My Wife Always Wants to Run Away - Chapter 22

Jie Xiangyi had seen Zhang Yueqi post this exact message yesterday, right in the same chat window.

She stared blankly for a moment, daring not to ponder whether Tang Jinzhi loved her.

They must have been chatting about something again, she thought.

Curious, she sent Zhang Yueqi a question mark.

At the same moment, a notification popped up from Tang Jinzhi.

Tang Jinzhi: Have you had breakfast, Doctor Xie?

Jie Xiangyi smiled and replied: Just had a little something after finishing rounds.

Tang Jinzhi: You should have some downtime at noon, right?

Jie Xiangyi: What’s up?

Tang Jinzhi: I’m cooking at home. Send me your break time later, and I’ll have Assistant Zhang deliver lunch to you.

Jie Xiangyi’s eyes widened in surprise. Cooking?

Their kitchen had never been used before.

Sensing her confusion, Tang Jinzhi sent another message:

Tang Jinzhi: I got the pots and pans out last night and bought all the ingredients. Assistant Zhang is already at the market. Don’t worry, I can cook—it’ll be perfectly edible! So hurry up and send me your break time.

Seeing Tang Jinzhi’s fully prepared and confident demeanor, Jie Xiangyi’s surprise deepened.

It wasn’t that she was astonished Tang Jinzhi could cook; she was simply amazed that their kitchen might actually serve a purpose one day.

Jie Xiangyi had never imagined she’d eat anything at home other than takeout.

“Doctor Xie, let’s go!”

A colleague ahead noticed Jie Xiangyi lagging behind and called out to her.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Jie Xiangyi quickly replied to Tang Jinzhi with a voice message, “I’ll be back at noon. Tell her not to send it.”

Tang Jinzhi: It’s too much trouble for you to come all the way back. I’ll have her deliver it.

Jie Xiangyi: I’m coming home.

Tang Jinzhi tilted her head, replayed Jie Xiangyi’s voice message, and listened again.

The tone left no room for argument.

Fine.

After confirming Jie Xiangyi’s break time, Tang Jinzhi didn’t waste any time. She headed back to the kitchen to continue her research.

The refrigerator was nearly empty, containing only a few bottles of water and the leftover dessert cake from the previous night.

However, the kitchen was fully equipped with an oven, microwave, and all the essentials.

Everything a home should have was there.

By the time Assistant Zhang returned, it was almost ten o’clock.

Tang Jinzhi took the heavy bags of groceries from her and began unpacking them in the kitchen. She discovered several items not on her shopping list.

Zhang Yueqi, exhausted, leaned against the doorframe. “King oyster mushrooms and Chinese chives—my favorites. Make them for me.”

Tang Jinzhi said nothing, but she flipped through the two large bags of groceries and nodded in satisfaction.

Zhang Yueqi had even bought some things she hadn’t thought of herself.

It seemed she could confidently entrust this task to Zhang Yueqi in the future.

“Good job. Take a break, then come help me prepare the ingredients for later.”

She put some vegetables for tomorrow’s meal into the refrigerator, which Tang Jinzhi quickly filled to capacity.

Zhang Yueqi’s eyes widened as he approached, staring in stunned disbelief.

“Where did all this stuff in the fridge come from?”

One shelf was filled with fruit juice and milk, another with carbonated drinks and fruit wine, and there was even a drawer full of eggs.

Several bars of chocolate were tucked into the side compartments. Zhang Yueqi’s eyes lit up—it was her favorite kind! Almost all the drinks were the ones she had recommended to Tang Jinzhi yesterday!

Awwwww!

Zhang Yueqi mentally howled with delight. She had feared that losing her allowance meant bidding farewell to all her favorite treats.

But who could have imagined! When one door closes, another opens!

Tang Jinzhi smiled at Zhang Yueqi’s excited expression. “The supermarket delivered it while you were out.”

Zhang Yueqi’s eyes sparkled. Her anger vanished instantly, replaced by overwhelming gratitude. She immediately texted Jie Xiangyi: Your wife really loves me!

