By Zephyria 
Episode 18: The Day He Resigned
However, in a society governed by law, he couldn’t simply throw Xie Qingcheng into the bushes and torment him to his heart’s content for revenge.
One way or another, it was a situation he couldn’t escape. The two eventually accepted their fate and returned to the campsite.
Facing each other blankly, the only thing they could manage was small talk.
Adam and Eve didn’t truly love each other either. They simply had no other choice. After all, one cannot spend their time talking to a snake in a tree.
“Kid.”
Xie Qingcheng was the only person in the world who called He Yu “kid.”
And the fact that he used this term meant he was willing to try and talk things through with He Yu.
He Yu tilted his head.
“Yes?”
“…How is the wound on your hand.”
“It’s all healed,” He Yu replied with a smile.
“Why do you care about my hand, Dr. Xie? Back at the police station that day, you looked like you were ready to stab me one more time.”
“…As you know, I truly hate it when people bring up my past.”
“Then do you know that I was sincerely trying to apologize that day?”
“….”
Xie Qingcheng looked up.
He Yu stared at him with a cold gaze, though his lips remained in a smile.
“My way of speaking is just like that, Xie Qingcheng. I was sincerely sorry that day. Like you said, I wasn’t acting fake. Weren’t the doctors the ones telling me to control my emotions since I was young? You’ve been resigned for so long that you seem to have forgotten the words you spoke yourself.”
A brief silence followed.
At the end of the silence, Xie Qingcheng spoke.
“It has been a long time since I resigned.”
“Four years, right?”
Xie Qingcheng said, “…I haven’t been able to ask properly during that time. How are your symptoms now?”
“They’ve improved a lot,” He Yu answered briefly, adding a smile.
“Don’t worry. Even if my attitude toward you isn’t great, I agree with your medical philosophy. I still keep the words you told me in mind.”
Xie Qingcheng looked at the cold young man before him and said, “Good. Your illness requires self-reliance. Regardless of whether your attending physician changes, the most important thing is your own mindset.”
After a short pause, He Yu bowed his head and laughed.
“No, Doctor. Those words sound very familiar.”
As he continued, his eyes turned cold.
“Ah, I remember now. Those are the words you told me. I remember everything, Dr. Xie. The day you quit your job….”
The very day Xie Qingcheng had resigned.
The day before his resignation, He Yu had gone to the library with Xie Xue. When he finished reading and stepped outside, it was raining, so he used his umbrella to escort Xie Xue home.
“Thank you so much. It’s a long way, yet you walked me all the way here.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Do you want to stop by the house for a bit? It’s quite small, but….”
“Would it be an intrusion?”
“Not at all. I’d just be glad if you’re comfortable.”
Xie Xue smiled, took He Yu’s hand, and headed toward the alley leading to her house.
Xie Qingcheng was absent, and Li Ruoqiu was guarding the house instead.
For some reason, the woman was sitting at her desk, laughing heartily while exchanging messages. Even when her husband’s younger sister entered the house, she didn’t even look up and spoke indifferently.
“Xie Xue, you’re back?”
Meeting Li Ruoqiu after a long time, He Yu spoke politely as soon as he entered.
“Sister-in-law, excuse me.”
Hearing that voice, Li Ruoqiu looked up in surprise.
“…Oh, we have a precious guest. Please, sit down.”
She quickly rose from her seat to prepare tea.
He Yu gave a thin smile at the sight.
“Sister-in-law, you don’t have to take care of me. I only came to drop off Xie Xue, so I’ll be leaving soon.”
“How could I let you do that? I’ll bring some snacks, so just sit for a moment.”
Leaving those words, she immediately turned and left the room.
Soon after, Xie Xue whispered quietly.
“My sister-in-law is a really kind person. She’d actually get angry if you refused.”
Even though he had only met her a couple of times, Li Ruoqiu was a woman of such strong personality that it was palpable. Then again, what ordinary woman would marry a patriarchal old-fashioned man like Xie Qingcheng?
He Yu sat down. The old house located in the old district of Huzhou was very narrow. The rooms were even partitioned with curtains. As a middle school boy who had grown tall, he perfectly understood what he should and should not know.
This was the first time he had entered Xie Qingcheng’s private domain. His gaze, scanning the furniture in the house, paused for a moment on the double bed half-hidden by a curtain. For some reason, he felt strange.
