Returning to Infancy with my Nemesis - Chapter 113

[This chapter is happening in the previous life.. where they survived but did not get reborn.]

The next morning Tang Mian lay there for a long time, staring at the white ceiling. The smell of hospital disinfectant filled his nostrils, and his body ached all over.

He remembered being in the nursing home visiting his mother and then getting into Fu Shizhao’s car.

Then… the accident happened.

He recalled Fu Shizhao’s light brown eyes before the accident, the emotions in them as if it was their last moment together.

It seemed like he had been given back one life. No, two lives.

Tang Mian glanced around the hospital room and noticed it was a double room. Fu Shizhao, injured in the same accident, lay on the bed next to him. Fu Shizhao hadn’t woken up yet, with bandages on his head and numerous small wounds on his face. He lay there quietly, seemingly without any major issues.

Tang Mian tried to sit up from the bed.

It hurt. Everywhere cell of his body ached.

But at least he could sit up.

He had been sitting in the passenger seat, so his injuries weren’t as severe as Fu Shizhao’s, which was probably why he woke up first. He doubted Fu Shizhao would be able to get out of bed when he woke up.

Soon, a doctor came by to inquire about his condition.

Tang Mian cooperated fully, explaining everything.

His phone was wrecked in the accident, but thankfully he had some spare change and the torn clothes he had taken off. Tang Mian asked the nurse to help him buy some food downstairs with the money.

Luckily, he had lifted his hand to protect his hearing aid during the accident.

–

When Fu Shizhao woke up, Tang Mian was sitting by the bedside, drinking porridge with a few small wounds on his face, looking a bit miserable.

Sensing his awakening, Tang Mian’s gaze fell on him, but he didn’t speak. Instead, he continued to spoon porridge into his mouth.

Watching Tang Mian eat, Fu Shizhao felt hungry too.

Fu Shizhao hoarsely spoke up, “Is there any porridge left?”

Tang Mian’s gaze fell on the bowl of porridge on the cabinet between them.

Following his gaze, Fu Shizhao looked over and indeed saw a bowl of porridge on the cabinet.

Fu Shizhao attempted to sit up but failed, groaning in pain.

“I suggest getting a caregiver,” Tang Mian casually suggested.

Fu Shizhao pursed his lips, then lay back down without saying whether he wanted one or not.

Tang Mian didn’t bother to press the issue.

It was indeed necessary to take it easy right after waking up.

In no time, Tang Mian finished his porridge, then got out of bed with the empty bowl and threw it in the trash.

Fu Shizhao, who had been quiet until now, suddenly spoke up, “I’m hungry.”

Tang Mian gave him a sideways glance. “Eat.”

Fu Shizhao remained in his slouched position. “Can’t get up, body hurts.”

Tang Mian replied, “Get a caregiver, then.”

Fu Shizhao said, “Don’t want to, social anxiety.”

The implication was clear—he wanted Tang Mian to wait on him for food.

Tang Mian replied, “…”

The famous CEO Fu actually had moments of social anxiety. Who would have thought?

Before Fu Shizhao woke up, the doctor came to inquire about his condition. Tang Mian casually asked about Fu Shizhao’s condition. The doctor mentioned that he had sustained a severe head injury and expressed concern about potential consequences upon waking up.

However, apart from that, his other injuries were not too serious, mainly multiple fractures, especially in one leg. With some rest, there shouldn’t be any major issues.

From the looks of it, his mind should be okay, and he still knows how to take advantage of the opportunity to make him serve himself.

After all, it was when he was driving him home that the accident happened. If Fu Shizhao hadn’t driven him home, this accident wouldn’t have occurred.

Feeling somewhat guilty, Tang Mian decided to quote a high price: “Feeding fee, 1000 yuan each time; porridge, 8 yuan. Payment can be made later.”

Money is what Fu Shizhao didn’t lack the most.

