ATAFBS Chapter 17

Over the next few days, Yu Juan tried to explore through the back gate.

The vegetation there grew even more wildly, and there was an endless stretch of green. It even covered up the original layout of the garden, looking like an area in the wild, and there was no sign that it was once cared for.

Yu Juan wore sunglasses and was covered from head to toe, not one inch of skin exposed, and had also sprayed half a bottle of insect repellent on himself before walking into the overgrown vegetation in search of a suitable spot– that is, the surveillance camera’s blind angle.

Sure enough, there was also a surveillance camera installed in the back and it was even more hidden. It wasn’t on the outside, but rather on the interior of the gate, so it was no wonder Yu Juan hadn’t found it despite going in circles several times.

Yu Juan sighed. Entering through here didn’t seem like it’d work either.

Did he really have to climb over the wall? Or did he have to use an express delivery package again to hide the doctor inside?

A multitude of unrealistic ideas flashed in Yu Juan’s mind.

He didn’t want to stay for too long. On the way here, he had tried to convince himself that there was nothing living that could pop out of the overgrown grass. He also hoped that the sunglasses would help him ignore these things.

But he had still walked through it, probably because he was unwilling to just give up.

Half an hour later, Yu Juan noticed something. The surveillance camera didn’t light up when a bird flew by, and it didn’t seem to have an automatic motion sensor like the one at the front gate either.

Was it broken?

Yu Juan frowned, looking pensive.

After a few days of observation, he finally confirmed that the surveillance camera should indeed be out of function.

Still, to be on the safe side, Yu Juan went through the gate himself. After all, it was easy to explain his own actions. If he brought in someone else, however, it wouldn’t slide so well.

Sun Qibai didn’t rush over to ask Yu Juan his intentions like he did previously.

It indeed seemed to have broken down. Sun Qibai should’ve forgotten about this matter since nothing had happened since Zhou Huiyue came here, making him naturally lower his vigilance.

Yu Juan thought so and decided that the doctor could finally be brought in.

*

Strictly speaking, Sun Qibai didn’t come to Zijin Mountain Villa on a regular basis.

He didn’t bring a lot of things when he came by, but it wasn’t to the extent that he’d let the supplies run out. He was really attentive to the medications, however, and would inspect every one of them carefully. Yu Juan knew that he only did so to ensure that Zhou Huiyue didn’t live too comfortably.

Sun Qibai didn’t come by too often.

Once he was sure that the back gate could be used, Yu Juan awaited Sun Qibai’s arrival.

The next day, at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, an old car was parked outside the iron gate.

Sun Qibai had come.

Yu Juan went into the kitchen and took out a bottle of cold water. It was probably only after seeing Sun Qibai come over that he could feel reassured.

Ten minutes later, heavy footsteps could be heard approaching in the corridor. It was Sun Qibai who was walking over with a box.

Sun Qibai pushed open the door and noticed Yu Juan sitting at the table. Though he was slightly surprised, he still quickly greeted him attentively like before.

He placed the box on the ground and used a knife to cut open the tape on it, then took out the things in it.

The variety of the frozen food seemed to have become more abundant and  wasn’t as bland as last time.

Even a slight difference was enough to make Yu Juan wary since he didn’t want to mess up. After casting a brief glance, he asked: “What are those?”

Sun Qibai’s hand paused.

Since his wife had already been transferred to the best hospital for treatment of hereditary chronic diseases, he listened to every one of Zhou Huiyue’s words. Before he acted upon the other’s request, he had asked how to explain why he had brought those supplies over.

So when he heard Yu Juan’s question, Sun Qibai took a deep breath and answered: “It isn’t safe here in the mountains and it wouldn’t be good if you were to get lost, so you can’t always go out. The Madam said it might be because my work isn’t satisfactory, causing you to be bored staying here, thus I was asked to bring these things.”

Yu Juan frowned slightly, somewhat believing those words. It wasn’t hard to understand. Lu Shuicheng and Su Li both hoped that he could stay here safe and sound until the engagement was called off, and it was likely that they would do something like this to placate him.

Sun Qibai observed his expression before he went on to say: “I didn’t bring such things over before as the Eldest Young Master couldn’t eat them due to his health.”

Yu Juan said in a cold and indifferent voice: “I don’t care about his matters.”

