Chapter 9 – My baby is really clingy

Chen Haonan saw Bai Mu Ning coming out of the consultation room with a dejected expression and stepped forward to ask with concern, “How did it go?”

Bai Mu Ning shook his head and returned to the fish tank to change the water for the golden arowana.

The job that was practically in his hands had slipped away. He was so sad, so miserable, that he just wanted to make a scene.

Chen Haonan couldn’t do anything either. In this household, Wen Jing’s word was law. He had a say, but not much.

Not long after, a middle-aged woman with mobility issues came in through the door. She was bundled up in a heavy military coat, her face full of wrinkles, looking very aged.

Her left foot barely touched the ground, and she walked with a limp.

Since Zhuang Yumian wasn’t around at the moment, Chen Haonan greeted her, “Are you here to register?”

The woman’s cheeks were red from the cold. She didn’t speak but gestured with her rough hands. Chen Haonan couldn’t understand.

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Tl yppwxle vbl osxyd oyp byae sq blyakdt, ps bl aykple bkp hsknl y zkvvzl. “Py Kkl, kp vblal psxlvbkdt usw dlle?”

Mbl osxyd rskdvle vs bla lyap, vbld bla xswvb, yde oyhle bla byde.

Mbyv tlpvwal Ubld Tysdyd wdelapvsse—pbl oyp elyq yde xwvl.

Jwv bso olal vblu pwrrsple vs nsxxwdknyvl?

Ubld Tysdyd pbswvle vsoyae vbl nsdpwzvyvksd assx, “Xze Eld, nsxl vyjl y zssj.”

Jyk Yw Lkdt bsrrle sqq vbl nbyka yde vwadle sqq vbl oyvla hyzhl. “Gwdvkl kp ypjkdt kq pbl nyd cwu vbl nyaecsyae csmlp swvpkel.”

“Zsw nyd wdelapvyde obyv pbl’p tlpvwakdt?”

Jyk Yw Lkdt bwxxle yde dseele. “R jdso pktd zydtwytl.”

His parents were both deaf-mute, so he had learned to communicate in sign language from a young age.

Both of Bai Mu Ning’s parents were born deaf and mute. Fortunately, Bai Mu Ning turned out to be a healthy, normal child.

However, due to the lack of a proper language environment, Bai Mu Ning experienced delayed speech development, and he couldn’t even speak by the age of four.

It wasn’t until his parents sent him to kindergarten on a doctor’s advice that he finally began to learn how to talk.

Chen Haonan was a little surprised. The way he looked at Bai Mu Ning changed. “That’s impressive. Tell her she can take them all, free of charge.”

Sanwen Hall ordered medicinal herbs every so often. When the deliveries arrived, they were packed in cardboard boxes.

Usually, those boxes were just left at the entrance, for whoever wanted them could take them.

This was the first time someone had actually come in to ask.

“Oh, right, also tell her that from now on, all the cardboard boxes from Sanwen Hall can be hers. She just needs to come by once a week. I’ll save them for her.”

Chen Haonan looked at Bai Mu Ning, urging him to quickly translate.

After Bai Mu Ning finished signing, the middle-aged woman made a hand gestures to show her gratitude with a bright smile on her face.

Bai Mu Ning couldn’t help but think that happiness was truly a simple thing.

As the woman turned to leave, Wen Jing suddenly walked out from the consultation room and called out, “Please wait.”

But since she was deaf and mute, she naturally didn’t hear him and didn’t know someone was calling her.

Bai Mu Ning stepped forward to stop her and signaled for her to wait.

The woman’s eyes were full of confusion, unsure of what they wanted.

Bai Mu Ning explained in sign language, [Don’t worry, he’s a good person and a very good traditional Chinese doctor.]

Wen Jing had noticed her difficulty walking and wanted to offer a check-up.

As Bai Mu Ning translated Wen Jing’s intentions into sign language, the woman quickly waved her hands: [No need, I just twisted it a little. It’ll be fine in a couple of days. Thank you.]

