When Shi Xi opened the door, she saw Bai Fan waiting outside.
“…Why are you back again?”
“I’m a companion caregiver. Three hundred for half a day. I just sent off a client.” Bai Fan’s gaze swept past her left foot as he spoke.
Lin Shi Xi had actually told him about the car accident.
She said she was fortunate the accident wasn’t serious and that she wasn’t injured.
But in reality, not only was her face disfigured, but her foot was also injured.
What she told him was just her dream.
In her dream, she was still healthy and full of vitality.
Bai Fan only needed to ask the nurses briefly to learn about her condition. It was clearly a surgery that could be done with money, yet she had delayed it until now.
Every time her old injury flared up, she had to endure pain similar to that of the car accident all over again.
It was evident that she was truly short on money.
Shi Xi quickly followed his lead and asked, “I want to buy half a day of your time.”
The phrasing seemed somewhat ambiguous, but she couldn’t care less.
She could still afford three hundred.
She didn’t want to keep bothering Huo Yao either, lest she interfere with his work.
“You have to pay double.”
“Why?”
“Because I feel like it.”
“…Deal.”
Bai Fan took out his phone, as if suddenly remembering something, and said with unclear meaning, “Just transfer the money directly to me.”
“…Okay.” Shi Xi had to first remove him from her blacklist.
Watching her actions, Bai Fan let out an almost imperceptible cold snort.
At the same time, Shi Xi heard the System say: “Bai Fan’s hatred value -50.”
Finally, some movement.
However, Shi Xi never felt any malice from Bai Fan towards her.
His dislike for her probably stemmed from her blocking him without proper explanation.
Shi Xi stuffed her phone into her pocket and began naturally ordering the person in front of her around: “Go buy me some toiletries.” Also, I’m hungry and want to eat. I want meat, no spice, no ginger, no celery. I also want milk tea and a small cake from the dessert shop at the school gate.”
Bai Fan looked at her and said sarcastically, “That’s what a boyfriend does, not a companion caregiver.”
Shi Xi: “I paid for it. Why do you care what I have you do?”
Bai Fan snorted lightly but didn’t argue with her further.
He turned and walked a few steps, then suddenly turned back to stand before her.
His usual smile took on a somewhat malicious edge as he took her cane with one hand, then hoisted her over his shoulder and carried her back to the hospital bed.
Everyone in the entire ward turned their eyes towards them, their gazes filled with ambiguity and gossip.
Shi Xi maintained her smile, feeling utterly socially embarrassed at this moment.
Bai Fan did it on purpose!
The worst part was, just as Bai Fan set her down on the bed, Huo Yao happened to walk in through the door, carrying two bags.
When Bai Fan saw him, a flicker of surprise appeared in his eyes. If his appearance at Lin Shi Xi’s home that night was a coincidence, then now…
Huo Yao keenly sensed the probing and hostility in the other’s gaze.
He calmly walked to the bedside and set the things down. “There’s lunch and toiletries. Use them for now, you can transfer me the money later. I have things to attend to, so I’ll take my leave now.”
His tone was distant, his attitude completely businesslike.
He didn’t even glance at Shi Xi.
Shi Xi sensed his aloofness and felt a headache coming on.
Regardless, she thanked him first: “Thank you. I troubled you last night too.”
Huo Yao nodded, then turned and walked out.
Bai Fan shifted slightly, blocking Shi Xi’s line of sight.
Looking down at her from his superior position, he said, “Your eyes are practically glued to him. Do you like him that much?”
Shi Xi smiled at him, “He’s done everything a boyfriend should do. Can’t I like him?”
Bai Fan sneered coldly, “…”
Five minutes later, Shi Xi was leaning against the headboard, eating heartily.
Bai Fan sat in the corner scrolling through his phone and saw Shi Xi’s social media post.
Sunflower: 600-yuan companion for hospital visit? Not worth it.
Bai Fan: …
He raised his phone and took a photo of the girl.
Without hesitation, he typed out a line: Being a hospital companion is no job for humans.
Thinking Shi Xi might not see it, he specifically tagged her.
Soon after, Shi Xi looked up and gave him an eye-roll.
When she met his gaze, she timidly forced out a smile.
Bai Fan scoffed derisively.
In real life, Lin Shi Xi was indeed scummy, but also genuinely cowardly.
System: “Bai Fan’s hatred value -10.”
Because of Shi Xi’s social media post, Chi Xuan also came to the hospital.
When he saw Bai Fan, his eyes gleamed with icy coldness.
So that explained why he’d been stopped for a drunk driving check out of nowhere.
It was all this designated driver’s doing.
Bai Fan was her other online romance breakup victim—Yang Fan.
He watched Bai Fan dismiss the visitor, “She has me. You can get lost.”
Bai Fan didn’t even look at him, “I’m just here doing a paid job. If anyone’s leaving, it should be you.”
Shi Xi leaned on her cane, slowly making her way out, “I’ll leave.”
“…”
“…”
“Where are you going?”
They asked in unison.
“The doctor said I need more sun.”
As soon as Shi Xi finished speaking, both men reached for her cane, looking as if they intended to carry her.
Their eyes met—one calm and resolute, the other barely containing his irritation—both waiting for the other to let go first.
Chi Xuan: “She’s my girlfriend.”
Bai Fan: “Mine.”
Their intense gazes fixed on Shi Xi’s face.
Chi Xuan smiled amiably, spitting out each word with clear threat, “Tell him. Whose are you?”
The ward suddenly fell very quiet.
The coughing aunt desperately suppressed the itch in her throat, secretly observing.
The uncle who had been dozing cracked open one eye before closing it again.
The mother and daughter who had been whispering paused their heart-to-heart, pricking up their ears.
