The Only Choice - 56

It's always with our family that we feel safe enough to unleash our worst tempers.

And it's always shortly after that we're flooded with regret, thinking we shouldn't have lost our cool, that talking it out calmly would have been better.

But in this case, Zhou Fanfan didn't know how to "talk it out" with Zhao Dezhen. After all, her grandmother had been bringing this up for years. Her getting married seemed to be of the utmost importance.

Feeling unsettled, she lost interest in her computer games. She took a shower, burrowed into bed, put on her headphones, and lost herself in music.

She must have dozed off, because the next thing she knew, her regular ringtone startled her awake.

"Hello…"

Guan Yuanbai paused, hearing her voice. "Were you asleep?"

"Yeah."

"This early?"

Rubbing her eyes, she mumbled, "I had a fight with Grandma earlier. Got so mad I came up to my room early, and then… I guess I fell asleep."

"A fight? About what?"

Still groggy, she answered bluntly, "She said we should get married soon. I didn't want to, so we argued."

Silence greeted her from the other end.

Fanfan frowned, suddenly realizing how her words might have sounded. "It's not that I don't want to… with you… I mean, I have no problem with you! I just think it's too fast."

Guan Yuanbai made a soft sound of acknowledgement. "I know. Don't worry."

Her voice dropped to a whisper. "It's just… Grandma is always pushing about this stuff, and it really annoys me. We just started arguing. But she came to my room earlier to make up, and I ignored her… Now I feel kind of bad about it. It's… it's really not that big a deal."

"People from Grandma's generation think that way. Sometimes there's no need to argue. Just let it in one ear and out the other." His voice was calm. "If you're feeling regretful, you could go find her now and talk to her properly."

Fanfan glanced at the time. "It's too late. She's probably already asleep."

"Then do it tomorrow."

"Okay… I'll apologize to her tomorrow."

"Good girl."

Suddenly, her mood felt a little lighter.

After a moment of comfortable silence, she asked, "What are you doing now?"

"Me? I just got out of the shower. Sitting in the living room."

"Watching a movie?"

"No. Don't feel like watching one without you here."

His voice, transmitted through the phone, seemed to brush against her ear, sending a shiver down her spine.

Instantly, she remembered last night's movie… and everything that happened after. A familiar flutter stirred in her chest.

"Has the mark on your neck faded?" Guan Yuanbai asked abruptly.

She pouted. "It's not going to disappear that fast…"

His voice was soft. "Weren't you afraid, going home like that?"

"Of course I changed! I wore a button-up shirt."

Guan Yuanbai: "I see. And is it still sore?"

This time, 'sore' clearly didn't refer to her neck. Heat rushed to her cheeks. "It's… much better…"

"Good. If it still hurts, tell me."

"What good would telling you do?" she grumbled.

"I'd take you to see a doctor."

"For that?! It… it'll heal on its own! As long as we don't—"

She cut herself off, but they both knew how that sentence ended.

Guan Yuanbai hummed in acknowledgement, and she could easily detect a note of regret in his tone. "Alright. I understand."

Understand what…

She had a feeling he was just saying that!

The man had a ruthless streak. Last night, no matter how much she pleaded or cried, he'd been utterly unmoved.

"I'm not talking to you anymore! I'm going back to sleep!"

A soft chuckle came through the phone. "Go to sleep, then. I'll pick you up from campus tomorrow for dinner."

"…I'm not going to your place."

He couldn't help but laugh. "Fine, not my place. We can eat out, alright?"

"Then I want Sichuan food tomorrow."

"Okay. Whatever you want."

After saying goodnight to Guan Yuanbai and hanging up, Zhou Fanfan's mood had completely lifted.

She decided that since her class tomorrow wasn't until the afternoon, she'd stay home in the morning or for lunch to have a meal with her grandmother and properly apologize.

Unexpectedly, however, Zhao Dezhen left for the company early the next morning, before breakfast even. According to Auntie Feng, there were some urgent project issues.

But Auntie Feng added that she would be back for lunch. Reassured, Fanfan ate breakfast and retreated to her room to amuse herself.

When lunchtime arrived and Auntie Feng had the meal ready, Fanfan came downstairs and asked, "Where's Grandma? Isn't she back yet?"

"She should be on her way. I'll call the driver."

"Okay."

Just as Auntie Feng was about to make the call, Fanfan's phone rang. It was the assistant who always accompanied Zhao Dezhen.

"Young Miss, are you at home? Or at the university?"

"I'm home. Why? What's wrong?"

"Please come to the Second Hospital immediately. President Zhao fainted suddenly. We're almost at the hospital now!"

Fanfan's mind went blank with a deafening buzz. "…Fainted? How?"

The assistant explained, "President Zhao hasn't been feeling well lately, but she always said she was too busy to see a doctor. Her last check-up was early last year. They noted some heart issues then, but she never went back for a follow-up."

Fanfan's voice rose sharply. "Why didn't you tell me last year?! I asked you, and you said everything was fine!"

The assistant sounded strained. "President Zhao said it wasn't a big deal, just part of getting older… She told me not to tell you."

Fanfan took a sharp breath, her hands beginning to tremble. She didn't press further, immediately grabbing her keys from her bag and heading for the garage.

