Chapter 168: The Sunshine is Mellow and the Breeze is Just Right

Ha, she had caught a cold...

Last night, she had been relentlessly tossed about by Song Chenyi until the middle of the night. Afterward, drenched in sweat, she was dragged off to take a shower, and consequently, she caught a cold!

Pulling her down jacket tight, she dragged her feet as she shuffled out of the guest bedroom, intending to get some medicine.

Her steps even felt a bit unsteady. Illness strikes like a mountain collapsing, and she currently felt dizzy and disoriented.

"Achoo..." Luo Yixia had just stepped outside when she ran into Zhou Yun.

"What's wrong? Are you sneezing?" Zhou Yun asked with concern, hearing it from afar.

"Mom, do you have any cold medicine?" Luo Yixia's nasal voice was quite heavy, and her throat still hurt a bit when she spoke—she couldn't tell if it was from crying last night or caused by the cold.

"Why is everyone catching a cold early in the morning?" Zhou Yun said, looking worried.

"Huh? Who else has a cold?"

"Chenyi, of course. I was just about to go get some medicine; he came running over earlier coughing very badly." With that, Zhou Yun led Luo Yixia to her own room to get the cold medicine.

Luo Yixia curled her lips in a pout, instantly feeling much more balanced in her heart. Song Chenyi had a cold too—hahaha, he totally deserved it!

Luo Yixia popped two cold medicine pills and swallowed them down with water.

Then, she took the medicine and went to find Song Chenyi.

Song Chenyi was sitting on the outdoor sofa, his head tilted back and leaning against the backrest, revealing his delicate profile.

Seeing someone walk up to him, he lazily opened his eyes.

Half of Luo Yixia's face was buried in her scarf. She reached out to hand him the cold medicine and thoughtfully poured him a glass of water as well.

Song Chenyi gulped it down in two swallows.

"Are you running a fever?" Luo Yixia reached out to press her hand against his forehead and found his temperature normal.

"I'm fine, just a bit of a cough." Song Chenyi spoke with a very heavy nasal tone.

Zhou Yun walked in as well and saw that both youngsters looked completely wilted.

"Did you guys catch a chill last night without pulling up the blanket?"

Song Chenyi suddenly turned his head and asked in a hoarse voice, "You caught a cold too?"

"Mm." Even though she really didn't want to admit it, she still gave a muffled, buzzed reply.

Song Chenyi couldn't help but chuckle out loud.

Luo Yixia let out a disgruntled hum, wondering how he still had the nerve to laugh.

Being sick made her head dizzy, and Luo Yixia had no appetite at all.

The two of them only ate some plain, light congee.

Qi Manman gloated as she looked at Luo Yixia: "If your health isn't good, you shouldn't go out to catch the wind at night. Look, you blew yourself right into a sickness."

As a result, her cousin timely chimed in right beside her with a couple of coughs.

Fine, showing affection even while having a cold—Qi Manman silently shut her mouth.

Luo Yixia won without fighting once again.

The old lady also looked at her grandson and granddaughter-in-law with a heart full of pity: "How did you both catch a cold? Did you catch a chill last night?"

"Grandma, I drank two sips of cold water when I went to sleep last night." Luo Yixia smiled sheepishly; the real reason for catching a chill was too awkward to mention...

Thinking of this, she glared at Song Chenyi with even greater dissatisfaction.

"I didn't pull the blanket over me last night." Song Chenyi immediately followed up.

The old lady sighed.

As for the real reason, only the two of them knew...

After breakfast, the old lady urged the two of them to go back and rest. Both of them looked like they hadn't slept well the night before, brimming with sleepiness.

"Xiaya, go rest in Chenyi's room. It's closer to everyone else, and you can let Chenyi take better care of you," Zhou Yun said knowingly.

While Luo Yixia was eating breakfast and taking off her scarf, Zhou Yun had caught sight of the mottled spots on her neck. It all clicked into place instantly—no wonder they both caught a cold as a pair, though she hadn't expected her son to be unable to restrain himself for even a single night.

