Chapter 502: Self-Inflicted Affections

Little Ningning seemed to be asleep, yet she was moving her lips restlessly with unease, as if whispering something.

"Don’t be afraid, Ningning, don’t be afraid, mommy is here..."

Qin Juan kept comforting her.

At this moment, the light in the opposite room turned on, and Wang Tianxue, draped in clothing, came over and asked in a low voice, "How is it now? Any better?"

Qin Juan shook her head, and tucked Ningning in again.

Wang Tianxue stepped forward and touched Ningning’s forehead, frowning, "It shouldn’t be like this. She’s been on fever medicine for so long, but the fever hasn’t subsided at all."

Ningning looked listless since this afternoon.

Qin Juan didn’t take it too seriously, as it’s common for children to be sometimes moody. It was only when she was about to take Ningning home after finishing work at the Bun Shop that she realized Little Ningning had a low fever.

When they got home, she gave her fever medicine, hoping a good sleep would do the job.

Unexpectedly, several hours later, not only had the fever not subsided, it had become worse.

Now it was raining outside, and Qin Juan hadn’t slept at all, her mood growing heavier with the rain.

At this moment, Little Ningning murmured softly, "Mommy, I’m cold..."

Qin Juan went to grab more blankets.

Wang Tianxue also looked very concerned, "Sister Juan, this won’t do. We better take Ningning to the hospital. If her fever keeps up like this, it might be dangerous for the child."

While saying this, she prepared to leave, "Wait for me, I’ll drop Xiao Long off next door and then go to the hospital with you."

Qin Juan didn’t want to bother Wang Tianxue, but seeing Ningning’s condition, she felt extremely anxious.

Wang Tianxue had already dressed again, put on a raincoat, wrapped the sleeping Xiao Long, and was about to leave.

Qin Juan quickly stopped her, "You can’t do this, don’t get Xiao Long sick too," it’s still raining outside.

"It’s okay," Wang Tianxue didn’t listen and ran out the door.

Qin Juan wanted to say more, but Wang Tianxue had disappeared.

She couldn’t delay any longer, quickly put on an overcoat for herself, and dressed Ningning in trousers and a jacket.

Just as she finished, Wang Tianxue returned, accompanied by Old Mrs. Jia and Jia Liang.

As soon as Old Mrs. Jia entered, she began complaining, "What kind of mothers are you both? When something happens, why not ask for help? You also took the child to my place; young children are delicate, what if she catches a cold because of this? As an old lady, I can handle less sleep, even staying up all night is fine for me."

Then she turned to Qin Juan, "And you, how could you bear it when your child is sick? How is she now? Look at her little face, it’s all feverish. Shouldn’t you rush to the hospital? Do you want to make her condition worse?"

Without waiting for Qin Juan to reply, she turned to Jia Liang behind her, "What are you waiting for? Quickly carry the child, be careful not to get your rainwater on her, yes, wrap her in your raincoat and don’t delay, let the doctor examine her properly at the hospital, get whatever medicine or injections she needs. Fever in children should not be taken lightly, prolonged fever might damage the brain..."

Qin Juan had already seen Jia Liang behind Old Mrs. Jia, and even though she wanted to say that she could take the child to the hospital herself, before she could speak, Jia Liang had already wrapped Ningning in his own raincoat.

Old Mrs. Jia urged her, "You, as a mother, must keep up. Once Ningning wakes up, she’ll certainly look for you. Don’t worry about home, Tianxue and I will take care of it. Focus solely on the child now. Be careful, the road is slippery, if necessary, hold onto Jia Liang’s arm – he’s a big man, a fall won’t hurt him much. If he really does fall, he can serve as a cushion..."

Qin Juan, "..."

She was well aware of Jia Liang’s feelings, and precisely for that reason, she didn’t want to trouble him with personal matters.

But she wasn’t in control of the situation, and was forcibly pushed out of the door by Old Mrs. Jia.

Outside, the rain was getting heavier, the darkness overwhelming, occasionally lit up by a flash of thunder.

Qin Juan knew it wasn’t the time to be overly sensitive, so she stopped talking and hurriedly followed Jia Liang out the door.

The hospital was eerily quiet now, the lights dim and yellow through the sheets of rain.

Jia Liang entered the hospital and went straight to find the doctor.

It was raining today, and late at night, there weren’t many patients. The on-duty doctor was lying in the duty room sleeping, and was abruptly woken up by Jia Liang.

An initially impatient expression softened when faced with the tall and strong, bald Jia Liang, who also possessed a fierce-looking face. The doctor forcibly calmed himself.

"What’s the situation?"

Qin Juan hurriedly stepped forward and explained Ningning’s condition to the doctor.

Despite the high fever, it seemed trivial in the eyes of these doctors. The doctor took Ningning’s temperature again. Given that the fever hadn’t subsided after medication, he decided to administer an IV drip.

By then, Jia Liang had already handed Ningning over to Qin Juan, the doctor prescribed the medication, and Jia Liang went to pay and get the medicine.

After obtaining the medicine, the doctor set up the IV drip for Little Ningning, instructing the family to watch the child and to call him if needed.

After the doctor left, the ward quieted down.

Ningning was still half-asleep.

Outside the window, the rain had lightened, and without thunder and lightning, only the pitter-patter of raindrops could be heard.

Jia Liang moved a chair and naturally sat beside Ningning’s bed.

Qin Juan, guarding beside Ningning’s bed, tensed up. Seeing him fully focused on the child, her heart gradually relaxed.

Due to work, the two often interacted alone, usually discussing work matters.

But now, Qin Juan felt uncomfortable everywhere.

"Thank you so much for today. It’s late, and you still had to come out with us. It should be fine here now; I think you should head back, you could still get some sleep before dawn."

Jia Liang glanced at his watch, "I’m not going back. Wang Tianxue had already found me and I had some sleep. You haven’t slept all night, right? Lie down for a while, I’ll watch the child; I’ll call you if needed."

"I’m not tired, I..."

"Juanzi," Qin Juan was going to refuse, but Jia Liang interrupted her, "I know you don’t look up to me, but I genuinely want to take care of you two. Just think of me as being presumptuous; I’m happy to help out. Please stop refusing, it really makes me feel terrible, so terrible that I feel like I don’t even have the right to try to please the person I like..."

"I haven’t, you are great, it’s me..."

Qin Juan quickly denied, but was interrupted again by Jia Liang, "Since that’s not the case, then just lie down and sleep for a while, and stop trying to chase me away."

He finished speaking and did not look at Qin Juan anymore, focusing intently on the IV drip.

Qing Juan moved her lips but eventually said nothing.

Not wanting to endure the awkwardness of sitting there just staring at each other, she lay down beside her daughter’s hospital bed.