coobybook Chapter 862: Chaos
Chapter 862: Chaos
In the ICU ward, the low hum of the running instruments is like a constant background sound, making the air even quieter.
Jiang Shuo's small figure stood beside his grandmother's bed, his eyes moving between the flashing instruments and his grandmother's sleeping face.
He turned around inadvertently, and his sight happened to fall on Mu Xiaoji at the end of the bed - Dad was standing there blankly.
His eyes were so focused that he was lost in thought. His gaze passed over the bed and fell on the back of his little dad, Jiang Chengyu.
There was attachment, anticipation, and a barely perceptible uneasiness in those eyes, as if he wanted to engrave that figure deeply into his heart.
Jiang Chengyu, who was being watched, also had the same complicated emotions at this moment.
He sat on the other side of the bed, leaning forward slightly, his eyes fixed on Mother Mu's pale face on the bed, not moving away for a long time.
He gently held his mother's hand that was plugged with an IV tube, and the warmth of his palms carefully passed it over.
My thumb unconsciously stroked the rough skin on the back of my grandmother's hand, as if drawing strength from the touch and conveying a silent prayer.
Jiang Shuo looked at the two silent people and broke the silence in the ward with a soft voice: "Little Daddy, grandma is so seriously ill this time. It seems that if she wants to be discharged from the hospital, she will have to wait until after the New Year."
Jiang Chengyu then slowly raised his eyes, looking across the bed at Jiang Shuo opposite him. His voice was calm but filled with unquestionable seriousness:
"It's okay. Haven't you been talking about wanting to spend the New Year with Grandma, Dad, and the others?
When you come back this time, don't leave again. When school starts, go to school safely.
Don't always follow me around the company, delaying your studies and wasting your precious time."
When Jiang Shuo heard this, a look of grievance immediately appeared on his face, and he muttered, "Little Daddy, that's not what you promised me before...
You said that during the Lunar New Year, you would bring me back to G City to celebrate the New Year with my colleagues at Renxin Hospital."
Jiang Chengyu did not respond, but just let out a long sigh, and his gaze returned to Mu's mother's face.
The hand holding hers tightened slightly, as if silently telling something. The ward fell into silence again.
There was only the "beeping" sound of the instrument and the complex and deep emotions flowing silently between the three people.
Mu Xiaoji looked at Jiang Chengyu's tense face and took the lead in breaking the suffocating deadlock, trying to keep his tone calm:
"Mr. Jiang, the reason why Mom didn't wake up for so long might be due to insufficient blood supply caused by ischemia during the operation. Now all the data are stable, you don't have to worry too much."
He paused, his eyes fixed on the dark circles under Jiang Chengyu's eyes, with a subtle concern.
"You haven't slept all night, and you don't look well. You should go to the office upstairs and have a good rest. As soon as Mom wakes up, I'll ask Jiang Shuo to call you."
"No, I'm not sleepy." Jiang Chengyu's voice was still calm, but he looked up at Mu Xiaoji, with a hint of reminder in his tone that could not be ignored.
"As for you, weren't you exhausted from yesterday's surgery? Rest and recovery after your heart and lung transplant surgery are crucial. Don't push yourself to do such intense work like yesterday."
Hearing this, Mu Xiaoji felt a little warm in his heart, a faint smile appeared on his face, and he nodded: "I know, I won't do it again in the future."
Jiang Chengyu retracted his gaze and looked at Jiang Shuo, who was still stunned. He said in a deep voice, "Stinky baby, grandma won't wake up for a while, you should go out first. Dad and I have something to talk to alone."
"Why are you avoiding me?" Jiang Shuo frowned and asked with a puzzled look on his face, "Is there anything I can't listen to?"
Mu Xiaoji approached Jiang Shuo, ruffled his hair, and said with a self-deprecating tone:
"Jiang Shuo, listen to Little Daddy and leave first. What Little Daddy wants to say is nothing more than 'part ways, don't disturb each other, and be well' or something like that.
He had said these words to me many times in that world. He paused, his voice as light as a sigh.
"And something even more drastic! He lit the torch himself and burned down the little bamboo house where he grew up, along with me inside it."
Jiang Shuo's eyes widened instantly, his face full of shock: "Dad, are you okay?"
He suddenly turned to Jiang Chengyu again, confusion written all over his face, "Little Daddy, is Daddy sick? What is he saying? I don't understand a word he says."
Jiang Chengyu's fingertips trembled violently, and a burning picture instantly exploded in his mind.
At that time, Mu Xiaoji was frantically carrying buckets of water in the yard to put out the fire, but he could not mobilize any martial arts skills and could only rely on brute force to rush to the river at the door to fetch water.
As if all my sanity had been taken away, I walked around the small bamboo house with a torch.
The flames licked the bamboo strips, crackling and devouring the furnishings that carried countless memories.
