My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

Sunlight sprinkled into the room, shining onto the petals of blood red roses which were still fresh with translucent dew hanging on them. It bloomed magnificently and a hint of tantalizing, bold fragrance wafted around the room. Shi Nian hummed as she arranged the flowers, all the while talking to the still unconscious Jiang Jinyan. 

"I met Binchen gege downstairs just now. It's funny how eager he is to be discharged." Chuckling, she continued. "You should have seen the face of the nurse who's in charge of him. She's so angry that her face turned white. I mean, acute gastritis can't be underestimated, right? The doctor even said that if he came a little later, he would need surgery. It's a wonder how he could bear with the pain…"

The door slid open gently and the nurse exclaimed, pleasantly surprised. "Oh, Miss Shi! You're here so early today!"

"Hello, Miss Nurse." Shi Nian bowed politely. "Are you here to take notes of Jinyan's stats?"

"That's right." The nurse stopped by Jiang Jinyan's bedside and started to fill in the form. "I see you brought roses today. It's so beautiful—oh, yes, I forgot to tell you! Last night, Mr. Jiang showed some signs of waking up."

Shi Nian's eyes widened, trembling. "R—Really?!"

The nurse laughed lightly. "Why should I lie to you? Congratulations, it seems like you only need to wait for a day or two for him to regain consciousness. If it's fast, he might even wake up today."

"T—That's very great to hear..." Exhilarated, Shi Nian bowed again and again. The rims of her eyes reddened. "Thank you so much!" 

"I did nothing here." She smiled. "It's all his own effort. He already has some amazing luck to be stuck on a tree after falling from such a steep cliff. Now that his condition has fully stabilized, it's only a matter of time until he wakes up." After recording Jiang Jinyan's stats, the nurse waved goodbye and proceeded to leave the room.

Shi Nian stared at Jiang Jinyan's face for a while, her heart galloping madly in her chest. Gingerly, she held his hand and nuzzled her face onto his palm. "Jinyan, are you really waking up…? You are, right? Oh, right—" She hastily reached for her phone. "I have to tell Uncle Jiang about it. He must be so happy to hear that. Last night, we even had dinner together and I forced him to exchange numbers with me…"

Shi Nian's words trailed off as the hand which she grasped gave a twitch all of a sudden. Subsequently, the man's eyelashes also trembled and his brows knitted lightly. 

"Jinyan…?" She called out carefully.

The man's hand tightened its hold and slowly, his eyelids fluttered open. A pair of dark eyes she had always been yearning for was revealed, dazed and watery. The heart rate monitor finally started to give more frequent beeps instead of dull monotonous sounds. 

"Jinyan!" Shi Nian cried out, tears brimming in her eyes. A joyful smile bloomed across her lips. "You're awake…you're finally awake!"

The door once again slid open. The doctor and nurses walked in, their faces finally showing relief. It had been a pressure to treat the unconscious Jiang Jinyan day after day, especially when CEO Jiang came in person and asked them about his son's condition every once or two days.

"Hello, Mr. Jiang. I am your attending doctor." The doctor smiled. "Can you hear me? Do you still feel pain in your head?"

Jiang Jinyan blinked, still disoriented. His eyes were transfixed on Shi Nian's hopeful face, bewildered as if he had seen something strange. "You…" His oxygen mask fogged up along with his lips movement. "You are…?"

The obvious confusion in his tone made Shi Nian's expression sink. Her pupils trembled in disbelief and the shock almost made her knees grow weak. "Jinyan, you…you don't remember me? It's me, Shi Nian…"

It couldn't be, right… How could that be? Did he really have no idea who she was?

Seeing Shi Nian's deathly pale complexion, clarity finally seeped into his senses. Closing his eyes once before opening them again, he mumbled vaguely. "That's right, you're Shi Nian and I am Jiang Jinyan…"

His oxygen mask was taken off and he was given a sip of water. Only after that did he look a bit comfortable. The doctor continued to ask, "Mr. Jiang, do you feel dizzy? Do you still remember what happened before you lost consciousness?"

"I do…" Jiang Jinyan nodded. "I fell off a cliff and got stuck on a tree. It saved my life, I guess? However, I do feel a little dizzy on the head."

After a series of examinations, the doctor sighed in relief. "That's good. It seems like there's nothing wrong with your memory. The dizziness is just the post symptoms of a concussion. Next, you should get a lot of rest and don't force yourself to walk so quickly. We will do a few tests for the next few days. As long as you start to feel uncomfortable, please do tell the nurse as soon as possible, got it?"

Jiang Jinyan nodded.

"Miss Shi, you too." Turning to Shi Nian, the doctor smiled. "Don't worry too much. He recovers just fine. With a lot of rest and a healthy diet, he will be able to recover fully in less than two months."

