Xu Tang looked like he would not wake up anytime soon, so Zong Xuan took out his phone and browsed the internet for a while.
There were fewer people online at this hour, so Weibo was relatively quiet. The number one trending topic was “Xu Tang Car Accident”, and the second was “Boycott Car Chasing.”
The discussions mainly revolved around Xu Tang’s condition. Fans were all very concerned about his injuries and wanted to know how he was doing now. The criticism was directed at the paparazzi’s act of chasing the car. Many believed that if the paparazzi had not chased after them, Xu Tang’s car would have been able to drive a little slower, and the crash would not have been so severe. The paparazzi’s actions were disgusting—they disregarded other people’s safety just for news. After the accident happened, they did not immediately call the police for help but instead took photos of the car nonstop.
Another target of criticism was drunk driving. Many people believed that the punishment for drunk driving should be harsher. There was also a small group of people cursing Fu Yi and Zhou Yijian. Without them, Xu Tang would not have been chased by the paparazzi, and none of this would have happened.
Because of this incident and Xu Tang’s statement, no one was bringing up the matter of Xu Tang being falsely accused of cheating anymore. Everyone was focused on Xu Tang’s injuries and hoped the authorities would release an explanation as soon as possible.
After thinking for a moment, Zong Xuan posted on Weibo—
[I just arrived at the hospital. Tangtang is still asleep. Thank you everyone for your concern about Tangtang. I will take good care of him, and I also hope something like this will not happen again in the future.]
Some night owls and early risers quickly saw the post and left comments, telling Zong Xuan to take good care of Xu Tang and wishing Xu Tang a speedy recovery.
At a little after seven in the morning, Xu Tang finally woke up.
When he saw Zong Xuan sitting beside the bed, he blinked a few times, looking somewhat unable to react.
Zong Xuan leaned closer and asked softly, “How do you feel? Tell me if anywhere feels uncomfortable.”
Xu Tang still felt dizzy and had a headache, but it was much better than yesterday. “You… why are you here?”
“I heard you got into a car accident, so I rushed back overnight.” Zong Xuan smiled. “Do you want some water?”
“No…” Xu Tang did not want to eat anything right now. The dizziness made him feel slightly nauseous. “I’m fine now. You should go back early.”
He did not think Zong Xuan had any obligation to take care of him.
“I’ll stay and take care of you,” Zong Xuan said.
“There’s no need…”
“Tangtang, whether you want to see me or not, you’re injured right now. Just behave and listen to me. Let me take care of you.” Zong Xuan looked into his eyes. “I’ll leave once you’re better, okay?”
Xu Tang looked at Zong Xuan. The concern filling Zong Xuan’s eyes made him not know how to continue refusing.
Zong Xuan had rushed back from so far away. No matter how he looked at it, Xu Tang could not bring himself to tell him to leave.
Seeing that he did not say anything, Zong Xuan took it as agreement.
He smiled and went to the bathroom, wrung out a warm towel, and came back to wipe Xu Tang’s face, hoping to make him feel a little more comfortable.
Avoiding the small wounds on his face, Zong Xuan carefully wiped him clean. Xu Tang also felt much more refreshed and no longer felt as nauseous as before. He then said, “Pour me some water.”
“Okay.”
Zong Xuan poured some warm water, mixed it with some bottled water to adjust the temperature, then inserted a straw and brought it to Xu Tang’s lips.
After drinking a little, Xu Tang wrapped himself in the blanket and began feeling sleepy again.
Zong Xuan did not disturb him and simply sat beside him.
“Kang Duo brought porridge and soup early this morning. She said you can eat some if you’re hungry.”
“Let’s talk about it later…” Xu Tang said weakly.
The dizziness made him not want to speak at all. He only wanted to lie there quietly.
At exactly eight o’clock, the doctor came in with the nurses to make rounds.
After asking questions and conducting an examination, the doctor confirmed that Xu Tang had no major problems. His current dizziness and headaches would last for a while, but it was a normal reaction. He just needed to eat when he should, sleep when he should, and recover properly.
Zong Xuan thanked the doctor.
Xu Tang was hospitalized, and Zong Xuan appearing here was perfectly normal. The doctor remained calm and simply explained some precautions to him.
Xu Tang’s wrist might need about two months to recover, so he needed to be more careful and avoid injuring it again.
