You're my wife, don't doubt it!

Then, he saw a petite girl in a hospital gown and barefoot in hospital slippers walk in, looking completely unaffected. She reached over and pressed her finger hard against Xiao Yao's forehead: "What's wrong with you? You come here and start crying without even asking any questions? You didn't bring your ID card, and your phone isn't charged. If someone hadn't come to help and asked me, the hospital would have called the police."

Although the tone was reproachful, a mischievous smile seemed to be barely contained at the corners of his mouth.

Xiao Yao reached out his hands, instinctively wanting to hug Shen Jie, but then he saw a girl standing at the door of the ward.

The girl was wearing a very artistic, plain-colored long dress and brown open-toe buckled leather shoes. The buckle in the middle separated the skin-colored socks on her instep into two sections.

25 minute later.

In Shen Jie's VIP ward, Xiao Yao lay on her bed. Shen Jie moved a chair and sat on the edge of the bed, while Yu Luying sat on the other side of the bed, peeling an apple.

The ward is elegant and clean, with wooden floors, high-end bathroom fixtures, luxurious decor, solid wood furniture, central air conditioning, satellite TV, telephone, refrigerator, sofa, etc.

"How much money will this cost in a day?" Xiao Yao thought with a pained expression.

Is this really necessary?

However, he didn't voice this idea, lest someone say, "Did I spend your money?"

There were two beds in the ward, one with a curtain and the other without, presumably for family members to sleep with. Xiao Yao thought this was an unnecessary arrangement.

"So," Xiao Yao tapped his temples with his knuckles, "you were moved to this ward this afternoon?"

"What else?" Shen Jie smiled and took the freshly peeled apple from Yu Luying's hand, then casually offered it to Xiao Yao's mouth.

He suddenly realized something was amiss halfway through handing it over, and then put it back in Xiao Yao's hands: "A VIP ward isn't something you can just buy with money. There just happened to be one available, shouldn't we seize the opportunity?"

"Alright." Xiao Yao sat up, preparing to get out of bed: "I've rested enough. Let the real patients lie down, otherwise it won't look right."

“Hmm~” Shen Jie shook her head, making a sound of denial through her nose: “I feel much better now. My fever has gone down and I have less phlegm. The IV drip is really effective. Why don’t you let Lu Ying lie down for a while? She said she was coming to visit, but she just fainted. I really think you should go and get a number while you’re at it, cough cough.”

The girl looked worried as she said this.

"I'm fine," Yu Luying said, holding her forehead and shaking her head. "I told you I just stayed up all night studying and didn't sleep well, plus I didn't eat lunch, so I had low blood sugar."

Xiao Yao felt this explanation was too far-fetched. He knew in his heart that Yu Luying had fainted most likely because of him, so he had no choice but to quickly change the subject: "Speaking of which, Yu Luying, why did you..."

At Xiao Yao and Shen Jie's insistence, Yu Luying unbuckled her little leather shoes, lay down on the hospital bed, and stretched her small feet, encased in skin-colored socks, into the pure white blankets: "After the exam, I thought about it and decided to come see my sister. I originally wanted to come with you, but after calling you for a long time, you turned around, looked, and rode away again. It's so infuriating!"

“So that’s how it is…” Xiao Yao took another bite of the apple: “I didn’t see it…”

"Later, Luying called me, and I told her that I was at the First People's Hospital and had her room number, and she came over." Shen Jie continued to explain, "As soon as Luying arrived at the hospital, she heard the medical staff holding up a photo and asking if anyone knew this patient's family member. When they asked, they found out that you had mistaken a lost child who died in a car accident for Shen Jie and had fainted from crying."

"You transferred to another ward without even telling me?" Xiao Yao said angrily.

Shen Jie held up her phone and waved it: "I've texted you, called you, and messaged you on QQ. Did I buy this phone for nothing?"

"These trendy gadgets are all show and no substance. My Nokia can last for half a month without charging." Xiao Yao took out his phone, unplugged Shen Jie's number, and plugged it in to charge himself.

"You had electricity back then because you didn't have to use a phone often," Yu Luying teased him.

