"You said you didn't have time to have a meal with me."
Meng Luobai was chewing on a piece of taro when she heard Ling Sui's words. She lifted her gaze slightly.
Ling Sui sat across from her, wearing a light gray hoodie and loose sweatpants, his slightly long hair combed back, a faint smile on his face—nothing but the most ordinary image of a college student.
He was different from the man at Xishui Manor whose shoulders bore faint red marks and an air of eerie allure, and different from yesterday's version of him—refined, unrestrained, and untamed. The "no" he said now was also exceptionally sincere, like a boy next door who knew nothing of matters between men and women, carrying a gentle and harmless innocence.
Just as Meng Luobai was thinking this, a pair of phoenix eyes looked over sharply. Before she could get a clear look at those eyes, her phone rang. She picked it up and glanced at it—it was Wen Zheng.
She stood up and walked to the other side to take the call. "Senior Brother Wen."
Wen Zheng: "Junior Sister, I'm sorry. I still need your help with something."
After finishing the call with Wen Zheng, she returned to the table and said to everyone, "I need to go cover a shift for a colleague."
Meng Wenjian stood up. "Let me pack some food for you."
Meng Luobai: "No need, Mom. I'm already full. I'll head back to my apartment tonight, so I won't be coming back here."
Meng Wenjian: "Ah, alright."
Meng Luobai went upstairs to grab her things, then walked to the backyard to get her car.
Just as the engine started, a figure appeared beside the car window, knuckles tapping against the glass with a crisp sound. Meng Luobai rolled down the window—standing beside her was Ling Sui.
One hand rested on the lowered window frame while the other handed in a wrapped package. "This is tea. Auntie said you should drink less coffee."
"Mm." She reached out to take the package, but as she tried to pull her hand back, he didn't let go immediately. "Meng Luobai."
His gaze lifted from her fingertips, his eyes meeting hers. "Do you have time? Let's have a meal together."
Meng Luobai's lips curved slightly. "Is my mother's cooking not good enough for you? You have to mooch a meal off me?"
Ling Sui's glass-like eyes looked at her. "My treat."
Meng Luobai's gaze drifted to the side as she considered her schedule. "I just started at my new job, so I'll be pretty busy for a while. Maybe—"
"I can wait," Ling Sui said. "When you have time, contact me anytime."
Meng Luobai drove to Wen Zheng's client's residence. The client was, as usual, Ye Wanxing.
At that moment, Ye Wanxing was in her garden, accompanied by a handsome young man standing close beside her, the two chatting and laughing together.
When Ye Wanxing spotted Meng Luobai, her lips curved up high. "Dr. Meng, you're here."
"Miss Ye." Meng Luobai walked over, her gaze briefly sweeping past the young man beside her—a completely unfamiliar face, though neither his build nor his looks were lacking.
Ye Wanxing introduced him. "This is my middle school classmate. He just came back from abroad."
Meng Luobai thought to herself, Is this the legendary Fu Shan?
Ye Wanxing: "Qin Ling."
Meng Luobai's lips, frozen for a second, curved into a smile. "…Mr. Qin."
Qin Ling gave her a slight nod.
Ye Wanxing affectionately squeezed Qin Ling's wrist. "Wait a moment. I'll come find you after I finish talking with Dr. Meng."
Qin Ling smiled in acknowledgment before turning and walking away.
Ye Wanxing said to Meng Luobai, "Dr. Meng, let's go to the side hall."
After the two arrived at the side hall, Meng Luobai asked about Ye Wanxing's recent condition before beginning her routine examination.
"Your physical condition is quite good, just be careful not to get overly excited or upset."
Ye Wanxing curved her lips into a smile. "Then I can rest assured. Thank you for your hard work, Dr. Meng."
After Meng Luobai finished the examination and packed up her medical kit, she heard Ye Wanxing ask, "Dr. Wen Zheng has been away for training for half a month now—when is he coming back?"
Meng Luobai replied, "Dr. Wen should be back next week."
Ye Wanxing said with a hint of melancholy, "I haven't seen him for half a month. He's been slow to reply to my messages lately, and I still have good news I want to tell him."
