Chapter 68: Breathing
You Ruxu arrived home and saw Zhou Tianzui sitting on the sofa. Yao Zhao was reading in the bedroom. Zhou Tianzui, busy with her phone, looked up and glanced at You Ruxu, hearing her enter.
You Ruxu thought she was looking at her strangely.
She asked, “What are you doing?”
“Ordering takeout.” Zhou Tianzui said, “What do you want for dinner?”
You Ruxu said, “I’ll cook.”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Aren’t you tired?”
You Ruxu moved her arms, they did ache after a whole day of standing and filming. But with Yao Zhao here, she felt it wasn’t appropriate to order takeout. Zhou Tianzui called out, “Yao Zhao.”
Yao Zhao came out of the bedroom and politely greeted You Ruxu, “Sister, you’re back.”
You Ruxu smiled at her.
Zhou Tianzui said, “We’re ordering takeout tonight, what do you want to eat? Fried chicken?”
Yao Zhao’s eyes lit up. She licked her lips, glanced at You Ruxu, her desire clear, but remembering her manners, she said to Zhou Tianzui, “Whatever you’re having, Sister.”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Alright, go back to your reading.”
Yao Zhao returned to the bedroom.
You Ruxu sat on the sofa. Zhou Tianzui said, “Then I’ll order.”
Seeing Yao Zhao’s expression, You Ruxu agreed, figuring the child hadn’t had takeout often at home. After ordering, Zhou Tianzui placed her phone on the coffee table and saw You Ruxu pick up the file folder.
She said, “Yao Zhao’s injury assessment report.”
Yao Zhao seemed to hear her name. The TV wasn’t on, the apartment was quiet. She heard the sound of You Ruxu opening the folder. Their voices weren’t loud, and she only vaguely heard her name.
You Ruxu opened the folder. Yao Zhao had multiple injuries, but the more serious ones were self-inflicted. There were also traces of her stepfather’s abuse, but they weren’t obvious. If her stepfather claimed that Yao Zhao provoked him, it would be difficult for Yao Zhao to argue, as she had lied first.
You Ruxu sighed, “So we can’t sue him?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “No, not with this report.”
You Ruxu said, “What if we do another assessment?”
“It will be the same.” Zhou Tianzui said, “Unless we change…”
She stopped mid-sentence, looking at You Ruxu, seeing a dangerous glint in her eyes. Zhou Tianzui chuckled in exasperation, “Are you crazy? Don’t even think about it!”
You Ruxu, scolded, lowered her head, “I think I might actually be crazy.”
For a moment, she really had considered tampering with the report. Yao Zhao was just a child, coming forward about the abuse had taken immense courage. What she would face if her classmates found out about her stepfather’s actions was unimaginable. For a child her age, a single word could cause lasting damage. Those rumors, seemingly harmless to outsiders, were like sharp blades to Yao Zhao, leaving her vulnerable and scarred.
Many people had already been hurt by rumors and gossip, she didn’t want Yao Zhao to be another victim.
Zhou Tianzui knew what she was thinking. No one understood the power of rumors better than her, but even knowing this, she couldn’t do anything that violated her professional ethics.
Every problem had a solution, and what they could do was minimize the harm to Yao Zhao. She looked at You Ruxu.
You Ruxu smiled at her, her face pale, “Am I being unreasonable?”
She, a reporter, had actually considered such a thing. It wasn’t just unreasonable. Zhou Tianzui didn’t scold her, only tolerance in her voice.
Zhou Tianzui looked at her intently and said, “You’re not being unreasonable, it’s human nature.”
You Ruxu looked down. Those thoughts were just a fleeting moment of desperation. She leaned her head back against the sofa, looking at Zhou Tianzui, her expression unusually vulnerable. Zhou Tianzui felt both anger and heartache. She glared at You Ruxu and said, “Come with me.”
You Ruxu asked, “What for?”
“To give you a massage.” She pulled You Ruxu into the bedroom, closed the door, and made her lie face down on the bed, her hands gently pressing against You Ruxu’s back. You Ruxu lay there, hearing Zhou Tianzui ask, “Going back to the train station tomorrow?”
You Ruxu said, “Not sure yet, probably.”
Zhou Tianzui’s pressure was just right, not too light, not too heavy, as she massaged You Ruxu’s shoulders, soothing her tense muscles. You Ruxu, lulled by the massage, closed her eyes, almost drifting off. Zhou Tianzui chuckled, “Teacher You, aren’t you being a little ungrateful?”
You Ruxu opened her eyes and looked at Zhou Tianzui, “What do you mean?”
“No compensation for the massage?” Zhou Tianzui said, “You even promised to be my model this morning.”
This morning?
You Ruxu remembered the CPR simulation, her face flushing slightly in the dim light, “I forgot.”
Zhou Tianzui leaned closer: “Forgot or didn’t want to?”
You Ruxu said, “I didn’t not want to.”
Zhou Tianzui nodded, “Then come on.”
