Chapter 18: Sister Looks Even Prettier When She Cries

When Zhu Ning received Pei Ruyu’s WeChat message, she happened to be making her rounds in the inpatient ward.

Seeing the 2000 yuan transfer, she slowly typed out a single: 【?】

Pei Dog: 【Beautiful and kind Dr. Zhu, could you spare a room in your department for me? A thousand thanks!】

Zhu Ning: 【…You’re addicted to staying in our hospital, aren’t you?】

Just then, the inpatient gossip group chat exploded.

The explosive gossip about someone’s new and old flames being assigned to the same hospital room was providing some much-needed entertainment for their monotonous daily work.

A new nurse with little experience was still asking in the group whether they could make special arrangements for them, or if anyone had a free bed in their ward to give them, to avoid them fighting again.

【No! Even if there is one, don’t give it to them! Just let them room together, please!】

【Right, right. Don’t worry. If they start fighting, we’ll go help break it up】

【Please let them room together +1!!! If it gets too busy, I can volunteer for free!】

【Can volunteer +1】

…

The old-timers loved watching the drama unfold, and several gossip-loving people were frantically signing up as volunteer peacemakers in the group.

Zhu Ning laughed at the messages, and by now she had a pretty good guess who the parties involved were.

Passing by the nurse’s station, she saw Pei Ruyu still there, negotiating with the head nurse about changing rooms.

“Oh, it’s not that we don’t want to change you. It’s just that changing rooms across departments requires a doctor’s signature. It’s really not something we can decide at the nurse’s station.”

Pei Ruyu: “Then can we transfer to another hospital?”

Head nurse: “Oh, don’t do that. How about this? You stay there for today, and when another room frees up, I’ll arrange for you to move, okay?”

If it weren’t for the commotion in the group chat, Zhu Ning might have almost believed that explanation.

Afraid they might go too far, Zhu Ning ultimately couldn’t turn a blind eye and stepped forward to greet them.

“Sister He, they’re my friends. Please arrange for them to move to the private room 803.”

803 happened to be the room Pei Ruyu had stayed in a couple of days ago.

Ignoring the head nurse’s shocked expression, Zhu Ning said directly, “I need to go up and make my rounds anyway. I’ll take them there.”

In this society that values personal connections, Zhu Ning’s single sentence saved them a lot of troublesome procedures.

When they followed Zhu Ning up to the 8th floor nurse’s station to handle the paperwork, the nurse in charge of room 803 saw Pei Ruyu and asked in surprise, “Huh? Why are you back again?”

The nurses on the 8th floor had a deep impression of Pei Ruyu.

After all, in the past two months, Pei Ruyu had been hospitalized on this floor five times, always under Zhu Ning’s care, and every time they could never find anything wrong.

Most of the hospital staff knew about the aloof Dr. Zhu’s sexual orientation, so the nurses here privately speculated whether this person was trying to pursue Dr. Zhu.

Looking at Pei Ruyu, then at Zhu Ning who was with her, the nurse immediately flashed a knowing, ambiguous smile.

“I understand, I understand. Congratulations, congratulations.”

With that, she quickly went to process their paperwork.

Pei Ruyu: “…”

She awkwardly turned to look at Miao Qingzhi beside her, meeting her resentful gaze.

That pitiful look of jealousy without daring to make a fuss always gave Pei Ruyu a secret thrill.

Pei Ruyu secretly smiled and took Miao Qingzhi’s hand, squeezing it gently to reassure her.

But Zhu Ning, who was flipping through patient medication records nearby, suddenly spoke up in a passive-aggressive tone.

“Oh dear, your little sister isn’t angry, is she?”

That was exactly the provocative words Miao Qingzhi had said to her in the bar two nights ago.

Pei Ruyu: “…”

Miao Qingzhi: “…”

It was rare to see them at a loss for words, and it made Zhu Ning feel a bit better.

But after just teasing them with that one line, she had already put away her smile and tucked the stack of forms away, saying seriously, “Alright, just wait here for the nurse to arrange things. I’ll continue my rounds.”

