Chapter 84 Extra Chapter: Qu Chen's If Line 1

(If Qu Chen from the future travels back to the very beginning, and the system is no longer available)

Ling Wei felt her consciousness was hazy, as if a fire was burning inside her body, starting from her abdomen and making her limbs feel weak.

Someone nearby was calling out in a sweet, delicate voice, "Mingyuan... hang in there..."

She frowned, trying hard to hear clearly, but only made her already confused mind even more dizzy.

Her body grew hotter and hotter, and an indescribable emptiness spread through her, making her instinctively sense danger.

"Bang—"

A loud bang, as if someone had violently opened the door from the outside.

A cool breeze swept in, dispelling the sweet scent in the room. Startled by the breeze, Ling Wei's drowsy mind gained a moment's respite, barely regaining some clarity.

She was lying on a soft, large bed, her heavy eyelids open, her vision blurry as she looked ahead—

The area in front was chaotic, with two men and a woman.

The woman was practically hanging on the man sitting on the sofa. The man had his head down, his hand supporting his forehead, so his face was obscured.

The woman continued to press herself against the man's neck, her voice trembling with tears: "Mingyuan, Mingyuan, are you alright? Are you in a lot of pain? Let me help you..."

Ling Wei felt that the man looked familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen him before.

Just then, another young boy standing nearby rushed forward and forcefully ripped the woman off the man: "Sister Wanqing, wake up! Look closely, Uncle is not in a good state."

The woman stumbled as she was pulled, almost falling, her face filled with astonishment and grievance.

Ling Wei's gaze swept over the boy. He was very young, even carrying a hint of youthful exuberance, but his eyes were cold and his profile was tense.

She shouldn't be in bed; she should be under the bed.

In fact, Ling Wei did just that. She bit her tongue, using the pain to force herself to gather her strength and roll off the bed.

She curled up and, relying on her last bit of lucidity, crawled under the spacious bed using both hands and feet.

The unfamiliar desires within his body, coupled with the bizarre scene before him, suggest that this may only be the beginning, with even greater trouble yet to come.

Ling Wei's only thought was to survive.

Just as she hid herself, a question flashed through her mind: something seemed to be missing. There was always a voice that liked to nag beside her... but at this moment, all she could hear was the increasingly heated argument outside and her own heart pounding like a drum.

Sure enough, she was right.

Before long, even more chaotic footsteps and voices poured in from outside the door.

"Director Qu!"

"we are……"

"We received a report that there might be..."

"What's wrong with this lady...?"

The broken words drifted under the bed, and Ling Wei's heart almost stopped beating.

Damn! She knew that man outside looked familiar!

That was Qu Mingyuan, the leader in charge of promoting the "Dream of Qinghe Idol Open Competition" project!

She was one of the candidates who had passed the preliminary selection. The other girl who had also entered the room was currently entangled with Qu Mingyuan, her clothes disheveled.

If she gets caught red-handed and accused of deliberately engaging in unfair competition, her idol career will be completely ruined before it even begins.

There were hurried footsteps moving around the room; someone seemed to be checking the bathroom and balcony. Her palms were sweaty, and her nerves were on edge.

It must not be discovered, absolutely not!

Just then, her gaze fell on the bed board above her head.

This bed is in a European antique style. The bed frame is not solid, but is made up of sturdy wooden joists with enough gaps in between.

A bold idea flashed through my mind.

She took a deep breath, used all her strength to grab the two parallel keel bones, tightened her waist and abdomen, and her whole body, like a light cat, silently lifted up and pressed against the back of the bed.

With her legs bent, the backs of her feet hooked onto the overhead beam, securing herself firmly as if she had become part of the bed structure.

Almost the instant she completed this difficult maneuver, a pair of feet in standard leather shoes stopped beside the bed, a corner of the sheet was lifted, and the beam of a flashlight swept across the carpet under the bed—

It was completely empty.

The person seemed not to notice anything amiss and moved away.

Ling Wei clung tightly to the bed frame like a gecko, even breathing as softly as possible.

Outside, the conversation continued.

The man who had been harassed and remained mostly silent, Qu Mingyuan, finally spoke.

His voice was hoarse and weak, yet still deliberate and slow.

"...I am clearly not in a good state to answer any questions right now."

"I feel dizzy, have a fever, and am not quite clear-headed. I suspect that both this contestant and I have been poisoned with something unclean."

"As the person being reported and also a potential victim, I request that I immediately go to a public hospital with the relevant testing qualifications for a comprehensive blood and body fluid test."

“Until I receive a definitive medical report proving my innocence and finding out who’s behind this—” his tone suddenly turned cold, “I refuse to answer any leading or presupposed questions. We’ll talk about everything when I get back from the hospital.”

"Furthermore, I request the investigation team to immediately seal off the scene and assist in securing the list of all personnel who appeared on this floor tonight and had contact with the food in the rooms. This already constitutes a serious criminal offense, targeting not only me personally, but also a deliberate attempt to undermine the credibility of the 'Dream Sound Qinghe' project."

“If the investigation team finds any procedural difficulties, I can contact my lawyer now, as well as… the comrades from the Discipline Inspection Commission.”

He spoke slowly and deliberately, yet every word hit the nail on the head.

Ling Wei, listening from under the bed, was startled, yet inexplicably felt a surge of admiration; this person was no pushover.

The noisy chatter subsided, as if some kind of consensus had been reached. Footsteps moved away in a disorderly fashion, and the room fell silent once more.

After a long while, Ling Wei dared to quietly slide back onto the carpet. She crawled out from under the bed using both hands and feet, her vision still a little blurry.

Then, she bumped into a foot wearing a sneaker.

Ling Wei stiffly looked up.

The boy was standing by the bed, looking down at her. He had returned sometime earlier, his face expressionless, his eyes cold and scrutinizing.

Seeing her climb out, Qu Chen raised an eyebrow: "Not bad, you're pretty smart."

“Let’s go,” he said, turning to the doorway. “My uncle asked me to take you to the hospital for a checkup. He said you’re a victim too.”

It seems we're safe for now.

Ling Wei breathed a sigh of relief and struggled to her feet. However, the extreme tension and high concentration she had experienced under the bed had accelerated the circulation of the medication in her body. Now that she was relaxing, she felt an electric current rushing up her spine to her brain with every step she took, and her body began to tremble.

She had to stop halfway between the bedside and the door, a distance of just a few meters, and lean against the cold wall.

“You…” Young Qu Chen frowned, seemingly a little impatient, and turned around to urge, “Hurry up.”

Ling Wei tried to take another step, but felt all her strength drain away. Her knees buckled, and she slid down the wall.

My consciousness is becoming increasingly blurred, and my body is burning hot.

Her last shred of clarity allowed her to manage a voice: "You...you should still call an ambulance for me...I might...not be able to walk..."

Before she could finish speaking, darkness completely engulfed her.