Shi Muchuan pressed the elevator button, letting her step in first before following behind.
“Which floor?” he asked.
“5th floor.”
His hand paused slightly as he pressed the button. Could she be living in the unit right across from his?
“Which room on the 5th floor?” he asked while pressing the button.
“502,” Yun Shu answered honestly.
Sure enough—she lived right across from him. The apartment had just been renovated last month, and the noise had made it hard for him to sleep after his night shifts.
Yun Shu looked at the elevator panel with only the 5th floor lit up and asked curiously, “Doctor Shi, do you also live on the 5th floor?”
“Mm.”
“Wow, Doctor Shi, then we’re neighbors now! Living next to a doctor feels super safe,” she said happily.
Seeing how excited she was, Shi Muchuan thought to himself that she really was a naive girl. A faint smile unconsciously appeared on his lips as he shook his head helplessly.
When they reached the 5th floor, Shi Muchuan walked straight to his door, took out his key, and opened it. Just as he was about to go in, he suddenly thought of Yun Shu outside and turned back to say, “Go back and rest well.”
After saying that, he stepped inside and shut the door with a “bang.”
Yun Shu had just raised her hand to say goodbye, but it froze mid-air. Looking at the closed door, she lowered her hand and pouted.
She walked to her own door, inserted the key, opened it, and went inside, closing the door behind her.
“Master, you’re back?” the system asked lazily from the sofa.
“Mm, I’m back. It’s so hot outside—I’m sweating all over.”
She went into the bathroom, wiped herself down with a damp towel, then returned to the living room and sat on the sofa.
Just as she sat down, her phone rang. She picked it up—it was her brother calling.
She hesitated, unsure whether to answer. The system, hearing the phone ring for so long, reminded her, “Master, why aren’t you answering?”
“It’s my brother calling… I don’t know if I should pick up.”
“Of course you should. This isn’t your fault.”
Hearing that, she realized it was true—the baby swap wasn’t her fault. Why was she so afraid?
Summoning her courage, she answered just before the call ended.
She put the phone to her ear and softly said, “Hello…”
There was no immediate response, only the faint sound of wind.
“Brother?”
“Yun Shu, where are you now?” His voice sounded serious.
“Brother, I… I’m in Yunhai City,” she replied softly.
“Exact address.”
She gave him her full address, then cautiously asked, “Brother… you know already, right?”
“Mm. No matter what, you’ll always be my sister. I’m coming back to the country tomorrow. Don’t be afraid, just behave, okay?”
Hearing his words, her nose tingled and tears began to fall uncontrollably. She covered her mouth tightly to stop herself from crying out loud, afraid he would hear.
But how could Yun Ruizhe not know? His sister had never been away from them since childhood. Even for university, she stayed in the capital.
She had always been taken care of by drivers and housekeepers, all because of her heart condition. When she went to university, they even bought her an apartment nearby and arranged transportation.
Now that she was alone in an unfamiliar place, how scared and helpless she must feel.
When he first learned that their parents had sent her so far away just to bring their biological daughter home, he was furious.
He scolded their parents harshly—knowing her weak heart, something could easily go wrong.
Even if they had to send her away, they should have arranged someone to take care of her, not abandon her so coldly.
And what about their biological daughter? Was she really so intolerant of Yun Shu? With her fragile health, how could she possibly pose any threat?
He immediately arranged everything on his side and told his assistant to book a flight—he would fly directly to Yunhai City tomorrow.
“Be good, don’t cry. You need to stay strong. Your heart can’t handle too much emotional fluctuation. We’ll talk when I get back, okay?”
“Mm… Brother, I’m doing well. You don’t have to rush back—finish your matters first.”
“Heh, everything’s already handled. Don’t worry. I’ve transferred some money to your account—if it’s not enough, tell me and I’ll send more.”
“Huh? You sent me money?” Yun Shu was surprised. She had been worrying about money, and now her brother had already sent some.
“Yes. Check it later. I still have something to do here, I’ll hang up now.”
“Okay, bye.”
After hanging up, Yun Shu felt much better. After all, someone still cared about her.
Her brother had always been closest to her. When someone once called her “sickly,” her brother beat that person so badly they lost a few front teeth.
After that, no one dared to call her that again.
When they were young, their parents were busy growing their company and rarely at home. It was her brother who put her to bed and told her stories every night.
Thinking of those memories made her smile.
“Master, are you happy now?” the system asked.
“Mm, I am. My brother still cares about me,” Yun Shu said, becoming cheerful again as she lifted the system up high.
She opened her banking app to check how much money her brother had transferred.
After logging in, she counted the digits—ten, hundred, thousand…
He had transferred ten million.
To her before, ten million might not have meant much, but now it was practically life-saving.
With this, her life would no longer be so tight. She didn’t feel that she shouldn’t accept the money just because they were no longer officially family.
At dinner time, Yun Shu ordered takeout. When the doorbell rang, she knew it had arrived.
She opened the door and saw the delivery person outside. Smiling, she took the food, thanked them, and closed the door.
Back at the table, she started eating. The system jumped onto the table and looked at her meal.
“Master, you’re only eating this much?” It saw just a bowl of soup, a plate of vegetables, and a box of rice.
“Yeah. I can’t eat anything too greasy at night—it’ll be hard to digest. I don’t want to end up in the hospital again.” Hospitals were the place she disliked the most. She had been there so often growing up that she was tired of it.
After arranging her food, she ate slowly.
Once she finished dinner and took a shower, she turned on the TV and found a comedy variety show to watch.
The system curled up beside her, watching with great interest.
…
The next day, Yun Shu had gone to bed early, so she woke up early as well.
She changed into a set of sportswear, picked up the system, grabbed her phone, and prepared to go downstairs for a walk.
As soon as she opened the door, she saw Doctor Shi from across the hall opening his door too.
“Good morning, Doctor Shi! Are you going out for a run?” she asked, seeing him dressed in a loose sports T-shirt and shorts.