Chapter Ninety-Seven: Facing the Rival for Love

Chu Feng first went to wash his face, then told Old Chen he was stepping out, and went to find Han Xuefang. It was nearly five o’clock now, and Han Xuefang would be off work soon.

As Chu Feng stepped out of the ward, he saw Han Xuefang standing outside, her small hands intertwined and fidgeting nervously, as if something was troubling her.

“What’s wrong? I heard Old Chen say you came looking for me earlier. Did you stay around after that? If you needed me, you could have just woken me up,” Chu Feng said.

He led Han Xuefang to the stairwell where he often smoked. The young woman kept twisting her hands together, clearly worried about something.

“Chu Feng, my mom told me today that I have to go on a blind date tonight. I don’t want to go,” Han Xuefang confessed, catching Chu Feng off guard. When he had visited their home a few days ago, her parents had seemed quite satisfied with him. Why were they now pushing her to go on a blind date?

“Tell me what’s going on. A few days ago, your parents seemed so against you, wanting us to make things official right away. Now all of a sudden, they’re making you go on a blind date?” Chu Feng was genuinely baffled by the sudden change in her parents’ attitude.

Han Xuefang explained, “Well, we used to have a neighbor, Aunt Wang, who moved to Nanhai City a few years ago to develop her career. She came back recently to visit us. Her son took a liking to me and insisted on dating me.”

“At first, my parents refused, but after seeing their family’s situation, they hesitated and finally told me to meet the guy tonight.”

“I don’t want to go, but my mom insists. I want you to come with me, so that guy will give up.”

Han Xuefang recounted the whole story to Chu Feng. He couldn’t really blame her parents—after all, Aunt Wang had been an old neighbor, and they didn’t want to offend her, so they reluctantly agreed to let Han Xuefang meet the boy.

Han Xuefang feared the other party might be persistent, which was why she wanted Chu Feng to accompany her and discourage him.

“So you want me to meet a rival? Fine, I’ll go with you tonight and see just how blind this guy must be to like you,” Chu Feng said, eager to find out who this admirer was and what kind of background he had.

“You’re the one who’s blind—you’re the one who likes me. Tomorrow, I’ll take you to the eye doctor and have your eyes fixed,” Han Xuefang teased.

Hearing this, Chu Feng laughed, realizing she was joking, but she still gave his waist a sharp pinch.

The two of them played and teased each other in the stairwell. Soon after, Han Xuefang had to go hand over her shift, and Chu Feng returned to the ward to check in with Old Chen and remind him to rest early.

After Han Xuefang finished work, Chu Feng took her out to eat, then to a nearby mall where she bought a new outfit. Chu Feng also bought himself some clothes. Although he had brought some, he had been so busy these past days chasing down criminals that he hadn’t had time to change, so he decided to buy a new set.

“Do I look good?” Han Xuefang emerged from the fitting room in a purple dress that seemed tailor-made for her, perfectly highlighting her elegance.

“You look great. Don’t bother looking for anything else—just get this. I think this dress was made for you,” Chu Feng said, genuinely impressed. Han Xuefang’s nurse uniform had never quite brought out her charm like this did.

Chu Feng took out his card and paid, while the clerk packed up the clothes Han Xuefang had changed out of.

He chose a camouflage casual outfit for himself. Now that he was practically a soldier, he felt an inexplicable affinity for the pattern.

After paying, Chu Feng drove the military district’s car to the hotel Han Xuefang had mentioned. The neighbor’s son had arranged to meet her there. Upon arrival, Chu Feng noted the hotel was quite upscale—at least a four-star establishment.

Han Xuefang linked her arm with Chu Feng’s as they walked inside. They took the elevator to the fourth floor, where the man had booked a private room.

Once inside, Chu Feng was surprised to see Han Xuefang’s parents already there. Sitting beside them was a stylishly dressed woman, and next to her was a slick young man with a well-groomed appearance.

“Xiaofang’s here. We were just about to start. Xiao Hai said he was going to pick you up, but you came in before he could stand,” the stylish woman said.

She was likely the Aunt Wang Han Xuefang mentioned, and the young man beside her was probably her son.

Han Xuefang and Chu Feng sat with her parents, deliberately not sitting next to the man called Xiao Hai.

“A little Fang, who’s this? A colleague of yours?” Aunt Wang’s expression changed when she saw Chu Feng. She had noticed Han Xuefang linking arms with him but, unsure of their exact relationship, didn’t show any hostility.

“This is my boyfriend, Chu Feng. He didn’t have anything else to do today, so he came with me. Aunt Wang, I hope you don’t mind,” Han Xuefang introduced him confidently, without a hint of shyness.

“Hello, Aunt Wang, I’m Chu Feng,” he greeted her politely and said no more.

“I wonder where you work, Chu. Are you also a nurse like Xiaofang? Male nurses are quite rare these days,” Xiao Hai sneered, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

Before Chu Feng could respond, Han Xuefang spoke up, “Chu Feng is a attending physician at our hospital, and he’s very skilled.”

Han Xuefang’s parents looked slightly embarrassed. They hadn’t expected Aunt Wang’s son to be so rude, openly mocking someone in front of them.

“Attending physician at such a young age? I bet you got that position through connections. These days, some doctors are irresponsible—prescribing the wrong medicine and then blaming the drugs when patients die,” Xiao Hai scoffed.

He clearly assumed Chu Feng was a privileged son using his family background to polish his resume. Even a lump of clay has a temper, let alone Chu Feng, but he restrained himself in front of Han Xuefang’s parents.

“Xiao Hai, that’s not right. No matter how angry someone gets, there are laws in this country. No matter how rich or influential you are, you can’t escape legal consequences,” Han Xuefang’s father interjected firmly.