“Capitalist,” Fu Shizhao playfully scolded. “Deal.”

Tang Mian reluctantly approached his bed, raised the part of the bed next to him, opened the sealed container of lean pork congee, and scooped up a spoonful, offering it to his lips.

Fu Shizhao didn’t say anything unnecessary this time, cooperatively eating the congee Tang Mian fed him, his gaze fixed on Tang Mian the whole time.

“What are you looking at?” Tang Mian felt uncomfortable under his stare.

“I paid you a 1000 yuan, don’t I deserve a look?” Fu Shizhao raised an eyebrow.

Tang Mian thought, “…” He really wanted to dump the congee on this guy’s face.

Fortunately, apart from staring at him, Fu Shizhao didn’t behave abnormally. Tang Mian successfully fed him the congee.

Come to think of it… when he was young, he was a picky eater and didn’t like to eat. Fu Shizhao often coaxed him to eat. This was the first time he fed Fu Shizhao.

Why did he keep thinking about the past?

Tang Mian threw the empty bowl into the trash can, trying to shake off his wandering thoughts.

He couldn’t afford to associate with Fu Shizhao.

Since high school, when Fu Shizhao left the Tang family and was claimed by the Fu family, they ceased to be friends.

Tang Mian closed his eyes and returned to his own bed, lying down.

Fu Shizhao, just awake, didn’t feel sleepy. He leaned against the bed, staring blankly at Tang Mian.

He knew Tang Mian’s fixed schedule of visiting his mother at the sanatorium every week, so he intentionally bumped into him a few times every month, though not every time, fearing his intentions would become too obvious.

Although most of their encounters were confrontational, as long as he could exchange a few words with Tang Mian, he felt satisfied.

He didn’t expect Tang Mian to forgive him. After all, he had indeed done too many wrong things, even if they were beyond his control. But he still felt deeply indebted.

Indebted to the Tang family, indebted to Tang Mian.

The recent car accident had filled him with deep remorse.

If one of them hadn’t survived this accident, he couldn’t imagine the consequences.

If he survived, he would live the rest of his life in endless regret and self-hatred. But he couldn’t just end it all; he still had to take care of Tang Mian’s mother — Aunt Shen, who had always been very kind to him since he was young.

If Tang Mian survived, he would carry all the secrets and heartfelt words to the grave. He couldn’t bear it. Even if he lived well, he couldn’t confess to Tang Mian. But he was more afraid that if he died, Tang Mian would truly hate him for the rest of his life.

Fortunately, they both survived.

Fu Shizhao had never seriously considered telling Tang Mian everything. He didn’t want to continue their confrontational relationship as before.

But he was afraid that even if he told Tang Mian everything out of necessity, they still wouldn’t be able to go back to the past.

Such a dilemma.

After wavering for so many years, he still didn’t dare to tell him the truth.

It had been a long time since he had seen Tang Mian’s sleeping face like this, lying not far from him, sleeping soundly, with many small wounds on his face, looking disheveled but still cute.

The last time he saw him sleeping so closely was probably when he hadn’t been taken back by the Fu family yet.

At that time, he and Tang Mian lived in the same room, and he could see him sleeping every day.

Fu Shizhao had been watching him wake up from his nap like this all along.

During this time, some people from the Fu family had come to visit him.

It was Fu Chuming, the son of his younger uncle. His health wasn’t great either, and he didn’t stay in the hospital for long before leaving.

Fu Shizhao asked him to help repair his and Tang Mian’s phones and also to help fend off some people who insisted on disturbing him.

He didn’t want to be disturbed by anyone during this rare opportunity to be alone with Tang Mian.

After getting the phones, Fu Shizhao sent messages to his subordinates, arranging some work for them, including managing the public opinion about the accident and organizing the company’s projects during his recovery period.

After doing all this, Fu Shizhao quietly waited for Tang Mian to wake up.