Shen Jie and Yu Luying exchanged a glance, and the two girls covered their mouths and giggled.

"It sounds so good," Xiao Yao thought.

But when did they become so close?

“Dog—Ah-hum, Xiao Yao,” Shen Jie lowered her right hand from her mouth, “Actually, the fact that you would be so heartbroken if I died is really… I can’t say it was an accident, but it was still quite, a bit unimaginable.”

“When I was six years old, I was being naughty once,” Xiao Yao recalled, “I poured a lot of tap water into the freezer compartment of the refrigerator at home.”

Shen Jie was a little confused, but still smiled and said, "It sounds like something you would do."

“At six o’clock in the evening, the TV station was broadcasting my favorite show, Ultraman,” Xiao Yao continued. “Just as the opening theme started, my mom discovered that everything in the refrigerator was frozen. She stormed over and turned off the TV.”

"Yes, that's right." The two beautiful girls commented in unison.

"At that time," Xiao Yao smiled bitterly, "I was heartbroken, furious, and wailing. I knelt down and begged my mom to let me watch the whole episode, but she insisted on punishing me."

"So, I still haven't seen that episode of Ultraman."

"Although I'm all grown up now and no longer that 6-year-old child, I still feel a pang of sympathy when I think back to that heart-wrenching feeling."

“I thought you… when you went there,” Xiao Yao looked at Shen Jie, “had the same feeling.”

Everyone was silent for two or three seconds. Shen Jie deliberately pouted and said, "Oh dear, so in Xiao Yao's heart, my life is already comparable to the great Ultraman."

"Not bad, such a high position." Yu Luying smiled and said, "You really think you're not a child anymore?"

Upon hearing these words from Yu Luying, Xiao Yao's expression darkened.

If Shen Jie had said that to him, he wouldn't have minded, because Shen Jie was older than him and was indeed more mature.

But Yu Luying...

Shen Jie noticed that Xiao Yao was unhappy, so she quickly said, "By the way, Xiao Yao, I had no idea that you had a younger uncle living across the hall?"

“Ah, yes,” Xiao Yao said.

“Xiao Yao’s grandmother’s house and his uncle’s house are across the street from each other. That’s how Xiao Yao’s parents met through an introduction.” Yu Luying started peeling another apple.

"But... you have such a big relative living next door, how come you never interact with each other? If it weren't for my sudden illness, I wouldn't have known you had an uncle next door." Shen Jie asked, puzzled, "Your grandma went on a cruise for a few months, shouldn't she have entrusted you to him?"

"Didn't you tell me yourself?" Xiao Yao looked at Shen Jie and said, "People from Shanghai are cold and indifferent to family and friends."

"Huh? Did I say that?" Shen Jie turned her head blankly. "But this is too much—"

“Besides, since my parents divorced, my grandma and my uncle haven’t been in touch much,” Xiao Yao looked up at the pale ceiling of the ward. “My uncle is a real scoundrel. I’ve met three different aunts, and he changes them every few years. Now he’s alone again, driving a beat-up taxi, working one day and resting the next. When he’s home, he just drinks—”

"Don't talk about your uncle like that," Shen Jie said, lowering her lips. "Your uncle is a very good person, and he's been very kind to me too. He's kind-hearted, with a sharp tongue but a soft heart. I'm going to visit him to express my gratitude after I'm discharged from the hospital."

"Go ahead and buy something, it's just next door anyway." Xiao Yao shrugged, thinking to himself, you have no idea what he's talking about behind your back.

Yu Luying suddenly threw off the covers, turned around and got out of bed, her little feet groping for her little leather shoes under the bed: "I'm going to the toilet, how do I get there?"

"This VIP ward has its own bathroom," Shen Jie said with a smile, pointing to one corner of the room.

"Whoa whoa."

Just as Yu Luying locked the bathroom door with a "click," Xiao Yao stood up, walked around the hospital bed, and hugged Shen Jie, who was sitting in a chair.

Then, he rubbed his face against the girl's face.

