"It's finished. Do you want me to help you apply it to other places as well?" Li Caiyi asked while staring at his front body intently, which he quickly covered using his shirt in his hand.

"No, I can do the rest myself," Dai Zhiqiang said with a hoarse voice before he abruptly stood up and hurried to his bedroom. But then he seemed to remember something, so he returned to pick up the ointments she bought before going into his bedroom.

"Why did he rush like that?" Li Caiyi tilted her head in confusion as she muttered. He seemed to be awfully silent after she teased him a bit, too.

Li Caiyi was wiping her sticky fingers with wet tissue when Dai Shenqiang appeared on the door while carrying many snacks and cans of fruit juice.

After fifteen minutes, Dai Zhiqiang also came out of his room wearing casual clothes. Li Caiyi was glad he seemed to heed her advice and apply the ointments immediately. If not, why would he take so much time changing clothes?

The three of them sat at the dining table together and ate their dinner. As expected, the ever so curious Dai Shenqiang asked about the severe mood between them earlier, but this time, Dai Zhiqiang cleverly covered the truth by saying there was some kind of accident in school. Li Caiyi also played along to support his claim.

After dinner, Li Caiyi thought she shouldn't linger around anymore and bade her goodbye to the brothers. Dai Zhiqiang was sending her off to the front gate.

"Are you sure you don't want me to take you to the station?"

Li Caiyi shook her head. "No, you should go in and take a rest. You work so hard today, even after fighting against those loan sharks. I can use a taxi to get there."

"I don't mind at all. I heard many evil taxi drivers prey on women lately. It's not safe."

His concern warmed her heart, but she couldn't possibly take his kindness more than this, or she would feel bad. "Don't worry, I will be cautious. Don't forget to use the ice packs I gave you."

"Yeah, thanks."

Li Caiyi sighed inwardly. She was reluctant to go home because she didn't know what would await her there, considering today's incident, but she had no other choice. With a weary smile, she said, "Then, I'll go first. See you tomorrow."

"Are you okay?"

"Huh?"

Dai Zhiqiang studied her facial expression closely, and his brows creased. "You don't look well. Are you perhaps feeling sick?"

Li Caiyi was embarrassed for letting him see through her easily like that, so she quickly tried to cover it by laughing. "Haha, no, I'm perfectly fine. A bit tired, yes."

Dai Zhiqiang squinted his eyes suspiciously, but he didn't press the issue further. "I see. It's good if you are okay."

Li Caiyi couldn't tell him she actually wanted to confide in someone about her complicated feelings but felt it wouldn't be right to talk about her family's problem to an outsider.

So she restrained herself and left with a wave of her hand.

***

Li Caiyi thought she would be greeted with the whole family waiting for her to judge her again when she arrived, but to her surprise, the light of her house was off. She used her house key to get in and flicked the switch, and the light was on without a problem.

"No one is at home?" Li Caiyi muttered in wonder. Even the ever-homebody Li Junjie wasn't home either. This meant that something must have happened.

Li Caiyi was walking past the kitchen when she glimpsed upon a post on the fridge's door. It was her brother's handwriting:

[Xiaohua collapsed, and we can't reach you. Come to the hospital as soon as you see this.]

Upon reading that, she felt like someone had spilled a bucket of cold water on top of her head. She quickly took out her phone, and sure enough, it was out of battery. She cursed inwardly and rushed out of the house and stopped—almost blocked the first taxi that passed by.

What she feared the most eventually happened. She was concerned about it earlier, so she told her brother to make Li Chunhua drink her medicine. Still, today's series of events must have taken a toll on her body.

Li Caiyi bit her lips anxiously and couldn't help but recall her last conversation with her sister. Perhaps that was the last straw for Li Chunhua before she finally gave in to exhaustion.

'Did I went too far by speaking like that to her today?' Li Caiyi's mind was in a mess, and she couldn't sit still until she knew her sister's condition.

Even if she told her they needed to separate, she was still concerned about her sister in the end. All those years she spent taking care of her had deeply ingrained in her bones, and it was hard not to care about it.

Li Caiyi was so engrossed in her own thoughts the taxi driver had to remind her they had already arrived at the hospital. After paying the taxi fee, she rushed into the white building with a worry-stricken face.

After finding out her sister's room from the front desk, she hastened her pace to the said room. There, she saw her brother, who had just left the room. "Brother Jie!"

Li Junjie turned his head at the call of his name. "Xiaoyi, you have come."historical

Li Caiyi steadied her labored breath before she asked him, "How is Xiaohua? Is she alright?!"

"The doctor had already examined her. He said it was another of her episodes, and she needed to take a full rest for days before she could get up from the bed."

"Is it that bad?" Li Caiyi became more agitated hearing that.

Li Junjie frowned when he looked down at her sister's pale face. "Why are you so panicked? It's just the usual thing. She would be okay after she got some rest. Take a deep breath and calm down."

Li Caiyi breathed in and out several times before she finally became calmer. "Thank you, Brother. I'm fine now."

"Looking at your attire, you seem to come here right away after you get home."

"You too, Brother," Li Caiyi said, noticing that Li Junjie was also still wearing his uniform. Did she collapse at home?"

"Yeah, she fell as soon as we arrived at the house. We immediately brought her here after that." Li Junjie sighed. "I'm so tired from running around all day."

"Brother, I want to see Xiaohua's condition. I will talk to you later!"

Li Caiyi opened the door of Li Chunhua's room carefully. The sight of her sister lying weakly on the bed with an oxygen mask covering her nose and mouth immediately greeted her.

"Xiaohua.." Li Caiyi called her out in a low voice before silently walking over. Li Chunhua's face was very pale, and looking at the slight frown on her face, it seemed like she was in a considerable amount of pain, even in her sleep.

Li Caiyi sat down on the stool beside the bed and clasped her sister's hand, inwardly praying that she could transfer her energy to her by doing this. She was so determined to take some distance away from her earlier, but her conscience was ridden with guilt looking at her sister's condition right now.

'What is exactly the correct answer here?' Li Caiyi bit her lips in frustration. Whenever she wanted to take a step forward, she was always pulled back two steps. Was getting out of the Li Family registry the only way to be free after all?

Li Caiyi glanced at Li Chunhua's face, which was a carbon copy of her own face, and a mixed feeling appeared in her heart. Was leaving everything behind to pursue her own happiness while pretending nothing happened behind her is truly the correct answer?

If yes, then why did she feel so unsettled inside?