Chapter 182: Thank You
Zeyu found the dent above the mobile base’s door while removing the last of the loose debris from its steps.
He had walked past it several times since they recovered the vehicle, but under the inspection light he could see where the metal had folded against the frame.
He set his brush down and tried the door again. It caught halfway through closing and then required a hard shove before it would stay closed.
"That needs to be fixed before anyone uses it," Shichen observed from beside the workbench.
Zeyu kept his hand on the handle. "I know," he replied with a shrug. "I was hoping it was something caught in the hinge and it wouldn’t become a big deal."
Shichen approached with the light, holding it above Zeyu’s shoulder while he examined the damage.
Neither of them mentioned who would eventually need help through that doorway.
Zhiyi had asked about the vehicle when she woke up, and Zeyu had told her they recovered it because he didn’t want to tell her that she got hurt for no reason.
The garage smelled of concrete dust and warm machinery, but it was almost comforting to the men.
Behind them, the two SUVs stood where they had been parked, their clean windows making the battered mobile base look worse by comparison.
"We can deal with this section," Shichen assured him. "But I want to inspect the surrounding frame before we decide how."
Zeyu nodded and marked the damaged area.
Once, he would have called someone to get the stupid thing and then demand a repair schedule by the end of the conversation. Now Shichen crouched beside him with a light while he worked through what he could reach himself.
They spent the next hour opening compartments and checking what had shifted during the collapse.
Some damage looked worse than it was. A jammed storage drawer freed after Zeyu removed a broken fitting, spilling its contents across his shoes.
Shichen caught a rolling container with his foot.
"Well, you fixed it," Shichen said as he bent to pick it up. "But did you really have to throw it at me?"
Zeyu laughed, then fell quiet when he realized how long it had been since he’d made that sound.
Shichen glanced up at the sound, but didn’t comment. He simply passed Zeyu a handful of scattered supplies and went back to collecting the rest.
After a moment, they put everything away and returned to work.
Shichen asked him to hold something steady, and Zeyu did. Neither mentioned the laughter, which made it easier to let himself have that small moment without feeling guilty about it.
By the time Qinghe called, dust had worked its way beneath Zeyu’s collar. He set the phone on a clear patch of the bench and answered on speaker.
"She’s asking about the vehicle again," Qinghe said. "Come and tell her what you’re working on, if you have a few minutes. Just keep it short. She doesn’t need the whole repair list."
Zeyu looked toward the marks he and Shichen had made around the doorframe. "Is she worried about it?"
"She wants to know what you’re doing," Qinghe replied. "You can talk to her, Zeyu."
After the call, Zeyu went into the adjoining workroom to wash and change. He spent longer than he needed to scrubbing his hands, turning them beneath the water even after the dirt was gone.
The puzzle box sat on his desk beneath a folded cloth. He uncovered it while reaching for a clean shirt, then paused with his fingers resting on the wood.
When he’d made it, he had imagined handing it to Zhiyi and watching her work out how to open it.
He had wondered which part she would notice first and how quickly she would discover what he’d hidden inside.
Now he worried that giving it to her would make her feel she had to solve it, even if she was too tired.
But he had made it for her. It was up to her to decide when she wanted to play with it.
He wrapped the box again and carried it down the corridor.
Hanchuan sat beside Zhiyi’s pillow while Qinghe wrote something at the counter. She was awake, and her gaze moved from Zeyu’s face to the bundle beneath his arm, then returned back to him.
"We’ve started checking the mobile base," Zeyu told her, stopping beside the spare chair. "Shichen’s helping me."
Zhiyi glanced at the handwritten page propped on her bedside table. "The door sticks," she said, looking back at him.
Zeyu paused. He didn’t remember mentioning that to her. Perhaps Qinghe had heard him talking to Shichen and told her earlier.
Zhiyi noticed his hesitation. Her fingers stopped moving against the blanket. "Doesn’t it?"
"It does," Zeyu replied. "Did you notice it before the collapse?"
She looked toward the foot of the bed, her brows drawing together. Zeyu regretted the question almost immediately.
She had told him something about the door, he didn’t need to ask her to remember anything or hurt herself more.
"I don’t know when," Zhiyi admitted, keeping her eyes on the blanket.
Zeyu sat down and settled the wrapped box on his knees. "Well, you’re right. We found some damage around the frame this morning. We’ll have it fixed before you need to use the steps."
Zhiyi nodded, though she looked back at the page beside her bed. While she read, Zeyu loosened the cloth around the box, giving himself something to do besides watch her.
When she turned back, she noticed what was on his lap.
"What did you bring?" Zhiyi asked, cocking her head to the side.
"Something I made for you." Zeyu unfolded the cloth and turned the box so she could see it. "It’s a puzzle box. There’s a way to open it, but you have to find it."
As soon as he said it, he wished he’d found a better explanation. It sounded as though he was waiting for her to prove she could.
He started to gather the cloth, then stopped. Zhiyi was studying the edges of the box, her gaze following the joins with a familiar interest that made him hold it a little steadier.
"Does it have to be opened now?" she asked, looking up at him.
"No," Zeyu assured her. "It’s yours. You can leave it closed as long as you like. What’s inside will keep."
Zhiyi watched his face for a moment before lifting her hand from the blanket.
Zeyu glanced at Qinghe, who nodded toward the clear space beside her. He set the box within reach, keeping a hand beneath it until it rested securely on the mattress.
Zhiyi touched one corner and ran her fingertip along the join. Then she laid her palm flat on the smooth top.
Zeyu had thought of several hints while making it, but now he kept them to himself. She hadn’t asked for help, and he didn’t want to hurry her just because he was eager to see what she thought.
"Leave it closed," Zhiyi said at last, her hand still resting on the wood.
"Of course," Zeyu replied, folding the cloth and setting it aside. "You should have seen the mess I made earlier. I pulled out a drawer and half the contents ended up on the floor."
Zhiyi looked at him, and he told her about the scattered supplies and Shichen catching the runaway container.
Once he started, it became easier to talk. He could tell her something ordinary without needing to ask how she felt or remind her to rest.
Hanchuan listened beside her, occasionally smoothing the blanket where it had gathered near her elbow. Qinghe returned to his notes.
When Zeyu eventually stood, Zhiyi looked down at the box.
"If I ask how it opens, ask whether I want the answer before you tell me," she told him after a moment of silence.
Zeyu rested his hand on the back of the chair and nodded his head in agreement. "I will. No hints unless you ask for those too."
Zhiyi nodded and traced the corner once more, smiling softly to herself.
"Thank you."