Tang Mian’s sleep was not peaceful, but he couldn’t wake up. He faintly heard someone coming to the ward, not knowing who it was, probably here to visit Fu Shizhao… it should be his family.

Besides his mother, he had no family left, and the hospital wouldn’t inform his mother about such matters.

So… there would be no family coming to visit him.

His phone was also damaged in the accident, and he couldn’t contact his friends either.

He felt so uncomfortable. Even though so many years had passed, he was still a coward when facing life and death.

If only he could go back to being the pampered child he was, everything would be fine, and Fu Shizhao would be by his side, calling him gege, instead of constantly being at odds with each other.

He really wanted to go back to the past.

When Tang Mian opened his eyes, the sun was already setting, painting the clouds in the sky orange.

After sleeping for so long, he felt a bit disoriented.

Tang Mian subconsciously glanced at the bed next to him.

Fu Shizhao was still there, leaning on the bed. When he heard Tang Mian wake up, his gaze shifted towards him.

Their eyes briefly met, and Tang Mian quickly looked away.

Somehow, he felt relieved.

He thought Fu Shizhao would change rooms.

If he changed rooms… he would have to pay him the 1000 yuan.

Tang Mian woke up again and slowly got out of bed after shaking off his drowsiness. He walked to the bathroom to wash his face, intentionally avoiding looking at Fu Shizhao.

When he returned, Tang Mian noticed a new phone on the bedside table.

Puzzled, Tang Mian picked up the phone. It was indeed a new phone, but it had his SIM card inserted, and some data from his old phone had been backed up as well.

“The old phone was beyond repair, but I managed to transfer everything from it,” Fu Shizhao’s voice suddenly sounded.

Tang Mian’s gaze shifted to Fu Shizhao, realizing that he had arranged this dryly said, “Thanks.”

“No need to thank me,” Fu Shizhao’s eyes curved slightly. “The new phone costs 10,000, deducting the lunch money, it’s 8,992.”

Tang Mian: “…”

Tang Mian: “I’ll pay you via QR code later.”

Tang Mian spent some time setting up the new phone and after reassuring his friends of his safety, he turned to Fu Shizhao and said, “Open your payment QR code.”

Fu Shizhao promptly opened his payment QR code.

After scanning it, Tang Mian lowered his head and entered the amount Fu Shizhao mentioned earlier.

Confirmed the transfer.

But the system suddenly displayed that Fu Shizhao’s account was at risk and couldn’t complete the transfer, asking him to add him as a friend before proceeding.

Tang Mian: “…”

Fu Shizhao: “What’s wrong?”

Tang Mian: “The system says you’re a scammer and advises me not to transfer money to you.”

Fu Shizhao: “Are you sure it’s the system saying that, not you?”

Tang Mian gave him a somewhat speechless look and said with a bad attitude, “Open your QR code card, add me as a friend to transfer money.”

This time, Fu Shizhao didn’t joke around. He obediently opened his QR code card, accepted the friend request sent by Tang Mian.

Finally, Tang Mian added Fu Shizhao as a friend.

He wondered if he’ll be removed later…

But he had a way to prevent being deleted before it happened.

After completing the transfer, Tang Mian didn’t remove Fu Shizhao from his friends list, and they both tacitly didn’t mention the incident.

That evening, Fu Shizhao spent another 1000 yuan to have Tang Mian feed him dinner.

In just a few days, Tang Mian managed to “earn” back the money spent on the phone.

Tang Mian felt that making money was so simple for the first time.

A few days later, Fu Shizhao finally recovered enough to get out of bed and walk on his own, albeit needing a pair of crutches.

Looking at him like this, Tang Mian inexplicably remembered their high school days.

After Fu Shizhao and his friend had a fight, he also encountered him in the hospital leaning on a pair of crutches.

At that time, Fu Shizhao maliciously took off his hearing aid from his right ear and whispered something in his ear.

