Personal matters

"Do you smoke?"

"Thank you, I don't smoke."

"What a good baby." Liu Qitong tilted his head and ordered for himself.

When he came out of the hospital, Lin Zhen kept walking ahead, not knowing where he was going.Liu Qitong followed calmly, Lin Zhen didn't speak, and he didn't ask.

The weather in April, not long after it warmed up, the radio said that there was a cold current going south.When I woke up in the morning, the temperature dropped by 7 or 8 degrees.The seemingly gentle night wind blows on the neck, but it makes people tremble uncontrollably.

Liu Qitong rushed back to the hospital just now, sweating profusely.Now that he was outside, his shirt was wet and sticking to his back, the cold seemed to be creeping up his back, and his whole body was extremely cold.

He looked at Lin Zhen's desolate back, and suddenly said, "I'm hungry...to eat noodles together?"

……………………………………………………………

The noodle shop that Liu Qitong introduced was really well hidden.There are many twists and turns along the way, if there is no acquaintance to guide the way, it is really difficult to recognize.

Lin Zhen didn't have any appetite, he just didn't want to go home.As soon as Liu Qitong suggested it, he naturally followed.After arriving at the place, Lin Zhen couldn't help feeling a little dazed when he saw the shabby exterior decoration of the shop.

Liu Qitong ignored him and took the lead in pushing the door open and walking in.It was time for dinner, and the lobby was buzzing with people, and there were no empty seats.

The boss is a man in his 50s. When he saw Liu Qitong, he hurried over to say hello warmly.

"Yo, you haven't been here for a long time!"

"Hmm... is the private room still available?"

"Empty, empty, you order or..."

"Two signature beef noodles. One spicy, one non-spicy... and a few stir-fries, you can figure it out."

"Okay, I'll make it for you now!"

The owner let the two of them into the small private room inside, and hurried to the kitchen to place an order.

It is said to be a private room, but in fact it is just a very simple curtain hung at the door.The people coming and going outside could be seen vaguely, and the hustle and bustle in the lobby could still be heard.

Ever since Lin Zhen went abroad, it has been many years since he had eaten in such a small restaurant.There was a strong aroma of barbecue in the breath, and a strange sense of intimacy floated up, and for some reason, my heart suddenly relaxed.

"The beef noodles here are very authentic, you can try them later." Liu Qitong poured him a cup of hot tea.

"Do you come here often?" Lin Zhen asked.

——I always feel that this person's cool appearance is a bit out of tune with the atmosphere here...

"It's okay," Liu Qitong said, "When I was a resident doctor, I used to come here often for a while."

Lin Zhen covered his hands with the teacup, and his body gradually began to warm up.

"Feeling better?" Liu Qitong asked suddenly.

Lin Zhen remained silent and lowered his eyes.

"It's common for operations to fail." Liu Qitong looked at him, "Don't tell me, you've never had anyone die by your hands."

Lin Zhen raised his head, "It is true that I have died... so I should be insensitive?"

"Why are you angry with me?" Liu Qitong took a sip of tea slowly, "It seems that you are not the only one who died today..."

"Can that be the same?"

Lin Zhen was a little excited, and his volume unconsciously increased.

"The person in the VIP ward was just waiting for his day. A few days ago, he was crying and begging for euthanasia... But my patient obviously had hope, but I put him to death!"

"Then what are you going to do? Give him his life?" Liu Qitong laughed.

——Talking to this person is basically seeking abuse for yourself.

Lin Zhen tried his best to calm down, turned his head and ignored him.

Liu Qitong turned the cup in his hand and said casually, "Listen to two things..."

"First, you didn't kill the man. If you really want to pursue it, it's Guo Huaixiu's business, and it has nothing to do with you."

"Secondly, terminally ill patients are also human beings, and should die no more than those who can run and jump."

He slowly scanned Lin Zhen's face, his eyes were as sharp as two awls.

"Because in this world, there is no such thing as a worthy death."

............................................................

After eating, the mind is emptied for a while.

Liu Qitong took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth. The lighter slipped several times, but it still couldn't light.

"I'm a doctor, why do I still smoke?" Lin Zhen finally couldn't bear it anymore.

"how?"

Liu Qitong squinted at him, and put on that mocking expression again.

"Didn't you listen to the guys in the ICU? People with a history of smoking have a lower mortality rate after myocardial infarction..." Liu Qitong said with a smile, "So you see, everything has its two sides."

……

"There used to be an old man next door to my house who never left his body, smoked and drank all his life, and lived until he was 92 years old... My dad never touched these things, but it's a pity that he didn't even survive 40."

Liu Qitong was still lighting the fire casually. The monotonous sound of "Kata, Kuda" rubbed Lin Zhen's nerves.

"Your father... died very early?"

"Ah."

"Because of illness?"

"Injury at work." Liu Qitong replied flatly.

At that time, the wharf was busy, and the shipyard sent a boy who only got a trainee driver's license to drive the crane. As a result, the steel plate fell from a height of 20 meters, and Liu Qitong's father was crushed to death on the spot.

When they went to the morgue to identify the corpse, they advised Liu's mother to be mentally prepared, because the corpse was seriously deformed.Hearing his mother's mournful cry from inside, 8-year-old Liu Qitong could only hide in a corner and shiver.

For a long time, he had nightmares almost every night, dreaming of his father's crushed face dangling in front of him.He is also particularly afraid of cranes.Seeing places like construction sites, I would rather take a long detour than pass by.

When he grew up a little bit, Liu Qitong realized that it was not the crane that killed his father, but a human being.

Lin Zhen leaned across the dining table, lightly puffed out the cigarette in his mouth, broke it in his palm, and stuffed it into his pocket.

"Stop smoking." Lin Zhen said.

Liu Qi and Tong Rao watched his movements with interest, without blinking his eyes.

"I'm not addicted to cigarettes."

"I can tell."

"I rarely smoke one a year."

"know."

……

"What's the matter, you want to control me?" Liu Qitong asked with a half-smile.

Lin Zhen turned his head with a blushing face.

"Who cares about you... I just can't get used to it."

Liu Qitong stared at him for a while, then suddenly reached out and took out the cigarette box from his pocket, and pushed it neatly in front of him along with the lighter.

"If you really want to take care of it, that's fine."

Liu Qitong said.