After the doctor left, Zong Xuan served Xu Tang a small bowl of porridge and sat by the bed, coaxing him.
“Come on, eat a little. If you don’t eat breakfast, you’ll get low blood sugar.”
Xu Tang did not want to eat at all, nor did he want to speak. He simply stared at him, as if trying to force Zong Xuan away with his eyes.
Zong Xuan smiled and said, “It’s fine if you’re annoyed with me. It’s fine if you don’t want to talk to me. Anything is fine. Just get your body better first.”
“My brother will find someone to take care of me…” Xu Tang’s voice was quiet.
Zong Xuan smiled. “Mm, you’re not lacking people to take care of you. But your hand is injured. How inconvenient will it be when you need to go to the bathroom? Are you okay with letting someone else take off your pants for you? It’s still more convenient if I do it, right?”
“…”
If Xu Tang had not been dizzy, he probably would have been able to curse out the word “get lost.”
Letting Zong Xuan do it? That was even more impossible!
A little less than half a bowl of porridge was fed into Xu Tang’s mouth through Zong Xuan’s coaxing and persuasion.
After eating something, it was not as unbearable as he had imagined. Xu Tang hugged the blanket and said, “Go check on Yuan Shang. If he needs anything, tell him not to be polite.”
If it were not because he wanted to change where he lived, Yuan Shang would not have ended up in the car accident with him.
Now Xu Tang could not get out of bed, and there was no one else around, so he could only ask Zong Xuan to go check on him.
Yesterday he had been feeling too awful to think about it. He did not know how Yuan Shang had been arranged.
“Okay, I’ll go take a look. Later, I’ll have Shaoqian bring some fruit over. I’ll give him some as well.” Zong Xuan replied.
As long as Xu Tang was willing to talk to him, he was willing to go along with anything Xu Tang wanted.
“Mm.”
Just as Zong Xuan stepped out of the room, he ran into Xu Zhou.
Xu Zhou was not surprised to see him. Xu Wan had already told him.
“Brother,” Zong Xuan greeted him. “Tangtang asked me to go check on Yuan Shang. He’s worried about him.”
Xu Zhou nodded, seemingly not wanting to say much.
“Brother, I don’t have anything important to do these next few days. I can stay and take care of Tangtang. There’s no need to find someone else,” Zong Xuan said.
“You take care of Tangtang?” Xu Zhou glanced sideways at him.
He did not believe that Zong Xuan could properly take care of his younger brother.
Zong Xuan immediately promised, “Don’t worry. If there’s something I don’t know how to do, I can learn. You and Sister are both busy. If someone else takes care of him, you definitely won’t be at ease, and it won’t be convenient either. It’s better if I do it.”
Xu Zhou thought to himself:
I’m not at ease with you taking care of him either.
Zong Xuan continued, “Brother, I know that because of Tangtang’s matter, you’re very dissatisfied with me. I won’t make excuses for myself. Regarding Tangtang, it’s true that things cannot simply be settled with one ‘sorry.’ At the beginning, I thought his idea of marrying me was the same as mine, so I didn’t fulfill the responsibilities and obligations I should have in a marriage. I really did a poor job. But I truly want to change now. I hope you can give us a chance.”
“It’s not a matter of whether we give you a chance or not. It depends on whether Tangtang is willing to give you a chance.” Xu Zhou said coldly.
Regarding Xu Tang’s matters, there were some things he would interfere with and some things he would not.
For example, feelings.
That was not something he could control.
What he could do was explain things clearly to Xu Tang and leave him a way out. As for what Xu Tang chose in the end, that was Xu Tang’s own decision.
“Tangtang cares a lot about his family. If I can’t make you and Sister accept me, he won’t consider it either. So I still have to pass your test,” Zong Xuan said with a smile.
looked at him and felt that it was still too early to say anything now. He only said, “We’ll see how you perform in the future. But let me make this clear first: if Tangtang still hasn’t accepted you within half a year, then you’ll have to get divorced. You’re also not allowed to keep pestering Tangtang. Otherwise, even if your second brother is here, I won’t give him any face.”
“Okay, Brother, don’t worry.” Zong Xuan readily agreed. Perhaps he might not necessarily be able to win back Tangtang within half a year, and he might have no choice but to divorce then. But being able to properly get along with Xu Tang for a while and understand each other better was also very important. If it still didn’t work out by then, they could think of another solution.
