Chapter 3 Not Knowing How to Be Gentle and Tender

Gu Xizhou placed a small pillow under Qin Suisui's neck. She was forced to tilt her head back, her throat trembling slightly beneath her pale skin. Her long, wet black hair cascaded down the edge of the bed.

"Suisui, don't move. This spot might be a little painful. If you move, I won't be able to insert the needle accurately, and I'll have to do it more often, which will hurt even more."

Gu Xizhou comforted Qin Suisui, but also served as a warning.

"Ah Yan, hold her shoulders steady."

At 189cm tall, Huo Yan had no choice but to bend down. He pressed his hands against Qin Suisui's frail shoulders, forcing her to meet his gaze. Seeing tears welling in her red eyes, Huo Yan unconsciously tightened his grip on her shoulders.

Feeling Huo Yan's increasing force, Qin Suisui shuddered. "When will you learn to be compassionate? Can Sui Sui bear your weight?"

Gu Xizhou truly despised Huo Yan's rudeness and brought a chair to the bedside.

"Sit down. Support Sui Sui's head with one hand. Make her feel comfortable. Use your other hand to hold down her left shoulder. I'll take care of the rest."

Qin Sui Sui felt a warm, large hand lift her head, instantly relieving the discomfort of the congested blood in her head.

"Sui Sui, turn your head. I'm starting now."

Gu Xizhou wiped Qin Sui Sui's neck with an alcohol swab. The needle tip had barely entered her skin.

Qin Sui Sui instinctively tensed her shoulders and tilted her neck back.

Gu Xizhou quickly retracted the needle.

"That was a close call. It almost broke inside."

Gu Xizhou pressed the cotton ball against the needle hole.

"Sui Sui, don't move. I'll try to find a less painful spot, okay?"

Huo Yan had clearly lost his patience. "If you don't cooperate, the orphanage will be a ruin tomorrow."

Gu Xizhou rolled his eyes.

"Sui Sui isn't uncooperative. This is just a natural reaction to pain."

Qin Sui Sui ignored them. Even more than the piercing pain and the harsh words, the overwhelming sleepiness was more overwhelming, as if she were sinking into a boundless fog.

Gu Xizhou wiped Qin Sui Sui's neck again with an alcohol swab.

The needle entered the vein again. Qin Sui Sui didn't move.

Huo Yan lowered his gaze to look at Qin Sui Sui, a flicker of confusion in his eyes—why was she cooperating so well? Before he could ponder it, he saw her eyes gradually blur into a mist, her eyelashes fluttering briefly before closing weakly, her head tilted heavily into his palm.

"What's wrong with her?"

Huo Yan looked at Gu Xizhou. "Looks like she's tired. You've been up so early this morning. She works part-time at a bar. How much sleep can she get at night?"

Gu Xizhou rolled his eyes at him in disdain.

"No, I can't draw blood from this spot. I have to prick it again."

Gu Xizhou pulled out the needle.

"Are you capable of this?"

Huo Yan laid Qin Sui Sui flat on the bed. He shook his aching hand.

"You're not capable of this. This room couldn't hold all the people chasing me. Look at you. What 30-year-old "man" can't handle this?"

"Pick it yourself. I don't have time to waste with you."

Huo Yan stood up and was about to leave. He didn't want to continue this conversation.

"Don't worry. I'm just afraid of hurting Sui Sui. I just didn't get the right spot."

Gu Xizhou held Huo Yan back as he was about to leave.

"I'll give you three more minutes."

Huo Yan gently rolled Qin Sui Sui onto her side, facing him. He held her shoulders steady with one hand, and with the other, pinched her chin, forcing her neck to stretch.

"You have two and a half minutes left."

"You're so rude! See how you'll find a wife in the future. Oh, Sui Sui is the unlucky one who's going to be your wife now, right?"

Gu Xizhou teased Huo Yan, but his hands didn't stop moving. Soon, a tube of blood was full.

After completing the blood draw, Huo Yan laid Qin Sui Sui flat and was about to leave.

"Hey, this is your wife. Do you want her to sleep here, or do you want me to carry her back to the bedroom?"

Huo Yan paused. He stopped where he was.

"I think Sui Sui is nice. She's kind and clean. You could try getting along."

"Would someone like Qing Qing go to a place like that? Stop speaking for her in the future."

Huo Yan turned and picked up Qin Sui Sui from the bed. He strode out of the medical room.

The person in his arms was as light as a willow catkin, her breathing long and steady, the shadow cast by her eyelashes unmoving. "Falling asleep in front of two men. Are you not wary? Or do you just not care?"

