Chapter 42: The Patient Comes to Ask

Chapter 42: A Patient Comes to Ask

Imperial City Renai Hospital.

Wearing a soft white wool sweater, Lu Jing walked into the inpatient department with a brisk, energetic step.

Unlike her usual sorrowful expression, her face was flushed with color today. Her long hair was loose, and she looked radiant and joyful, as if touched by a spring breeze.

Even her voice sounded a pitch higher than usual: "A-Chuan! Let's have dumplings for lunch!"

Lu Chuan put away his tablet and looked up at her. "Why are you so happy?"

Lu Jing opened the insulated bag on the table and turned back to smile at him. "Am I?"

Lu Chuan:...

If you hadn't been smiling like that when you turned around, it wouldn't have been so obvious.

"Did something bad happen to Zhou Yongzhi?"

Thinking carefully, the only thing that could make his mother look this happy at this time would likely be her scumbag ex-husband running into some misfortune.

Lu Jing had already taken out two large insulated containers. As she opened the lids, she chided him

"What are you talking about? That's your father! Even if you're hoping for his bad luck, what does that have to do with me? How unlucky of you to say that."

*Then why are you so headlessly happy...*

Lu Chuan decided not to ask further.

Just then, Lu Jing handed him a heavy insulated container—it was truly a massive one, filled to the brim with dumplings. Counting them, there had to be thirty or fifty!

A small compartment on the side held some vinegar, but not much.

At that moment, the fresh aroma of the dumplings and the sour scent of the vinegar wafted toward him. Lu Chuan couldn't help but swallow hard, feeling his dormant appetite suddenly awaken.

"So many dumplings? Mom, let's split—"

He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Lu Jing sit down by the hospital bed and open an identical insulated container. The dumplings inside were perhaps only a few fewer than his.

"Mom," Lu Chuan said hesitantly, "Aren't there too many dumplings?"

However, there was no one to answer him.

Lu Jing had already impatiently picked up a plump dumpling and stuffed it directly into her mouth.

After wolfing down three in quick succession, she finally remembered she had a patient for a son. She quickly looked up at him and gave a half-hearted urge

"Eat up! Hurry and eat!"

Lu Chuan fell silent for a moment, then picked up his chopsticks.

Having stayed in the hospital for a long time, his appetite hadn't been great, but smelling the fragrance of the dumplings suddenly made his stomach growl.

The moment a dumpling entered his mouth, an indescribable blend of fresh aroma and meaty flavor exploded in his mouth, accompanied by a burst of tender juice...

Lu Chuan slowly chewed and swallowed the dumpling, then, without looking up, aimed for the next one.

This silent eating show continued halfway through until the slightly ajar ward door was suddenly knocked upon.

Standing outside the door was a middle-aged man also dressed in patient clothes. He had neat, short hair and dark skin. He held a crutch under his arm, and one of his legs was wrapped tightly in bandages.

Leaning on his crutch, his originally serious features suddenly turned awkward, and he gave an embarrassed smile: "Um... cough... I... well... what are you guys eating?"

Lu Chuan met his gaze. He had never experienced anything like this in his life and froze for a moment.

Beside him, Lu Jing let out a "pfft" of laughter, causing the man's cheeks to turn bright red, making him look even more embarrassed.

She quickly tried to stifle her laughter. "Sorry, sorry—we're eating dumplings, shepherd's purse and pork."

As he drew closer, she clearly saw the man's Adam's apple bob, and even the tips of his ears turned red

"May I ask where you bought them?"

Seeing that Lu Jing didn't speak, he quickly explained, "I live in the ward across from you. The smell was so fragrant, it kept getting better and better, and I couldn't help myself... Sorry."

Thinking about a man in his forties or fifties coming to ask because he was craving a bite of dumplings, it was indeed quite embarrassing.

He turned around, intending to flee the ward and escape the social death.

Seeing him like that, Lu Jing felt bad herself—the dumplings really were delicious. She had eaten until she was stuffed last night, and now that someone was asking, how could she laugh at him?

So she quickly called out, "Um... if you don't mind, I have extra. Bring a bowl over, and I'll serve you some."

The man, limping on one leg, hurried back to get a bowl. It seemed that while he said he was embarrassed, he was actually eager to eat.

As Lu Chuan watched her scoop half of the dumplings from his container, he tried to resist, but ultimately couldn't

"I can eat more."

Lu Jing gave him a reproachful look. "I could eat more too! But I was so full last night my stomach hurt, and then I didn't learn my lesson at lunch and cooked this many again..."

She tried to hide her reluctance, putting on an indifferent expression. "It just so happens someone else likes them, so it's easier for me to control my appetite."

"By the way, A-Chuan, scoop a few out of your bowl too. When I was making them, I only thought about letting you eat more. I forgot your appetite hasn't been great lately; don't overstuff your stomach."

As she spoke, she took his container in an unyielding manner, sighing as she did

"Do you think I've been in the Imperial City too long? Why does the shepherd's purse from home taste so good?"

"From home?" Lu Chuan was surprised.

"Yes," Lu Jing looked at him. "Didn't you leave our home address with that little girl last time? Last night, a Wind Express package arrived from Ning Province with ten pounds of wild vegetables, most of which were shepherd's purse."

"When I saw how fresh they were, I rushed to buy meat and make dumplings."

She just hadn't expected them to be so delicious. She had originally intended to cook just ten dumplings to taste them as a midnight snack, but she ended up cooking one pot after another, eating ten after ten...

She had eaten a full thirty dumplings, swallowed two digestive pills, and didn't fall asleep until the middle of the night.

However, she didn't tell her son the details; it was too embarrassing.

But this was enough to surprise Lu Chuan.

He thought of the WeChat message he had sent that had received no response, and suddenly felt a sense of amusement

That girl really didn't say a word of falsehood; she said she'd send wild vegetables, and she did.

This personality made Lu Chuan feel relieved—he had been worried she would come to him demanding a grand reward or thanks.

Because of this, his internal resistance vanished.

As he continued to savor the remaining dumplings with lingering affection, he felt that giving out his address was well worth it.

Just then, the patient from across the way came to knock on the door. The man sheepishly handed over a lunch box, nearly making Lu Jing burst into laughter again.

She struggled to hold it in and began filling it with dumplings.

The patient at the door was both shy and embarrassed, but his stomach unhelpfully let out a loud growl, causing both mother and son in the ward to look over.

The middle-aged man decided to just go all in: "Did you make these dumplings yourselves? Where did you get the meat and vegetables? They taste amazing! Just the smell alone has me salivating."

Lu Jing handed the lunch box back. "Yes, the meat is just black pork from the supermarket, but the shepherd's purse was sent by a young girl from the countryside..."

She smiled sheepishly, clearly having no intention of providing a contact for the vegetables.

The man froze, then remembered something. He quickly turned around and picked up two bags of fruit from the floor by the door

"Um... I'm really sorry, thank you."

After setting the fruit down by the door, he tapped his crutch "thud-thud-thud" and hurried into his own ward, giving no chance for anyone to refuse.