But before she could take two steps, someone blocked her path.

“Dr. Zhu! Finally found you!”

A man with a stubbly face stood in front of Zhu Ning, smiling ingratiatingly. “About that refund I asked about last time… is there any news?”

Zhu Ning frowned. “Mr. Wang, the relevant department colleagues should have already told you clearly. The treatment costs cannot be refunded.”

The man’s voice suddenly rose. “Why can’t they be refunded? You killed my daughter! I’m not even asking you to compensate me or pay with your life! I’m just asking for a refund of the money we paid! Why can’t you even do that!”

“Calm down first.” Zhu Ning explained helplessly, “I’m also very sorry we couldn’t save her, but I told you all the risks before the surgery, and it was with your family’s signed consent that we proceeded. The hospital has no precedent for refunding fees after a failed surgery. If you’re still unsatisfied, you’re welcome to continue using the complaint channel.”

With that, Zhu Ning pushed past him and continued walking, but suddenly her shoulder was grabbed from behind.

“You say it so easily, but I spent over five hundred thousand in total! I borrowed money from everywhere to treat her!”

As he spoke, the man actually knelt down in front of her again, clutching her white coat and sobbing, “Now my daughter’s gone, my wife ran off, I lost my job, and with all this debt, my life is ruined! Please, Dr. Zhu, just do me a favor and refund the fees, okay?”

Many patients and their families passing by in the corridor stopped to watch.

Zhu Ning tugged at her white coat. “I’m sorry, this really isn’t something I can decide. Please get up.”

But the man still clung to Zhu Ning, refusing to let go.

“Please, Dr. Zhu, otherwise I really can’t go on living! Are you trying to force me to die?!”

Facing the pointing fingers of those around her, and seeing that some people were even secretly recording videos, Zhu Ning, unable to break free, grew angry. “If you don’t let go, I’m calling security.”

Seeing the situation was getting bad, Pei Ruyu, who was closest to Zhu Ning, stepped in to help. She pried the man’s hands off and shielded Zhu Ning, stepping back.

“She’s just a doctor. She can’t handle this. Making a scene here won’t help. Instead of this, why not go talk to the hospital’s mediation staff?”

Miao Qingzhi’s gaze drifted coldly to Pei Ruyu’s hand, which was resting on Zhu Ning’s shoulder.

The man stumbled to his feet, grinning ferociously.

“Fine. Since you can’t repay the money, then give me back my daughter’s life!”

The change happened too fast. The moment the man pulled out a knife and lunged at Zhu Ning, everyone present was stunned.

“Watch out!”

Pei Ruyu hastily pushed Zhu Ning, who was about to be stabbed, out of the way.

But the man, missing his target, swung his hand back and slashed at her instead.

“Mind your own business!”

This time, Pei Ruyu, who was closest to the knife, had no time to dodge.

The man swung the knife with incredible speed, and Pei Ruyu could only watch helplessly as the blade came toward her face.

This is it, this is it. I’m going to be disfigured.

In despair, Pei Ruyu could only close her eyes and accept her fate.

If she couldn’t see it, maybe it wouldn’t hurt as much.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

But the pain she imagined never came.

Pei Ruyu tremblingly opened her eyes, and what she saw was Miao Qingzhi’s hand.

A delicate, slender hand, firmly gripping the knife suspended in front of her face.

The blade was deeply embedded in Miao Qingzhi’s palm, and bright red blood was dripping down the blade.

The moment the blood was seen, screams erupted all around.

But even as the blood spread, Miao Qingzhi didn’t retreat an inch.

She still held the blade tightly, refusing to let go, not allowing the sharp edge to harm Pei Ruyu in the slightest.

Pei Ruyu’s eyes instantly reddened.

How much must this hurt?

Zhu Ning, who had fallen to the ground, was helped up by several nurses and rushed into the crowd for safety.

