"Um, Shen Jia... Teacher Shen," Shi An said, a trace of hesitation in his eyes as he cautiously looked at Shen Jiale, seemingly weighing his words. "Is... is there something uncomfortable?"
As he spoke, his body subconsciously took a small step backward.
"Uncomfortable? I feel fine." Shen Jiale's face was a picture of absolute blankness, sheer confusion written all over it.
*What is this guy up to? Why is he suddenly asking this? Was my acting just now too exaggerated? But I clearly followed the method An Yu taught me!*
"Student Shi An, the teacher feels fine. Are you worried about me?" She blinked, her heart blooming with joy.
*Has this wooden block finally figured things out? Is he caring about me? It seems my charm really is unstoppable.*
"Um, Teacher Shen, are you really not uncomfortable anywhere? Especially... your brain, is there any strange feeling?"
Shen Jiale: "......"
"Do you... do you really... not feel... that something's wrong?" She stared at Shi An, grinding her teeth so hard they clicked.
*You're a nice enough guy, calling my brain broken in a roundabout way, just afraid of triggering me, right?*
Seeing Shen Jiale's increasingly fierce gaze, Shi An felt a chill run down his spine, but he braced himself, took a deep breath, and summoned the courage to say, "Teacher Shen, if your brain doesn't feel well, you really should go to the hospital for a checkup."
He genuinely couldn't understand why Shen Jiale had suddenly become so... so seductive; she must have been under too much stress lately and suffered some kind of mental shock.
*This unfilial brat, he's going to drive me crazy!*
She ground her pearly whites, her cheeks puffed out, continuously cursing Shi An in her heart: *The moment this young lady is gentle with him, his whole body starts itching!*
"Bang, bang, bang!"
A knock on the door broke the tense atmosphere.
"Please come in." Shen Jiale took a deep breath, forced herself to calm down, and squeezed out a smile.
"Teacher, we're here to pick up the mental health manuals," several students walked in from outside and said politely.
"You guys come with me, they're in the next room. Go count out the copies for our class." As she spoke, Shen Jiale quickly tidied her hair and clothes, walking toward the adjacent room.
Shi An hurriedly followed behind her, muttering to himself: *Why is there so much hassle? Getting a manual is such a pain.*
After quickly counting the manuals, Shi An turned around and wanted to head back. However, before he could take a few steps, Shen Jiale called out to him.
"Student Shi An, wait a moment."
At the sound of Shen Jiale's voice, Shi An stopped and looked at her with a puzzled face. "What is it? Is there something else?"
"Wait here and walk back with me. Our class is having a meeting later, and I'll explain how to fill out this manual."
Shi An sighed helplessly and had no choice but to stand aside and wait quietly. From time to time, he checked the time, feeling rather irritable: *How long is this going to take? My sleep is ruined again.*
"Let's go."
After the students from the other classes finished counting, Shen Jiale briskly closed the door of the adjoining office, waved at Shi An, and motioned for him to leave.
The two walked at a leisurely pace. As they reached the stairs, a voice suddenly rang out: "Whose Modern History textbook is this?"
Shi An instinctively stopped in his tracks, only then realizing that a book was missing from his hands, and a bad feeling struck his heart. He hurriedly looked back and saw that the book in the other student's hand looked identical to his own—it must be his.
Shen Jiale also stopped. Watching Shi An's reaction, she mercilessly mocked him, "You can even forget your book, you big dummy." She crossed her arms, her eyes full of amusement.
Ignoring Shen Jiale, Shi An called out to the student, "Hey, classmate, that looks like mine."
As he spoke, he waved his hand, signaling the student to toss the book over.
The student gave the book a gentle toss, probably afraid of hitting Shi An, so the force wasn't great. Seeing this, Shi An instinctively bent over, leaned forward, and stretched out both hands to catch the book.
"Ah!!!"
Shi An felt his backside bump into something, followed immediately by a miserable shriek. His heart clenched fiercely, and a heavy sense of dread rushed over him.
Shi An whipped his head around and discovered that Shen Jiale, who should have been standing right behind him, was now sprawled at the bottom of the stairs.
"Shen Jiale!!!"
Shi An shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice cracking. Burning with panic, he bounded down the stairs in three or four leaps.
He reached Shen Jiale's side and saw her clutching her arm, brows furrowed tightly in agonizing pain. Shi An hastily helped her up and asked with deep concern, "Are... are you okay?"
His voice carried a trace of a tremble.
"Shi An... it hurts!!!" Shen Jiale cried, tears welling up in her eyes as her voice broke into sobs.
Seeing her grimacing in pain, he didn't say another word and swept her up into his arms.
"Ah!" Shen Jiale gasped in surprise, a flush of red crossing her face as her eyes widened in astonishment. "What are you doing?" she asked, somewhat flustered.
"Cut the crap, I'm taking you to the campus hospital, obviously. Watch that arm of yours," Shi An snapped, a look of anxious worry flashing through his eyes.
With that, he broke into an unceremonious run toward the campus hospital, his footsteps hurried.
Along the way, Shen Jiale shyly buried her head in Shi An's chest. She could hear his powerful heartbeat, and her face felt as hot as a blazing fire; she was too embarrassed to raise her head. *Wow, a princess carry!*
Meanwhile, Shi An was a bundle of worries. He didn't dare run too fast for fear of jolting Shen Jiale's injured arm, but he didn't dare go too slow either, afraid of delaying medical treatment.
Thus, he jogged all the way to the campus hospital, fine beads of sweat quickly forming on his forehead.
The Jiang University campus hospital was built with aid from Jiangcheng People's Hospital, and the skill of the doctors inside far surpassed that of the quacks at high school infirmaries. It had always been the top choice for Jiang University students seeking medical care.
Shi An rushed into the campus hospital in a fiery flurry. "Doctor! Come take a look, doctor!"
Hearing the shout, a nurse hurried over. Looking at Shen Jiale in Shi An's arms, she asked, "What happened to her?"
"She fell down the stairs and hurt her arm."
"Hurry, orthopedics is this way." The nurse quickly led the way, and they soon reached the entrance of the department.
"You can put her down now. She hurt her arm, not her leg," the nurse said, turning back to give Shi An a speechless look.
"Ah... right, right, right." A flash of embarrassment crossed Shi An's eyes as he nodded repeatedly, carefully setting Shen Jiale down.
"Family members aren't allowed inside. Wait out here for a moment while I take her in."
Shi An nodded, his eyes filled with anxiety. He stood at the door, pacing back and forth like an ant on a hot pan.