บท 2: 2
On the way to the community clinic, Qin Ruan had difficulty walking due to her sprained ankle, so Wen Yixin almost had to half-carry her the entire way.
Fortunately, there was a clinic nearby, and it took them only about ten minutes to get there.
After the doctor examined Qin Ruan's injury and prescribed some medication, Wen Yixin also bought an extra box of cold medicine just in case.
As they left the clinic, Wen Yixin looked at Qin Ruan's pale face and instinctively softened her voice, "Miss Qin, let me take you home."
Home… Hearing this word, Qin Ruan's gaze darkened slightly, and her long lashes drooped, casting a small shadow under her eyelids.
Her fingers tightened slightly, tentatively wrapping around the warm wrist beneath her hand, but as soon as her fingertips touched the warmth, her lashes trembled involuntarily.
She lowered her head, her gaze fixed on her toes, "Miss Wen, can I stay at your place for a while first?"
Qin Ruan's voice was so soft when she said this that if Wen Yixin hadn't been paying close attention to her, she might not have heard it at all.
However, the fact that Qin Ruan wanted to go to her home...
Wen Yixin looked at the person in front of her. Her hair was still wet, and despite wearing a clean, oversized coat, it only made her slender, frail limbs more apparent, like a malnourished kitten.
A malnourished and injured kitten at that.
Wen Yixin's gaze lingered for a moment on the red marks on Qin Ruan's face, and she sighed inwardly. The original book had mentioned that Qin Ruan was not favored in the Qin family, but seeing her now, it seemed more complicated than that.
When Qin Ruan didn't get an immediate response from Wen Yixin, she assumed she had been refused. Her fingers around Wen Yixin's wrist loosened slightly, and her lashes drooped even lower.
Her hand slowly slid down from the warm wrist, and then, almost instinctively, she clenched the hem of her coat. But as soon as she did, she remembered that the clean coat she was wearing also belonged to the person in front of her.
In just a short time, Qin Ruan's thoughts had raced in several directions, but she eventually pushed them all down, forcing herself into a state of calm.
She forced a smile and pretended nothing was wrong as she looked at Wen Yixin, "Thank you for taking me to the doctor."
"It's getting late, I'll just go home by myself. I don't want to trouble you any further."
"I've already taken up so much of your time today. I feel really bad about it." Qin Ruan clutched the hem of the coat, "I'll take this coat home, wash it, and return it to you."
After speaking, she turned to leave.
"Wait." Wen Yixin called out.
Qin Ruan's steps halted immediately.
Wen Yixin, who had stopped her from leaving, reached out and gently pulled her back, speaking softly, "I live closer to here. Why don't you come back to my place first? That way, you can take a hot shower sooner."
Qin Ruan froze, her lips moving as if to say something, but no words came out. She just stared blankly at the gentle expression on Wen Yixin's face.
Seeing her dazed expression, Wen Yixin couldn't help but chuckle.
"Why are you spacing out?"
Qin Ruan stammered, "I didn't expect you to..."
She hadn't expected Wen Yixin to actually agree to take her home, especially since they had just met.
And the words she had blurted out earlier had been more of an instinctive attempt to avoid going back to her own home.
Wen Yixin sighed and reached out to wipe away the raindrops clinging to Qin Ruan's wet bangs, "Come on, let's go back to my place first."
Her hair was so wet that if she stayed out any longer, she might really catch a cold.
Qin Ruan nodded, "Okay."
"I'll help you." Wen Yixin smiled, placing the umbrella handle in Qin Ruan's hand before helping her walk step by step toward her home.
As for Qin Ruan...
Qin Ruan gripped the umbrella handle, her gaze occasionally sweeping over Wen Yixin's profile.
After a while, she couldn't help but sincerely thank her, "Miss Wen, thank you for helping me today."
Wen Yixin was momentarily surprised to be addressed as "Miss Wen" by the young girl. When she realized what had happened, she found it amusing and let out a soft chuckle.
She even responded lightly, "You're welcome."
Once they arrived home, Wen Yixin quickly settled Qin Ruan down and rushed to bring her a cup of warm water, "Miss Qin, have some water first. I'll go find you some clothes to change into."
Qin Ruan obediently held the paper cup and took a sip. Looking at Wen Yixin, she softly said, "Miss Wen, you can just call me by my name."
"My name is Qin Ruan."
For some reason, hearing Wen Yixin repeatedly call her "Miss Qin" made her feel an inexplicable sense of distance.
She didn't like it.
Wen Yixin hadn't thought much about it. She simply found it more convenient to call her by her name, so she readily agreed.
After agreeing, she quickly turned to search for clothes for Qin Ruan.
In the bedroom, Wen Yixin rummaged through the wardrobe for a while before finally finding a dress that the original owner hadn't worn yet.
It was a soft, pale yellow color, which should suit someone Qin Ruan's age.
Wen Yixin took down the dress, and her gaze flickered when it landed on the undergarments hanging on the other side.
All of Qin Ruan's clothes were soaked, so she would likely need to change her undergarments after her shower as well. However... she didn't know Qin Ruan's size.
After hesitating for a moment, Wen Yixin decided to take the dress out first.
In the living room, Qin Ruan was sitting quietly on a stool, sipping the water slowly. When she saw Wen Yixin approaching with a dress, she quickly stood up and was about to reach out to take it when Wen Yixin suddenly asked:
"Qin Ruan, what size undergarments do you wear?"
Qin Ruan was speechless: ...
For a moment, she was uncharacteristically flustered, and the water caught in her throat caused her to cough a few times.
Seeing this, Wen Yixin couldn't help but reach out and pat her back to help her breathe easier. Once the coughing subsided, she slowly retracted her hand and asked:
"Feeling better?"
