The younger sister mistakenly identified her brother when visiting relatives and was kissed by the c

"That's pretty impressive."

Lu Baizhou sat by the window and finally responded in a low voice.

He lowered his eyes slightly, looking at his rough palms. The image that wouldn't leave his mind was of Qiao Xinxin last night, her eyes red with anxiety in the corridor, yet still gritting her teeth and insisting on going into the operating room.

That sweet little face was full of stubbornness and courage, like a small pebble that crashed into the calm lake of his heart for twenty-five years, stirring up ripples one after another.

Zhou Liguang said, "Xinxin is indeed a good girl, thoughtful and sensible. Lao Bai, you'd better treat your sister even better in the future."

"Is that even a question? She's my sister, Bai Zhengyuan's sister. If I don't dote on her, who will?"

The three of them chatted casually in the ward.

About twenty minutes later, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly echoed in the quiet corridor.

The footsteps sounded somewhat chaotic, clearly indicating more than one person walking quickly. Then, the wooden door to the ward was forcefully pushed open with a bang.

Bai's mother rushed in first, followed closely by Bai's father, who was half a step behind her. Both of them had anxious expressions on their faces, and their foreheads were covered with fine beads of sweat from their journey.

As soon as Bai's mother entered the room, she immediately saw her eldest son lying on the hospital bed with a pale face and a thick white bandage wrapped around his right leg. Her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

"Zhengyuan! My son! How are you? Are you badly hurt? Let your mother see you!"

She rushed to the bedside, her hands trembling as she held them in mid-air, wanting to touch her eldest son's legs but afraid of hurting him, tears welling up in her eyes.

"You silly child, how did you get hurt again? Last time you came back from a mission covered in bruises, and this time you're in the hospital! Are you trying to rip my heart out?"

Mr. Bai stood to the side, not as agitated as his wife, but his weathered eyes were filled with worry. His gaze was fixed on his son's bandaged right leg, and he asked in a deep voice:

"Is there any bone damage? What did the doctor say? Don't hide it from your family."

Bai Zhengyuan, fearing his parents would worry themselves sick, quickly grinned and put on a carefree smile to reassure them:

"Dad, Mom, don't worry, it's really nothing! It was just a minor scrape, nothing serious. The doctor said I'm in good health, and with a few days of rest, I'll be back to my old self. It's really not serious!"

"A superficial injury? A superficial injury can get you admitted to a military general hospital?"

Mother Bai wiped away her tears, her voice tinged with reproach and grievance:

"Do you think your mother is a three-year-old, so easily fooled? Do you know how weak my legs were when I heard the news at the store today!"

As she spoke, tears streamed down her face like beads from a broken string:

"You've been in the army all these years, and Mom has been praying to Buddha every day. Mom doesn't ask for you to get promoted or become rich, she just wants you to be safe and sound. If something really happens to you, how will your parents live after that..."

Seeing his mother's tears, Bai Zhengyuan felt a pang of sorrow and heartache. He quickly reached out his hand, the one without the injection, and grasped his mother's rough, cold hand, gently comforting her:

"Mom, don't cry. Look, I'm perfectly fine! I'm full of energy, and I can even joke around with you. This was really an accident. I promise I'll be extra careful on missions from now on and I'll never let myself get injured this badly again, okay?"

Bai's mother sobbed, wiping her tears with her sleeve.

Mr. Bai watched for a while, took a deep breath, gently patted his wife's shoulder, and sighed:

"Alright, alright, it's good that the child is alright. Don't cry here. Xiao Lu and Xiao Zhou are still here; it's not good for them to be watching."

Only then did Bai's mother realize what was happening, and she wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, feeling somewhat embarrassed. She then carefully examined Bai Zhengyuan's complexion and saw that although her eldest son was a little weak, his eyes were clear and his voice was strong. Only then did she finally feel much relieved.

She turned around, looked at Lu Baizhou and Zhou Liguang standing to the side, and said with a face full of gratitude:

"Xiao Lu, Xiao Zhou, thank you so much for taking care of Zheng Yuan these past few days. Thank you so much for looking after him."

"Auntie, please don't be so polite with us, it's all we should do."

Lu Baizhou immediately stood up, gave a slight bow, and spoke in a low, polite voice:

"Zhengyuan is our brother in arms. It's only right that we lend a hand when he's injured. Besides, we were able to escape danger this time mainly thanks to Xinxin. She prepared the medicine overnight. We just ran an errand and didn't help much."

Hearing this, Bai's mother's eyes reddened again:

"Xin Xin, that child... didn't sleep a wink all night, stayed at the hospital all night. She came home this morning and lied to us, saying that Zheng Yuan just strained a muscle during training and would be back in the hospital in a few days. This silly girl, such a big thing happened, and she just gritted her teeth and endured it all by herself without telling her family. It breaks my heart."

Bai Zhengyuan, standing to the side, quickly tried to smooth things over for his sister:

"Mom, Xin Xin only kept it a secret because she was afraid you would worry yourself sick. She just wanted to be filial, so please don't blame her."

"Mom knows, how could Mom bear to blame her? Mom just feels sorry for her small body." Mother Bai sighed, her eyes full of affection.

Lu Baizhou stood in the ward for a while longer, then raised his wrist to check the time. Feeling it was almost time, he took the initiative to say goodbye to Bai's parents.

"Auntie, Uncle, it's getting late. There are still some things to take care of at the military base tonight, so we won't bother you any longer. Let Zhengyuan get some rest. We'll come see him again in a couple of days."

Zhou Liguang also stood up, patted the wrinkles on his trousers, and smiled gently:

"Yes, Uncle and Aunt, don't overwork yourselves. Zhengyuan, just lie down and rest. I'll come see you again in a couple of days."

Bai Zhengyuan waved to them and shouted in a carefree manner:

"Alright, alright, you two go back now, don't delay our business. Once I'm discharged, I'll definitely treat you two to a feast at a state-run restaurant, until we're both completely drunk!"

Lu Baizhou nodded, his deep eyes giving Bai Zhengyuan a long look before he put his hands in his uniform pockets and turned to walk out the door. Zhou Liguang followed closely behind, and the two of them walked out of the ward one after the other.

As the ward door clicked shut, the room became much quieter.

Bai's mother sat down on the wooden chair by the bed, reached out and touched Bai Zhengyuan's forehead. Feeling that his temperature was normal, she finally relaxed her tense nerves.