Shi Xi couldn’t pull her cane free, feeling as if she might be torn in two.
She hadn’t completely eliminated Bai Fan’s hatred value yet, so she couldn’t speak too definitively.
“Can’t you two stop being so childish? Do you really have to bother me with this? Haven’t I made it clear before? No one belongs to anyone. I’m already not feeling well today, and you keep arguing and arguing… my head hurts…”
Bai Fan and Chi Xuan blinked in confusion.
Watching her mutter to herself as she walked away, they finally followed.
In the ward, everyone exchanged glances.
She seemed to have said a lot, but also nothing at all.
So, whose girlfriend was she really?
After the three left the ward, a handsome, steady young man suddenly walked in asking about the girl in bed 2.
The aunt said, “She just went out to get some sun.”
Completely omitting the part about two boyfriends accompanying her.
Lu Mingzhe nodded and turned to leave.
The ward buzzed with excitement, no longer discussing whose girlfriend the girl in bed 2 was, but guessing how many boyfriends she actually had.
Oh, and don’t forget the one who stayed overnight last night!
When the nurse came by and heard this juicy gossip, she perked up.
It was only this morning that she had recognized Lin Shi Xi as the girl recently famous for her AI face-swapping livestreams.
She could enjoy the drama up close now!!
But online searches only showed the wealthy heir Chi Xuan, campus heartthrob junior Bai Fan, and domineering CEO Lu Mingzhe—none of them were that tough guy from last night.
Honestly, she found him the most intriguing.
Shi Xi remained unaware of these background matters, but for the first time, she found men so annoyingly noisy.
Especially when three men were gathered together.
However, Lu Mingzhe brought her good news—evidence of Lin Zhen’s baby-swapping scheme from years ago still existed.
Lu Mingzhe told her, “You don’t need to do anything. I’ll make sure he ends up behind bars.”
Chi Xuan remarked, “With just that, he’d get at most three to five years. Where’s the satisfaction in that?”
“What do you propose then?”
“Wait and see what happens when a cornered dog jumps over the wall.”
“Don’t act recklessly. After all, he’s—” Lu Mingzhe’s voice cut off abruptly as he glanced at the silent Shi Xi.
Chi Xuan couldn’t be bothered to explain. It was only for Lin Shi Xi’s sake that he wanted to spare Lin Zhen’s life; otherwise, the loan sharks would have finished him off.
Bai Fan, unaware of these details, stayed silent but with a dark, heavy look in his eyes.
Shi Xi also felt somewhat burdened. She had her own plans and was genuinely worried they might mess things up.
Four people, four different agendas.
This continued until a nurse came to take her for her examination.
All three men followed.
Seizing the moment when Shi Xi was away, Chi Xuan grabbed the nurse and asked, “Can her foot still be treated?”
He didn’t dare ask such questions in front of Shi Xi.
At this, the nurse’s expression turned grave. “It’s not that it can’t be treated, but it’s been delayed too long. She should have had surgery right after she was injured back then…”
Chi Xuan was taken aback. “What do you mean?”
Lu Mingzhe pressed further, “Why did she postpone the surgery until now?”
The nurse gave them a strange look. “Don’t you all know? Of course, it’s because she couldn’t afford it. Who would delay that long if they had the money? Do you think it doesn’t hurt every time it gets inflamed?”
Bai Fan also glanced at the two men, scoffed softly, then turned away to look toward the examination room.
He had thought these two were close to her, but it seemed they weren’t all that.
“Can we schedule the surgery for her immediately? I’ll cover all the medical expenses,” Lu Mingzhe said.
Before he finished, Chi Xuan sneered, “Who needs you to cover anything? Seven years ago, you all abandoned her. What’s the use of pretending to care now?”
Lu Mingzhe shot him a sharp, warning look. “Chi Xuan, when it comes down to it, this is a matter for the Lu Family.”
Chi Xuan retorted, “The Lu Family? If I recall correctly, her surname is Lin. You didn’t care about her back then, so stay out of it now.”
No one knew how to twist the knife better than Chi Xuan.
As Lu Mingzhe fell silent, Bai Fan glanced at Chi Xuan and asked, “You’ve known Lin Shi Xi for a long time? Then why didn’t you help her? Couldn’t you come up with 100,000 yuan? Or didn’t you want to get involved?”
Chi Xuan’s handsome face turned ashen.
Now it was his turn to be rattled.
The nurse inwardly marveled at the drama but had to interrupt, “Um… Xixi already scheduled the surgery during her last follow-up appointment. But the specific situation is still uncertain because the doctor at our hospital who can perform the surgery is abroad attending a forum.”
All three men frowned in unison, then asked the nurse for Shi Xi’s medical records.
Meanwhile, inside the examination room, Shi Xi’s relaxed expression had vanished, replaced by confusion.
Doctor Xu looked at the scans with regret and sorrow, telling her that the deformation in her left foot was too severe. Surgery was no longer feasible, and even if attempted, it would be useless.
But the System said: “The scans don’t match up.”
Shi Xi studied the elderly female doctor across from her carefully but didn’t sense that she was lying or deceiving her.
She had a feeling someone in the hospital must have manipulated things behind the scenes, switching her medical images, though she couldn’t figure out what they were trying to achieve.
After leaving the consultation room, Shi Xi didn’t share this news with the three of them, instead shooing them away.
But they soon learned everything from Doctor Xu.
Bai Fan returned shortly after leaving, pointing at the time on his phone and saying expressionlessly, “The time isn’t up yet.”
System: “Bai Fan’s resentment value has been reset to zero.”
Shi Xi: “…”
It seemed like she hadn’t done anything at all.