Evening Stars Chapter 38
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
Chapter 38
Fang Shiyou kissed and caressed him. Leaning close to Xu Nanheng's ear, he breathed, “It's okay. I never planned on having children.”
By then, Xu Nanheng had already entered a state of ‘I hear you talking but I can no longer understand every word you say.’ His senses had gone hazy. Their bodies pressed tightly together, like a pair of willow branches by a Jiangnan lake in early spring, weaving together in the breeze.
The old bed frame was barely holding up under two grown men over 1.8 meters tall. It wouldn't collapse, but it creaked incessantly. If not for the howling wind outside drowning out the sound, the noise alone would've been enough to make the thin-skinned Teacher Xu want to die of embarrassment. He might've been an easygoing man, but he wasn't thick-skinned.
And Dr. Fang, at this point, was now showing his wolf's tail, wickedly syncing the rhythm of his tongue with the grind of his fingers. It was fortunate that Teacher Xu wasn't some immortal cultivator, or he might have been completely obliterated, body and soul.
The usually glib and unflappable Teacher Xu now found himself with a blurred vision and a hoarse voice. He'd read all those academic journals. So much for ‘knowledge is power.’
Xu Nanheng's lips were claimed once more, and his hand groped blindly at Fang Shiyou's back. In the brief pause between their kisses, he tried to tilt his head away, needing a moment of space because he had something he needed to say.
Sensing it, Dr. Fang lifted himself slightly, meeting his eyes.
Teacher Xu's voice was faint as a mosquito's buzz. “Fang……”
Then he changed the address. “You-ge…… slow down a bit…… I-I don't have any experience.”
Fang Shiyou looked at him gently and said, “I more or less guessed that.”
Teacher Xu had read related literatures. He knew what would happen next, and how it would happen. To be honest, he was scared. It had to hurt, right? He was afraid of a needle as fine as the one used for drawing blood, let alone something the size of Dr. Fang's.
“I'll be gentle and slow, okay?”
Fang Shiyou truly was gentle, likely because as a surgeon, he could perfectly control his strength and maintain complete composure. Teacher Xu was inexperienced, and he himself had never been through this before. He moved gently and slowly, observing carefully once the initial discomfort passed. Even as he gradually got into the swing of things, his patience never wavered. He truly wanted Teacher Xu's first time to be enjoyable.
Because he loved him, he wanted him to have a perfect experience beneath him. When he realized this, Fang Shiyou felt very happy.
By the end, Xu Nanheng felt as if his soul had left his body. His wrist hung off the edge of the bed, a faint tear track marking his cheek. Fang Shiyou's aftercare was impeccable. He helped Teacher Xu to the shower, changed the soaked sheets, gave him a little warm water, and held him close in his arms.
Dawn had yet to break. The wind across the Southern Tibetan Plateau sounded like an unrestrained symphony that didn't cease all night long. Despite the exhaustion, Teacher Xu still mumbled, “Now I finally understand the post-coital cigarette. I really feel like smoking right now.”
Fang Shiyou asked, “Do you want one? I can make an exception for you to smoke in bed.”
“No.” Xu Nanheng shook his head. “I don't have the energy.”
Fang Shiyou chuckled, rubbing his back as he soothed him. “Then let's sleep.”
He slept deeply and soundly. Dr. Fang had shown restraint, so when Xu Nanheng woke, there was hardly any soreness. He thought this man was terrifying. Being a man himself, he hadn't thought much of it at the time, but looking back now, the fact that he could maintain such composure in that state and control himself from being too aggressive was really……
Fang Shiyou came in carrying a bowl of porridge with minced meat and greens. As soon as he entered, he saw the teacher on the bed watching him with a serious look and saying, “You really are terrifying.”
Fang Shiyou: “Hm?”
On Lunar New Year's Eve, the county hospital had taken in a patient who needed surgery.
That afternoon, Xu Nanheng made a video call to his family. What warmed him most was that their usually carefree and silly cat, Pangpang, perked up the moment he heard Xu Nanheng's voice through the phone. The cat hurried over and pawed at the phone in his mother's hand.
Before that, Xu Nanheng hadn't felt much. But when he saw Pangpang scratching at the screen, the ache in his chest became real.
