My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

Shi Nian would have never guessed that Xu Binchen would appear in her hospital room the day after in such a high profile manner. He wore a black sweater with jeans, hair slightly messy, looking just like a mature and handsome college student. In his arms was a large bouquet of daffodils. The bright yellow petals swayed elegantly, adding color to his gloomy aura and creating such a contrast that was quite funny that his scariness index reduced by half.

Doctor Chun was performing a series of tests on her when he entered, the door slid with a smooth sound.

Four pairs of eyes turned to him, stunned, but he was only looking straight at Shi Nian. Striding in, he handed the bouquet to her in a haughty and nonchalant manner. "For you."

Shi Nian: "…"

Doctor Chun: "…" What the—

The nurses: "…" Oh—em—geee! Squeal!

Shi Nian blinked and blinked, and only when the nurse let out a sharp yelp did she snap out of her stupor. She accepted the bouquet in a muddle headed manner, her eyes bewildered.

"What's wrong?" He tilted his head. "Didn't you ask for flowers yesterday?"

Shi Nian's jaw dropped to the ground.

The eyes on Xu Binchen turned to Shi Nian, especially the nurses' eyes which were full of gossip. For a while, Shi Nian really wanted to bury herself into the quilts. Yes, this was what she requested. But she didn't ask him to give it this way ah…

Such a great morning to start a misunderstanding.

Doctor Chun cleared his throat. "F—Flowers are good. It's very colorful, very suitable for young girls."

"Yes, yes." The nurses chirped. "It's so beautiful oh~ Do you want me to put it into a vase for you?"

Now, how could Shi Nian tell them that she intended to give the flowers to Jiang Jinyan?

The corner of her lips twitched and she shook her head, only putting the flowers atop of the nightstand beside the bed. She mouthed to him, "Thank you."

Xu Binchen nodded and made himself scarce as he sat on the couch, waiting for Doctor Chun to conclude his examinations. "Okay, it's quite good. But remember not to strain yourself so much. We will make an appointment with Psychiatrist Yu again in a few days. Rest a lot in the meantime."

Shi Nian nodded with a smile.

After making sure that she wouldn't run off anywhere again, Doctor Chun nodded at Xu Binchen and beckoned for him to come over. Xu Binchen raised a brow but didn't reject it. He stood up, walked toward Shi Nian and handed her a box which he had been holding, then followed behind Doctor Chun.

The doctor and nurses went out, leaving Shi Nian alone.

She looked down on the box and found that it was a smooth, square white box with an emblem of one of the most famous brands renowned for their high quality phone. Shi Nian's eyes widened in shock. The plastic was still untouched, proof that the phone had just been brought.

Uncle detective...gifted her this? What for?

Shi Nian was one of the rare creatures who wasn't obsessed with phones and social media. She preferred to spend her time in supermarkets or part time jobs. Where did she find the time to surf the internet? Her home had an old computer which her father used which was enough. Phone was just an accessory that she carried because of Xia Wei's insistence, scared that she wouldn't be able to reach her daughter. Even so, what she carried was such an ancient phone which could only be used to call and send messages.

Because of the recent accident, her phone had been lost and forever unfound.

Shi Nian had even inadvertently heard her classmates clamoring about this phone when it had just been launched. It was so pricey that even the richest kid in her class had to beg his parents for two months prior to get it.

Such—Such an expensive and sophisticated phone!

Thus, when Xu Binchen entered in the next moment, this was what he saw; Shi Nian with a solemn face, kneeling upright on her bed. In front of her was the phone, its box still intact. She looked like she was facing her greatest nemesis.

He couldn't resist asking, "Why? Don't like it?"

Shi Nian panicked. [No! It's just...]

Before she could write it, Xu Binchen nodded. "Good. It's for you."

[...so expensive!]

"Isn't that what teenagers use these days?"

Shi Nian, who wasn't your average teenager: "…"

Xu Binchen sensed something was wrong and waved his hand. "Forget it. Just use it. It's a gift from the police department. Now that you have a phone, you can call me directly if something happens. Still not opening it?"

Shi Nian's brows knitted, she still had a belly of complaint.

But Xu Binchen flicked her forehead and snorted. "What are you thinking so much for? At this time, what you should do is just say thank you and accept it."

Shi Nian held her aching forehead, dumbfounded.

Xu Binchen couldn't resist it any longer and did what he always wanted to do. He tousled the girl's hair until it became a bird's nest. "Leave all the complicated things to adults and just live carefreely, okay?"

Shi Nian looked up at him, her expression foolish to the extreme. Since today, no, was it yesterday, or the day before? Even though Xu Binchen was still rude, frank and annoying, he had retracted the thorns which previously wrapped around his whole body, making the atmosphere around him turn softer and warmer.

It wasn't just a matter of hours, but days and weeks. Xu Binchen was gradually changing and somehow, he had started to develop a sense of responsibility toward this underage yet mature sixteen years old girl.

Maybe Doctor Chun was right. Such a sensible and pitiful girl, who wouldn't be softhearted?

So, he was willing to help her even for a bit. To say that it was a gift from the entire police department wasn't wrong but Xu Binchen had only submitted the form today. It wasn't possible for it to be processed so quickly but he had gone and bought the phone.

So be it, he shrugged. Anyway, it's just a little money.

He looked down at her and raised his brow, "Still not opening it? Do you want me to serve as your hands?"

Shi Nian: "...."