The day Xiao Man fully woke up, after sending Han Shuangshuang back to rest, she turned to Xu Yan beside her and asked:
“Aren’t you leaving yet?”
Xu Yan inexplicably felt like he was being cast aside after being used.
Even if it wasn’t entirely the case, hadn’t his frequent visits, reading to her, and talking to her contributed at least a little to her awakening?
He laughed in frustration, got up to leave, but paused at the door.
He then returned to sit by the hospital bed, raising an eyebrow as he stared at Xiao Man.
Xiao Man:”….”
Is it really that hard for her to have some alone time?
She put on a polite smile and deliberately tried to send him away by saying:
“I need to use the restroom now. Are you going to help me?”
Xu Yan’s gaze fell to the urine bag hanging by the hospital bed.
Of course, as a comatose patient who had been bedridden for months, she naturally had a catheter and urine bag.
When she got out of bed earlier, she had casually taken the urine bag with her, but in her haste, she had forgotten about it.
Xu Yan: “Do you need me to help you empty the urine bag?”
Xiao Man appeared to still be sitting there, but in reality, she had mentally checked out a while ago.
She had just woken up today, so of course, the catheter wouldn’t be removed so quickly.
At least not until she could stay awake for a prolonged period.
She forced a stiff smile: “No need to trouble you.”
Xu Yan said: “Actually, I did it while you were unconscious.”
Xiao Man froze.
Was he serious, or was he just trying to embarrass her?
In her dreams, she could only hear voices but couldn’t see anything, so she really didn’t know what Xu Yan had done.
She managed to squeeze out a smile: “Really? That must have been quite a hassle for you.”
Xu Yan looked at Xiao Man’s stiff expression and felt a sudden flutter in his heart.
Even her awkward, mortified expression seemed somewhat endearing to him.
Having confirmed something, he chuckled: “Don’t worry, I was just joking. I pay the nurses well enough; such trivial matters shouldn’t trouble me.”
Hearing this, Xiao Man finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Xu Yan stood up and said: “Rest well. I’ll come see you tomorrow.”
With that, he left, and the room quickly fell silent, allowing Xiao Man to finally gather her thoughts.
The next day, Xu Yan arrived early.
Seeing Xiao Man struggling to move, he suddenly said: “Remember? I used to have a company that made smart electric chairs. You could use one of those as a mobility aid.”
Xiao Man felt like Xu Yan was testing her and feigned confusion:
“What chair? Tell me the name, and I’ll look it up later.”
Xu Yan glanced at her and directly pulled up the official promotional video of the chair on his phone.
In the video, a group of young people rode the brand’s chairs, zooming around in offices, mountains, garages, and even on beaches.
Xiao Man, who had never seen anything like it, was stunned:
“This chair can go off-road? And it doesn’t sink in the sand? Isn’t this false advertising?”
Xu Yan smiled without answering and showed her another video, a parody made by someone else, where a group of people raced on the chairs and even jumped over obstacles.
Xu Yan: “Now that’s false advertising.”
Xiao Man had to admit, she was somewhat intrigued.
She didn’t need it in the hospital, but she could use it after discharge.
It seemed quite fun.
Before long, Han Shuangshuang arrived with Xiao Man’s phone, and she could place an order online!
Xiao Man noticed the way Han Shuangshuang looked at Xu Yan.
To describe it accurately, it was something like: Why is this Mr. Xu here every day?
“Ah, could he have a crush on Sister Man?”
Xiao Man pretended not to notice and urged Han Shuangshuang to hurry off to work.
Holding her long-lost phone, she found herself momentarily at a loss for what to do.
During her time as a dog, naturally, she couldn’t use her phone.
At first, it was indeed uncomfortable, but over time, she got used to it and even began to appreciate the peace and quiet of a phone-free world.
A hand reached over beside her.
Xu Yan held out his phone, the screen displaying a WeChat QR code.
For a moment, Xiao Man thought it was a payment code, assuming he was pressing her to repay the money…
But then she reconsidered.
He wasn’t that petty, and back when she was a dog, she had shielded him from a direct hit.
After briefly regaining consciousness, she immediately helped him contact people.
That life-saving favor was solid, so it was only right that he covered her hospital expenses.
This way, they were even, neither owing the other just perfect.
Upon closer inspection, it was a friend request QR code.
Xiao Man didn’t overthink it, opened her scanner, and added him.
She had seen Xu Yan’s WeChat before when she was a dog.
She remembered his profile picture back then was a shiny thermos, but now it was a baby stroller.
Hmm… his child’s?
Xu Yan noticed Xiao Man looking at his profile picture and explained, “It’s a product from my new company.”
Xiao Man inexplicably felt relieved and smiled, “President Xu, you really have a wide range of interests.”
He really doesn’t discriminate at all.
He buys companies on the verge of bankruptcy without caring what they do.
If he thinks they can be saved, he’ll acquire them.
Xiao Man thought that if this continued, he’d eventually become a jack-of-all-trades CEO, capable of handling any product.
Xu Yan, however, seemed to recall something and asked, “By the way, now that you’re better, would you like to work with me? Feng Qing’s heart isn’t in the company. Your company might not go bankrupt, but it doesn’t have much of a future.”
Xiao Man hadn’t expected Xu Yan to bring this up now, especially while she was still sitting in a hospital bed, far from formal.
