Liu Hua let out a sigh of relief, took off her protective suit, and went to call Sui Yan.
Xu Mo had already been sitting there, drowsy with fatigue, when Xu Yi came in carrying two insulated flasks.
He helped Liu Hua sit down, and handed an insulated flask to Sui Yu and the others.
Although nothing was said, Sui Yu and the others were already grateful to Xu Yi.
They knew that this was just Xu Yi showing concern for them on Liu Hua's behalf.
As soon as Xu Mo saw his father enter, he went to call Sui Yan out from the inner room.
Sui Yan came out yawning, "What's up calling me up at this hour? I'm exhausted."
Xu Mo insisted persistently, tugging at his sister, "You haven't eaten much all day, if you don't eat now you'll starve to death."
Sui Yan half-closed her eyes, "Then I'd rather starve to death than die of exhaustion."
Liu Hua slapped the back of Sui Yan's head, "Stop talking nonsense! Hurry up and eat something."
Sui Yan sat down reluctantly, "Mom, what's the situation?"
Liu Hua's expression was calm, "It should be fine, we're just waiting for Shen Nian to wake up."
Sui Yan sighed inwardly, "That's good, then I'll go home and pack up tomorrow."
Liu Hua raised an eyebrow and leaned towards Sui Yan's ear, "Yan, Qi Linhan asked Auntie An to ask me where you want to go play yesterday."
Sui Yan quickly started eating, mumbling indistinctly, "What does it have to do with him?"
Liu Hua withdrew her meaningful gaze, "It depends on your attitude."
Sui Yan managed to eat a few mouthfuls before wanting to go back to sleep, and Xu Mo couldn't stop her.
The next day when she woke up, it was already past nine o'clock, but Xu Mo came and told her some good news.
"She's awake?" Sui Yan ruffled her hair, dazed for a moment.
Xu Mo sat on the edge of the bed, propping his face in his hand, "Yeah, Dad and Mom have gone to see her."
Sui Yan put on her jacket and stretched out her legs to leave.
Xu Mo hurried to catch up with his sister, "Sis, where are you going?"
Sui Yan didn't slow her pace, "Are you stupid? She was saving me back then, so of course I have to go see her now."
At the mention of this, Xu Mo suddenly remembered too, "Sister, you pushed me away back then too, right? You can't do that next time."
Sui Yan couldn't be bothered to respond to him, focused only on walking forward.
Xu Mo was tall with long legs, catching up in two or three strides, "Sister, did you hear me?"
Sui Yan was a little annoyed, "Nope!"
Xu Mo persisted stubbornly, "Then let me say it again..."
Sui Yan cut him off, "If you say it again, I'll hit you."
Xu Mo looked at his sister warily—after all, this vicious woman had actually hit him before when she was innocent, and would definitely be more formidable now.
He hesitated for a moment, but bravely said, "Sister, next time you can't... sneak attack!"
Xu Mo hadn't finished his sentence before Sui Yan kicked out at him.
She looked at her brother, who had barely dodged, with disgust, "Stop nagging, it's annoying!"
Xu Mo: "..." *whimper*
Sui Yan ignored him, asking a few nurses along the way for directions before briskly walking to the room where Shen Nian was staying.
Inside the room, Shen Nian, pale-faced, was propped up in the hospital bed. She kept glancing surreptitiously towards the door, but hadn't seen the person she wanted to see.
Liu Hua had noticed Shen Nian's gaze early on, but didn't say anything.
Shen Nian clenched her fists nervously, "Auntie, so Yan is leaving in a couple of days? When will she be back?"
Liu Hua said calmly, "I don't know either. Yan just wants to go clear her head, she'll come back home whenever she's ready."
Although this answer was expected, Shen Nian still felt a tinge of disappointment.
*Knock knock*
"Mom, are you in there?" Sui Yan's cold voice sounded from outside the door.
Shen Nian's eyes lit up, barely resisting the urge to get out of bed and open the door herself.
But Qiao Ze held her back, and they all watched as Ye Anning went to open the door.
Ye Anning was a little nervous, and as soon as she opened the door she spoke to Sui Yan, "Yan, you're awake?"
Sui Yan nodded politely, "Yeah." She was as polite yet distant as she would be with any unfamiliar person.
Ye Anning didn't push further.
Liu Hua saw her daughter come in and gently patted Sui Yan's shoulder, "Yan, Mom and Uncle are going to buy you breakfast, wait here for us for a bit."
Sui Yan didn't refuse, "Okay."
They watched as Liu Hua and Xu Yi left, and after the sound of a closing door, only Sui Yu, the others, and Sui Yan remained in the room.
Sui Yan dragged a chair over and sat in front of the bed, looking at Shen Nian impassively, "How are you feeling?"
Shen Nian forced a smile, "Yan, I'm fine."
Sui Yan looked at her seriously for a moment, then suddenly said, "If you're fine, then I'll go home."
Shen Nian froze for a moment, then stuttered, correcting herself, "N-No, I'm not fine!"
Sui Yan sighed, "Nevermind, let's just get this clear now."
As soon as she said this, everyone present fell silent.
Sui Yan pursed her lips, "Why are you all quiet again?"
Ye Anning's voice was a little hoarse, "Yan, then we..."
Sui Yan said seriously, "I've forgiven you all. But, you should know, we can never go back to how we were."
Her first sentence almost made Sui Yu and the others rejoice, but the words that followed were like a bucket of ice water over their heads.
Seeing that they hadn't said anything, Sui Yan thought for a moment and continued, "Don't let this affect your relationships with each other. To be honest, I still hope you all can be happy, otherwise Mom, Grandpa, Grandma, and the others will worry."
"If you're holding a wedding, I'll attend too. Our relationship won't change, the only thing that will change is us."
This matter had dragged on long enough, Sui Yan didn't want to torture herself anymore. She might as well cut to the chase and lay it all out now.
Ye Anning's eyes turned red, she wiped away tears from the corners of her eyes, "Yan, thank you... I'm satisfied with this."
Sui Yan exhaled a long breath, "That's all then, I'll head home first. If you need any medicine, you can have someone from the institute send it over directly."
As she was leaving, Shen Nian asked with a hint of tears in her voice, "So how long will you be away before you come back?"
Sui Yan said without turning her head: "It won't be for long. My mom and Xu Mo are both here."
She walked out of the ward on her own, but the moment she went out, she heard a stifled, outpouring of sobbing from inside the ward.
Sui Yan smiled helplessly. She felt that this was the best outcome, with no one torturing the other.