Chinese people often expressed emotions in a reserved, subtle way. Words of affection were rarely spoken aloud. But animals were different. When they were happy, they were happy, and when they missed someone, they just did. Pangpang pawed at the phone a few more times, letting out a puzzled little meow, as if wondering why he could hear the voice but not see the person.
After that pang of emotion, Xu Nanheng took a deep breath and said, “Mom, I have something to tell you.”
“Find a chair first. Sit down properly before I say it.”
“I'm in a relationship.”
At the same time, in the operating room.
Because it involved both open-chest surgery and vascular intervention, it required the collaborative effort of cardiac and vascular surgeons. The patient had a hematoma, so the incision had to be made with great care. Any accidental tear in the tissue could cause the hematoma to rupture. The surgery was a difficult one, and since it was New Year's Eve, the hospital was short-staffed.
There was no way around it. The medical staff who had been working intensely before the New Year were all looking forward to resting during the Spring Festival holiday. Recent cold snaps and snowfall had caused numerous car crash surgeries, exhausting a large number of emergency scrub nurses. So a surgery of this intensity even required pulling in Dr. Yang Gao from the gallbladder department to assist.
The purpose of the open-chest surgery was to provide the vascular surgeons with an optimal puncture site. The patient's vascular condition was poor, making it impossible to insert a catheter and perform the puncture through the typical upper or lower limb arteries. The plan was for the cardiac surgeons to open the chest first, then let the vascular team come in for the puncture.
“Press down a little for me inside,” said Professor Gu.
“Got it.” Fang Shiyou pressed his finger beneath the patient's skin and nudged it sideways to relieve the tension of the hematoma.
“Check the electrocautery for a moment,” Professor Gu said. “Ah, so tight. Get the retractor.”
In the operating room, apart from the beeping of the monitors, there was also the sound of two nurses counting gauze sponges aloud in unison.
“Director Tao, take a look. Will this opening be sufficient for you to perform the puncture?” Professor Gu asked.
Fang Shiyou, holding the forceps, took a step to the side so that Director Tao could get a clear view. Mainly because Fang Shiyou was too tall, Director Tao had to stand on his tiptoes to see.
Unexpectedly, as Fang Shiyou moved, a pair of forceps just handed to him by a scrub nurse slipped to the floor.
It was a new intern nurse. Since the hospital was so short-staffed, even the interns had been pulled in to work. Presumably due to nervousness, she instinctively bent to pick up the forceps.
The moment Fang Shiyou saw her about to bend down, he kicked the forceps away with his foot, simultaneously giving her a warning look. That item absolutely could not be picked up, as the surgical field must remain sterile. The young nurse instantly realized her mistake, startled herself, and quickly grabbed a new pair of forceps.
Fang Shiyou didn't say anything and didn't scold anyone. Director Tao nodded and said the puncture could proceed. With that, all the cardiac surgeons withdrew from the operating room, leaving the vascular surgeons to continue the intervention. At the same time, the cardiac surgeons had to remain on standby outside, ready to assist if anything went wrong during the procedure.
After washing their hands, the cardiac team stood by at the OR entrance.
Yang Gao nudged Fang Shiyou with his elbow and called to him mysteriously, “Hey.”
“Hm?” Fang Shiyou looked at him.
“That little nurse got a real scare,” Yang Gao said. “Damn, if this were Beijing, she'd be fired the moment the surgery ended.”
Fang Shiyou thought for a moment, though he barely remembered himself. “Oh…… she dropped the forceps. We've been working a lot of overtime lately, so it's only natural to get distracted. Wait, you really have ears everywhere. What's the maximum number of tasks you can focus on at once?”
In the week before the Lunar New Year, everyone had been working nonstop. It really lived up to the saying, ‘A resident is a doctor who lives in the hospital, and a chief resident is a doctor who always lives in the hospital.’ Interns were bound to get distracted. He could understand why an intern nurse might momentarily lose focus and try to pick up the forceps.
Yang Gao pursed his lips. “Back in Beijing, you were strict and impartial. In this situation, you definitely would have blown up.”
Fang Shiyou admitted that he could be harsh in the moment, but calmly explained, “No, I just wanted to startle her a bit. After that, she'll be more cautious. Like if someone dozes off while driving from fatigue, once startled awake, they focus more out of fear. The main issue today is that we're short-staffed.”
“……” Yang Gao gave him a speechless look. “What I was trying to say is that you're in a good mood today.”
“Hm?” Fang Shiyou didn't understand.
