In Room 807, several field agents from the Bureau were on high alert.
On the surface, they were staying behind to guard against Xia Jie doubling back for another strike. But to anyone with half an eye, it was clear they weren't protecting Room 807 at all; they were using it as bait, terrified that Xia Jie wouldn't make a return strike.
Think about it: in a hospital swarming with Dreamwalkers, Room 807 was the only place without a single one. On top of that, the "targets" were right inside.
If you were "Xia Jie" and hadn't managed to escape the hospital in time, cornered on all sides by so many Dreamwalkers, wouldn't you want to burn your bridges and head back to Room 807 for one last desperate gamble? To wipe out the last two Post-Disaster Investigation Team investigators right under the Bureau's nose and achieve a glorious "complete wipeout" achievement?
Given Xia Jie's bloodthirstiness and arrogance, such a scenario was far from impossible.
Li Ji had seen this exact possibility. That was why he had withdrawn all the Dreamwalkers around Room 807, leaving Yu Jin and Tang Yaoting in harm's way.
He never wished for such a turn of events, but if Xia Jie truly did come back, it would at least bring a swift end to the chaos and free up manpower sooner.
Haicheng was facing more than just the threat of Xia Jie right now; there were too many areas requiring attention, and pouring all their manpower into Xia Jie alone was hardly wise.
Tang Yaoting wasn't sharp enough to see through these convoluted twists and turns, but Yu Jin was.
He saw right through Li Ji's intentions and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness "Xia Jie" was fake, or the risk of serving as bait here would have been dangerously real.
Yu Jin himself didn't object to such high-risk tactics. If using himself as bait could draw out the real Xia Jie, he would be more willing than anyone.
But right now, this was nothing more than a farce spiraling further into chaos. He only hoped the Bureau could put an end to it as soon as possible, unmask Wu Xinting and whatever plan lay behind her, and restore peace to the hospital.
Ever since returning, Tang Yaoting had seemed distracted, appearing deeply worried about his "fiancée."
He glanced toward the door more than once, wanting to step outside, but ultimately stayed in a state of conflicted hesitation.
After hesitating several times to speak without knowing how to put it into words, he finally couldn't hold it in any longer and spoke up to Yu Jin:
“Yu Jin, actually... I feel like there's something off about Xinting.”
Yu Jin froze, a flash of pleasant surprise gleaming in his eyes. He found himself seeing Tang Yaoting in a whole new light.
Not bad, Yaoting. Look at you change.
Did you start doing crunches behind my back?
His eyes lit up as he asked, “What kind of issue?”
Tang Yaoting said hesitantly,
“Just now when we held hands...”
“?”
Wait a minute!
When on earth did you two hold hands?!
Yu Jin was stunned. After thinking for a moment, he realized that the "holding hands" Tang Yaoting referred to was that scene he had bumped into in the corridor earlier.
Man, if I hadn't witnessed the whole thing myself, I almost would have believed you.
Yu Jin cast a strange look at Tang Yaoting.
Tang Yaoting paid it no mind and continued,
“...I noticed that Xinting's hands were very strong and felt rough, like they had calluses. Those aren't hands that a naive intern nurse who just joined the hospital should have.
So I suspect she might have another identity and came to the hospital with ulterior motives.”
!!!
Awesome—!
Love really does make people grow!
Bro, you're actually about to score big!
Yu Jin almost stood up to give Tang Yaoting a standing ovation. He gave him an encouraging look, hoping his friend would spit out his guess so they could use it as a reason to tip off Li Ji and speed up the investigation.
Feeling encouraged by Yu Jin, Tang Yaoting boldly stated,
“I think Xinting might be...”
“Might be what?”
“One of our colleagues.”
“?”
What!?
Yu Jin was utterly baffled. It took him three whole seconds to process that what he had just heard wasn't a joke.
Saying Wu Xinting is our colleague is no different from saying the two of us are Disciples of Eternal Night!
Bro, seriously, did you actually do any crunches or what?!
Inwardly infuriated yet unable to point out the truth directly, he stood frozen with a bizarre look on his face.
Love really makes people blind.
Seeing Yu Jin fall silent, Tang Yaoting took the initiative to ask,
“Why aren't you asking me why?”
Yu Jin's eyelids twitched violently. Repeating to himself, He's your bro, don't get mad, don't get mad, he was still too irritated to speak, but managed to squeeze out a few words from his throat to play along:
“Why...”
What he actually wanted to ask was why his brain circuits were always so absurdly bizarre.
Tang Yaoting's eyes lit up as if he had uncovered some tremendous secret, offering a deduction with utmost logical clarity:
“Because those calluses were gun calluses. I am absolutely certain they were gun calluses.
