As a former doctor, Xie Qingcheng acted without hesitation. He flung Bai Jing away and bent down to check the old man's condition.
In clinical medicine, an acute myocardial infarction—or a severe heart attack was a cardiovascular emergency with an extremely high mortality rate. A sudden onset of intense emotion was one of the major triggers for the condition in elderly people.
Bai Jing, who hadn't realized what was going on, was still busy cursing at him.
Xie Qingcheng rolled up his sleeves to begin administering first aid.
He turned back and snapped at her, "Don't just stand there and stare! The patient is having a severe heart attack! Call an ambulance! Hurry up!"
"What does a severe heart attack have to do with… A severe heart attack?!"
Bai Jing was dumbstruck.
Her glittery gold eyeliner only emphasized the shock and fear in her eyes. The color in the girl's face drained instantly. She stood frozen, like a dazed goose, not knowing whether to advance or retreat.
"Don't you know the emergency services number?!" Xie Qingcheng snapped.
Bai Jing might have known it at one point, but with the situation devolving so quickly, she drew nothing but a blank. "Wh-what is it?"
"120!"
"Ohhh…!" Bai Jing didn't expect that things would turn out like this, with a precious human life in danger. She hastily picked up the phone that Xie Qingcheng had tossed back to her and dialed the emergency number.
"Hello? 110? Ah, no, no! Don't hang up! I misspoke! I don't want to call the police, I was calling your number! I—there's an old man here who's had a severe fainting attack… Ah, no, what was it, severe heart failure…"
"Severe heart attack!"
"Ah! Yes! A heart attack, heart attack!"
After stammering her way through the call, Bai Jing let out a breath and managed to collect herself a bit. However, she was still too afraid to get close to Xie Qingcheng and the old homeless man.
Xie Qingcheng wiped away the secretions from the old man's mouth and nose and carefully laid him down flat so that he wouldn't choke. His forehead was already dripping with sweat when he looked up at Bai Jing and said, "Come help."
"No way!" Bai Jing immediately retorted. "It's so disgusting! Who knows if he has AIDS or some other contagious disease! And my clothes are very expensive; they'll be ruined if I get them dirty."
Xie Qingcheng was furious. "AIDS isn't transmitted like that! What's more important: your clothes or someone's life?! Come here and help!"
"Absolutely not. Is this emotional blackmail? Do you know how long I had to work to buy an outfit like this, how long I had to wait? Besides, he must have some underlying condition that's just acting up, so it wasn't my fault. I…"
With a cry, the old man spat out another mouthful of white foam. Bai Jing's throat tightened at the sight, and she nearly retched. She retreated, taking one step after another backward. "Don't force me… I can't."
Luckily, an older woman ran out from the circle of observers at this moment.
"Little girl, do you have a conscience?" she yelled at Bai Jing.
"You'll grow old one day too! You're dressed in such flashy, glamorous clothes, and yet your heart is so rotten?!"
"I…" Bai Jing started.
The older woman rolled her eyes, ignoring her, then turned to Xie Qingcheng,
"Tell me what to do. I'll help."
This was a classic example of herd mentality. When a crowd quietly watches from afar, no one is willing to take the initiative to step forward and help. But once a single person breaks from that crowd to lend a hand, others emerge like spring shoots after rain.
Soon, those who had been observing from a distance and afraid of getting involved started to inch closer. People appeared, offering to look around for a pharmacy to buy emergency medicine and waving fans to cool them down, and Bai Jing found herself forcibly pushed to the side.
However, no matter how enthusiastic the crowd, they couldn't resolve the urgent matter at hand. They could only anxiously wait as the minutes ticked by.
Alas, things didn't go so smoothly—right at this juncture, Bai Jing's phone rang. It was a call from the hospital.
"There's been a very unfortunate situation—a surface collapse broke a water main. The main highway to your current location is flooded, and there's no way for an ambulance to get through. There's another path through local streets, but we can't get in at all—there's too much traffic, and it's also the wrong way up a one-way street, so we had to turn around."