Meng Luobai: "The doctors in our batch who went out for study exchanges have a pretty tight schedule, so that's why Dr. Wen hasn't replied to your messages promptly. If he sees them, he'll definitely reply to you right away."
Ye Wanxing's eyes curved at the corners. "I know. Thank you for comforting me, Dr. Meng."
As she was leaving, Ye Wanxing politely stood up to see her off. Just as they reached the door, before Meng Luobai could say "no need to see me off," a servant hurried over with a phone and said to Ye Wanxing, "It's the young master's call."
Young master?
Does that mean "son-in-law" in the traditional sense?
Ye Wanxing took the phone while saying to Meng Luobai, "Dr. Meng, please be safe on the road."
"Goodbye, Miss Ye." Meng Luobai had just turned around when she heard Ye Wanxing answer the call, speaking in a soft voice, "Hello, honey."
Meng Luobai: !!
The word "honey" from Ye Wanxing occupied Meng Luobai's thoughts the entire way back.
What step had she missed?!
In the end, Meng Luobai realized that this was ultimately something beyond someone like her—an ordinary mortal—to figure out, so she finally let herself off the hook.
Another busy week passed. On Friday, the team of doctors led by the hospital director, who had gone abroad to attend a forum, returned.
After a meeting, Meng Luobai took a remote video call from an employer. When it ended, she went to the director's office to see him.
She knocked and entered. The director wasn't in the office—only Wen Zheng was there. "Senior Wen, where's the director?"
Wen Zheng smiled as he watched her come in, rinsing a new teacup with hot water as he said, "The director's assistant just said someone came by, so the director went to receive them." Then he asked, "The director's treasured Biluochun tea—want some?"
Meng Luobai sat down across from him. "Sure." She took the teacup from Wen Zheng. "How did your study trip go?"
Wen Zheng said with a smile, "Routine exchange, fairly productive. The only downside was the food wasn't good."
Meng Luobai couldn't help but laugh at that.
Just then, footsteps sounded from the doorway, as if someone was walking toward the director's office. Then they heard the director's voice: "Our hospital has the best equipment and a top-tier team of doctors. You can rest assured about our hospital."
As he spoke, the footsteps paused briefly at the office door, and then a tall figure stepped in first.
Meng Luobai's gaze froze for a moment when she saw the person entering. Then, she and Wen Zheng stood up.
The director came in a step behind. Seeing them, he immediately introduced to the person beside him, "This is Dr. Wen, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine physician. He has served as a team doctor for the national team and participated in the medical support work for the National Games. And this is Dr. Meng—"
Although the director had seen Meng Luobai's file, she had only recently been transferred and wasn't entirely familiar with her. Wen Zheng gave a faint smile and picked up where the director left off. "She studied under the same master as I did. Our junior female colleague is solid in her specialty and very meticulous. She was particularly outstanding at the Jingzhou General Hospital, and transferring to our hospital is like gaining a capable right hand."
The director laughed and patted Wen Zheng on the shoulder. "Wen Zheng, you never hesitate to praise your fellow disciples."
Wen Zheng pressed his lips together and said with a polite smile, "Praising a fellow disciple is also praising myself, after all, we were trained by the same master."
The director laughed heartily a few times and looked at the person beside her. "President Ling, you see, our doctors have always been confident in their medical skills and their fellow disciples."
The person beside her wore a pure black shirt paired with matching black trousers. The fabric clung to his frame without being tight, accentuating broad shoulders and a lean waist, with clean, refined lines across his upper body. His long legs were wrapped in the suit trousers, his stride casual, and the black shirt hinted at the contours of his muscles beneath. Though his outfit was impeccably neat, he somehow wore it with a hint of untamed nonchalance.
Ling Sui's handsome face was adorned with a pair of frameless glasses, which tempered his naturally alluring aura. His phoenix eyes lowered, and his lips were strikingly red. "Indeed, it's evident."
Meng Luobai looked at Ling Sui, who was dressed to the nines, and felt a flicker of confusion.
Why was Ling Sui here?
