Chapter 28 | Embers of the Past

Every night must eventually come to an end.

Meanwhile, on Zhuque Street.

Earlier that morning, the Post-Disaster Investigation Team paid a visit.

Post-disaster investigations were routine after every Nightmare Disaster. However, because Yu Jin had been recovering in the hospital and the tragedy on Qingniao Street was directly connected to the Post-Disaster Investigation Team, the procedural deadline had been extended by a few days.

The investigator was a colleague from Group 1 next door, who asked Yu Jin a few harmless, routine questions regarding the second Nightmare Disaster on Qingniao Street.

Since they were acquaintances and the Special Response Squad's report was detailed enough, the visitor didn't stay long. Before leaving, he patted Yu Jin on the shoulder and offered some comforting words.

As Yu Jin closed the door, he caught a glimmer of tears in his colleague's eyes.

If he remembered correctly, this colleague had a crush on Xiao Shen, and Xiao Shen...

Yu Jin's eyes dimmed, and he let out a sigh.

Another blood debt added to the ledger.

His colleague from Group 1 hadn't come just for the post-disaster investigation; he had also brought instructions from Director Mei, telling Yu Jin to go to the psychiatric department for a post-surgery follow-up check as soon as possible.

The “surgery” in question, of course, referred to the personality extraction surgery he had undergone during the Nightmare Disaster.

It seemed Special Response Squad 172 had detailed this matter in their report, and Director Mei was still uneasy about his mental state.

In fact, Yu Jin had been worrying about this ever since he returned to reality.

An internalized personality and an externalized one were two completely different states; he was worried he wouldn't be able to handle the follow-up, which was why he had avoided mentioning it. Now, however, there was no escaping it.

After some thought, he decided to go.

Cooperating could still be explained away, but resistance would be as good as a confession.

For now, he could only wait and see, preparing to react to whatever came his way.

The follow-up was scheduled at Haicheng Shuguang Hospital, the finest medical facility in the Eastern District and a deeply integrated partner of the Bureau.

When Yu Jin had been transferred to post-disaster care previously, he had stayed here as well.

After going in circles, he was back again.

Yu Jin didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

When he arrived, he went to visit Tang Yaoting first.

Tang Yaoting had apparently grown quite fond of wearing hospital gowns. After Director Mei granted him leave, he had decided to lounge about the hospital to spend his long vacation.

Seeing Yu Jin come to visit, he slung an arm around Yu Jin's neck and wore a knowing, brotherly look as he said:

“You sly dog! I told you not to leave, but you insisted on going. Yet the second you heard about the new intern nurses, didn't you just rush right back? Seriously, are you a hound or what? Your ears are so sharp—you showed up the very day they started. Do you have any idea how tight bed space has been in the hospital lately? But don't worry, your buddy here planned ahead and reserved a ‘bed’ for you.”

With that, Tang Yaoting dragged Yu Jin into the ward. Upon entering, Yu Jin saw that the neighboring bed was covered with personal belongings, clearly occupied.

A large pile of books was stacked on the bed. Out of curiosity, Yu Jin glanced at the patient card at the foot of the bed. It showed the patient's name was Chi Yu, two years younger than himself.

Tang Yaoting introduced:

“This is the new guy, some obscure little writer. I forgot what book he wrote, but it's pretty niche—I've never even heard of it. I originally saved this bed for you, but unfortunately, he beat you to it. Don't worry, though, I have a backup plan.”

Tang Yaoting trotted over to the ward's balcony, looking like he had hidden something good there. But the moment he reached the balcony, he froze, followed by a heart-wrenching wail:

“Where is the human-sized dog bed I bought?! Who took it?!”

The massive racket drew a nurse from outside the door.

The head nurse walked in holding a folder of files. She glanced at the grief-stricken Tang Yaoting, ignored him, and turned to Yu Jin with a smile.

“Little Yu, you're back. Did you come to visit him this time?”

Her tone made it clear that she was quite exasperated with Tang Yaoting hogging a bed.

With a friend like this, Yu Jin had no choice but to smile helplessly and greet the head nurse:

“I'm here for a checkup, and thought I'd drop by to see him while I'm at it. I hope Yaoting hasn't been causing you any trouble, Head Nurse?”

Hearing this, the head nurse gave Yu Jin a strange look, sizing him up from head to toe. She suddenly felt that 'Little Yu' wasn't quite as honest as she had previously thought.

Don't you know your own friend?

What do you mean by asking that?

Do you want to see your friend publicly executed right in front of you?

Fine, I'll satisfy you.

The head nurse smiled like a hidden dagger and narrowed her eyes, saying:

“Oh, he hasn't caused much trouble at all. Aside from trailing right behind the young nurses every single day to beg for their numbers, hitting on the female relatives of other patients, telling every young female doctor he sees that he's sick and needs the nourishment of love to recover, and pestering the little writer in the next bed to draft a romance diary for him, he hasn't made much of a mess. Oh, and right, starting from yesterday, he kept clamoring that his brother was coming and insisted on buying a cot. Hospital regulations strictly forbid placing beds in the corridors, so I rejected his request. But then he spent the entire afternoon combing through the hospital bylaws. He actually found a loophole and replaced the cot with a massive dog bed. I thought one of his friends had a highly pampered giant dog, but I never expected it was actually for you, Little Yu. Young people certainly are energetic, able to sleep just about anywhere. But not this time. It's a fire hazard, so I had it confiscated. If you really have nowhere else to go, how about you sleep in Little Tang's bed, and let him go home to sleep?”

