Chapter 225 Chapter 225: Affection Level Reset (Bonus Chapter For Sakura Ran ②)
Chapter 225: Affection Level Reset (Bonus Chapter For Sakura Ran ②)
She was told not to agitate her for now.
They said it was for her own good.
She knew perfectly well that perhaps waiting for the doctors to slowly diagnose and treat her, to correct her possibly muddled memories, and then seeing Xiaocheng, would be best.
If she would agitate her, then it was best not to see Xiaocheng before then.
Maybe a few days would be enough?
Or perhaps weeks or months?
No one could say for sure, but even for those few days, Su Tao didn't want to keep waiting.
Wanted to see Xiaocheng, wanted to see Xiaocheng, wanted to see Xiaocheng, wanted to see Xiaocheng!
She wanted to explain yesterday's misunderstanding clearly, and then, just like before, Xiaocheng would affectionately call her Taotao, and they would embrace.
She sat on a long bench at the hospital entrance for a long time, watching the heavy rain pour incessantly. Su Tao still couldn't hold back; she walked into the hospital and pressed the button for the elevator to the eighth floor.
Perhaps yesterday was just an accident, a temporary memory confusion caused by Xiaocheng's recent awakening?
Or could it possibly have been a joke?
Today was a new day; surely Xiaocheng had recovered?
Arriving at the ward door, Su Tao again saw Chi Xiaocheng, sitting quietly on the bed, without a phone to play with, absorbed in a book.
Her profile as she read was serene and focused. Her small, thin lips, gently pursed, seemed to be moved by the emotions within the book, and her small hand turned a page with a decisive motion, then another.
Su Tao even reached the doorway, yet Xiaocheng didn't notice her.
In the past, even if Su Tao was behind her, merely shifting her attention towards Xiaocheng would make her quickly turn around and smile sweetly at her.
At that time, Xiaocheng's eyes had been entirely for her Taotao.
The stark difference made Su Tao's spirits dim a little, but she still tried her best to put on her brightest facade.
She tapped lightly on the doorframe, three soft sounds.
Chi Xiaocheng snapped back to reality, her brows immediately furrowing. "What are you still doing here? Are you here to pity me, seeing me like this on my sickbed?"
Su Tao's heart constricted as she stepped into the room. "I'm not, I... I came to check on you. I want to... I want to apologize to you, Xiaocheng."
Chi Xiaocheng gazed deeply at Su Tao, then averted her gaze. "Forget it. I don't want to see you right now, and please don't keep bothering me like this."
As she spoke, Chi Xiaocheng used one hand to massage her shoulder.
This small gesture caught Su Tao's eye, causing her breath to hitch for a moment.
Yesterday, she had struggled to accept the reality of Xiaocheng's amnesia.
Subconsciously, she had grabbed her shoulder and questioned her.
And subconsciously, she had used some force.
For Xiaocheng's current delicate body, the pain caused by that force was likely considerable.
Noticing this small detail, Su Tao felt even more guilty.
She still wanted to say something.
But her mouth opened, and no words came out.
She didn't know the exact nature of Xiaocheng's memory condition; even an apology, she couldn't offer suitably.
Now, however, Su Tao understood one thing clearly.
Xiaocheng truly hated her now!
Previously, she had loved her so deeply, but now, contrary to all past behavior, that had inexplicably turned to dislike.
Is this Heaven's punishment for me?
Her past avoidance had brought about this present aversion.
Su Tao hung her head in despair, returning to the waiting room, unable to shake off the things Chi Xiaocheng had said.
Meanwhile, on the other side, after Dr. Lin and Dr. Chen had largely consolidated the information and their hypotheses, their expressions were somewhat grim.
Dr. Chen called in Dongfang Yang and Si Chen. After briefly explaining the situation, she said, "Perhaps... we should hold back a little from Ms. Su Tao. I'm not sure if she can accept this outcome."
Dongfang Yang's expression also turned grim upon hearing this. "Perhaps we can soften the truth a little?"
This was also what the two doctors were considering: a small white lie, not stating the situation in such a severe light.
However, Si Chen's thoughts differed. He pushed up his glasses. "Just tell her directly. Su Tao even survived Chi Xiaocheng's death. If she can't accept this, then what right does she have to claim she cares about Chi Xiaocheng?"
"This..." Dr. Chen was momentarily speechless. In a way, this news could be even more unbearable than her death.
Sometimes, death doesn't mean loss.
Before long, Su Tao was also called into this waiting room. With Professor Su also present, everyone had arrived.
The young woman anxiously looked at the two doctors, her fists clenched.
After Dr. Chen and Dr. Lin exchanged a glance, Dr. Lin began, "Based on Dr. Chen's and my preliminary assessment, we have two points of absolute certainty regarding Ms. Chi."
"First, she indeed exhibits symptoms of emotional blunting. Whether positive or negative, all her emotions have decreased by one degree of intensity."
"To put it simply, by way of analogy, if a person's emotional capacity might normally have a threshold of 100, Ms. Chi's is probably around 70. Things that would once have thrilled her can now only evoke a feeling of happiness."
"Happiness, for her, will become something merely pleasant and happy, accompanied by a sense of enjoyment, but she won't be as utterly absorbed as she once was."
"Similarly, if the emotions are negative, such as dislike or hatred, they will become even more profound. This can be understood as her becoming more indifferent; she'll be less affected by a wider range of things, but it hasn't gone beyond the scope of a normal person's emotional range."
Dr. Lin looked at Su Tao. "This also explains why Ms. Chi's attitude towards you has deteriorated so drastically. Emotional blunting, this symptom, is relatively common even in ordinary people."
"And the second point is memory disorientation!"
Dr. Lin picked up the report in her hand, simultaneously distributing printed copies to the others.
"As outlined above, Ms. Chi has very severe memory disorientation. This severity doesn't mean all her memories are wrong, but rather that for *you*, Ms. Su Tao, it is very serious!"
Su Tao received the report but didn't have time to look at it, her head just buzzing. Facing Dr. Lin's sharp gaze, her unease grew even stronger.
"Dr. Lin, what do you mean, 'very serious for me'?" she pressed, the paper report in her hand clenched tight, the corners pressing into her palm and quickly forming creases.
Dr. Lin exhaled. "What I'm about to say, Ms. Su Tao, please brace yourself. This might not be good news for you."
Having said that, she paused for a moment, giving Su Tao some time to mentally prepare herself.
Then she continued, "The nature of Ms. Chi's memory disorientation isn't complex. The core point concerns her feelings for Ms. Su Tao. To use a common and widely understood term, we can colloquially understand it as three words: affection level!"
"If we say that before, Ms. Chi's affection level towards Ms. Su Tao was a maximum of 100 points."
"Then now, after this memory disorientation, her affection level for Ms. Su Tao has likely become zero!"
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