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Chapter 572: Chapter 562 Awakening
Dr. Wang’s advice was actually all known to Shen Yunfang, but when it really came to facing the issues, she herself wasn’t sure anymore, and it still felt safer to have the doctor’s orders.
After lingering in Dr. Wang’s office for quite some time, Shen Yunfang finally took the notes she had made and went back to the ward. "Xiaohai, has your company commander awakened?" Since she left, naturally Xiaohai had taken over the watch.
"No, the company commander is still sleeping," Xiaohai said, eyes fixed on the person in the bed, feeling somewhat stifled. He had been keeping watch over the company commander for so many days without him waking up. Just yesterday he had something to attend to and asked Yunfang for a night off. Alas, the commander had to wake up last night, of all times. You could imagine how pent up he felt.
Shen Yunfang walked over to take a look, confirmed that Li Hongjun was still not awake, and then sat down to discuss Li Hongjun’s meals with Xiaohai.
The food in the cafeteria was decent, but it did not suit Li Hongjun for when he woke up and needed soups and broths. Shen Yunfang hoped Xiaohai could use his identity as a member of the military family to communicate with the cafeteria staff about making some rice porridge for Li Hongjun.
From the list of clear liquid foods Dr. Wang had provided that Li Hongjun could eat in the coming days, the cafeteria could only offer rice porridge and egg drop soup. Shen Yunfang felt that rice porridge was much more nutritious than egg drop soup, so the best choice was the porridge. However, to make porridge that brings out a rich taste takes time and patience. In ordinary circumstances, asking for such a favor might not be readily accepted, so Shen Yunfang wanted to leverage the influence of the military.
After receiving his task, Xiaohai ran off in a hurry.
Having entrusted this major matter, Shen Yunfang felt somewhat relieved and turned her attention back to Li Hongjun.
It was now June, and the temperature outside had reached around thirty degrees Celsius. Still, the room was slightly cooler than outside due to some shade, hovering at about twenty-seven or twenty-eight degrees Celsius. Shen Yunfang put her hand on Li Hongjun’s face, feeling an inexplicable pang of heartache. Not to mention that his face had become noticeably thin, but for a man like Li Hongjun, who used to sweat easily, to now be so frail, wrapped in so much gauze and without a trace of sweat, it was distressing.
She made a silent vow that once he woke up, she would ensure he received proper nourishment—from top to toe. She was determined to restore his original physical strength.
When lunchtime arrived, Xiaohai rushed back, brought Yunfang a portion of food, glanced at the still-unconscious company commander, and hurried off again to check on the pot. He had borrowed a stove and a pot from the cafeteria, but he had to tend to the porridge himself. So, his haste was mainly to keep an eye on the pot.
Just as the afternoon shift began, Dr. Wang arrived, holding a stack of Li Hongjun’s test results. She didn’t go through every single report with Shen Yunfang but shared the final outcome instead.
"Looking at the examinations, there are still some shadows in Li Hongjun’s brain, likely blood clots that have not been absorbed yet. However, the shadows seen in the scans now have diminished since last observed. We have reason to believe that due to Company Commander Li’s strong will to survive, his body has autonomously absorbed these clots. Now that he has awakened, it must be because there are fewer blood clots putting less pressure on his nerves. If this progress continues, the remaining shadows should be fully absorbed soon. I believe it’s just a matter of time," Dr. Wang said, herself relieved by such a positive development.
Shen Yunfang was also very happy to hear this. "That’s wonderful! I can’t thank Dr. Wang enough. Although he’s not completely recovered yet, with gradual care, he will surely get there one day."
"As long as the family members are informed, that will do," Dr. Wang said before she planned to leave.
"Doctor Wang, I have another question. How is our Li Hongjun’s injuries doing now? Can all these bandages be removed?" Shen Yunfang asked. In this sweltering heat, wrapping someone up like a mummy can’t be comfortable. She had seen the nurses coming to change his dressings in the past few days, but they always rewrapped the bandages after changing the dressings. She didn’t remember surgeries requiring bandaging for such a long time in the future.
Upon hearing her, Doctor Wang bent over to personally undo the bandages on Li Hongjun’s arm, examined the wound, and then nodded, "Yes, it’s completely fine now. I’ll have a nurse come and remove the stitches that haven’t been taken out for Captain Li in a moment. For minor wounds like this, a piece of gauze is sufficient. Bigger wounds are safer with bandages." Because Captain Li had been unconscious even before the surgery, he had been relying on IV fluids to sustain his life. Consequently, because his nutrition had not kept up, his wounds were reluctant to heal. And since the wounds on his limbs required stitch removal, they’re still bandaged more than half a month later.
Shen Yunfang was quite happy to hear that the stitches could be taken out.
So, after Doctor Wang left, when a young nurse arrived, Shen Yunfang busied herself alongside the nurse. They removed most of the bandages from Li Hongjun’s body. However, there were two long wounds on his thigh which couldn’t be unbanded, so they were left as is.
After removing the bandages, Li Hongjun transformed from a mummy into a patched-up man.
After covering the naked Li Hongjun with a sheet, Shen Yunfang asked, "Can I give him a wipe down?" When he was first brought to the hospital, he was covered in wounds, so he definitely couldn’t be wiped down. After such a long time lying half-dead in bed, especially wrapped up like that, he obviously hadn’t been bathed, so she figured he was thoroughly dirty.
"Yes, but be careful not to touch the wounds," the young nurse instructed responsibly.
"Alright." After the nurse left, Shen Yunfang took an enamel basin, filled it with some hot water, and began to wipe down Li Hongjun, starting with his face using a soaked towel.
She tried to be as gentle as possible, avoiding the patches, and counted while wiping. Li Hongjun had been stitched up in twenty-two places, all new injuries. The smallest was the length of a finger, but the largest was as long as a palm, looking extremely fierce.
Seeing the ferocious wounds on his thigh, Shen Yunfang genuinely ached for him. At that moment, she couldn’t help but wonder why he would choose to fight in such dangerous places instead of living peacefully. Was it worth it? Couldn’t he do something else? Did he have to be a soldier?
"Wipe..." A harsh voice suddenly broke the silence in the room, startling the lost-in-thought Shen Yunfang. She threw the towel into the basin and leaned close to Li Hongjun’s face, "You’re awake."
"Hmm, water." Li Hongjun’s eyes were much more open than before, but the spark in them was still a lot dimmer than usual.
"Okay, just wait, I’ll get you some right away," Shen Yunfang hurriedly stood up to pour a basin of warm water, washed her hands, absorbed some water with a new cotton ball, and then brought it to Li Hongjun’s lips. "Open your mouth."
Li Hongjun obediently opened his mouth slightly, and Shen Yunfang squeezed the water from the cotton ball into Li Hongjun’s mouth with her index finger and thumb.
After repeating this three times, Shen Yunfang stopped, "You haven’t had anything in your stomach for a long time, so you shouldn’t drink too much water at once. Are you still thirsty? Hold on a bit, and I’ll feed you more in a few minutes." 𝔫𝖔𝖛𝖕𝔲𝔟.𝔠𝖔𝖒
