"No, zhengxi must not make the donation!"
Upon hearing this, Nian Suian immediately halted in her tracks. The box of tantalizing pizza she was holding became less appealing than the sentence she just heard.
Seeing Nian Suian had stopped, the other three also halted. They didn't understand what that sentence meant.
Puzzled, Gu Zhijing asked, "Why can't he make a donation?"
Nian Suian, as if she had an epiphany, said, "Because immediate relatives can’t provide blood!"
"Do you know them?" The rest were confused about how she knew what the conversation was about. Amidst their confusion, they only caught that one sentence, not the entire conversation, so they were unaware of what was happening.
"I guessed," she casually replied.
Just as the words left Nian Suian's mouth, the conversation from the other side continued.
"Why can't I?"
"Because direct relatives can't donate blood!"
In a moment, everyone looked at Nian Suian differently.
Admiringly, Gu Zhijing asked, "Little aunt, can you see into the future?"
"Yes, I see that you'll be quite wealthy in the future. Don't forget me then," Nian Suian humorously responded to her naive "son".
Meanwhile, Gu Junxing in the patient's room had been waiting. Butler Su had pulled his assistant away earlier, claiming that they were going to fetch something. They alleged it was at the hospital entrance, but the assistant was nowhere to be seen now.
Worried, Gu Junxing called the assistant to find out whether he had met up with the person he was supposedly fetching.
"Hello, boss?" The assistant answered the phone, cautiously lowering his voice.
"Where are you? Have you met up with the person?"
"We are at the hospital. We've met them."
"Why is it taking so long? Where are you exactly?"
While responding to the call, the assistant was sticking his nose into Nian Suian and Gu Zhijing's conversation about why the one named zhengxi couldn't donate but some other person could.
Where were they?
Without thinking, the assistant candidly replied, "At the part about immediate relatives being unable to give blood."
"What did you just say?" Gu Junxing was confused, not understanding this strange answer from the assistant.
"Oh, I apologize, boss. We're on the fifth floor. We'll be up soon." The assistant hastily apologized after realizing his mistake.
Shortly after, a doctor arrived. The group debating about blood donation followed the doctor into an office.
Nian Suian, satisfied with the day’s events, prepared to go home.
"Madam, the boss called a while ago. He's looking for us!" came a reminder.
"Oh, my apologies! I totally forgot about him. Let's hurry then." Nian Suian said as she awkwardly brushed her hair. This world of powerful figures always had new and exciting things going on, which was greatly alluring for an outsider like her. So much so, she completely forgot there was a patient waiting alone in the hospital room.
“Where did you go? Did you get lost in the hospital?” With his devices and laptop confiscated, Gu Junxing was left watching TV in his bed. As if it wasn’t enough that Nian Suian had staunched his butler to go have a nice meal, she even took his assistant with her, leaving Gu Junxing feeling utterly abandoned.
“We were watching TV in the hospital.” Nian Suian brushed it off casually. With so much drama going on, how was it any different than a TV show...
“Don’t we also have a TV here?”
"It's different," Gu Zhijing replied, then asked his father, "Dad, if I ever get sick and need a blood transfusion, would you donate blood to me?"
Gu Junxing had no idea why his son was asking such a nonsensical question. "Didn't you go to school? Don't you know direct relatives can't donate blood? Instead of studying properly, what are you thinking all day!"
Indeed, when it came to this, Gu Junxing completely changed from being a CEO to an annoying parent.
This dressing down made Nian Suian utterly displeased.
"Only you're the smartest, right? Zhijing is just joking with you. Yet, you can make a big fuss out of it. If you like lecturing so much, why don't you just become a Head Teacher!"
"......"
The atmosphere suddenly turned awkward. Even Butler Su and the Assistant, who were silently arranging the brought pizzas, didn't dare to utter a word.
Gu Junxing's words were choked back by Nian Suian's retort. He fell silent.
Seeing this, Gu Zhijing straightened his back immediately. For all these years, finally, someone made his father speechless.
"The pizza is getting cold......" Nian Suian pouted. They had been arguing for so long that the pizza was almost cold.
"Madam, there is a microwave in the kitchen. I can reheat it," quickly suggested the Assistant, who wanted to escape this place of dispute. Although watching his boss being taken down was satisfying, history taught him that subordinates who know too much don't end up well.
Butler Su also went to the kitchen to help reheat the food they brought. Fortunately, the ward was fully equipped, even with a kitchen. So, they simply left and gave the room to their boss' family only.
Gu Zhijing sneakily gave Nian Suian a thumbs-up for her brave action. She winked at him, indicating that it was a small task and nothing of a big deal.
Gu Junxing, who was sitting on the hospital bed, was also at a loss. Gu Zhijing was a naughty child since his early years. During his youth, the company was at its busiest time and was about to go public, and Junxing had no time to manage his son. So, he sent the kid to his parent's place. He visited his son whenever he had spare time.
By the time the company stabilized and he managed to get his leisure time back, he decided to bring his son home. But then, he realized his son was thoroughly spoiled by his grandparents. The strict discipline that was enforced on him during his childhood was entirely absent here, only endless pampering.
Gu Junxing never navigated the education of a child before and had tried several methods. Finally, he found that severe treatment was the best. At least his son would be afraid then. As a result, even though his son grew up and started understanding things, his harsh educational habit didn't change. Sometimes he realized he had spoken harshly only after the words escaped from his mouth.
He could understand that his son was comfortable with Nian Suian. At minimum, she could talk to his son like a friend and would always stand up for him when he faced criticism.
When Butler Su and the Assistant brought out the heated pizza, they saw Gu Zhijing and Nian Suian chatting, while Gu Junxing was alone on the bed with a furrowed brow.
"It smells so good!" exclaimed Gu Zhijing, eager to get the pizza from Butler Su's hand.
"Slow down, young sir. It's hot."
"I want to eat this seafood one!"
"Go ahead and eat!"
Gu Junxing watched them eat pizza, his expression softening. The biggest advantage of his silly son is his forgiving nature. As a father, he decided, he should be gentler with him in the future. The boy had grown older, and he had his own dignity. He couldn't educate him the same way as before.
"Dad, smell this."
Gu Junxing had just decided to be gentler with his son, when he turned his head only to find that his son was holding a piece of pizza right under his nose.
"It smells so good, a pity you can't eat it." After saying this, he stuffed the whole piece of pizza into his mouth right in front of his father.
Gu Junxing gritted his teeth and spat out the word, "Scram."
Nevermind, he retracted his earlier reflection. He couldn't be any gentler.