He couldn’t imagine Xie Qingcheng and Li Ruoqiu doing that kind of thing.
Out of politeness, He Yu looked away.
“Here, have some tea. I brought some snacks, though I’m not sure if they’ll be to your taste.”
Li Ruoqiu returned with a smile, carrying a tray with a warm teapot and cookies. Neatly sliced fruit was included as well.
“Try some. I baked the cookies myself.”
“Thank you, sister-in-law.”
Li Ruoqiu covered her mouth and laughed, glancing between He Yu and Xie Xue with a peculiar look.
The two children were similar in age. However, boys tend to grow rapidly during puberty. He Yu was no exception. Standing nearly 180cm, wearing a black turtleneck knit instead of a school uniform, paired with jeans and a baseball cap, he didn’t look like a middle schooler at all.
Perhaps that was why, sitting next to Xie Xue, who was a few years older, they looked quite well-matched in terms of height and appearance.
Soon, silence filled the room.
“….”
“….”
“….”
After a few seconds, unable to endure it, Li Ruoqiu let out a “pfft” and waved her hand.
“Alright, alright. You two play. I’ll go over to Aunt Li’s house for a bit.”
“What?”
Xie Xue spoke.
“Sister-in—.”
Regardless, Li Ruoqiu stepped away with light footsteps.
She left behind a very satisfied smile. It was a smile that even a fool could tell what she was thinking, and Xie Xue momentarily felt embarrassed. Her small face turned noticeably bright red.
“U-um, sorry, He Yu. My sister-in-law loves romance dramas. Since she watches so many of them, she tends to think of everything in that direction.”
“It’s okay.”
He Yu looked down and drank the warm tea. Thinking that Li Ruoqiu’s misunderstanding was actually quite helpful to him, he smiled thinly.
“I don’t really mind.”
Since he liked Xie Xue in the first place, there was no need to make a fuss about Li Ruoqiu misunderstanding.
“Right. Your brother is off tomorrow, but he said he’s coming to our house to handle some business. Do you want to come along? Let’s go eat barbecue after the work is done.”
At the mention of food, Xie Xue became very excited and nodded eagerly.
However, that night, upon returning home, He Yu found the living room lights on and opened the door. Lu Zishu was sitting in the living room reading a newspaper.
He Yu was slightly surprised.
It was common for Lu Zishu and He Jiwei to be away from home. The He family had two residences: one in Huzhou and one in Yenzhou. The house in Yenzhou was their main family home, where He Yu had lived until he was five before being dragged south. However, his younger brother’s situation was different. He had to attend school, was busy hanging out with wealthy friends in Yenzhou, and since his stomach churned whenever he saw his omnipotent older brother, he spent most of his time at the main house.
Because the two brothers lived apart like this, his parents wanted to spend time with the innocent and cute youngest child whenever they had a chance. Unless there was something special, the days they spent with He Yu were few and far between.
“…What brings you here?”
“I stopped by after my business trip,” Lu Zishu told her eldest son as she folded the newspaper.
“Sit down. I have something to tell you.”
The third-year middle school boy put down his bag, took off his shoes, and entered. The boy’s mother had to look up at her son.
He Yu lowered his eyelashes.
“Please speak.”
Lu Zishu poured wine into her glass, took a sip, and only then began to speak.
“Tomorrow, Dr. Xie will see you for the last time. This means he will no longer be our family’s primary physician.”
Caught off guard by the unexpected news, He Yu was momentarily stunned.
Only after a long while did he speak in a voice carefully packaged as cold.
“…So suddenly.”
“Yes. I kept it hidden from you. I thought it might be better if you didn’t know in advance.”
“…Why?”
Instead of answering that question, Lu Zishu changed the subject.
“The doctor’s payment is already being settled. Tomorrow, he will finish the handover to me and say his goodbyes. Instead, from now on—.”
She took another sip of wine and added, “Do not associate with the people of that house anymore.”
“….”
“Do you understand what I mean? The doctor and we are not people who live in the same social class. I told Driver Zhao to pick you up this afternoon. But I heard you went to Dr. Xie’s shanty town. With Dr. Xie’s sister.”
Lu Zishu sighed.
