Reservoir Dogs chapter 51
Threshold
Xiao Zhou lay in the hospital for a month, upgraded to a private ward, with one-on-one nursing care.
Waking up in the hospital bed, he and the caregiver who was wiping him met eyes for a moment.
The caregiver’s face showed no embarrassment as she quickly wiped his bare thighs with a towel and pulled up his pants. Xiao Zhou’s face turned as red as a monkey’s bottom.
Xiao Zhou remembered that Jiang Chengyuan should have appeared last and taken him away from the arena, but since he woke up, Jiang Chengyuan had not shown up, only this caregiver who seemed not to understand Chinese stayed by his side to take care of him.
Three meals a day, trips to the bathroom, and washing up—at first, Xiao Zhou felt embarrassed, but later, when they turned him over to clean his body, he felt like a large pancake being flipped.
He held onto a shirt button in his palm. It was said that the nurse couldn’t pry his hand open, so he slept with his fist clenched around it.
The button was made of sapphire-blue square crystal. When Xiao Zhou lay on the hospital bed, doing nothing but daydreaming, he often stared at it. The edge of the button left an indentation in his palm, showing how tightly he had held it.
He hadn’t expected the situation to spiral out of control to this extent. He only wanted to win a few more fights and earn a bit more money. He knew he would get hurt, but he didn’t think it would cost him his life—He had just made a risky move..
However, he underestimated an Omega’s sensitivity to an Alpha. The pheromones had a fatal effect on his body, causing him to go into heat in public. He had to use his last bit of strength to lock himself away.
Xiao Zhou tried to get information about Jiang Chengyuan’s whereabouts from the Filipino caregiver, but no matter what he asked, she just looked at him with innocent, wide black eyes, making it impossible to tell if she was sent by Jiang Chengyuan.
If so, why hadn’t Jiang Chengyuan shown up even once during this period? He wanted to see Jiang Chengyuan, whether it was because Jiang Chengyuan had left and returned or because of their previous quarrel.
Actually, he didn’t need to ask. The taste of the soup and dishes the caregiver cooked was the same as what he had tasted at Jiang Chengyuan’s place.
All of this was definitely arranged by him, but Xiao Zhou didn’t understand why Jiang Chengyuan avoided seeing him.
Besides the Filipino caregiver, the person who spent the most time with him was Xiao Ping.
Xiao Ping was terrified by what had happened that day. He nearly went crazy trying to rush onto the stage but was knocked out and taken away by Chen Jin. Chen Jin believed that Xiao Zhou’s situation was beyond his ability to resolve and that he could only help by keeping an eye on Xiao Ping.
When the three of them met in the hospital room, Xiao Ping hadn’t slept for days. He looked disheveled, ashamed, and regretful, with tears streaming down his face.
Xiao Zhou, lying immobile, was grateful to Chen Jin for preventing Xiao Ping from doing anything rash. Otherwise, all his efforts would have been in vain.
After this incident, Xiao Ping completely changed his behavior. Besides working at the internet cafe, he stayed in the hospital room to accompany his brother and went home at night to be with their mother.
He had been spoiled and didn’t know how to take care of people, but now he was learning to study nutritional recipes and health tips. Occasionally, he would bring Xiao Zhou a strange-tasting health porridge.
Knowing that Xiao Zhou had limited mobility and was shy about gender differences, Xiao Ping took care of the more awkward tasks when he was there.
After spending a month together, the brothers’ relationship improved significantly. Xiao Ping’s hostility faded, and his grievances gradually wore away.
The prize money for the competition was two million yuan. Liu Neng kept his promise and gave the money to Xiao Zhou. Xiao Zhou kept five hundred thousand and gave the rest to Xiao Ping, letting him decide whether to continue his studies or pay off debts.
It was risky to give money to a gambler, and Xiao Ping was also very anxious about this trust and didn’t dare to take the money.
But Xiao Zhou didn’t hesitate much. He believed that if Xiao Ping didn’t take this step, it would always be an obstacle. It was better to try now to build confidence, which was crucial for getting back on his feet.
Holding the card, Xiao Ping was flustered, a stark contrast to the first time he asked Xiao Zhou for money.
The next day, he dyed his hair back to its original color and removed his earrings, looking clean and obedient.
When Chen Jin saw him in the hospital room, he didn’t recognize him at first and stared until Xiao Ping almost got annoyed.
“What are you looking at?” Xiao Ping pretended to be fierce.
Chen Jin laughed, “Alright, alright, the kid’s blushing. I won’t look. I’m going to fetch some water.” He said and left with the thermos.
Xiao Ping sat down, feeling a bit uneasy, and started peeling an apple to feed his brother.
After swallowing a piece of apple, Xiao Zhou asked, “What are your plans now?”
“I haven’t thought it through yet. I’ll pay off the debts first, then rent a shop to start a small business so mom doesn’t have to work so hard…” Xiao Ping rambled on for a while, then suddenly looked up at Xiao Zhou and said softly, “Trust is also important.”
Xiao Zhou didn’t catch what he said and asked him to repeat.
Xiao Ping shook his head and looked down at the apple in his hand, “I meant, I’m really glad you’re back. I haven’t congratulated you yet since you came back.”
A warmth filled Xiao Zhou’s heart, and his gaze softened. The apple in his mouth tasted even sweeter.
After Xiao Ping and Chen Jin left, the Filipino caregiver brought in dinner, all homemade, looking exquisite, nutritious, and delicious.
