NOVPUBSong Yan was stunned by her words. His focus wasn't on how "bad" she claimed to be, but on how much she liked him, that she was willing to go to such lengths just to be with him.
When Su Lanying didn't hear him respond, she assumed he regretted everything and hated or was even disgusted with her. Her chest tightened suddenly, and she gasped for breath.
Seeing her suddenly gasping for breath, Song Yan panicked and quickly said, "Lanying, breathe deeply. Calm down. You can't get agitated."
She tried to clear her mind and followed his instructions to breathe in and breathe out.
Once her condition stabilized, Song Yan finally said, "Lanying, I'm so happy that you like me this much."
She blinked in confusion at his words. Raising her head, she looked at him and asked, "Song Yan, are you sick? Didn't you hear my words just now?"
Hearing her words, Song Yan let out a soft chuckle and said, "If you went so far as to scheme against my mother, that just shows how much you care about me. If you had no feelings at all, you wouldn't have done anything."
The moment she heard this, Su Lanying was stunned. She didn't know how this man's brain worked, but he sure was a very positive-thinking man.
"You don't need to explain. I understand," he added, smiling with genuine warmth.
Looking at his foolish grin, Su Lanying lowered her head and muttered softly, "You are such a fool."
"Mhmm. I'm a fool—your fool," Song Yan nodded in agreement.
The two of them sat on the ground, with Song Yan holding Su Lanying in his arms. Fifteen minutes later, he heard her soft, even breathing and finally let out a sigh of relief.
Despite his slim frame, he was strong enough to carry her to her bedroom. After covering her with a thin blanket and closing the curtains, he returned to the living room to clean up the medicine and pack his bag.
After he was done, he went to the kitchen and tried to light the stove to boil medicine for her. It took him a long time, and when the stove finally lit up, the backyard was filled with smoke.
When Su Lide, Su Jian, and Meng Qiaoping returned from the mountain foothills, they were shocked to see their house filled with smoke.
Worried that something had happened to Su Lanying, the three of them ran toward the backyard. Noticing that the smoke was coming from the kitchen, Su Jian rushed over while shouting, "Lanying, are you alright?!"
Startled by his loud voice, Song Yan dropped the ladle in his hand. Turning around, he met Su Jian's worried gaze.
Realizing it wasn't his sister, Su Jian asked in surprise, "Doctor Song, what are you doing in my house?"
Not long after, Su Lide and his wife also entered the kitchen. Seeing Song Yan's cheeks stained with ash and dirt, they were taken aback.
After a moment, Song Yan regained his senses and greeted them, "Uncle, Aunt, Brother Jian, you are back."
"Doctor Song, what are you doing? Where is my sister?" Su Jian asked again.
"Lanying was unwell this morning, and after getting an injection, she is sleeping in her room. I'm boiling some medicine for her and making porridge," Song Yan explained.
Hearing this, Meng Qiaoping came back to her senses. She quickly walked over and picked up the ladle from the ground.
Then she took another ladle from the cabinet and said, "Doctor Song, thank you for your help. You can go outside, I will take care of the medicine and porridge."
Since she had said so, Song Yan didn't insist and replied, "Then I will leave the rest to you, Aunt Su."
Meng Qiaoping nodded and quickly checked the porridge after the men left the kitchen. Fortunately, the fire wasn't too strong, so the porridge wasn't burnt.
She added more water and stirred it before taking a slab of salted pork and a handful of vegetables from the bamboo basket. After washing them, she chopped them and added them into the porridge.
While she was cooking, Su Lide and Su Jian watched Song Yan wash the dirt and ash from his face and hands before they all went to the living room.
Sitting in the living room, Su Lide asked, "Doctor Song, what's going on? Why did my daughter suddenly become unwell? Did her illness act up again?"
Song Yan thought for a while before deciding to explain. Looking at Su Lide and Su Jian, he stood up, bowed deeply to them, and said, "Uncle Su, Brother Jian, I'm sorry."
The moment they saw him like this, both of them were startled and quickly stood up to stop his bow. Su Jian pulled him up and said, "Doctor Song, what are you doing? Why are you suddenly apologizing to us?"
After being pulled up, Song Yan clenched his fists and said, "Uncle Su, this morning, my mother came and had a chat with Lanying. I don't know exactly what they talked about, but not long after my mother left, Lanying fainted."
After he said this, Su Lide and Su Jian's expressions changed instantly. The two of them exchanged glances before sitting down again.
Noticing the change in their moods, Song Yan didn't dare to sit and remained standing.
With his hands clenched at his sides, he said, "Uncle Su, I apologize for my mother's sudden visit and also for any words that might have agitated Lanying and triggered her illness."
Su Lide wasn't a foolish man, and he understood something must have happened between his daughter and Song Yan. Otherwise, his mother wouldn't have traveled all the way from the capital just to visit a village girl.
After drinking some water, he gestured for Song Yan to sit and said, "Doctor Song, you don't have to apologize. It's our family that should apologize for causing your mother to misunderstand."
The moment Song Yan heard his words, something felt off in his heart. Instinctively, he didn't want to hear what Su Lide was going to say next. Opening his mouth, he said, "Uncle Su, I—"
