Waiting for You in a City

On the first night of staying at Song Yan’s house, Xu Qin had a hard time falling asleep.

Xu Qin ate dinner with uncle’s family. Song Yan was in a hurry and left without eating.

As for why he was in a hurry, everyone was well aware.

As for Xu Qin, everything had been done already anyway, so she didn’t bother to be embarrassed.

Both uncle and aunt had good personalities, they were informal and not pretentious, they could eat a meal together quite comfortably.

After dinner, uncle and aunt cleaned up the dishes, Xu Qin glanced at them and was about to move; Zhai Miao was lying on the sofa playing with her cellphone, and without looking up: “I don’t even help, so don’t meddle. They get along really well.”

In the evening, she did some woodworking together with uncle in the yard for a while. She didn’t speak much, there was only the sound of the blade scraping the wood, and the fragrance of the logs wafted in the cold wind.

Not long after, the elders went to bed early, and Xu Qin went back to her room early to rest.

But for some reason, she couldn’t fall asleep.

Almost anyone would have difficulty sleeping during a major turning point in one’s life.

What’s more, at this moment, she was alone in an unfamiliar environment.

The night was getting deeper and deeper.

Look at the time, it was already one o’clock in the morning.

Xu Qin tossed and turned on the bed by herself, and suddenly found that, at some point, the moon had come out, illuminating the window brightly.

The moonlight was excellent tonight, and the shadows of the trees were mottled on the wooden windows. She was lying on her side, looking at the jagged tree shadows, they looked like a quiet ink painting.

Song Yan had been living here the whole time.

While she was in a daze, her phone rang.

Knowing that it was Song Yan, she immediately got up and grabbed the phone to pick it up: “Hello?”

“Haven’t slept yet?” He asked, his end was very quiet, which made his voice low and deep, it was especially nice.

“How do you know?” she asked, lying on the pillow.

“The phone was answered too quickly.” He laughed, “I also guessed that you wouldn’t be able to fall asleep. ……What’s wrong, you’re not used to it?”

Xu Qin scratched her forehead with her index finger: “A little bit.”

He was silent for a while, and asked: “Upset?”

“No.” She smiled dumbly, and lay back under the quilt.

On the other end, Song Yan walked out of the building lightly, walked onto the field, and said: “Sorry, I didn’t expect things to happen so suddenly, if I stayed with you at home for a while, you might have gotten more used to it.”

“It’s okay.” Xu Qin said, “It’s not the first time I’ve met uncle and aunt. Besides, they liked me quite a lot before when we were in high school.”

“They also like you now.” Song Yan said.

He seemed to have come to an air vent, and the wind was whistling through the receiver, so he covered it to avoid it, and when the wind subsided, he asked again, “Are you comfortable getting along with uncle and the others?”

“En, I carved some wooden flowers with uncle for a while tonight.” Xu Qin said, stretching her feet under the quilt, and asked, “What about you, what did you do tonight?”

“Organized some internal affairs, trained the team, trained the dog.”

“Is it that rescue dog from the last earthquake?”

“En, you didn’t know did you, it performed outstandingly and scored a second-class merit.” Song Yan said, “That son of a bitch is clever and knows that it has done a meritorious service. It holds its head up and wags its tail arrogantly all day long. Just wait until I show it who’s boss.”

Xu Qin was amused by him, got excited, turned over again and asked: “What’s its name?”

The wind was strong, he smiled lightly and said: “Xiao Meng.”

“……” Xu Qin picked the pillow with her index finger, “It’s not because of me is it?”

“What do you think?” He asked leisurely.

“It can only be because of me, otherwise just you wait.” It was rare for her to be “proud of being favored”.

He burst out laughing.

She also laughed: “How old is it?”

“Almost four years old.”

“Has a good relationship with you?”

“Nonsense.” He smiled lowly again, and said, “Likes me. ……Only likes me.”

For some reason, on her side, her heart skipped a beat, and she couldn’t help but curl the corners of her lips.

In the dead of night, a telephone line connected the shallow breathing and longing at both ends.

“Why are you sleeping so late today?” she asked.

“I’m not used to it either.” He sighed slightly, a little helplessly.

“What’s the matter?” She thought for a while, and asked intentionally, “Have you been recuperating at home for too long?”

