Chapter 1706: Chapter 1692
Inside the hospital.
Zhou Laowai walked into the inpatient department, it was already past ten at night, yet the corridors of the hospital were still filled with families of patients walking back and forth.
It’s often said that in life, nine times out of ten things go against our wishes. If you feel stuck and find life hard, come to a hospital and see the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death. Witness which comes first, accidents or tomorrow, and you’ll become more open-minded.
Zhou Laowai felt this way now. He stood at the entrance of the hospital inpatient department, hands behind his back, like a thinking scholar, standing there quietly, like a statue.
The people coming and going didn’t notice him; everyone was in a hurry, with similarly heavy expressions on their faces.
This was the VIP section of the inpatient department, after all. Besides wealthy people staying here, others were staying due to medical conditions that required special care.
Zhou Laowai snapped back to reality, took a deep breath, and not knowing if it was due to fear or something else, took a mask from his pocket and put it on. Once he was fully armored, he went upstairs.
Zhou Ang was on the seventh floor, in a special cardiology section. He took the elevator to the seventh floor, walked out of the elevator, and rounded a corner to reach his ward.
But Zhou Laowai didn’t go inside. He first stood at the entrance and peeked inside to see if Zhou Ang was asleep. He didn’t see Zhou Ang; instead, the nursing lady was busy inside.
It seemed to be just after a meal, as he saw the nursing lady holding an empty meal box, ready to throw it into the trash can.
Not seeing Zhou Ang, Zhou Laowai felt a little disappointed. He sighed softly, turning to leave.
The nursing lady glanced at the doorway and saw a familiar figure. Perhaps because of her good memory, she recognized him as the one who brought Zhou Ang to the hospital.
"Mr. Ren, you’re here to see Mr. Zhou again?"
The nursing lady called out warmly.
Zhou Laowai was taken aback. He remembered giving the nursing lady the name Ren.
He didn’t expect the nursing lady to have such a good memory.
He didn’t turn back, wanting to pretend he hadn’t heard and leave quickly. But before he could take a few steps, the nursing lady caught up, "Mr. Ren, are you here to see Mr. Zhou?"
The elevator was right in front of him, but it was still on the first floor, not showing any sign of moving. Seeing that he couldn’t avoid it, Zhou Laowai turned around with reluctance, kept his mask on, smiled at the nursing lady, and said teasingly, "Auntie, you can recognize me even with the mask on?"
The nursing lady laughed heartily, "You may have a mask on, but I haven’t forgotten your figure. I remember it clearly."
"..." Over the years, although he had aged a lot, his figure hadn’t changed much, thanks to his constant exercise influenced by being around the Old Palace Master.
Zhou Laowai smiled, but under the mask, the nursing lady didn’t see the bitterness at the corners of his lips.
He was grateful Zhou Ang hadn’t seen much of him since childhood and didn’t know what his figure looked like.
If Zhou Ang were here, he might not recognize him at a glance. Thinking of this, a sense of loss hit him, and he suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.
He had never been a qualified father.
"Zhou..." Zhou Laowai almost blurted out Zhou Ang’s name but halted abruptly when he realized, "Mr. Zhou’s health isn’t good, wandering around?"
The nursing lady nodded, looking helpless, "Yes, Mr. Zhou said he wanted to travel far, but the doctors don’t recommend it. He’s discussing it with the doctors now."
Zhou Laowai’s eyes flickered, to travel far? To Wuling Mountain? Probably.
"By the way, Mr. Ren, why did you come so late? Why not come in and wait? Mr. Zhou keeps saying he wants to thank you in person."
The nursing lady motioned to invite Zhou Laowai in.
Zhou Laowai waved his hand, "No need, I came because I wasn’t feeling well and thought to see a doctor. I thought Mr. Zhou might not be discharged soon, so I came to check in. Since he’s not here, I’ll just head back. It’s getting late."
The nursing lady responded, "Alright then, what a pity. You always come at the wrong times."
Zhou Laowai smiled and waved, "Alright, go about your work. I’ll come to see him again sometime."
Seeing she couldn’t persuade him and with her own tasks unfinished, the nursing lady sighed before turning back to the room.
Just then, the elevator arrived at his floor, and as the doors opened, Zhou Ang stood inside with one hand in his pocket.
He glanced at Zhou Laowai indifferently and walked past him.
The two exchanged a single glance, but it struck Zhou Laowai deeply.
Zhou Ang’s gaze was so cold, like he was looking at a stranger, causing a bitter lump in Zhou Laowai’s throat.
How ironic that his son didn’t recognize him.
Zhou Laowai lowered his eyes slightly, suddenly feeling his footsteps grow heavy.
He stepped into the elevator, not noticing his trembling hand as he pressed the button.
As Zhou Ang entered the room, the nursing lady promptly said, "Mr. Zhou, your rescuer, Mr. Ren, came to see you."
Zhou Ang was taken aback, "Where?"
"He was just outside."
The nursing lady stepped out and saw the elevator doors closing, instinctively calling out, "Mr. Ren! Mr. Zhou is back."
Zhou Laowai heard her calling. If he had stopped the elevator in time, they might have met.
But he didn’t, as he couldn’t allow Zhou Ang to see his face, couldn’t let him know who he was.
Zhou Laowai took a deep breath, and as the elevator doors closed, he seemed to catch a glimpse of Zhou Ang rushing out from the room.
Leaning against the elevator’s iron wall, he was thankful it was empty, or his emotions would have been hard to disguise.
Zhou Ang hurriedly ran out at the nursing lady’s words but only saw a glimpse of a figure.
He shook his head with some regret, "Just missed it."
"Yes, when he saw you weren’t here, he decided to leave. I asked him to wait for you, but he said it was late and he’d come another day."
The nursing lady chimed in.
Zhou Ang pondered a moment; hadn’t he only seen one person when he left the elevator?
That person was dressed all in black, even wearing a black mask, fully covered.
He felt that figure seemed familiar...
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