For the next week, Mu Jing didn't see Qu Hua. One of the downsides of marriage was that her original dormitory bed had been assigned to someone else, and now she could only lie on Qu Hua's bed. The bedroom door was locked, the window open, letting the wind blow in from outside.
Mu Jing finally decided to bring her younger brother over. Once he regained the ability to take care of himself, she would let him leave—this could be considered indirectly fulfilling her filial duties to their parents. With her brother lying in the hospital, they wanted to care for him but lacked the means. Among the three children in the family, the one who remained most connected to their parents was still her brother. With him ill, the family had completely fallen apart.
Thinking of her brother, Fei Ni must have left him. Even if she wrote letters to the hospital, no one would receive them. If she wanted to bring him over, she had to make the trip back personally. Even if her brother hadn't recovered his memory, being together would be a comfort to both of them. She remembered how, in the past, when boys from other compounds followed her and tried to strike up conversations, her brother would sneak up from behind with his slingshot to ambush them, then run away after hitting them. Trained by their father at home, his escape skills were even better than his fighting skills. She had always believed he could take good care of himself.
She scheduled the time to pick up her brother after her grandmother-in-law's surgery. Once her brother arrived, he would naturally have to stay at the Qu family's home. For this reason, she had to be a filial daughter-in-law in the Qu household. Like the rest of the Qu family, she hoped the surgery would be successful. If it failed, the Qu family would not be in the mood to welcome a tagalong in the short term.
The grandmother's surgery was performed a week later.
Before the surgery, Mu Jing didn't exchange a single word with Qu Hua; he didn't even glance at her. They hadn't spoken for a week. Mu Jing hoped Qu Hua would ignore her, so she could focus on her work without distraction, but she didn't want to offend him. She had no idea how she had offended him—she hadn't resisted at all at the time. It was he who left her in the room with her buttons undone and walked away without a word. She even somewhat regretted marrying him; deciphering his intentions was far too difficult, and the cost of divorce was something she couldn't afford.
The whole family waited outside the operating room. The surgery was ultimately performed by Qu Hua. It was initially estimated to take at most five hours, but those waiting outside ended up waiting for eight. In the middle, an orderly brought food boxes and invited them to eat. Mu Jing said to her mother-in-law, "You should eat a little," but she herself had no appetite for food. Her anxiety was no less than that of the Qu family.
Her father-in-law paced outside the operating room, unsettling Mu Jing's heart. Old Qu had originally opposed the surgery. Performing such a major operation on an eighty-year-old carried obvious risks, but his mother had insisted on trying because conservative treatment was no longer effective. After deciding on the surgery, he contacted experts from various hospitals. He asked them if the success rate could be one hundred percent, but no one could guarantee that. Given the patient's age and the severity of her condition, not even a sixty percent success rate was assured. Facing Old Qu, a family member who was a warrior and a rare filial son, no one dared to operate on the old lady. Who knew how furious he would be if the surgery failed? No one was willing to take that risk.The only one willing to perform this major surgery was Qu Hua. Experts with more experience than Qu Hua dared not undertake it, and Old Qu had even less confidence in the procedure. Yet the elderly lady no longer agreed to conservative treatment, so Old Qu consented to let his son perform the surgery. As the waiting time dragged on, his mood grew increasingly irritable. On one hand, he distrusted his son's experience; on the other, he doubted the surgery would succeed. If his mother died on the operating table because of his son, not only would others judge him harshly, but he himself would never be able to overcome that barrier.
Mu Jing's mother-in-law urged Old Qu to take a break. Old Qu sighed anxiously and said, "You go ahead." She didn't press further, as she had no mood to rest herself. She was also worried for her son—if the surgery succeeded, all would be well, but if it failed... She glanced at Mu Jing's profile and was reminded of Yanyan from years past. Since Yanyan's death, Qu Hua had never had another girlfriend. He got married, and she thought he could finally start a new life, but...
