Meng Yang and his father also finalized the time for changing the locks, specifically choosing a day when Liu Zhi was not at home.
The father and daughter politely said goodbye to each other.
“The time is set. The landlord will come right after I get off work tomorrow,” Meng Yang said to Liu Zhi.
"Okay, thank you for your trouble." Liu Zhi stacked the dishes and took them to wash. Although her steps were orderly, her back view had a hint of fleeing.
That night, Liu Zhi tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She felt that something was amiss, even though everything else made sense.
When Zhang Wenyi introduced the house, she only said that her college classmate and roommate had moved out and she wanted to find a reliable roommate.
The price quoted was much lower than what Liu Zhi knew. Liu Zhi also asked Zhang Wenyi, who only said that her classmate had rented the place earlier and came from a well-off family. She also mentioned that she shared more of the rent with her previous roommate.
Before arriving, Liu Zhi was thinking about whether to contact the landlord to sign a rental contract, but upon learning that her roommate was Meng Yang, she easily put that thought out of mind.
Meng Yang's personality certainly allows him to take on a large portion of the rent himself, while others share a small portion of the expenses.
Liu Zhi had originally planned to discuss the rent sharing with Meng Yang in detail after this month, but now the more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt.
It's all too coincidental.
Liu Zhi lay in a daze until it was time for work. After breakfast, he drove Meng Yang to the affiliated hospital.
The parking garages in this residential complex are all rented out, and with the Spring Festival approaching, many people have already returned to their hometowns. There are more stray cats in the complex now, and as they pass the corner, Meng Yang calls Liu Zhi to stop.
"Wait, there's a kitten over there." Meng Yang got off his electric scooter and walked to the flower bed.
There was a cardboard box lined with towels in the flowerbed, with a note that read, "I'm going back to my hometown for the New Year, and I can't take the kitten back with me, so I have to abandon it. I'm looking for a kind person to adopt it!"
The side of the cardboard box had the kitten's name and vaccination status written on it, and water and cat food were placed inside.
It was so cold that the kitten huddled in the cardboard box, curled up in a ball. It was an orange tabby, about three months old.
The water in the bowl had long since frozen, and it might not thaw even by noon.
"Milkball." Meng Yang squatted down and softly called the kitten's name.
Upon hearing its name called, the little dumpling poked its head out and glanced outside the cardboard box. When it realized that the person who came was not its owner, it lowered its head again.
Meng Yang's heart was broken.
Naituan looks to Meng Yang, and Meng Yang looks to Liu Zhi.
“I want to take it home,” Meng Yang said, tilting his head back.
“I don’t think that’s advisable.” Liu Zhi stood by the flowerbed. “If you pick them up, other people who want to abandon their cats will follow suit, and then even more cats will be abandoned. Are you going to take them all home?”
Liu Zhi's voice drifted into Meng Yang's ears on the cold wind.
“We’re usually quite busy. Who will take care of a kitten that’s only a few months old if we leave it at home?” Liu Zhi said. “The vaccination information left by the cat’s owner may not be accurate. Can you guarantee that the cat wasn’t abandoned because it was sick?”
"I'm fine. I can feed it before I go to work and then feed it again after I get off work," Meng Yang said. "If it gets sick, I can take it to the vet for treatment."
"Alright, if the cat's owner finds you after the Spring Festival, are you willing to return it?" Liu Zhi asked Meng Yang.
Meng Yang's eyes dimmed. She knew Liu Zhi was right, but Meng Yang didn't want to give up. She couldn't understand why she so desperately wanted Liu Zhi's approval.
They remained deadlocked for a while, and just as Liu Zhi was about to give up, Meng Yang spoke up.
“It’s too cold here, let’s take it to a sheltered place. I’ll go upstairs and get a blanket,” Meng Yang said softly.
She stood up, preparing to return to Building 9, her back view showing a hint of loneliness.
Liu Zhi called out to her.
“You’re walking too slowly, you’ll be late for work.” Liu Zhi pointed to the box. “You carry it, I’ll go upstairs and get a bath towel. The blanket is too big, it won’t fit in the box.”
Before Meng Yang could speak, Liu Zhi went towards the stairwell.
Meng Yang stood there, stunned, watching Liu Zhiqing's thin back.
Liu Zhi took her own bath towel. They lined the milk carton's cardboard box with warm padding and moved the box to a safe, sheltered spot.
Meng Yang kept looking back until he was completely late, then he finally got on Liu Zhi's electric scooter.
"It's almost 7:50," Liu Zhi urged.
Meng Yang, still clutching Liu Zhi's clothes, was looking back at the cardboard box.
"Sit still." Liu Zhi patted Meng Yang's back.
"If Milk Ball hasn't been taken away by tonight, we'll take it home." Meng Yang leaned against Liu Zhi's back, facing the wind. "Okay?"
Liu Zhi's throat tightened, and her heart pounded.
She gave a soft "hmm" in response.
Meng Yang didn't hear him and repeated it again.
"Okay?"
Chapter 14 Picking up the cat
The daytime work went relatively smoothly, and Liu Zhi ate lunch and dinner on time.
