Pandora’s Box

When I was about to lose hope, the situation suddenly took a turn for the worse.

“What?! Is there a match?” When I received Ke Luo’s news, I couldn’t believe it. So much so, that I made a loud noise in the library and was kicked out immediately.

“Are there new volunteering donors? Are they highly compatible? Ahhh, great!”

Shu Nian was able to find a new matching bone marrow donor and this time, the donor was committed and highly cooperative.

This was such a short call.

Were my prayers effective?

Everything that followed after was processed extremely efficiently, as if a fast-forward button was pressed. Shu Nian was quickly scheduled for an operation. Everyone was afraid of these long nights, but his body could not wait.

This time, everything went very smoothly — the donor was very cooperative and the bone marrow he (or she) donated was very compatible. The operation was so successful, that there wasn’t a rejection reaction after the surgery.

To conclude, everything happened so positively that there was almost a lost sense of reality.

Preparing for his discharge, everyone was beaming when Shu Nian was about to be released from the hospital.

It was such a touching and joyous event to witness a life freed from the shadows of death to stay longer with ones he loved.

However, when I confirmed the celebration, I asked Ke Luo, “You even invited Lee?”

“Right.”

Puzzled, I asked, “Why? First of all, with Lee’s personality, he hates these types of occasions. Secondly, they are at odds. Are you trying to create trouble for both parties?”

“Are you sure he will hate it? He also likes uplifting events.”

I said, “There’s only one possibility for Lee to appear in the hospital willingly and that’s only if he’s lying on the hospital bed.”

“…..” Ke Luo thought for a moment and said, “Maybe it’s inappropriate. However, I still want him to participate more in our affairs or else he will become more and more like an outsider. Also, if he really doesn’t want to come, he will naturally refuse.”

That was true, no one could force Lee.

To my surprise, Lee actually came on the day Shu Nian was going to be discharged from the hospital.

No one forced him with a knife; he really wanted to come.

Even though he decided to come, it seemed like his heart was not present at all. He didn’t seem to intend to nor could he blend into the cheerful atmosphere.

He didn’t respond when everyone was celebrating. He simply stood far away from the crowd the entire time, sticking to the door, and absent-mindedly eating the piece of cake that was given to him like he was ready to flee the scene at any given moment.

Then, the door of the ward swung open abruptly, slapping him on his face.

“…..”

I almost laughed out loud.

The person who came in was in a hurry, saying a few words into Ke Luo’s ear.

Ke Luo slightly frowned and then announced, “I wanted to invite the bone marrow donor but I couldn’t identify the person. Not only did he ask the doctor to keep it confidential, but even his registered information was false.”

Lee silently closed the door, touching his nose and continuing to eat his cake.

Everyone started discussing.

“Maybe the other party doesn’t want to be disturbed by others and so that’s why he hid so well.”

“But like this, we will feel indebted and we should show our gratitude.”

“Some people just want to do good deeds and not ask for anything in return.”

Shu Nian emotionally weighed in, “That person is an unrecognized savior.”

I could see Lee rolling his eyes exaggeratedly and for a while by the door, I wondered if he was choking on his cake too.

The door opened again. Both Lee and his cake were smacked behind the door again.

“…..”

Director Liu, who was in charge of the operation, came in to greet everyone with a friendly smile, “Sorry, I’m late!”

Before Lee had a chance to come out from behind the door, he was smacked onto the wall again — the door slammed open and another doctor came in.

Lee, after being pitted one after another, finally sounded weakly, “Damn…”

“…..”

It was not that I was heartless, it was just too funny.

Director Liu hurriedly said, “I’m sorry, this is Dr. Zhu who helped with collecting bone marrow…”

The young doctor apologized repeatedly to Lee, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry!”

Staring at each other, he said “ah” and laughed, “Are you here too? They all said that they couldn’t contact you. I thought you left a fake address because you didn’t want to meet the patient.”

Lee froze for a few seconds before he said indifferently, “You got the wrong person.”

Dr. Zhu was taken aback for a brief moment, and then quickly showed embarrassment. He quickly said, “Ah, I’m so sorry! It’s because I don’t have a good memory haha…”

The room remained quiet, and Lee quickly announced, “I have something to do so I’m leaving first!”

Before everyone could react, he practically almost sprinted out the door — literally, because he almost knocked down the door and carried it with him.

Lee walked away so rapidly, he left the whole room staring at each other in silence.

The atmosphere became so inexplicably strange that I didn’t dare to chew on the strawberry chocolate chips on the cake in my mouth.