He could only catch bits and pieces of the words, unable to form a complete sentence.

But he knew it couldn’t have been anything good.

Now, seeing the adult Fu Shizhao walking around the ward with crutches, Tang Mian’s mood was somewhat complicated for a moment.

Coincidentally, the hospital they were staying in now was the same hospital where Fu Shizhao had been admitted after the fight back then.

He really wanted to ask Fu Shizhao what he had said back then…

Should he ask? He was afraid they would argue again later.

Forget it.

But he was curious.

In the end, Tang Mian didn’t ask, simply because someone else came to visit Fu Shizhao, a familiar face.

It was Mu Zichen, the Movie Emperor.

He covered himself tightly with sunglasses as if afraid of being recognized.

Their relationship had been solid since high school.

“I heard you had a close call in the car accident, so I slipped out of the set just to see you for the last time,” Mu Zichen said unabashedly in front of Tang Mian.

Fu Shizhao gave him a disdainful look and retorted without hesitation, “Seen enough? Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”

Mu Zichen clicked his tongue lightly, ignoring his remark, and instead lamented while staring at his injured leg, “Your leg seems to have had a rough journey. The doctor said it was worse this time because it had been injured before.”

There was an underlying meaning in his words, understood by everyone present.

Tang Mian remained silent, biting his lip and pretending to focus on his phone screen, but he was actually eavesdropping, paying attention to the conversation between the two.

Fu Shizhao casually replied, “Don’t worry, it’ll heal in no time. I’ll be running around like before.”

Mu Zichen quipped, “Alright, remember to sign up for the environmental marathon this winter. I expect you to come in first place, Mr. Fu.”

Fu Shizhao couldn’t be bothered to respond.

It was autumn now, winter was approaching, followed by the toughest time of the year, the Chinese New Year.

Fortunately, it was autumn now, with more layers of clothing providing some protection during the accident. If it had happened in summer, there would have been more injuries.

After Mu Zichen had set the stage for a while, he finally turned his gaze to Tang Mian and asked, “What would you guys like to eat tonight? I’ll arrange something good for you.”

He used “you guys” instead of just “you,” implying that it was for both of them.

Tang Mian and Mu Zichen hadn’t really exchanged many words before and weren’t close. In high school, Tang Mian had developed a somewhat negative impression of him because he had replaced him as Fu Shizhao’s best friend.

Fu Shizhao’s gaze also fell on Tang Mian, who was playing with his phone with his head down.

Feeling the weight of their combined stares, Tang Mian had to tear his gaze away from his phone screen.

“I don’t mind anything,” Tang Mian said briefly, lowering his head again to continue playing a mobile game. He didn’t want to get involved in their conversation, considering they were good friends, while he and Fu Shizhao were archenemies.

The mobile game was one he had downloaded to pass the time in the hospital, and Fu Shizhao had followed suit, downloading the same game. Every day, they competed against each other in the game.

They had become friends on social media, and coincidentally, this game was linked to their social media accounts. They could see each other’s scores after each level, and the game ranked them accordingly. They competed against each other in the game every day.

Seeing Tang Mian’s reaction, Fu Shizhao spoke up, “Let’s have some Western food, light, and two cups of strawberry milk tea, no mango, please. I’m allergic to mangoes.”

Tang Mian pursed his lips tighter.

He enjoyed Western food, and his favorite was strawberries.

Although it wasn’t winter yet, the weather had cooled down, and strawberries were available at the market. Recently, milk tea shops had also started offering new strawberry beverages.

Since Fu Shizhao took over the Fu family business, they hadn’t been as much at odds as before.

Of course, they didn’t meet often either.

But Tang Mian could feel a noticeable change in his attitude towards him compared to before.

It wasn’t as apparent in the past.

At most, when they bumped into each other at the sanatorium, he deliberately acted friendly, joking around with their mother to make her happy. He reluctantly cooperated, after all, it was for his mother’s sake. He wanted her to be happier and not stuck in the past.

