033. A Gift for My Little Sister
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After everything that had happened, Ruan Yan had concluded that Lin Shan was a powerful figure hiding in plain sight.
A faint bitterness welled up inside her. If she had been given a choice, she would not have wanted to be claimed by an old man like Hua Xiong either.
“Ah, if I’d known he was so capable, I would have handled Lin Jiabao myself.”
When Lin Jiabao had first been admitted to the hospital, he had actually been assigned to her. But after looking into the Lin family’s circumstances, she had decided there was no profit to be made from them, so she had passed him on to Ruan Yan. She had never imagined that she was handing Ruan Yan a fortune.
It was only when Liu Ying reached Lin Shan that she noticed Ruan Yan standing nearby. Her pretty face immediately flushed, while Ruan Yan acted as though she had heard nothing and walked away on her own.
Lin Shan teased her, “You have quite a tolerance for alcohol. After drinking all that, you can still walk in a straight line.”
Liu Ying’s face turned crimson with embarrassment. The two of them chatted for a while by the elevator, then went their separate ways after stepping out.
Liu Ying headed straight to the outpatient department. From a distance, she saw Ruan Yan chatting with several nurses.
“Hey, look! She’s here!”
The nurse who spoke was named Jin Minjun, and she had always been on good terms with Ruan Yan.
“Ruan Yan, is what you said true? Liu Ying has already found herself a benefactor?”
The doctor beside her, Ding Lingling, wore an expression of keen curiosity.
Liu Ying was something of a celebrity here. With her exceptional looks and figure, she had always been surrounded by admirers, yet she had never taken a liking to any of them.
When Ruan Yan arrived that morning, she had immediately told everyone that Liu Ying had found herself a wealthy patron and had gone drinking with him the previous night. Perhaps they had even gone all the way.
The entire department had erupted in excitement.
But before they could ask for more details, the subject of their discussion arrived, and Ruan Yan promptly fell silent.
Liu Ying knew perfectly well that they must have been talking about her, but she did not care in the slightest. After collecting the reports, she went off to make her rounds.
Once Liu Ying had left, the women gathered together again.
Looking at Liu Ying’s retreating figure, Ruan Yan said, “Of course she found one. Let me tell you, that man is a relative of the patient in Bed B18, and he’s incredibly rich.”
She then recounted what she had seen at the auction.
The others were astonished.
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“Wow, all that gold worth four million belonged to him?”
“Two hundred thousand for a single flower? I really don’t understand the tastes of rich people!”
The women’s faces were filled with envy, jealousy, and resentment.
Ding Lingling snorted. “Liu Ying always acted so aloof. I thought she was some kind of fairy. But when a genuinely rich man came along, didn’t she take the bait immediately?”
Ruan Yan chuckled. “That’s what you call waiting until the price is right. She’s clever, and she did a good job of keeping up appearances. This time, that rich man was completely taken in. He probably thinks Liu Ying is some pure and innocent goddess.”
As the saying went, birds of a feather flock together. The women who gathered around Ruan Yan were all highly materialistic. Every day, they discussed whose backup boyfriend had spent the most money, or who had managed to hook some rich heir.
After Liu Ying finished making her rounds and returned, the women finally dispersed reluctantly. Once they were gone, a young nurse who had not taken part in the discussion came over and said, “Sister Liu, they were saying nasty things about you just now.”
The nurse’s name was Zhou Yao. Liu Ying had always looked after her, so she naturally took Liu Ying’s side.
Liu Ying smiled. “What were they saying?”
Zhou Yao said indignantly, “They said you were clinging to a rich man, and that you had only been pretending to be pure all along. They said that as soon as you met someone wealthy, you immediately threw yourself at him.”
Liu Ying felt not the slightest displeasure upon hearing this. She knew perfectly well that she was not that kind of person, and neither was Lin Shan.
With an unconcerned expression, she said, “Let them talk. Their mouths belong to them. No matter how much they say, I won’t lose a piece of flesh.”
Meanwhile, Lin Shan arrived at Lin Jiabao’s hospital room. Chen Yuanying was accompanying him at the moment, while Lin Wei had already gone back to school.
After Lin Shan sat down, Lin Jiabao suddenly called out, “A-Shan.”
“What is it, Dad?”
Lin Jiabao said slowly, “Weiwei’s birthday is in a few days. Now that things are better for us, why don’t you give her a proper birthday celebration?”
Lin Shan slapped his forehead and smiled bitterly. “I completely forgot about that…”
Thinking back, ever since he had gotten married, he had never properly celebrated Lin Wei’s birthday. This time, he had to make it up to her. He nodded at once.
“All right, Dad. I’ll arrange everything.”
Lin Jiabao sighed inwardly.
Weiwei, this is all I can do for you. Some things must ultimately be fought for on your own…
Before long, Liu Ying arrived at Lin Jiabao’s room. She and Lin Shan exchanged a smile, after which Liu Ying began her routine examination.
When she had finished, Lin Shan followed her out of the room and asked, “Are you free during your lunch break later?”
Faced with Lin Shan’s sudden invitation, Liu Ying’s heart began to race. She ran a hand through her hair and said, “Hmm… I should be free. Why?”
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Lin Shan rubbed the back of his head. “Well, I’d like to buy you lunch. There’s also something I’d like to ask your advice about.”
Curious, Liu Ying asked, “What is it?”
Lin Shan had helped her so many times that she was more than willing to return the favor if she had the chance.
Lin Shan said, “I have a younger sister. Lin Wei—you know her.”
At once, Lin Wei’s exceptionally pure and beautiful face appeared in Liu Ying’s mind. She nodded.
“Yes, I know her. She’s such a beautiful girl. You’re lucky to have such a wonderful sister.”
Lin Shan said, “Her birthday is in a few days. I’ve been struggling to make ends meet all these years, so I never properly celebrated her birthday. At noon, I’d like you to help me choose something as her birthday present.”
For some reason, a trace of disappointment flickered through Liu Ying’s heart. Still, she immediately nodded.
“Sure, no problem.”
Liu Ying, what are you thinking? You’ve only known him for a few days, and you’re already worrying about the gift he wants to buy…
She took a deep breath and said, “Then call me at lunchtime.”
Lin Shan nodded.
The two parted at the hospital-room door. When lunchtime arrived, Lin Shan went to the underground parking lot first and picked Liu Ying up there. The two of them then left together.
Neither of them noticed that someone had been watching them from the shadows.
It was Ruan Yan, Jin Minjun, and Ding Lingling.
Watching the car drive away, Ding Lingling looked at Ruan Yan in confusion.
“Ruan Yan, is this man really rich? How could a rich person drive a car like that?”
Jin Minjun chimed in, “Exactly… He should at least have a luxury German car.”
“This…”
Ruan Yan was puzzled as well. She thought to herself, You were willing to spend two hundred thousand on a flower for one night, so why won’t you change your car?
In the end, all she could say was, “Perhaps some rich people are simply more low-key.”
Elsewhere, Lin Shan and Liu Ying arrived at a shopping mall and casually chose a barbecue restaurant.
Liu Ying watched Lin Shan intently grilling the meat before him, always placing the cooked pieces into her own plate first. She lightly bit her lower lip and asked,
“Lin Shan, are you divorced?”