She straightened her back slightly and thought it over seriously.
She had been somewhat tempted by the idea of working with him before, but now that she was fully awake, that temptation had faded.
She still preferred the atmosphere at her current company.
Feng Qing’s hands-off approach was just right.
Sometimes, the more an incompetent boss meddles, the faster the company goes under.
Feng Qing’s style was just perfect.
Xiao Man said, “Thank you for your kind offer, President Xu, but for now, I still prefer the atmosphere at Shutu Media.”
Xu Yan didn’t press her, “Alright, if you change your mind, feel free to let me know.”
Xiao Man accepted his goodwill with a bright smile, “I will.”
Over the next few days, Xiao Man continued her hospital stay for observation, and Xu Yan visited almost daily.
He didn’t do much, just chatted about the recent companies he had acquired, and Xiao Man listened with great interest.
Even though she wasn’t going to work with him, hearing about his rich experiences was quite entertaining.
He even recounted an incident where an employee deliberately spilled coffee on him.
He commented on it, “Their performance is a mess. Instead of focusing on improving themselves, they waste time on underhanded tactics. With an entire company like that, no wonder it’s failing.”
Oh, and the employee he was talking about was a flamboyant man.
Whether male or female, who wouldn’t want to skip thirty years of hard work?
Xiao Man couldn’t help but laugh, though she quickly stifled it when she saw Xu Yan’s displeased expression.
It must have been quite unlucky for a straight guy like him to be targeted by a man.
She expressed strong condemnation towards the other party, but it was still quite funny!
Xu Yan glanced at her and couldn’t help but laugh as well.
Honestly, if he weren’t involved, he would have found it amusing too.
After a few days in the hospital, Xiao Man was finally discharged.
She had been so bored that she felt like she was growing mold, so she went straight back to work the next day.
After a busy day, as she was leaving work in her smart electric wheelchair, Xiao Man saw Xu Yan at the company entrance.
She initially thought Xu Yan was there to see Feng Qing, so she greeted him and was about to leave, but Xu Yan stopped her with a somewhat complicated expression: “You really bought it.”
He had only mentioned it in passing, never expecting Xiao Man to take it seriously.
Xiao Man had been stared at all day and had already become desensitized to such gazes.
She smiled and said, “It’s quite fun. If you want to try it, I can let you have a go.”
Xu Yan, who wouldn’t even let people know he was afraid of dogs, was certainly not going to play with it on the spot.
He asked, “How are you going to get back like this?”
Xiao Man replied, “I’ll leave the chair with the security guard and walk back.”
Xu Yan nodded, “Let’s go then.”
Xiao Man looked at him in surprise, “Are you going to escort me? I can take a taxi.”
Xu Yan: “Why else would I be here?”
Xiao Man:”…..”
So he’s not pretending anymore.
Xiao Man didn’t say anything and followed Xu Yan into the elevator in her electric wheelchair.
There was no one else in the elevator.
Xu Yan stood beside Xiao Man, slightly lowering his head to see her delicate nose.
After months in bed, her complexion was still pale, and she was thin, but she exuded a vitality that was completely opposite to her state during her illness.
He reached out and rested his hand on the back of the wheelchair, but Xiao Man inexplicably felt as if he had touched her.
When the elevator reached the first floor, Xiao Man politely asked the security guard to keep an eye on her wheelchair and slowly walked out.
Xu Yan stepped forward and supported Xiao Man.
Xu Yan’s car was in the ground parking lot, just a few dozen meters from the building entrance.
Halfway there, Xiao Man suddenly asked, “I’m curious, when did it start?”
Xiao Man’s question was vague, but Xu Yan understood.
He smiled, “Does it matter?”
Xiao Man also smiled, “Of course, otherwise you’d seem like a creep.”
Xiao Man was indeed a bit puzzled.
She was fine, often dreaming about the sounds her body heard.
Xu Yan had almost accompanied her throughout her later bedridden period.
Through the things he described, his way of speaking, and his comments on certain matters, she could gradually understand what kind of person he was.
But he was different.
Although she had been conscious quite a few times, it wasn’t enough for Xu Yan to fully understand her.
Xu Yan:”….”
He laughed in exasperation, “Is that how you see me?”
Xiao Man: “I don’t want to, but your actions make it hard to think otherwise.”
Xu Yan: “Can’t I use offering myself in marriage to repay the debt of saving my life?”
Xiao Man said, “That’s not necessary, just give me money. You already have.”
She had stayed in the VIP ward for so long, plus the cost of nursing care and medical examinations, it must have been around three to four hundred thousand.
Xu Yan paused because he was supporting Xiao Man, and she had to stop as well, looking at him in confusion.
Xu Yan looked at Xiao Man, his attitude unusually serious:
“When I realized I liked you, I also wondered if I might be a…”
“Are you a pervert? Thankfully, I figured it out later compared to you lying there silently, I actually prefer it when you roll your eyes.”
Xiao Man: “Huh?”
Bro, are you even speaking human language?
No one confesses their feelings like this, okay?
Hmph!
Then she was utterly confused: “Have I ever rolled my eyes at you?”
When she was a dog, she rolled her eyes countless times because there were so many ridiculous situations, and since she couldn’t speak, what else could she do but roll her eyes?