Cen Jin always knew that Ms. Qin was someone with a hard mouth but a soft heart. Although she never showed her concern verbally, Cen Jin knew that Ms. Qin truly loved and cared for her. Especially after her father passed away, Ms. Qin placed all her emotional reliance on her.
Therefore, Cen Jin never wanted to worry Ms. Qin, but with what happened today, she couldn’t hide it from her.
"What do you mean okay! Your leg is wrapped up , what exactly happened?" Ms. Qin interrupted her with a sob.
"Well, I just got bumped by an electric scooter on my way home today."
"Bumped?" Ms. Qin’s voice caught again.
"Mom, I’m already okay, really. The doctor said it’s not serious, as long as I rest well, avoid water, and don’t force myself to walk," Cen Jin knew Ms. Qin was worried, so she smiled and held her hand, gently comforting her.
After hearing Cen Jin’s account, Ms. Qin slapped her back, almost knocking her breath out, followed by anxious scolding: "You silly girl, what do you use your eyes for? You need to watch the road even when texting! Luckily, it was just an electric scooter today. What if it had been...?"
"Mom, I’ll be careful in the future, I swear I’ll be careful. Something won’t happen again. I’m sorry for worrying you." Cen Jin leaned on Ms. Qin’s shoulder, affectionately acting spoiled.
Ms. Qin gave her an annoyed glance, finally calming down: "Of course, there can’t be a next time."
Later, with Ms. Qin Xuesu’s help, Cen Jin managed to take a difficult shower and went to bed.
Early the next day, Cen Jin hopped on one leg to the bathroom. While coming out, she nearly tripped but instinctively covered her mouth, keeping herself from crying out to avoid worrying Ms. Qin again. Dressing up and preparing to go downstairs, she faced a dilemma.
With her leg in its current condition, going downstairs seemed to be the hardest task.
Just when she was about to call Ms. Qin for help, a conversation from downstairs reached her: "Oh! Bai Zhou is here."
"Aunt Qin, good morning."
"Come in, have you had breakfast?"
"Perfect timing, Auntie made plenty for breakfast. Join us."
"You’re here for Cen Jin, right? She’s upstairs! She should be awake." Ms. Qin smiled as she invited Jiang Baizhou in: "Yesterday, Cen Jin told me everything, I’m really grateful to you."
"Aunt Qin, no need to be so polite." Jiang Baizhou replied courteously, glancing towards the stairs: "I’ll go up and check on her."
"Sure, go ahead! Cen Jin’s leg might make going downstairs inconvenient, sorry to trouble you a bit. Later, come down for breakfast together."
Jiang Baizhou responded softly and then strode up the stairs with his long legs. At the second flight, he saw Cen Jin standing at the stairway with one leg raised, their eyes met, and Cen Jin smiled: "Morning."
Jiang Baizhou looked at her leg and approached her: "How’s the leg?"
"Ready to go downstairs?"
As the words left her mouth, Jiang Baizhou suddenly reached out and lifted her horizontally without warning, scaring Cen Jin into immediately wrapping her arms around his neck, her survival instinct blazing.
She stared at him wide-eyed: "What are you doing?"
"Can you walk down by yourself?"
Jiang Baizhou shot her a ’there you have it’ glance, carrying her downstairs effortlessly, leaving Cen Jin at a loss for words.