Chapter 75 Does Song Jingmo Love Him That Much?

Song Jingmo carried his simple meal tray and sat down.

A serving of rice, a plate of stir-fried vegetables, a small portion of steamed pork ribs, and a basket of crab roe buns.

He had just picked up his chopsticks when Lu Er plopped down at his left side like a little tail, his peach blossom eyes sparkling brightly.

“I just found out a secret!”

Lu Er lowered his voice, like a little cat that had stolen something tasty. “Do you want to know?”

Song Jingmo didn’t even lift his eyelids. He picked up a piece of rib, his tone calm and indifferent. “Not interested.”

From afar earlier, he had already seen Lu Er chatting happily with Liu Yuan. He could guess the so-called “secret” without even thinking.

Lu Er’s eagerness to share was instantly doused with cold water. The smile on his face collapsed, his lips curling downward in grievance.

Thinking back to how he had cautiously begged to stay the night yesterday, a sour feeling welled up in his chest.

He lowered the hand that had been propping up his chin and said in a muffled voice, “That night, you were clearly worried about me.”

“Then why, even after I asked you, did you still refuse me?”

Song Jingmo paused mid-motion. The noisy cafeteria seemed to fall silent in that instant.

After a long moment, he slowly set down his chopsticks and looked at the person beside him, his gaze calm and deep.

It was like a bottomless, icy abyss.

“At that time, I hoped you would hate me.”

His voice was low, carrying an almost cruel calmness.

Yet it was like a massive stone thrown into Lu Er’s heart, stirring up turbulent waves.

Lu Er suddenly looked up, his pupils shrinking, staring at him in disbelief.

Meeting his gaze, Song Jingmo spoke clearly, word by word, “If I couldn’t be loved…”

He paused slightly, as if choosing his words, before finally saying it, “…then hatred would do.”

“At least…”

He lowered his eyes, his long lashes hiding all the emotions within.

His voice grew so soft it nearly dissipated into the air. “You wouldn’t forget me.”

During those six years of lost contact, he had assumed Lu Er had forgotten everything.

Lu Er was completely stunned. His chest ached with a sour tightness. “I never hated you. And I never thought about forgetting anything.”

He had never felt that night was something shameful.

“Later, I went to look for you, but I couldn’t find you anymore.” A faint sadness filled Lu Er’s eyes. “I thought you didn’t want to see me.”

Song Jingmo said, “But in those six years, you never contacted me.”

Moisture gathered in Lu Er’s eyes. “I didn’t dare. I was afraid you’d be like them… that you didn’t want me either.”

He muttered softly, “Besides, you never responded to me either…”

“I was sick.” Song Jingmo didn’t want to elaborate further and picked up his chopsticks again.

When he spoke again, his tone had returned to its usual indifference. “Do you want to eat anything? I can go get it for you.”

Lu Er shook his head, his voice slightly hoarse. “I don’t feel like eating.”

He sat quietly beside him, watching Song Jingmo eat in an unhurried manner, his thoughts tangled into a mess.

“Well, Dr. Song, brought your family member to the cafeteria today?” A cheerful male voice cut in.

Although Lu Er was wearing a mask, his outstanding temperament and features were still striking.

Fu Yanxiu looked him over with a smile. “Such delicate bone structure—looks like AI modeling. Easy on the eyes, like looking at a celebrity.”

Song Jingmo lifted his head, glanced at Fu Yanxiu, then at Lu Er, who was looking down.

His tone remained calm as he corrected, “Not a family member. Just a friend.”

The words “just a friend” felt like two fine needles lightly pricking Lu Er’s heart.

The emotions stirred up earlier by that “hatred would do” were now mixed with a trace of disappointment.

At that moment, Director Huang from the administrative office walked over with his tray. “Perfect, you’re all here. Let me tell you something.”

“Next week is Nurses’ Day. Our hospital and a few others are organizing a networking event.”

“The hospital has decided that you two, along with Yin Siyao, will represent us as the ‘face’ of the hospital. Go make our director proud.”

Without hesitation, Song Jingmo refused, “Director Huang, I have plans next week. I can’t go.”

Clearly prepared, Director Huang replied, “Most of the young single doctors have already taken turns attending. You’ve just joined the hospital—this is a good chance to meet more people.”

“This is also an assignment from the hospital. It concerns Kangren’s image—you can’t decline.”

Fu Yanxiu chimed in enthusiastically, “Dr. Song, come on, let’s go together! You don’t know—my family’s been pressuring me to get married so much my head’s about to explode!”

“In our line of work, we’re so busy we barely have time to breathe. Where are we supposed to find partners? These networking events are basically internal perks. I heard this time it’s all elites—tons of handsome guys and beautiful women!”

Hearing that, Yin Siyao, who had originally wanted to refuse, hesitated.

His family had been urging him too.

Leng Keyan quickly jumped in, volunteering himself. “Director Huang, I want to go too. I’m still an intern, but I’ll definitely stay at Kangren after graduation.”

Director Huang considered for a moment. More people meant more liveliness.

“Alright, you can come too. It’ll be useful to know more people in the future.”

Listening from the side, Lu Er felt his heart leap into his throat.

A networking event?

Wasn’t that basically a matchmaking event?

Song Jingmo was going on a blind date.

At the thought of him meeting potential partners, Lu Er couldn’t help but grow tense. His fingers tightened unconsciously around the hem of his clothes.

After the meal, Song Jingmo took him for a walk in the hospital garden to help with digestion.

Afternoon sunlight filtered through the leaves, scattering dappled light over them and stretching their shadows into two intertwined figures.

After hesitating for a long time, Lu Er finally couldn’t help but ask softly, “That networking event… do you have to go?”

Song Jingmo stopped and turned around. His deep gaze fell on Lu Er’s uneasy face, answering with a question, “Why, don’t you want me to go?”

Caught off guard, Lu Er’s heart skipped a beat. He instinctively lowered his head, staring at his shoes, unable to form a proper answer.

Watching him like this, Song Jingmo’s gaze darkened slightly. His tone was unreadable. “The list has already been submitted. So, I will go.”

Lu Er’s heart sank sharply.

But Song Jingmo hadn’t finished.

He stepped closer, closing the distance between them. His voice lowered, carrying a subtle hint of guidance—and an almost imperceptible expectation.

“Unless…”

Lu Er immediately looked up, eyes full of anticipation.

“There is a proper and reasonable reason.”

Song Jingmo’s gaze locked onto him, as if trying to see the truest thoughts in his heart.

Then his tone turned slightly stern, with a faint warning, “But you’d better not do things like taking cold showers or deliberately catching a chill to make yourself sick again.”

Lu Er’s face flushed instantly, embarrassed that his little scheme had been completely seen through.

He wasn’t foolish enough to repeat the same trick again…

He understood that things shouldn’t be done more than twice.

“I… I didn’t…” Lu Er tried to argue, but his voice was so weak it held no conviction.

Song Jingmo said nothing more, simply looking at him quietly, his gaze seeming to say: I’ve given you the chance. What you do next is up to you.

The evening breeze carried the faint warmth of early summer and the scent of grass and trees, yet it couldn’t disperse the unspoken tension and surging emotions between them.

Lu Er’s heart pounded wildly in his chest. The answer was on the tip of his tongue, ready to burst out—

—but he still couldn’t gather the courage.

All he could do was watch as Song Jingmo turned away again and continued walking forward.