It was Ke Luo who spoke first, “So, was it him?”

“…..”

For a while, no one answered, and only Zhuo Wenyang quietly said, “Looking at it, he must be the bone marrow donor.”

The chocolate chips in my mouth slowly fell onto the plate.

I did not know how to describe what happened next other than Ke Luo promptly chasing after him. The rest of us fell into a deeper silence and was stupefied.

After Ke Luo caught up with Lee, how did the two of them communicate and what did they say to each other? Although I was usually aware of such things, I didn’t know. Anyway, when he came to look for me, he looked sullen as if he recently quarreled with Lee.

However, the two of them quarreled as often as having three meals a day and so I was getting used to it.

But this time, apart from being down, Ke Luo was also faintly excited.

Ke Luo asked me, “Don’t you think this is strange?”

I nodded again and again. “Yes, I didn’t know that Lee would actually go to donate. Doesn’t he hate Shu Nian to death?”

“Not that,” Ke Luo said, “The point is, why is he a match?”

“…..”

“The odds of matching are too low. Ordinary people who aren’t close relatives will not chance upon this type of luck, will they?”

“…..”

Ke Luo said decisively, “So, he knows that he has a chance of matching with Shu Nian.”

My eyes widened.

“You mean…”

Fictional novels wouldn’t dare narrate this!

Ke Luo’s eyes sparkled as he said, “This can’t be pure coincidence, right? They don’t look similar for nothing.”

“Oh oh oh!” I was excited. This was so thrillingly (positively) stimulating!

“This guy, Lee, is so tight-lipped! He didn’t tell anyone about such a big thing!”

“He’s like this, and many things are only known to him,” Ke Luo said, “It seems like no one can enter his world, including you and me.”

“Then, can Shu Nian get in?”

Ke Leo paused for a moment, “That’s a good question.”

“Maybe Shu Nian is really different to him,” I began to analyze, “He didn’t tell me, but Lee is actually quite lonely. He’s really not the type of person who likes volunteering to donate. First, he’s afraid of losing money and second, he’s afraid of pain. He suffered both this time for Shu Nian. Come to think of it, those who are a match may temporarily regret it, but he rushed ahead to process it! If this doesn’t count as blood being thicker than water, then I don’t believe in love anymore!”

Ke Luo thought for a while and asked, “Then do you think Lee will admit his relationship with Shu Nian?”

“I don’t know.” The initial excitement passed and I cooled down. I was also a little hesitant, “Well, he did make the donation without telling anyone. If it wasn’t exposed by accident, he didn’t intend to let others know for the rest of his life, right?”

Ke Luo looked thoughtful.

“Wait, did you tell Shu Nian about this?”

“Not yet, but I went to him later to insinuate things. He doesn’t seem to remember that he has an older brother. He was too young when he entered the orphanage. He was maybe only two or three years old so he doesn’t really remember anything.”

“It’s no wonder Lee was adamently unwilling to admit it. After all, the other party doesn’t remember him at all,” I sighed, “Shu Nian is his last relative in this world, right?”

I only knew that Lee was born in poverty because when he was drunk, he scolded his gambling father who died too young.

At that time, he gnashed his teeth and looked close to being on the verge of tears. I thought the short period when he didn’t speak was due to that rotten gambling father who sold everything in the house.

Maybe that wasn’t it now.

Ke Luo asked, “Do you think the two brothers would recognize each other?”

I was also a little uncertain, “What do you think?”

“I think people need family affection.”

“Really?”

“I used to think that maybe I didn’t need it, but after meeting my dad, I felt really different, “Ke Luo slowly explained, “I have a better sense of belonging in this world. How should I put it? It’s like there’s a way to get back home in life.”

“…..”

I thought of myself.

When I realized that my dad was not my real father, I was so confused and lost. Although Cheng Yichen was very good to me and could make up for the lack of emotions and fatherly love in many ways, it was still not enough. I knew in my heart that he wasn’t related to me by blood.

There was no blood connection in this world so when I woke up in the middle of the night, I felt an erratic sense of loneliness, faintly realizing that I had no home to return to.

If there was a chance to reconcile with my biological father despite of some resistance, did I really not desire it in my heart?

Lee always acted like he didn’t care about anything. He did not seem to care about worldly concerns.

However, was I not doing the same thing myself?

If he was the same type of person as me, then he should do what he wanted.

Ke Luo asked again, “What do you think?”

We stared at each other for a moment and we both saw answers in each other’s eyes.

