of expensive nutritional products—imported bone collagen powder, calcium supplements to aid bone healing, high-quality vitamin supplements, ready-to-eat bird’s nest and sea cucumber, and a bunch of ingredients supposedly good for wound recovery.

He stuffed them all into the trunk and, seeing the space nearly full, finally felt a little more at ease.

****

At six-thirty in the evening, it was already completely dark.

Jiang Yu was in the living room, struggling to peel an orange with his left hand.

Jiang Qing pushed open the door with her backpack on. The moment she saw her brother’s bandaged arm and clumsy movements, she was so startled that her backpack fell to the floor.

“Brother! What happened to your arm?!”

She rushed over, crouched in front of Jiang Yu, and her eyes instantly reddened. She wanted to touch it but didn’t dare.

“It’s nothing, don’t make a fuss.”

Jiang Yu put down the orange and patted her head with his left hand, his tone as light as possible. “I just slipped on my way home from work this morning. The ground was too slippery, and I ended up with a hairline fracture in my arm. I’ve already been to the hospital. It’ll be fine after two months of recovery.”

“A slip? A fracture?!”

Jiang Qing’s voice cracked. “Why didn’t you tell me! When I called you this morning, you said you were in the bar’s break room!”

“I didn’t want you to worry.”

Jiang Yu softened at the sight of her red-rimmed eyes. “Anyway, it’s not a big deal. See, I’m perfectly fine right now?”

“You call this fine?”

Jiang Qing pointed at his arm, on the verge of tears. “Who took you to the hospital? How did you get there yourself?”

“A colleague did.”

Just as Jiang Yu finished speaking—

*Dong, dong, dong.*

A knock came at the perfect moment.

Jiang Qing wiped her eyes, sniffled, turned, and walked to the door. She peered through the peephole.

Outside stood Li Xiao, holding several delicate insulated bags and a pile of shopping bags emblazoned with the logo of a high-end supermarket.

Jiang Qing blinked. The worry on her face instantly melted into a knowing, mischievous smile.

She turned back to look at Jiang Yu on the sofa, her eyes sparkling with an “I caught you” gleam, and the corners of her mouth curled into a sly arc.

Jiang Yu felt a chill run down his spine. Before he could say anything, Jiang Qing had already turned around and with a click, opened the door.

“Brother Li!”

Jiang Qing’s voice was crisp, carrying just the right amount of surprise and gratitude. “Thank you so much for taking my brother to the hospital! Please, come in!”

Li Xiao was taken aback by her enthusiastic greeting, then smiled and walked in. He placed the things on the table and gave Jiang Qing a gentle smile. “Don’t mention it. It’s the least I could do.”

Jiang Yu sat on the sofa, feeling the veins on his forehead throbbing.

He had just told Jiang Qing that a colleague took him, and Li Xiao’s “least I could do” completely blew his cover on the spot.

Sure enough, Jiang Qing turned to Jiang Yu, her big eyes sparkling, her tone innocent and sweet. “Brother, so it was Brother Li who took you to the hospital? I thought you said it was a colleague?”

Jiang Yu: “…”

He felt his cheeks heating up uncontrollably again. He glared at Li Xiao, who was standing nearby with an amused expression.

The gleam in Jiang Qing’s eyes deepened, but she didn’t press further. Instead, she turned to help Li Xiao unpack the food from the insulated bags and set the table.

Li Xiao walked over to Jiang Yu, carried over the pile of nutritional products, crouched down, and began taking them out one by one, muttering, “This is bone collagen—take one spoonful a day, mixed with warm water. These are calcium tablets to promote bone healing. You also need to take vitamins every day… The bird’s nest and sea cucumber are ready-to-eat; just heat them up…”

Jiang Yu looked at the small mountain of bottles, cans, and gift boxes piling up on the floor and rubbed his forehead in exasperation. “Why did you buy so much? I can’t finish all this.”

“Take your time,” Li Xiao said as he stood up, his tone carrying both affection and finality. “A fracture takes a hundred days to heal. You need to keep up your nutrition.”

Jiang Qing, who was setting out the bowls and chopsticks nearby, secretly watched their interaction. The smile on her lips was impossible to suppress.

The three of them sat down to eat.

The food Li Xiao had brought was, as always, exquisite and delicious, with a balanced nutritional profile.

He naturally served Jiang Yu dishes, picked out fish bones, and ladled soup.

Jiang Qing ate while glancing between her brother and Li Xiao, the smile in her eyes growing more and more pronounced.

“Brother Li, when my brother slipped and fell after work last night, how did you end up taking him to the hospital?” She blinked, her smile sweet and innocent. “Could it be… that you went to pick him up from work on purpose?”

Jiang Yu’s chopsticks froze mid-air.

Li Xiao looked up at Jiang Qing, meeting her clear yet cunning eyes, and a slow smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

He was about to speak—

“No.”

Jiang Yu answered before Li Xiao could, his voice a bit rushed. “I called Li Xiao after I fell.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Jiang Yu regretted it.

The explanation was full of holes.

Sure enough, Jiang Qing’s eyes lit up. She leaned forward slightly and looked at Jiang Yu. “Oh~ I see.”

She dragged out the last syllable, her smile brightening. “So when you fell, the first person you thought of was Brother Li.”

Jiang Yu’s face instantly turned crimson. “No!”

“Then why?” Jiang Qing tilted her head, wearing an expression of “I’m so curious.” “Why didn’t you call Brother Wu Qi? Don’t you two get off work together?”

“Because…” Jiang Yu’s throat tightened, his mind racing. “Because he lives closer.”

Jiang Qing let out a snort of laughter, her eyes curving into crescents. She turned to Li Xiao. “Brother Li, do you live closer than Brother Wu Qi, who gets off work with my brother?”

Li Xiao leaned back in his chair, watching Jiang Yu’s increasingly red face and the top of his head that was almost buried in his bowl, his eyes brimming with amusement.

He nodded cooperatively. “Mm, pretty close.”

It was a vague answer, but Jiang Qing was clearly satisfied.

Jiang Yu felt like his cheeks were hot enough to fry an egg. He shot Jiang Qing a glare and said stiffly, “Eat your food. You talk too much.”

“Alright, alright, let’s eat~” Jiang Qing cheerfully picked up her spoon again, but the teasing look in her eyes didn’t diminish one bit.

For the rest of the meal, Jiang Yu kept his head down, fiercely focusing on his bowl of congee, saying nothing.

Occasionally, Li Xiao would serve him some food, and Jiang Yu would mumble a “thanks” without looking up. But his reddened ears and slightly trembling eyelashes betrayed his inner turmoil.

After the meal, Li Xiao stood up to clear the dishes.

Jiang Qing rushed to help. “Brother Li, let me do it! You went to all the trouble of bringing food and gifts today. You must be tired!”

“It’s fine, I’ve got it.” Li Xiao neatly stacked the insulated containers and packed them into the bag.

Once he was done, he picked up the bag. “I’ll be off then. Jiang Yu, remember to take your medicine on time, and don’t forget those supplements.”

Jiang Yu nodded, still not looking up. “Mm. Take care on the road.”

Li Xiao smiled at his ostrich-like behavior, then turned and walked toward the door.

“Brother Li, wait!”

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