They waited so long that the hospital's vice president invited them to rest. Mu Jing's mother-in-law had once been a nurse at the hospital and was acquainted with the president.
Mu Jing stood at the operating room door, waiting for her husband to emerge. Her mother-in-law suggested she sit for a while, but she declined, standing so still she resembled a statue. Qu Hua had rushed into marriage largely to persuade his grandmother to undergo the surgery. If it failed, seeing Mu Jing would be a double blow—not only did she resemble his ex-girlfriend, but she might also remind him of his grandmother. At this thought, Mu Jing couldn't even muster a bitter smile. She realized she was afraid of divorcing Qu Hua, more afraid than she had imagined.
When Qu Hua stepped out of the operating room, he immediately saw Mu Jing smiling—a smile he had never seen before. His parents were waiting for him to report the good news, but his gaze remained fixed on Mu Jing's face. She turned away, and he caught her profile again.
Qu Hua's parents were, of course, overjoyed. Old Qu was primarily relieved for his mother, while his wife was happy for their son. Upon seeing his son, Old Qu's first thought was that a worthy father wouldn't have an unworthy son—his son wielded the knife better than those seasoned veterans who had shied away from the surgery. He had smiled at his son many times today, but his son seemed indifferent. Qu Hua urged his parents to go rest, but the filial Old Qu insisted on staying at the hospital. Qu Hua was unmoved by his father's devotion. "What can you do here? Your presence in the ward just gets in the way of everyone's work." Old Qu was about to lose his temper, but seeing his son's sweat-soaked white coat—how much sweat must he have shed to be drenched like that—he decided not to argue today. Mu Jing stepped in at the right moment, asking her in-laws to go rest first and offering to stay with Qu Hua.
The hospital administration had arranged with the cafeteria not only to save meals for the operating room staff but also to prepare some freshly cooked dishes. Mu Jing stopped Qu Hua as he headed to the cafeteria and waved the food box in her hand. "Go change your clothes. Let's eat in the break room."Since their last unpleasant parting, the two hadn't exchanged a single word. Someone had to break the awkward silence—if Qu Hua wouldn't do it, she had to. She valued this marriage more than he did. Back then, she had been too desperate to cling to this lifeline, forgetting that marrying someone from a good background didn't guarantee her anything—marriages could still end in divorce. Whether she wanted to actively maintain or end this marriage, it was difficult for her. For Qu Hua, it was easy; he didn't have to pay any price. She had been too eager to secure the benefits of being with Qu Hua, and now, thinking back, the disadvantages were terrifying. Qu Hua could find an excuse to divorce her at any moment, and it would be easy to pin the blame on her. The reasons he might cite could be fatal to her—it all depended on whether he couldn't be bothered to do it. Unless she had leverage over him, the initiative would always remain in his hands.
She couldn't divorce Qu Hua, especially now that her brother was coming—she absolutely couldn't divorce him.
Once her grandmother's surgery was over, part of her usefulness would be fulfilled.
Now, she had to please him within certain limits, to make him feel this marriage was worthwhile. She knew that a man's emotional devotion ultimately stayed in the realm of emotions—the person who provided spiritual support and the one who satisfied physical needs could be two entirely different people.
It was summer, so the food wasn't too cold. Mu Jing sat across from Qu Hua, watching him eat. She handed him water to drink—the two of them were alone in the room.
Mu Jing didn't eat a single bite. Her chopsticks were only used to pick food for Qu Hua. Even she felt her flattery was excessive and unnecessary. She despised herself for it but had no choice but to act this way. Once her brother could take care of himself, she could sign up to support the third front and leave Qu Hua—this kind of life would finally end. Qu Hua asked why she wasn't eating. Mu Jing said she wasn't hungry and turned to look out the window. Her hair clung to her face, and she had broken into a sweat earlier—out of anxiety. Others had reasons for their anxiety that they could voice aloud, but hers were unspeakable.
Mu Jing went to refill Qu Hua's water. She avoided looking into his eyes, focusing only on the cup as she said, "Let's go home tonight." Her voice was so low only Qu Hua could hear it.