Huo Yan placed Qin Sui Sui on the bed in the guest room. He casually tucked the blanket over her and turned to leave.

The afternoon sun slanted across her pillow, and Qin Sui Sui frowned as she woke. She sat up and looked around. Uneasy in the unfamiliar surroundings, she quickly left the room.

Arriving in the living room, Qin Sui Sui was a bit confused. There were too many rooms. She couldn't remember where the bathroom was, where she'd left her phone, so she had to search through them one by one.

"What are you doing?"

A deep male voice boomed from behind Qin Sui Sui.

"Uh..."

Qin Sui Sui was startled by the sudden voice. She turned and saw Huo Yan staring at her.

"Huo... Mr. Huo. I'm looking for my phone. I'm not doing anything else."

Huo Yan approached, the clatter of his leather shoes piercing the silence. "Are you sure you're looking for your phone? And not the documents related to the orphanage?"

"I'm not. I'm really looking for my phone."

Qin Suisui stepped back, her eyes evasive, as if she'd done something wrong, but she was simply terrified of the man pressing her.

"Then why are you looking so guilty?"

Qin Suisui was secretly furious. Why was this man so overbearing? No matter how she explained, he ignored her and constantly threatened the orphanage. What could she do to convince him?

Qin Suisui was secretly pondering a countermeasure. In her hurried retreat, she accidentally bumped her elbow into the blue and white porcelain vase behind her. The porcelain shattered into three pieces as it hit the ground, a crisp crack echoing through the corridor.

"7.8 million"

Huo Yan said calmly.

"Yes, I'm sorry, Mr. Huo. I didn't mean to."

Qin Suisui turned around in panic and squatted down to pick up the porcelain pieces from the ground. "Ah!"

"What are you doing? A broken vase. Why are you picking it up? Is your blood going to be wasted on something like this?"

Huo Yan grabbed Qin Suisui's wrist and pulled her up from the ground. She stumbled towards the infirmary, forced into a jog, her slender white heels rubbing red against the cold, hard floor as he practically dragged her forward.

"Bandage her."

Huo Yan threw Qin Suisui into the infirmary.

Qin Suisui almost lost her balance, but Gu Xizhou caught her just in time.

"Suisui, why are you so careless? Don't you know you have a special blood type?"

Gu Xizhou scolded Qin Suisui while bandaging her finger.

"I don't know."

Qin Suisui shook her head. She hadn't checked her blood type.

"Be more careful next time. Don't get hurt so easily."

Gu Xizhou's rare concern warmed Qin Suisui's heart. In this cold and indifferent world, he was one of the few people willing to show her kindness.

"Thank you. I'll be more careful next time."

"You're thanking him? Did he help you pay 7.8 million yuan?"

Huo Yan said coldly.

"Sui Sui, ignore him. You can go back now. I'll contact you if you need blood drawn later."

Qin Sui Sui glanced at Gu Xizhou gratefully, then turned to Huo Yan. Seeing that he didn't object to Gu Xizhou's words, she breathed a sigh of relief and walked out of the medical room, feeling relieved.

It was almost six o'clock when Qin Sui Sui returned to the city from the villa. She quickly ate a bowl of noodles. She was still a little anxious about missing her part-time job at the coffee shop.

The monthly repayments were suffocating Qin Sui Sui. Although it was only a few thousand yuan, it was a huge sum for a senior like her.

Thankfully, the part-time job at the bar paid a relatively high salary. It could help her with her immediate needs. Neon lights exploded between the wine glasses, laser beams slicing through the boisterous crowd. Qin Suisui weaved through the crowd, dodging malicious glances and hands deliberately extended toward her.

"Ah-Lin, we come to a bar to relax. Why are you handling official business?"

Gu Xizhou snatched the tablet from Huo Yan's hand.

"If you hadn't insisted on celebrating your birthday here, would I have come to a place like this?"

Huo Yan took the tablet back and continued to attend to his business.

Gu Xizhou ignored him and continued drinking with his confidante. It was his birthday, and many of his female friends had come.

As they drank and chatted, Gu Xizhou caught a glimpse of a familiar figure in the distance.

"Ah-Lin, look quickly."

Huo Yan looked in the direction Gu Xizhou pointed. He put down the tablet, crossed his legs, and leaned back on the sofa. He seemed to be taking an interest in what he was seeing. "No way. You're watching a show? You're not going to help?"

Gu Xizhou looked at Huo Yan in disbelief.

"What does it have to do with me? She came here on her own accord. Whatever happened was her own fault."

Huo Yan's tone was casual, the last syllable trailing off lightly, as if he were discussing something that had nothing to do with him.