"Thank you, doctor." Shi Nian bowed politely, fear still lingered in her heart due to Jiang Jinyan's previous inquiry.

After reminding them what to pay attention to, the doctor and nurses left the room, leaving the two of them alone. Shi Nian sat on his bedside and brushed his bangs away. Her fingertips stroked the thick bandage on his head. "Are you really okay…?"

"Sorry," Jiang Jinyan grabbed her hand and gently kissed her palm. "I scared you, didn't I?"

Shi Nian nodded, her lips trembling. "I thought you woke up with amnesia just like those male leads in Korean dramas."

"Don't cry, silly…" Jiang Jinyan wiped her damp cheeks and brushed his thumb on her reddened eyelids, his eyes softening. "I was just a bit muddled because I have been dreaming a lot in my sleep."

Shi Nian nuzzled her face against his palm, her eyes narrowing comfortably. "What are you dreaming about?"

"You." He whispered. "You're in all of my dreams."

"Really? That's nice... You're able to meet me even in your dreams while I am losing sleep over you here. Three weeks without you feel so long." She rambled as if wanting to vent all of her frustration and sadness away. "I still have no idea how I got through these weeks…" Shi Nian's words trailed off as she caught sight of Jiang Jinyan staring at her with a look she couldn't quite describe. 

Was it only her feelings that there was something not quite right with Jiang Jinyan? Nevertheless, she couldn't put her fingers on it no matter how hard she pondered. "What's wrong?" She patted her own face. "Is there something on my face?"

"No." He pulled up a smile. "Your voice... it's really nice to hear."

Shi Nian's heart skipped a beat. Seriously, the first thing he did upon waking up was to flirt with her?! To hide how flustered she was, Shi Nian scoffed in a fake annoyance. "Why? Did I not talk in your dreams?"

Jiang Jinyan merely smiled without saying anything. Then, he surprised her by patting the space by his side. "Come here."

"W—What?!" Shi Nian stammered in shock. 

"Lie here with me, won't you?" A hint of plea wormed its way into his voice that was still suffused with slight hoarseness. 

It's really not fair, she grumbled inwardly. If he put it like that, how could she bring herself to refuse?

"But your ribs are injured..."

His eyes curved in a teasing smile. "It's not like I asked you to lie on top of me."

"But!" Shi Nian's face turned beet red. "I—It's bright daylight and the nurses might come here to check up on you at any moment…"

"Fine." Jiang Jinyan sighed, dejected. He closed his eyes and turned his head away. "I miss my girlfriend so much but she's not even willing to get close to me—"

"I will...I will do it, okay?!" Jiang Jinyan still hadn't changed a bit! Still such a devilish tease! Shi Nian pressed her lips tight and gave one last glance toward the door that was still firmly shut. With her heart thundering, she carefully climbed onto the bed. "You're such a tease…" She murmured in complaint.

The corner of Jiang Jinyan's lips curled upward and he scooted over to give her some space. In fact, the bed in VVIP ward was wide enough for two people to roll around. Even with Shi Nian there, there was still plenty of space between them.

"Why are you so far away?" Jiang Jinyan said helplessly and pulled Shi Nian closer. "Come here."

"C—Careful! Your wounds!" Shi Nian was really afraid on behalf of him even though the related party himself seemed pretty much energetic for a person who had just woken up after three weeks. Seriously, how could he be so reckless?!

"It's okay. Nothing more than a few fractures."

"A few fractures?!" Shi Nian's tone raised higher. "You—"

"Hush." He pressed her head deeper into his chest and circled his arms around her, nose buried into the crown of his head. "You smell good…" He mumbled, his eyes slowly closing. "I'm feeling a bit drowsy. Will you still be here when I wake up later?"

"Of course...you know that as long as you're still here, I won't go anywhere." Shi Nian peeked up nervously. "But are you sure it's okay for you to lie sideways like this? Won't your chest hurt?"

"Hmm…?" He let out a soft hum, eyes half lidded. Then, his sight coincidentally landed on the vase of roses on top of the nightstand. "The roses, did you bring them?"

"Yes." Although exasperated that Jiang Jinyan ignored her question with blatantly changing the topic, she still answered earnestly. "I have always thought that roses suit you very much. Do you like them?"

"I do…" He chuckled, his voice turning fainter and fainter. "You haven't changed at all, Shi Nian…"

"What did you say?" Shi Nian strained her ears to pick up what he was saying.

Jiang Jinyan nuzzled his cheek against the top of her head and dropped a light kiss there. "...love you." In no time at all, he fell into a sweet slumber with his dearest person in his embrace.

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A/N: surprise double update! Enjoy the long awaited sweetness after a long period of tragedy lol