Chapter 118: Bearing the Blame

Wang’s father had not expected Zhang Shen to come at this hour. Yet when he looked up, he saw that Lu Ming and Hao Lei, who had visited that afternoon, were with him—and Ye Qiong was beside them as well.

The moment Wang’s father saw them, he hurried over to greet them warmly.

“Old woman, Xiaoying, look who’s here!”

Hearing his voice, Wang’s mother and Wang Ying quickly came out from the kitchen.

“Professor Lu, Professor Hao, what brings you here?”

If they had come to see her in the morning, Wang Ying might have found it somewhat believable. But she had never imagined that Lu Ming and Hao Lei would come here too.

Before the two teachers could say anything, Ye Qiong called out to Wang Ying, “You little brat! We’re roommates, aren’t we? Your father has suffered such a serious mishap, and you didn’t even tell me. Do you still consider me your best friend?”

Ye Qiong’s reproach left Wang Ying feeling rather awkward.

In the eyes of Wang Ying and her family, her father’s illness had originally seemed nothing more than an ordinary bout of rheumatism in the legs. Who could have imagined that it would turn out to be poisoning? None of them had expected it in the slightest.

“Ye Qiong, thank you for your concern…”

Before Wang Ying could finish, Ye Qiong interrupted her.

“What? Do you think a mere thank-you makes up for it? You’re really being stingy with me! Surely you ought to show your appreciation somehow. I came straight here after school, and I haven’t eaten a thing yet!”

What Ye Qiong meant was obvious. Seeing this, Wang Ying hurriedly said to everyone, “Why don’t I treat you all to dumplings tonight?”

“Then I’m in luck again tonight!”

The moment Ye Qiong heard Wang Ying say this, she knew she had come at exactly the right time.

But the minds of Zhang Shen and the other two were elsewhere. Just as Lu Ming was about to politely decline, Zhang Shen spoke first.

“I think coming to see Uncle’s condition is only an excuse. What you really came for was to freeload on dumplings.”

Ye Qiong heard him perfectly clearly. She knew that Zhang Shen had deliberately said it for her benefit.

Although Ye Qiong had indeed come to visit Wang’s father, the moment she entered the dumpling shop, the enticing aroma had filled the air. Her nose had caught that irresistible fragrance at once, and before long, her thoughts had wandered to dumplings.

Ye Qiong gave a disdainful snort and ignored Zhang Shen.

Meanwhile, Zhang Shen said to Wang’s father, “Uncle, the toxins in your body have only just been suppressed. You should be getting plenty of rest instead of continuing to run your stall.”

After offering Wang’s father a few words of advice, Zhang Shen turned around and fixed Wang Ying with a stern expression.

“You’re his daughter, yet you don’t even know how to persuade him? You’re studying medicine too. Is this how you intend to care for patients in the future?”

Zhang Shen was so confident because, on the one hand, although Wang’s father’s condition had been brought under control, no one knew whether any toxins remained in his body. On the other hand, Zhang Shen now possessed the answers to all the examination papers. All he had to do was copy them out in full; as for anything else, it was not something he needed to consider at present.

Wang Ying did not argue with his righteous reproach. After all, everything he had said was true. What Zhang Shen did not know was that she and her mother had repeatedly tried to stop her father from setting up his stall so soon after recovering from a serious illness. But her father had been utterly determined, and she had been left with no choice but to stay and help him.

Seeing Zhang Shen blame his daughter, Wang’s father stepped forward and took all the “blame” upon himself.

“Divine Doctor, don’t blame Xiaoying. I’ve lived to this age, so I know my own body. It’s only a minor ailment, and I know what I’m doing.”

Wang’s father made the poisoning sound so insignificant that Zhang Shen understood he simply did not want his family to worry too much. But no one could guarantee that the illness would not worsen.

Therefore, Zhang Shen believed that finding Long Si as soon as possible was the best course of action.

Just as Zhang Shen had begun to see a way forward, Lu Ming’s phone rang.

“Hello, Dad!”

“Ming’er, why haven’t you come back yet? Did something happen on the way?”

Lu Guofu sounded anxious on the other end of the line.

“Dad, we passed by Wang Ying’s dumpling shop, so we stopped here for a while. We’re coming back now.”

After hanging up, Lu Ming said to Wang’s father, “Uncle, we still have something to attend to, so we’ll be leaving first. We’ll come back to your place for dumplings when we have the chance.”

Lu Ming then took Hao Lei by the hand and led her toward where the car was parked, while Zhang Shen followed silently behind them. A moment earlier, Zhang Shen had been lively and spirited, but now he was as silent as a wilted rooster. Such was the exclusive privilege of being single.

Before long, Lu Ming’s car arrived at Lu Guofu’s home.

By now, Zhang Shen was thoroughly familiar with the Lu family’s surroundings. Still, out of courtesy, he followed Lu Ming and Hao Lei from behind as he had done before.

When they entered the living room, Lu Guofu was already there waiting for the three of them.

As the future daughter-in-law of the Lu family, Hao Lei naturally greeted Lu Guofu with humility and courtesy.

“Hello, Uncle!”

Zhang Shen could hardly believe his eyes. The usually overbearing Hao Lei had suddenly become as docile as a well-behaved kitten.

Lu Guofu, for his part, was extremely pleased with the girlfriend his son had chosen. He immediately handed Hao Lei an exquisite gift box.

“What is this?”

Faced with Lu Guofu’s sudden gift, Hao Lei was at a loss for how to respond.

“Teacher Hao, please don’t misunderstand. Our Ming’er has been spoiled since childhood, and I imagine he must have caused you no end of trouble at school. This is only a small token of our appreciation—a gesture from us as his parents. Please accept it.”

From Lu Guofu’s words, Hao Lei felt as though Lu Ming were not her boyfriend at all, but her student. She had never expected such a scene. Still, she warned herself that she absolutely could not accept the gift.

Just as Hao Lei found herself caught between acceptance and refusal, Lu Ming took the gift box from his father and said to her, “I’ll hold on to this for you first. If you behave, I’ll give it to you later. But if you don’t…”

Before he could finish, Lu Ming lightly hooked his index finger over the tip of Hao Lei’s nose, making her blush shyly.

Hao Lei had never imagined that Lu Ming would behave so “recklessly” in front of his own father.

“Ahem…”

Seeing Lu Ming and Hao Lei displaying their affection so openly, Zhang Shen, who had remained silent behind them, finally could not hold back.