Taking Advantage, Then Trying to Run - Chapter 9

Replace the appliances or buy the parcel station.

That night, I stood at home and surveyed the room.

I made a difficult, deranged decision.

Hammer in hand, I raised my arm toward the television I’d bought not long ago.

Forgive me, television.

Farewell, television.

I closed my eyes and brought the hammer down hard.

The next day, a new television arrived at my door.

I rushed to open it, brimming with excitement.

“Hai—huh?”

The person delivering it wasn’t Hai Yan, but a courier I’d never seen.

I looked left and right. “Where’s Hai Yan? Why didn’t she come?”

He had been printing the receipt. At my question, he stared blankly for a long moment before reacting.

“Oh, Hai Yan. He was in a traffic accident and hasn’t been at work for days.”

My eyes nearly split open.

What was he saying?

What accident?

Who—who had been in an accident?

My skull rang as if it had exploded.

—

I didn’t remember how I found where she lived.

By the time I came to myself, I was standing before the door of her rented room.

I knocked on the slightly rusted metal.

It was a long time before the door opened.

My eyes met those of the person behind it.

Hai Yan was startled to see me.

I had no attention to spare for her surprise.

My gaze swept over her from head to toe several times.

Gauze covered the right side of her forehead and cheek. Her right arm was bandaged, and as for her right leg, she didn’t even dare let her foot touch the ground.

She looked miserable, but there didn’t seem to be any grave injury.

She was alive. She could still walk. The crash hadn’t left her brain-damaged.

At the sight of her, each of my taut nerves finally began to loosen.

“Someone told me you’d been in an accident.”

I tried to keep my voice steady. “Y-you look rather awful.”

Her lashes lowered, her gaze drifting away. “It’s fine. Nothing serious. When I went flying, I happened to land on gravel. The wounds look frightening, but they’re all shallow.”

“Is that so?”

I stepped forward.

With her injured foot, she couldn’t retreat in time.

I didn’t back away either.

We ended up almost pressed together.

Tilting my head, I said, “I’ve come all this way. Are you really going to leave me outside when you’re like this?”

Her throat moved.

Little by little, she made room.

I walked in and shut the door behind me.

Hai Yan remained beside it, staring at the closed door for a very long time without turning toward me.

I smiled. “I only came to see how you’re doing. Why are you so tense? Come on, let me help you inside.”

She avoided my outstretched hand and edged along the wall. “It’s all right, Jiejie. I can walk.”

I watched her hop all the way into the room.

Her home was tiny: one room and a bathroom, with no kitchen. The bedroom held only a bed, a stool, and a folding table.

She pushed the sole stool toward me. “Jiejie, sit.”

My smile didn’t change. “You sit. I’ll stand awhile.”

She didn’t argue and sat on the bed.

Only then did I walk over and sit beside her.

Startled, she hurriedly tried to scoot away.

I caught her. “Why are you moving around when you’re this badly hurt?”

She pulled her hand free.

“Jiejie, I’m really fine… You’ve seen it now. I have nothing here and can’t properly host you, so you should go home.”

“How are you supposed to live when you’re like this and no one is caring for you?”

“The auntie next door brings me meals…”

As she spoke, someone struck the metal door.

The visitor wasn’t very polite. It sounded less like a knock than an attempt to batter the door down.

“Hai Yan, you in there? Come get your food!”

I glanced at Hai Yan.

She looked embarrassed. “It’s the auntie. She’s brought my meal.”

The corner of my mouth lifted.

I stood and opened the door.

“What took you so long? If you dawdle like this again, I won’t have time to wait—who are you?”

I looked at the woman, my smile turning cold. “Hai Yan injured her leg. Didn’t you know?”

“Who are you to meddle? I have kids to take care of. I can’t wait around for her all day! Wash the container when you’re done and bring it back.”

She shoved a lunch box into my arms and left.

I frowned fiercely.

Inside the greasy container were a few yellowing stems of greens, several slices of potato, and a handful of tofu cubes. The tofu looked as though it had been stir-fried with minced meat, but I couldn’t spot one whole crumb.

This was all she got?

I replaced the lid, shut the door, and returned to the bed.

“Why is she bringing you food?” I asked with a smile.

After a brief silence, Hai Yan said, “I paid her two hundred yuan to handle my meals for a few days.”

“Two hundred… for how many days?”

She fell silent.

With that woman’s temperament, I guessed a week at most.

Two hundred for one week, and this was what she fed an injured person.

How black could her heart be?

She even expected her patient to wash the container and deliver it back herself.

She didn’t care at all that Hai Yan’s leg was hurt.

A black flame seemed to roar inside me, darkening my eyes.

I set the container on the stool. “What about the driver who hit you? Have you discussed compensation?”

Hai Yan fell silent again.

After a moment, she murmured, “They… didn’t find him. He ran…”

“Did you call the police?”

“Yes, but there were no cameras…”

“So you paid the medical expenses yourself?”

She said nothing.

“I’m guessing you don’t have health insurance either, so none of it could be reimbursed.”

Still nothing.

Even her melancholy was terribly attractive.

I gazed at the profile that had haunted my thoughts.

She was still a child.

She knew nothing and had nothing.

Nothing but a spine so hard it refused to bend.

If I asked her to stay at my home, she would certainly refuse.

I silently calculated, then said, “How can this possibly be enough for you? I’ve seen how much you eat. You’re recovering from an injury now, which makes it even more important to eat your fill and eat well.”

She looked up. “Jiejie, I’m fine. I can manage.”

“Consider it my good deed for the day.” I rose and smiled. “Until you’re healed, I’ll bring you meals. Don’t eat the neighbor’s food again. It has no nutrition.”

I picked up the lunch box. “I’ll return this for you.”

Without waiting for a reply, I left.