The sunset slipped away, melting into the depths of the horizon.
In the corridor outside the ward, Gu Qiancheng stood with his arms crossed, a face full of schadenfreude as he looked at Lin Mo.
“Hero, you really are a hero…” he chuckled as he spoke.
“When the junior sister asked what happened, you actually answered her honestly?”
At this, Lin Mo, sitting on the bench, slightly lifted his eyes to meet Gu Qiancheng’s gaze and replied matter-of-factly, “What else could I do?”
Gu Qiancheng scratched his temple.
“Some things you have to say in private. Even if Junior Qingqian’s personality is more manly than a man’s, in the end, she’s still a girl.”
With that, Gu Qiancheng pulled a cold Coke from his coat pocket and casually tossed it to Lin Mo, a mocking smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“You deserved that slap, hero. Use this to soothe your face.”
Lin Mo caught the Coke steadily but didn’t put it to his face.
His fingers traced the water droplets condensed on the can’s surface as he silently twisted open the tab, tilting his head back to gulp down a large mouthful.
For some reason, ever since he had ‘confessed’ everything to Chu You in the ward just now, his throat had felt dry, and a nameless fire seemed to burn deep within him.
The cold liquid slid down his throat, bringing a brief relief.
Lin Mo pressed his lips together; the sweetness of the Coke spread throughout his mouth—but involuntarily, it was soon overwhelmed by the more intimate sensations from that night flooding back in his mind.
In his memory, the senior sister’s lips seemed… even sweeter than this Coke?
“Hey, I’m saying…”
Gu Qiancheng’s voice suddenly cut through Lin Mo’s drifting thoughts.
Leaning against the pristine white wall opposite, hands in his pockets, his eyes carried a hint of scrutiny as he slowly said, “When you confessed to the junior sister just now, you said you couldn’t help but get touchy because you saw her condition hadn’t improved, and in the end, you took the initiative to kiss her…”
He paused for a moment, then stretched the tone, eyes sharp, “How much of that is true? How much is fake?”
Lin Mo’s grip on the Coke can tightened imperceptibly, the aluminum can giving a faint clicking sound.
He didn’t answer immediately, lowering his gaze to the floor at his feet, as if there was something extremely fascinating about the smooth surface.
The corridor fell into a brief silence, only the faint sound of the hospital broadcast echoing distantly.
After a few seconds, Lin Mo raised his eyes, meeting Gu Qiancheng’s probing look with a calm, almost innocent tone: “Senior, you said she’s a girl too.”
His words hung in the air.
Gu Qiancheng’s expression faltered for a moment, staring at Lin Mo for two seconds before bursting into laughter.
“…A warm guy is worse than a dog!”
“Senior sister isn’t that easy to fool,” Lin Mo said, squeezing the Coke can rhythmically, the faint red handprint on the left cheek still visible as a slight flush rose, his lips curving into a small smile.
“If she believed me, she wouldn’t have hit me.”
“Oh?”
Gu Qiancheng raised an eyebrow, about to reply.
Before he could say a word, a phone vibrated nearby, Lin Mo’s screen lighting up in response.
As if in reply to what Lin Mo just said, the caller ID on the screen flashed the characters 【Senior Sister】 prominently.
Lin Mo glanced down briefly before picking up the phone and defiantly raising his chin at Gu Qiancheng.
He answered and casually switched to speaker mode.
“Hello?”
Chu You’s voice came through the speaker, emotionless, “I’m hungry. I want hotpot.”
Lin Mo looked up at Gu Qiancheng again, squinting with a smile, as if showing off that he really understood his senior sister better.
Gu Qiancheng smirked, giving him a thumbs-up, mouthing silently, “You win.”
“Senior sister…” Lin Mo’s tone was usual, calm.
“You know you’re in the hospital, right? Let’s change it to something else—something lighter and better for you.”
There was silence on the other end as Chu You seemed to be thinking.
After a moment, she spoke again seriously, “No, I want hotpot.”