“I left you at home by yourself,” he said.

In the past, every time he went back to the barracks, it was very brisk and efficient, but this time, there were worries and fetters.

As soon as she lowered her head, she smiled silently.

She clearly knew it already, but she was only happy when she heard him say it himself.

Gradually, she couldn’t help it, and laughed out loud.

“What are you laughing at?” he asked.

“The blankets and the bed are full of your scent.” She said, her voice very soft in the night.

She wouldn’t realize how much those words teased him. Hearing her soft voice on the other end of the phone, and thinking of her rolling on his bed, for a while it was unbearable, but in the end he could only let out a long, forbearing breath and suppressed it.

She was lying under the warm blanket, and he was standing on the windy field, back and forth, unknowingly chatting for more than half an hour. Until, she felt drowsy and slowly yawned a few times.

He told her to go to bed, and was about to hang up the phone, then called again at the last moment: “Xu Qin.”

“En?”

“Once work gets busy, I can’t contact you often, so don’t think too much of it.” Song Yan said, “But I’ll send you a text message whenever I’m free.”

“Got it.” Xu Qin curled up under the blanket and said softly, feeling sleepy.

“Be good.”

“Mmm.”

The pillow and the blanket were full of his scent, she curled up in it, gradually closed her eyes, and fell asleep peacefully.

Early the next morning, Xu Qin woke up in the sunlight shining through the wooden window. Although she had slept late the night before, she was in good spirits and did not feel sleepy at all.

After washing up, she ate the breakfast made by uncle and took a taxi to the hospital.

Xu Qin sat in the back seat of the taxi, leaning against the window and looking at the tall buildings outside.

She suddenly remembered that the last time she took a taxi to and from work was after the heavy rain, her car had been scrapped. During that time, she sat in the car in a depressed mood.

Today, her heart was peaceful, she was calm, and she had a place to stay.

Although she had to be separated from Song Yan for a week, it would not affect her work. After all, this feeling was more like a backer behind her, making her more devoted and calmer in her work.

It was just that she stopped occasionally in between busy intervals, checked the text messages he sent a few hours ago, and replied with a few words. He may have to wait until very late or see it the next day before replying.

Occasionally, when her mind flickered, she thought about what he was doing at the moment. Maybe they were practicing, they were continuing training, maybe they were on duty, or maybe the fire truck had just passed the street in front of the hospital. But she only thought about it, let it pass, and continued to walk through the corridors of the hospital with her hands in her pockets.

Work at the hospital was still busy, and those seeking medical attention were still coming in and out. The difference was probably that the man and his mother who came to the hospital to make trouble became squatters, coming to the hospital to make a scene everyday, accusing Doctor Li of killing his wife and son.

Considering Doctor Li’s safety, the hospital gave him a vacation.

The man and his mother couldn’t find a place to vent, so they cast a wide net and put up a banner at the entrance of the hospital, cursing whenever medical staff came in and out, and cursing repeatedly when they encountered patients.

The police came to persuade and reprimand the man several times. But the old woman, relying on her age, played tricks at every turn, rolling and crying. The police also got annoyed, and gradually, stopped caring about the matter.

That family was so unscrupulous, they had probably made up their minds: anyway, if they shamelessly squander around, the hospital will be overwhelmed sooner or later.

After a few days, colleagues also complained about this. Work was already tiring, but they had to let people scold their parents and ancestors when they went to and from work. Who would be in a good mood when they were met with this?

Xu Qin went to and from work everyday amidst their curses, with a calm face, unaffected, as if she didn’t hear them.

The nurses were not as calm as her. The first thing Xiao Xi said every day when she got to work was what good food she had eaten, but now she complained:

“I was scolded again when I just entered the door. When will that family outside leave? Are they really going to spend the rest of their lives at our hospital?”

But Xiao Dong said: “Let them hang around. I’m mostly afraid that the hospital will settle the matter and give them money. That would make me angry.”

Xiao Nan said: “Don’t worry, it won’t happen. I asked Director Liu the other day, and he said that the leadership was determined this time. They sealed up all the case materials and videos and sent them to a third-party appraisal. They were determined not to settle with money, not even a penny. Otherwise, this precedent will be set. In the future, everyone will come to our Third Military Hospital, thinking this is a bank or something.”

