Chapter 40 The door wasn't locked! The door wasn't locked!

Shen Mi frowned, reached out and touched his forehead. It was burning hot, probably acute gastroenteritis. She quickly got up and ran to the kitchen to find medicine. When she opened the medicine box, she found that the medicine inside had long expired, the bottles were yellowed, and the labels were almost falling off.

"Why are they all expired..." She bit her lip and went to search the bathroom and lockers, but found nothing. When she rushed back, Jingyuan had already slid down slightly against the sofa, his sweaty hair sticking to his cheeks, his eyes unfocused, as if even staying awake had become difficult.

"There's medicine in the room..."

Upon hearing this, Shen Mi immediately leaned closer to him: "What did you say? Which room?"

Jing Yuan's voice was so low it was almost inaudible. He opened his mouth slightly, his lips trembling, as if he was using all his strength to utter two words: "...the headboard of my bed in my room."

Shen Mi hurriedly took the medicine, squatted down beside him, and frantically uncorked the bottle, accidentally spilling a handful of small, dark pills from the bottle opening.

She paused for a moment, then her voice tightened with urgency: "How many should I eat?"

Jing Yuan's face was as pale as paper, cold sweat trickled down his temples, and his breathing was so light it was almost inaudible. He barely opened his eyes, looking at the medicine in her palm, his spirits low and his breath so weak he could barely lift the paper: "...two pills...it should be two pills."

Upon hearing this, Shen Mi quickly picked out two pills from his palm, poured the rest back, poured a glass of water from the coffee table, picked up the glass with his other hand, and knelt down in front of him: "Let me feed you."

Jingyuan tried to take it himself, but as soon as he raised his hand, his stomach trembled violently, and he curled up and almost knocked over the water glass.

Shen Mi put down her water glass and quickly helped him up: "Let me do it, don't push yourself."

She brought the medicine to his lips, carefully brought the water glass to his mouth, and fed him spoonful by spoonful.

"Slow down, don't choke..." Shen Mi soothed him in a low voice, gently guiding the medicine down his esophagus bit by bit.

Jingyuan moved slowly, even swallowing was difficult, his stomach was churning, and he almost vomited up the pills and water he had managed to swallow.

His eyes were closed, his brows furrowed tightly, as if he was enduring the churning pain with sheer willpower.

Jing Yuan's chest heaved violently. After several seconds, he finally swallowed the medicine, and his tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

"Hoo..." He exhaled, his eyes half-open, and a muffled sigh escaped his throat.

Seeing that he had finally swallowed the medicine, Shen Mi breathed a sigh of relief, but she didn't dare leave him alone in the living room. She carefully supported him and tried to help him up from the sofa: "I'll take you to your room, so you can lie down and rest."

Jing Yuan managed a weak reply, but could barely muster any strength. He was tall, but now he seemed weightless, supported only by Shen Mi. Like a koala, most of his body leaned on her. An adult weighing over 100 pounds plus 50-60 pounds of armor weighed about 200 pounds.

Shen Mi didn't know where her strength came from, but she actually managed to carry her. It was probably from her training on the desolate planet.

She took his hand, wrapped her other arm around his back, and carried him slowly towards the room.

The night was deep, and the corridor was so quiet that you could hear their breathing. With each step Jing Yuan took, Shen Mi could feel his body trembling slightly, and cold sweat poured out of him, one drop even falling from his hair onto Shen Mi's neck, making her shudder.

He endured it all without uttering a sound of pain.

With great effort, Shen Mi helped Jing Yuan to the bedside. He almost put all his weight on her, his forehead resting on her shoulder, his breath weak, as if he couldn't even utter a word.

"We're here, we're here." She bent down and used the momentum to lay him down on the bed.

Jing Yuan didn't resist, his brows furrowed, and slowly lay down following her movements. The heavy armor was still on his body, the chill lingering, and the fabric against his skin was already soaked with sweat.

Shen Mi knelt on the edge of the bed, turned him over, and gently unfastened the straps of his breastplate. The armor was heavy and hard, and removing each piece required great strength. Her fingers turned red several times from the pressure, but she was still careful, afraid of hurting him.