But today, Fu Shizhao’s mention of “Western food” and “strawberry” made him unable to help but think more.

What did Fu Shizhao want?

First, he pushed him away harshly, then started to be ambiguous, but couldn’t bring himself to open up completely.

Really annoying, Fu Dog.

Tang Mian angrily tapped the screen a few times, finally killing the boss he had treated as Fu Shizhao. It somewhat relieved his anger.

Mu Zichen wasted no time arranging their dinner and didn’t stay to eat. Fully equipped, he hurried back to the set.

Now, there were only the two of them left in the ward.

Remembering that Fu Shizhao had difficulty moving around, Tang Mian took the initiative to move a table to the center of the room and laid out the dinner Mu Zichen had arranged. After all, Fu Shizhao’s leg was inconvenient, so it wasn’t easy for him to do these things.

By the time Tang Mian finished, Fu Shizhao had just finished the game. He casually placed his phone, which was brightly lit, on the table. Tang Mian clearly saw that he had surpassed the ranking he had achieved in the afternoon.

Tang Mian: “…”

He should have let Fu Shizhao do it himself, being self-sufficient is better.

Fu Shizhao, in a good mood, enjoyed the dinner with Tang Mian.

After drinking the strawberry-flavored milk tea, Tang Mian’s mood finally improved a bit.

When he was young, he loved strawberries. Every strawberry season, his mother would buy a lot of them, and he would end up with strawberry juice all around his mouth after eating them. Fu Shizhao, on the other hand, was more restrained, eating politely and waiting for him to finish before eating himself. At these times, he would directly feed a strawberry to Fu Shizhao’s mouth.

Sipping on the milk tea and looking at the moon outside, the cold breeze made Tang Mian feel chilly, so he got out of bed and closed the window.

Autumn chill was like winter.

Chinese New Year was approaching again.

Although it was supposed to be a time for reunion, he could never reunite again.

He hated Chinese New Year.

Every Chinese New Year was like going through a trial for him.

“If you’re cold, you can turn on the air conditioning,” Fu Shizhao suddenly spoke up.

Tang Mian glanced at him and replied, “It’s not that cold. Just closing the window will do.”

Fu Shizhao nodded and didn’t say anything more.

Tang Mian curled back into his blankets, lowered his head, and opened his phone to find a message from a friend.

[Purple Cabbage]: I’ve landed at the airport.

[Purple Cabbage]: I’ll take a taxi to your place right away.

Tang Mian: “??!!”

This person was his friend from high school, Gan Lan.

Both of them were art students, and they trained together. Back then, his family situation wasn’t so bad, and he still had a naive dream of becoming an artist. They would motivate each other every day.

Unfortunately, after graduating from high school, his family had a major crisis, forcing him to put his dream on hold. But his friend kept moving forward and had become a well-known designer in the industry.

They had just met at a class reunion before the New Year.

Unfortunately, he had sneakily slipped away during the reunion.

But Gan Lan found him.

Gan Lan accompanied him to drink all night, and he poured out all the things he hadn’t dared to say for years to this old friend.

It felt like he was talking to the vibrant him from the past.

If his family hadn’t encountered trouble, would he have become the person he wanted to be, just like Gan Lan?

He would never know the answer to that question.

The next day, when he arrived at the hotel restaurant on the first floor, he saw Fu Shizhao.

Oh, Fu Shizhao was having breakfast with someone, chatting and laughing, and even putting a fried dumpling into Fu Shizhao’s bowl.

Tsk.

Thinking of this, Tang Mian bit his lip, cut off his wandering thoughts, and quickly replied to his friend’s message.

[Tang Mian]: Why did you suddenly return to the country?

[Purple Cabbage]: Didn’t I hear that you had a car accident? It scared me. I thought I wouldn’t see you again.

