91 Bitter Memories

"Oh god, oh shit…what have we done?" with that, Chu slid down to the hospital room floor and sat with a thump.

"Are you alright? You look like you have seen a ghost. Should I call your fiancé here to look after you," he asked, tongue in-cheek.

"There is no need to call any…wait, what did you say? Did you say fiancé?" she reacted.

She leapt up and punched him hard on his shoulder.

"Ow…that hurts. Is that how you treat a patient?" he asked, laughing.

"Patient…I will tell you who is the patient. For the past sixteen hours, I have been going crazy in my head about whether your injuries are severe or not. And what is the first thing you do? Play a prank on me! You are so dead, big brother," she threatened him.

"Ok ok…stop hitting me, will you? I apologise for my behaviour but you looked so cute, worrying about me, being unusually gentle and kind. It made a nice change from your normal attitude so I decided to tease you a little," he said with a smile.

"By the way, where is Jia Li? I had hoped to see her here. I vaguely recall seeing her by my bedside sometime in the wee hours of this morning," he asked.

Chu mulled over how best to tell him about the scene which unfolded outside the room a while ago. She had missed it but her mother had told her about it just a while ago. Deciding to go with her usual blunt approach, she narrated everything to him, including Wei's protective behaviour and Mei Zhen's violent reaction.

Tang's teeth clenched as he held himself back from getting up and throttling Mei Zhen for even thinking of hurting Jia Li. If there was anyone to blame, it was him. She had no right to take it out on her. He clamped down on his jealousy at the thought of Jia Li receiving comfort in Wei's arms.

"I think I know how to tackle this problem. You leave that onto me. For now, just send mom in. I know she would be really worried. I guess I will have to bear the guilt of worrying everyone whom I hold dear. But I promise that once I have achieved what I have set as my goal, I will make it up to each one of you," he vowed.

Chu gave him a reassuring smile and went to look for their mother.

"Mom, why have you not been by my bedside ever since I have woken up?" he grumbled when Mrs. Xie walked into the room.

She gave him a smile and sat down right next to him.

"I am here now. How do you feel? Are you hungry?" she asked.

The truth was that she had been delayed outside, first by Ethan who had pointed out the fact that Mei Zhen would have to reign in her emotions around Tang till he doesn't regain his memory. Then, it was her husband who had come out of their son's room teary eyed. She had been taken aback at the display of emotion by her normally stone faced husband. He had told her that he was going through a bout of guilt. Normally the kind to never acknowledge anyone's feelings, especially his own, Mrs. Xie couldn't believe that he would actually say those words and seek comfort and reassurance from her!

While he should have been feeling upset over Tang's lack of memories, the father in him was rejoicing over the fact that his son spoke to him with so much love in his voice after many years. Mrs. Xie had consoled him and told him that she understood his feelings. He had held onto her hand for some time before leaving the hospital to buy his son's favourite congee soup.

"Mom, I uh…that is to say…" Tang hesitated.

Mrs. Xie was jolted into present by her son's unsure words. She immediately looked at him with worry in her eyes, "what is the matter? Does it hurt anywhere?"

"No, no. That's not it. I was simply hoping that maybe we could stay in Moganshan for a bit, just till I recover. I know that dad doesn't like this place anymore but I have missed my hometown, more so since I have been away for studies for so long. The winters in London and then in New York felt so alien. There were no familiar paths to take, no smell of my favourite food in the air, no familiar faces to greet me as I walked down the road. I haven't stayed in Shanghai long enough to associate with that city as much," he cajoled her.

A relieved sigh escaped out of Jia Li's lips when she received a call from Chu saying that Tang had regained consciousness. But right in the next minute, worry lines appeared on her forehead.

"What? What did you say? Lost his memory?" she asked repeatedly.