He trembled almost imperceptibly. Shen Mi looked up at him and found that he hadn't opened his eyes, but his breathing was more rapid than before, and a new layer of cold sweat had appeared on his forehead.

"It'll be over soon," she comforted him softly, continuing to loosen the belt around his waist and remove his shoulder coat and cloak. Each metal piece fell to the ground with a dull thud.

When he finally removed most of his armor, she could see that his clothes underneath were soaked through, clinging to his body and revealing his clear outline. His chest and abdomen heaved with pain, as if they were being constricted by a taut bowstring.

Shen Mi pursed her lips, took off the rest of his clothes, draped them over the foot of the bed, and then pulled the blanket over him.

She sat on the edge of the bed, reaching out to tidy his disheveled hair. Seeing that his eyes were still tightly closed, his face was pale, and cold sweat was pouring down his forehead like beads, she felt as if she had been pricked by a needle.

He fainted in the living room while wearing such heavy and cold armor...

She murmured softly, "What do you think you are...?"

A superhero who saves the world, or a work machine that never gets tired?

The sound was very soft, almost drowned out by the silence of the night.

Shen Mi lifted his neck and placed a pillow underneath him, then hung his armor pieces one by one on the armor rack by the bed. She then went to the toilet to get a towel and carefully wiped the sweat from his face.

"Get a good night's sleep."

Jing Yuan looked at her, a slightly dazed expression appearing in his half-open eyes. He seemed to want to say something, but ultimately, exhausted, he closed his eyes and collapsed into the pillow, like a little lion soaked to the bone.

Shen Mi covered him with the blanket and drew the curtains, leaving only a dim nightlight illuminating a corner of the room.

She did not leave.

In the stillness of the night, Chen Mi sat on a small wooden chair by the bed, her hands clasped on her knees. Looking at Jing Yuan's slightly furrowed brow, still contorted with pain, Chen Mi's heart sank. Time passed slowly, Jing Yuan's breathing gradually became steady, the sweat on his forehead stopped, and his complexion improved.

But she dared not sleep.

She got up twice during that time, once to change the towel that had cooled down for him, and once to cover him again with the corner of the blanket that had been tucked under him when he turned over. It wasn't until the first light of dawn appeared in the east, and the sky was just about to brighten, that she leaned back in her chair and gently closed her eyes.

The soft morning light filtered through the gaps in the curtains, casting a gentle glow on the wooden floor and creating a tranquil atmosphere.

Shen Mi leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes for only a few minutes, but kept his ears open to the sounds coming from the bed.

She tiptoed to the bedside, glanced down at him—Jing Yuan was still asleep, breathing steadily, his face still a little pale, but obviously much better than last night.

She breathed a sigh of relief, tiptoed to close the door, and went downstairs back to the kitchen.

She turned on her phone, connected to the internet, and began searching for "dietary precautions after stomach pain," "nutritious porridge recipes," and "what to eat during the recovery period of acute gastroenteritis"... She swiped through the phone screen, looking at each result one by one, her brows gradually furrowing.

Avoid greasy and spicy foods; a light and easily digestible diet is recommended.

[Recommended dishes include millet porridge, pumpkin porridge, and shredded chicken porridge...]

Shen Mi glanced at the refrigerator, and the bag of millet he bought yesterday and the pre-prepared chicken drumsticks quickly came to mind.

Fortunately, when she returned yesterday, everything was neatly organized, with all the ingredients bagged according to category, making it easy to find what she needed. She washed the rice, deboned and shredded the chicken thighs, and blanched them in ginger water to remove any unpleasant smell. After the water in the pot on the stove boiled, she slowly sprinkled the millet in and simmered it over low heat.

A thin wisp of steam rose from the kitchen, lingering in the air, as if evaporating the panic of the previous night.

Shen Mi would occasionally lift the lid of the pot and stir it slowly with a wooden spoon. The porridge was cooked until it was soft and thick, and the aroma of rice mixed with the savory smell of chicken filled the air, making the whole kitchen feel warm and cozy.

After cooking, Chen Mi poured the porridge into the rice cooker with the heat from the porridge, added the washed greens, and used the residual heat of the porridge to cook the chopped greens.

Once everything was ready, she tiptoed back upstairs.

