Chapter 48: The Rogue A and Gentle Cloud Sleeves

After transferring the money from the bank to her own card, Sui Yi stepped out and saw Ah A.

He leaned against the stone lion, one foot propped up on the stone surface, slouched and languid, a cigarette dangling from his lips, clouds of smoke curling in the air.

To middle-aged men, he looked like a petty hoodlum.

To young women, he was the embodiment of a decadent, handsome man.

“Is Old Lin looking for you?” she asked, unable to find any other reason for him to be following her.

“Can’t I just come to see you?” Ah A tilted his head, giving her a sidelong glance.

Sui Yi regarded him briefly, then walked on. Ah A chuckled and followed.

“Treat me to dinner, will you?”

“Why?”

“I helped you, didn’t I?”

“I remember paying you.”

As she waited at the traffic light, Sui Yi glanced at the advertising screen atop the Great Xia building, which was broadcasting news.

“A thousand yuan isn’t enough,” Ah A stood beside her, his tone carrying a hint of menace.

She turned to look at him and saw only earnestness. For a moment, she wondered if he was clinging to her because of that million yuan.

But she quickly dismissed the idea.

“You’re thinking I’m after that million?” Ah A exhaled smoke.

“If Old Lin trusts you, you wouldn’t act like such a ruffian.”

“Ruffian?” Ah A smiled, his gaze drifting indifferently over Sui Yi’s face. “To be honest, I am a ruffian.”

Sui Yi couldn’t stop Ah A from following her, nor did she have the energy to shake him off. When they reached the hospital, he became remarkably quiet, almost invisible.

After registering and paying, they went to the pharmacy.

“It’s you again—so, you’ve got money this time?” The female doctor, yellowed prescription in hand, glanced at Sui Yi with a trace of contempt.

Her words were harsh, and she seemed to recognize Sui Yi.

Ah A frowned, about to reprimand her, but Sui Yi responded coolly, “Did I not pay for my last prescription? Do you need to remind me?”

Her tone was indifferent but commanding.

The female doctor’s face darkened, and she shot Sui Yi a venomous look, sneering, “Can’t even afford hospitalization. What good is medicine? In the end, it’s all for nothing…”

Her words were truly abrasive.

Ah A’s expression grew grim, but Sui Yi gently shook her head at him.

Was she just going to endure this?

Ah A gave the doctor a long, searching look, masking the fierceness in his eyes with a derisive laugh.

The female doctor finally noticed Sui Yi wasn’t alone—there was a tough-looking young man beside her. She held back a bit, but still sneered, thinking, “A real street punk.”

Following the prescription, they received a large bag—pills, drinks, patches, everything needed, both Western and Chinese medicines. Ah A stared at the bag, the cigarette long forgotten between his fingers, until a blushing nurse came over and asked him not to smoke, snapping him out of it.

Earlier, when Sui Yi went to pay, he hadn’t noticed. Now, seeing the medicines, he realized the cost was considerable.

She bought them as casually as if she were buying cabbage, her brow never furrowing as she swiped her card.

Ah A took the initiative to carry the bag, asking, “Are you sick?”

The question came out awkwardly, and the people behind them laughed.

Sui Yi turned to look at him, “Do you want to register while you’re at it?”

Well, that wasn’t something to do on a whim.

Ah A laughed softly, about to reply—

“We’re missing some medicines,” Sui Yi suddenly said to the female doctor.

“What?” The doctor’s face fell, her voice sharp. “I clearly gave you everything! What do you mean, missing?”

Sui Yi remained calm, pointing at the prescription. “Check it yourself.”

It called for five units; she’d only dispensed one.

“Check what? I’ve issued this medicine countless times. You think I’d miss something? Are you trying to cheat me?”

The female doctor had held a grudge against Sui Yi for a long time. At first, it was just a vague dislike, so she made trouble for her. But Sui Yi’s cold, almost ruthless demeanor had left her bruised, emotionally wounded.

She hadn’t seen Sui Yi for a while and assumed life’s hardships had crushed her, that the girl must be suffering somewhere. Yet today, seeing her, she was even more beautiful—her skin, her face, her figure…

The doctor felt resentful, her urge to make trouble stronger. Yet every time she tried, she ended up angrier herself. The accumulated frustration boiled over.

She felt untouchable.

Times had changed—she was no longer an intern.

Last night, the department head slept at her place…

The people in line were startled. Ordinary folks dared not offend hospital staff and quickly blamed Sui Yi.

A few spoke up for her, but their voices were drowned out.

“What’s going on here?” Suddenly, a stern voice thundered.

