"Thank the gods, thank the gods," Dr. Sun grabbed Chu Ran's hand, muttering excitedly. "You're awake at last."
"What happened to me?" Chu Ran asked weakly.
Dr. Sun hesitated, then tentatively said, "The human body has a defense mechanism. To prevent exceeding the body's tolerance limit, so..."
"She got knocked unconscious by the stench."
A steady female voice sounded.
Chu Ran turned her head with difficulty, looking up.
"It's been so long, but I think this is the first time we've met," Professor Hu said with a smile. "Let me introduce myself. I'm Hu Feng."
Professor Hu was petite, with graying hair and few wrinkles at the corners of her eyes. She had almond-shaped eyes and a tear mole beneath them, giving off a gentle aura. Under the ceiling light, a white halo made her look very kind.
I feel like I'm seeing my great-grandmother.
Chu Ran was briefly dazed by the strong light.
"Still feeling bad?" Professor Hu bent down, gently adjusting her blanket. "I didn't expect you to be so sensitive to smells."
Chu Ran sniffed. The smell of disinfectant—no more stench.
"Professor Hu, I sincerely want to make a suggestion," Chu Ran scrambled up and grabbed Professor Hu's hand. "I think improving the potion's taste is absolutely necessary."
If she finished five days of this, she'd surely ascend to heaven.
To hope for a miracle, she had to save herself.
Upon hearing this, Professor Hu sighed, patted Chu Ran's hand, and comforted her, "Xiaoran, you've suffered."
Those words brought tears to Chu Ran's eyes.
"I know you're feeling terrible. Going through something like this is really hard," Professor Hu said with pity in her eyes. "After a life-and-death crisis, waking up to a long recovery, and enduring the blow from your family—it hasn't been easy for you."
Chu Ran nodded forcefully, looking pitiful.
"I understand the importance of a good mood for recovery. If a patient is in pain every day, physical wounds are harder to heal," Professor Hu sighed. "We should do our best to provide a better treatment environment for our patients."
Chu Ran looked at Professor Hu as if she were her own grandmother.
Yes, yes!
"So," Professor Hu turned to Dr. Sun, speaking seriously, "Xiao Sun, ask the procurement department to order the latest and best indoor air purifier. We must make sure that before Xiaoran drinks it, she can't smell anything."
Yes, yes... Huh?
Chu Ran's nodding paused. She slowly looked up.
Professor Hu smiled at Chu Ran, promising, "Don't worry, tomorrow's potion won't have any smell before it enters your mouth!"
"No, what I meant was..." Chu Ran hurriedly said.
"Xiaoran," Professor Hu patted her hand firmly. "Good medicine tastes bitter. Persistence is victory. I believe in you."
Chu Ran was speechless for a moment, watching helplessly as Professor Hu stood up, gently pulled her blanket, and then walked gracefully out of the ward.
Where was the kind grandmother?
Dr. Sun coughed and comforted her, "I'll try my best to make sure tomorrow's potion has a taste."
After saying that, he quickly slipped away.
The nurse followed close behind.
Chu Ran was as stiff as a statue. She fell onto the bed in despair, hand over her heart. "When will this end?"
The next day, perhaps because the indoor air purifier worked very well, Chu Ran managed to get through it.
When Dr. Sun left, she lay on the bed like a dead fish.
Just then, someone from the military walked in.
Chu Ran glanced at him listlessly, then stared blankly at the ceiling, her fingers moving slightly under the blanket.
"Hello, I'm Kong Shengxu from the Military Coordination Department," the man said gently, standing across from the bed. "The current resolution may not be fair to you, but I hope you can understand. We need to consider multiple factors."
Chu Ran glanced at him again but said nothing.
Kong Shengxu sighed. He was five years younger than He Yi, and when he first joined the military, she had looked after him. He didn't want to hurt He Yi's child.
"This is one hundred thousand carats, an apology from me and my colleagues," Kong Shengxu opened his Light Brain and transferred the money to Chu Ran's account. "We should have noticed your situation earlier."
Chu Ran raised her hand; the Light Brain did flash.
She opened it and chose to return.
Kong Shengxu sighed again. "I'll come see you again in a few days."
The door closed softly. Chu Ran let out a cold laugh.
Turned on the signal blocker, stood while talking, hoped for understanding, transferred money on the spot—if his bathwater could be served as tea to those military people, they'd drink it.
Five days later, Dr. Sun walked into the ward with the freshly printed test results. He saw Chu Ran already dressed in regular clothes, pulling the undamaged suitcase she had retrieved from the Garbage Dump, ready to leave at any moment.
"What are the results?"
Dr. Sun flipped through the report. "Everything is normal. Your Spiritual Power has stabilized at E-rank."
"Great. I'm checking out."
She didn't want to see any more potions.
"Have you found a place to live?" Dr. Sun asked.
"Yes."
After searching for a long time on the local StarNet forum, she finally found a reasonably priced apartment that allowed monthly payments.
"Alright, send me the address. I'll have my friend send the Black Divine Stone there."
Chu Ran quickly sent the address. She now had a job that paid on the spot.
Outside the hospital gate, towering buildings lined up, with multi-layer integrated vehicle roads stretching into the distance. Silver-gray unmanned hovercars stopped in front of the hospital gate in an orderly line. All kinds of people got off and stepped into the hospital with various expressions.
A tall intelligent robot stood at the entrance with a smile, continuously broadcasting medical guidance. A hospital map was projected in the air by the roadside, with a red marker blinking for "You Are Here."
Chu Ran pulled her suitcase toward the boarding area.
Behind her, the intelligent female voice sounded again.
"Thank you for choosing Anxin Hospital. Anxin Hospital—peace of mind for life!"
Author's note: The site crashed yesterday and couldn't get in, so no update.