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

Shen Ruo forced a smile, "It's nothing. Zhou Lan messaged me asking why I didn't go to work today."

Qi Wenshen glanced at her, then lowered his head and continued drinking his coffee.

Shen Ruo breathed a sigh of relief, but her phone was still vibrating.

She put her phone on silent and decided to check it after breakfast.

After finishing his breakfast, Qi Wenshen went to the kitchen to clear the dishes.

Taking this opportunity, Shen Ruo quickly sent a message to Zhou Lan.

She took a picture of the back of her neck and sent it to someone.

First, look at this.

[This is terrifying! You've been a victim of domestic violence?]

【Call the police.】

[Shen Ruo, tell me, was it Qi Wenshen who did this? I'll call the police for you.]

Shen Ru rolled her eyes.

No, it was a bite from a rove beetle.

【Rove beetles? Your cousin seems so well-behaved, how come his house is so dirty and messy that it's infested with rove beetles?】

Shen Ruo: [It's in Xiao Chen's orchard. Don't tell Xiao Chen, she'll feel guilty.]

Zhou Lan: [Mingliao, you're really having a tough time! We all went to pick some peaches and were fine, what kind of constitution do you have?]

Shen Ruo: [Don't mention it, it's all tears.]

Zhou Lan: [So you're taking the day off because of this? Your neck is definitely too sore to go to work; I might scare the patients.]

Shen Ruo: [...You're right.]

Zhou Lan: [Alright, alright, you should focus on recovering. I'm busy here. Oh, and let's go out for a meal when you're better, it's your treat.]

Shen Ruo: [Why should I treat?]

Zhou Lan: [That photo just now also startled me.]

Shen Ruo: [……]

……

At the same time, in the nursing department of the city's First People's Hospital.

Zhou Lan had just finished changing a patient's dressing and was carrying the dressing tray out of the ward.

Behind the counter at the nurses' station, two intern nurses were huddled together, their phone screens lit up with a screenshot of a post from Shen Ruo's WeChat Moments from the previous night.

A photo of a peach orchard was posted with the caption: "My colleague's orchard has peaches so sweet they're so good you'll want to lick your fingers."

The two were playing with crickets.

"Look at her, she posts about going to an orchard on WeChat Moments, as if everyone has been there before."

"that is."

"Sigh, she has a good cousin, otherwise do you think she could just take a break like that without even having to apply in advance?"

"Tsk tsk, it's so nice to have a doctor cousin. For people like us without connections, getting leave is harder than climbing to heaven."

"You said she's so beautiful, does she maintain it with cosmetic procedures? Her skin looks abnormally good."

"Probably so. The competition for internships is fierce these days, and looks are still a major factor..."

Zhou Lan approached.

The medical record folder was slammed heavily onto the nurses' station table.

The two intern nurses trembled in fright.

They turned around and saw Zhou Lan standing there, expressionless.

"If you're going to talk behind someone's back, why don't you say it to their face?"

The two intern nurses were caught red-handed, and their faces turned pale instantly.

They certainly knew Zhou Lan; she was very close to Shen Ruo, and also had an older brother who worked as a doctor at the hospital.

They exchanged a glance, their lips trembled slightly, and they gave an awkward smile.

"Zhou Lan, we didn't...we didn't say anything, we were just chatting..."

Zhou Lan sneered, "Just chatting? Then I'll call Shen Ruo over for you, and you can chat casually in front of her?"

The two of them waved their hands together, "No, no, no, we really didn't say anything bad about Shen Ruo, we were just, just envious, yes, envious."

Looking at the two faces filled with guilt, Zhou Lan's smile grew even colder. "Envious? You mean jealous."

The two men froze, opened their mouths as if to deny it, but couldn't utter a single word.

"What are you doing?"

Lin Shuwan walked to the nurses' station, her gaze sweeping over the two intern nurses before settling on Zhou Lan. "The patient has rang the call button several times already, aren't you going to hurry up? Are you waiting for me to call you?"

The two intern nurses, feeling as if they had been granted a pardon, quickly nodded and bowed in response, then turned and ran away.

"Zhou Lan, has the dressing change record been updated?"

"immediately."

……

After washing the dishes, Qi Wenshen came out and took his car keys.

"I'll take you somewhere."

Upon hearing this, Shen Ruo asked, "Where are we going?"

You'll find out when you get there.

"So mysterious."

The car drove through the city streets for about half an hour before stopping at the entrance of a residential complex.

Shen Ruo looked out the car window and immediately saw the large, gilded characters above the gate of the residential area.

Star River Bay.

Xinghewan, in the city center, a prime location where every inch of land is incredibly valuable.

Although Shen Ruo was not a local, she had looked up the housing prices in this neighborhood online, and even the cheapest apartment started at eight figures.

Eight figures—the money she earned in both her two worlds combined wasn't even enough to buy a toilet.

Are you thinking of buying a house?

She asked tentatively.

"I won't buy it."

Shen Ruo was taken aback. "If we're not going to buy anything, what are we doing here?"

Could this guy have some kind of weird fetish, like visiting other people's luxury neighborhoods?

No, he doesn't seem like the type of person who would envy other people's houses.

She followed Qi Wenshen into the residential area, full of suspicion.

The access control system uses facial recognition. As soon as Qi Wenshen stood there, the system automatically recognized him, and the door opened with a beep.

Shen Ruo silently marveled at the grandeur of the place, noting that they didn't even need security guards, relying entirely on high technology.

After entering the residential area, Qi Wenshen led her through a courtyard full of greenery, past a fountain, and into the unit door of one of the buildings.

The elevator uses a card system. He tapped a black access card against the sensor area, and the elevator door slid open silently.

Shen Ruo stood in the elevator, watching the floor numbers jump one by one.

She noticed that the decorations in the elevators were more upscale than those in ordinary residential buildings.

The mirror is frosted, the lighting is warm yellow, and there's even a potted plant in the corner.

This configuration would be top-of-the-line in any residential community.

The elevator stopped on the 19th floor.

The building has a one-apartment-per-floor layout, with only this one unit on the entire floor.

Qi Wenshen walked to the door on the left, swiped the black access card, and then pressed his fingerprint. The door lock made a crisp click, and the door opened.

Shen Ruo stood at the door, glanced inside, and was stunned.

so big.

How many bedrooms and living rooms does this house have?

Why can't I see the end of it at a glance?

She followed Qi Wenshen inside.

The living room faces south, with an entire wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that let in sunlight, making the whole space bright and warm.

The sofa is gray, and a tea set is placed on the coffee table.

The open kitchen connects to the bar, behind which is a whole wall of wine cabinets, with all kinds of wines neatly arranged, red, white, foreign and domestic, you name it.

The cabinets are matte black, the countertop is white slab, and a stylish pendant light hangs above the island, casting its light and making the whole area look like a small bar.

Shen Ruo stood in front of the bar, her fingers lightly tracing the surface of the counter. Looking at the neatly arranged bottles of liquor and bartending tools, a sense of familiarity suddenly welled up in her heart.

She turned to look at Qi Wenshen. "You like to drink?"

"dislike."