“Honestly, I’m disappointed. You know the saying ‘Meng Mu San Qian Zhi Jiao’ (A mother’s move three times for her child’s education), right? It is a parent’s heart to wish for their child to associate with people of a fitting status.”
She scanned her tall son’s body and then looked up to stare at his face, which radiated a masculine aura.
“Especially when dating women.”
The living room fell into a long silence.
At that moment, He Yu abruptly asked, “Is that Dr. Xie’s wish?”
“The resignation is his own wish, and the order not to associate with that family is mine.”
Having confessed candidly, Lu Zishu approached He Yu with a deeper smile. She then reached up and brushed He Yu’s bangs back.
“But wouldn’t my wish and Dr. Xie’s wish be in alignment? Surely, now that he’s even retired, he wouldn’t want to be unnecessarily entangled with our family. How brilliant is that man. That is one of the reasons your father and I like and trust him.”
“….”
“If you really can’t believe it, ask him yourself tomorrow.”
“….”
The next day, Xie Qingcheng arrived.
When all the procedures were nearly finished, after checking He Yu’s condition one last time, he looked at the boy lying on the examination chair and spoke calmly.
“You’ve probably heard everything from your mother.”
“….”
“From tomorrow, I am no longer your primary physician. Even if uncomfortable things happen in the future, make sure you don’t relieve your stress by hurting yourself as you did before. Regardless of which doctor you see, remember that the most important thing is your own mindset.”
As expected, this young doctor gave his advice indifferently, without a single shred of personal emotion.
Lu Zishu was right. There was always a clear boundary in Xie Qingcheng’s heart. The two families were not people who lived in the same world. To him, He Yu was the eldest young master of the He family and He Jiwei’s son.
And Xie Qingcheng was merely a doctor invited by the He family.
Relying on a single doctor to solve psychological difficulties is not a great help to He Yu’s treatment.
Because Xie Qingcheng was very cold, he knew this better than anyone.
While he sincerely cared for, cheered, and mentally encouraged his patients, he left no lingering attachments when parting. True to his nature of always drawing a clean line with his patients, his final greeting was brief.
“…Well then, kid. I hope you get healthy as soon as possible.”
The boy, who had just entered puberty, looked at him while suppressing his anger.
“…Do you have nothing more to say?”
“….”
He waited for a moment, but no answer returned.
He Yu spoke again.
“I see. You have nothing, but I do.”
“….”
“Xie Qingcheng, I’ve met many different doctors during this time. They gave me medicine and injections; they all looked at me simply as a patient. But you were the only one who was different. Honestly, even though I dislike you, I found myself taking your words to heart. Because you were the only one who treated me as a person who must integrate into society. You told me that getting injections and taking medicine isn’t what’s important, but that forming relationships with others and strengthening my inner self is the only way I can endure.”
After a short pause, He Yu continued.
“Dr. Xie. We aren’t that close, but I….”
“….”
“I….”
Having said this much, He Yu couldn’t continue for a long time, staring intently at Xie Qingcheng’s face.
“I thought you treated me as a normal person with emotions before treating me as a patient.”
“Yes, I treated you as a normal person with emotions.”
“And yet you’re leaving so suddenly?”
As he expressed his anger with his now-grown frame, he exerted a terrifyingly oppressive presence.
“Do normal people usually end their relationships this way?”
After a short silence, Xie Qingcheng’s voice was heard.
“He Yu, I know it’s sudden. Normally, I should have told you in advance, but it was a priority to speak with your parents first. Especially since your father is my acquaintance and employer. If it’s a situation where principles aren’t violated, I must respect his wishes first….”
“Then what about my wishes?”
“I am merely a doctor.”
“I am also your employer.”
He Yu glared at him.
“You don’t even ask for my opinion?”
“….”
Xie Qingcheng sighed.
“Control your emotions, kid. I’m not saying I don’t respect you. However, you are still a student, and you aren’t the one who paid my employment costs.”
He Yu was quite mature. Even when dealing with adults, he knew how to maintain a calm boundary. But at this moment, He Yu himself could not control his heart.
Thinking that Xie Qingcheng and Xie Xue would soon leave, his vision suddenly went dark. Words he wouldn’t normally say burst out.
“I get a lot of pocket money. So—.”
“Save it and buy yourself some cake.”
“…”
Xie Qingcheng continued calmly.