Hearing her stubborn demand, Lin Mo couldn’t help but chuckle softly, his tone a mix of helpless indulgence: “Where in the hospital are you going to get hotpot? Be good and have some seafood porridge, alright?”
There was a pause, then Chu You sighed softly, the voice perfectly balanced between grievance and accusation: “Sigh… I was forced to become someone’s assistant, which is bad enough, but now, it’s been less than a month and I’m in the hospital longer than I’ve been at home…”
She hesitated, her tone growing even more pitiful, “I’m just an unlucky, miserable person. Now I can’t even have a single bite of hotpot.”
That mock-woeful tone made Gu Qiancheng, leaning against the wall, instantly lose his composure.
He quickly raised his hand to cover his mouth, though his shoulders betrayed him, trembling with suppressed laughter.
Lin Mo rubbed his forehead, unable to help but smile bitterly.
Finally, he gave in, his tone softening, “…Alright, I’ll figure something out.”
Although they were only separated by a single door, Chu You insisted on making this call.
Beside them, the perpetually single Gu Qiancheng watched the scene unfold.
Though he didn’t understand the ins and outs of romantic feelings, he clearly recognized this particular blend of slight melodrama and natural, tacit connection—the kind of icebreaker only close people could have.
The awkwardness born from that “confession” quietly dissolved through this call.
Gu Qiancheng’s gaze unconsciously shifted toward the window outside the corridor.
Night had fallen; a cold, solitary moon hung in the sky, casting a pure yet distant light.
That moon reminded him of himself—alone and isolated.
An inexplicable loneliness crept into his heart.
He stared at the bright moon for a few seconds, his expression darkening.
After a moment of thought, he sneered and made a decisive choice—if he himself was unhappy, then no one else was going to be at ease!
Late at night, he would make a few “friendly” calls to the Deputy Chief Commander—that old miser.
Just imagining the furious scene on the other end made the melancholy vanish, replaced by a wicked grin.
…
“Gulp, gulp, gulp…”
In the end, Chu You got to eat hotpot after all.
Lin Mo drove all over half the city and finally gathered an electric hotpot, thinly sliced beef, various meatballs, and fresh vegetables.
Considering Chu You hadn’t fully recovered yet, he chose a mild tomato broth as the base.
Chu You sat cross-legged on the hospital bed, eyes fixed eagerly on the bubbling red soup, unable to wait any longer as she grabbed a chopstickful of beef, rolled it in a sesame paste dipping sauce, and, barely waiting for it to cool, gently blew on it twice before popping it into her mouth.
“Mm~~~”
The tender beef and rich sesame paste exploded on her tongue.
She closed her eyes in satisfaction, letting out a long, pleased hum, as if the illness of the past few days had been largely chased away by this one bite.
Beside her, Gu Qiancheng also held disposable chopsticks, imitating her as he picked up a piece of lotus root roll soaked in tomato broth, tentatively taking a small bite before raising his eyebrows—clearly approving of the taste.
Chu You quickly swallowed the beef, her eyes eagerly fixed on Lin Mo, sparkling with expectation.
“Lin Mo, hurry, give me that…”
Seeing her craving like this, a faint, subtle smile appeared in Lin Mo’s eyes.
He bent down and pulled out a packet of the most common instant noodles from the shopping bag, swiftly tearing open the package.
Under Chu You’s unwavering gaze, he placed the noodle block steadily into the simmering tomato pot.
The noodles absorbed the broth visibly, slowly unfurling and merging with the bright red tomato soup.
“Who can resist a packet of noodles in hotpot?”
Chu You licked the sesame paste off the corner of her mouth, staring at the noodles softening in the pot, sincerely marveling as if it were the most exquisite delicacy in the world.
Just then, Gu Qiancheng and Lin Mo simultaneously paused their chopsticks, exchanged a glance, and nodded in silent agreement.
Gu Qiancheng even added, in a rare serious tone.
“Definitely.”