Holding a grandson was just around the corner...

"That's right, let Chenyi take care of you." Just as Luo Yixia wanted to decline, the old lady chimed in as well.

Since the old lady herself had spoken, no matter how unhappy Qi Manman was, there was nothing she could say.

As soon as Luo Yixia entered the room, she burrowed straight into the covers. The room had the heating turned up quite high, making it cozy, warm, and very comfortable.

Song Chenyi walked in behind her and closed the bedroom door.

"Drink more warm water." Song Chenyi handed another cup of warm water to Luo Yixia.

"You just drank from this, get me another cup, otherwise you'll pass it to me in a second." Luo Yixia was completely wrapped up in the duvet, leaving only her small head exposed.

"You're a patient yourself, and yet you're giving me the cold shoulder?" Song Chenyi was left utterly speechless, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"You're sick because you deserved it, but I'm sick because you tortured me." Luo Yixia retorted with dissatisfaction.

"Oh, then tell me, how did I torture you into getting sick?" Song Chenyi's lips curved into a smile as he walked toward her.

Luo Yixia's face turned beet red, and it took her a long time to spit out a single word: "Get lost!"

Song Chenyi lay down on the bed as well. Breathing in the familiar scent, Luo Yixia couldn't resist—she rolled in a round ball right into his arms, and the two of them slept soundly all the way until two in the afternoon.

Partly because of last night's ordeal, and partly because the aftereffects of a cold were powerful.

Luo Yixia had just woken up, her eyes half-closed and veiled with a misty haze.

"I'm hungry."

"What do you want to eat?" Song Chenyi asked, lying on his side.

"I'm not picky."

"I saw the sun is out outside. Let's take a stroll in the courtyard this afternoon." Song Chenyi quickly got up and got dressed.

Luo Yixia lazily followed him up.

At this hour, the courtyard was surprisingly quiet and completely deserted; everyone else must have gone out.

The two went to the kitchen, cooked a bowl of noodles each, and ate.

Normally, Luo Yixia would have thought about washing the dishes, but now she didn't even want to move a muscle.

With not a soul at home, Luo Yixia's true nature was exposed. She sat on the recliner, soaking up the sun outside, getting a head start on enjoying an elderly person's lifestyle.

Having finished the chores, Song Chenyi came out and handed Luo Yixia some water along with her medicine, saying, "Take your medicine in a bit."

Luo Yixia had her eyes closed, bathing in the sunlight, and had no intention of paying him any mind.

Song Chenyi sat down to the side with his back to the sun, lowering his head to scroll through his phone.

On a persimmon tree in the outer courtyard, the leaves had long since withered, leaving only a few golden persimmons hanging on the branches, saved specifically for the birds to eat.

In winter, birds would always come out to forage for food.

The breeze wasn't drying, and the sunshine was just right.

She squinted and glanced at the person beside her.

The best thing in the world is having you by my side.

Ever since Song Chenyi opened his phone, his deeply furrowed brows hadn't relaxed for even a second.

The internship hospitals had already been assigned.

Song Chenyi had been assigned to the farthest place.

This meant he would have to separate from Luo Yixia. He had just coaxed Luo Yixia out of school, and only half a semester had passed before he had to leave.

He was originally supposed to go for his assigned internship in the second half of the year, but because Xiaya had just arrived, he had delayed it by a semester—never did he expect to be assigned to the farthest location.

It would take nearly an hour and a half to drive from the hospital to the apartment, making it over two hours round trip. He could manage occasional trips, but not regularly.

Song Chenyi sent a private message to his counselor:
[Can I change my internship hospital? It's too far.]

The result was a heartfelt, earnest lecture from the counselor:
[This hospital is of the highest quality among all the options this time. Although the location is a bit remote, it's still within City A, and there are intern dormitories there too. You can learn a lot more over there.]

Song Chenyi had no way to refuse.

He had already troubled the counselor once by postponing it earlier.

Glancing at the girl beside him who looked fast asleep, he knew she was going to be upset.