"Oh, alright, alright," Shen Jie gently pushed him away: "What are you doing in broad daylight, in front of everyone?"

"What do you mean by 'in public'? You absolutely can't let anything happen to you!" Xiao Yao said, sounding aggrieved. "I still haven't recovered."

"Dog, there's something I know isn't the right time to ask, but I'm not comfortable keeping it to myself. Can you just tell me the truth?" Shen Jie leaned back a little and reached out to take Xiao Yao's hand.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"You... do you want to turn me into Yu Luying?" Shen Jie asked bluntly.

"What the hell?" Xiao Yao was completely baffled, and his voice rose several octaves.

“I saw Yu Luying wearing those kinds of socks today,” Shen Jie hesitated for a few seconds, organizing her thoughts, “You told me that your junior high school classmates all like to wear them, could it actually be… that Yu Luying likes to wear them?”

Xiao Yao's forehead veins were practically bulging: "That's not true! This is the first time I've seen her wear that today. She always wears only plain white cotton socks, the short kind, even the patterned ones—"

"No way?" Shen Jie had a half-smile on her face. "The day I came to you with a plastic bag was the day I ran away from your house. Wasn't she wearing—what's it called again?"

Xiao Yao was so angry he almost fainted.

“Including when you asked me to read poetry, I felt it was also… that you wanted to turn me into her, that kind of feeling,” Shen Jie said thoughtfully.

"What are you doing for no reason?" Xiao Yao said angrily.

"Are you saying I'm being dramatic?" Shen Jie asked calmly.

“Listen carefully, Shen Jie,” Xiao Yao said urgently, “To me, you are you, you are Shen Jie. I have never intended to turn you into someone else, or to use you as a substitute for anyone. I had you read poetry simply to share my hobby with you. As for those socks, I swear to Jesus—no, to your Queen Mary—it’s the first time in my life I’ve ever seen her wear them—oh wait, the long ones she’d worn a few times, the short ones for the first time—”

Just then, Yu Luying came out of the bathroom: "What do you mean by long or short? I think you look good with short hair too. Long hair is too much trouble to manage. Xiao Yao, don't always impose your preferences on your girlfriend."

"Did you hear that?" Shen Jie said with a beaming smile.

Xiao Yao was a little confused, and casually said to Yu Luying, "Yu Luying, doesn't the Bible say that wives should obey their husbands as they obey the Lord? How come you're imposing that?"

Yu Luying picked up her schoolbag and said, "Some people can see these things just by reading the Bible. What era are we living in?"

"Is your biblical truth outdated?" "But Brother Bo... that's what your uncle said too." Xiao Yao and Shen Jie spoke at the same time.

“You can’t pay any attention to him…” Yu Luying blurted out the word “P”, her face turned a little red, and she covered her mouth: “It’s getting dark, sister, I’m going home now. Take care and get well soon.”

"I hope I can be discharged from the hospital in a couple of days, cough cough," Shen Jie said with a smile, "Xiao Yao, can you see Lu Ying off for me?"

"Ah, oh, okay." Xiao Yao was stunned for a moment.

"No need, no need, really no need to send it," Yu Luying said, shaking her head.

Despite saying that, Xiao Yao still accompanied Yu Luying and walked out of Shen Jie's VIP ward side by side.

The sky was already half dark, and faint reflections of the two people were cast in the glass window.

"What will your expression be when I die?" Without warning, Yu Luying blurted out this question, as if she were talking to herself.

"What?" Xiao Yao was deep in thought when he was suddenly startled.

"It's nothing." Yu Luying shook her head and quickened her pace.

“If you die,” Xiao Yao smiled and said, “I probably won’t survive either.”

Upon hearing this, Yu Luying trembled, and the expression on her face froze.

Actually, Xiao Yao didn't mean to flirt with her when he said that. What would happen to the other person if one of two people who share a symbiotic relationship suddenly died? Nobody knows.

They might live and die together, or they might lose contact altogether, but based on Xiao Yao's extensive experience with online games, the former seems more logical.

"By the way," Xiao Yao asked casually, "why are you wearing these socks today?"