...

Yu Jin's face turned completely green. Standing in front of the head nurse, he didn't know whether to stay or run. He finally understood what it meant for words to be like knives, carving into him with every single syllable.

He offered a very awkward smile, but kept shooting glances at Tang Yaoting. His 'why can't you be better' look clearly screamed:

Is this what you meant by having an amazing relationship with the head nurse?

Amazing in what way?!

Tang Yaoting understood what Yu Jin meant. He choked for a second, then muttered dejectedly:

“Amazing in the sense that I actually got away with everything she just listed. If it were any other head nurse, I probably would've been kicked out long ago.”

“?”

You call that amazing?

Yu Jin almost choked on his own breath.

Seriously, bro?

Is there maybe a slight possibility that they didn't throw you out purely out of respect for your late father and the Bureau?

Yu Jin was utterly helpless and could only maintain his apologetic smile. The head nurse didn't tease them further either; she had heard about the incident on Qingniao Street and knew that neither of these boys had had it easy.

“It's fine. Dealing with patients every day gets quite numbing. Seeing someone who isn't sick once in a while is a nice change of pace. Little Tang is a good kid, just a bit too eager. Girls these days don't like boys who rush things like that. Since you're here too, Little Yu, let me lay down some rules for Little Tang in front of you. A batch of intern nurses arrived today, and a few have been assigned to our department. They're quite pretty, but they're still students here to learn. Tell Little Tang to show some mercy, so they don't end up reporting our department for allowing patients to harass the medical staff.”

...

Yu Jin lowered his head so far it nearly touched his chest. He regretted making this extra trip in the first place; going straight to the psychiatric department would have been so much better. Why did he have to ask for this trouble?

Tang Yaoting, remaining completely thick-skinned, instantly perked up upon hearing that the interns were quite pretty.

“How pretty are we talking? Do you have any photos?”

Before the words had fully left his mouth, a knock sounded at the ward door. A familiar nurse stood outside, accompanied by three or four fresh, pretty faces. She poked her head inside and said:

“Head Nurse, the interns are here to report.”

The three of them turned to look. In a single glance, Tang Yaoting locked onto the tall figure standing right in the middle. His breath caught, and he grabbed Yu Jin's hand, shaking it frantically as he whispered:

“Yu Jin, Yu Jin, look at the one in the middle!”

Yu Jin followed Tang Yaoting's gaze and scanned the group of intern nurses, focusing on the one in the center. At first glance, she was indeed very beautiful.

With elegant features and light, delicate makeup, she had her dark, curly hair tucked under her nurse cap, giving her an air of grace and propriety.

In particular, a tiny mole just below the corner of her eye was perfectly positioned, adding a touch of allure.

But why did she look so familiar? He felt as though he had seen her somewhere before.

As Yu Jin knit his brows in thought, a scene suddenly flashed through his mind. When that familiar figure clicked with his memory, his eyes went wide, and he stood frozen on the spot, as if struck by lightning.

A sudden chill shot straight up his spine to the top of his head, causing his entire body to tense up.

!!!

Sensing Yu Jin's reaction, Tang Yaoting thought his buddy had finally come to share his appreciation.

He said with immense excitement:

“Yu Jin, she fits my ideal perfectly! I'm genuinely, truly in love with this one!”

Yu Jin maintained a calm exterior, but his heart sank like a stone.

Bro, I really can't help you this time. You absolutely cannot like this one.

Because this is the one Brother Scar likes!

That's right!

The tall newcomer standing among the intern nurses was none other than the woman Yu Jin had caught a partial glimpse of last night at the drug testing stronghold at No. 4 Scorpion Tail Alley!

Although he hadn't been able to see her clearly back then, he had caught a distinct look at the tiny mole near the outer corner of her eye and her long, curly hair.

Her makeup had changed, and so had her hair color, but the position of that mole was exactly the same as what he had seen last night!

So was she really an intern nurse, or was she the mysterious woman from No. 4 Scorpion Tail Alley?

You can't expect me to believe that a woman from the underworld, suspected to be Brother Scar's boss, actually needed to work a day job.

Just how much of a glutton for punishment did she have to be to willingly come work like a dog in a hospital?

Yu Jin didn't buy it. And when he recalled the plan the woman had mentioned last night...

!!!

Had the plan already begun?!

Was her target Shuguang Hospital?!

Yu Jin was shocked. He forced his facial muscles to stay relaxed while frantically brainstorming how to relay this intelligence to the Bureau.

But before that, he had to confirm whether this woman really was the same one from Scorpion Tail Alley last night.

After all, Dream Thieves existed in this world. Since even the red-haired Yu Jin could take on another's appearance, other Dream Thieves could undoubtedly do the same.