Bai Mu Ning understood what the middle-aged woman was worried about, she was afraid of spending money. Earning a living wasn’t easy, so she would rather stay in pain than pay to see a doctor.

It reminded Bai Mu Ning of his own mother, who had been the same way. Seeing this woman made him think of his late parents.

Though their family had been poor, they had truly loved him.

Even when sick, they refused to seek treatment, saving every penny to spend on Bai Mu Ning instead.

A sour ache welled up in his chest. If his parents were still alive, he wouldn’t be so alone.

He was just about to tell the woman that he could cover her medical expenses, even if he didn’t have much money himself, when Wen Jing spoke up first, “Tell her it’s free. She won’t ever have to pay when she comes.”

It turned out that the woman’s dilemma, Wen Jing also understood.

[It’s free, no charge. Let him take a look!]

The woman still hesitated, as if trying to judge whether it was true. These days, there were endless tactics to fool people. She was afraid of being tricked.

The money in her pocket wasn’t much, but it was money for her daughter to buy revision materials.

After some patient persuasion from Bai Mu Ning, the woman finally accepted Wen Jing’s diagnosis with some uncertainty.

The middle-aged woman accidentally twisted her ankle while dragging cardboard boxes down the stairs. Her foot missed a step and fell all the way down.

She’d sat on the ground for a long time before finally limping home.

Wen Jing treated her ankle while Bai Mu Ning stood by to translate.

Afterward, Bai Mu Ning took down her contact information and reminded her to come back for a follow-up next week.

Then he accompanied her outside and helped fold up the cardboard boxes, neatly stacking them into her pushcart.

When Bai Mu Ning came back in, he heard Chen Haonan saying, “Such a good, well-behaved kid, just let him work here already!”

“These days, it’s not easy to find a job. This kid can take care of fish and even knows sign language. He’s basically multi-talented.”

“We’re bound to encounter deaf-mute patients here. With him around, we won’t be fumbling around clueless anymore.”

As Chen Haonan spoke, he kept winking at Bai Mu Ning from time to time. Bai Mu Ning understood what he meant, he was hinting for him to say something soft, to beg a little.

Bai Mu Ning didn’t want to lose this job opportunity either. Jobs were hard to come by, and he still had to make a living.

He stepped forward voluntarily and said, “Dr. Wen, I really want to work here. It’s really hard to find a job. Could you really bear to watch me go beg under a bridge?”

“Please.”

He blinked, and when he smiled, eight little teeth showed. His eyes curved into crescents, looking just like a lovable little kitten.

And not just any kitten, but one that knew how to act sweet and yield.

Wen Jing averted his gaze, his voice slightly cold. “People we hire here are expected to work.”

“If you have any other intentions, I’d suggest looking elsewhere. Don’t waste your time here.”

Which translates to: If you’re thinking about chasing me, no chance. But if you’re here to work, you can stay.

There was hope.

Right now, all Bai Mu Ning wanted was to keep the job. He wasn’t thinking about anything else—making money was his top priority.

Things with Mr. Zhou were still uncertain. If that fell through, he’d have to return the deposit.

There were too many places he needed money for. He was in desperate need of a stable job.

To prove to Wen Jing that he had no ulterior motives, he quickly added, “Dr. Wen, I’m really sorry. I was reckless and caused you trouble. I swear I won’t do it again.”

“I want to make things clear. That day, it was actually because I lost a game of truth or dare. I didn’t mean anything by it. I’ve reflected deeply on my behavior since, and I really think I was out of line.”

Wen Jing’s face remained expressionless. Off to the side, Chen Haonan exaggeratedly gasped, then said, “Looks like a certain someone got the wrong idea.”

“Well, since Xiao Ning explained it so clearly, a certain elderly person should stop holding grudges and give young people a chance.”

Wen Jing cast a glance at Chen Haonan, who immediately mimed zipping his lips, indicating that he would shut up.

Wen Jing looked back at Bai Mu Ning and said, “You’d better be.”

That clearly meant he didn’t believe a word.

In order to keep this job and to make the fake truth-or-dare excuse more convincing, Bai Mu Ning had no choice but to fabricate a girlfriend.

