After her dramatic cousin stopped acting up, the aloof doctor got anxious.

Wei Jing was eating an apple with his legs crossed when he looked up and saw Qi Wenshen's expressionless face. He almost choked on the apple in his mouth.

He tossed the apple core into the trash can, clapped his hands, and said, "Old Qi, what's with that look on your face, like you're about to be executed?"

Qi Wenshen sat down opposite him. "I need to take a long leave of absence."

Wei Jing was taken aback. "A long holiday? How long?"

"have no idea."

Wei Jing sat up straight, the relaxed expression on his face fading considerably. "Why would you need to take such a long leave? Isn't Shen Ruo's condition stable now? I asked Dr. Liu, and her wound is healing well; she'll be discharged in a few days..."

"I have something very important to do."

Qi Wenshen interrupted him.

Wei Jing looked at him.

He had known Qi Wenshen for so many years and had never seen him like this before.

It wasn't anger, it wasn't impatience, it was an impatience that came from the bottom of my heart.

"Could you tell me what it is? Otherwise, it will be difficult for me to explain to the dean. You know what kind of person he is. If you suddenly ask for a long leave, he will definitely ask all sorts of questions."

Qi Wenshen remained silent for a while, as if he was carefully choosing his words.

Then he spoke, "Whether you believe it or not, the current Shen Ruo is not the original Shen Ruo."

Wei Jing blinked, thinking he was hallucinating, "...What?"

"You may find it unbelievable, but I'm telling the truth."

Wei Jing leaned back in his chair and chuckled. "Old Qi, are you telling a story? Is it some kind of fantastical tale from *Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio* or some other bizarre tale? It sounds like the beginning of a fantasy novel to me!"

I know you won't believe me.

Wei Jing looked at the two dark circles under his eyes, and the serious look in his eyes that was almost frightening, and the smile on his lips slowly disappeared.

He stared at Qi Wenshen, trying to find any trace of a joke on his face.

No.

Only exhaustion and a lucid, almost desperate state of mind.

"Have you confirmed it? Or are you just guessing? This is too mystical; who would believe it if I told them?"

"I don't need anyone to believe me, and she admitted it."

Wei Jing remained silent for a moment, as if processing the information, then asked, "Who? Shen Ruo? How did you find out?"

"intuition."

"..."

Based on intuition?

Wei Jing choked, but finally asked, "Then where are you going to look?"

"have no idea."

Qi Wenshen readily admitted it.

"But I will find a way. Since she can come and go, it means there are rules, I just haven't discovered them yet."

Wei Jing asked the most crucial question.

Qi Wenshen glanced at him. "Until we find another Shen Ruo."

Wei Jing felt a throbbing sensation in his temples.

He pinched his brow and thought for a moment, "Old Qi, what if we still can't find Shen Ruo? Then you..."

Qi Wenshen interrupted him, his tone calm yet imbued with an undeniable certainty: "We will find her, she will come back."

Looking into his reddened eyes, Wei Jing felt the words of doubt stuck in his throat.

He pulled a leave application form from the table and handed it over, saying, "Okay, you fill it out first. I'll handle things with the dean."

Wei Jing leaned back in her chair, watching his profile as he wrote, her feelings a mix of emotions.

He suddenly felt that it didn't matter whether the other Shen Ruo existed or not.

Judging from Qi Wenshen's current state, he will probably keep searching until the end of time.

Wei Jing rubbed his temples; he had to figure out a way to save his brother.

……

In the real world, when Shen Ruo opened her eyes in the morning, it was already bright outside the window.

She lay still, listening to the noise outside.

The kitchen was filled with the sounds of spatulas clattering, cooking fumes, and the light footsteps of slippers on the floor tiles.

It was Mom who was busy.

She threw back the covers and got out of bed, walking barefoot to the bedroom door. Leaning against the doorframe, she looked towards the kitchen.

Li Hehua was standing in front of the stove, wearing a floral apron. The water in the pot had just boiled, and she was putting noodles into it.

The morning light shone through the window and fell on her shoulders and back, making her fine white hairs stand out clearly.

Shen Ruo's eyes suddenly stung.

She walked to the kitchen door and called out, "Mom."

Li Hehua turned around in response, still holding chopsticks in her hand. When she saw her daughter standing at the door with red eyes, she immediately put down her chopsticks, wiped her hands, and came over, reaching out to touch her forehead.

"What's wrong? Had another nightmare? You've been having a lot of nightmares lately, is it because of work stress?"

Shen Ruo threw herself into her mother's arms, buried her face in her mother's shoulder, and said in a muffled voice, "No."

Li Hehua was knocked back by the bump, and gently patted her back, her tone somewhat anxious, "Did Shi An bully you? Tell Mom, I'll go settle the score with him."

Shen Ruo stepped out of her arms, wiped her face haphazardly, and said, "No, my eyes are red because I just woke up and they haven't recovered yet. It has nothing to do with Xu Shi'an."

Li Hehua looked her over for a few seconds, probably to make sure her daughter hadn't been wronged, before letting go of her hand. "Go wash up quickly, otherwise Shi'an will be waiting downstairs for a long time again."

Shen Ruo took two steps toward the bathroom, then turned back and said, "I told him last night that starting today, I'm going to eat my mom's breakfast."

Li Hehua was taken aback. "You really didn't argue?"

"No noise."

Li Hehua glanced at her again, and seeing that her daughter's expression was indeed unchanged, she turned back to the stove. "So, what would you like to eat?"

Shen Ruo smiled mischievously, "I'll eat whatever you make."

"Then I'll make you some pasta."

Shen Ruo was surprised, "You can do it?"

Li Hehua paused slightly in her movements, but her tone remained unchanged, "Didn't you teach me? How come you forgot so quickly? Your memory is worse than mine."

Shen Ruo gave an awkward laugh. "I'm still half asleep. I'll go wash up."

She turned and went into the bathroom.

Li Hehua's gaze followed her retreating figure for a few seconds before she looked away.

Shen Ruo closed the door and let out a long breath in front of the mirror.

The person in the mirror was still herself; she hadn't seen this face in a long time.

It feels a bit unfamiliar.

The thought made her laugh.

She turned on the tap, scooped up some cold water and splashed it on her face; the icy touch sobered her up a bit.

Shen Ruo really did a lot of things.

She was more responsible in this family than her own daughter.

When I came out after washing up, there was already a plate of pasta on the table, with sauce coating the noodles and sprinkled with shredded cheese and basil leaves. There was also a small bowl of salad with vinaigrette dressing on the side, and the colors were very pretty.

Shen Ruo sat down, picked up a fork, rolled up a noodle, and put it in her mouth. It tasted really good.

Li Hehua sat down opposite her, watching her eat. Her gaze slowly swept over her face before settling on the salad bowl beside her. "Is that salad not to your liking? I'll get something else another day."

Shen Ruo didn't even look up. "I don't like it."

Li Hehua's hand tightened slightly on the chopsticks, then quickly loosened.

She glanced at the bowl of salad, then at her daughter, and said, "If you don't like it, I won't make this next time."