Yang Gao grinned. “Be honest, did you manage to win Teacher Xu over?”
“You shouldn't be a doctor,” Fang Shiyou said, looking at his colleague in disbelief. “You should take the police entrance exam. With your eyes, you could tell in a second if someone stole or robbed anything.”
There were other colleagues present, so Yang Gao snickered quietly for a long while.
He wasn't just in a good mood. He was in a fantastic mood. But he never let emotions interfere with his work, maintaining professionalism at all times. That was why it could only mean Dr. Yang was exceptionally observant.
Yang Gao continued his gossip. “Teacher Xu didn't go back to Beijing for the New Year, did he?”
“He's at my place,” Fang Shiyou replied casually.
“Oh!” Yang Gao exclaimed with great delight. “Ohhh!”
“Keep it down!” Fang Shiyou whispered, lowering his voice.
Yang Gao was endlessly energetic, always eager to hear gossip. Once, after a surgery in Beijing, he walked out to wash his hands and ended up following a circulating nurse all the way to the anesthesia department just to keep listening to the latest rumors. Fang Shiyou mentally corrected his earlier judgment. Yang Gao really was suited to be a doctor. He would simply never get tired.
After several hours, they called Professor Gu back in. The two directors assessed the situation together and announced that the surgery had been very successful. All that remained was to close the incision.
Once the operation was finished, everyone dispersed and returned to their respective duties. Fang Shiyou, working overtime that day, changed his clothes and went straight home. Professor Gu was on duty. If he hadn't been, he had planned on going to the temple.
While Fang Shiyou was changing clothes, Professor Gu pushed the door open. Fang Shiyou had just put on his down jacket and turned around, calling out, “Dad.”
His father cleared his throat and handed him red envelopes. “Here, for the New Year.”
“Oh.” Fang Shiyou smiled. “You're making such a fuss.”
When he took it, he realized there were actually two envelopes. Fang Shiyou immediately understood and looked at his father again.
His father rolled his eyes at him and turned to leave.
Back home, Teacher Xu sat at the dining table, going through an exam bank on his laptop. It was still the exam bank from the main school in Beijing, which was updated monthly. Since coming here, Teacher Xu had primarily been focusing on the questions for the junior high section.
Hearing the sound of the key turning in the lock, Xu Nanheng replied without turning his head, “You're back.”
“Yeah.” Fang Shiyou came in carrying snacks and drinks. After changing his shoes, he leaned from behind and hugged him, planting a kiss in the hollow of his neck. “For you.”
He placed the red envelopes on the table. “Professor Gu gave these to you.”
Xu Nanheng froze and looked up. “Ah?”
“Happy New Year.” Fang Shiyou rubbed the back of his head.
It took Xu Nanheng a while to recover before he finally smiled, still a little embarrassed. He didn't dare open the envelopes to check the amount, but from the look of them, it was more than generous.
After taking off his jacket, Fang Shiyou changed into a pair of casual pants and a sweater, and put the drinks he had bought into the fridge. When he came back out, his WeChat pinged. Picking up his phone, he saw that Xu Nanheng had transferred him some money.
Puzzled, Fang Shiyou looked up. Xu Nanheng said, “My mom sent it to you.”
Fang Shiyou froze for a moment. “You told her?”
“I did,” Xu Nanheng nodded. “The mountains are high and the waters run far. A geographical distance of thirty-five hundred kilometers is just right for a confession. Free from any danger.”
Fang Shiyou didn't know how to respond.
Xu Nanheng smiled. “It's fine. Professor Gu has seen through worldly affairs. My family has accepted fate. Look at me, a second-generation rich kid. I wasn't forced to study business to inherit the family enterprise, and I'm not building connections in Beijing society. I can tell my family never expected me to achieve much.”
That made sense. Fang Shiyou lowered his gaze and nodded, then walked over, bent down, and kissed his forehead. “Nanheng, I hope being with me feels comfortable for you. I don't care if others approve. Even if you……”
His words were cut off when Xu Nanheng grabbed his chin.
“Very comfortable, Fang Shiyou. You serve me very well.”
Sometimes, when Xu Nanheng smiled, he had the air of a boss, likely picked up from his family's merchant background. He looked at Fang Shiyou like he was looking at an exhibit in an auction.
Fang Shiyou pinched his cheek. “So unserious.”