Something Happened? Go Take a Look

Halfway through the meal, Xi Zhen’s phone rang.

The screen lit up with the words Little Aunt. She set down her chopsticks and looked at Li Xingqing.

“I need to take this.” Xi Zhen picked up the phone and stood up.

“Mm.” Li Xingqing sounded indifferent, but her ear had already angled slightly toward the call.

Xi Zhen walked to a quiet corner and answered. The voice on the other end wasn’t her little aunt’s; it was Aunt Zhang from next door, speaking in a rush, the words tumbling out as if she’d run the whole way to make the call.

“Zhenzhen? Thank goodness you picked up. Your little aunt fainted and won’t wake up. We called 120, and she’s on her way to Central Hospital now. I couldn’t get through to that boy, Mo Mo’s phone, so hurry over.”

Xi Zhen’s fingers tightened around the phone, but she didn’t panic. Her voice stayed steady. “Which campus?”

“The Central campus she always goes to for treatment, the emergency department.”

“Got it. Thank you, Aunt Zhang. I’ll be there right away. Please keep an eye on her for me first. I’ll send you some money in a bit, and you can use it to cover the medical fees.”

“All right, all right. We’re old neighbors—why are you thanking me?” Aunt Zhang said with a wave of the hand, but Xi Zhen had already hung up and was walking back with a grave expression.

“What’s wrong?” Li Xingqing asked quickly when she saw Xi Zhen’s face.

“Something came up at home. I have to go back to City B.”

“I’ll go with you.” Li Xingqing immediately set down her chopsticks and stood, taking her car keys from her pocket. City A wasn’t far from City B; at this hour, driving was far more convenient than any other way to travel.

“No need, I can drive myself....”

“You’re not in any state to drive right now.” For the first time, Li Xingqing’s tone was firm. She grabbed her coat, went around the table, and stopped in front of Xi Zhen. “Let’s go.”

Xi Zhen looked at her, opened her mouth, and in the end only nodded.

Fortunately, neither of them had had anything to drink tonight. Li Xingqing walked quickly, her stride much longer than usual. Xi Zhen followed in silence, her face tight with urgency.

They parked in the underground garage. Li Xingqing got out first and opened the passenger door for her. Xi Zhen got in; when she fastened her seat belt, her hand trembled once, and it took several tries before the buckle clicked into place.

Once they merged onto the main road, Xi Zhen’s phone rang again. This time it was Bai Mo, and messages kept popping up one after another.

“Sis, Aunt Zhang said my mom’s been hospitalized!”

“What happened?!”

“I’m flying back to the country right now.”

The screen lit up, went dark, then lit up again. Xi Zhen glanced at it but didn’t reply. She flipped the phone over, screen facing down, and pressed it against her knee.

“Want some water?” Li Xingqing asked.

“No.”

Li Xingqing didn’t say anything else. She drove all the way onto the highway. The streetlights flashed past the windows in regular intervals, leaving pale streaks in their wake. Xi Zhen leaned back in her seat and looked out the window. The night was deep; the mountain silhouettes in the distance were black and foreboding, carrying a cold that felt almost frightening.

“Sleep if you’re tired,” Li Xingqing said.

“I’m not tired.”

“I’ll wake you when we get there.”

“....” Xi Zhen said nothing. Her eyes were fixed on Li Xingqing’s phone screen, where the distance to Central Hospital in City B clearly read two hundred and twenty kilometers. The number ticked down little by little, and she suddenly thought of the last time she’d gone to City B, during last year’s New Year holiday. Her little aunt had cooked a whole table of dishes; Bai Mo hadn’t come back from the crew, so it had just been the two of them.

Her little aunt had kept putting food into her bowl, serving her soup, peeling shrimp for her, and saying again and again, “You’ve lost weight,” “You’ve lost weight again,” “Are you not eating properly?” She’d sat there with her bowl piled so high she could barely keep up with it....

“Li Xingqing.” In the quiet car, Xi Zhen suddenly called her name.

“Mm?” Li Xingqing answered, not understanding.

“Have you ever driven on the highway?”

“.... I have.”

“When?”

“When I got my license.”

“How many years ago was that?”

Li Xingqing fell silent for a moment. “...A pretty long time ago.”

Xi Zhen turned to look at her. Li Xingqing gripped the steering wheel, her gaze fixed on the road ahead, her expression very serious. Her fingers rested on the wheel, the knuckles slightly tense. Xi Zhen suddenly felt like laughing, and also like saying something; in the end, she only looked away and kept staring out the window.

“Drive slower,” she said after a while. “No rush.”

Li Xingqing’s fingers loosened a little. “All right.”

The speed did come down a little, though it still stayed within the highway limit. There weren’t many cars on the road at night. Now and then, a heavy truck would roar past, kicking up a gust of wind that made the car shudder slightly before it steadied again.

Leaning back in her seat, Xi Zhen suddenly felt a little sleepy. Not exactly sleepy, but relaxed in a way she’d never experienced before—being led by someone else. She didn’t have to watch the road, didn’t have to step on the gas, didn’t have to think about how much longer it would take. She only had to sit there. Someone was beside her, watching the road for her.

Her eyelids slowly grew heavy. She didn’t know when she fell asleep. When she woke again, the car had already left the highway and was moving through the streets of City B. There were far more streetlights than on the highway, and the light spilling in from outside was a warm yellow.