Xiao Bei also said: “That’s right. Doesn’t settling mean that Doctor Li made a wrong diagnosis? How will Doctor Li work in the future? For his honor and dignity, they can’t settle.”

Hearing what they said, Xiao Xi calmed down and said, “As long as we don’t settle, they can scold us as much as they’d like. As long as we don’t let them get their way, I’m willing to be scolded a few times.”

Xu Qin, as usual, did not participate in their conversation, but only dedicatedly prepared for work.

Since the end of the earthquake rescue, she had become a famous doctor in the hospital, and was the best candidate for the promotion to attending physician this time.

Professor Xu Ken also began to call her frequently to assist him in operations, and sometimes even the major cases were directly handed over to her as the chief surgeon, while he instructed and taught her from the side.

It was just that, as usual, Professor Xu didn’t show any kindness towards her, and was even harsher than before, almost to the point of criticizing her. Several times, he admonished her in front of all the doctors and nurses.

If it was someone else, perhaps they would be scolded until they were red-faced and wouldn’t be able to stay any longer.

But she didn’t care too much, and automatically ignored his mean side, extracted key information, and seized every opportunity to learn from him.

But gradually, gossip began to spread from colleagues, doctors to nurses, and from nurses to Xu Qin’s ears. It was said that Xu Qin has a strong background, and her position had already been decided behind closed doors. This time, her outstanding performance in the earthquake rescue just gave the hospital leadership an excuse to get Xu Qin promoted.

Under pressure from the hospital, Professor Xu Ken had no choice but to take her under his wing. But after all, the professor had a temper, so he suppressed her in various ways.

There were a lot of rumors going around, but Xu Qin didn’t think that Professor Xu was that kind of person.

Xiao Xi was quite aggrieved for her, saying: “Doctor Yang Sijia from the burn department is too annoying. His own medical skills are not as good as Doctor Xu, so he talks behind her back all day long.”

Xu Qin didn’t take it to heart, lowered her head and washed her hands diligently, thinking about an operation procedure she had led together with the professor not long ago.

Xiao Dong also said: “Professor Xu is really stubborn. He had a bad first impression of Doctor Xu, so he hasn’t been able to change his mind.” She also used to have a bad first impression of Xu Qin, but after working for half a year, she found that although Xu Qin was not very talkative and looked indifferent, she was serious and responsible, dedicated to her work, did not engage in interpersonal relationships, was not complicated to get along with, rather she was relaxed and comfortable.

Xu Qin was thinking about the operation and didn’t pay much attention to their conversation.

Until Xiao Bei rushed in, panting: “It’s over, it’s over, something happened. That man and his mother are going to jump off the building, now they both climbed to the roof of the outpatient department!”

“Who?”

“Those two who make trouble at the door everyday claiming they want 2 million!”

Everyone: “……”

“Let him jump, he deserves it if he dies!” Xiao Xi was the first to complain, “It’s really one thing after another, it’s endless.”

Xiao Nan pushed her lightly, but then said again: “They wouldn’t really jump, would they? They should just be making some trouble, these kinds of people are the most afraid of death. It’s probably because they have been making trouble for so long, and realized the hospital won’t let go or settle, so they just played this game.” She ended with a comment, “They really are such scoundrels.”

“But it’s precisely this strategy that can create a sensation. Now the entrance of the hospital is paralyzed.”

A few people went outside to see the situation.

After Xu Qin washed her hands, she stuffed them in her pockets and walked towards the office. She was not interested in getting in on the action.

Behind her, Xiao Dong complained: “Threatening with their own lives, this time the hospital has no choice. If they really jump off the building and die, our hospital is finished.”

Xiao Xi said: “Don’t say that, 110 and 119 have been notified, just get them down from up there first.”

This time, even Xiao Nan couldn’t bear it anymore, maybe because she thought of her boyfriend Tong Ming who was a firefighter, and said angrily: “Wasting social resources, why don’t people like this go……”

As the words came to her lips, she thought that if they died, both sides of the hospital and fire brigade would be unlucky, so she suppressed her anger.

When Xu Qin heard the three numbers 119, she stopped suddenly, remembering that jumping off the building was also under the responsibility of the firefighters.

She couldn’t help but frown,

After thinking about it, she turned around and decided to go out and have a look.