Bai Jing reported the situation to Xie Qingcheng, who was still administering first aid to the old man. "How much longer?" Xie Qingcheng asked sharply.
This time, Bai Jing was cowed. She hurriedly conveyed his question.
"H-how much longer will it take?"
"We have to take another route. It'll be at least thirty minutes." Xie Qingcheng looked at the old man's situation. Thirty minutes would be the difference between life and death.
How were they so unlucky that something went awry now? And for a broken water main to flood a whole major highway!
He was still at a loss as to what to do when two glaring headlights suddenly flashed from the intersection. A black Rolls-Royce Cullinan adorned with a little winged hood ornament cruised silently under the glow of the streetlamps. The car glided right over to the corner of the one-way street where the incident was unfolding, its rectangular tail lights calmly illuminating their surroundings.
Bai Jing's instinct to stream about all things luxurious—even at this critical juncture when someone's life was on the line—was difficult to temper. She barely repressed her urge to raise her phone and aim it at the Cullinan, for fear that if she were a second too late, it would drive off and disappear.
But she never could have anticipated that this Cullinan would actually slowly make its way over to them and come to a stop.
Bai Jing's eyes widened at the incredulous events unfolding.
Her pupils only contracted even further as she watched the rear window of the luxury car of her dreams silently roll down. A young woman poked her head out and shouted to Xie Qingcheng, who was in the middle of administering emergency treatment to the old man beside her.
"Ge!"
Bai Jing was flabbergasted.
"He Yu invited me out for barbecue, so we were just passing by," said Xie Xue.
"I saw someone in the distance and thought it looked just like you, so I had him come take a look. It really is you… Ah! Oh my god! What's wrong with the person next to you? Did something happen?!"
Xie Qingcheng looked up at his sister. He Yu was sitting in the recesses of the genuine leather seat, hidden in the darkness on the other side of the vehicle. Those looking in could only make out his calm and elegant profile. His silhouette was especially handsome and refined, but upon closer examination, one could almost sense a bestial and depraved aura emanating from the young man.
Xie Qingcheng didn't want to inconvenience He Yu, but he didn't have many options. "We ran into an ill person. He was emotionally triggered and had a severe heart attack. I gave him some basic treatment, but he needs to go to the emergency room."
Xie Xue was stunned. "Where's the ambulance?"
"We called, but the road conditions are poor. It'll take thirty more minutes before they arrive."
Upon hearing this, Xie Xue immediately opened the car door and jumped out, rushing to the old man's side. She didn't show the slightest disdain toward him, but she had no medical training whatsoever and could only stand by helplessly. She shouted anxiously at the car, "He Yu! He Yu, come out and help!"
The depraved gentleman stepped out of the car, took one look at the old man's purpling lips, and immediately said, "We'll go in my car." Xie Xue, the fool, asked, "What will you do if other drivers don't make way for you? I mean, it's still rush hour."
"I'd like to see 'em try," He Yu sneered.
He turned to the driver and asked, "Lao-Zhao, can you drive smoothly?"
"I can drive smoothly, but I'm used to being careful, so I might not be fast…"
Besides, Young Master He, even if you told me to crash the car, I wouldn't dare!
"Then get out." He Yu rolled up his sleeves. With one long-legged step, he got into the driver's seat. He pulled down the handbrake without even glancing at it, chewing his gum as he said, "Get in. We'll be at the municipal hospital in ten minutes."
"Do you have a license?" Xie Qingcheng asked.
"Nope," replied He Yu expressionlessly. "Are you coming or not?"
"He does!" Xie Xue was truly fed up with the two of them, especially He Yu. Even at a time like this, he was still sparring with her brother. "He just finished converting his overseas license to a domestic one! Ge, don't listen to his nonsense!"
Under Xie Qingcheng's guidance, they carefully lifted the old man into the Cullinan. After everyone got into the car, He Yu fastened his seat belt. He was about to floor the gas pedal and bring the vehicle to a death-defying speed when that lame little dog darted up and started to bark incessantly at the people on the other side of the slowly closing car doors.
