Hearing this, Duan Jiaxu turned his head to look at her. In the dim light, his eyes seemed to shine a bit, and the corners of his lips curved up as he said with interest, “Can’t finish telling me all night?”
”Exactly.”
”Seems like Little Sang Zhi is quite popular.”
”Yeah,” Sang Zhi responded casually, “I’m good-looking, after all.”
Duan Jiaxu raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything.
This sudden silence seemed to deny her words.
Sang Zhi felt a bit displeased by the mood shift, looked away, and picked up the phone from the table, “You should go to sleep. Why are you snooping into young people’s lives for no reason?”
”…”
Sang Zhi snorted, “You just don’t understand.”
”You two siblings are doing this on purpose, right?” Duan Jiaxu’s tone lifted playfully. He nonchalantly added, “Attacking my age all day long, did you agree on this beforehand?”
Sang Zhi glanced at him, “How does my brother attack you? Aren’t you two the same age?”
A pot calling the kettle black.
Sang Zhi didn’t catch on, “What?””He thinks he’s still young,” Duan Jiaxu chuckled lightly, then brought up the previous topic again, “Alright, start telling me.”
Sang Zhi didn’t catch on: “What?”
”Your Big Brother is here to look out for you,” he said. Suddenly, he remembered something, and his voice radiated a hint of teasing, “Oh, right. Little Sang Zhi, fetch a notebook for me.”
”…”
”Let Big Brother memorize everything well.”
Sang Zhi stared at him for a few seconds. Soon, she turned away, lit up the screen of her phone, making it clear that she didn’t want to continue the conversation, “I’m not telling you.”
The next morning, Sang Zhi reluctantly helped him wipe his face again, and then she went on to wipe his arms and palms as well. This time, Duan Jiaxu didn’t suddenly open his eyes like he did last time, nor did he say anything else. But Sang Zhi still didn’t look into his eyes, keeping her gaze vacant.
She tried her best to keep her mind focused, as if she were wiping a motionless body.
Before leaving, Sang Zhi thought for a moment and asked, “Brother Jiaxu, do you need anything else? I can bring it when I come over tonight.”
”Mm,” Duan Jiaxu, still somewhat drowsy, replied, his eyelids half-closed, “There are keys in my coat, take them. Please bring the computer from my room.”
”…” Sang Zhi said, “Why do you need the computer?”
Duan Jiaxu raised his eyes, smiled, and said, “Work.”
Sang Zhi hesitated for a moment, her expression suddenly turning somewhat unpleasant. “You’re on sick leave, and you’re still working? Your boss won’t pay you extra for that, especially when you’re sick.”
Duan Jiaxu looked at her, not saying a word.
Sang Zhi: “I won’t bring it. I’ll keep an eye on it for you. I’m leaving.”
After saying that, she left the ward.
On the subway, Sang Zhi listened to several voice messages from Jiang Ming, “Sang Zhi, are you free? My friends and I are playing games on the playground. Are you coming over? I heard from Ning Wei that you haven’t returned to school yet. It’s not safe to go back to school alone so late. I’ll come pick you up.”
She hesitated for a moment and replied, “Sorry, I didn’t check my phone yesterday. Thanks for your concern.”
Sang Zhi first returned to her dorm to take a shower and change her clothes, then headed to the teaching building for class. Sang Zhi had quite a few classes on Fridays, and she was in class until six in the evening. She didn’t have a chance to eat, so as soon as classes ended, she took the subway to Duan Jiaxu’s place.
Upon exiting the subway station, Sang Zhi followed the navigation on her phone to find the location. The area was mostly residential, with the city library nearby, but there was still a bit of distance from where Duan Jiaxu lived.
There was a food street nearby, as well as a small plaza, which was particularly lively. Sang Zhi used her access card to enter the community, located the building where Duan Jiaxu lived, and went up to the fifteenth floor.
Each floor here had four units, and Duan Jiaxu’s apartment faced south. She walked over, used the key to open the door, and then, not very familiar with the layout, felt her way along the wall to find the switch and turn on the lights.
The interior decoration was predominantly in dark tones. The sofa and coffee table in the living room were gray-black, and the walls were painted in a similar shade. The wooden floor was covered with a dark square carpet in the center.
A partially open book lay on the sofa, accompanied by a tall table lamp. The curtains were drawn, giving the house a somewhat stuffy feeling. Sang Zhi took off her shoes and hesitated for a moment before deciding not to put on the only pair of slippers on the shoe rack. She walked into the room wearing socks, pondering what to bring.
She looked around the living room and suddenly noticed three photo frames on the TV cabinet. One frame held a picture of Duan Jiaxu and their entire dorm wearing graduation gowns, while next to it was a photo of Sang Zhi and him together at their graduation ceremony.
It was the first time she had seen this particular photo, and she subconsciously looked at it a few times. Back then, she only reached his shoulder, appearing somewhat tender. She was wearing a light blue dress, standing about twenty centimeters away from him, with a faint hint of a smile on her lips.
Duan Jiaxu had his hand placed on her head, looking nonchalant but with a bright smile. The photo was quite well taken.
Sang Zhi licked her lips, sneakily took out her phone, and snapped a photo of that picture. Her gaze shifted, and she suddenly noticed another photo frame with another group picture.
This photo was clearly an old one, with a different color tone. Duan Jiaxu in the picture looked around ten years old. He was dressed in a school uniform, standing beside a woman who was about half a head shorter than him.
The resemblance between the two was striking, with a faint smile on both their faces. Remembering Li Ping’s words, Sang Zhi instantly understood the identity of this person.
She squatted down, thought for a moment, and said softly, “Hello, Auntie. I’m Sang Zhi, Jiaxu’s friend and his little sister.”
After a few seconds, Sang Zhi added, “Brother Jiaxu didn’t come home yesterday because he’s sick and had a minor surgery, but it’s not serious. I’m here to bring him some things, so please don’t worry.”
After she finished speaking, Sang Zhi stood up and took out her phone to search for “what to bring to the hospital.” She followed the items listed and noticed the words “personal clothing,” causing her gaze to pause. Then she turned her attention to his room’s wardrobe.
”…”
Why did she have to do this kind of thing again?
Sang Zhi closed her eyes briefly, opened the wardrobe, and saw two new boxes inside. She sighed in relief and directly tossed the boxes into her bag. Looking up, she hesitated on whether to take a few more clothes.
Suddenly, she spotted a very familiar tie.
Sang Zhi’s gaze froze for a few seconds, and she abruptly closed the wardrobe.
Forget it.
That’s enough.
She had already done her best.
Peek-Aboo 
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