Yu Juan would deliberately keep a distance from Zhou Huiyue in Sun Qibai’s presence. Since his acting was quite good, Sun Qibai wasn’t aware that they were already close enough to eat together every day and still believed that Yu Juan was forced to stay here because of Zhou Huiyue and the mess from having to break off their engagement.

As Sun Qibai dropped off the supplies for the next few days here and went to Zhou Huiyue’s room, Yu Juan stayed where he was and simply watched.

Before leaving, Sun Qibai glanced at Yu Juan strangely.

Wasn’t this young master who lived here in Zijin Mountain Villa twenty-four hours a day even more unacceptable than him?

Those two had such a bad relationship and Yu Juan would always embarrass Zhou Huiyue.

Could it actually be that it was much more difficult to get rid of him?

*

After Sun Qibai left, Yu Juan and Dr. Xiao Yang agreed on a time.

As luck would have it, the other party had the day off tomorrow and could thus come over directly. Since he worked in a hospital in the provincial capital, he had to take a high-speed railway first then ride a taxi to come to Bu Yu Mountain.

Next morning at 10 o’clock, Yu Juan got a message from the doctor that said he had already gotten off the high-speed railway and was now taking a taxi.

The place Yu Juan had asked the other to get off at was a few kilometres away from here. It was a small side road, so there was no need to worry about running into Sun Qibai.

At 11, Yu Juan went out through the back door and walked for an hour, then waited for another twenty minutes before a car finally stopped in front of him. A tall, baby-faced young man got off. After thanking the driver profusely, he went to the trunk of the car to take out a large suitcase.

Dr. Xiao Yang looked at Yu Juan. He hadn’t expected the other to be this young, so the word “boss” remained stuck in his throat and he instead said hesitantly: “Hello.”

“Dr. Xiao Yang” was the ID he used on the forum while his full name was Yang Xiaoqi, and he worked at First Provincial Hospital. It was probably because it was his first time getting an income in this manner, but Dr. Xiao Yang’s mind was much too active. He asked a lot of questions the entire way back as a way to calm himself down.

Yu Juan answered them one by one. He could feel the other party’s good intentions and worries.

When he heard about how Yu Juan had just graduated high school this year with excellent grades and was getting ready to apply to college, Yang Xiaoqi recalled his teachers’ earnest ramblings about how he should convince more students to study medicine. However, he had a righteous heart and wouldn’t let someone go in unprepared, so he also spoke about the very minor drawbacks of medical school.

“Other than how it’s just a little more hard, just a little more tiring, just a little more exhausting, and requires just a little more overtime, the other aspects are quite good!”

Yu Juan: “…”

Yang Xiaoqi hurriedly talked about the benefits: “The seniors are all really friendly, and studying medicine is also quite fulfilling. Moreover, the salary will increase gradually. I earned a few hundred more this year compared to what I did last year.”

The portable medical instruments he brought with him this time were borrowed from his senior brother’s private hospital, for example. Fortunately, his strength was quite good and he could carry such a large suitcase. His senior brother treated him really well and didn’t charge him a fee, allowing him to earn more money. If something were to go wrong, he could just run away first then report it to the police and get compensation from the offenders.

Yu Juan glanced at Yang Xiaoqi, seemingly hesitant about hurting this person: “I signed up for a computer major.”

Yang Xiaoqi fell silent. This simple sentence made him feel that they were from two different worlds.

A moment later, Yang Xiaoqi quickly regained his composure and continued to chitchat: “Your fiancé, how has he been lately?”

“Your fiancé, his family really let him remain here and not have him see a doctor?”

“Your fiancé…”

Yu Juan was overwhelmed. He had probably heard the word “fiancé” more times today than he did in the past month.

“Actually, I think that,” Yu Juan interrupted as politely as possible, “Addressing him as a patient would be more professional.”

Yang Xiaoqi scratched his head and subconsciously uttered an “oh”.

Following the mountain path, they finally reached Zijin Mountain Villa.

Yang Xiaoqi continued to inquire: “Why use the back gate? There isn’t even a path.”

Yu Juan said while pushing the gate open: “Because the front gate has a surveillance camera. Outsiders aren’t allowed to enter. If we get caught…”

He turned around: “You know.”

The relaxed atmosphere that had settled along the way abruptly came to an halt.

Dr. Xiao Yang, who was behind him, had come from a poor family and was shocked to hear those words.

Did rich people live so miserably?

They walked into the hall. Yu Juan had Yang Xiaoqi rest on the sofa before saying: “Wait here for a moment, I’ll talk with him first.”