Xu Zhou waved his hand, telling him to go do whatever he needed to do, while he himself entered the hospital room.
Xu Zhou stayed with Xu Tang for an hour before leaving to attend to his own work.
After Zong Xuan went to check on Yuan Shang’s situation, he came back and told Xu Tang about it. Xu Tang was relieved. After Xu Zhou left, he took another short nap.
In the afternoon, just after Xu Tang finished his IV drip, someone knocked on the door.
Zong Xuan went over to open it and saw Fang Tan standing outside, wearing a hospital gown. Fang Tan was the lyricist and composer of the ancient-style song Xu Tang had previously rearranged, as well as its original singer. Although Zong Xuan had not interacted much with him, he had still seen him around.
Fang Tan smiled. “Sorry to disturb you. Is Xu Tang here?”
“Is there something?” In terms of status, Zong Xuan was definitely above Fang Tan. In terms of age, the two were about the same, so there was nothing wrong with Zong Xuan asking this way. Besides, he had never heard that Xu Tang had any particular relationship with Fang Tan. The fact that this person suddenly appeared here was rather strange. However, seeing him in a hospital gown, it seemed he was also staying here.
“It’s nothing important. I just heard that Xu Tang was hospitalized here. Since we’re staying on the same floor, we’ll probably run into each other sooner or later, so I thought I should come say hello first. If it’s inconvenient, I won’t disturb you.” Fang Tan’s words were polite and courteous, just like the songs he wrote—elegant and free of conflict.
“Wait a moment.” Zong Xuan did not immediately refuse. Instead, he went inside to ask Xu Tang.
When Xu Tang heard that Fang Tan was outside, he was surprised, but out of courtesy, he invited him in.
“Sorry, my head is still dizzy, so I won’t get up to greet you.” Xu Tang smiled.
“It’s me who came at the wrong time. Just lie down, there’s no need to entertain me.” Fang Tan sat down on the stool beside the bed. “I heard yesterday that you were admitted, but things were chaotic on your side at the time, so I didn’t want to come over and add to the trouble.”
Xu Tang looked at his clothes and asked, “You… are you also here to be hospitalized?”
Fang Tan smiled. “My annual physical examination. I’m also taking the opportunity to rest and recuperate a little. I’ll be going home for the Spring Festival soon anyway.”
Having an annual health checkup was something worth encouraging. Xu Tang himself, however, had not been very good at doing that.
“I’m staying in Room 907. When you feel better and get bored, come find me for a chat.” Fang Tan smiled.
“Sure.” Talking with Fang Tan made Xu Tang feel very comfortable. Besides, both of them were creative singers, so naturally they had plenty of topics to discuss.
Around evening, Xu Tang’s symptoms had eased quite a bit. He mumbled that he wanted strawberries.
Zong Xuan immediately asked Xie Shaoqian to add a portion of strawberries to the fruits that would be delivered later. If he wasn’t worried about leaving Xu Tang alone in the room, he would have gone to buy them himself.
After the fruit was delivered, Zong Xuan asked Xie Shaoqian to send Yuan Shang’s portion over, then he could go home.
Afterward, he rolled up his sleeves and went to wash the strawberries for Xu Tang himself.
Xu Tang lay on the bed with his eyes closed, resting.
At that moment, the phone Zong Xuan had placed by the head of the bed vibrated. To avoid disturbing Xu Tang’s rest, Zong Xuan had switched his phone to vibration mode.
“Zong Xuan, your phone.” Xu Tang spoke.
The bathroom was inside the hospital room, so as long as Xu Tang raised his voice slightly, Zong Xuan could hear him.
Zong Xuan was still busy fighting with the strawberries, so he said, “Help me answer it.”
He didn’t think there was anything wrong with Xu Tang answering his phone. He hoped that this kind of openness would give Xu Tang more of a sense of security and would also be a small step toward building mutual trust between them.
Xu Tang reached out and pulled over the phone. The caller ID showed Teng Yizheng’s name.
“It’s Teng Yizheng calling.” If it had been Wen Hui or the others, Xu Tang would have answered directly, but with Teng Yizheng, he still needed to tell Zong Xuan first.
