"Ah..." Xie Fang was startled by the sudden question but quickly came back to his senses.
He looked away naturally as if nothing had happened, but he didn't know that his red ears betrayed him. Seeing this Li Chang chuckled.
The maid closed the door quietly as if she hadn't heard anything. Xie Fang and Li Chang (and Xiao Ba) were the only ones in the room. There was silence in the room, which made it awkward for both of them.
Xie Fang wanted to say something to break this awkwardness but didn't know what to say. Finally, it was Li Chang who spoke first.
"This is our first meeting; I'm Li Chang. Li from Plum and Chang from Flourish. You can call me Doctor Li," said Li Chang while sitting on the sofa.
Xie Fang quickly responded, "Hello, Doctor Li. My name is Xie Fang. Xie means 'thank you,' and Fang means 'fragrant.'"
"Young Master Xie...can I call you that?" Li Chang asked with a faint smile on his lips. Xie Fang, who was looking at Li Chang, was mesmerized by the sudden smile from a beauty and nodded his head without thinking.
Xiao Ba, who was lying on the side, was embarrassed by the dumb face Xie Fang was making. He had forgotten that Xie Fang was a face-con person!
Xiao Ba felt like slapping this fool's face and transferring some of his (nonexistent) brain to him.
But he couldn't, so he shouted out, "Wake up, fool! What are you daydreaming about? We are here on the mission, not to fall in love!" Xie Fang, who was mesmerized by the beauty's smile, quickly came to his senses after hearing Xiao Ba's roar.
He ignored Xiao Ba, who was roaring in the background, and looked at Li Chang, who was taking out equipment for a check-up, and said, "Doctor, are you single?"
Forget about Xiao Ba; even Li Chang, who was known for his calmness, was shocked for a moment.
Li Chang found it amusing and laughed out loud, "Hahaha....You are really funny, Young Master Xie." Li Chang said as he came closer to Xie Fang, "Are you like this to everyone?"
Xie Fang felt stupid for saying what was in his heart out loud. He coughed to hide his embarrassment and tried to act cool. "I'm only like this to attractive people."
Li Chang was amused by this reply: "Then I have to thank Young Master Xie for the compliment."
Xie Fang shook his head and said, "No need. It's not a compliment, but a truth."
Li Chang didn't say anything and started to check Xie Fang's pulse and asked a few questions about his health.
At the side, Xiao Ba was dumbfounded by their interaction. 'This boy is really shameless!' he thought. Instead of Xie Fang, he felt embarrassed.
• • • • •
Time passed, and it was already dinner time when Xie Fang's check-up was finished. Xie Fang was discussing with Li Chang about his health when they were interrupted.
"Young Master Xie, Mr. Li, dinner is ready," the butler's voice came from outside. "Doctor Li, Shall we go?" asked Xie Fang. Li Chang shook his head. "You enjoy your dinner. I have an appointment with another client in an hour."
"Ohh..." Xie Fang was disappointed but asked again, "When will we meet again?" Li Chang looked at Xie Fang, whose eyes were shining with anticipation, and said, "Maybe...next week."
"That's too long. Do you want to exchange contacts?" Xie Fang asked.
"No, thank you," Li Chang replied as he packed his equipment and stood up to leave.
Xie Fang was disappointed, but he knew he couldn't push someone to do something against their will.
He walked behind Li Chang, lost in thoughts. When they reached downstairs, Mrs. Xie and Xie Shing were present there.
When Mrs. Xie saw them coming, she stood up from the sofa and asked Li Chang with hope in her face, "How is Ah Fang's condition, Mr. Li?"
"For now, I don't see any abnormalities within his body. He looks fine; it's just that his body is in need of more nutrients."
"What?!" Mrs. Xie and Xie Shing were shocked hearing Li Chang's words. They thought, 'Fine??' Mrs. Xie and Li Shing felt like they were dreaming.
Every doctor before Li Chang had said that Xie Fang was fragile, should not do heavy exercise, or that his health seemed to be getting more serious, but no one had ever said he is...'fine.'
Xie Fang's face turned pale for a moment, but he quickly recovered to normal. No one noticed his expression, as everyone was shocked by this sudden 'good news.'
Mrs. Xie's eyes were filled with tears. She asked in an excited voice, "Is what you said true, Mr. Li? Is my Ah Fang cured? I knew those doctors were lying...how could Ah Fang leave his mother? He still has a long life—"
Mrs. Xie was still saying lots of words to Li Chang. She was so happy that the calm and elegant lady from before seemed like people's imagination.
Xie Shing was also very happy hearing this news. He thanked Li Chang sincerely from the bottom of his heart.
But Xie Fang's mind was in panic. He looked at Xiao Ba, who was by his side, and gave him an expression that Xiao Ba...didn't understand at all.
Xiao Ba was confused as to why Xie Fang was making such a weird expression. But when he thought of all the things Xie Fang had done today, he realized that he was having an episode...
Li Chang was speechless by the sudden gratitude that he was receiving; he had just told them the truth and felt it was nothing to cry over.
But he still said, "All is not fine yet... I just take Young Master Xie's pulse and check his body with some equipment. He still needs to go to the hospital so that I can find out his real situation."
Li Chang didn't want to give them false hope and later destroy it with his own hands.
Mrs. Xie and Xie Shing felt like someone poured cold water on them.
Mrs. Xie wanted to ask him questions but was afraid of making Li Chang unhappy by her rude behavior. Her excitement had vanished by now. She returned to her usual self, calm and elegant, and thanked Li Chang politely.
Li Chang nodded and said goodbye to them before leaving. The atmosphere in the living room became depressing again.
Mrs. Xie and Xie Shing were not in a mood to eat right now but still ate a few bits to accompany Xie Fang, whose hunger had also run away due to fear.
After dinner everyone went back to their room with heads filled with many things that only they know.
After Xie Fang went to his room and shut the door tightly. He looked at Xiao Ba and asked, "What do we do now?"
Instead of answering Xie Fang, Xiao Ba asked him several questions: "Aren't you a non-socializing person? Did you take acting classes before, and are you gay?"
Xie Fang was assumed by Xiao Ba's questions. He thought of how this mighty protector must have been thinking about these questions till now in his mind.
Xiao Ba saw him not answering and felt insulted. He snapped his finger, and Xie Fang flew up in the air. "AHHH..." Xie Fang was scared for a moment before realizing that Xiao Ba was doing all this to him.
He realized that Xiao Ba was probably angry because he didn't reply and quickly answered, "Who said I'm not a socializing person? It's just that I don't want to talk... If I'm interested in someone or some topic, I can keep talking for a day and night."
"And yes, I haven't taken any acting classes. Where do you think I will get money to spend in an acting class?"
"As for being gay, I...don't know. I am just attracted towards handsome men and beautiful women. You can say I'm a face-con person," Xie Fang answered all the questions truthfully.
Xiao Ba got what he wanted to know, so he snapped his finger and put Xie Fang down slowly.
Now it was Xie Fang's turn to ask questions. He looked at Xiao Ba and asked, "What are we going to do—"
Before Xie Fang could complete his words, Xie Fang felt a strong headache and fell down on the bed.