"Yes." Qin Ruan nodded, "Much better."
After responding, Qin Ruan thought about Wen Yixin's earlier question and quietly gave an answer, softly enough for Wen Yixin to hear.
Having received her answer and noticing Qin Ruan's embarrassment, Wen Yixin didn't press further. She handed her the dress and said, "Go take a shower first. I'll step out for a bit and be back soon."
After a brief pause, perhaps wanting to reassure Qin Ruan, Wen Yixin added, "I should be back before you finish your shower."
"Oh." Qin Ruan responded quietly, her pale cheeks flushing slightly, which made her look even more lively.
She looked very pretty.
At least, Wen Yixin couldn't help but take a few more glances before turning to leave.
After watching Wen Yixin leave, Qin Ruan's gaze fell on the dress in her hands.
She reached out to smooth the creases on the hem, and just as she was about to lower her hand, she instinctively raised the dress to her nose for a light sniff.
But after just a moment, she seemed startled by her own behavior and quickly put the dress down.
Meanwhile, after going downstairs, Wen Yixin headed straight to the nearest large supermarket near the community, where she carefully selected two sets of decent undergarments before returning with the bag.
When she arrived home, the living room was empty, and only the faint sound of water could be heard coming from the bathroom.
Wen Yixin's gaze shifted between the bag in her hand and the bathroom door before she finally stepped toward the bathroom.
She knocked on the bathroom door a few times and gently said, "Qin Ruan, I've left the clothes you need on the stool outside the door. You can change into them after your shower."
"Okay, thank you." Qin Ruan's voice came from inside the bathroom.
Hearing this, Wen Yixin didn't linger any longer and went straight to the kitchen. She planned to make some ginger tea, so Qin Ruan could have it after her shower.
About twenty minutes later, Qin Ruan finally emerged from the bathroom, fully dressed. She followed the sound and found Wen Yixin in the kitchen, where she couldn't help but ask, "Miss Wen, do you need any help?"
Wen Yixin turned to her and smiled, shaking her head, "No need, I'm just cooking a couple of dishes. I can handle it."
"You just got caught in the rain, so have some ginger tea to ward off the chill." As she spoke, Wen Yixin pointed to a nearby white porcelain bowl filled with ginger tea that had been sitting for a few minutes.
Qin Ruan nodded and thanked her before carefully sipping the tea. As she drank, she occasionally stole glances at Wen Yixin. Whenever their gazes met, Qin Ruan would smile shyly before looking away as if nothing had happened.
Wen Yixin chuckled softly. After plating the freshly cooked dishes, she finally had a moment to ask, "Did you apply the medicine to your wounds?"
Qin Ruan nodded, "I applied it right after I finished my shower."
"That's good."
Wen Yixin glanced at Qin Ruan's still-swollen right cheek and, after some thought, took an ice pack from the refrigerator and handed it to her, "Using this on your face might make it feel better."
Upon hearing this, Qin Ruan hesitated for a moment before looking up at Wen Yixin. After a moment of internal debate, she couldn't help but ask:
"You don't seem curious about how I got this injury?" Earlier, she had thought that Wen Yixin simply didn't care about her injury, but she hadn't expected her to offer an ice pack, which showed she had noticed it all along.
Wen Yixin looked at her calmly and replied in a gentle tone, "If you want to talk about it, I'll listen."
She hadn't asked because she had a pretty good idea of who had hurt Qin Ruan and didn't want to reopen old wounds.
Besides, she was past the age of being curious about everything and needing to dig into every detail.
Qin Ruan remained silent for a few seconds before obediently accepting the ice pack. In a soft voice, she said, "Thank you, Miss Wen."
"No need to thank me. Go wait in the living room; the food will be ready in a few minutes."
"Okay." Qin Ruan replied and slowly made her way to the living room, holding both the white porcelain bowl and the ice pack.
After sitting down, she quickly finished the rest of the ginger tea and then gently applied the ice pack to her face.
As she iced her face, her lashes drooped slightly, making it impossible for anyone to see the emotions in her eyes.
She sat there quietly, like a lifeless doll, and even the sunlight streaming in from the window couldn't bring any warmth to her.
As Qin Ruan turned the ice pack on her face, thinking about the person in the kitchen, she slowly closed her eyes.
She only reopened them when she heard the sound of approaching footsteps, immediately seeing the person standing before her.
Wen Yixin was setting the dishes on the table when she glanced at Qin Ruan and asked softly, "Are you tired?"
"I thought you had fallen asleep just now."
Qin Ruan shook her head, "I'm not tired, and I wasn't asleep, just resting my eyes."
"I see." Wen Yixin smiled and naturally handed a pair of chopsticks to Qin Ruan.
Her expression was soft as she glanced at the table full of delicious-looking dishes and smiled lightly, "Qin Ruan, try these dishes and see if they suit your taste."
"Of course, even if they don't, you'll have to make do. Otherwise, you'll have to go hungry."
Qin Ruan's brow arched slightly in response to Wen Yixin's teasing words, and the somber atmosphere surrounding her began to dissipate.
"Alright, I'll give them a try."
With that, Qin Ruan picked up her chopsticks and began tasting each dish on the table. As soon as the food touched her palate, her eyes lit up with delight.
"It's delicious." Qin Ruan honestly complimented.
Wen Yixin was very pleased with Qin Ruan's reaction. As she spoke again, a smile naturally graced her lips, "Then eat more. Once you're full, I'll take you home whenever you're ready."
Hearing this, Qin Ruan's hand froze for a moment, and she lowered her chopsticks. When she looked at Wen Yixin across the table, she seemed hesitant.
"What's wrong?" Wen Yixin asked.
Qin Ruan bit her lip, "I want to stay here for another night."
"Is that okay?"
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