This took Qu Hua by surprise. "I thought you didn't want me to come back."
"How could that be?" Mu Jing carefully considered her words, thinking about how to phrase it appropriately. "But I can't urge you to come home every day. That would seem..." as if she had an urgent need for his body, though that was perfectly normal for newlyweds.
She blushed at her own obsequiousness, but Qu Hua misunderstood for a moment. Her flushed face was a stimulus to him. He locked the door and kissed her lips. His excitement transferred to Mu Jing, and she sensed danger. His kiss was more aggressive than the last time in the bedroom. Mu Jing felt, more vividly than ever, the dexterity of a surgeon's fingers. This version of Qu Hua was entirely outside her experience. This was the break room—his colleagues could come looking for him at any moment. Qu Hua had just finished an eight-hour surgery. Even after it ended, the intense mental focus hadn't fully dissipated. Nothing relaxed him more than what they were doing now. Only in this moment did he temporarily shed the pressure.
Mu Jing had to remind him, "We're in the hospital."
"No one will come."
But Mu Jing insisted, "Let's go home, okay?""I can't go home today." Qu Hua continued kissing Mu Jing's face.
"They're yours, they won't run away. What's the hurry?"
Qu Hua had never imagined Mu Jing would say such things. He buttoned Mu Jing's clothes one by one, and she let him do it. Her face grew even redder, but the reason for this blush was different from what Qu Hua thought.
Most of the reason for Mu Jing's blush was that she couldn't believe she had said such words - she felt ashamed of herself.
Mu Jing practically fled the hospital. Even after leaving, her face remained warm.
While feeling ashamed, she also felt relieved. Once grandmother recovered, she could go pick up her younger brother.
The day after grandmother's surgery, Mu Jing got up before dawn to cook. While porridge simmered on the stove, she prepared filling for soup dumplings. When orderly Xiao Qin came to the kitchen to cook, Mu Jing had already finished shaping the dumplings. Xiao Qin was very young and called Mu Jing "Sister Jing." Looking at the dumplings she had made, he marveled inwardly - he could swallow one of these small dumplings in a single bite. Compared to these, his previous cooking had been too crude.
Mu Jing told the young orderly: "I'll make breakfast today."
"Sister Jing, your dumplings look really beautiful." The porridge smelled wonderful too, much better than what he could make.
"You can try some when they're ready."
"How could I do that?"
"Why not? How old are you?"
"Twenty-one."
Younger than her own brother. Mu Jing thought of her brother again.
Xiao Qin called Old Qu "Chief," called Old Qu's wife "Auntie," and called Qu Hua "Second Brother." He got along quite well with this family.
When the dumplings were steamed, Mu Jing picked two soup dumplings for Xiao Qin to try first. Xiao Qin said that wouldn't be proper.
Mu Jing told him: "If I don't tell, no one will know."
"That still wouldn't be right."
Mu Jing thought this Xiao Qin was truly honest. If it were her brother, he wouldn't care about such formalities. She said to Xiao Qin: "This is my first time making these. Try them and see how they are. If they're terrible, you can take over the cooking today."
Only after receiving this "assignment" did Xiao Qin taste a soup dumpling. For the first time, he ate a dumpling so delicately, taking just a small bite. When the soup spilled out, he looked at Mu Jing somewhat embarrassed and smiled, saying to her: "It's really delicious."
The orderly had previously only thought Mu Jing was beautiful, but hers was a distant kind of beauty. He hadn't expected her to be so approachable.
At breakfast time, Mu Jing's in-laws sat at the dining table looking at the breakfast spread. Xiao Qin certainly didn't have this level of skill - that boy's cooking was as plain as his character.
"I wanted to make some porridge for grandmother and Qu Hua this morning. My skills aren't great, but please try some too." As she spoke, Mu Jing served her in-laws each a bowl of porridge and invited them to try her dumplings.
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