"You have to eat." He Teng pushed the clear porridge in front of He Zhilan, ordering her with a stern voice, then thrust the spoon into her hand.
He Teng isn’t the kind of man who can coax people. At the moment, he wouldn’t have the mindset to coax He Zhilan either.
He Teng’s frosty tone threw He Zhilan off for a moment, she bit her lip, nodded her head, but only gently stirred the clear porridge in her bowl, she had no appetite at all.
"Brother~" He Zhilan sneaked a glance at He Teng, her brow wrinkled, then released what was in her hand, stretched out to tug at He Teng’s sleeve, whispering, "Brother, can you forgive me this once? I swear, I will never disobey you again."
"First, eat." He Teng shook off He Zhilan’s hand, perhaps seeing her complexion was genuinely bad, he softened his tone slightly, "You haven’t eaten anything since morning. The doctor said your body is weak, eat at regular meal times even if you’re unwell. If you can’t finish it, at least eat a few bites to keep you going. You won’t get a stomachache when you take your medicine later. We’ll talk about it when you are better."
He Teng’s words left He Zhilan with nothing more to say. She nodded in agreement, at least for now, He Teng still cared about her health.
He Zhilan could only manage to drink half the bowl of clear porridge, and He Teng finished the rest with a few bites. Only then did He Zhilan remember that she hadn’t eaten anything since her brother had been with her since last night. Had he not eaten anything either?
A wave of guilt washed over He Zhilan.
Once again, she was hospitalized, once again, it was a waste of money. That money was earned by He Teng’s hard work, and he didn’t even afford to have breakfast. Instead, he ate her leftovers.
After a while, the nurse came to deliver the medicine, telling them that there would be an infusion in the afternoon. She gave the dose and left.
Watching He Teng place each pill from the meal’s dose in her hand as the nurse instructed, He Zhilan’s brows furrowed tighter. She had always hated taking medicine, especially these large capsules. Even with water, she always ended up choking.
After taking her medicine, He Zhilan lay back on the bed. The heat from her fever left her feeling drowsy, her head felt heavy. It seemed as if it were filled with lead, and her temples throbbed with a hammering pain.
"Brother, I feel so bad~" He Zhilan murmured, her voice weak from her condition. She was curled up on her side, looking timidly at He Teng. As she reached out to take his hand, this time, He Teng didn’t shake her off.
"Brother, it’s my fault this time. You have every right to be angry. If you’re really angry, why don’t you hit me? Hit me until you feel better, then forgive me, okay?" She tugged at He Teng’s sleeve. He Teng didn’t react, so He Zhilan slid her hand into his palm. Even though he didn’t tighten his grip, just having her hand lying in his palm made He Zhilan feel secure.
"You , and I should hit you? After hitting you, will you go back and complain to Dad, saying how you were sick and I still hit you?" He Teng scoffed, "I save my strength for serving our country, not for hitting women."