“You can buy a cake yourself even if your father doesn’t buy it for you. However, I decided to become your primary physician to repay the favor to your father. Therefore, I cannot go against his wishes. Do you understand me?”
“What is the reason my father is kicking you out?”
“He never kicked me out,” Xie Qingcheng said.
“I was the one who said I would leave. You asked earlier if normal people usually end their relationships this way, right?”
Xie Qingcheng looked directly into He Yu’s eyes.
“Yes.”
“Of course, I consider you a normal person with emotions. But before that, we are doctor and patient. Human relationships are naturally stepped like this. You cannot even spend your entire life with your closest parents.”
Xie Qingcheng paused briefly before continuing.
“Since the relationship between doctor and patient has ended, it is right for me to leave. A very normal end to a relationship between normal people.”
“….”
“And the period you and your father initially agreed upon was seven years.”
At this point, Xie Qingcheng looked into He Yu’s eyes once more.
“Your current symptoms are not at a stage that requires a primary physician. Sooner or later, you must rely on yourself to escape the shadow of your heart. Do you understand?”
“…So you agree with my mother? That after today, there’s no need for unnecessary contact between you and me, or between me and Xie Xue?”
“If you need help, you may contact me anytime.”
After a pause, Xie Qingcheng added, “Other than that, there’s no need to contact me.”
“….”
“And according to your mother, you and Xie Xue often went out to play alone. From the perspective of Xie Xue’s guardian, I think that is a bit inappropriate.”
Having said this, Xie Qingcheng scanned the boy, who was still a middle schooler, and spoke calmly and coldly.
“There is a large age difference between you two. I know you only rely on Xie Xue and have no other intentions, but as time goes on, bad rumors are bound to emerge. This isn’t helpful for you or for Xie Xue.”
He Yu didn’t even feel the desire to correct this rigid and utterly naive way of thinking.
“So, you agree with my mother’s thoughts?”
“Yes.”
After glaring at him for a long time, He Yu leaned back deeply into the chair, rested his cheek on his hand, and laughed softly. Like a dark cloud covering the sun, it was a laugh that blackened the small piece of sincerity he had finally brought out.
Smiling like that, He Yu muttered.
“Doctor. You really are… quite cold when I look at you. Even though you aren’t a patient, you seem to have fewer emotions than I do. Fine, if you’re going to go this far, then go. I’ll keep your words in mind and try to overcome this calmly on my own. I’ll live calmly and rationally. I hope everything you do in the future goes well. Instead—.”
Suddenly, the topic shifted.
“Even if she’s your sister, Xie Xue has her own freedom. No matter what you say, I will go find Xie Xue.”
Xie Qingcheng’s brow furrowed. Simultaneously, his gaze turned icy.
“Xie Xue is a girl. You’re fourteen now, so you should know where to draw the line. Why on earth do you insist on following her around?”
“Because she is different from you.”
Faint streaks of light drew lines across the floor. The two men, each submerged in their own pocket of light and shadow, looked like a sculpture sliced in half. He Yu’s voice continued.
“Because she is the only bridge connecting me to the world.”
After a brief silence, Xie Qingcheng spoke.
“Then find another bridge.”
It was almost time to leave. With matters still left to attend to, he had to spare his words and depart.
That day, He Yu sat in his chair and did not move an inch.
From the onset of twilight until the crack of dawn.
He Yu thought that Xie Qingcheng was, in fact, a very capable person.
Xie Qingcheng’s words were always logical. He was the one who told him that he should wish to be seen as a normal person, and that a person could escape the shadows of their own inner self through their own strength.
Perhaps that was why. He had even harbored the hope that Xie Qingcheng, as her older brother, might acknowledge the relationship between himself and the younger sister.
However, on this day, through Xie Qingcheng’s choice, he realized he had been gravely mistaken.
An employment relationship is the cleanest and simplest type of human connection. Whether you spend ten years or twenty years together, once the relationship ends, the cost is settled definitively. Cleanly, without conflict or lingering debts.
The same goes for a privately hired doctor. They do their job for payment, and when there is no more money to be received, they leave.
Compared to the doctors who had treated him in the past, Xie Qingcheng wasn’t particularly special. No, he was even more cruel than those doctors who had treated him like a beast. He was the one who had deceived him for the longest time and reaped the most profit from his pain. He was the one who gave him hope that this relationship would be eternal, and that his feelings for Xie Xue would be acknowledged.