Xie Xue was softhearted. When she saw the tiny, pitiful dog limping behind its master to the car, she couldn't help but say, "Poor thing…" He Yu glanced at her, then the passenger-side door opened again.
"Bring it inside."
Xie Xue immediately jumped down to pick up the dirty little yellow dog by its armpits and carried it into the car.
The pitiful animal whimpered. As if sensing that it hadn't been abandoned, it turned to look at the old man lying in the backseat, then raised its fluffy snout, its black bean nose sniffing gratefully at Xie Xue's cheek. Then it stuck its head over to the driver's seat, giving the young man a careful lick on the cheek with its damp tongue.
He Yu ignored the dog's affections. With the press of a button, his rearview mirror returned to his customized position as he gripped the steering wheel with long, slender hands. "Call emergency services back and explain our situation. Let's go."
Thankfully, because the old man had received professional first aid immediately and had been promptly taken to the hospital, he was finally no longer in critical condition after half a night's rescue efforts.
Outside the emergency care unit's patient ward, Xie Qingcheng signed a stack of forms and opened an app on his phone to pay the bill only to find that he didn't quite have enough money. Just as he was wondering what he should say to the worker at the service window, a hand reached out from behind him and passed a credit card through the slot.
Xie Qingcheng turned to see He Yu's face.
"Why are you here?"
"It's fine," He Yu said. "No need to thank me."
Because the old man was homeless, they couldn't find or contact any of his family members. He also didn't have his ID card on him, so certain administrative procedures were very inconvenient. If it weren't for the fact that Xie Qingcheng had once worked at this municipal hospital and knew the director of the emergency care unit's night shift, this might have caused a bigger issue. Now, even though the old man was no longer in danger, many administrative orders of business needed to be retroactively completed. The hospital even contacted the municipal department in charge of the homeless population for assistance.
As for the enthusiastic group of Good Samaritans, He Yu and the others also couldn't leave for the time being. After paying the bill, He Yu and Xie Qingcheng went out to the gardens behind the hospital for some fresh air, and He Yu struck up a conversation.
"That Bai woman, she was your matchmaking date?" He Yu asked.
"Mm. Where is she?"
"Resting with Xie Xue in the underground parking lot. Since it was so late, both of them had grown a little sleepy. Xie Xue was worried, so she had me come up to see how you were doing." He Yu then asked, "How come you were on a matchmaking date with a girl like that?"
Xie Qingcheng's expression was flat. "It was just dinner."
"Then you should have just rejected the matchmaker outright. The way I see it, you weren't taking it seriously either. Plus, isn't she about the same age as Xie Xue? You're already middle-aged. It's not very appropriate."
Since Xie Qingcheng was less tense now, He Yu's words irritated him. Thirty-two years old was middle-aged? What a nutcase. If it weren't for the fact that He Yu had helped him out today, he definitely would have said, Little devil, it's none of your fucking business. But he had just used He Yu as a driver and then as an ATM, so he had no right to curse him out too viciously. Xie Qingcheng shot him a glance through bloodshot eyes, stiffly enduring the word "middle-aged," and coldly replied, "You're right, Young Master He. I truly don't want to waste my breath on little kids below the age of thirty anymore."
Both of them fell silent.
The little kid and the middle-aged man verbally sparred each other tit for tat, but neither of them could get the upper hand. Thus, Xie Qingcheng decided to simply turn away.
The wisteria-covered walkway behind the municipal hospital was very long.
With his hands in his pockets, Xie Qingcheng walked silently ahead, his expression flat. Ten years ago, he'd often pass through this way, though back then, the garden hadn't been fully completed yet. There were even unauthorized stall-keepers at the two ends of the pathway selling Tianjin-style jianbing, porridge, noodles, and rice balls before the city management officers arrived to put an end to the illegal activity. Now, the garden presented a scenic picture with every step.
