Xiaojuan left, clutching the freshly written thank-you letter in her hand. Su Chenzhu turned to Secretary Liu and said, "Secretary Liu, it's getting late. You should go home and rest."
"Understood, boss," Secretary Liu replied briskly. Then, addressing Chao Musheng, she added, "Xiao Chao, take good care of yourself. I’ll come see you again tomorrow."
"Mr. Su, aren’t you going home?" Chao Musheng asked. "My fever has already gone down, and there are nurses here. You don’t need to stay just to take care of me."
"The doctor said that colds caused by viral or bacterial infections can easily relapse with high fever. I don’t feel comfortable leaving you alone in the hospital," Su Chenzhu replied, glancing at the darkening sky. "The wind is picking up, and you shouldn’t be exposed to it right now. Let’s head back to the ward, shall we?"
"But you have work tomorrow..."
"The ward has an attached restroom. I’ll stay there tonight." Su Chenzhu rarely took such a firm stance with Chao Musheng. "When you’re sick, you temporarily lose decision-making rights."
A phone ringtone interrupted them. Chao Musheng snapped out of his thoughts and answered the call.
"Mom."
"I won’t be coming home tonight." He glanced at Su Chenzhu before continuing, "There’s something going on at the company. I’m staying late to help the boss."
"Don’t worry, I’m definitely not out fooling around."
After hanging up, Chao Musheng looked slightly embarrassed. "Mr. Su, that was my mom. She thought I’d be coming home tonight."
"Your mother cares about you a lot," Su Chenzhu said softly. The last traces of twilight had vanished from the horizon. He reached out and gently smoothed down two stray strands of Chao Musheng’s hair. "Come on, let’s go back to the ward."
Meanwhile, You Jiu saw Xiaojuan return, now holding a thank-you letter, and grinned. "Sister Juan, the family member of the patient in Room 2 just threw a fit at the nurses’ station. Be careful when you go in to clean later."
No sooner had he spoken than the man from Room 2 stepped out into the hallway. He looked down at Xiaojuan and You Jiu with an air of disdain, his eyebrows raised arrogantly. "You two, come with me."
Silently, Xiaojuan and You Jiu followed him into Room 2. A pale woman lay on the bed, hooked up to various machines. The blanket was partially folded back, and a caregiver—likely hired privately—was wiping her feet.
You Jiu stopped in his tracks and turned toward the door.
"What are you doing? Hurry up and mop the floor again," the man snapped, wrinkling his nose. "Can’t you smell that strange odor in here?"
"Sir, the caregiver is currently attending to the patient. My colleague is male, so it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to be here," Xiaojuan said, taking a deep breath. "If there’s anything you need, you can leave it to me."
"Fine." The man sat back on the sofa, crossing his legs. "I don’t care who does it, just get rid of that smell."
Xiaojuan ignored him and walked to the bedside. Seeing the caregiver about to remove the monitoring devices to wipe the patient’s arms and legs, she couldn’t hold back. "The patient has severe open wounds and a fractured leg. Any movement or jostling could worsen her condition."
Earlier, the doctor had specifically warned her that the patient in Room 2 was in critical condition, with multiple monitoring devices and tubes in place. Only medical professionals were allowed to touch her—certainly not an unqualified caregiver.
Hearing this, the caregiver froze, looking uncertainly at the man on the sofa.
"What does a lowly cleaner know?" The man scowled. "Just do your job and mind your own business."
Then, catching sight of Xiaojuan’s eyes above her mask, his tone softened slightly. He pointed to the small table in front of him. "Start by wiping this."
Xiaojuan smirked and walked over—only for the thank-you letter to slip from her pocket and land on the table.
"What’s this?" The man eyed the fallen paper and reached for it.
"A thank-you letter from Mr. Chao in Room 4," Xiaojuan said, watching his outstretched hand. "Would you like to read it?"
At the mention of Room 4’s patient, the man immediately withdrew his hand. "N-no, that’s fine."
He studied Xiaojuan’s face for a few seconds. "Why would Mr. Chao write you a thank-you letter?"
"Maybe because he thinks I work hard," Xiaojuan replied, tucking the letter away. "Don’t worry, sir. I’ll make sure this room is spotless."
Just then, there was a knock at the door. Assuming it was medical staff, the man stood and yanked the door open impatiently—only to freeze when he saw Su Chenzhu’s bodyguard standing outside. His expression instantly shifted into an ingratiating smile, though traces of annoyance still lingered, making his face look almost comical.
"Ah, apologies for the disturbance, sir," the bodyguard said flatly. "Mr. Chao heard that Ms. Xiaojuan is cleaning your room and sent me to ask if she’d like any supper."
Ms. Xiaojuan?
The man turned to look at the cleaner and the caregiver in confusion.
"I haven’t finished cleaning yet," Xiaojuan said, stepping toward the door. "Brother, please thank Mr. Chao for me."
The man immediately beamed. "If Mr. Chao is inviting you, you should go right away. The room is clean enough—no need to keep working."
"But that wouldn’t be right," Xiaojuan said hesitantly. "I should at least—"
"No need!" The man’s smile stiffened under the bodyguard’s gaze. "Don’t keep Mr. Chao waiting."
"Thank you, sir. You’re such a kind person."
A kind person?
Once Xiaojuan was gone, the man’s smile vanished. He turned to the unconscious woman on the bed, his expression twisting into something dark and ugly.
How could he afford to be a "kind person" when she still hadn’t died?
With fewer visitors at night, the workload for cleaners lightened considerably. Even the head nurse wouldn’t hover over them during these hours.
