“I really can’t help it. Don’t do so much since you just left the hospital. You need to rest.” Liu Yi’s tone changed. She shuffled Gao Ming into the toilet, “Clean yourself up. If you walk around with blood all over your body, people will eventually call the police on you.”
“No wonder people kept looking at me when I was at the market,” Gao Ming’s expression made Liu Yi laugh.
“The clean change of clothes is on the counter. Don’t mix your bloody clothes with the other clothes,” Liu Yi reminded him. Dong Guo didn’t dare to say anything. She was too shy. That day was her first day at her post. She didn’t think she’d ruin it so perfectly. Thankfully, Gao Ming didn’t blame her. He even stood up for her. She appreciated it. Gao Ming incidentally left his cat behind, so she got the chance to come to thank him in person. However, she didn’t expect to run into Liu Yi. Under Liu Yi’s questioning, Dong Guo had to reveal everything that had happened in the haunted house.
After hearing everything, Liu Yi was mad. She was not mad that Gao Ming went to the haunted house but because she was worried that Gao Ming would injure himself again. After all, he just woke up from the coma. Why would he go to a haunted house?
Liu Yi didn’t make things difficult for Dong Guo. She saw a young version of herself in Dong Guo. She knew how hard it was for those in the workforce. She came so far from the intelligent city despite how late it was. Therefore, Liu Yi asked her to stay for dinner as they waited for Dong Guo to return.
Now that Liu Yi knew the truth, it was Dong Guo who was stunned. She heard Gao Ming mention a haunted house interview. What kind of haunted house had their interviewee scared the visitors in their competition’s business?
After Gao Ming finished showering, the food was ready. The three finished the meal awkwardly. Then, Dong Guo slipped away.
“It’s hard to find jobs nowadays. The dance graduate of a top art school has to act as a ghost in a haunted house.” Liu Yi sighed. She was under a lot of pressure due to the housing loan. “Gao Ming, do you think we’d be happier if we didn’t decide to purchase a home back then?”
“Happiness has nothing to do with houses.” Gao Ming noticed that the way Liu Yi held the chopsticks was strange, so he grabbed her hand. “How did you injure yourself?” He went to grab the medkit and bandaged her.
Nightmares had their despair, and reality came with its own helplessness. The two chatted until late at night. Gao Ming didn’t let Liu Yi do any house chores. Liu Yi leaned on the couch and watched Gao Ming kindly.
“The young girl who just joined my department is getting married to her boyfriend. She invited us to her wedding.”
“That’s great.” Gao Ming washed his bloody clothes in the bathroom as he stared at the walkie-talkie on the counter.
“The girl is several years younger than me. They didn’t buy a new home. They plan to have the wedding in their hometown.” Liu Yi ruffled Fa Cai’s head. Her cheeks were ruddy as she stared at Gao Ming’s strong back.
“Where is their hometown?”
“Why do you care? I just want to say. Before you brought your students back from Jiujiang, we promised that…” Liu Yi was shy. She hesitated.
“Is their hometown Jiujiang?” Gao Ming interrupted Liu Yi. Liu Yi noticed how distracted Gao Ming was. She huffed and stopped talking. She put on her slippers, walked to the toilet and bit Gao Ming on his shoulder.
“Ouch! Why did you bite me?” Gao Ming turned around in confusion.
“Because I wanted to.” Liu Yi harrumphed. Gao Ming had promised her something important, but he had forgotten about it.
After washing the clothes, Gao Ming found a bag to put the walkie-talkie in. Then, he wrapped it in a layer of water-retardant fabric. He hung the thing around his neck. Gao Ming changed in his pyjamas and switched on his laptop. He continued to look through the hiring notices and news. Gao Ming received a message from Tang Qing at around 10 pm. They would start the new brain game test the next morning.
“I can’t rush this. I need to take it slow.” Compared to the first time, Gao Ming was calmer. He had a plan. He needed to increase his access to Wan Jie’s lab.
After Gao Ming got into bed, Liu Yi closed the living room light. Only one small nightlight remained. They slept on separate sides of the bed. They chatted about random things until Gao Ming felt sleepy and closed his eyes.
His neck felt ticklish. It felt like someone was breathing on him. Gao Ming turned around. Liu Yi was looking at him dearly. Her body slowly approached. Her arm landed on his chest.
It was getting steamy, but Liu Yi suddenly felt something hard around Gao Ming’s chest.
“?” Liu Yi’s expression couldn’t be described with words.
“This is very important to me. It’s related to my job, so I have to keep it close.” Gao Ming turned away. “You should rest. We have work in the morning. Good night.”
“Erm… Okay.” Liu Yi didn’t even know how to respond. Other women might worry about their men cheating on them, but how could Gao Ming even do that with a walkie-talkie that had no battery?
With a bitter smile, Liu Yi stopped thinking about those things. Fatigue overwhelmed her body, and she slept. With Gao Ming beside her, she had a good night's sleep.
At 6 am, Liu Yi was woken up by the alarm. She left for work while Gao Ming was still in bed. Gao Ming was woken up by the strange dream again the night before. He heard the curious footsteps. They got closer to him. They stopped beside his bed. Next time, they would appear before his eyes.
Gao Ming also spent the night looking for the livestream he watched before. It really seemed like the host had been dragged away by the ghosts.
Gao Ming was woken up by Fa Cai. He glanced at his watch and realised it was noon. He called a cab to head to Immortal Pharma’s lab.