Return to Eighteen, the Spoiled Young Lady Acts Fierce with Her Beauty - Chapter 29: This Is What You Owe Me

Chapter 29: This Is What You Owe Me

Jiang Zhi returned to his room and casually grabbed a black hooded jacket and baseball cap to wear.

He skillfully pulled the cap low.

The wide brim perfectly concealed his excessively handsome face.

Stepping out of the dark, damp basement, the neon lights on the street illuminated the night brightly.

He blended into the flowing crowd just like that, completely unnoticeable.

After walking a few steps, Jiang Zhi suddenly turned around and headed back.

The doorbell jingled as the small shop owner glanced up briefly before returning his attention to the computer screen.

Jiang Zhi went straight to the counter and picked up two lychee-flavored lollipops.

“How much?”

His low, hoarse voice snapped the owner out of his thoughts. “One yuan.”

Jiang Zhi fished out a crumpled bill from his pocket and placed it on the counter.

By the time he reached the hospital entrance, the lollipop in his mouth was only half-finished.

The cloyingly sweet syrup melted in his mouth, sticking unpleasantly to his tongue.

To be honest, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten candy.

Tasting it now, the sweetness still felt too artificial, so sickly sweet it made him uneasy.

It turned out sweets didn’t improve one’s mood as books claimed.

Jiang Zhi crushed the last bit of candy on the paper stick with his molars, the crisp sound echoing clearly in his ears.

Jiang Li was staying in the most ordinary three-patient room.

The small space contained three hospital beds.

Family members, medical staff came and went noisy and crowded.

Anything that happened could be heard by everyone in the room, leaving no privacy.

Since Jiang Li required long-term hospitalization, his bed was arranged at the innermost spot by the window.

There was a small window there that let in sunlight.

As Jiang Zhi passed the outer beds, the old man by the door immediately sat up: “Young man, you came just in time! Your brother has been causing trouble all day again my heart condition is acting up!”

The middle-aged woman in the next bed chimed in: “That’s right, when the nurse came to give him an injection, he started throwing things. It made my blood pressure spike.”

She pointed at the fluctuating numbers on the bedside monitor.

Jiang Zhi murmured softly, “Sorry.”

“What good is an apology?” The old man slapped the edge of his bed. “The hospital isn’t your family’s property have some consideration for others!”

Just then, a loud crash came from behind the innermost curtain.

Followed by Jiang Li’s hysterical screams.

“Jiang Zhi! Why aren’t you dead yet!”

“How dare you show your face here!”

“I hate you! I hate you to death!”

A glass suddenly flew out from the gap in the curtain.

It brushed past Jiang Zhi’s side before shattering on the floor.

The ward fell silent instantly, leaving only the sounds from the monitors.

“See, it’s starting again…” the middle-aged woman muttered softly, shrinking further under her blankets.

The caregiver rushed out from the restroom in a panic, still fumbling with his unfastened belt.

“Sorry, sorry! I just stepped away for a moment…”

Jiang Zhi nodded expressionlessly; he had long grown accustomed to such scenes over the years.

The caregiver frantically found a broom, sweeping up the glass shards while repeatedly apologizing.

“Really sorry, everyone…”

The old man waved a hand: “Forget it, forget it… we’re all struggling here…”

Everyone in this ward were chronic patients.

They’d be leaving after some time anyway otherwise, they couldn’t endure Jiang Li’s daily outbursts.

“He looks like such a refined young man, why is his temper so fierce…” the old man said, peering cautiously.

“Exactly, he acts like he’s seen an enemy whenever his brother shows up,” the middle-aged woman chimed in, sneaking a glance at Jiang Zhi standing at the foot of the bed. “Who knows what deep grudge exists between these brothers…”

The caregiver swept up the last shard of glass and wiped sweat from her forehead.

Jiang Zhi pulled aside the partition curtain to reveal a teenager in an oversized hospital gown struggling to prop up his upper body on the sickbed.

Jiang Li’s gaunt face was sunken to a frightening degree.

His pale fingers were still groping across the bedside table toward a glass just slightly out of reach.

“Stop this nonsense.”

Jiang Zhi’s voice remained calm as he knelt and began skillfully changing the urine bag.

The caregiver was a temporary worker hired cheaply, only coming daily to help with meals.

If Jiang Zhi didn’t come, Jiang Li would have to endure lying in his own waste.

“Who needs your fake kindness!”

Jiang Li grabbed a pillow and threw it at Jiang Zhi, his voice hoarse and cracking.

Jiang Zhi neither dodged nor flinched, picking up the pillow, dusting it off, and placing it back on the bed.

Then he knelt again to continue his task, the plastic catheter making faint rustling sounds between his fingers.

“The doctor said your cervical spine injury… still has potential for recovery.”

“Bullshit!” Jiang Li grabbed a nearby medicine box and hurled it. “Get out! I’d rather die here than have you care for me!”

Hearing the commotion, the caregiver rushed over and exclaimed at the mess: “Xiao Jiang, let me handle this…”

She took the catheter from Jiang Zhi’s hands and whispered, “Don’t take it too hard. Your brother’s suffering deeply…”

Sixteen – the age that should be most vibrant and energetic.

Yet Jiang Li could only lie day after day on a bed less than five feet long.

Unable to even turn over without assistance.

Incontinent, always needing someone to clean and change him.

At the age when self-consciousness blooms most fiercely, his dignity had been utterly shattered.

What would be difficult for any adult to bear was crushing for someone still just a boy.

Jiang Zhi understood better than anyone – it truly was his fault.

That year Jiang Li had been only ten, crying and demanding to find their parents who were working late.

Thirteen-year-old Jiang Zhi had thought taking the electric scooter would get them there faster.

The blinding headlights, screeching brakes, and Jiang Li’s scream as he was thrown from the vehicle.

These scenes still replayed endlessly in Jiang Zhi’s nightmares.

The drunk driver who hit them had shifted blame onto Jiang Zhi for riding an electric bike underage.

In the end, the case was hastily settled with only monetary compensation.

While Jiang Zhi’s injuries were minor, Jiang Li – who’d been riding passenger – was left paralyzed from the waist down.

Doctors called it a burst fracture of the vertebrae, saying survival itself was fortunate.

Then came their parents, rushing to the hospital after receiving the call.

In their urgency, they’d been in a traffic accident themselves – both killed instantly.

From that day on, Jiang Zhi’s life changed completely.

He became his brother’s sole support, and eternal sinner.

Jiang Li suddenly quieted, his voice choked with tears. “I wish I’d died with Mom and Dad back then…”

Jiang Zhi’s hands stilled momentarily, his grip tightening on the chair.

Eyes devoid of light, Jiang Zhi gently pulled back the blanket.

He began massaging Jiang Li’s legs.

From prolonged bed rest, Jiang Li’s leg muscles had developed mild atrophy.

But under Jiang Zhi’s daily careful massage, the condition remained much better than doctors had predicted.

The massage movements were precise and practiced, attending to every acupoint from ankle to knee.

Just as the two-hour massage was nearing its end, Jiang Zhi suddenly spoke: “I applied to Shanghai University.”

With his academic results, he could easily have gone to the nation’s top Peking University, yet he chose to remain in Shanghai.

Jiang Li responded with a cold laugh: “This is what you owe me.”

A twisted satisfaction surfaced on the young man’s pale face. “You should be trapped here for life, atoning for your sins.”

Jiang Zhi paused his massage, tucked Jiang Li in properly, and gave a slight nod.

Yes, this was what he owed him.