Chapter 3

"How about I take care of him?"

Li Jie's voice rang out at the perfect moment, sounding like music from heaven.

"After all, this is all a situation I caused."

Wei Xingbang thought for a moment before speaking, but Wei Jin quickly agreed: "That would be great. If you take care of me, Li Jie, I should recover even faster."

Just like that, Ceng Li officially became Wei Jin's hospital caregiver, helping to look after his daily needs and providing care throughout the night.

Wei Xingbang hurriedly finalized his schedule and left that very evening.

Time soon reached 9:30, and the hospital was officially turning off the lights. Ceng Li had been busy running around helping Wei Jin finish washing up and was just preparing to let him rest when Wei Jin stammered: "Li Jie, I need to use the restroom."

Ceng Li hurriedly brought over the crutches and was just about to help Wei Jin to the restroom when Wei Jin asked in a low voice: "Li Jie, my sense of balance hasn't recovered yet. Can you help me?"

As soon as these words were out, Ceng Li's face turned bright red instantly; she understood what Wei Jin meant.

Wei Jin's right leg was injured, and he couldn't stand steadily on one foot. Coupled with his lack of balance, he couldn't stand firmly in the restroom using only crutches; he needed someone to support him.

Ceng Li let out a silent wail inside; she had to bite the bullet and pay back the debt she owed.

After a difficult shuffle, the two arrived at the restroom, and Ceng Li felt like her whole world was falling apart.

Wei Jin rested his right hand on Ceng Li's shoulder and fumbled with his left. The hospital gown had no zippers, only buttons; he either had to undo them or take off his pants entirely.

After a flurry of movements, Wei Jin turned his head to look at Ceng Li, only to see her eyes tightly shut, and then he pleaded:

"Li Jie, help me undo the buttons. I can't manage with just my left hand."

Ceng Li truly regretted it to death at this moment. If she had known, she would have called a professional caregiver. Why did she have to act so capable? Although she was no longer an ignorant, naive girl, having to do something like this still made her feel quite awkward.

Taking a deep breath, Ceng Li reached out her left hand and coordinated with Wei Jin's left hand, finally managing to undo the damn buttons.

It was just that Li Jie was a bit nervous during the process and used a bit too much force, slightly discovering Wei Jin's "strengths." She was somewhat shocked, and listening to the powerful sound of the water flow, Ceng Li actually felt a bit flushed; her dry spell had simply been too long.

Three minutes later, the two of them made it back to the hospital bed with great difficulty.

It was the height of a sunny July day in Beijing, but there was no air conditioning in the ward. After this short round trip of barely ten meters, Ceng Li was covered in sweat.

She happened to be wearing a slim-fit, short-sleeved white shirt today, which was slightly dampened on the chest and back. The thin, cool fabric clung to her body, making her fine figure stand out even more.

Seeing this scene, Wei Jin felt a surge of heat rush to his head. Not knowing what he was thinking, he gathered his courage, cupped Li Jie's face in his hands, and kissed her heavily.

Ceng Li was still panting heavily; the six-foot-tall boy was somewhat heavy, and faced with the sudden, passionate kiss, she hadn't reacted at all. Three seconds later, just as she was about to resist, her defenses had already fallen.

This passionate kiss lasted for more than ten seconds before Ceng Li finally reclaimed her ground and broke free.

Wei Jin took the opportunity to hold Ceng Li and lie down on the hospital bed. Just as Ceng Li was about to struggle, Wei Jin whispered in her ear:

"Li Jie, don't move. Let me hold you."

His voice was full of gentleness and anticipation. Ceng Li felt increasingly powerless, so she let Wei Jin hold her and didn't say a word.

Worried that Ceng Li might be angry, Wei Jin didn't make any other unnecessary moves; he simply stroked her hair and kissed her forehead.

By now, Ceng Li, who had initially been flustered, had calmed down and said:

"Xiao Jin, let's get some sleep early."

After saying this, she didn't wait for Wei Jin's reply, broke free, returned to the companion bed, and went to sleep on her own. However, her violently pounding heart showed that she was far from as calm as she appeared.

Wei Jin also felt some regret; he had been too impulsive. He didn't know if his reckless behavior would make Ceng Li resent him. He wanted to say something but didn't know how to start. With a thousand thoughts racing through his mind, he, who already suffered from some insomnia, found it even harder to fall asleep.

He didn't know how much time had passed, but Wei Jin still hadn't fallen asleep. Anyone who has experienced insomnia knows that when you can't sleep, you always toss and turn in bed, and Wei Jin was no exception.

Perhaps Wei Jin's movements were too loud, or perhaps Ceng Li also had hidden worries and hadn't fallen asleep either, but Ceng Li's voice came from the darkness: "Xiao Jin, why aren't you sleeping?"

"Li Jie, did I wake you? I'm sorry, I just can't seem to sleep."

Wei Jin truly felt quite embarrassed; he was letting her take care of him, yet he had done something out of line.