Think about it: what kind of person handles guns every single day at her age?
Not only that, she disguised herself as an intern nurse to sneak into the hospital, clearing every hurdle high and low to execute such an undercover operation. Aside from malicious bad guys, the only other possibility is a special operative from the Bureau!
So I think she's very likely a special operative from the Bureau who came to the hospital to secretly protect someone!”
“...”
Aside from malicious bad guys...
Bro, you eliminated the correct answer right off the bat. How are you supposed to solve the problem now?
Who taught you to answer questions like this?
Yu Jin suddenly felt he might have heart disease; otherwise, why was his chest throbbing with pain?
He sighed and tried to save his friend whose eyes were completely blinded by love. Staring into Tang Yaoting's eyes, he asked in a low tone,
“Why can't she be a malicious bad guy?”
Tang Yaoting's expression turned slightly solemn, dead serious:
“I knew you'd ask that. Do you think I've been blinded by love?
Hmph, you underestimate me, Tang Yaoting!
I considered that possibility, and it was actually the first thing that came to my mind!
However!
Yu Jin, think about it: what is my identity?
I am a Bureau agent, an investigator for the Post-Disaster Investigation Team. Even if our team isn't a front-line core department, we're still within the system, right?
If Xinting really were a malicious bad woman, why didn't she feign affection when I shamelessly tried to get close to her and use my convenience in the hospital to achieve her goals?
Wouldn't doing that be far better than acting all on her own?
Of course, I'm not that easy to fool either.
But the main thing is, she didn't try to fool me!
Attitude determines everything.
It was only after penetrating this truth that I confirmed she is our colleague! Tell me, am I right or am I right?”
Yeah, yeah, sure, right.
Whatever you say.
Usually, his brain was utter mush, giving abstract nonsense answers no matter what he was asked. But when it came to analyzing women, Sherlock Holmes, Poirot, and Conan all possessed him at once.
Except if you're going to get possessed, could you at least invite the real deals instead of bootleg deities like Sherlock Harms, Poirot-rot, or Conan the Barbarian?
I'm begging you.
Has it ever occurred to you, even as a tiny possibility, that she thought using you would be worse than going at it alone?
Yu Jin was so infuriated he withdrew into a shell of silent despair.
With extreme disdain, he threw out a single line:
“So you're trying to tell me she went undercover in the hospital because the Bureau sent her specifically to protect you?”
Tang Yaoting wasn't incapable of understanding human speech; he could definitely pick up on the sarcasm.
However, he wasn't angry in the slightest, because he believed his good bro was simply jealous that he was about to have a happy and blissful family.
Sigh, there was no helping it; fate was just unreasonable like that. If he were in Yu Jin's shoes, he would be jealous too.
He chuckled happily and said,
“Nah, not really.
I still have that much self-awareness.
She's definitely not here to protect me. As for who she's protecting, I guess... it's probably the person on the 46th floor.”
Yu Jin's brows knitted slightly, and he asked in confusion,
“Who's on the 46th floor?”
Tang Yaoting was surprised:
“You don't know?
Haven't you been to the psychiatry department? That person is recuperating right there in psychiatry.”
Recuperating in psychiatry?
Yu Jin had visited the 45th floor; he really hadn't been to the 46th floor.
Rummaging through his memories, he couldn't recall any important figure who would be here.
Seeing Yu Jin frowning deeply and genuinely unaware, Tang Yaoting leaned in close and whispered conspiratorially:
“Here's a hint: the Director.”
“What?!”
Yu Jin was shocked.
The Director of the Bureau?
That mysterious Director who had never made a single public appearance since taking office?
He muttered, “So the Director never shows his face because he's sick?”
Hearing this, Tang Yaoting blinked, looking at Yu Jin as if he were an idiot, and said,
“How could the Dream Committee select an invalid to be Director? The Director I'm talking about is, of course, Haicheng's former Director of the Bureau, Old Man Chi Mu.
I thought the head nurse told you. Turns out she didn't! See, I told you I have a better relationship with the head nurse.”
“...”
So it wasn't the current Director, but Old Man Chi, who held immense prestige in the hearts of everyone at the Bureau...
Yu Jin was rendered speechless.
But immediately after, his heart tightened.
He was wondering: could there be a possibility that the Disciples of Eternal Night's target wasn't the hospital itself, but this former Director Chi?
After all, what act of destruction could cause a bigger sensation than eliminating a former Director of the Bureau?
At this thought, Yu Jin's heart dropped.
...
Rate on N.U.