Xiaojuan returned to the break room, arms full of snacks Mr. Chao had given her. The cleaners’ lounge had no proper beds—just a few outdated hospital recliners that could barely pass as sleeping spots when unfolded.
You Jiu was already there, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed. Hearing Xiaojuan’s footsteps, he opened his eyes. "That lunatic from Room 2 didn’t give you trouble?"
"Nope." Xiaojuan tossed him a pack of egg rolls. "Here."
After all, Mr. Chao had given her so much food precisely so she could share with her coworkers.
"From Mr. Chao?" You Jiu asked. The cafeteria food had been terrible that afternoon, and he’d been starving for hours. He tore open the package and took a bite.
[Ding! Player’s HP +1]
"Thanks, Sister Juan," You Jiu said sincerely. "This is a rare treat."
His eyes lingered on the pile of snacks in Xiaojuan’s arms, envy flickering in his gaze.
Was this the privilege of having a golden backer?
With a patron like this, did she never have to worry about running out of HP?
"Where are the other three?"
"Out trying to get thank-you letters," You Jiu replied. He pulled an A-grade item from his inventory and held it out. "Sister Juan, if you have any extra snacks these next few days… could you spare some for me?"
Players only started with 100 HP in this dungeon. The damn system deducted 20 per day, and injuries cost even more. He was afraid he wouldn’t make it to Day 5 before his HP ran out.
The cafeteria food didn’t reduce HP, but it didn’t restore any either.
However, the lunch provided by Su Chenzhu’s bodyguard at noon and the snacks Xiaojuan shared with him earlier had both increased his life points.
This meant that any food related to Chao Musheng could potentially boost life points.
Seeing that Xiaojuan refused to accept his item, You Jiu wasn’t in a hurry and kept his hand outstretched. "A new patient arrived in Ward 8 at night."
Xiaojuan raised an eyebrow but didn’t respond.
"It’s Chen Fang from the Chen Garden instance. He’s already passed the critical phase." You Jiu shoved the item directly into Xiaojuan’s arms. "Sis Xiaojuan, isn’t it strange how so many NPCs from the last instance have appeared in this hospital one?"
Xiaojuan examined the item—an A-grade identification earpiece capable of discerning whether an NPC’s words were true or false. It could be used for half an hour with a 48-hour cooldown.
A highly practical tool.
His excessive generosity made her suspicious of his motives.
"Go ahead, what do you want to know?"
"Sis Xiaojuan, you’re straightforward. I want to know how you and that big guy managed to leave the last instance when it collapsed."
"You also left successfully, didn’t you?"
"I used a forced exit item." You Jiu didn’t hide anything. "The system ordered me to eliminate Mr. Chao."
Xiaojuan’s gaze turned murderous.
"I didn’t dare lay a hand on Mr. Chao, but failing the mission would’ve killed me, so I had no choice but to force my way out." You Jiu sighed. "Sis Xiaojuan, I know what lines not to cross."
Xiaojuan tossed the item back. "I don’t need this. Take it."
The other two players had returned, having somehow obtained thank-you letters. Their expressions suggested they were in good spirits.
Only Qi Shi hadn’t come back yet.
Qi Shi stood by the corridor balcony, gazing at the nightscape beyond the hospital.
Unlike the usual dense fog of instances, this one was a sea of glittering lights. Roads stretched endlessly into the distance, connecting to places far beyond sight.
It almost felt like following these paths could take him somewhere so far away, he’d escape the instance’s control entirely.
A plane flew overhead, its navigation lights blinking.
A wild thought struck him—if he stepped outside the hospital’s boundaries now, would the instance stop him?
The door to Ward 4 opened, snapping him back to attention. "Do you need the room cleaned?"
"Mr. Chao heard the new janitor needed a thank-you letter." The bodyguard handed him an envelope. "Hope this helps."
Qi Shi numbly accepted it, only processing the gesture after the bodyguard left.
[Congratulations, daily task completed. Reward: 200 points.]
Unfolding the letter, he found handwriting bold yet elegant, concise yet vivid in describing his work that day.
He stared at it for a long time before carefully folding it and tucking it into his pocket.
Late at night, Su Chenzhu opened his eyes, pushed open the restroom door, and hurried to the sickbed. The moment he touched Chao Musheng’s forehead, he confirmed the fever had returned.
He grabbed the thermometer from the table and took Chao Musheng’s temperature—39.1°C.
Pressing the call button, he pressed his forehead against Chao Musheng’s burning skin, faint specks of light seeping into him.
Afterward, Su Chenzhu covered his faintly glowing golden eyes, his face noticeably paler.
Chao Musheng woke to bitterness. Opening his eyes, he saw several white-coated medical staff by his bed. Su Chenzhu sat at the head of the bed, his usually immaculate hair disheveled, his collar crooked around his neck.
"Temperature’s down to 37.5°C," the doctor said, noticing Chao Musheng was awake. "Mr. Chao, any other discomfort?"
Chao Musheng shook his head slowly, his throat parched from the bitter medicine.
"Drink some water." Su Chenzhu held a cup with one hand while supporting him upright with the other. "Take it slow."
Chao Musheng sipped through the straw, finally washing away the medicinal taste. "Mr. Su, you—"
A girl’s scream pierced the corridor.
"You bastard, was it you who hurt my mom?!"
Chao Musheng instantly sat up straight, eyes locked on the door.
Su Chenzhu sighed, fetched slippers for him, and draped a coat over his shoulders. "Come on, let’s go see."
