Chapter 341: Key Clue!

Liu Xie tried her best to keep her expression unchanged, not revealing any flaws.

But she couldn’t withstand Liu Anran staring at her intently, as if appraising whether a famous painting was authentic, looking extraordinarily carefully.

Liu Xie just stared straight ahead, not even daring to turn her head to meet Liu Anran’s gaze, afraid that this guy could expose all of her current plans to the sunlight with just one glance.

She had worked so hard to keep it hidden until now, and still no one had noticed anything unusual.

But Liu Anran was different. He might only need one look to determine Liu Xie’s thoughts and intentions.

“Were you always the kind of person who could do this sort of thing?” Liu Anran pulled back his leaned-in upper body, shifting his gaze to the Dean lying on the bed with a kindly expression, and the paper plate on the bedside table.

On the paper plate were quite unevenly cut apple pieces, one big and one small, looking exactly like something Liu Xie would do.

The Old Man’s hospital roommate looked at the Dean with considerable emotion at this moment, as if bidding farewell to a close friend.

Even with just these few days of contact and interaction, it seemed the two elderly men had become friends with a considerable bond.

This was like how men sometimes have inexplicable friendships. Suspicion of feelings seemed so superfluous.

All it took was borrowing a light while smoking on the road, and two people could become brothers who talked about everything.

Liu Anran briefly observed the Old Man’s physical condition, and asked a few simple questions, exactly like a doctor making rounds.

Things like whether he had diarrhea or trouble in the bathroom, how his appetite had been lately, and so on.

These questions seemed to Liu Xie like he was paying attention to the other’s daily habits.

Then, Liu Anran slightly tidied up the Old Man’s things, took out the clothes that needed changing, and drew the curtains.

Then he said to Liu Xie: “Help me go to the Nurse Station and tell them we’re processing the discharge paperwork here. We mentioned it before.”

Liu Xie nodded woodenly and left the Hospital Room.

Liu Anran also drew the curtain beside the Bed, blocking the line of sight of the hospital roommate nearby with the light blue curtain.

The Dean propped himself up and picked up his clothes.

“I can dress myself, no need for your help. I haven’t gotten so senile yet.”

There seemed to be a hint of anger, like most elderly people.

They say they’re old, but when it comes to actually accepting it in their behavior, who knows when that would happen.

Liu Anran spoke calmly: “I know you can dress yourself. I wasn’t planning to help you.”

He would definitely give the Dean that level of respect.

So the reason he sent Liu Xie away was to talk with the Old Man, whom Liu Xie seemed to have been visiting frequently during this period.

He still wouldn’t believe that Liu Xie came to the Hospital to visit the Old Man out of filial piety like she said.

First of all, Liu Xie definitely had that intention.

He didn’t doubt that. It was just that when Liu Xie visited the Old Man, she not only didn’t call him, she didn’t even notify him.

There was clearly something strange about it.

“What did she come to talk with you about during this time?” Liu Anran said, pulling over a chair and sitting down by the Old Man’s bedside.

The Dean on the Bed reached out his hand, unbuttoning his Hospital Gown, his expression carrying some thought.

“She was like you before. She asked me about the whereabouts of the other people I adopted back then.”

The Old Man said: “But this forgetful old man here can’t remember much. I can only remember names.”

As he spoke, a trace of apology appeared on his face, as if sorry for not being able to provide Liu Xie with adequate help.

Liu Anran fell slightly silent.

Then he could probably guess what Liu Xie was trying to do.

“Don’t you still have a Mobile Phone?” Liu Anran said after a period of silence, “That Senior Phone.”

“Is there… one?” The Old Man thought about it, as if pondering, as if recalling.

Finally, from the depths of his memory, he seemed to fish something out.

“Oh, I remember now. There is one. There are phone numbers stored in it. Some people who adopted children left me their numbers.”

His tone even carried excitement and joy.

“Then I need to hurry and tell her.”

Happy that in Liu Xie’s company, he could finally respond to the Hope he saw in her.

People who had a resilient spirit when young are always like this when they reach old age.

They have no way of comfortably accepting others’ kindness, always thinking about repaying it, and even to a certain extent believe that others’ care is a denial and erasure of their autonomy.

This was a common ailment of some elderly people.

“But I already took and used that Senior Phone of yours a long time ago.” Liu Anran said.

His gaze was still faint, carrying a Sense of Powerlessness after knowing the ending, and a Sense of Powerlessness from watching future generations repeat the same mistakes.

Liu Anran, who had already done this, still hadn’t achieved any results.

Similarly, if another person were to do this, he wouldn’t hold out Hope either.

But Liu Xie was different.

Liu Anran sat in the chair, not knowing what he was thinking about.

The Dean beside him never put on the airs of an elder.

He would never dictate Liu Anran’s decisions.

The only thing he brought up was one matter.

“Anran, you must cherish others well.”

After saying it, the Old Man himself felt it sounded familiar, as if he had said this line who knows how many times.

And Liu Anran, who had heard it at least four or five times, nodded as usual.

Then, as if he had made a certain decision.

He looked at the Dean on the Bed, who seemed only halfway through putting on his clothes.

“Your Senior Phone is in the right drawer of the Dining Table in your room. When the time comes, just take it and give it to her directly. Tell her there are phone numbers stored inside. She’ll want it.”

Liu Anran explained clearly, practically teaching the Old Man hand by hand what to do.

The Old Man paused again in the middle of putting on his clothes, and agreed.

This was also a manifestation of aging. When doing one thing, it was hard to think about another thing.

Either that, or the hands would stop moving.

But now this phenomenon seemed to be becoming common among young people too.

Especially among college students.

Liu Anran waited until the Dean finally finished changing clothes, and placed the Hospital Gown on the Bed.

A nurse would come to collect it later.

He heard that someone even wanted to take the Hospital Gown home as a souvenir.

He didn’t know if that was true or not.

Leading the Old Man, he opened the door.

Standing at the doorway was Liu Xie, holding three or four white forms in her hands.

She turned back, looking at Liu Anran along with the sunlight.

“Let’s go.”