When I pushed open the door, Jingyuan was still asleep. Sunlight streamed through the curtains, casting a faint bluish shadow on his face and beneath his eyelashes. His breathing was shallow and long, and his brows were no longer furrowed; he seemed to have truly calmed down.

Shen Mi touched his forehead and, seeing that his temperature had returned to normal, she was relieved.

She breathed a sigh of relief and tiptoed out of the room. When she returned to her bedroom, she realized that she had stayed up all night and hadn't even changed her clothes; she was covered in the smell of sweat and the aroma of chicken porridge.

She took off her coat, and as soon as she raised her left hand, she felt a slight tearing sensation from her wound. Shen Mi looked down and saw that the abrasion on her arm was bleeding again—last night, when she was helping Jing Yuan, she had accidentally used too much force with her left arm, and the wound had reopened.

She sighed and went into the restroom.

First, she cleaned the wound again and re-bandaged it. Removing the bandage, now soaked with blood, revealed a red mark beneath the skin that was somewhat cracked, swollen, and inflamed. She frowned, carefully cleaning it with a cotton swab dipped in alcohol. Her movements were gentle, yet it still ached slightly.

Gritting her teeth, she wrapped the gauze around her arm, tying it neatly, before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

Next, she wet a towel, intending to quickly wipe her body.

Steam rose from the roof, and she took off her shirt, wiping herself from her neck and shoulders down her back. Her wet hair clung to her face, and she relaxed completely, without any guard up.

She didn't notice that outside the door, a door next to hers clicked softly.

The next moment, the bathroom door was also pushed open.

The moment Shen Mi turned around, he bumped right into a pair of somewhat bewildered eyes at the door.

She froze as if struck by lightning, then grabbed a towel to cover her chest, her voice trembling with panic:

"The toilet is occupied! The toilet is occupied!"

Jing Yuan stood frozen at the doorway, as if only now fully waking up. The sight of Shen Mi, with her slightly damp hair plastered to her skin, her shoulders, neck, and back completely exposed, and her panicked eyes, struck him like a bolt of lightning.

He seemed to want to say something, but he didn't utter a single word. His face turned bright red, he lowered his head, and quickly retreated.

The door slammed shut, and the restroom fell silent once more.

Shen Mi stood there, stunned, in the steamy bathroom, her cheeks burning and her ears feeling like they were scalding. After the door slammed shut, she stood there for a few seconds before snapping back to reality, her face turning so red it was almost bleeding.

She gripped the towel wrapped around her upper body tightly with one hand, rushed to the door, and locked it with a "click."

His fingers were still on the door lock, his knuckles white from the excessive force.

His heart was pounding like thunder, and his chest felt like it was blocked by something. Chen Mi stood there, motionless for a long time.

But those brief three seconds kept flashing through my mind.

Did he... see everything?

Shen Mi had never experienced such a situation before—so awkward that he couldn't even speak properly.

Through the door, she could hear very light footsteps outside, followed by a slight creaking of the wooden floor, as if Jing Yuan had stood there for a while before finally leaving silently.

Shen Mi stood by the door for a long time, the echoes of his own shouts and his silence still lingering in his ears.

She wasn't angry with him; she was just incredibly embarrassed.

That's so awkward.

After a long while, Chen Mi took a deep breath, re-wetted the towel, hastily dried herself, and quickly put on her clothes. The wound was slightly aggravated, causing another slight stinging pain, but she couldn't care less.

Before opening the door, Chen Mi paused again and looked at herself in the mirror—her face was still red, and her eyes were a little unfocused.

"Calm down," Shen Mi whispered to himself. He couldn't blame anyone else; he could only blame himself for not locking the door.

Then, he opened the door, walked out, and pretended nothing had happened.

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Author's Note: I suddenly realized that so far, almost all the three characters I've written about, including those I've conceived, are related to "water." [Qingxin][Qingxin][Qingxin] It's quite a coincidence, hehe!

Thank you everyone for the nutrient solution you donated! I'm so grateful. Tomorrow is my last daily update; I'll be taking a two-day break before resuming. [Thumbs up][Thumbs up][Thumbs up][Thumbs up] Thank you all for your support! Hehe! Hehe!