“But it’s impossible for Lee to take the initiative to break through the first layer.”

“If the mountain doesn’t reach Muhammad, then take Muhammad to the mountain.”

Ke Luo said, “Then I’ll persuade Lee tomorrow.”

I volunteered, “I’ll go find Shu Nian.”

Ke Luo nodded, “Okay. You can bring Shu Nian directly to Lee’s house when the time comes and we can solve this problem on the spot.”

Shu Nian was recently discharged from the hospital and was still recuperating in T City. I came to visit the next day. Shu Nian was a perceptive and considerate person. He probably noticed that I wouldn’t go to the Temple to relax and chit chat, and so, he sent Xie Yan away.

After I told him our speculations, he surprisingly asked, “So, is he my brother?”

“Probably, yes. Of course, you’ll need to verify further. I think the two of you need to have a face-to-face meeting. Will you like to?”

His body became radiant, livening his thin and dull face, “Of course, I am willing!”

“However, Lee may not cooperate,” I said cautiously, “He has a good heart, but his mouth spouts rather bad and awkward things. He may say hurtful things, so don’t mind it…”

Shu Nian smiled and said, “Don’t think that I am that weak.”

On the car to Lee’s apartment, Shu Nian and I imagined the scenes of brothers coming together. Some were indifferent, some were enthusiastic, and some were embarrassing. Shu Nian was repeatedly rehearsing in advance what to do when the time came. He was so serious, it made me nervous.

Then, Shu Nian’s phone rang abruptly. I glanced at the caller ID; it was Ke Luo.

I was immediately excited, “Is there any progress?”

Shu Nian answered the phone and turned on the speakers, “Hello?”

A voice sounded from the other end, “Shu Nian…”

Then, there was a strange sound before the call was shortly cut off without warning.

I was baffled, “What’s wrong?”

Shu Nian called back again, but it was no longer connected. I called Lee, but no one answered.

“What happened?”

“They can’t be, are they fighting?”

Shu Nian was wildly perplexed, “Is that possible? I think Lee is gentleman.”

I could only say, “The two of them are indeed gentlemen when apart, but together, they often fight like cats and dogs.”

“…..”

In addition to the tense atmosphere in the vehicle, there was also a touch of suspicion.

When I arrived at the door of Lee’s apartment, there was no answer despite of ringing his bell frantically. I simply took out the key and opened the door.

Some time ago, Lee left a spare key with me because he was afraid that he would lose his key and forget it.

As soon as the door opened, Shu Nian and I were both dumbfounded.

They were indeed fighting.

However, it was not the type of fighting we thought of.

I stared bewilderingly at Lee and Ke Luo as they remained entangled in the living room. Both of them looked disheveled, and Ke Luo had half of his trousers off.

“???” I asked, “Am I interrupting you?”

Ke Luo immediately moved away and stood up without saying a word. His face was flushed and he didn’t know whether he was ashamed or angry.

Lee was still lying on the ground. He was neither ashamed nor annoyed. Although his complexion wasn’t good, he was calm and patient. He smiled and said, “Xiao Jing, do me a favor.”

“Huh? =.= ??”

His face turned pale, but he still maintained a smile, “My wound seems to have opened.”

We rushed Lee to the hospital. The stomach wound from his previous appendicitis operation really opened, so he went into the operating room again and had it stitched back up.

Throughout Lee’s surgery and postoperative drowsiness, it was our turn to wait outside with Shu Nian.

From time to time, Shu Nian and I would chat while Ke Luo remained silent.

In this awkward atmosphere, I was too embarrassed to talk to him and avoided looking at him.

Why the two of them physically wrestled, and what happened during the hand to hand wrestle, I did not know and dared not ask.

After Lee woke up, I went to visit him, chatted with Lee for a while, and ate half of the food I bought. Lee seemed indifferent so I was a little worried. Did he really need Shu Nian?

When it was Shu Nian’s turn to enter and visit, Ke Luo finally said, “You don’t have to doubt; he is your brother.”

I quietly peeked through the gap in the shutters to watch these two interact, and the long interaction was quite boring. Shu Nian sat there quietly and patiently peeled apples, as Lee was quietly changing to sleep. All this had me yawn continuously.

It wasn’t until later that Lee finally could not pretend anymore.

I couldn’t hear what they said, but at the end, I saw them hugging each other. Lee appeared to be crying.

I couldn’t help but burst into a grin.

Ah, that’s great.

This was much more heartwarming that I anticipated.

Could I also have such a day?