Pair A? No Thanks! [Transmigration] - Chapter 4
When people are in despair and collapse, they tend to cling to whatever is in front of them, like a drowning person grasping at a last straw.
This is an instinct after losing emotional control.
Su Tianxue quickly adjusted her state, stopping her tears. She forced herself to calm down, then realized the person she was holding was Shi Ning.
Su Tianxue: “…?”
She pushed Shi Ning away, said “thank you,” and then got up to leave.
Seeing her trying to shake her off like a stubborn rash, Shi Ning smiled, curving her lips as she said to Su Tianxue, “Miss Su, you cried quite freely in my arms just now, why are you turning your back on me so quickly?”
What could she say?
She suspected Su Tianxue was a frying pan in her past life, reincarnated, otherwise, she couldn’t possibly change her expression faster than Shi Ning could flip an omelet.
Su Tianxue said coldly, “I’m sorry.” She added, “I didn’t mean it.”
Shi Ning pouted, “My clothes are dirty.”
She stood up and swayed in front of Su Tianxue, showing her her messy clothes. Not only was her backside covered in dust from sitting on the ground, but the front was also stained with Su Tianxue’s tears.
Su Tianxue: “…If necessary, madam, I’ll compensate you.”
Su Tianxue was in no mood to play along with Shi Ning right now.
“Compensate me?” Hearing her words, Shi Ning couldn’t help but laugh. She realized she was amused by Su Tianxue quite frequently. This person spoke with a chilling humor that always made her want to find a way to shut her up, or make her change her tone.
Shi Ning asked Su Tianxue, “Miss Su, do you know how much these clothes cost?”
She grabbed Su Tianxue’s wrist, pulled her into her embrace, and whispered in her ear, “I slept with you once for one hundred thousand. If you want to compensate me for my clothes, you’ll have to be slept with seven or eight more times.”
She deliberately provoked the other party. As expected, Su Tianxue’s eyes flared with anger and disgust, her expression dropping like a sudden temperature plunge. She forcefully pushed Shi Ning away, disregarding all politeness.
Shi Ning didn’t mind. She brushed the dust off her clothes and looked at Su Tianxue, curiously asking her, “So, Miss Su, can you tell me why you were squatting and crying on the street just now?”
“Thank you for your concern, but it’s none of your business.” Su Tianxue clearly didn’t want to say more, standing in front of her with her arms crossed in a defiant posture. She walked towards the roadside, reaching out to hail a taxi, but it was very difficult to get a cab in this area, and it was rush hour, so vehicles were scarce.
Seeing Su Tianxue looking a bit anxious, Shi Ning put her hand in her pocket, pulled out a set of car keys, and dangled them from her fingertips, shaking them in front of Su Tianxue. She said, like teasing a puppy, “Miss Su, would you like a ride in my car?”
Su Tianxue stared at her for a while. Just when Shi Ning thought she would refuse, Su Tianxue said, “Thank you for the trouble.”
This exceeded Shi Ning’s expectations.
She hadn’t expected Su Tianxue to give in so quickly, which allowed her to predict that Su Tianxue was indeed in an urgent situation.
She led Su Tianxue to the parking garage, opened the passenger door for her, and then got back into the driver’s seat herself.
Shi Ning stepped on the gas, and as the car drove off, the window wasn’t fully closed. The wind swept Shi Ning’s red hair, like flames.
She asked, “Where to?”
Su Tianxue said, “City Center Hospital.”
Upon hearing the destination, Shi Ning made a judgment. She discreetly glanced at Su Tianxue. The woman sat in the passenger seat, gripping the seatbelt tightly, her gaze fixed out the window, seemingly unwilling to let Shi Ning catch even a hint of vulnerability.
Based on the novel’s plot in her mind, Shi Ning could predict that something had probably happened to Su Tianxue’s grandmother.
Sure enough, after following her to the hospital, Su Tianxue completely ignored her, a living, breathing person, and rushed upstairs. Shi Ning followed closely behind her and learned a piece of terrible news from Su Tianxue’s conversation with the doctor.
Not long ago, Su Tianxue’s grandmother was declared beyond saving.
The reason Su Tianxue was squatting on the street was probably because she had just received the hospital’s notification, took a while to process it, couldn’t suppress her emotions, and finally broke down crying.
She had cast aside all her dignity, hoping to save her grandmother’s life.
But in the end, all she received was an obituary.
People came and went in the hospital, patient beds were crowded, and doctors and nurses walked with hurried steps. Only Su Tianxue stood still. Her posture was aloof, yet tinged with a hint of loneliness. Shi Ning just watched her.
She was probably too soft-hearted, even feeling an urge to go and embrace Su Tianxue, but she knew that if she really did, what awaited her wouldn’t be Su Tianxue’s gentle confiding, but rather a cold glare or a punch from Su Tianxue.
Why invite trouble? Su Tianxue probably didn’t want to see her right now either.
She wanted to light a cigarette but remembered she was in a hospital and put it away. This was the second time today she had taken out a cigarette but not smoked it. Shi Ning thought she’d charge this to Su Tianxue.
Su Tianxue stood before the doctor. After he offered his condolences, she calmly looked up and politely said, “Hello, may I see the surgical records or video, please?”
The doctor understood Su Tianxue’s meaning and replied apologetically, “I’m sorry, Miss Su, I cannot fulfill your request. But I assure you, we all did our best. It was just a sudden incident—”
Su Tianxue pressed her lips together: “Then can I see the medical records?”
The doctor was helpless: “Sorry.”