“It’s fine, answer it. Ask him what he wants.” Zong Xuan said indifferently.
Since it was Teng Yizheng calling, it was even more necessary for Xu Tang to answer. Otherwise, if Xu Tang started thinking there was something between him and Teng Yizheng again, where would he go to explain himself?
Xu Tang thought for a few seconds before answering the call. “Hello? Zong Xuan is washing something and can’t answer right now.”
“Xu Tang?” Teng Yizheng’s voice carried a hint of surprise.
“Mm.” Xu Tang turned on the speakerphone, making it easier to talk and saving him from holding the phone. “You can call back later.”
“Xu Tang, what are you pretending for?” Teng Yizheng sneered. “What? Are you trying to tell me that you and Zong Xuan have a good relationship? That you can answer his phone whenever you want?”
“I don’t think that has anything to do with you.” Xu Tang was feeling unwell, so naturally his temper was not very good. Even Zong Xuan could bear the brunt of his anger, let alone Teng Yizheng.
“Heh, are you taking revenge? Because I looked down on you before?” Teng Yizheng said angrily. He knew exactly what he himself was thinking, and he also knew clearly what attitude he had shown toward Xu Tang. He believed Xu Tang understood it too, so he felt even more that Xu Tang was deliberately taking revenge on him and humiliating him.
“I’m not as bored as you.” Xu Tang gave a mocking laugh.
It seemed he really had not misunderstood Teng Yizheng’s intentions.
“Whatever you want to do, Xu Tang, listen carefully. You’re just someone throwing yourself at him. Zong Xuan will never like you. You should give up early. Do you think answering Zong Xuan’s phone once will make me and Zong Xuan fall out? Don’t dream. I don’t care about someone as calculating as you. If you still have any dignity, leave Zong Xuan immediately. Stop humiliating yourself…”
“Teng Yizheng, enough!” Zong Xuan shouted angrily.
Zong Xuan came out carrying the strawberries and happened to hear Teng Yizheng’s words. He had also heard what Xu Tang said to Teng Yizheng. Xu Tang had never deliberately provoked him.
Then what exactly was Teng Yizheng saying?
Or perhaps Teng Yizheng had always been filled with hostility toward Xu Tang, and he had simply never noticed.
Teng Yizheng froze for a moment, then immediately softened his tone. “Zong Xuan, sorry. I-I haven’t been in a good mood recently, so when Xu Tang answered your phone without permission, I got a little angry.”
Zong Xuan did not turn off the speakerphone. He put down the strawberries and said, “I was the one who asked Tangtang to answer. No matter how bad your mood is, you shouldn’t take it out on him.”
“Sorry.” Teng Yizheng apologized very readily, but it sounded more like an apology to Zong Xuan rather than Xu Tang. “That… when do you have time? I want to meet with you. There’s something I need to tell you.”
Zong Xuan picked out a large, bright red strawberry that looked especially sweet and brought it to Xu Tang’s mouth.
Xu Tang ignored him, raised his hand, randomly picked one, and ate it himself.
Zong Xuan felt helpless, but he could understand. He also had not expected Teng Yizheng to say those things. It made him begin to question whether he had truly never understood Teng Yizheng as a person.
“Recently, I don’t have time. There are some things we both understand. Don’t do things you shouldn’t do. I can’t help you.” Zong Xuan said.
“Zong Xuan…I…”
“You shouldn’t have spoken to Tangtang like that. He is someone I like. As my friend, you should show him respect.” Zong Xuan suddenly felt tired. After knowing each other for more than ten years, he had only now discovered that Teng Yizheng actually had such a side.
“I’ll apologize to Xu Tang.” Teng Yizheng said.
“If there’s nothing else, I’m hanging up. Take care of yourself.”
After saying that, Zong Xuan hung up.
Xu Tang ignored him and continued eating his strawberries.
Looking at Xu Tang, Zong Xuan felt both helpless and annoyed. “Did I just have bad judgment when it comes to people?”
If he had not asked Xu Tang to answer the call, if Xu Tang had not turned on speakerphone because he felt uncomfortable and wanted to make talking easier, perhaps he would never have discovered Teng Yizheng’s true thoughts.
Xu Tang threw the strawberry stem into the small trash bin.
“Serves you right!”