Xi Zhen opened her eyes and realized she’d somehow tilted over; her head was against the window, and her neck was a little sore. She sat up straight and rubbed her neck.

“Awake?” Li Xingqing asked.

“Mm. Are we there?”

“Almost. Ten more minutes.”

Xi Zhen unconsciously looked outside. Most of the shops along the street were closed; only a few convenience stores still had their lights on. She remembered this street. During last year’s New Year, she and her little aunt had walked through here. Back then, her little aunt had pointed to a shop by the roadside and said, “The buns from this place are good. Next time you come, I’ll buy them for you.” Unfortunately, she never got to eat them; work had called her away.

Now that shop was closed too, its roll-up shutter pulled down, a sheet of paper reading Spring Festival Holiday pasted on it. The Spring Festival had long since passed, and the notice still hadn’t been taken down.

The car entered the hospital’s underground garage. Li Xingqing found a parking space near the elevator and cut the engine.

Xi Zhen stayed in the passenger seat and didn’t get out right away. She looked at the gray-white concrete wall outside the windshield, at the two halos of light cast by the headlights, at her own hands resting on her knees, still faintly cool.

“I’ll go up with you,” Li Xingqing said.

Xi Zhen shook her head instinctively. “No need. Wait for me here.”

Li Xingqing stared at her for a few seconds, then nodded. “All right. I’ll wait in the car.”

Xi Zhen pushed open the door and got out. She’d only taken two steps before she turned back to look. Li Xingqing was still in the driver’s seat, one hand on the steering wheel, the window rolled down halfway, half her face visible as she watched Xi Zhen quietly, her expression serious.

Xi Zhen turned away and walked into the elevator. When the doors closed, she took out her phone and sent Bai Mo a message: I’m here.

After sending it, she put the phone away. Her reflection appeared in the elevator wall; her hair was a little messy, her lips a little dry, and there was a trace of exhaustion she couldn’t quite hide in her eyes. She raised a hand to smooth her hair, straightened her collar, and took a deep breath.

She quickly found the ward Aunt Zhang had sent her and pushed the door open.

Her little aunt was lying in the hospital bed, an IV in her hand and a drip bag hanging beside her. Her eyes were closed; it was impossible to tell whether she was asleep or awake. Aunt Zhang was sitting by the bed, holding her other hand, her hair slightly disheveled, her eyes red.

When she saw Xi Zhen arrive, Aunt Zhang stood up and called out, “Zhenzhen.”

“Aunt Zhang.” Xi Zhen walked over and glanced at her little aunt. Her face was a little pale, her lips cracked and dry, but her breathing was still fairly steady. Her hand rested outside the blanket, a needle inserted into the back of it, medical tape stuck over it with the edges starting to curl. Xi Zhen gently pressed the tape down and smoothed it flat.

“What did the doctor say?”

“They said it’s a heart problem; they’ll have to wait for the test results for the specifics. For now, she just needs an IV and overnight observation.”

Xi Zhen nodded to show she understood. She sat down by the bed and gently took her little aunt’s hand in hers. That hand was very thin, with prominent knuckles and cold fingertips. She held it, wanting to warm it.

Sensing the sudden warmth, Xi Shulan stirred slightly and slowly opened her eyes. When she saw Xi Zhen, she was clearly startled, and then her expression changed at once.

“You came.” Xi Shulan’s voice sounded a little cold, not like someone who had just come out of emergency care.

“Aunt Zhang called me.” Xi Zhen sat by the bed and reached out to hold her little aunt’s hand. She didn’t pull away, but she didn’t squeeze back either.

“Where’s Mo Mo?” Xi Shulan asked.

“He’s on set. I didn’t let him come back.”

“Did you not let him come back, or did he not want to come back himself?”

Xi Zhen’s fingers paused. “I told him to stay there. I’m here; he doesn’t need to worry.”

Xi Shulan said nothing. She looked up at the ceiling; the light above was painfully white. The liquid in the IV bag fell one drop at a time, slow and unhurried, as if counting down.

“Zhenzhen,” Xi Shulan suddenly said, her voice even stranger than before. “Tell me the truth. Mo Mo... is he dating a man?”

“....” Xi Zhen couldn’t figure out where that came from and, for a moment, didn’t know how to answer Xi Shulan’s question.

“I’m asking you a question.” Xi Shulan turned her head and looked at her. As she’d grown older, her eyes had gradually gone cloudy, no longer as bright as before. “Who he’s with—do you know?”

Xi Zhen opened her mouth. She didn’t want to lie to her anymore. “I do.”

“You know.” Xi Shulan repeated the words, her voice suddenly trembling. “You knew, and you helped him hide it from me.”

“Little Aunt....”

“The last time he came back, I already felt something was off. He lied right in front of me, and you were standing there too; you didn’t say a word.” Xi Shulan’s voice grew rougher and rougher. “You two—one of you lied to me, and the other helped him lie to me.”

Xi Zhen didn’t try to defend herself. She sat there holding Xi Shulan’s hand, but that hand was still cold and hadn’t warmed up.

“How long has it been?” Xi Shulan suddenly changed the subject.

“Little Aunt....”

“How long has it been?” Xi Shulan’s voice rose abruptly, then she forced it back down, as if using all her strength to keep herself under control. “I’m asking you—how long has he been with that man?”

“...I don’t know.”