Su Tianxue didn’t insist: “Okay, I understand.”
Shi Ning saw Su Tianxue’s somewhat downcast expression and couldn’t help but speak: “Article 16 of the ‘Regulations on the Prevention and Handling of Medical Disputes,’ Article 701, states that patients have the right to access and copy their outpatient medical records, inpatient charts, temperature charts, doctor’s orders, laboratory reports (test reports), medical imaging examination data, special examination consent forms, surgical consent forms, surgical and anesthesia records, pathological data, etc.” [Note 1]
“If the patient dies, their close relatives may access and copy medical records in accordance with the provisions of these regulations.” [Note 1]
Shi Ning had handled medical dispute cases before and was very familiar with these regulations, able to recite them backwards and forwards.
The doctor was stunned, not expecting someone so professional. He was completely bewildered. The young doctor had never handled any disputes, and now he was a little panicked, looking at Su Tianxue: “Miss Su, is this your lawyer?”
Su Tianxue shook her head: “Don’t know her.”
Shi Ning: “…”
You really are something, Su Tianxue.
Throwing pearls before swine! Unaware of good intentions!
Hearing Su Tianxue’s answer, the doctor was even more confused and looked at Shi Ning. Shi Ning gave a fake smile: “I’m just an ordinary law enthusiast who happened to be passing by.”
The doctor breathed a sigh of relief and continued to explain the reasons to Su Tianxue. Su Tianxue listened patiently, knowing that all of this was fate. Both she, her grandmother, and the medical staff had done their best.
She pursed her lips, bowed, and said sincerely to the doctor, “Thank you. I know we all did our best.”
“I’ll come to handle the remains later. Thank you for your hard work.” After saying this, she turned and walked to the end of the hallway.
Shi Ning followed her and offered her a cigarette, “Want one?”
Su Tianxue shook her head. She felt a bit cold standing in the draft, so she rubbed her arms.
“Thank you. I don’t smoke,” she said.
Shi Ning took off her jacket and handed it to Su Tianxue. Su Tianxue was a bit resistant.
Shi Ning: “It’s already dirty from you anyway. I don’t want these clothes anymore, so you might as well take them.”
Hearing her words, Su Tianxue didn’t feign politeness and took the jacket, putting it on.
It was strange.
The woman’s jacket had a warm scent, and the ocean scent that had previously made her uncomfortable now wrapped around her like a mother nature’s embrace.
Shi Ning observed her expression: “Well, have you fallen in love with my jacket?”
Su Tianxue: …She shouldn’t have thought so much.
Shi Ning: “I’ll send you the laundry detergent brand later.”
Hearing her nonsensical words, Su Tianxue’s previously somber mood suddenly improved greatly. She curved her eyes, and when she smiled, it was like a spring breeze blowing through a snowy winter night, melting everything.
Shi Ning was about to light a cigarette, but remembering Su Tianxue saying she didn’t smoke, she put the cigarette away. She said to Su Tianxue, “Why did you want the medical records and surgical records just now?”
Su Tianxue: “…”
Shi Ning: “Don’t want to say?”
Su Tianxue: “It’s nothing, just felt unreal, and unwilling. But I’ve calmed down now. As for you, were those clauses you just recited real?”
Being questioned about her professional competence, Shi Ning was annoyed. She picked up her phone to search for the clauses on Baidu and then discovered… in this messed-up ABO world, the legal clauses were indeed different from her previous world. That specific clause really didn’t exist.
Seeing her expression, Su Tianxue shook her head and quietly uttered two words: “Liar.”
It was clearly a derogatory term, but when Su Tianxue said it, Shi Ning felt it took on a different flavor, tinged with a hint of playful reproach.
She found it hard to explain, and was too lazy to, so she shoved her hands into her pockets and looked straight ahead with her head held high: “Yes, I’m a big liar. So don’t believe anything I say.”
Su Tianxue also looked straight ahead: “I’m not that foolish.”
Shi Ning tutted, said nothing more, and accompanied her in the hallway, watching the diverse crowd in the hospital courtyard.
Su Tianxue suddenly said, “The money won’t be needed. I’ll transfer it back to you in a bit.”
Shi Ning hadn’t expected her to even offer a refund.
She teased her: “Don’t, what if there’s a next time?”
Su Tianxue glared at her: “Who said anything about a next time with you?”
Shi Ning was about to retort when suddenly, a commotion erupted behind them. Someone’s family had come to cause trouble.
Initially, Shi Ning thought this chaos had nothing to do with her, until she heard Su Tianxue’s name.
She turned around and saw a heavily bearded, overweight man accompanied by a slender, willow-like woman. Both looked fierce and menacing, urgently speaking: “Su Tianxue, where’s your grandmother? We have something to discuss with her.”
Su Tianxue said “Oh” and pointed upstairs.
The man, aggressive, asked, “Which floor?”
Su Tianxue’s eyes turned icy, and her red lips slightly parted: “The rooftop.”
Shi Ning immediately understood her meaning and burst out laughing.
She thought, this person truly won’t rest until she shocks you with her words. Just like in bed, her words are always unexpected, with a natural, cold humor. Interesting, quite interesting indeed.
Seeing the burly man glare at her again, Shi Ning quickly covered her mouth and made a gesture of invitation: “You two continue, please continue.”
She wanted to see how Su Tianxue would handle it. Such a cold person, she didn’t seem like someone who would get into a furious, red-faced argument with these two utterly vicious-looking people. What would she do?
Author’s Note:
[Note 1] Legal clauses from Baidu, not original.