"I was too impulsive earlier. I'm sorry, Li Jie."

There was silence in the darkness. Wei Jin thought Ceng Li was truly angry and continued to explain: "Li Jie, just now, looking at you, I don't know why, but I couldn't control myself. I..."

"Alright, I don't blame you. At your age, it's easy to be impulsive. Don't do this next time."

Where Wei Jin couldn't see, Ceng Li's face was flushed. She feigned composure to soothe the "little boy" she thought he was. "Li Jie, then keep me company and chat for a while, okay?"

Wei Jin was thinking about how to make their time together as less awkward as possible.

"Alright, what do you want to talk about?"

"Tell me about your experiences. I only know you're an actress and graduated from the Central Academy of Drama; I don't know anything else."

Ceng Li's emotions were also churning, and since there was nothing to do during the day, she simply gave up on sleeping and started chatting with this boy who was seven years her junior.

Actually, Ceng Li's experience was very simple. She was born into an ordinary Manchu family, and her parents were both regular employees. From a young age, her mother sent her to the local Children's Palace to study posture, vocal music, dance, and more.

During elementary school, the HUB Province Opera Troupe went to various regions in the province to recruit opera talent. At that time, Ceng Li was selected by the secondary school affiliated with the Opera Academy. After graduating from elementary school, she was admitted to the Opera Academy, majoring in the lead female role.

After graduation, Ceng Li was assigned to work at the HUB Province Opera Troupe. Because there were few performance opportunities and she had nothing to do, she decided to continue her studies. In 1996, she was admitted to the Central Academy of Drama with the third-highest score in her major, and after graduating in 2000, she joined the All-China Federation of Trade Unions Art Troupe.

"Wow, Li Jie, your experience is so rich. Does that mean you had already started working before, and then went to study at the Central Academy of Drama?"

"That's right, so I was considered one of the older ones in my class. When I first started school, I didn't have any confidence at all."

Ceng Li recalled how insecure she was when she first entered the Central Academy of Drama, feeling a mix of nostalgia and self-mockery.

"Li Jie, you're so beautiful, how could you not have confidence? Look, didn't you just charm me earlier?"

Seeing that the matter of him being rude to a beauty had been turned over, Wei Jin began to test the waters again.

"You never have a serious moment. Enough about me, tell me about yourself."

Ceng Li was also curious about this Beijing Film Academy boy, so she couldn't help but ask.

Wei Jin then briefly described the life of the original owner in his mind to Ceng Li, and in the process, he truly merged with the original owner.

When she heard that Wei Jin's mother had already passed away, Ceng Li felt some pity and gained some understanding of his impulsive behavior.

When she heard Wei Jin say that when he was in a coma, it felt like being trapped in a box, plunged into darkness, and unable to move, Ceng Li felt a strong sense of self-reproach: "Xiao Jin, I'm sorry. It's a good thing you woke up now, otherwise I..."

"Hey, Li Jie, how many times have you said that? How about something more practical?"

Seeing that Ceng Li was about to fall into self-reproach again, Wei Jin didn't want to comfort her endlessly, so he spoke up to tease her.

"Hmm, alright. Then tell me, what kind of practical thing do you want?"

Ceng Li truly did not dwell on her own problems anymore, but instead concerned herself with how she could compensate Wei Jin.

"I can't sleep at night, how about you keep me company?"

"Am I not keeping you company right now?"

Ceng Li was somewhat puzzled.

"No, I mean, can I hold you while I sleep? Don't overthink it, I'm a disabled person now and can't do anything; it's just that with someone sleeping beside me, my sleep will be better."

Wei Jin was not lying to her; when his insomnia was severe in his past life, he truly needed a woman.

"Hmm, alright then. It's a deal, you mustn't mess around, or I'll tell your dad."

Ceng Li felt that Wei Jin might be lacking Amour, so she reluctantly agreed, thinking that in the hospital, he probably couldn't do anything anyway.

"Okay, then Li Jie, hurry and come over."

Ceng Li dawdled while putting on her clothes, but still crawled into Wei Jin's quilt, her heart feeling somewhat unsettled.

Yet to her surprise, Wei Jin fell asleep very quickly, which made Ceng Li believe his explanation, and she became less resistant to it.

Over the next few days, Wei Jin and Ceng Li both grew accustomed to sleeping together at night, and the two became increasingly intimate, often displaying a tacit understanding like a couple in the heat of love.

Ceng Li also could not explain why she was like this; her relationship with Wei Jin was somewhat strange now, as if the two were just a thin layer of window paper away from crossing the line.

Ceng Li took care of him as if he were her boyfriend, going home during the day to make a Nutritional Meal, and continuing to come over to keep him company at night.

Wei Jin, meanwhile, began his miserable life of typing; that's right, having received notice from Lin Xue, *Sword Snow Stride* had officially begun serialization, the market response was good, and in a few more days, he could renegotiate his manuscript fees.

A newbie asking for the attention of the big shots (End of this chapter)