The Secret Realm of Time, His and Her Life Through the Changes

Chapter 117 Respecting One's True Self

Wang Jie and Jian Zheng discussed, "Why don't we take her home first and see how she is before deciding whether to go to the hospital?"

Jian Zheng said to the driver again, "Sir, could you please take us to Yangxi Road?"

The funeral home, located in the eastern suburbs, is not close to the city center; it took forty minutes to drive into the city.

Zhou Yanruo curled up with her head resting on Wang Jie's lap, and Wang Jie took off his coat and covered her with it.

On the way, Jian Zheng called his mother: "Mom, we're on our way back. A friend of mine is sick, and I asked the driver to take her home. Don't worry, I didn't go inside, no one will see me, and we're home now."

After hanging up the phone, Jian Zheng turned to Wang Jie and said, "I'll drop you off at the alley entrance. You can take care of Zhou Yanruo yourself, right? I have to hurry back. The driver also needs to get back to the company. My mom borrowed a car from another company."

Wang Jie knew very well that, given the current public opinion storm, Mayor Chang would never allow Jian Zheng to use her car, nor would any other vehicles from the Municipal Party Committee. They had to find another way. It seemed the situation was far more serious than they had initially realized.

"Just leave us at the entrance of the alley; I can manage on my own. Don't wander off lately, and listen to your auntie."

The driver overheard their conversation, and as soon as the car entered Yangxi Road, he asked, "Which alleyway do you want to stop at?"

Jian Zheng replied, "At the entrance of the first alley, you can see a three-story tenement building."

After the car came to a stop, Jian Zheng helped Zhou Yanruo out of the car. "I'm leaving now. I'll call you in a bit."

Wang Jie helped Zhou Yanruo walk into the alley.

Zhou Yanruo was delirious with fever. The stone-paved road in the alley was uneven and potholed. Wang Jie supported her with his arm, and the two of them moved forward with difficulty, one step at a time.

"I'll carry you on my back," Wang Jie said, bending down.

Zhou Yanruo didn't care about being embarrassed. She was too weak to do anything else. She murmured "Mmm" and leaned against Wang Jie's back.

Wang Jie was wearing a shirt, with his coat draped over Zhou Yanruo's shoulders.

Wang Jie carried Zhou Yanruo on his back all the way to the old house at the deepest part of the alley. Through her thin clothes, he could feel the softness of her body and feel waves of heat emanating from her.

Zhou Yanruo tilted her head to his ear, and with each breath, wisps of warm breath tickled his ear and temples, and he could clearly hear her soft breathing.

Wang Jie blushed, her feelings a mix of emotions. An indescribable feeling pounded wildly in her heart, making her heart race uncontrollably, sometimes pounding as if it were about to leap out of her mouth, sometimes stopping abruptly, leaving her feeling suffocated and wanting to reach in and hold it.

The familiar alleyway felt new and exciting. He wished the alleyway could be longer so he could carry her a little longer; yet he also wished it could be shorter so she could get home quickly and rest after having a fever.

As soon as the conflicting thought crossed his mind, Wang Jie bit his lip hard, hissing in pain, and cursed under his breath, "What the hell am I thinking about at a time like this?"

He quickened his pace and arrived at the door of the old house. He put Zhou Yanruo down, supporting her with one hand, or rather, carrying her, while using the other hand to ring the doorbell.

Soon, the door opened, and Grandma stood in the doorway. She saw Zhou Yanruo leaning limply against Wang Jie, her cheeks flushed an unnatural red.

"Ruoruo, what's wrong?"

"Grandma, Zhou Yanruo has a fever."

Grandma reached out and pressed Zhou Yanruo's forehead; it was burning hot. She quickly turned to the side and said, "Come in quickly."

The wooden staircase of the old-fashioned Western-style house is only one and a half people wide, which is obviously not enough space for one person to help another person upstairs.

Wang Jie asked, "Can I carry her upstairs?"

"Then carry her upstairs, thank you, Xiao Wang."

"You're welcome."

Wang Jie carried Zhou Yanruo on his back again, climbing the wooden stairs to the second floor and entering the room on the left.

Grandma followed them to Zhou Yanruo's room and helped Wang Jie help Zhou Yanruo lie down on the bed.

Wang Jie stood by the bed and said, "We were going to take her to the hospital, but she refused and insisted on going home. Do we have any medicine at home? Maybe I should go to the pharmacy and buy some fever reducers."

Grandma pulled the blanket over Zhou Yanruo and said, "We have fever reducers and cold medicine at home. She's been stressed these past few days and caught a bit of a cold, so she had a fever last night. I didn't want her to go today, but she kept pestering me to go. Oh well, let her go, so she won't have any regrets."

Seeing paper and pen on the desk by the window, Wang Jie went over, wrote down his pager number, and handed it to his grandmother. "Grandma, if she needs to see a doctor, just call this number. I live nearby and will be here soon."

“Let’s go downstairs and talk, let her sleep for a while.” Grandma pulled the coat that had been draped over Zhou Yanruo from under her, put it on her arm, and asked, “Is this your coat?”

“Yes, it’s mine.” Wang Jie took the clothes.

The two came out, and Grandma gently closed the door before they went downstairs together.

"Grandma, I'm going back now." Wang Jie walked straight towards the front gate.

"Xiao Wang, thank you for bringing Ruoruo back." Grandma saw her to the door and said, "In a few days, Ruoruo's mother will take her back to Beijing. The little girl has been through a lot, so please come and keep her company when you have time."

Wang Jie turned around, her eyes darting around involuntarily. "Is it okay?"

"Why not? You young people can talk to each other more easily. Besides, you've been through something together, so it's comforting to help each other get over it sooner rather than later, so that it doesn't leave a shadow in your hearts."

"Thank you, Grandma, I will."

After leaving the old villa, Wang Jie walked home along the stone-paved road.

As I walked, I kept thinking about what my grandmother had just said. What an enlightened old woman she was.

Grandma said that Zhou Yanruo's mother would be taking her back to Beijing in a few days, and then it would be difficult to see her again.

Wang Jie felt a pang of disappointment. The burning heat on his back was still there, and the tingling sensation between his ears and temples was still very clear.

Zhou Yanruo blushed and made an untimely confession to him, and the scene began to appear in his mind.

Having witnessed life and death, I truly felt the fragility of life. Disappearance is simply disappearance, happening in an instant. Who allows time to waste thinking about it?

Wang Jie shook his head heavily, thinking, "Who cares if he's Wang Jie or Shang Yibo? He's just a symbol. What I should do now is follow my heart. I like Zhou Yanruo, and that's enough. When she gets better, I'll tell her—no, I'll tell her tomorrow."

Thinking of this, Wang Jie felt a sense of relief he had never felt before. Looking up, he realized he had already passed the tenement building and reached the street at the entrance of the alley.

Just as I was about to turn around and walk back, my pager went off.

He took it out and saw a message from Jian Zheng: "Are you home? I'll come find you tonight."

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