Rebirth: Once Again With You

"Brother Renshu, how is your condition?" Li Caiyi asked as she walked over slowly to his bedside.

"It has gotten better now. But why are you alone? Didn't Junjie and Xiaohua also come with you?" Meng Renshu replied as he looked towards the door.

"Aren't you the one who set this up?" Li Caiyi asked dubiously with eyes narrowed down.

"Ah? Setting what?" Meng Renshu looked up at her in confusion. Based on his reaction, it didn't seem he was lying. Did he really know nothing about it, and everything was just something her brother arbitrarily did again?

Whichever it was, Li Caiyi knew better than to interrogate a sick person. "Nevermind that. You look terrible."

Meng Renshu grimaced before pulling the blanket which covered him closer to his body. "I guess so. When I heard Junjie was coming, I tried my best to make myself look as presentable as possible, but as expected, it made no difference."

Then, he noticed how Li Caiyi still stood beside his bed and hastily added, "Sit down first, then we can talk."

"No need. I only come here to see if you are okay or not. You still don't look very well, but I'm glad you are taking proper rest."

Meng Renshu's shoulders visibly sunk when he heard that, and the light in his eyes dimmed. "Are you going to leave so soon?"

Li Caiyi felt her heart constricted when looking at his crestfallen look. She didn't expect him to be so disappointed like that. A pang of guilt hit her once again.

Nevertheless, she couldn't falter now. She was determined not to get involved with him anymore in this lifetime, so she should always keep her distance from him.

"I'm sorry, Brother Renshu. Xiaohua and Brother Jie will accompany you soon, so don't worry because you won't be alone." Li Caiyi tried to console him, but it only made his face darken instead.

"Did you come here because the two of them dragged you?"

His question hit right on the mark. He seemed to notice it too because he laughed mirthlessly, with a slightly pained look flashed across his eyes.

"I see. No wonder." He said bitterly before lying down on the bed again. "Thank you for your concern. Next time, you don't have to force yourself like this. I feel bad because it seems I have wasted your time."

"No, it's not that," Li Caiyi bit her lips, finding it difficult to explain. No, she didn't understand why she felt the need to explain herself here.

Meng Renshu turned his body, so his back was now facing her. It was clear as day that he was upset because of her.

"It's fine. I know you hate being around me. Now you have confirmed my condition, you can save yourself from the ordeal."

He spoke like he was giving leeway to Li Caiyi, but from his sarcastic tone, it sounded like he was sulking instead. Perhaps it was because of his fever, but this childish act was something he usually wouldn't do.

Li Caiyi looked at his back, which seemed lonely, and once again facing an inner turmoil.

In the end, she sighed defeatedly as she pulled a chair and sat on it. "I'm sorry, Brother Renshu. I will stay here."

"I already said it's okay, didn't I?"

"But you clearly sounded annoyed."

"Why do you care? You never cared about it before, so what difference does it make now?"

'Okay, he is not just upset, but angry at me.' Li Caiyi sighed in exasperation.

"I have gone overboard this time and acted unreasonably. I'm sorry for hurting your feelings, Brother Renshu. But I really am worried about you. That's not a lie."

Meng Renshu: "...."

Li Caiyi couldn't guess what was on his mind, so she continued talking, "And aren't you the one who kept avoiding me in the last few days?"

"Why would I do that?"

"Don't lie. Brother Jie said you have been replying to his call and messages frequently since you were absent. But you didn't reply to me even once."

"Have you been waiting for my reply all this time? Now that is something I didn't expect. I'm touched."

Li Caiyi knew he would say that, so she scoffed. "Anyone would feel worried after seeing you almost collapse like the other day."

Meng Renshu turned his body, so he could face Li Caiyi while lying down.

Despite his pallid look, he appeared exquisite as he laid down on the white sheet with white pajamas. The sunlight shone through the window behind Li Caiyi and made his eyes glisten like glass. His slightly parted lips felt like they would spout the sweetest words at any moment.

Most women probably wouldn't be able to resist the urge to attack this fragile jade beauty with angelic charms.

Even Li Caiyi felt her eyes had been blessed by this sight. Meng Renshu was so beautiful that she couldn't take her eyes off him. She thought that if an angel fell to the earth, he probably would take a form like this.

"Whatever your reason is, I'm happy you are here. Please stay with me a little longer."

"Ah? Yes, yes," Li Caiyi replied in a daze, still not fully regaining her wits.

"And I'm not avoiding you," Meng Renshu said somberly. "I was just afraid that I wouldn't be able to restrain myself and pester you nonstop to talk to me more."

'Oh, so he's not avoiding me because he hates me.'

"You aren't obligated to reply to them, anyway. As long as you are recuperating well, that's already more than enough for me."

Meng Renshu laughed in a low voice. "Hearing that from you is all the encouragement I need."

"Have you slept well? You have dark circles under your eyes."

"I tried, but it didn't work well. I only slept for a few hours in the past few days. Even when I close my eyes, I can't seem to get proper sleep."

Li Caiyi glanced at the medicine placed on top of his bedside drawers. "Did you take them regularly?"

"Yeah. It helped me sleep at first, but the effect slowly reduced, and the doctor had to increase my dosage."

"I see; that must be tough," Li Caiyi said sincerely. She knew well how exhausting it was.

Meng Renshu didn't confirm or deny it. He looked like he was deep in thought.

"Xiaoyi, do you think you can hold my hand until I fall asleep again?"