"Wake up and swallow your medicine." Song Chenyi woke her up.

Luo Yixia pouted her lips, unhappy at being disturbed from her sleep.

She acted like a spoiled child, saying, "Feed it to me, I don't want to move."

Song Chenyi fished out two pills, gently pinched them between his thumb and index finger, and brought them to Luo Yixia's lips. When taking the medicine, Luo Yixia accidentally brushed against Song Chenyi's fingertips.

Her heartbeat skipped a beat.

She cast a sideways glance at him, wondering if he had done it on purpose.

Of course, the person in question had zero self-awareness, her mouth still chanting, "Water, water."

Song Chenyi brought the cup of water to her lips again.

She gulped down a couple of mouthfuls and swallowed the pills.

Having slept all morning, taken her medicine, and basked in the sun for a while, her whole body felt refreshed and much more comfortable.

"My grandma called me yesterday and said she wants to see you." Luo Yixia's eyes curved into smiles.

"I'll go visit them with you on the third day of the Lunar New Year."

"The third day? That's not many days away. Today is the twenty-eighth, and the day after tomorrow is New Year's Eve." Luo Yixia raised her head to look at the few golden persimmons dangling precariously on the persimmon tree.

Frankly speaking, looking at them shining brilliantly gold now, she actually felt a little tempted.

"I feel like eating that." Luo Yixia reached out and pointed at them.

"Those are left for the birds." Song Chenyi was amused, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"If the birds can eat them, why can't I?" Put that way, Luo Yixia became even more unhappy.

"You have a cold and shouldn't eat anything cold." Song Chenyi decided to use a different excuse.

"I'll just eat one, please! It's been so long since I've eaten a persimmon. Look at how bright red that one is, and it's so big too. I'm craving it." Luo Yixia started acting cute.

"You can only eat one." Song Chenyi finally conceded, unable to win against her persistence.

He took off his heavy outer coat, and with a few quick moves, stepped onto the branches and climbed up, picking the reddest one Luo Yixia had pointed out.

Luo Yixia had already stood under the tree, tilting her small head up and staring fixedly at him.

Song Chenyi jumped straight down, though some dust and withered leaves had brushed onto his white sweater. Luo Yixia reached out and helped him pat them off.

Song Chenyi opened his clean, slender fingers, holding a large, bright red persimmon right in his palm. It formed a stark contrast against his fair palm, making it look even more tempting.

Luo Yixia carefully pinched it, took it into her own hand, peeled off the thin outer skin, and took a bite. It was very sweet.

"It's so good."

Watching her eat, Song Chenyi felt a sense of contentment as well.

"Try it, this is definitely the best-tasting and sweetest persimmon I've ever had." Luo Yixia's eyebrows were practically expressing just how delicious this persimmon was.

Song Chenyi leaned in and took a bite right where she had bitten.

Sweet—truly very sweet, sweet all the way into the bottom of his heart.

"It is very delicious."

Seeing him say it was good, Luo Yixia smiled too.

After eating one, she still felt a bit unsatisfied. She smacked her lips and continued staring at the remaining few on the tree.

"Tell me, if the birds don't eat them, won't these persimmons just go to waste?"

"You can't eat anymore, you still have a cold." How could Song Chenyi fail to see through her little scheme?

"Fine..." She stuck out the tip of her bright red tongue to lick her lips, still wishing she could eat more.

Seeing this, Song Chenyi felt his throat tighten...

"You've got a smudge."

Luo Yixia reached out, intending to wipe away the persimmon juice at the corner of her mouth.

Instead, a large hand pressed against the back of her head, and with a surge of force, pulled her straight into his arms. He lowered his head and kissed her.

A long while later, Song Chenyi let her go. Luo Yixia's cheeks were flushed pink.

His thumb rubbed against her vibrant lips as he chuckled softly, "Clean now."

"You jerk..."

Far in the distance, someone watched the scene unfolding in the courtyard, ultimately turning away with a resigned smile lingering at the corners of their mouth.