Mu Xiaoji could not catch up with the speed at which he set the fire. The water in the bucket he poured on it was only enough to extinguish a small spark, which was then engulfed by the even stronger flames in an instant.
Looking at the blazing fire, the last bit of hope on Mu Xiaoji's face was extinguished.
He suddenly laughed heartily in frustration, dropped the bucket, turned around and walked step by step into the bamboo house engulfed in flames.
Jiang Chengyu felt the blood rushing to his head at that moment, and heard Mu Xiaoji shouting loudly: "I'm sorry... Jiang Chengyu, this life is my fault, I can't make up for it. I'm sorry!"
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a loud "crack" sound, and the main beam, which was fragile due to the fire, finally couldn't bear its own weight and fell down.
The moment Mu Xiaoji fell, all of Jiang Chengyu's madness was shattered by fear.
He rushed to the river like crazy, and tried his best to mobilize the internal skills in his body to attract the mighty water in the river.
It swept towards the fire scene like a water dragon and put out the raging fire.
But when Mu Xiaoji woke up, he saw a mess of ruins and wet ground, and thought it was a timely rain that saved him.
He will never know that at that moment, when Jiang Chengyu watched him walk into the sea of fire, it felt like a piece of his heart was gouged out;
He would not have known that it was he who personally directed the water flow and protected him for a whole night in what he thought was a "heavy rain".
Jiang Chengyu closed his eyes, suppressing the surging emotions. When he opened them again, there was only an icy calmness in his eyes.
He didn't explain, but just repeated to Jiang Shuo: "Stinky boy, get out!"
Jiang Shuo shrank back at the chill in his tone, and looked at his father's cold and hard profile.
Looking at the pain hidden in her father's eyes, she finally bit her lip, turned around and walked out of the ICU, looking back every few steps.
The heavy door closed again, completely confining the deep-rooted grudge between the two adults to this small space.
A bright smile suddenly appeared on Mu Xiaoji's face. The smile was as clear as the sky after the rain, dispelling the depression that had accumulated between his brows.
He slowly approached Jiang Chengyu, reached out and gently patted his shoulder, his tone calm as if he was talking about an ordinary matter that had nothing to do with him:
"Mr. Jiang, I know you're not such a heartless person. If you want to part ways with me, that's fine. I accept it."
He paused, the warmth of his fingertips passing through the thin sterile suit, with a frankness that was almost relieved:
"I've thought it through now. I didn't know how to cherish you before. I took your efforts for granted and hurt you time and time again.
Ultimately, I only have myself to blame for your leaving." He lowered his eyes slightly, a barely perceptible bitterness in his voice, "I'm sorry."
After saying this, he patted Jiang Chengyu's shoulder gently, as if saying his final goodbye:
"Take care of yourself in the future. I feel relieved that Zidong International is in your hands. I thank you on behalf of my father and Jiang Shuo."
"Mr. Mu...I..." Jiang Chengyu felt choked by his words. He wanted to say something but was interrupted by Mu Xiaoji.
"You always have a unique vision," Mu Xiaoji said with a smile that was deliberately relaxed, as if he was chatting with an insignificant friend.
"Gu Ze has a gentle and considerate temperament, and he's also funny and humorous. He's actually very suitable for you...suitable for your current state."
He avoided the description of "lively and cheerful" and instead used a more vague term,
"I'm also learning to change, trying to be more enthusiastic and take the initiative to approach people."
He raised his eyes to look at Jiang Chengyu, with an almost pious determination in his eyes:
"Your awakening, my heart and lung transplant, it was as if fate had pushed the two of us together to be reborn.
We are no longer the same people we were before, and starting over is God's will."
At this point, he leaned forward slightly, his tone filled with a hint of cautious pleading: "Even if we can't love each other like before, it's still okay to be friends, right?"
Jiang Chengyu looked at the expectation in his eyes that was pretending to be relaxed, his Adam's apple moved, and finally he just nodded slightly.
Seeing this, Mu Xiaoji immediately smiled with relief, and even chuckled a bit childishly:
"So, you don't have to say anything, I understand. The most important thing now is that you get a good rest. I slept well last night and I feel much better now. I can hold on."
He stood up straight, his tone becoming unquestionable: "Go back to our office and have a good sleep.
Rest up and come back to take over from me. I'll be watching over you, Mom."
Jiang Chengyu looked at the deliberately maintained brightness on his face, and felt as if something was blocking his heart, making him feel anxious and suffocated.
He knew that Mu Xiaoji was giving him a way out and leaving him room for maneuver, but this "understanding" made him more uncomfortable than arguing.
He opened his mouth, but in the end said nothing. He slowly let go of Mu's mother's hand, stood up, and walked towards the door.
Mu Xiaoji looked at his back, the smile on his face gradually faded until the heavy door was completely closed.
He slowly leaned against the cold wall, closed his eyes, and his long eyelashes cast a trembling shadow under his eyes.
The humming of the instruments in the ICU was still regular, but his heartbeat was chaotic.