Did That Doctor Successfully Remarry Today?

You are the wind. I am the fire. You caress me. You also extinguish me. — "Gently, Violently"

After leaving the hospital, Gao Chuan drove the car wanting to go home to rest, but he received a call from home halfway there. Shen Mei just wanted to inquire about his recent blind dating situation. Gao Chuan intended to muddle through as usual, but today Shen Mei started yelling like she had gunpowder: "Why don't you listen, I am anxious for your sake! You are already thirty today, do you want to remain single for life? If you can't find a girlfriend, where can I put my old face!"

Mother kept on talking non-stop, her voice transmitting to Gao Chuan's ears through the phone, like incessant noise.

"Son, please, I am begging you, even if you don't think about yourself think about Grandma. You don't know, I went to the hospital to visit the old lady yesterday, she kept talking about you settling down. Can you please not worry her anymore?"

"Can you let her leave this world happily?" Mother's anger finally transformed into a helpless plea.

Gao Chuan listened to Shen Mei's intermittent crying, silently sighed, "Mm, got it. Tell Grandma I'll visit her in a few days, tell her to focus on recuperating without worries."

The phone was hung up, the "beep beep" sound reached his ears.

Gao Chuan could even imagine the indignant expression on Shen Mei's face as she disconnected the call, feeling a sense of shame for the first time.

That was his mother.

The defensive line in his heart completely collapsed, the familiar facial expressions again surfaced before his eyes, he stopped the car, turned around, and set off again.

Turning around, he encountered a one-minute red light among the coming and going vehicles; some stopped, and others continued to drive.

He saw his own eyes in the rearview mirror, and he saw Jiang An's eyes too, seemingly swollen, brimming with tears.

——————

Although it wasn't the first time dealing with the departure of a loved one, after accepting the reality, Jiang An was completely clueless regarding the arrangements for Fang Qing's funeral. The previous savings had almost all been used for his mother's medical treatment; now he could only use the savings his mother had set aside for his college to handle the funeral.

As Jiang An received the death certificate from the hospital, facing the body temporarily stored in the morgue, she felt helpless and clueless, with no one advising her on what to do next. In this city, she didn't even have a single relative; this feeling of being isolated and unsupported, must have been something her mother also experienced years ago.

Walking out of the hospital office, Jiang An ran into a hurried Gao Chuan. The girl, with a weary face, looked up and saw him, recalling how she had cried in his arms the day before, a feeling of gratitude emerged.

"Dr. Gao, what are you doing here?" Jiang An asked, puzzled.

Gao Chuan scrutinized Jiang An carefully, perhaps it was because she had been drenched in the rain and had cried all night, her face was covered in grimy streaks, with heavy dark circles under her swollen eyelids.

Dr. Gao seemed not to want to answer her question, his gaze fell on the paper in the girl's hand, directly asking: "Where are you planning to go?"

A sheet of paper, devoid of any thickness, yet it declared the end of a person's life.

Jiang An subconsciously tried to avoid Dr. Gao's gaze; she realized that she could be so vulnerable in front of this man, yet stubbornly didn't want him to see her helplessness.

"I want to go home first," she turned her face away, answering quietly.

Dr. Gao noticed her turning her head, her neat and charming side profile completely obscured by disheveled hair, preventing him from catching the charm of her original eyes.

As the medical staff in the corridor saw Dr. Gao, they habitually greeted him, and he nodded politely.

Taking advantage of the moment the other greeted him, Jiang An quickly stretched out her hand to wipe away the tear that had streamed down half her cheek.

"Mm, you should go home and rest properly. Come on, let me take you home." Dr. Gao didn't wish to puncture her pride, just tacitly acknowledging her while slowly taking out his car keys.

Just as Jiang An was about to verbally decline, she saw Gao Chuan had already walked a few steps ahead, sensing she hadn't followed, he looked back and said: "Come on, consider it a thank you for the ride the other day."

Jiang An watched Gao Chuan's upright back and belatedly quickened her pace to follow him.

This sense of security, like that of a high mountain, seemed only he could provide.

Following Gao Chuan, they reached the hospital's underground parking garage, where he took out his car keys and unlocked the car. With a ding, a car flickered, and Jiang An looked over to see the black car body and the same model, which reminded her of a sedan she had accidentally scratched a month ago.

It appeared to be the same model, only the car was missing that scratch on the right side.

Gao Chuan had already driven the car out of the parking spot, and seeing Jiang An's stunned expression, he had to call out several times from inside the car before she heard.

Jiang An, regaining her senses, hurried into the car, still thinking about that car, her movements to fasten the seatbelt slightly frantic.

"What's wrong? Do you feel unwell?" Seeing Jiang An's distracted look, Gao Chuan rose to buckle her seatbelt for her, his tall figure suddenly leaning over, and Jiang An leaned back, holding her breath.

It wasn't until Gao Chuan returned to the driver's seat and started the car that she spoke, "I had scratched a car near the hospital before, it seems to be the same model as Dr. Gao's. I left my phone number, but they never contacted me."

As she spoke, a sense of loss permeated her words. Jiang An had tried to find the car again, but never saw it.

The car slowly started, Jiang An unaware of Gao Chuan's momentary panic. The man turned his head, brushed the corner of his eye, feigned a cough, and said, "Perhaps the owner didn't think to ask you for compensation, considering cars are insured nowadays."

"Maybe." Jiang An turned her head, landscape flashing by outside the car window, a gentle breeze blowing through a small gap, lifting strands of the girl's hair.

Vague shadows reflected on the window, merging into the ever-changing scenery.

It no longer mattered, Jiang An thought.

"Take a nap; I'll wake you when we arrive," Gao Chuan said softly, seeing Jiang An yawning wearily, through the rearview mirror.

Upon hearing this, Jiang An quickly closed her eyes. Fang Qing's face emerged in her mind like a dream, she didn't want to open her eyes for fear the figure would disappear upon awakening.

She remembered a line from "Blue Gate": "Although I close my eyes and can't see myself, I can still see you."

I see you, mom.

Occasionally, Gao Chuan glanced at the girl whose lashes fluttered even in sleep, understanding her restlessness but unable to fully empathize.

The car remained silent, only the sound of a soft breeze brushing through hairsounds.

Since moving out from the family compound to save money, Fang Qing had been living with Jiang An in an old residential building in the suburbs. It took Gao Chuan three hours with a navigation system to find it, and as the car arrived at the building, Jiang An had just woken up.

"Thank you, Dr. Gao, my home is quite remote, it's been trouble for you," Jiang An, upon opening her eyes and realizing they had reached the entrance, hurriedly thanked Gao Chuan.

If it weren't for his help, she might have had to travel much longer to return.

"No worries, can I park the car here?" asked Gao Chuan.

That question abruptly made Jiang An retract her about-to-be-said "then I'll head up first." Was he following her up?

Without further explanation, Gao Chuan followed Jiang An out of the car, watching as she paused, "Let's go, I'll walk you up."

His tone was gentle, yet his gaze left no room for refusal.