Of course, it had all been a delusion.
Recalling the past, He Yu gazed at Xie Qingcheng’s face.
Though many years had passed, Xie Qingcheng still looked exactly like the head of the Xie household back then.
He still hated the idea of He Yu and Xie Xue being alone together, and he continued to block his sister’s path with the attitude of a selfish, dictatorial guardian. —Even the lines he used to admonish him were the same as before.
Xie Qingcheng was a good doctor. His medical philosophy, fair thinking, and sense of responsibility toward his patients were commendable.
But unfortunately, he had no emotions.
“Are you still thinking about what happened back then?”
Xie Qingcheng’s voice pulled him out of the past.
Coming back to his senses, He Yu spoke.
“…Following your advice, I spent a moment thinking about how I used to be. Then again, it was so long ago that you probably don’t remember exactly how I spoke back then.”
Finally, He Yu smiled.
“Anyway, we’ve long since ceased to be doctor and patient. Isn’t that right?”
Before an answer could return, a flash of light suddenly streaked across the sky. Soon after, with a loud bang, brilliant fireworks embroidered the night sky.
The garden party, held once a year, always concluded with an exceptionally dazzling fireworks display.
The fireworks bloomed as a dull vibration echoed repeatedly.
Xie Qingcheng finally spoke.
“Yes.”
Right at that moment, beyond the brilliant sparks, thunder suddenly crashed and rain began to pour. The hot, soft fireworks could not withstand the cold, violent lightning and quickly collapsed. Students far across the island laughed loudly as they scrambled for cover in the lecture halls or dormitories. Pea-sized raindrops fell, cutting through the bustling mundane world.
With a faint smile, He Yu spoke against the backdrop of the pitch-black sky.
“Then let’s go seek shelter from the rain together, Dr. Xie. Try analyzing this with that brilliant way of thinking of yours. Setting aside the doctor-patient relationship, you are currently the older brother of my professor. If you get soaked, what excuse am I supposed to give in front of Xie Xue?”
After a short silence, a sarcastic tone followed.
“Two people who have severed their doctor-patient relationship seeking shelter from the rain together is a perfectly normal act—nothing crossing the line or embarrassing. Isn’t that right?”
Xie Qingcheng felt the subtle irritation directed at him.
However, having run out of patience and tolerance, he could not soothe He Yu and replied coldly.
“Yes.”
At that answer, He Yu beamed.
“There’s a cave up ahead. Go on first.”
While He Yu and Xie Qingcheng sought shelter from the rain on the island, a senior who had been paid handsomely was exercising a thorough professional spirit, guarding the ferry landing to ensure that the garden party attendees could not approach the island.
He figured that by this time, everyone would have played enough, and no one would uselessly go all the way to the distant dreamy island just to get a stamp. Thinking this, the senior grew lax.
“Wow, this rain is no joke.”
Sitting wistfully in a swan boat, he couldn’t resist his curiosity and looked toward the island to see if he could spot anything.
But it was too far to peek at anything. Earlier, he had only vaguely seen He Yu with someone slender. Being nearsighted, his vision was blurry, but that beauty was quite tall. He wondered if she was nearly 180 centimeters, perhaps wearing high heels.
To like a woman that tall. The senior thought Young Master He’s taste was truly unique.
Sigh… I truly envy the life of a capitalist.
As he let his imagination run wild, he began to feel an itch of curiosity. Since it was raining and the two of them were trapped on the island without umbrellas, he wondered what they were doing. The only cave on dreamy island was a CCTV blind spot where students rarely visited. The senior had heard rumors that couples often spent passionate nights in that cave. Since He Yu, with his wealthy family and good looks, had put so much effort into winning over a 180cm beauty, he must have succeeded in his operation by now.
Maybe I should get a tip from the capitalist elder while I’m at it?
Calculating his move, the senior pulled out his phone.
Isn’t it only fitting for a modern society to hit a home run on the day of the confession?
The senior sent a message to He Yu’s phone—which hadn’t blocked him—to beg for a tip.
[CEO He, there’s a first-aid kit in the island cave. There are condoms in the second compartment. If you need them, take out the box and look. Don’t forget to send the pay once you’ve used them all…]