pjbooks Chapter 172 Our First New Year
Chapter 172 Our First New Year
Ruan Xinhe opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but her throat was blocked.
A thousand words welled up inside, yet not a single one could be uttered.
She could only nod frantically.
He nodded frantically.
Tears streamed down my face as I nodded, falling onto my clothes, onto the back of my hand, and into the intensive care unit that reeked of disinfectant.
It took Ruan Xinhe a long time to calm down. She wiped away her tears and sat down by Su Qingyao's bedside.
He reached out and patted Su Qingyao's head.
"Graceful".
Let's spend this New Year with Yu Bao.
Su Qingyao looked up at her with her red and swollen eyes.
Ruan Xinhe curved the corners of her mouth into a smile that contained heartache, gratitude, relief, and a hint of cautious pleading.
"Your first New Year together."
"We'll send him off after the New Year."
Su Qingyao smiled through her tears, "Okay, I'm looking forward to it."
-
Wen Yu woke up at noon the next day.
Sunlight streamed in obliquely through the window, and he slowly opened his eyes.
The first thing I saw was an unfamiliar ceiling, not the stark white light of an ICU, but a warm-toned ceiling light.
He was moved out of the ICU and into a double room, where two beds were placed side by side with a distance of more than ten centimeters between them.
And Su Qingyao, his baby, was practically glued to him.
She leaned against the bed, holding his hand tightly with one hand, their fingers intertwined, while her other hand directed Jiang Shubai and Qin Yue.
"It's too high! Lower it a little more!"
Wen Yu followed her gaze and froze.
On the wall of the ward, several strings of red lanterns, embroidered with golden "福" (good fortune) characters, had appeared at some point. They hung down from the ceiling in a staggered arrangement, gleaming warmly in the sunlight.
Jiang Shubai stood on the ladder, holding a string of lanterns, adjusting the height with a look of utter despair.
Qin Yue was holding the ladder from below, beads of sweat already forming on his forehead.
"A little to the left... a little more to the left... okay, okay, that's it!"
Su Qingyao nodded in satisfaction, then turned to look at the other side.
Wen Zhaoyue was directing Wen Yan to paste paper-cut window decorations.
A large red and gold "福" (good fortune) character, exquisite paper-cut window decorations, and strings of small red lanterns were pasted around the window.
Wen Yan stood on a stool, holding up a "福" (good fortune) character, while Wen Zhaoyue looked up and gave instructions.
"Ayan, it's crooked."
"Okay, sister, is this better?"
"Not good, come a little closer."
"Okay, okay, I'll do whatever you say, sister."
Wen Yan obediently moved over, his face showing no impatience, but rather a satisfied smile.
A little further away, by the coffee table, Zhang Miaoke was doing some handicrafts with Shen Zhixian.
The table was covered with red paper, scissors, gold powder, and glue, and the two people were engrossed in fiddling with something.
Zhang Miaoke would occasionally pick up a half-finished product and examine it from left to right, her brows furrowed in worry.
Shen Zhixian stood silently beside him, handing him scissors and gold powder, looking very serious, as if he were dealing with some national-level scientific research project.
Jiang Shubai, perched on the ladder, would glance over every now and then, his face full of resentment.
Why aren't he and Zhizhi in a group? That's so unfair!!!
What shocked Wen Yu the most was what was at the entrance.
Wen Tianyao.
The man who had been cold and distant since he could remember was now standing at the door, holding up the couplet with a stiff expression, trying to paste it properly.
The couplet was in large, gold-embossed characters, reading "May your journey be smooth sailing year after year, and may all your wishes come true step by step," the two lines of text so bright red they were almost blinding.
Ruan Xinhe stood to the side, hands on her hips, looking disgusted.
Why are you making such a long face during the New Year? Smile!
Wen Tianyao's lips twitched, and he tried to curtsy.
The smile was incredibly stiff, as if it had been measured with a ruler, or as if it was the first time doing something like this, and the correct way to use the muscles was completely lost.
"What kind of laugh is that? Are you crying? Try again!"
Wen Tianyao took a deep breath and then tugged at the corners of his mouth.
Still stuck.
Ruan Xinhe rolled her eyes, too lazy to pay him any more attention, and turned to help Wen Zhaoyue put up window decorations.
Wen Tianyao stood still, looked down at the couplet in his hand, then at the red decorations all over the room, and remained silent for two seconds.
Then, he continued pasting without expression.
But the movement seemed a little too gentle.
The whole room was filled with a joyful atmosphere.
A dozen strings of red lanterns hung from the ceiling, arranged in a staggered pattern, as if bringing the festive atmosphere of the New Year into the hospital ward.
The windows were covered with paper-cut window decorations and the character "福" (fortune/blessing), and sunlight streamed in, casting dappled red shadows on the floor.
On the coffee table were some freshly made handicrafts: strings of small firecrackers, red chili peppers, and a few crookedly cut paper rabbits.
Couplets were pasted on the door frame, several boxes of New Year's goods were piled up in the corner, and even a string of small lanterns was hung on the IV stand, swaying gently in the wind.
A faint scent of the New Year lingers in the air, along with the familiar, long-lost feeling of home.
Su Qingyao noticed the hand in her palm move slightly.
She turned her head and met Wen Yu's open eyes, which were still a little blurry, but were looking at her.
Su Qingyao's eyes lit up instantly.
"My little Yu Yu!"
She leaned in, her face almost touching his, her voice soft and bright.
"You're awake?"
When Wen Yu saw her movements, he instinctively wanted to hug her, kiss her, and kiss her forehead, her eyes, and her lips.
But the next second, those images flooded in.
Cage, blood, her cries, and the words, "Don't make me hate you."
And there were her many wounds.
He forced himself to shrink back a little.
Su Qingyao knew what he was thinking, of course. She didn't say anything, but pouted with a reluctant expression.
Why are you hiding?
She cupped his face in her hands and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.
After the kiss, she looked at him with an air of self-righteousness.
"Hmph, you're my fiancé, so it's only natural for me to kiss you."
A sweet feeling welled up in Wen Yu's heart.
Very sweet.
It was as if someone had poured a spoonful of honey into his heart, so sweet it was cloying, so sweet it made him want to cry.
But that sweetness only lasted a few seconds before being overwhelmed by a torrent of self-reproach.
He thought of the harm he had caused the baby, the injuries she had sustained for him, and the way she cried in the cage.
He doesn't deserve it.
He doesn't deserve such sweetness.
Su Qingyao stared straight at him, took his hand, and gently pointed around.
"Yu Yu, my baby, look."
Wen Yu followed her gaze.
Those lanterns, those paper-cut window decorations, those Spring Festival couplets, those busy people, the sunlight outside the window, and the whole room filled with red.
Tomorrow is Lunar New Year's Eve.
Su Qingyao turned her head to look at him, her eyes curving into two crescent moons.
That smile was warmer than the red that filled the room.
"Let's celebrate the New Year together."
"Our first New Year."