What Are Your Tastes? chapter 6
Are You Sick?
“Yanchuan, it’s been a long time since I last saw you…”
In the single room of the People’s Hospital, an elderly man with gray hair lay diagonally on the bed, his gaze fixed on the young man beside the bed who was peeling an apple for him.
“I’ve been busy, Auntie,” Zhou Yanchuan smiled and cut the peeled apple into small pieces. “Auntie, you just relax from now on. If there’s anything, both Ziyang and I will take care of it for you.”
“Yes,” the old woman’s face relaxed. “With Ziyang following you, I can rest assured.”
Entering at the sound of voices, Mo Ziyang teased playfully, “Mom, I don’t even know who your son is anymore.”
“You’re always talking nonsense,” the old lady didn’t mind, taking the small fork Zhou Yanchuan handed her and started eating the apple. “Oh, you’re all here at the hospital, not caring about business at the company?”
“Auntie,” Zhou Yanchuan reminded her, “today is Saturday.”
“Oh… I must be really confused.”
“Mom, even if it’s not Saturday, the company won’t collapse with just the two of us,” Mo Ziyang joked, and the old lady scolded him for not being serious.
Mo Ziyang was the vice president of Zhou Yanchuan’s company, as well as his friend who had been through thick and thin together in their entrepreneurial journey. Their acquaintance was entirely due to the old lady in the hospital bed—Mo Ziyang’s mother, An Wan.
Ten years ago, Zhou Yanchuan was still working outside and was renting an apartment with his girlfriend, which belonged to An Wan. Knowing he was trying to make a living in the county town, she appreciated his hard work and simplicity, taking great care of him.
Later, his girlfriend’s family encountered problems, and they broke up. After that, Zhou Yanchuan went through a series of difficulties in work and life, while his mother’s health deteriorated. He brought her to the city for treatment, and the financial burden grew heavier, to the point where he couldn’t afford the rent for the apartment anymore.
An Wan not only did not drive him away, but instead took in both mother and son, appropriately reducing his rent. She also became good friends with Zhou Yanchuan’s mother. Thanks to this kindness, Zhou Yanchuan did not sink into excessive depression during that time and gradually recovered. After his own mother passed away, he regarded An Wan as his adoptive mother.
Mo Ziyang and Zhou Yanchuan were of the same age, but Mo Ziyang spent more time in school, eventually earning a master’s degree. By the time Zhou Yanchuan started his business after graduation, Mo Ziyang had already joined the previously unknown Hongchuan despite classmates’ advice, not solely out of friendship but also because he instinctively believed in Zhou Yanchuan’s potential, which was also somewhat related to An Wan’s support.
In recent years, An Wan had not been in good health, having undergone tumor removal surgery. Although she was hospitalized this time due to high blood pressure, she still needed to be carefully monitored. Despite her age and health, she remained cheerful and unaffected by her illness.
“In fact, I’ve lived a worthwhile life,” she told the two young men. “My son doesn’t need to worry, and I have such an outstanding adopted son, and my grandson is so grown up…”
Mo Ziyang sensed that she wanted to see her grandson again. “Mom, Tao Tao has classes in the morning. They’ll come in the afternoon.”
“Oh… okay.” An Wan, tired easily due to her illness, closed her eyes shortly after talking to them.
“Oh, Yanchuan,” Mo Ziyang said softly as he noticed his mother falling asleep. He carefully tucked her in and then said to Zhou Yanchuan, “The previous clips, the company has almost finished filming. It’s just missing your part. Don’t forget to arrange it.”
“What clips?”
“Oh,” Mo Ziyang rubbed his neck, “the promotional video the TV station is shooting for us. You agreed to it, didn’t you?”
With this reminder, Zhou Yanchuan remembered, though his brow furrowed slightly. “Why do they need to film me if the company’s done?”
“You’re the face of the company. How could they not film you?” Mo Ziyang was afraid of affecting An Wan and pulled him towards the door. “This program is led by the Municipal Committee. I hope you pay attention and don’t drop the ball.”
“Alright, alright. Next week then,” Zhou Yanchuan patted his arm. “Take care of Auntie here. I’ll go buy some tissues.”
“I’ll go, you stay.”
“Just in case, the doctor will be doing rounds soon. You know the situation better, explain it to them,” Zhou Yanchuan said, heading towards the elevator. “I’ll be right back after I buy them.”
The hospital supermarket was located between the outpatient lobby and the emergency room on the ground floor. Zhou Yanchuan came down from the fifth-floor ward and glanced casually ahead, spotting a figure mingling in the crowd.
Lu Yunchu?
Although there was a short distance between them, Zhou Yanchuan could tell Lu Yunchu was in poor spirits, looking quite ill.
He hesitated whether to approach him when he heard someone call him from behind.
“Mr. Zhou.”
Zhou Yanchuan temporarily diverted his gaze and turned around. “Dr. An? Are you on duty today?”
An Yuan nodded. “Are you here to see your aunt?”
“Yeah,” Zhou Yanchuan had heard from Mo Ziyang that An Yuan had returned from her trip to Japan surprisingly quickly. “You just got back from your trip?”
“Yeah, I returned the day before yesterday.”
They knew each other not only because An Yuan was Mo Ziyang’s cousin, but also because her ex-husband had once been a member of the management team at Hongchuan. The man was fired for leaking company information, leading to a rift between An Yuan and him and their subsequent divorce. She had gone to Japan to clear her mind.
“It’s good to get away,” Zhou Yanchuan waved to her. “I’m going to buy something. You’re busy.”
An Yuan walked towards the department. Zhou Yanchuan thought of Lu Yunchu he had seen earlier, but when he turned around to find him, he was gone, so he gave up.
An Yuan wore a large mask, revealing only a pair of almond-shaped eyes, and spoke little. Lu Yunchu couldn’t discern her true appearance and found her somewhat aloof. After all, dealing with illness and even death every day, how could she be enthusiastic? Even if she was the fussy roommate mentioned by Ning Ruowei, it wasn’t unexpected.
The wait was already long due to the queue number, plus a series of examinations, and by the time Lu Yunchu finished seeing the doctor, it was almost noon. He bought a serving of corn porridge from a nearby shop to take back.
An Yuan said he had the flu, ordinary cold medicine wouldn’t work, so he was prescribed oseltamivir and Lianhua Qingwen capsules. It wasn’t peak flu season, so it was just bad luck.
The porridge he just bought was too hot. Lu Yunchu didn’t manage to eat it and ignored An Yuan’s reminder to take medicine after eating. He directly took the medicine with cold boiled water and then climbed into bed.
Before falling asleep, he glanced at his phone. Surprisingly, Zhou Yanchuan had sent him a WeChat message an hour ago: [No rush for Hongchuan’s customization.]
Lu Yunchu was puzzled, not understanding what he meant. Was he worried that rushing would affect the quality? Or was there some special request? He didn’t want to guess randomly, so he replied with [?], then left his phone aside and went to sleep.
Lu Yunchu woke up hungry. Looking at the time, more than two hours had passed. He had sweated during his sleep, feeling a bit more comfortable. The porridge he bought at noon had cooled down halfway, so he poured it out and put it in the microwave. During this time, he opened his phone, and a new message popped up.
[“Are you sick? I saw you at the hospital.”]Sender: Zhou Yanchuan.