“Actually, I don’t like guys. I have a girlfriend. We’ve been together for over two years now, and we’re doing great.”

“That impulsive confession was totally my mistake. I hope Dr. Wen can be generous and not hold it against me.”

Right at that moment, Li Anche happened to call. Bai Mu Ning quickly picked up and said sweetly, “What’s wrong, baby? Mm, I’m still out. I’ll be back in a bit. Dinner together tonight? Sure ah! Love you, mwah mwah.”

On the other end, Li Anche hadn’t said a single word. He was stunned, wondering if he’d dialed the wrong number. He double-checked the contact and was just about to ask, ‘Mu Ning, were you hacked?’

Before he could say anything, he heard the busy tone beep in his ear.

Mu Ning wasn’t being held hostage and trying to send a coded message, was he?

Uncertain, he decided to send a WeChat message to confirm.

Meanwhile, Bai Mu Ning didn’t dare let Li Anche speak. What if someone overheard and realized it was a guy on the other end?

Just moments ago, he had confidently claimed he didn’t like guys—yet here he was calling a guy baby. Wasn’t he basically slapping himself in the face?

Still holding his phone, Bai Mu Ning tried to lean into the act and make the not single image more convincing. “My baby is really clingy, he has to talk to me several times a day.”

The room suddenly fell silent. No one spoke. Wen Jing’s expression was unreadable, but the corners of his mouth were visibly downturned.

Not sure what Wen Jing was thinking, Bai Mu Ning glanced toward Chen Haonan, clearly asking for help.

Despite his usual unserious demeanor, Chen Haonan was still a pretty decent guy. 

He said something fair: “Since the misunderstanding’s been cleared up, you can start work tomorrow.”

He patted Bai Mu Ning’s shoulder and added, “Welcome to Sanwen Hall. Let Old Wen show you around. I’m going to catch a nap.”

Chen Haonan left. Wen Jing, however, had no intention of giving Bai Mu Ning a tour. “Don’t be late tomorrow. Also, clean up this area.”

That meant he believed him. Bai Mu Ning let out a breath of relief. Yes! He had a job now.

Wen Jing was referring to the mess of pipes around the fish tank. Bai Mu Ning immediately replied, “Got it, boss! I’ll make sure it’s spotless.”

After giving instructions, Wen Jing returned to the consultation room.

While cleaning up, Bai Mu Ning opened WeChat to check the message Li Anche had sent.

It was a voice message, but since it wasn’t convenient to listen, Bai Mu Ning planned to convert it to text instead.

Unfortunately, his fingers were too pruney from the water and clumsy on the screen. He accidentally tapped the audio instead. Li Anche’s voice rang out, loud and clear in the quiet room.

The voice was huge,

“Mu Ning, why did you call me baby, you…?”

Bai Mu Ning hurried to silence it and finally let out a sigh of relief. Fortunately, there was no one else around. If anyone had heard that, his whole baby plan would’ve been exposed.

Just as Bai Mu Ning finally relaxed, he turned around, only to see Wen Jing standing behind him. Who knew how long he had been there?

He shouldn’t have heard anything, right!

Bai Mu Ning gave a sheepish laugh and tried to play it cool. “Is there anything else Dr. Wen would like to explain?”

Wen Jing handed him a band-aid. “Seeing that you had a cut on your hand, I thought I’d bring you this.”

There was indeed a small wound on his finger, probably from helping the middle-aged woman fold up the cardboard. Bai Mu Ning hadn’t even noticed until Wen Jing pointed it out.

He took the band-aid and said, “Thank you, Dr. Wen.”

It seemed like Wen Jing really hadn’t heard the voice message. Bai Mu Ning finally let himself breathe easy again.

But then, just as Wen Jing took a few steps away, he suddenly stopped and said, “Your baby’s voice is full of vigor, sounding healthy.”

Bai Mu Ning: “…?”

He did that on purpose, didn’t he?!

Couldn’t he just pretend he hadn’t heard anything?

Bai Mu Ning declared that the most annoying person in his life had been born.