The echoes of Cheng Hui’s cold voice still rang in Su Jingming’s ears. Her tone had softened, yet she remained unwilling to lose face. "I’ve sent all your things to Wen Yan’s place. If you’re missing anything, just have Wen Yan buy it for you."
When Su Jingming relayed these words to Wen Yan, the latter simply offered a shallow smile. "Whatever you want, I’ll buy it for you."
Su Jingming thought that this was likely the greatest concession Cheng Hui would ever make. He didn't dare hope for her blessing; after all, a chasm still existed between mother and son—a divide they could never truly cross.
Another half-month passed before Su Jingming finally brought his current project to a successful conclusion.
When his mentor saw the perfect report Su Jingming presented, he was visibly moved. "Of all the students I’ve taught over the years, you have the highest level of perception. This report on schizophrenia, in particular, is written flawlessly!"
Su Jingming’s mentor was notoriously strict. To receive such affirmation was a testament to Su Jingming’s true capability. Others in the research institute turned toward him with curious gazes. For a junior who had only recently graduated to receive such appreciation from the professor meant he was destined for great things.
The mentor flipped through the pages repeatedly, sighing with regret. "You child, I’ve tried to persuade you to stay for a month, but you won't budge. It seems the person waiting for you is very important indeed."
The corners of Su Jingming’s mouth curled upward. "My boyfriend. He waited five years for me; I can’t make him wait any longer."
This one month had already felt like an eternity.
Su Jingming had packed his luggage early that morning. He took one last look at the dormitory where he had lived for five years. This time, his departure was clean and decisive. Carrying the memories of those five years, he dragged his suitcase out of A University.
Sheng Nian had been waiting for him at the gate for a long time, leaning against his car door. The moment he saw Su Jingming, he raised an eyebrow slightly. "Leaving?"
Su Jingming nodded. "Thank you for taking care of me all these years."
Sheng Nian gave a short click of his tongue. "Get in. I’ll give you a lift."
The heavy snow had hardly stopped, and the drifts piled along the roadside were nearly knee-deep. Su Jingming rested his chin on his hand, watching the scenery reflected in the car window.
Sheng Nian turned up the heat in the car. "Do you remember the day you first arrived at A University?"
"I remember."
It was on that very day that Su Jingming had begun to wonder if there was something wrong with the major he had chosen. It was also Sheng Nian who had guided him, step by step, out of the abyss.
"Su Jingming, you were my first patient," Sheng Nian said. "So, I hope you live well and have no regrets."
Su Jingming’s fingers twitched slightly. "I know my own choice."
"Good. I don't want to see you coming back for a follow-up, and I don't want to be your doctor ever again."
Upon arriving at the airport, Sheng Nian accompanied Su Jingming through check-in and watched until he disappeared from sight.
Unlike the scene when they first met years ago, Su Jingming was leaving this place carrying a sense of light.
***
"What is your name?"
"Su Jingming."
"Why would you study this major? Even a dog wouldn't study this."
When they met again, Sheng Nian was already doing his clinical internship, and Su Jingming had come to the hospital’s psychological department alone.
"You..." Sheng Nian was filled with astonishment.
Su Jingming was cold, a stark contrast to the person he had first met. "A doctor cannot heal himself."
Sheng Nian’s hand, holding a pen and paper, paused before he began the routine questioning.
"My father had schizophrenia. It’s hereditary."
"Lately, I’ve been dreaming a lot. I always dream of scenes from when I was seventeen or eighteen."
"Sometimes my mood is very low. I like to talk to myself, and I can't concentrate."
He was perhaps the most cooperative patient Sheng Nian had ever encountered—and his first.
Sheng Nian cautiously prescribed some medication for Su Jingming, but the junior returned a few days later.
"I took the medicine, but it didn't really work. Now I have insomnia and no positive outlook on life."
This time, Sheng Nian prescribed more medication and took Su Jingming to the outskirts of the city to relax.
He thought things would improve, but not long after, Su Jingming appeared with heavy dark circles under his eyes. This time, his mental state was terrible; he was utterly despondent and listless.
"I can't sleep at all. I'm very sick. Senior, is there any hope for me?"
Later on, through their frequent interactions, the fledgling Sheng Nian became determined to use every skill he possessed to cure Su Jingming.
After a year of intermittent treatment, Su Jingming gradually improved. Holding Su Jingming’s thick medical file, Sheng Nian felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted. "Take your medicine properly now. If you maintain this for a few years, you'll be perfectly fine."
Su Jingming’s eyes softened, and he smiled. "I've troubled you this past year, Senior."
Sheng Nian thought that if his teaching physician hadn't required him to work independently back then, perhaps he and Su Jingming would never have met again. Even though they were alumni who had only met once that year, Su Jingming had left such a deep impression on him.
If Sheng Nian hadn't managed to cure Su Jingming back then, he didn't dare imagine what would have happened later. Especially after hearing that Su Jingming had watched his father die at his feet—Sheng Nian hadn't slept well for nights during that period, terrified that he would wake up the next day to news of Su Jingming’s suicide.
Fortunately, he had managed to keep Su Jingming here.
***
It was already ten o'clock in the evening when Su Jingming returned to Liangcheng.
When Wen Yan saw Su Jingming slowly walking out with his luggage, he smiled imperceptibly. He stepped forward, scrutinizing Su Jingming carefully. "I let you go away for a month, not to go on a diet."
Su Jingming knew he had lost a lot of weight recently. He had even made a point of eating a lot during the week before his return, but he hadn't gained an ounce of flesh.
"We were video chatting just a few days ago, and you didn't say I was thin then," Su Jingming argued weakly.
Wen Yan sighed. What else could he do? He would just have to nurse him back to health slowly.
Seeing his boyfriend’s unhappy expression, Su Jingming wanted to say something to coax him. Suddenly, he noticed the hand-woven rope on Wen Yan’s wrist—the one he had given him years ago. The bell on the cord had been weathered by time and no longer looked as it once did.
He stared at it blankly, his Adam’s apple bobbing, unable to find his voice for a long moment.
Wen Yan followed his gaze and even pointedly held his wrist out in front of Su Jingming. "What are you looking at? You're so entranced."
Su Jingming started, realizing Wen Yan was asking a question he already knew the answer to. He simply took hold of Wen Yan’s wrist, his fingers stroking the bell several times. Suddenly remembering something, he pulled a necklace out from beneath his collar.
Wen Yan’s eyes shimmered as he looked at the necklace. Su Jingming had threaded the ring from years ago onto a chain and wore it against his chest.
"I didn't dare bring it with me before I came to Liangcheng. I kept it over there," Su Jingming said, trying his best to keep his voice steady. "All these years, I’ve worn it around my neck."
*So it would be closer to my heart.*
Wen Yan’s gaze grew deeper as he looked at the ring. His fingers brushed against it. The ring had been well-protected by Su Jingming; there were very few scratches, and it still carried the warmth of Su Jingming’s body.
Suddenly, a shadow fell over Su Jingming’s vision. A moment of darkness obscured his sight, and gradually, he saw the expression in Wen Yan’s eyes. The tenderness buried in the deepest depths of those eyes was magnified infinitely in this moment.
Wen Yan’s love was so fierce it seemed to overflow from his gaze.
Wen Yan pressed a very light kiss to the corner of his mouth, his hot breath fanning across Su Jingming’s face. "Little hero, I want to give you a different ring—one you'll wear for a lifetime."
***
