“Dr. Cen, an unbelievably handsome guy came looking for you as a patient!”
Cen Xi was still walking back to the hospital from the cafeteria when several intern nurses spotted her and immediately started chattering excitedly.
A handsome guy?
Cen Xi was still wondering who they meant when she returned to the consultation room and saw Fang Nian standing outside with a face full of anxiety.
“Madam.”
Fang Nian looked as though he had found a lifeline and hurried over.
Only then did Cen Xi realize who the “super handsome guy” the nurses were talking about was.
Shang Hanzhou had come?
Not wasting any time, Fang Nian quickly explained.
“This morning, I went to Jingtang Garden to pick up President Shang. I waited outside for half an hour, but he never came out. He didn’t answer any calls either. I kept ringing the doorbell for ages before he finally opened the door.”
By the time he opened it, Shang Hanzhou’s fever had already become severe.
He couldn’t even speak properly.
Fortunately, Fang Nian had kept calling and ringing the bell until he woke him up.
Otherwise, who knew what might have happened?
Listening to the explanation, Cen Xi frowned.
She immediately guessed the cause.
The wound had become infected, causing the fever.
She hurried into the room.
Shang Hanzhou was sitting in the same chair where she had treated him yesterday. A gray laptop sat open in front of him.
Judging by the screen, he was still handling work.
Cen Xi glanced at Fang Nian.
Fang Nian moved his lips helplessly and shrugged.
“There was nothing I could do, Madam.”
President Shang never listened to him anyway.
Cen Xi pulled a thermometer from her desk drawer and walked over.
With a casual motion, she blocked Shang Hanzhou’s view of the laptop and held the thermometer in front of him.
“Take your temperature yourself.”
Only then did Shang Hanzhou notice she had entered.
His fair complexion was flushed with an obvious red tint. He was clearly running a high fever.
Even his lips looked pale and slightly dry.
“Mm.”
He acknowledged her instruction.
Cen Xi only looked at him briefly before shifting her gaze to the laptop.
Although she didn’t say a word, Shang Hanzhou immediately understood what she meant.
After two seconds of silence—
He closed the laptop and stopped working.
Nearby, Fang Nian’s mouth fell slightly open.
He thought to himself that although President Shang and Madam hadn’t seen each other for two years, Madam’s single glance was more effective than anything he could ever say.
Six minutes later, the thermometer came out.
Cen Xi lifted it and immediately read the scale.
The temperature was approaching thirty-nine degrees Celsius.
Her gentle face instantly darkened.
There was no need to guess.
Shang Hanzhou had definitely gotten the wound wet last night.
Ordinarily, Cen Xi had an extremely gentle personality.
But whenever she encountered disobedient patients, her tone unconsciously became sharper.
She stared silently at Shang Hanzhou for half a minute.
Their eyes met.
The man’s gaze was deep and dark.
Strangely enough, he even looked a little innocent.
Placing the thermometer aside, Cen Xi said expressionlessly,
“Same as yesterday. Take off your pants.”
Cough, cough—
Fang Nian nearly choked.
Immediately, he said,
“President Shang, go ahead and change the dressing. I’ll wait outside.”
Today, Shang Hanzhou was wearing a dark custom-tailored suit.
Beneath the perfectly fitted trousers were powerful, well-built legs.
The wound was located on his thigh.
Yesterday’s pants had already been ruined, so cutting them apart hadn’t mattered.
Today’s trousers, however, were perfectly intact.
They obviously couldn’t be cut.
Cen Xi turned her back to him and began preparing medication and supplies for wound treatment.
There was a small examination bed inside the room.
Shang Hanzhou sat down on it.
Sunlight streamed through the window behind him, creating layers of soft light around his figure.
Lowering his eyes, he placed his hand on his waistband.
When Cen Xi turned around again, he had already followed her instructions and removed his pants.
Shang Hanzhou maintained a regular exercise routine.
His thighs were firm and powerful, their lines smooth and proportioned. Well-developed muscles conveyed unmistakable strength.
Cen Xi pressed her lips together.
For some reason, she suddenly felt heat rising to both cheeks.
Fortunately, her attention was quickly captured by the wound itself.
The injury looked even worse than it had yesterday.
Not only had it become infected and produced pus, but the surrounding skin was swollen and red.
He had gotten much more water on it than she had imagined.
Cen Xi couldn’t help feeling annoyed.
After putting on a medical mask, she crouched down.
Unable to stop herself, a trace of irritation slipped into her voice.
“If it’s still like this tomorrow, find another doctor. I won’t be responsible for you anymore.”
