Chapter 101: Owe You a Life

About an hour later, Song Tingshen and Zhong Xiao descended from Baiyun Mountain.

On their way back to the residential compound, Zhong Xiao noticed that the military hospital building was brightly lit.

She stopped in her tracks and said to Song Tingshen, “I want to go in and have a look.”

Knowing what she wished to see, Song Tingshen replied, “I’ll go with you.”

“That’s not necessary,” Zhong Xiao said. “I’ll be fine on my own.”

Hou Manling’s prejudice and dissatisfaction toward Zhong Xiao all stemmed from Song Tingshen. Although Zhong Xiao didn’t care much for her either, at a time like this, there was no need to provoke Hou Manling any further.

“I’ll just go see how things are and come right back. I know the way, you should head home,” Zhong Xiao said.

Song Tingshen glanced at her, then nodded in silence.

With Zuo Lan still at the hospital, Song Tingshen was relatively at ease.

Zhong Xiao took the side path and entered the military hospital. At the first-floor nurses’ station, she inquired, “Excuse me, which operating room is Comrade Hou Manling in?”

The nurses recognized Zhong Xiao immediately and replied, “She’s on the third floor. Director Zuo and old Master Qin are both there.”

Zhong Xiao nodded her thanks and made her way up the stairwell.

No sooner had she reached the top than she ran into Zuo Lan, who was just leaving a ward.

Seeing Zhong Xiao, Zuo Lan’s eyes lightened with obvious joy. “Xiaoxiao, what brings you here?”

Zhong Xiao glanced into the ward and said, “I was passing by and thought I’d check in. Auntie Zuo, did the medicine I gave you help? How did the surgery go?”

Zuo Lan exhaled deeply, took Zhong Xiao’s hand, and patted it gently. “The operation was a great success. Xiaoxiao, thank you truly. If you hadn’t brought those medicines in time, Manling might not have made it off the operating table. You saved her life.”

“I’m glad the operation went well.”

Hearing this, Zhong Xiao finally felt at ease. Despite all the conflicts she had had with Hou Manling, Zhong Xiao still didn’t wish for a nurse who saved lives to be killed by enemy agents.

“Well, if there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave now,” Zhong Xiao said.

But Zuo Lan held her back. “Come with me and see her. Manling knows it was your medicine that saved her—she has a lot she wants to say to you.”

At the thought of her previous confrontations with Hou Manling, Zhong Xiao felt a shiver run down her spine. She hastily took a step back, waving her hand. “No, no… that’s not necessary, I’ll just go home.”

Before Zhong Xiao could finish, a weak voice drifted from the ward: “Is that Zhong Xiao?”

Zhong Xiao’s words halted abruptly. She fell silent for several seconds.

Hou Manling spoke again, “Zhong Xiao, I have something I’d like to say to you. Could you come in for a moment?”

Somewhat at a loss, Zhong Xiao looked to Zuo Lan.

Zuo Lan nodded to her gently and said, “Go in. You and Manling are both good children. What happened before was just a misunderstanding. She truly has something to say to you.”

Zuo Lan had said as much as she could. Zhong Xiao saw no reason to refuse any longer and pushed open the door to the ward.

There, as expected, lay Hou Manling, looking frail on the hospital bed.

She wore an oxygen tube clipped to her nose, her chest wrapped in gauze, while a nearby monitor recorded the rhythm of her heart.

Though she had been rescued, Hou Manling was still terribly weak.

She blinked upon seeing Zhong Xiao.

Their gazes met for a long moment before Hou Manling finally spoke: “Zhong Xiao, thank you. I owe you my life. One day, I will repay you.”