Chapter 449 - 389: Always So Good
Chapter 449: Chapter 389: Always So Good
Wu Xiaowen said, "My parents are getting old and have all sorts of ailments. They have cardiovascular issues, problems with their liver, lungs, and stomach, and on top of that, they developed frozen shoulder and rheumatic pain from their time in the countryside. All in all, it’s a very complicated situation. That girl Manman is quite bold. She didn’t even take their pulse herself; she just prescribed the medicine after Hao Hao gave her a general description of their condition. But it was surprisingly accurate—my father was completely better after taking it. This time, he got worked up by Wu Xiaorui and felt a tightness in his chest, like a relapse. He’s been tormented by these illnesses for so many years that he got scared and exaggerated things a bit to Hao Hao, asking him to get another batch of medicine from Manman. The idea is, if there’s a problem, it’ll treat it. If not, it can still strengthen his body and be a good preventative measure. It’s safer that way."
Bai Lihua nodded repeatedly. "That’s the right thing to do. Best to be proactive, so you’re not caught unprepared if it really does flare up. Listening to you describe Uncle and Aunt’s symptoms, they sound just like my father’s."
Wu Xiaowen hesitated for a moment. "Why don’t you take two courses of treatment from here for Uncle Bai to try? I just don’t know if it’ll be suitable for him. We’re not doctors, so we don’t know anything about this medicine."
"That’s okay. My father has a doctor watching over him, so there won’t be any issues. It’s just... wouldn’t it be bad if Uncle and Aunt found out?"
"It’s fine. Manman only gave us ten doses last time. I don’t know what got into her, but she prepared a whole lot this time. I just won’t tell them. Besides, if we need more, we can just have Hao Hao... ask Manman to prepare a few more doses. It’s not a big deal."
"Okay! I’ll take two courses of treatment back for my father to try."
Bai Lihua gazed lovingly at Wu Xiaowen, then suddenly leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. "Xiao Xiao, you’re always so good, so kind! And... do you know how beautiful you are right now? Being with you always gives me this illusion... as if we’ve returned to the good old days!"
A bashful blush spread across Wu Xiaowen’s face. But then a thought struck her, and her eyes instantly reddened. She jerked her head to the side. "What’s so good about me? I can’t compare to how young and pretty Wu Xiaorui is!"
Bai Lihua gave an awkward cough. He used both hands to cup her face and turn it back toward him, sighing. "What do you want me to do? Just say the word, and I’d tear my heart out for you! I’ll say it again: I was really, really drunk that day! I don’t know what kind of concoction Wu Xiaorui made me drink, but when I groggily came to, I mistook her for you. She imitated your voice when she called my name, and I couldn’t tell the difference. I... I just missed you so much! I can swear, during the entire process, I truly believed it was the two of us making love! I avoided you afterward because I was too guilty and miserable. I couldn’t face you!"
"Hmph! Then why did you help Wu Xiaorui go abroad? And you hid it from me! If you had told me sooner, I could have been on my guard against her. I wouldn’t have just handed over fifty thousand yuan. I had to borrow that money from my friends."
"You’re wrongly accusing me again, aren’t you? I did something wrong, so I deserved to suffer in guilt and shame and avoid you. But later, I couldn’t stop worrying about you. How many times did I call you? How many times did I try to find you? You wouldn’t give me the time of day! How was I supposed to tell you? Xiao Xiao, do you know why I arranged for Xiao Rui to go abroad? As long as she stayed in the country, the two of us could never be okay. She was like a dark cloud hanging over our heads. I had to send her away to give us back our clear sky!"
Wu Xiaowen couldn’t bring herself to look at Bai Lihua. She lowered her eyes and pouted. "Excuses!"
Bai Lihua leaned down and kissed her again, this time on the lips. Wu Xiaowen quickly pushed him away, her face flushed as she feigned annoyance. "What are you doing? Someone’s going to walk in and see us!"
"I’m sitting here watching the door. Don’t worry, Hao Hao didn’t see anything when he came in just now. The door is a long way from the bed. Even if Hao Hao didn’t have bad eyesight, his vision isn’t that good."
Bai Lihua then asked considerately, "Would you like some hot water? Xuanxuan went to get breakfast and will be back soon. If you drink some water, it’ll be easier to eat in a bit."
Wu Xiaowen said okay. Bai Lihua got up to pour some boiling water, cooling it by pouring it back and forth between two cups. He took a sip himself to test the temperature before wrapping a handkerchief around the cup and handing it to Wu Xiaowen, reminding her to drink slowly and be careful not to choke.
Wu Xiaowen nodded, feeling as if a harp string had been gently plucked in her heart, playing a magnificent, romantic melody. If she were given a stage right then, she could surely leap and spin with the same light, graceful beauty of her youth, performing the symphony in her heart for all to see!
’She finally understood why she was so attached to Bai Lihua, why she felt so incredibly happy just being with him. Beyond the pure and beautiful love they shared, it was because Bai Lihua truly treated her so, so well. He knew all her preferences, doting on her with meticulous care, spoiling her rotten. He was a noble prince in his own right, yet he was willing to serve her with all his heart, treating her like the most precious of princesses. After they fell in love, they never fought. They weren’t like other couples who would separate after getting angry. Even after the smallest disagreement, Bai Lihua couldn’t bear to see her upset; he was always the first to yield, gently and sweetly coaxing her back to him.
’Tang Qingyun could never do any of that. In fact, it was the exact opposite. When she was with Tang Qingyun, Wu Xiaowen had become the one in Bai Lihua’s shoes, using every trick in the book to please Tang Qingyun, only to get nothing in return. Tang Qingyun was nothing but a fence-sitter, swaying back and forth before ultimately siding with his parents! He was cold and hard-hearted, refusing to listen to reason and insisting on abandoning his wife and child. Just think, what woman could stand a man like that? They didn’t even see each other twice a year. Could you even call that a marriage?
’Let a heartless, uncaring man like that stew in his own regret!’
The thought of Tang Qingyun depressed Wu Xiaowen. She drained the cup of water in one gulp as if it were liquor. Looking up, she saw Bai Lihua take a few sheets of newspaper and two mesh bags from the bedside table. He was carefully wrapping the packets of medicine from the bed in the newspaper, then putting them into the mesh bags. One bag held the medicine for the Wu Family’s elders, and the other held Wu Xiaowen’s. As for the ones he was taking, he put them directly into the leather briefcase he carried with him.
Just as he finished, there was a knock on the door, followed by a voice calling out, "Mom!" The door then pushed open, and Tang Yaxuan walked in carrying a woven wicker basket. Two people followed behind her: Wu Yu Xuan and Lin Aizhen.
Tang Yaxuan said with a smile, "Mom, Uncle Bai, Grandpa and Grandma are here. We happened to run into them downstairs."
Bai Lihua had returned to Beijing in the middle of the night and came over at the crack of dawn this morning. He had already met Tang Yaxuan, given her some money, and told her to take a car to Shenghua Restaurant to buy the congee and pastries Wu Xiaowen liked. This was, however, the first time he was seeing Wu Yu Xuan and Lin Aizhen. He stood up and respectfully greeted them, "Uncle Wu, Aunt Lin," then helped each of them to the armchair by the wall. He then bustled about, offering to pour them water and peel apples, but Wu Yu Xuan waved him off, and Lin Aizhen said with a smile:
"We just came from breakfast, so we’re not thirsty yet. You’re a good kid, Lihua. Don’t trouble yourself. Stop standing and have a seat."