On Standby - Chapter 20

“What are you doing?”

“Help! Someone, help!”

“Put down the stool!”

“Don’t run!”

In the parking lot, the nurse who had been there earlier screamed in alarm. Doctors from nearby departments, witnessing the sudden commotion, rushed over, shouting to stop the man from further violence. Hearing the commotion, Dong Guo’s father froze for a few seconds, then dropped the stool and fled.

“Tang, Tang…” Lin Ye’s face drained of color, momentarily stunned. Realizing what had happened, he quickly turned around and instinctively reached out to lift Tang Feihuan’s shirt to check her back for injuries.

Tang Feihuan gently pushed Lin Ye’s hand away, turned over, and sat up straight. She looked up at his visibly anxious expression, feeling a warmth in her heart. Trying to sound casual, she said, “It’s… it’s nothing.” The man had struck her left shoulder blade. After moving her arm, Tang Feihuan confirmed that while it hurt, no bones or tendons were damaged. She didn’t want him to feel guilty and care for her because of her injury, so she pressed her lips together and added, “Director Lin, any other colleague would have rushed to help. And vice versa—if any other colleague were in danger, I would have been the first to intervene.”

Lin Ye understood Tang Feihuan’s meaning. Her face darkened as she sighed, her voice muffled, “Colleagues can still help each other check for injuries.”

Is that even allowed?

“Oh.” Tang Feihuan stopped resisting and allowed Lin Ye to crouch behind her and lift her shirt.

“Actually, my knee hurts a bit more than my back. My back is really fine, don’t worry.” Her knee was scraped from hitting the ground, and her hand was also scraped.

Lin Ye gently examined her injuries, his warm fingertips occasionally brushing against her skin. Tang Feihuan involuntarily swallowed, and the next moment, he pressed down slightly.

“Hiss…” Tang Feihuan hissed softly, suppressing a cry.

The closed soft tissue injury on her back was indeed minor, but Lin Ye’s brow furrowed deeper as he said with concern, “We need to go to the treatment room immediately to clean and dress the scrapes on your knee and hand.”

“Okay.” Tang Feihuan felt his care, though the corners of her lips were threatening to curve upward. But when she remembered the endless trouble Dong Guo’s family might cause for Lin Ye and the hospital, she instantly calmed down.

During this time, doctors from other departments came to check on her, and the nurses from her own department helped call the police, since the patient had fled and needed to be apprehended.

Tang Feihuan stood up on her own and followed Lin Ye back. They walked in silence until they reached the elevator. As Lin Ye pressed the up button, she suddenly said, “Thank you.”

“Huh?” Tang Feihuan tilted her head, noticing Lin Ye’s slightly relaxed expression. She blurted out, “Don’t say thank you. It might make me unhappy. I’m already in pain, and you’re making me even more upset.” As soon as she said this, Tang Feihuan wondered if she had hit her head too hard. What was that?! She quickly turned away, her face flushed, and stared at the wall in mortification.

Lin Ye responded with a barely audible “Mm,” and fell silent. Inside the elevator, the silence was so complete you could hear a pin drop. Tang Feihuan bit her lip, her back to Lin Ye, and reached out to take her own pulse.

107 beats per minute? That’s way too fast!

Unbeknownst to Tang Feihuan, Lin Ye was watching her movements from behind. Finally, the tight furrow between her brows relaxed, and the faint smile she usually reserved for patients returned to her face.

This is the second time today I’ve found her adorable…

The elevator doors opened, but Tang Feihuan and Lin Ye were so absorbed in their own thoughts that they didn’t react. Gu Yan, who had been waiting to go downstairs, suddenly spoke up from the elevator entrance, “Director Lin, Doctor Tang, what are you doing back here?” Her eyes immediately landed on the injury on Tang Feihuan’s knee, and she exclaimed, “Doctor Tang, what happened to you?”

“Dong Guo’s father retaliated against Director Lin, and Doctor Tang bravely intervened and got hurt,” Sun Qinhuai explained. As the head nurse, she was well-informed and was also preparing to leave for the day. Standing to Gu Yan’s right, she asked Tang Feihuan, “Should I get a nurse to help clean the wound?”

Lin Ye replied softly, “No need, I’ll take care of it.”

Sun Qinhuai considered this and agreed. After exchanging a few more words of concern, the four of them switched places. She pressed the down button, and the elevator doors closed.

Tang Feihuan and Lin Ye walked side by side, past the triage desk and another ten meters to the Emergency Department’s treatment room. Tang Feihuan entered and sat on one of the stools provided for patients in front of the treatment table. Familiar with the procedure, she instinctively pulled out her phone and opened the hospital’s app to register herself without waiting for Lin Ye to speak.

“Sit down for a moment,” Lin Ye said, watching Tang Feihuan successfully register. Her brow furrowed again as she stared at the bl00d seeping from Tang Feihuan’s knee. She quickly turned away, pausing before saying softly, “I’ll be right back.”

Tang Feihuan gazed at her retreating figure and replied obediently, “Okay.”