[Purple Cabbage]: It’s okay, I happen to have some things to do in the country recently, so it’s no trouble.

Tang Mian knew that he was saying this to make him feel better, so he didn’t continue to play along and just told him to take care on the way.

Before long, Gan Lan arrived at the hospital ward.

Without waiting for him to speak, Tang Mian said, “I want to go out for a walk.”

Gan Lan hesitated for a moment, then turned and left the ward. “I’ll ask the doctor if you can go out.”

Tang Mian lowered his head slightly, silent.

“It’s chilly at night. Do you really want to go out?” Fu Shizhao unusually spoke up.

Tang Mian glanced at him. “I’ll just wear more clothes.”

“Okay.” Fu Shizhao didn’t say anything more.

He had to stay alone in the room.

He really wanted to say “come back soon” to Tang Mian, but those four words strung together felt too intimate. These days in the hospital, he had already done many things he dared not do before. If he continued like this, he really couldn’t hold back.

During the time he and Tang Mian spent in the hospital, he became increasingly eager to speak openly with him. But he was also very afraid, after all, once it was said, many things couldn’t be undone.

He had no clue how to handle things with Tang Mian.

Mu Zichen knew his thoughts about Tang Mian, but he didn’t want to intervene or judge their relationship.

The current situation… really put him in a dilemma.

After a while, Gan Lan came back. The doctor said he could go out, but he had to be careful because the temperature was low at night.

Gan Lan was about to zip up his own coat when he heard Fu Shizhao on the bed next to him suddenly speak up, “Wear my coat when you go out, it’s warm.”

Their gaze instantly fell on the coat beside Fu Shizhao’s bed.

It was a loose black fleece coat, looking very warm.

Fu Shizhao was slightly taller and bigger than Tang Mian, so his coat would fit him perfectly.

Tang Mian didn’t refuse, quickly changed clothes and shoes, and followed Gan Lan out of the hospital.

Since the accident and hospitalization, he hadn’t left the hospital. He had been staying in the hospital room filled with the smell of disinfectant every day, so he really needed to get some fresh air.

The two of them wandered aimlessly along the streets, talking a lot.

Gan Lan told Tang Mian not to push himself too hard, not to be so tired. The bad guys had already been brought to justice, and now, what Aunt Shen wanted to see most was him being happy and carefree.

Before this accident, Tang Mian had been hospitalized several times due to overwork, and Gan Lan mentioned it again in passing this time.

Tang Mian agreed repeatedly, but… he wasn’t sure if he could do it next time.

Mainly because this seemed to be the extent of his life now.

Now, he didn’t know what else to do if he didn’t continue working.

He had locked away his art tools and materials from before; he didn’t dare to bring them out again. After all these years, his skills had become rusty, and he didn’t have time to pursue the things he used to want to do.

He could only continue his previous life, keeping himself busy so he wouldn’t dwell on unnecessary thoughts and drain himself mentally.

Gan Lan knew it wasn’t good to say too much, so he stopped at the right moment. After all, no one wished for such things to happen at home, and no one could truly understand Tang Mian’s perspective to decide his life for him.

But he hoped that Tang Mian could move on as soon as everything was over.

He knew it was very difficult, but he still hoped for the best for Tang Mian.

Suddenly passing by a roasted sweet potato stand, smelling the fragrance in the air, Tang Mian stopped in his tracks and bought three large sweet potatoes.

One for himself, one for Gan Lan, and one… naturally, he prepared to give to Fu Shizhao.

After all, he had worn the man’s coat, so it was only fair to give him something in return. A roasted sweet potato didn’t cost much.

He remembered that when Fu Shizhao was still at the Tang family’s home, he used to buy roasted sweet potatoes every winter. It was a delicious and cheap food, and he would hold one in his hand to keep warm while studying.

He always played tricks. After Fu Shizhao warmed his hand, he would wrap his cold hand around the warm one. Fu Shizhao never resisted, but instead put his hand in his pocket to warm it, keeping him company while studying.