The caregiver set up the bed, arranged the small table, laid out the dishes, and then went about her own tasks. Half an hour later, she returned to find Xiao Zhou still sitting there, the food untouched.
The caregiver looked at Xiao Zhou in confusion. Xiao Zhou calmly said, “I want to see Jiang Chengyuan. Have him come to see me, or I’ll go to him.” He repeated it in English, his words firm and undeniable.
After a moment of silent standoff, the caregiver quietly cleaned up the meal.
In the middle of the night, his stomach growled with hunger. Lying on the bed, Xiao Zhou stared at the dark ceiling, holding the button in his palm.
Going on a hunger strike to protest was a foolish move. The method was old-fashioned, but it was often effective. Since the Filipino caregiver was sent to take care of him, she certainly couldn’t just watch him waste away like this. Whether she truly couldn’t understand or was just pretending, she would tell Jiang Chengyuan about his hunger strike, and Jiang Chengyuan would make his own judgment.
In the fighting arena, Jiang Chengyuan had left quietly, showing that his anger had not subsided, but since he returned, it indicated he still cared a bit. This slight concern gnawed at Xiao Zhou’s heart like a tiny ant, causing him to toss and turn.
Seeing Jiang Chengyuan leave the arena that day, Xiao Zhou had felt a chill throughout his body, but there was also a sense of relief, as if a heavy stone had been lifted. It was like cutting through a tangle of thoughts with a single stroke, painful yet liberating. Just as Jiang Chengyuan had said, he was selfish and cold, and he wouldn’t have any special feelings for anyone. The previous warmth was just a facade and charity, but this facade had soaked into him like water through thick paper, gradually permeating him.
However, Jiang Chengyuan later returned, and this indecisive entanglement was more likely to revive stagnant water, rekindle dead ashes, and give rise to unrealistic fantasies.
Xiao Zhou loosened his grip slightly, twirling the button between his fingers. What’s the use of thinking so much? It all boiled down to one simple fact: he just really wanted to see him, desperately wanted to see Jiang Chengyuan.
What to say or do after seeing him was another matter.
After skipping breakfast again the next day, the Filipino caregiver’s face looked worried, her eyebrows furrowed as if they could crush flies, constantly gesturing for him to eat something. Xiao Zhou weakly smiled and repeated the same words.
In the afternoon, a new visitor arrived in the hospital room. Xiao Zhou was already too weak to move much, barely sitting up. Upon seeing the person, he was surprised but couldn’t hide a hint of disappointment on his face.
Liang Hanqing closed the door behind him and saw Xiao Zhou’s slightly drooping eyes. He raised an eyebrow, “Were you expecting someone else? Disappointed to see me?”
After placing the fruit basket he was carrying down, Liang Hanqing glanced at Xiao Zhou’s bandaged areas, his voice concerned, “It looks serious. What happened? I just heard from Xiao Ping.”
It turned out that recently, Liang Hanqing had visited the Xiao family. When talking about Xiao Zhou, Liu Xia sighed that Xiao Zhou hadn’t visited in a month. Xiao Ping’s evasive eyes and the perfunctory excuse of being busy with work raised Liang Hanqing’s suspicion. After a private conversation, he learned Xiao Zhou was injured and in the hospital.
Xiao Zhou propped himself up, and Liang Hanqing adjusted the pillow behind him. Xiao Zhou said, “It’s nothing. I was careless while driving and got into an accident.”
Liang Hanqing frowned, “Was the driver responsible caught?”
Xiao Zhou said, “It was mainly my fault.”
He lied without batting an eye or hesitating, speaking smoothly.
Liang Hanqing shook his head disapprovingly, “If you had truly committed a traffic offense, you wouldn’t be here talking to me now.”
Xiao Zhou was stunned, realizing that traffic offenses also involved accountability and were part of his parole restrictions. Even running a red light would be recorded, leading to re-incarceration. His lie had glaring inconsistencies.
Liang Hanqing didn’t press further, “Fine, if you don’t want to say how you got hurt, don’t.”
He looked at Xiao Zhou for a moment, then lightly touched the remaining bruise on his face. After a month of healing, most of the facial injuries were almost gone, but scars remained, “But this looks more like you were beaten.”
Xiao Zhou’s eyelashes fluttered at the gentle touch and he subtly avoided Liang Hanqing’s hand. “No, it was really an accident.”
Liang Hanqing withdrew his hand and pulled up a chair. “I won’t force you, but there’s no need to endure so much.”
Xiao Zhou knew Liang Hanqing misunderstood and felt amused yet helpless. He had long sensed Liang Hanqing’s deep-seated prejudice against Jiang Chengyuan, almost to the point of animosity. Now, it was even worse. Xiao Zhou sighed, “He wouldn’t hit me.”
Liang Hanqing didn’t argue, picking an orange from the fruit basket, peeling it, and feeding it to him, “You’ve lost a lot of weight.”
With his hands tightly bandaged, Xiao Zhou leaned forward to eat. Starving for a day made even an orange taste like a delicacy.
Suddenly, there was a click at the door. With half an orange still in his mouth, he felt a surge of sourness.
Frowning, Xiao Zhou looked up over Liang Hanqing’s shoulder and saw Jiang Chengyuan standing at the door.
He was wearing a black wool coat inappropriate for the season, obviously just off a flight.
Xiao Zhou looked up, meeting Jiang Chengyuan’s gaze, feeling his heartbeat pause.