Lin Ye stepped out to find the on-duty doctor, obtain a medical order, and then pay the bill.

As Tang Feihuan watched Lin Ye leave the treatment room, she pulled out her phone and started scrolling through funny videos to distract herself. The numbness from her scrapes had worn off, and now they were throbbing with pain—pain that made her gasp. The thought of the upcoming wound cleaning only made it worse.

By nearly 11 PM, the Emergency Department was quieter than during the day. Lin Ye returned with the receipt in just over ten minutes. She walked to the treatment counter, opened a cabinet, and retrieved hydrogen peroxide, cotton balls, gauze, and other wound-cleaning supplies, arranging them on the counter.

“This will sting. I’ll try to be as gentle as possible,” Lin Ye said softly, pulling up a low stool to sit in front of Tang Feihuan. She leaned slightly forward, her gaze fixed on the wound on Tang Feihuan’s knee.

“Maybe I should just do it myself?” Tang Feihuan suggested.

Lin Ye’s right hand, holding the medical tweezers, froze. She didn’t look up or respond.

Tang Feihuan, fearing Lin Ye might misunderstand, quickly explained, “No, it’s not that I don’t want to trouble you. It’s just that I can handle this myself, so…”

“I understand,” Lin Ye said with a faint smile, handing her the tweezers. He moved back slightly, watching as she cleaned the wound.

Time passed. Tang Feihuan grimaced in pain, but she stubbornly suppressed any sound, not wanting to worry him. Fortunately, a phone call interrupted the ordeal. Lin Ye stepped out to answer it.

“Hello? Yes, we’re in the treatment room of the Emergency Department,” Lin Ye said, poking his head back in. “The police are here and want to take our statements.”

Too much pain to speak, Tang Feihuan nodded.

Three minutes later, two police officers knocked and entered, one after the other. The lead officer began the questioning: “You made the report, correct?”

“Yes,” they both answered in unison.

“Based on the phone number you provided, we contacted Cao Yangqiao. She’s agreed to file a report and undergo a forensic examination. She’s on her way from home now,” the officer explained. “She’s our forensic pathologist and will examine your injuries.”

“Thank you,” Tang Feihuan said gratefully.

The police signaled for Lin Ye to step outside to talk. Standing in the hallway, the officer said, “Our colleagues are still investigating the scene and have recovered the weapon used in the assault.”

Lin Ye nodded. The officer continued, “The assailant’s phone is switched off, and the police are making every effort to track him down. His family is still handling the arrangements for their deceased relative, and we’ll speak with them later to gather information.” After a brief pause, the officer added, “From your perspective, can you briefly explain the assailant’s possible motives?”

Lin Ye spoke calmly and methodically as the officer took notes. Before she finished, Cao Yangqiao arrived at the hospital to await questioning and a medical examination. Through the formal statement, Lin Ye learned that Cao Yangqiao and Dong Guo had known each other for four years and been together for two. Three months earlier, Dong Guo had introduced Cao Yangqiao to his family, but his father disapproved and vehemently opposed the relationship, leading Cao Yangqiao to propose breaking up.

It turned out Dong Guo’s father came from a farming background but had made tens of millions in the coal mining business years ago. Now living off rental income, he fundamentally believed that Dong Guo and Cao Yangqiao were mismatched due to their different social statuses.

The police officer scoffed, “Isn’t he a farmer himself? Why does he look down on you for coming from the countryside? Besides, you’re a graduate student—you’re more educated than his son.”

“That’s when I realized it was better to break up early and be free,” Cao Yangqiao recalled. “Dong Guo’s father was violent. He’d beat and verbally abuse Dong Guo’s mother and sister at the slightest provocation, but because he favored boys, he never laid a hand on Dong Guo.”

The police officer asked, “Did his mother ever report him?”

“Never. I guess she’d grown used to it. But Dong Guo’s sister refused to tolerate their father’s behavior. She got into graduate school at the University of Political Science and Law. Dong Guo said his sister was determined to get their mother out of that hellhole.”

As the officer cursed Dong Guo’s father as scum, he took notes, declaring they wouldn’t let him off this time and urging the women not to settle privately, insisting he spend a couple of days in detention to learn his lesson.

Cao Yangqiao readily agreed.

Meanwhile, after getting her injuries examined and giving a brief statement, Tang Feihuan rode the elevator downstairs with Lin Ye.

“Let’s take my car. You can leave your motorcycle at the hospital,” Lin Ye said, her gaze lowered, her tone returning to its usual calm.

“I need to go home tonight. It’s my dad’s birthday tomorrow, and we’re having a family gathering at noon,” Tang Feihuan replied, her right hand clutching the medicinal wine Lin Ye had bought for her. The concern in Lin Ye’s words made her lips curve upward, her eyes sparkling like gemstones.

“Then I’ll drive you home.”

“Okay.” Tang Feihuan felt as if she were in a dream. She glanced sideways and saw Lin Ye’s head bowed, her dark hair obscuring most of her face, yet failing to conceal the long-absent tenderness in her eyes.