"Fanfan? Fanfan, what's wrong? Has something happened to Madam?!"

Auntie Feng hurried after her, questions tumbling out.

Fanfan's eyes stung with unshed tears. Her mind was a frantic chant of It has to be okay, she has to be okay!

She yanked the car door open, desperate to get to the hospital, but her hands were shaking too badly to hold the key steady. She took another deep breath and shoved the keys into Auntie Feng's hands. "You drive. Take me to the Second Hospital!"

—

The entire car ride, Zhou Fanfan was wound tight as a drum. One part of her tried to reassure herself that it was surely nothing serious, while another part was terrified of the worst-case scenario.

All these years, even though Zhao Dezhen often made dramatic comments in front of her about "not having long left" or "being old," she had never once mentioned any real, tangible health problems.

Because of that, Fanfan had almost forgotten that her grandmother was already a seventy-year-old woman.

"Fanfan, don't panic. I'm sure she's fine," Auntie Feng tried to soothe her from the driver's seat, but Fanfan couldn't process the words. She just needed to get to the hospital, to see her grandmother, now.

She needed to confirm she was okay. She had to be okay…

The moment the car stopped, Fanfan flung the door open and rushed out.

The assistant was already waiting and immediately guided her toward the operating rooms, explaining as they walked. "President Zhao fainted during a meeting today. She was quite agitated over a project issue. It's coronary heart disease causing myocardial ischemia, which led to an arrhythmia. They're preparing for surgery now. They need you to sign the consent forms."

"Is her life in danger?"

The assistant hesitated. "That… I can't say for sure. The doctors just said this surgery is necessary, and that there is definite danger if it's not performed."

"I understand."

Fanfan followed the assistant to the surgical area. A crowd of people had already gathered outside the operating room—young, old, all in suits and ties, clearly having come straight from the company.

Seeing her arrive, they seemed to collectively sigh with relief. "Young Miss, please, you need to sign the forms."

A doctor, recognizing her as the family member, came forward immediately.

The doctor explained the procedure, the risks involved, and so on. Fanfan forced herself to focus, to listen calmly, and to sign where needed.

But when the doctor mentioned the statistical risks, tears welled up in her eyes.

Everyone was watching. She fought them back fiercely, pausing for a moment by the nurse's station to collect herself before walking over to the tightly shut operating room doors.

"Young Miss, I've already called your father. He's booked a flight and is on his way back," the assistant informed her.

"Okay…"

A few of the company's senior executives came over to offer comfort. "Fanfan, don't worry. President Zhao has always seemed so healthy. The surgery will be fine."

"Yes, yes, Young Miss, don't be upset or scared."

Fanfan nodded, took a deep breath, and addressed everyone. "I believe Grandma will be fine. There's no need to comfort me; I'll be alright. Now that I'm here, Assistant Yang and I will stay. If any of you have urgent matters, especially concerning the company, I think it's best if you return to handle them…"

Zhou Fanfan was trying her absolute hardest to remain composed. But sitting there in the waiting room, watching the minutes tick by with no movement from the operating room doors, a torrent of awful emotions began to torture her.

Pain, regret, guilt… she could barely breathe.

She couldn't imagine what she would do if something happened to her grandmother. She truly had no idea…

"Fanfan."

She didn't know how much time had passed when someone knelt in front of her. He touched her head, his eyes filled with reassurance and concern.

Zhou Fanfan didn't know why Guan Yuanbai was here now, but the moment she saw him, the tightly wound string inside her finally snapped.

Her lips parted, but before she could speak, a single tear landed directly on the back of his hand.

With all those people around earlier, she had to act strong, act brave, not daring to show a hint of weakness.

But now, she doesn't have the strength to keep up the act anymore.

"I'm scared," Zhou Fanfan said, and as the words left her mouth, the tears began to fall in earnest, unstoppable.

"Guan Yuanbai, my grandmother is in there. I'm so scared… What if something happens to her? What will I do…?"

Auntie Feng, standing nearby, turned away to wipe her own tears discreetly.

Guan Yuanbai's voice was gentle but firm. "It won't. Nothing will happen. I've called for the best doctors. She'll be fine once the surgery is over."

"No, that's not it… It's my fault," she sobbed, the words tumbling out. "I fought with her last night when I got home… She said she wants to see me married and settled, she said it's her greatest wish, and I didn't even want to listen… I told her she was annoying…"

Seeing her like this tore at Guan Yuanbai's heart. But with her grandmother still in surgery, words felt useless. All he could do was stay by her side and let her pour it all out.

"Why did I have to get so angry with her? She brought me fruit and I ignored her… I'm the annoying one… I'm the one who's terrible…"

"You're not. Grandma loves you more than anything. She would never think you're annoying."

"It's because she spoils me… I'm so selfish and willful, that's why I overlooked so much… She cares about me so much, and I didn't even know she was sick." The more she spoke, the deeper the guilt cut. She wiped at her tears frantically, suddenly grabbing onto Guan Yuanbai's arm, her eyes wide with panic. "Guan Yuanbai, you like me, right? You really, really like me, don't you?"

Guan Yuanbai was taken aback for a second, then nodded. "Yes."

"I like you too. I like you so, so much… So… so let's get married, okay? Once Grandma is better, let's get married right away, okay?”

---

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