She tilted her chin, gesturing for You Ruxu to lie down on the bed. You Ruxu pursed her lips, looking at Zhou Tianzui, “It’s really just first aid practice?”
Zhou Tianzui corrected her, “A simulation.”
She said it so seriously that You Ruxu felt her own thoughts were inappropriate. She lay down without hesitation. Zhou Tianzui stood beside her, looking down.
It was a standard CPR procedure, but You Ruxu couldn’t help but turn her head, wanting to laugh. Zhou Tianzui gently turned her face back, “Can a model laugh?”
You Ruxu said, “Why not?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “You’re breaking the rules, let’s start over.”
Her tone serious and unsmiling, as if they were truly conducting a CPR simulation.
You Ruxu put away her playful thoughts, her expression serious, tilting her head back slightly, taking her role as a model seriously. A faint amusement flickered in Zhou Tianzui’s eyes as she leaned down. After a few seconds, You Ruxu asked, puzzled, “What’s this?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Rescue breaths, have you learned this before?”
You Ruxu remembered learning CPR in university, but they had used mannequins, even the first aid training at the TV station. She had learned about rescue breaths, but not like this. She glared at Zhou Tianzui, wanting to move, but she was held in place. She called out, “Zhou Tianzui.”
Zhou Tianzui chuckled, “Hmm?”
You Ruxu turned her head slightly, amusement in her eyes, and said, “Tricking me?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Tricking you how?”
You Ruxu said, “You weren’t practicing CPR at all.”
Not only that, but acting so serious. You Ruxu had been tricked.
Zhou Tianzui chuckled softly.
It was the laughter of someone caught red-handed but unapologetic, or perhaps she was laughing at You Ruxu finally realizing it. You Ruxu, unable to bear her laughter, grabbed her wrist and pinched the back of her hand.
Zhou Tianzui cried out in surprise, trying to pull away. You Ruxu sat up and grabbed her other hand. Zhou Tianzui, breathless from laughter, whispered, “A Ran, that hurts.”
Just one word, and You Ruxu’s heart softened. She released Zhou Tianzui’s hands, about to push her away and sit up, when Zhou Tianzui, who had just cried out in pain, suddenly pulled her into an embrace.
You Ruxu was enveloped by her warmth, the faint scent of disinfectant coming through her thin clothes. Zhou Tianzui always had this faint mix of perfume and disinfectant, not overpowering, a scent You Ruxu liked. She remembered when they first met, she always liked to sit close to Zhou Tianzui during meals, because she liked her scent.
Now, besides liking the scent, it also brought a sense of comfort.
No matter what she was doing, just thinking of this person brought an inexplicable sense of peace. You Ruxu looked up at Zhou Tianzui. Zhou Tianzui looked down, “What are you looking at?”
You Ruxu smiled at her and said, “Guess.”
Zhou Tianzui frowned. Seeing this, You Ruxu’s smile widened, and Zhou Tianzui also chuckled softly.
The apartment was quiet. Yao Zhao, after finishing her homework and reviewing her lessons, still didn’t see You Ruxu and Zhou Tianzui come out, so she figured they were busy and didn’t dare disturb them. She sat on the sofa.
The apartment was clean and tidy. She felt that You Ruxu was a bit of a neat freak. Once, she had seen Zhou Tianzui casually place the remote control on the table after watching TV, and You Ruxu put it back in its designated box. Yao Zhao looked at the remote control, picked it up, wanting to turn on the TV, then glancing at You Ruxu’s bedroom door, put it back.
The doorbell rang. She went to answer the door. The takeout had arrived. Yao Zhao took the food and returned to the coffee table. The bedroom door opened slightly, and Zhou Tianzui poked her head out, “Who is it?”
“The takeout’s here.” Yao Zhao said, “Are you and Reporter coming out to eat?”
“You eat first.” Zhou Tianzui said, “We have some things to discuss, we might be a while. You eat, and you can watch some TV.”
She treated her like a child, and Yao Zhao obediently listened, or rather, she wanted to watch TV and eat fried chicken, things she had never dared to dream of before. It was You Ruxu and Zhou Tianzui who gave her this opportunity.
Yao Zhao swallowed, opened the box, wanting to wait for them, but the aroma of the food was tempting, her stomach rumbling. She turned on the TV, hoping to drown out the sound, but it only made her hungrier.
She couldn’t resist, taking a piece of fried chicken and eating it slowly.
Zhou Tianzui returned to the bedroom. You Ruxu asked, “Is dinner here?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Not yet.”
You Ruxu frowned, “Then what was that just now?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Nothing.”
She pulled You Ruxu closer, “Let’s continue.”
You Ruxu chuckled, “Continue what?”
Zhou Tianzui: “Teaching you CPR.”
You Ruxu pushed her playfully. Zhou Tianzui looked at her, their eyes meeting. They sat on the edge of the bed. You Ruxu’s hair was slightly messy, a smile in her eyes. Zhou Tianzui leaned closer, her gaze deep and intense, her voice much lower, almost a murmur, “Otherwise, Teacher You can teach me.”
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