Perhaps spending so much time with Fu Shizhao these days had brought back memories of the past.

Tang Mian collected himself and put the roasted sweet potato for Fu Shizhao into his coat pocket. Then he picked up a spoon and started eating the sweet potato he bought for himself.

It was very sweet.

Indeed, sweets could improve one’s mood.

After drinking too much bitter coffee over the years, his taste buds had become numb.

Today happened to be a weekend, and many teenagers in school uniforms were laughing and running along the roadside. Tang Mian couldn’t help but think back to many years ago, after school.

As he walked, it was as if he had become one of them. Someone behind him was calling his name—

It felt so close.

But when he turned around, amidst the bustling crowd, no one’s gaze fell on him, and no one’s face was familiar.

“What’s wrong?” Gan Lan also glanced back with him but didn’t see anything.

“It’s nothing, just feeling a bit tired. Let’s head back,” Tang Mian shook his head.

“Okay.”

On the way back, Gan Lan suddenly remembered something and asked, “Do you still remember Wei Haifan?”

Hearing this name suddenly, Tang Mian was stunned for a few seconds before nodding quickly. “I remember. What about him?”

Wei Haifan was the name of the friend who fought with Fu Shizhao back in high school.

After the fight, Wei Haifan transferred to another school and never contacted him again.

Surely, it was the Fu family that “forced” him away.

He didn’t know what happened back then; Wei Haifan didn’t tell him, and naturally, he couldn’t ask Fu Shizhao about it.

“He got into trouble with the law, and the family is temporarily suppressing the media. I heard about it from our high school classmates,” Gan Lan said.

“Huh?” Tang Mian couldn’t help but be surprised. “What did he do?”

Gan Lan continued, “I heard he was involved in prostitution, with both men and women, and was quite promiscuous. It’s quite chaotic. It’s also been revealed that he got a girl from our school pregnant back then, and it took her many years to recover. Recently, she came forward while he’s in trouble with the law, revealing what happened back then.”

Gan Lan added, “Do you think the fight between Fu Shizhao and Wei Haifan in high school was related to this?”

He suddenly brought up this matter because it was someone they used to know, and gossiping a bit was understandable. Also, he thought about the fight between Fu Shizhao and Wei Haifan in high school when he saw Fu Shizhao in the hospital earlier.

Although he wasn’t very familiar with Fu Shizhao and never talked to him in high school, he was Tang Mian’s good friend after all. He also knew quite a bit about Tang Mian’s relationship with him, especially after the New Year’s Eve party, where Tang Mian drank too much and said a lot to him.

He learned about some of the things that happened between Tang Mian and Fu Shizhao and knew that Tang Mian actually cared about Fu Shizhao.

He refrained from making judgments about Fu Shizhao’s character, but Wei Haifan’s situation indeed struck him as strange.

And the simple interaction between the two in the hospital room today also made him feel very strange.

In everyone else’s eyes, they were supposed to be each other’s nemesis, incompatible entities. But today’s interaction… was hard to describe. Anyway, it had nothing to do with being arch-rivals.

Who has ever heard of arch-rivals peacefully coexisting in the same hospital room for so many days after one of them had an accident? And not only that, but also lending each other their coats and bringing snacks back for each other.

Tang Mian couldn’t help but stop in his tracks, his heart pounding uncontrollably.

It was completely dark outside, and the streetlights cast shadows of the trees onto him, making his figure look even thinner under the oversized coat.

He found it strange too.

Back then, everyone thought it was Wei Haifan who had provoked Fu Shizhao. After all, Wei Haifan often hung out with people outside of school, and his personality was quite aggressive. It wouldn’t be surprising if he clashed with Fu Shizhao.

But now… Gan Lan told him things he didn’t know.

A thought flashed through Tang Mian’s mind.