The man struggled desperately but couldn’t pull the knife out of Miao Qingzhi’s palm. Seeing that he was about to lose track of his target, he shouted urgently, “Let go! If you don’t let go, I’ll kill you both!”

But Miao Qingzhi remained expressionless, only gazing coldly at the furious man in front of her.

Watching the blade embed deeper and deeper into Miao Qingzhi’s palm, with blood gushing out more and more, Pei Ruyu felt as if her own heart was being carved out with pain.

That delicate girl who would tear up and ask for comfort over the slightest bump… how could she endure such pain!

In her desperation, Pei Ruyu’s courage swelled. She rushed forward and kicked the man hard in his lower region.

The man cried out in pain and clutched his groin, the knife clattering to the ground.

“Security! Security!”

Someone hurried off to call security.

The surrounding patients, weak and elderly, scattered in all directions. No one dared approach the danger zone.

In just a few seconds, Pei Ruyu felt an agonizingly long time pass.

All she could see now was the glaring red blood. No one could help them. She could only silently hold Miao Qingzhi’s hand, lifting the hem of her own coat and pressing it against the wound that wouldn’t stop bleeding.

The blood quickly soaked through the fabric, but no matter how she pressed, it wouldn’t stop.

Pei Ruyu’s hands trembled violently, and in the end, she couldn’t hold back her tears. They fell one by one onto Miao Qingzhi’s hand.

At that moment, even Miao Qingzhi’s murderous intent was suppressed by a few degrees.

This is the first time Sister has cried for me.

Miao Qingzhi struggled to suppress the smile at the corner of her mouth, reached up to wipe the corner of Pei Ruyu’s eye, and comforted her in a weak voice, “Sister, don’t be afraid. It’s okay now.”

But Pei Ruyu’s tears only flowed harder.

The smile at the corner of Miao Qingzhi’s mouth was almost impossible to hold back.

Indeed, Sister really does look prettier when she cries.

Seeing that Zhu Ning had already escaped far away, with no more chance to attack that quack doctor, the man, having recovered from the intense pain, suddenly snatched up the knife and charged at Pei Ruyu, who was closest to him.

It was all this meddlesome bitch’s fault.

“Watch out!”

Catching a glimpse of the blade’s gleam in her peripheral vision, Miao Qingzhi forcibly suppressed the urge to snap the man’s wrist.

Without any resistance, she simply stepped forward, using her body to shield Pei Ruyu from the blade.

By the time Pei Ruyu came to her senses, the knife that should have pierced her had already sunk into Miao Qingzhi’s chest.

The knife-wielding man was subdued by two security guards who rushed over, still cursing and yelling.

But Miao Qingzhi, who had been so calm and fearless, went limp and collapsed into Pei Ruyu’s arms.

An ordinary person had never experienced such a scene.

Terrified and weak-limbed, Pei Ruyu used all her strength just to hold Miao Qingzhi’s swaying body steady.

The person pressed against her neck was murmuring weakly.

“Sister… it hurts so much…”

“Am I… going to die…”

The sharp knife was still embedded in Miao Qingzhi’s chest.

Her fingertips touched the warm, sticky blood, and Pei Ruyu’s whole body trembled. “No, no…”

Gripping Miao Qingzhi’s uninjured hand tightly, Pei Ruyu could only desperately call out to the medical staff nearby.

Zhu Ning, who had just recovered from her shock, rushed over.

“Quick, stop the bleeding first.”

“Prepare the operating room.”

…

Miao Qingzhi, being lifted onto the stretcher bed, still clung tightly to Pei Ruyu’s hand.

“Sister…”

Her voice was barely a whisper.

Seeing her lips parting and closing, Pei Ruyu quickly leaned down to hear her.

“If I die… will you still remember that I love you…”

The trembling, tearful voice was filled with reluctance and attachment to her.

At that moment, Pei Ruyu felt as if her own heart had been pierced by that same knife, hurting so much she could barely breathe.

Only then did Miao Qingzhi close her eyes in satisfaction.

Mm, after all, it really wasn’t easy to control the wound to heal at a normal person’s speed.