Chapter 89: What self-confidence is hurt?

Once Zhou Yinhe's waist wasn't that painful, Wen Ling helped him out of the hospital; when they returned to Lang Po Wan, Aunt Zhou happened to be there. Seeing Zhou Yinhe walk over, holding his waist awkwardly, Wen Ling stood beside him, supporting him.

"What happened?" Yesterday Aunt Zhou went to the neighboring city to pray with a new friend she'd met from the neighbor's house, and had no idea what had happened to Zhou Yinhe.

Zhou Yinhe's eyes darted about, a little embarrassed; no matter whose waist was injured, a man would feel somewhat awkward saying it.

Wen Ling pressed her lips and said, "I kicked him, causing him to hurt his waist."

"Ah?" Aunt Zhou was shocked, instinctively sizing up Zhou Yinhe's waist. Zhou Yinhe squeezed Wen Ling's hand, and Wen Ling said, "Aunt Zhou, please help me get him to my room; I'll take care of him."

Aunt Zhou nodded, and together with Wen Ling she helped Zhou Yinhe into the elevator. After returning to the room, Aunt Zhou went downstairs thoughtfully, leaving just the two of them, and Zhou Yinhe let out a breath of relief.

Wen Ling said softly, "I'll change your plaster later."

Zhou Yinhe lay prone, letting out a muffled "uh."

Wen Ling rubbed the back of his head, took her phone to the hallway, and called Lu Zhaoye to tell him she couldn't go see him.

"Why?" Lu Zhaoye's voice sank, obviously displeased with Wen Ling's words.

Wen Ling didn't spell it out, only saying, "Zhou Yinhe's injured; I'm looking after him."

Lu Zhaoye didn't answer and just hung up; Wen Ling heard the phone beep a few times and helplessly put it away.

Hehe came out from some corner, rubbed against Wen Ling's leg, and meowed a few times.

She felt it had been ages since she'd last held Hehe, bent down, tucked Hehe into her arms, and brought him back to the room together.

Zhou Yinhe lay on the bed, turned his head to look at her, reached out his hand, and Wen Ling stepped forward to squat beside the bed.

Hehe looked at Zhou Yinhe and gave a soft meow twice; Zhou Yinhe reached out, his fair, distinct-knuckled hand resting on Hehe's smoky-gray forehead and rubbing it.

Wen Ling lightly bit her lip and asked, "Does it hurt a lot?"

"It's okay; now that it's eased, it doesn't hurt as much." Zhou Yinhe tugged at his mouth, smiling, "Don't feel guilty—this isn't your fault."

Wen Ling pursed her lips, pressed her forehead against Zhou Yinhe's arm, and sighed, "I don't even know if it'll affect daily life later."

Zhou Yinhe's face darkened for a moment, and he said firmly, "It won't!"

Wen Ling couldn't help laughing; Zhou Yinhe took it as mockery, gritted his teeth, and said, "Don't you dare question me!"

"I'm not questioning you, really." Wen Ling lifted her face, dead serious, and raised her hand in a vow.

Zhou Yinhe gave a cold snort and pinched her cheek.

Wen Ling glanced at the time, put Hehe on the floor, and went to get the plaster to change Zhou Yinhe's dressing.

The instant the plaster was torn open, Zhou Yinhe couldn't help hissing; Wen Ling gently rubbed his skin, then waited a moment before reapplying it.

At that moment, Aunt Zhou knocked on the door and said softly, "Ah Ling, a young lady says she's the Fifth Young Master's sister and wants to see him."

She hadn't opened the door yet, fearing that if the Zhou family came, they'd make things difficult for Wen Ling.

Hearing that, Zhou Yinhe froze for a moment, frowned, and asked, "How did my sister come here?"

"Mr. Zhao told her." Wen Ling set down Zhou Yinhe's clothes, covering his waist, got up to open the door, and went downstairs with Aunt Zhou to meet Zhou Zhaoning.

Zhou Zhaoning drove a flashy red sports car; the siblings' parking style was the same, the car pulled straight up to the gate, and at that moment she wore sunglasses, leaning against the car, scanning the surroundings.

"Zhao Ning sister." Wen Ling waved at Zhou Zhaoning, who curled the corner of her mouth and smiled at her.

"I came at just the right time, didn't you just get home?" Aunt Zhou stepped forward to open the door, and Zhou Zhaoning walked in, asking.

Wen Ling nodded and introduced, "This is Aunt Zhou, who's looked after me since I was little, and this time she came with me from Sijiucheng."

Zhou Zhaoning nodded and said with a smile, "Hello, Ms. Zhou. I'm Zhou Zhaoning, the eldest sister of Zhou Yinhe."

Aunt Zhou knew this Young Master Zhou's sister was just being polite, and she said gently, "Hello, Miss Zhou. I'm the steward of our young lady; you're being too courteous—if you don't mind, just call me Aunt Zhou."

"All right, Aunt Zhou." Zhou Zhaoning, not one to beat around the bush, readily agreed.

Wen Ling brought Zhou Zhaoning upstairs to see Zhou Yinhe; when she went downstairs she hadn't closed the room door, so as soon as they reached the upper floor they could hear Zhou Yinhe's angry voice on the phone.

Only Qi Zhan and Wen Ling knew he'd gone to the hospital; Wen Ling couldn't possibly tell anyone else he was injured, so only Qi Zhan was suspect.

"You actually posted my photo in the group—are you sick?"

Not knowing what Qi Zhan had said, Zhou Yinhe retorted, "Get lost—I don't need you lot coming to see me."

Zhou Zhaoning stood in the doorway, arms crossed, amusedly watching her brother lying prone, even making a phone call inconvenient, until Zhou Yinhe hung up and she drawled, "He looks pretty spirited—his waist injury hasn't hurt his self‑confidence."

Zhou Yinhe frowned at his sister and snapped, "It's just a displaced waist—what self‑confidence is there to hurt?"

Zhou Zhaoning slowly nodded, unsure whether she agreed with his words, but Zhou Yinhe was feeling psychologically fragile and only sensed that his sister was mocking him.

"Get out—I don't need you to see me, hurry up."

Seeing Zhou Yinhe get worked up, even trying to rise to prove himself, Wen Ling rushed over to soothe him, whispering, "Zhao Ning sister was just teasing you—don't take it seriously, don't take it seriously."

Zhou Zhaoning shrugged, sat on the sofa, and said lightly, "I haven't told our parents about this; I'm afraid they'd worry, and you shouldn't spill the beans either, or Mom will blame me for keeping it from them."

Zhou Yinhe turned his face away, wearing a cold expression, and said in a low voice, "I know."

"I don't have much going on at the company today, so I came to see you—I'll leave soon." Zhou Zhaoning knew her brother wasn't welcoming her at all and couldn't be bothered to argue, so she urged, "Haven't you been away from the company for a long time?"

Zhou Yinhe gave a half‑hearted reply, and Zhou Zhaoning continued, "If you're not going to put effort into it, just shut it down—any part of our family's conglomerate you could take over, yet you insist on running it yourself."

She was, after all, the older sister, and her words unintentionally carried an educational tone; seeing Zhou Yinhe grow more irritable, Wen Ling interjected, "Zhao Ning sister, it's almost noon—why not stay for lunch? My chef here is no worse than outside; I brought him from M Country."

Zhou Zhaoning sighed, looked at her brother's stubborn head, and declined, "I'm heading back to the company; I'll come again when I get the chance."

She rose, walked to the window, patted her brother's head, and said, "Take good care of yourself; call me if anything comes up."

Zhou Yinhe waved his hand trying to shake hers off, irritated, and said, "I know."