Disobedient patients were the most frustrating.
Even Shang Hanzhou was no exception.
She used saline solution to wash away the pus, then disinfected the wound with iodine, moving in a spiral pattern from the inside outward.
After cleaning everything thoroughly, she wrapped the wound with fresh sterile gauze.
Throwing the used cotton swabs into the trash, she stood up.
Perhaps she had crouched for too long.
The moment she rose, darkness suddenly clouded her vision.
Cen Xi quickly closed her eyes.
Her body swayed twice.
Instinctively, she reached out to support herself.
Beneath her palm was firm, burning-hot muscle.
It was Shang Hanzhou’s thigh.
At the same time, a hand grasped her shoulder.
After taking a moment to recover, Cen Xi opened her eyes.
Only then did she realize that her hand was resting openly on Shang Hanzhou’s thigh.
She froze.
Immediately stepping backward, she turned her face away.
The tips of her ears were growing hot.
Pulling aside the blue curtain, she hurried out.
“Remember not to get it wet.”
“And you’ll still need an IV later.”
Behind her came faint rustling sounds.
Shang Hanzhou was probably getting dressed.
Cen Xi picked up the insulated cup on her desk and took a sip.
Only then did she remember she had just filled it with hot water.
It was scorching.
Her tongue was nearly burned.
She quickly set the cup down again.
Looking at her palm, she suddenly thought—
Shang Hanzhou had been that hot just now too…
“Thank you, Dr. Cen.”
The light-blue curtain was pulled aside.
Shang Hanzhou walked out and thanked her in a hoarse voice.
Cen Xi lowered her eyes and didn’t respond.
Instead, she simply handed him the form she had written and instructed him to go to the infusion room.
Neither of them said anything more.
Before leaving, Shang Hanzhou apologized to her.
Cen Xi understood.
He was admitting fault for ignoring her instructions and letting the wound get wet last night.
“Thank you, Madam. I’ll take President Shang for his IV now.”
At the doorway, Fang Nian also spoke up promptly.
Cen Xi nodded.
Once the two men left, several gossip-loving nurses immediately slipped over.
“Dr. Cen, that patient just now was so handsome! What happened to him?”
“Dr. Cen, how old is he? Does his medical record say whether he’s married? If he isn’t, I’m going upstairs to ask for his WeChat.”
The nurses chattered nonstop beside her.
Their questions made Cen Xi feel oddly distracted.
Then her gaze landed on the laptop sitting on her desk.
He had forgotten to take it.
“He’s married. You don’t have a chance.”
Answering the nurse’s question, Cen Xi picked up the laptop and chased after them.
At this hour, the hospital wasn’t particularly crowded.
There were plenty of empty beds in the infusion room.
But Shang Hanzhou disliked them.
Too many people had used them before.
Dirty.
With an IV connected to his hand and five bottles of fluid lined up, he sat instead on a metal chair in the hallway.
His fever remained high.
Once the IV began dripping, his tall body leaned back against the chair.
His eyes closed.
It looked as though he had fallen asleep.
When Cen Xi arrived, Fang Nian was standing guard beside him.
“Madam.”
Seeing this, Cen Xi softened her footsteps and handed over the laptop.
Fang Nian accepted it.
“I almost forgot this. Thank you for bringing it over, Madam.”
Cen Xi wasn’t very accustomed to being called that inside the hospital.
In her usual gentle voice, she said,
“Just call me Dr. Cen.”
“Of course, Madam.”
Fang Nian nodded.
Then immediately corrected himself.
“Dr. Cen.”
“Could you please watch over him for a moment? I’m going to pick up some medicine.”
Besides the IV treatment, Cen Xi had also prescribed oral antibiotics.
She nodded.
After Fang Nian left, she simply sat down beside Shang Hanzhou.
The strong scent of disinfectant filled the air, mixed with the faint freshness of the bergamot fragrance unique to him.
Tilting her head, Cen Xi studied his sharply defined profile.
From the side, his nose looked even straighter.
Only his lips remained somewhat pale.
She suddenly had the urge to poke his face.
But she was afraid he might wake up and catch her.
So she resisted.
“Take good care of your wound. Don’t let it get wet again, okay?”
She whispered softly.
It was still working hours.
She couldn’t stay away from her department for too long.
Besides, Fang Nian would be back with the medicine soon.
Cen Xi stood up, intending to return.
At that moment, the phone in her pocket vibrated.
Her footsteps paused.
She pulled it out.
After seeing the caller ID displayed on the screen, her lips pressed together slightly.
The phone rang for four or five seconds.
Only then did she finally answer the call.