As darkness fell outside the window, Liu Zhi, holding a coffee cup, opened the window to let in some fresh air.
Having stayed indoors in warmth for a long time, Liu Zhi's cheeks were flushed from the heat. A cool breeze ruffled the hair at her temples, and Liu Zhi raised her hand to tuck it behind her ear.
I had my hair cut at the beginning of the year, when it was almost ear-length and I could only tie it into a very low bun. By the end of the year, it had grown to my back.
The view outside the window was almost the same as what Liu Zhi had seen a year ago.
Vehicles formed a long line on the asphalt road outside the affiliated hospital, slowly driving between the buildings, their taillights flashing in the dark.
The coffee had cooled down a bit, and Liu Zhi took a sip, the bitterness spreading on her tongue.
Liu Zhi hadn't enjoyed this elegance and tranquility for a long time.
Tonight was a rare moment of leisure. Liu Zhi stood by the window for more than ten minutes before returning to his desk.
A message popped up on her phone. Liu Zhi glanced at it and found it rather strange.
The message came from Liu Zhi's junior high school classmate. She and this classmate had a good relationship in junior high school, but they hadn't kept in touch much after graduation.
"Liu Zhihe Guangyi contacted me, saying that Teacher Wang has something to ask you for help."
The message was followed by a string of numbers.
Liu Zhi tapped the screen with her fingertip, hesitated for a moment, and then dialed the number.
He Guangyi answered the phone almost simultaneously.
"Hello, is this Liu Zhi? I need your help." He Guangyi's voice sounded quite urgent.
"What is it? Tell me first." Liu Zhi glanced at the time.
“My mom is on an IV drip right now. She’s always had back problems, and it hurts if she sits for too long,” He Guangyi said. “She had a cold and was on an IV drip a few days ago, and now she has gastroenteritis, and her stomach is hurting terribly. I wanted her to be hospitalized, but the doctor wouldn’t allow it…”
"They may not have met the criteria for hospitalization, and hospital beds are also in short supply," Liu Zhi explained. "These are all subject to relevant regulations."
As soon as He Guangyi finished speaking, Liu Zhi knew what he wanted her help with.
Ms. Wang does have a back problem. Liu Zhi is her class representative. When she goes to the office to collect homework, she often sees Ms. Wang standing and grading homework. Occasionally, she will twist her waist and walk around.
Public hospitals are open to the general public; from this perspective, both medical staff and hospital beds are public medical resources.
Teacher Wang's condition was not serious enough to require hospitalization. If Liu Zhi helped with this, it would be equivalent to using public medical resources, while those who really needed hospitalization would not receive treatment.
"Are you still in the infusion area?" Liu Zhi asked.
"It was in the same infusion room where I ran into you that day," He Guangyi said, his voice slightly excited. "I was waiting for you at the door."
Liu Zhi grabbed her usual back cushion and jogged towards the infusion room.
He Guangyi waved to her from a distance, hoping that Liu Zhi could arrange a bed for his mother.
“My mom’s condition is really serious; she’s in so much stomach pain she can’t even stand up straight,” He Guangyi said. “You see, could you…”
"This... won't do." Liu Zhi lowered her eyes and tucked the cushion behind her back.
He Guangyi paused, and after a moment of silence, said, "I understand."
"This cushion is for Teacher Wang to use as a cushion," Liu Zhi handed the cushion to He Guangyi, "I'm so sorry."
"My mom forbade me from bothering you, she doesn't know I contacted you privately." He Guangyi took the cushion. "Thank you."
"I won't disturb your shift anymore." He Guangyi smiled. "I gave the cushion to my mom."
Liu Zhi nodded; she didn't have the courage to visit Teacher Wang.
Shortly after returning to the office, Teacher Wang called using He Guangyi's phone and offered Liu Zhi several words of comfort.
Teacher Wang is a rather upright person who usually dislikes students cheating and plagiarism, and despises those who engage in favoritism and fraud.
When He Guangyi came in with a cushion, Teacher Wang knew he had gone to Liu Zhi for help and scolded him for a long time.
The more this happened, the more ashamed Liu Zhi felt.
Liu Zhi's emotions only calmed down a bit after she finished get off work.
It snowed last night, but not much; there was only a thin layer on the ground.
The snow on the road and in front of the affiliated hospital had been cleared, except for some remaining in the green belt. Liu Zhi picked up a little snowflake and watched it melt in her palm.
Liu Zhi ran into Meng Yang at the exit.
At that moment, Meng Yangzheng was rushing to the outpatient department in a hurry, without having time to judge whether the ground under his feet was slippery or not.
She spotted Liu Zhi and waved with a smile.
Before Liu Zhi could react, she was hit by a snowball.
After she brushed the snow off her clothes and looked up, Meng Yang had already entered the outpatient department with his bag on his back.
...
The roads were more congested than usual today, and the cold wind, mixed with dampness, was even more pungent.
When Liu Zhi arrived at the residential area, her cheeks were almost numb from the cold.
As Liu Zhi reached the entrance of the building, she deliberately went back to the place where she and Meng Yang had left the cat yesterday—the box was still there, the bath towel was still there, but Naituan was gone.
Liu Zhi had found the answer in her heart.