Despite the question in her mind, Meng Luobai didn't let it show. She listened as the director introduced Ling Sui to them. "This is the Asian Championship MMA titleholder, Ling Sui."
Wen Zheng said with a smile, "I thought Mr. Ling looked familiar the moment I walked in, and now that you mention MMA, I remember."
Ling Sui curled his lips slightly.
After a few more pleasantries, everyone moved to the reception area to take their seats.
Since a client had arrived, the main seat in the reception area naturally had to be left open. Wen Zheng lightly grasped Meng Luobai's wrist and said in a low voice, "Junior Sister, let's sit over here.""
Ling Sui's glassy, amber-colored eyes drifted over, a trace of malice flickering in his gaze as it landed on the grasped wrist. Quickly, that emotion vanished like a raindrop disappearing into the deep sea.
Ling Sui's purpose here was simple. He was on leave recently and needed a private physician to help regulate his health, preferably someone with some knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine. The director had agreed and assured him that after considering the doctors' qualifications, she would provide a candidate.
After hearing this, Wen Zheng smiled and asked Meng Luobai, "Junior Sister, didn't you also systematically study the full scope of traditional Chinese medicine?""
Meng Luobai knew Wen Zheng was trying to put in a good word for her, but she wasn't particularly eager to get involved. She gave a slight smile. "I did study it. I was thinking of combining Chinese and Western medicine to get a more comprehensive view of illnesses."
"That's how medicine is," the director said. "There are always new conditions and new situations, and it's only through continuous learning that we can improve." She then went on to introduce more about the hospital, treating Ling Sui less like a patient and more like a potential investor.
After the conversation concluded, Meng Luobai and Wen Zheng left first.
The two walked to the elevator area, and after pressing the button for the office floor, Wen Zheng said, "Junior Sister, do you have any plans tonight?""
Meng Luobai thought for a moment. "No."
Wen Zheng: "That's great. You just got here, and not only have I not been able to help you out, I've even had you cover a few shifts for me. If I don't take you out for a meal soon, I'd be a pretty terrible senior disciple. Would you honor me with your presence tonight?"
Meng Luobai smiled. "Sure. But senior brother, you don't need to be so polite."
"I'm not being polite with you either. I asked you to cover for me mainly because I trust in Junior Sister's abilities." As he spoke, the elevator arrived. The two stepped inside. Wen Zheng continued, "There's a Turkish restaurant over at Nanzhuang. I tried it last time and the flavors were pretty good. Recently they seem to have introduced—"
Meng Luobai's fingertips had just left the button panel when the elevator doors began sliding shut, gradually slicing away the corridor light. Just as the gap narrowed to the width of a palm, a large hand slipped through between the doors—the back of the hand angular and slender. Meng Luobai quickly reached for the open button, and at the same time, the elevator's obstacle sensor triggered, causing the doors to slide open again.
Meng Luobai looked over. Ling Sui stood outside the elevator, his gaze landing on her. He withdrew the hand that had been blocking the door back into his suit trousers, then stepped in with long, unhurried strides.
Seeing who it was, Wen Zheng said, "Mr. Ling?" As he spoke, Wen Zheng instinctively shifted slightly toward Meng Luobai's side, intending to make room for Ling Sui. But Ling Sui walked straight past without a sideways glance, stopping directly between the two of them. With a quiet, unyielding sense of pressure, Ling Sui steadied himself between them before giving Wen Zheng a slight nod. "Dr. Wen."
The elevator descended two floors and stopped. Wen Zheng stepped out first. "Junior Sister, I'll send you the address in a bit."
"Alright." As Meng Luobai responded, Ling Sui expressionlessly raised his hand and pressed the close-door button.
The cabin doors shut, and the elevator continued descending.
The overhead light fell down. Meng Luobai lowered her gaze slightly, her lashes casting a small shadow beneath her eyelids. She let out a slow breath, then lifted her eyes—meeting Ling Sui's gaze directly.
Ling Sui's strikingly beautiful lips curved into a smile, his glassy amber eyes fixed on her. "You said you've been busy with work lately, with no time to have a meal with me."