Jie Xiangyi: ……

Jie Xiangyi: Just behave yourself at home.

Zhang Yueqi: You bet!

Jie Xiangyi put down her phone with a strange expression. She felt increasingly like she and Tang Jinzhi were raising a child.

This is truly unbelievable.

She reopened her phone and scrolled through the shopping list Zhang Yueqi had sent her. He had said he bought all her favorite foods.

Jie Xiangyi examined the list closely. He’s right.

But she strongly suspected these were actually Tang Jinzhi’s favorites. Their tastes seemed remarkably similar.

Lost in thought, Jie Xiangyi felt a sudden urge to go home and see… something. She wasn’t sure what.

“Doctor Xie, are you really okay?” Li Li asked, passing by the dazed Jie Xiangyi and patting her shoulder.

Jie Xiangyi snapped out of her reverie and waved her hand. “I’m fine,” she said, explaining, “I was just looking at my phone.”

Li Li’s expression turned complicated. Looking at your phone doesn’t mean you can’t hear me, she thought. I called your name several times.

“I hope you really are okay.”

Jie Xiangyi forced a smile. “I really am.”

Li Li sighed softly. “Alright. Your junior colleague was looking for you earlier.”

Jie Xiangyi frowned. “Which junior colleague?” There were plenty of junior doctors doing their residency at this hospital.

Li Li clicked her tongue. “Your actual junior colleague, Doctor Xiao Song.”

Jie Xiangyi’s eyes widened in realization. They often communicated, but she had only remembered they shared the same mentor, almost forgetting Song Xiaoci was also her junior.

Song Xiaoci wasn’t the only one deliberately calling her “Senior” at the hospital.

“What does she want with me?” Jie Xiangyi asked.

Song Xiaoci approached just then.

“Nothing much. The professor wants you. He could have texted, but he insisted on sending someone to call you in person.”

“Ugh, he’s so annoying! Such a show-off! Does he think he’s the emperor, summoning Doctor Xie for an audience?”

Song Xiaoci was about to continue when Li Li grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

Li Li: “Can you keep it down? Your mouth is too loud!”

Song Xiaoci bristled. “He’s been scolding me every day, practically making me lose my confidence! What’s wrong with venting a little?”

Li Li deliberately sized her up.

“Insecure? You?”

Jie Xiangyi gave Song Xiaoci a complicated look. “Do you even want to graduate?”

That hit a nerve. Song Xiaoci deflated. “It’s not like I’d dare say this anywhere else.”

Li Li chuckled. “You know walls have ears, right?”

Song Xiaoci pouted, knowing she was in the wrong. She didn’t dare argue further with Li Li and turned to Jie Xiangyi, changing the subject with a bright smile. “Senior, shouldn’t you treat us to a meal for getting married?”

Previously, she had dismissed it as a rumor and hadn’t bothered Jie Xiangyi, who was busy with exams. Now she realized it was true.

Li Li chimed in, “Oh right, Doctor Xie, where’s my wedding candy?”

Jie Xiangyi glanced at the two who had suddenly united against her and let out an exasperated laugh.

“I’ll buy you a bag of candy this afternoon. It’s not a good time for a big celebration right now. I’ll send you invitations to the wedding, or you can come over for a meal sometime.”

Li Li nodded. “That makes sense. Throwing a party now would look like showing off, and some people would get jealous.”

Song Xiaoci looked bewildered. “Who would be jealous?”

“Mind your own business and go write up your patient notes,” Jie Xiangyi said, grabbing her phone and turning to leave. But she paused, turning back to study Song Xiaoci’s face.

Song Xiaoci quickly covered her face. “What’s wrong with my face?”

Jie Xiangyi shook her head. “Nothing.”

She just felt a vague sense of familiarity, as if she’d recently seen someone who looked remarkably like Song Xiaoci.

But it must have been someone she hadn’t paid much attention to.

Otherwise, she would have remembered.