Later, Xie Qingcheng resigned from his post at the municipal hospital, and in the years that followed, he never walked through this wisteria path again.
This literal walk down memory lane reminded him of the past. After a lengthy silence, Xie Qingcheng abruptly spoke up. "Hey, little devil?"
"Hm?"
"Do all of you youngsters these days want to become internet celebrities?"
"I'm not interested. But they earn a lot of money, so it's true that there are many who do. Is that Bai Jing an internet celebrity?"
"…How did you know?"
He Yu grinned. "I could tell." Then he asked, "Did that old gentleman's sudden illness have to do with her?"
The night wind blew past, rustling through the vines.
"He mistook her for his daughter, so Bai Jing chased after him while she was livestreaming," replied Xie Qingcheng. "He was hiding from the camera the whole time, begging her to stop filming, but she refused to listen; she could only see how many people had entered her livestream and how many people wanted to follow her account." After a pause, he asked,
"What is the point of it all?"
He Yu sighed. "Xie Qingcheng, the things you find meaningless are tickets to a whole new life for certain people. You find the way they chase fame and profit bizarre, but in the same vein, they can't understand your way of thinking either. Humans are all the same species, but we're also the ones with the greatest barriers to empathy; we're often incapable of mutual trust, much less mutual understanding. Sometimes, when two people look at each other, it's as if they're looking at organisms from an entirely different genus."
At this point, He Yu's phone suddenly rang. It was his driver; as it turned out, He Yu had terrorized the streets with his wild driving. The traffic police on patrol had flown into a rage and chased them all the way to the hospital.
"Young Master He, why don't we ask the doctor to explain things to them…" the driver suggested. "There were extenuating circumstances…"
"It's nothing," replied He Yu. "Just let them deduct the points and pay the fines; there's no point in wasting time on this."
He hung up.
"Is your spare cash burning a hole in your wallet?" asked Xie Qingcheng.
"To me, time is money. I don't like to waste time on unnecessary things, like needless explanations to government employees. Who knows, they might even ask a reporter to write some moving story about it."
He Yu's almond eyes lowered, his pitch-black pupils appearing so apathetic they seemed to hold a hint of subtle perversity, even as the corners of his mouth curved up in a smile. "I may as well chat a little longer with you. In any case, you can do the same things they do, right? For example, checking my driver's license."
Xie Qingcheng didn't respond.
As the man's expression grew uglier, the teasing mockery at the corners of He Yu's mouth slowly diffused into his eyes. With his hands in his pockets, he cast his glance ahead—not at Xie Qingcheng's face anymore, but rather at a random spot before him. Then, he leaned forward slightly, tilting his face toward Xie Qingcheng's neck. He lowered his head, his thin lips stopping just short of Xie Qingcheng's carotid artery.
Maintaining his position, he gazed into the distance and spoke quietly into the man's ear. "Ge, how was my driving?"
\Xie Qingcheng answered with silence, his expression growing even cloudier.
Why was He Yu still holding a grudge against him for asking about his driver's license?! Just how petty was this person exactly?
Xie Qingcheng scoffed a little, and with a chilly look, he responded, "Practice some more when you get the chance. If you stop being so hotheaded, young man, you can become a driver after you graduate."
He didn't want to waste any more breath on He Yu after that, so he brushed away the dangling vines in front of him with a frigid expression and walked on ahead.
But He Yu wasn't finished with him yet, or maybe he'd gotten into the swing of mocking him. He continued his sarcastic questioning, like a dog with a bone. "Executive Xie, if I worked as your driver, what kind of car would you have me chauffeur you in? How much would I get paid per month?"
Xie Qingcheng didn't look back as he answered, "A Hongguang Mini, and then I'll give you a drug prescription. Take it if you want, get lost if you don't."
With his hands in his pockets, He Yu stared at his back. He kicked at something with his sneakers, his expression perverse as he cursed softly. "A prescription? You sure are something else, Xie Qingcheng. I'll really need to pay you back for that one."