Chapter 81: Uneasy

Chapter 81: Chapter 81: Uneasy

In the hospital, Gu Lihui suddenly noticed an increase in the number of doctors, nurses, and random people coming to his ward. Moreover, most of them would let their eyes linger on him before standing far away, pointing and whispering.

He felt like he’d become an animal at the zoo, a monkey for everyone to gawk at.

And that wasn’t all. The changes that followed made him even more uncomfortable. Before, the other patients and their families in his room would smile at him and occasionally help with small things, like fetching hot water. But suddenly, they started avoiding him like the plague. Even the nurses no longer had a pleasant expression when they came to change his dressings. Their movements became much rougher, and their attitude wasn’t just cold—it carried a biting chill.

"Sis, what’s going on? Where’s Mom? Why hasn’t she come to see me these past two days?" The way everyone was acting had Gu Lihui on edge. Seeing his older sister try to rush off after dropping off his meal, he quickly called out to her.

"Mom, she—"

Gu Jinhua hesitated, glancing around before looking back at Gu Lihui. She stammered, "Mom, she... she isn’t feeling well."

"Did Dad—" Gu Lihui understood immediately. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw people nearby turn their attention toward them, so he trailed off. He was furious. ’Dad must have beaten Mom so badly she can’t get out of bed again... He could’ve done it anytime, but no, he just had to do it when I’m in the hospital and need someone to take care of me. Is he trying to make my life miserable, too?’

"Just hurry up and eat. I don’t have much time on my lunch break. We can talk tonight when I bring you dinner." Gu Jinhua didn’t have time to explain further. She left him with those words and hurried away. To bring him this meal, she herself had only eaten a single steamed bun and was still hungry. It wasn’t just that she was short on time; she also didn’t have enough money to buy another meal for herself. Dinner wasn’t a problem, at least. She didn’t have to buy it from the cafeteria. She would go home, cook extra for her younger brother, eat her own meal, and then bring his to the hospital.

"Come earlier tonight! Don’t always wait until you’ve finished your own dinner to come over." Gu Lihui couldn’t help shouting as her figure quickly vanished from the doorway. He was quite resentful. ’She’s just bringing food, but Sis never shows up until it’s completely dark. Why does she only come after she’s eaten? Can’t she bring food to me, the patient, first?’

Gu Jinhua heard Gu Lihui’s shout, but she didn’t answer, hurrying away without breaking her stride.

She had seen her younger brother’s dissatisfaction over the past two days but was helpless to do anything about it. Her mother-in-law was probably also unhappy about having to prepare food for an extra person at night. For the last two days, she had deliberately not cooked dinner, waiting for Gu Jinhua to come home from work to do it. She would even make excuses, saying she wasn’t sure about her brother-in-law’s tastes or if he had any dietary restrictions now, and that she was afraid her good intentions would backfire, so she didn’t dare to cook.

’What can I do with a mother-in-law like that?’

She gave a bitter smile. She was feeling suffocated herself. For the past two days, she had skipped her own lunch to save money for her brother’s meal. If she didn’t eat dinner before coming, wouldn’t she faint from hunger? She wasn’t made of iron. Besides, if she didn’t eat at home first, what good dishes would be left by the time she got back? There probably wouldn’t be any food left for her at all, just a table full of dirty dishes waiting to be cleaned.

’But even if I told my brother all this, he’d just think I was making excuses. He’d think I was deliberately trying to make him feel indebted to me.’

Gu Jinhua felt exhausted, not just physically, but mentally. He Xiulin’s words echoed in her ears again, making her grind her teeth in renewed fury at Zhang Minzhen, who had proven to be so cruel and heartless by refusing to have anything more to do with Gu Lihui.

That evening, after what felt like an eternity of Gu Lihui staring holes through the doorway, Gu Jinhua finally arrived with a lunchbox, much later than expected.

"Didn’t I tell you to come earlier? Why are you so late again? Hurry, hurry, I’m starving to death." Gu Lihui clutched his growling stomach, so hungry that even his angry voice came out weak.

"You think I want to be this late? I have to rush home after work every day and cook for the whole family. How could I possibly be any earlier?" Gu Jinhua retorted irritably.

"Don’t you have your mother-in-law at home? Why do you still have to cook after work?" Gu Lihui asked doubtfully, stuffing his mouth with food.

"You think being a daughter-in-law is that easy?" Gu Jinhua’s tone grew even more exasperated.

"Since you’re always going to be this late, then from now on, just buy me five or six meat buns from He Ji for dinner right after you get off work. That way you won’t be starving me to death every night," Gu Lihui suggested after a moment’s thought. He only said this because he’d been terrified of going hungry these past two days.

"Five or six meat buns from He Ji would cost almost two yuan! I just borrowed two hundred yuan to pay the hospital for you and I’m still in debt. I already have to buy an extra meal for you every afternoon. Where would I get that kind of money?"

"You’re just stingy! To save a couple of yuan, you feed me these rotten vegetable leaves every day. Even the lunch you bring, I can barely see a drop of oil in it, and don’t even get me started on breakfast. Are you even my big sister? Don’t you know I’m a patient? I need nutrition!" With some food in his stomach, Gu Lihui’s strength returned, and his voice couldn’t help but grow louder. "I don’t care. Tomorrow, I want meat buns from He Ji."

"How about this? When I bring your breakfast tomorrow morning, I’ll buy one for you. You can save it and eat it in the evening before I bring dinner, just to tide you over." Gu Jinhua gritted her teeth. She figured she could probably manage spending an extra thirty cents a day.

"One is not enough. I want at least three," Gu Lihui refused.

"You can’t eat greasy food right now. One is the most you can have," Gu Jinhua said, quickly coming up with an excuse in her panic. The truth was, she really had no money. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been reluctant to spend a little extra on a couple of buns for her brother.

Gu Lihui rolled his eyes in anger.

"Or I can buy you three steamed buns. Your choice."

"I want the meat bun. Fine, one it is," Gu Lihui said, seething inwardly. He felt like he would suffocate if he had to stay in the hospital any longer. He started ordering Gu Jinhua around without ceremony. "Go get me a thermos of hot water first. I haven’t had anything to drink all day, I’m dying of thirst. And from now on, don’t forget to fill it for me in the morning. Oh, and go ask the doctor when I can finally be discharged."

"Alright, I’ll go ask in a bit. There’s no one to take care of you if you stay in the hospital anyway, so it would be best if you could be discharged early. I’m close by, but I have to work, so I can’t look after you properly. Second Brother and Ye Rong have time, but Second Brother is useless at caregiving. If he came, I’d probably end up having to take care of him and feed him three meals a day too. Ye Rong is capable, but she absolutely refuses to come. Says it’s inappropriate for a sister-in-law to be taking care of her husband’s older brother. Hmph, what an excuse. It’s not like I’m asking her to stay overnight or help you with bedpans and bathing. What’s so inappropriate about it? When it comes down to it, she just doesn’t see us as family. At a time like this, she’s not even willing to help cook three meals a day for you."

Gu Jinhua was so full of grievances that she forgot to keep her voice down. The other patients and their families all looked over, some with mocking smiles openly displayed on their faces.

"Just go! What’s the point of saying all that nonsense?" Gu Lihui didn’t actually think anything Gu Jinhua said was wrong, but he keenly sensed that the stares from those around them were off. His face flushed, and he waved his hand to shoo her away.

Gu Jinhua gave him a helpless look, silently picked up the thermos, and walked out.