Everyone turned to see a man in a white coat, face grim, surrounded by other white-coated staff, all clustered around a distinguished-looking man.

Sui Yi glanced over and was taken aback.

“Apologies, Dr. Jiang, sorry for the disturbance. Perhaps we should go elsewhere…” A middle-aged man, the hospital director, spoke respectfully to the elegant man beside him. Who could command such deference?

The handsome man looked curiously toward the window, then said to the director, “Excuse me, I’ve just spotted a friend.”

With that, he strode over, smiling.

Who was Jiang Yunxiu?

He was of the same ilk as Yi Chilian—the sort who blended into the crowd. Barely in his early twenties, yet he epitomized youthful brilliance. As he approached, he drew amazed glances, especially from the women, whose eyes shone.

More surprising was how he walked straight up to Sui Yi and greeted her warmly, “Sui Yi, I never expected to see you here.”

“Nor did I,” Sui Yi glanced at the directors and department heads from Nanxun Hospital behind him.

“Are you here for work?” She knew he was from out of town and doubted such a small hospital could accommodate him. Otherwise, the heads wouldn’t be so eager to please.

“Yes, just here for an inspection. By the way, what brings you here?”

Jiang Yunxiu glanced at Ah A, who was carrying the medicine bag beside Sui Yi.

Ah A met his gaze, brow furrowing, his demeanor becoming more serious.

“Are you sick?” Jiang Yunxiu asked.

Sui Yi’s brow twitched.

Was this how young people greeted each other these days?

At that moment, the director’s sharp gaze shifted coldly to the female doctor, seeing how familiar Sui Yi was with Jiang Yunxiu.

The female doctor’s face went pale.

Later, in a quiet corner, Jiang Yunxiu picked up the yellowed prescription, frowning as he studied it. After a while, he asked, “Does your grandmother suffer from motor neuron weakness, lack of strength in her hands, occasionally unable to grasp things, frequent severe headaches, and stabbing joint pain in her legs?”

“Yes,” Sui Yi nodded, pointing at the medicines listed. “They diagnosed her with Drosen Syndrome—her bone marrow is aging. She needs these medicines to slow it down, but… it can’t be cured.”

Incurable meant endless medicine and suffering.

After explaining, Sui Yi fell silent.

Jiang Yunxiu observed her, then said, “May I see your grandmother?”

Sui Yi was taken aback. She’d assumed he only wanted to glance at the prescription out of politeness, not realizing he'd take it so seriously.

After a pause, she asked, “Is it okay?”

Jiang Yunxiu sighed inwardly—Sui Yi was truly different from other girls, so reserved and self-reliant, unwilling to accept favors for nothing. If her grandmother’s condition weren’t so dire, she would probably have refused outright.

“It’s fine. I’m quite free these days.”

The director overheard this and nearly wept—he’d begged Jiang Yunxiu to save patients for ages, but he'd always refused! Yet here he was, suddenly available.

“If possible, I’d like to bring my grandmother back to the town. She lives in the countryside, where there’s no medical care, and I worry they won’t find anything…”

Jiang Yunxiu practiced Western medicine, not the miraculous diagnoses of Chinese medicine. Sui Yi had little hope, but trusted him far more than the local doctors.

Jiang Yunxiu agreed, thinking it was indeed more suitable, though he’d have liked to accompany Sui Yi.

“By the way, Sui Yi, was this prescription written at the First Provincial Hospital?” Jiang Yunxiu had noticed.

“Yes, I… used to live there,” Sui Yi replied, then changed the subject, preparing to take her leave.

Jiang Yunxiu had no choice but to give her his phone number and watched as Sui Yi and Ah A departed.

It was the first time he’d given his number to a girl, and the first time he’d been hurriedly bid farewell.

But, it seemed Sui Yi hadn’t introduced the young man beside her.

Was he her boyfriend?

After all, what girl these days doesn’t have a boyfriend? Sui Yi wasn’t young any longer, and she was exceptionally beautiful…

He thought it over and dialed a number. Beep, beep, beep—no answer.

Really? No answer?

In this world, things are truly unpredictable and unfathomable. Supreme Treasure never imagined he would fall in love with Zixia, let alone with the spider spirit Bai Jingjing, and in the end, he disappointed both beauties. Unable to reconcile, he set off for the West with a monk, a pig, a horse, and a rough fellow to beg for alms.

Just as Sui Yi couldn’t understand why Ah A insisted she treat him to dinner, which eventually led to him shamelessly tagging along in her van back to the countryside.

This cigarette-smoking, carefree youth now sat beside her, carefully guarding her bags.

As for him, Sui Yi found him quite agreeable.

He was a decent person, so she let him be.

(To be continued.)

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