The sky outside was gloomy, as if a storm was coming. Everyone in the mansion became nervous as Lin Miao continued to accompany the Young Master in his room.
The Young Master’s father returned in the afternoon to see the Young Master. “How did he get chickenpox? Wasn’t he vaccinated for it?” He asked the doctor.
The grandma was a bit aggravated, “Is this how a father acts?”
The doctor awkwardly coughed. “The Young Master is allergic to Neomycin so he wasn’t able to get the chickenpox nor the flu shots.”
Awkwardness also spilled out of the father’s face. “Oh, I forgot about that. What should we do now?”
“It will be fine as long as no complexions happen.” The doctor’s brows furrowed.
The father looked at his son. Unable to assure himself, he decided to send the Young Master to the hospital.
The Young Master frowned. “I don’t want to go, it’s not like that we don’t have the stuff at home.”
“Hush,” The Young Master’s father patted his head, “There’s more equipment at the hospital, the caregivers are more professional too.”
Lin Miao listened aside. Only the adults were talking, so she didn’t have an opportunity to step into the conversation.
A car soon came to pick up the Young Master.
Lin Miao wanted to follow in the car but was halted by the housekeeper. “They’re quite busy over there, you stay at home to wait for the Young Master to return.”
Lin Miao felt sourness up her nose. She didn’t want to wait alone at home.
Her father also took her younger brother in town when he was sick and told her to wait at home, but they never came back.
She wanted to follow along so she can at least know the Young Master’s condition.
But the car quickly left.
The grandma, the Young Master’s father, and the doctor all left.
The housekeeper soon assigned people to deliver her dinner to her room. Lin Miao wasn’t hungry; she couldn’t swallow a single bite of her delicious meal.
The grandma and the Young Master’s father came back at eight in the night.
Lin Miao rushed downstairs, too worried to be scared. “When can Gege come back?”
The grandma patted her head. “Very very soon, Shuishui should go to sleep soon.”
The housekeeper led Lin Miao upstairs, leaving the two adults by themselves in the living room.
She heard grandma’s furious voice while heading upstairs, “Filming again, still thinking about filming when her son’s hospitalized? Why did she choose to get married if she loves acting so much?”
“She’s rushing back. The film team is deep in the mountains, she can’t do anything when it’s like that. Mom, don’t say so much.” The Young Master’s father said tiredly.
Back in her room, Lin Miao asked the housekeeper, “Shushu, which hospital is Gege at?”
(Note: Shushu refers to Shūshū in Pinyin and 叔叔 in chinese, it means “uncle” and is the preferred name to call middle-aged or younger adults outside of one’s family.)
The housekeeper knelt down. “At the best hospital. You should sleep now.”
Lin Miao nodded. She went to brush her teeth and wash her face and then lied on her bed. She didn’t change into her pajamas but instead took her backpack out. She packed it with her pencils, notebooks, and books. She also took out the five hundred yuan her mother gave her.
(Note: Yuan, or RMB (¥), is the official currency used in mainland China)
Lin Miao hugged her little backpack and lied back on her bed after switching off the lights.
Her mind was filled with the adults’ conversation. They said the Young Master might not make it if the chickenpox complicates.
Lin Miao knew what “might not make it” meant.
She had a buddy who accidentally fell down a cliff while returning from picking firewood. The village head phrased it the same way as them.
Lin Miao was scared.
The Young Master would be lonely at the hospital too. There wouldn’t be anyone to play games with, no one to call him for breakfast...
At ten o’clock, the mansion quieted down like any other day.
Lin Miao slipped out of her room with her little backpack.
She walked through the yard under the moonlight. It rained heavily in the afternoon, but the night sky was clear, and the moon was radiating clear, bright light.
Lin Miao never stepped out of the garden ever since arriving here.
She quickly flipped over the closed iron gates and out of the yard.
She was adept at climbing trees, so it wasn’t difficult for her to flip over the gate.
After landing on the other side, she ran towards the direction the car left in.
Lin Miao sprinted like a cheetah. She had never been to the hospital, but ran anyway.
Meanwhile, at the hospital, the Young Master was staring at the ceiling, bored and furrowing his brows.
Despite the relief from the medicine, he wasn’t able to sleep due to the itch and pain. He sent his nurse out of the room. He hated having someone else in his room.
He thought of the sobbing little bun when he left, his brows furrowing tighter.
Suddenly, he heard his room’s door gently open.
He then saw a small figure slip in.
The Young Master was surprised, “Who is it?”
“Gege, it’s me.” He heard Lin Miao’s voice, panting.
The Young Master propped himself up in disbelief. He switched on his lights and saw Lin Miao with her backpack.
Her forehead was covered with sweat.
Lin Miao struggled to catch her breath, “Gege… fifteen storeys… is so hard to climb…”
The Young Master’s nose was a bit sour. “I’ll teach you how to use the elevator tomorrow.“
A knock interrupted their conversation; it was the doctor who saw the lights turn on in his room.
Lin Miao dashed behind the bed with her backpack to hide.
The doctor opened the door. “Young Master, is there anything uncomfortable?”
The Young Master flicked off the lights. “Nothing.”
Then the doctor closed the door.
Lin Miao came out from behind. “Phew, he almost saw me.”
The Young Master wrinkled his brows. “You came by yourself?”
Lin Miao nodded and answered in a tone she would use when doing things behind adults’ backs, “I snuck out through the front door, no one saw me.”
The Young Master felt as if she came out of a disaster aftermath. “Do you know how dangerous it is during the middle of the night?!”
Lin Miao didn’t know. She had walked longer distances by herself, so she didn’t think it was dangerous; it was more like sneaking downstairs to retrieve her book.
Lin Miao’s heart warmed with her brother caring for her. “It’s not dangerous. I went on a taxi after sneaking out. ‘Taxi’, you taught me that. There was that word on the car that brought me here.”
His heart soft, the Young Master wasn’t able to say anything harsh. Just letting out a sigh, he said, “Don’t ever go out this late at night by yourself.”
Lin Miao took out some fruits she bought at the door of the hospital and placed them aside. She then responded, “Yes.”
She looked at her brother on his bed. “Gege, are you struggling to fall asleep?”
Lin Miao had chickenpox too. She wasn’t able to sleep from the painful itches then.
It was only somewhat mitigated by her mom fanning her by her side.
So Lin Miao took out a piece of paper. “Gege, close your eyes. I’ll fan for you.”
She fanned slowly as she explained, worried that his body might not stand her aggressive fanning.
The Young Master looked at her serious face. “You can sleep on the bed beside this, I can sleep by myself.”