He had always felt that Fu Shizhao’s fight with Wei Haifan was related to him. After all, he had a good relationship with Wei Haifan back then. They often went to the cafeteria together after school, and he had bumped into Fu Shizhao a few times.

Wei Haifan also played basketball, and since they were in the same grade, Fu Shizhao must have recognized Wei Haifan.

How could there have been such a serious conflict between the two?

At first, Tang Mian angrily thought it was because of his involvement that Fu Shizhao had been so ruthless.

But now, learning about Wei Haifan’s chaotic and shameless private life… he couldn’t help but think further.

Tang Mian quickened his pace. “I… I’ll go back and ask.”

—

After safely seeing Tang Mian back to the hospital, Gan Lan left first and checked into a nearby hotel. He planned to buy some snacks and fruits to visit Tang Mian again the next day.

Tang Mian didn’t let Gan Lan accompany him upstairs. He bid farewell to Gan Lan and took the elevator alone, clutching the still warm roasted sweet potato in his coat pocket, his mood uncertain as he stared at the elevator’s ascending floor numbers.

Finally, with a “ding,” the elevator doors opened.

Tang Mian slowly stepped out.

When Tang Mian returned to the ward, Fu Shizhao was coming out of the bathroom, leaning on his crutches. Seeing Tang Mian return, his gaze fell on him, and he smiled, asking, “Did you bring back something delicious for me?”

Tang Mian: “…”

His sense of smell was really sharp.

Tang Mian: “If you guess it right, I’ll give it to you. And if you guess it wrong, and you’ll get nothing.”

“Roasted sweet potato,” Fu Shizhao reached out directly to him.

The smell of roasted sweet potatoes was indeed easy to identify.

Tang Mian took out the packaged roasted sweet potato from his coat pocket and handed it to him. Then he took off his coat and hung it on the edge of his bed before heading straight to the bathroom.

He hadn’t bathed these days because of his injuries. Today, after going out, he planned to wipe his body with a wet towel.

When he came out after wiping, Fu Shizhao had already finished eating the roasted sweet potato and lay back on the bed.

Thinking of what he had heard from Gan Lan tonight, Tang Mian pursed his lips and slowly moved towards his own bed. He opened his phone and stared at the screen for a while. Finally, gathering his courage, he spoke up, “Tonight, Gan Lan mentioned some things about our high school classmates.”

“Hmm?” Fu Shizhao looked in his direction.

Tang Mian’s gaze remained on the phone screen as he continued, “He said that Wei Haifan recently got into trouble with the police because of soliciting prostitution, having relationships with both men and women, and leading a chaotic personal life. He also got a girl from our high school pregnant back then.”

Fu Shizhao’s hand clenched the bedsheet involuntarily.

After so many years, this was the first time Tang Mian had mentioned anything about their past to him.

It felt like a review session where he was correcting his mistakes.

He felt like wanting to open up and speak frankly with him.

This was something he had always wanted to do with Tang Mian.

But he dared not, after all, he had indeed kept Tang Mian completely in the dark, unwilling to tell him anything, lying to him for so long.

That was the truth, and he couldn’t justify it.

Fu Shizhao pursed his lips and replied along with Tang Mian’s answer, “I remember him, we had a fight in high school.”

Tang Mian’s hand trembled, and he accidentally clicked the wrong skill, causing the character on the screen to be killed by the boss.

Tang Mian silently clicked “restart,” pretending to be calm as he asked, “Why did you fight with him?”

“Why do you think I fought with him?” Fu Shizhao retorted.

As the game restarted, Tang Mian controlled the character to fiercely attack the boss with skills, while coldly replying, “Say it or don’t.”

He had already taken the initiative to give Fu Shizhao an opportunity to explain. Whether he took it or not was up to him, but if he didn’t take it this time, there wouldn’t be another chance in the future.

Fu Shizhao took a deep breath.

———–

[6k words and this chapter is not even completed. ]