Dr. Xiao Yang expressed his understanding.

Going through the corridor, Yu Juan walked to the room on the far left. The sound of his footsteps then stopped, and he didn’t knock.

Zhou Huiyue said: “Come in.”

He could recognise Yu Juan’s footsteps.

Yu Juan pushed the door open.

There was a book in Zhou Huiyue’s hand.

After closing the book, he looked over at Yu Juan.

For a moment, Yu Juan didn’t know where to start. It seemed there was a lot to explain. So, instead, he said bluntly: “I found a doctor.”

Perhaps Yu Juan was just imagining things, but it felt like the room grew more quiet.

It was currently the time of the day when the sun would shine the brightest, yet there was still no sunlight in Zhou Huiyue’s room. Perhaps it was because of the poor location, or because the trees outside were too tall, too overgrown. Zhou Huiyue sat by the window, his shadow blending in with the surroundings.

Yu Juan couldn’t quite see Zhou Huiyue’s expression, but intuition told him that it shouldn’t have changed much.

He didn’t know what this person would ask, nor did he know if the other could trust the doctor he had found or not.

According to the plot, Zhou Huiyue should’ve already understood by now that the people by his side had all betrayed him. This naturally meant he would no longer trust others.

Yu Juan put himself in the other’s shoes. If it was up to him, he felt that he likely wouldn’t trust anyone anymore.

Moreover, seeing a doctor was a different matter. Would Zhou Huiyue agree to it? Would he entrust his health and privacy to someone he met barely a month ago?

Logically speaking, Yu Juan felt that the possibility wasn’t too high. However, for some reason, he felt incredibly confident.

“Yu Juan.”

Yu Juan lowered his head when he heard Zhou Huiyue call his name in such a probing tone, but Zhou Huiyue didn’t ask about what he thought he would. Instead, what he asked was: “These past few days, you’ve been going to the garden in the back every day. Was it because of this?”

Through the window in his room on the second floor, Zhou Huiyue could see everything happening downstairs.

The garden that was uncared for was filled with overgrown vegetation. There was too much of them and they were too dense, so clustered that they looked like green waves, rising and falling with the wind.

Yu Juan had parted the waves and swam out.

He had gone ashore and stood on the steps to take off his hat, his sunglasses, as well as his coat, tossing them aside. With dry lips and a frown, he had continued to stare at the distant gate quite stubbornly.

At that time, Zhou Huiyue couldn’t guess his intention.

Yu Juan was stunned for a moment. He didn’t know how the other knew about that or when he had even seen him. He said: “I was just…doing it in passing.”

Zhou Huiyue knew that it wasn’t the case. Yu Juan was completely unwilling to come inside the room just because there was a window that couldn’t be closed, so it was even less likely for him to wander in that kind of place.

As beautiful as it might look, Yu Juan hated it.

Zhou Huiyue moved a bit closer. He would rarely expose Yu Juan’s lies because doing so was unnecessary, but it seemed that he absolutely had to get to the root of this matter this time: “Yu Juan, are you lying to me?”

Yu Juan was somewhat absentminded.

In <The Count of Baicheng>, Zhou Huiyue had many people deceive him through lies when he was twenty-two. Perhaps it was because he couldn’t distinguish between lies and truth, or perhaps because he had always been a doubtful and vigilant person.

For this moment, at the very least, since Zhou Huiyue asked so openly, Yu Juan didn’t want to continue with his specious lies.

It wasn’t admitting defeat, he just…just didn’t want to hurt this person.

Yu Juan crouched down. The two were really close, so close that Zhou Huiyue could see every slight quiver of his eyelashes clearly.

They were the only ones in the room, but Yu Juan still spoke in a really soft, barely audible, voice as if he was telling him a secret: “Because I can’t ask you to do something you’re unable to do.”

Zhou Huiyue was dazed for a moment.

Yu Juan had always been very proud, it was simply in his nature, but that wasn’t all there was to him. There was a lot more deep inside in a place that very few people could see. And when he looked at Zhou Huiyue like this, there was something really vulnerable, something really fragile, in his emerald green eyes; just like the surface of a lake that would ripple with a mere touch. It was a side to him that other people had never seen before, not even Zhou Huiyue.

“I’ll do everything in my ability.”

“I hope you can recover. That is my wish.”

These words weren’t lies. They were what Yu Juan genuinely thought.