As Li Qing approached the door of the hospital room, she saw two menacing men in black walking toward her.
“Is the woman surnamed Shen really here?”
“An informant saw her get into an ambulance…”
“That bitch deserves it.”
Were they talking about Shen Lanting?
Li Qing stopped and glanced at the electronic display screen by the door.
Shen Lanting’s name was on it.
So she didn’t rush to leave.
“She’s here.”
“Brat, get out of the way.”
Seeing Li Qing blocking the doorway, the two men frowned, their faces showing a hint of hostility.
Li Qing didn’t move.
She calmly met their gaze. “I’m the caregiver hired by Miss Shen. Who are you?”
“Caregiver? A little brat like you?”
“Shen really has fallen on hard times, hahaha!”
“Get lost!”
One of them tried to shove Li Qing aside, but she suddenly grabbed his wrist and applied a clever twist—
Crack.
The sound of a bone dislocating echoed clearly.
The man’s expression instantly changed.
“You little brat, how dare you—”
“I’ve already called security. Are you sure you want to continue?”
Before he could finish, Li Qing waved her phone, showing the call screen, and interrupted them nonchalantly.
“…Forget it.”
The man behind pulled him back, his eyes sweeping over Li Qing with an unreadable expression.
He sneered. “That woman can’t hide forever. We’ll find another opportunity.”
Li Qing watched the two leave, accidentally catching a glimpse of the faint sun tattoo hidden under the collar at the back of their necks.
She narrowed her eyes slightly, rubbed her slightly numb and reddened thumb joint, and turned to enter the room.
Both men in black were trained fighters.
But they were cautious, not wanting to attract more attention, which was why they left so easily.
“Impressive skills.”
Shen Lanting suddenly spoke.
Her reaction remained calm, though a flicker of surprise crossed her face when she saw Li Qing stop the two men.
She hadn’t expected Li Qing to get involved.
Most people would prioritize self-preservation to avoid trouble.
“After all, I took your money. You get what you pay for.”
Li Qing shrugged, then added, “They were hostile. Are they your enemies?”
Shen Lanting smiled indifferently, but her light-colored eyes held a cold, mocking glint.
“You get what you pay for, huh…”
Suddenly intrigued, a spark of interest lit up her beautiful but dull eyes. She said eagerly, “Why don’t you work as my bodyguard? I’ll pay you thirty thousand a month.”
Thirty thousand?
That was far more than she earned from delivering food, working as a cashier, and tutoring combined.
Li Qing was sorely tempted.
But in the end, she still regretfully declined.
“No, I still have to go to school.”
“You’re a student?!”
A look of astonishment and embarrassment flashed across Shen Lanting’s face.
Given how calm and composed Li Qing was in handling the situation, she had mistaken her for someone who merely looked young, not someone who actually was young.
Li Qing nodded calmly.
“Twelfth grade. Don’t worry, I’m an adult.”
“…”
She was even a student preparing for the college entrance exam.
Even Shen Lanting was momentarily speechless.
But soon, she made another proposal.
“How about this? You visit me once a week to check if I’m still alive. Five hundred per visit. What do you think?”
“If I finally die, the property management will handle my affairs. I won’t cause trouble for you, don’t worry.”
“…I’ll take the hundred too.”
Li Qing fell silent for a moment.
It was just that Shen Lanting’s request was too strange—who would be so eager for their own death?
Did she have self-destructive tendencies?
No wonder the doctor suggested she see a psychiatrist…
Shen Lanting was amused by her words.
“The price the employer offers, you just accept it.”
“…Alright.”
She really did need the money. The temptation of extra income just for visiting Shen Lanting once a week was something Li Qing couldn’t refuse.
And so, Li Qing took on another part-time job.
She added Shen Lanting’s contact information, and Shen Lanting generously transferred her five hundred.
“Let’s count today as the first time.”
“…”
Li Qing couldn’t understand Shen Lanting’s troubles of having too much money with nowhere to spend it.
She went downstairs to the inpatient department’s payment counter to settle the bill, only to be told that the previous charges had already been paid, and there was still over ten thousand left in the account.
“?”
She was stunned for a moment.
Had Brother Zhao and the others paid it in advance?
Li Qing left the payment counter and called Zhao Wenyi as she stepped into the elevator.
“…You’ve been too busy these past few days, I forgot to tell you. The other day when I took Yuan Miao to see Aunt Chen, he paid the fees.”
Zhao Wenyi’s voice carried a hint of guilt.
Yuan Miao?
Li Qing frowned. “Where did he get the money?”
Zhao Wenyi: “From his dad.”
“???”
Li Qing stood frozen in the elevator for a while.
Only when the elevator doors were about to close automatically did she snap out of it and step out.
Yuan Miao’s father was her future husband.
The thought of this person existing in her future made Li Qing feel uneasy all over. In her current state, would she really marry someone and have children?
“I see.”
“Ahem.”
Zhao Wenyi cleared his throat softly.
He knew Li Qing’s temperament well, so he quickly added before she could hang up, “Xiao Li, don’t hit the child.”
Li Qing’s lips twitched in exasperation.
It hadn’t even been that long, and Zhao Wenyi was already stepping into the role of an uncle.
She put away her phone and headed to the ward.
“Mom, I’m here to see you.”
“Qingqing?”
Chen Ruohua was doing some handicraft work and immediately set down her tools when she saw Li Qing enter.
“It’s so late, aren’t you tired?”
“I’m not tired, but you…”
Li Qing looked disapprovingly at the handicraft in her mother’s hands.
“This is too hard on your eyes and energy. You need more rest.”
“I’ve been lying down for half a month, I’m just too bored.”
Chen Ruohua shook her head gently. “Your Grandma Xu left these for me when she was discharged the other day. She said these things can sell for quite a bit of money.”
She pulled Li Qing to sit by the bed, patted the back of her hand, and comforted her, “Are you adjusting well to your third year of high school?”
“Yes.”
“That’s good. Have you thought about which university to go to? Mom heard from Grandma Xu that the universities in Jinghua are excellent. Why don’t you—”
“Mom.”
Li Qing interrupted her.
“Don’t worry so much. I have it all figured out.”
“Alright, alright…”
Chen Ruohua knew her daughter had always been strong-willed and independent since she was little, never causing her any worry. But the more she was like this, the more it pained her.
“Xiao Zhao came to see me the other day and brought his younger brother along. His brother’s eyes and eyebrows look a lot like yours.”
Younger brother?
Li Qing was taken aback for a moment before realizing she was talking about Yuan Miao.
She nodded, her tone somewhat complicated. “It’s fate, I suppose.”
But the very next second, Chen Ruohua’s heartfelt words startled her.
“Yes, so much so that I think if you ever have children, they’d probably inherit your eyes and brows.”
“!!!”
Li Qing looked up in shock, a flicker of guilt flashing in her eyes as she hastily changed the subject.
“Mom, you’re getting off track…”
Originally, Li Qing had intended to say she would never marry in this lifetime, but in the past, whenever she said that, Chen Ruohua would feel deeply hurt.
Chen Ruohua believed it was her own unhappy marriage that had led Li Qing to such a thought.
But now, because of Yuan Miao’s appearance, cracks had begun to form in the principle Li Qing had always firmly held.
If she said such a thing now, wouldn’t she just be contradicting herself?