Chapter 3: A Brief Dream

“Fu Jie, still busy? Come eat with us!”

The door was ajar when a passing colleague tapped on it with a few fingers.

Fu Yuan looked up to see a young male doctor in his early twenties, appearing refined and scholarly, wearing thin gold-rimmed glasses. When he smiled, dimples appeared at the corners of his mouth. She searched her memory and recalled that he had just started last week. He was said to be a junior intern from the same university, who would often drop by when he had no classes.

Regarding this junior, she thought for a moment but couldn’t remember his name. Her gaze shifted down to his ID badge, where the characters “Qi Heng” were printed. She then responded, “Doctor Qi, you came at just the right time.”

Qi Heng stepped inside, and Fu Yuan immediately noticed a faint scent of disinfectant on him, the same subtle smell she had detected earlier on the mother and daughter from this morning.

“Did you just come out of the treatment room?”

Fu Yuan asked abruptly, her eyes fixed on him.

Usually, interns don’t enter treatment rooms; they mostly handle minor tasks and patient care.

Qi Heng shook his head with a smile. “The patient in Ward 204 of Building A suddenly had acute vomiting. I assisted the doctor in injecting diazepam and glucose sodium chloride solution. I didn’t go into the treatment room. Later, I was worried about cross-infection, so I just finished mopping the floor when I heard the bell ring.”

Mopping could explain the slight disinfectant smell.

“That’s usually the cleaner’s job,” Fu Yuan said, staring into his eyes with a sigh. She stopped talking about him and instead crouched down to unpack a snack gift box. “Look, is there anything you like in here?”

The little angel Qi Heng crouched down with her, unwrapping snacks while emitting excited chirps like a prairie dog. “Sis, this dried beef is so expensive—new this year, 500 grams for 99.9 yuan. I wanted to buy it but never dared; I was hoping for the Double Eleven sale.”

Soon after, he shouted again, like a squirrel who had just found a pine nut in the snow: “These prunes! I’ve always loved their prunes, but they’re always sold out. You actually managed to get some!”

Fu Yuan was slightly annoyed by his loud excitement and waved her hand to quiet him down.

“These were gifts from patients’ families. I can’t finish them all myself. Pick some you like, and take the rest to share.”

Seeing his delighted expression, she pursed her lips and reminded him earnestly, “Take as much as you want; it’s fine if you take it all.”

Qi Heng looked incredulous and said, “Ah?” He stood up and weighed it in his hands. Hesitating, he added, “Sis, this probably weighs thirty to forty jin [approximately 15-20 kg]. It doesn’t look like much, but if you bought it, it would cost several thousand yuan. The New Year is coming soon; you could keep it as holiday provisions.”

When he said “thousand yuan,” he used an old-fashioned term, “dollars,” which young people sometimes like to say ironically.

At this moment, Fu Yuan didn’t want to see the snacks. She wasn’t short of money, and she had stocked up on some herself. Seeing the box only reminded her of the heavy responsibilities she bore.

Her tone grew a little impatient, somewhat stiff. “I don’t have much of an appetite today. You can come pick it up after you eat.”

Qi Heng seemed oblivious to her mood, smiling as he said, “Then I’ll go eat now. If you want anything, I’ll bring it to you.”

Fu Yuan replied with a curt “No need,” folding her arms and leaning over the table, her dismissal unmistakable.

Groups of three or five colleagues strolled toward the cafeteria, and she vaguely heard some talking about her behind her back. The usual whispers accused her of having connections, enjoying privileges, and now even bossing around interns.

They thought they were speaking softly, but Fu Yuan’s hearing was extremely sharp—their words had long since reached her ears.

.

“Stand straight! Keep your head naturally upright, chin slightly tucked, neck muscles relaxed, chest out, stomach in, feet together… Don’t slouch! I’m talking to you!”

A male instructor in army green uniform held a meter-long whip, fiercely cracking it just inches from a male student’s shoe. The whip struck the ground, leaving a clear white mark.

Fu Yuan was well acquainted with this scenario of entering dreams. She glanced around at the familiar surroundings—this time, she was dreaming of her alma mater, with the setting being military training.

The instructor noticed her looking around and impatiently barked, “Who are you? Senior students are not allowed here during military training.”

She wasn’t wearing the military training uniform, so he didn’t mistake her for a freshman.

Fu Yuan ignored him.

The sun in the dream seemed to cause real pain, its rays burning her skin fiercely. She looked down at the students beneath the platform, where one stood out vividly.

It was a chubby boy wearing thick black-framed glasses. His pale lips trembled uncontrollably, his face was as white as paper, beads of sweat dripped heavily onto the ground, forming a puddle.

Just one glance told her he had reached his limit. Any additional moment of endurance would require immense willpower.

He was most likely the dreamer this time. If she could help him escape this predicament, the dream would naturally dissipate, or shift to a gentler environment, allowing for better sleep quality.

With this in mind, she looked coldly at the instructor, her face stern. She pointed faintly at the chubby boy in the crowd and said, “I’m a medical staff member. I received a report that the instructor is ignoring students’ physical conditions and arbitrarily increasing training intensity. I need to take this student away; his body has reached its limit.”

.

The chubby boy kept his body rigid, too afraid to move, but his eyes seemed ready to pop out as he begged Fu Yuan silently.

She smiled reassuringly at him.

The instructor squinted fiercely, clearly not buying her story immediately. “How do you prove you’re from the medical office and not here to cause trouble?”

He completely ignored the latter part of her statement.

Fu Yuan silently reached into her pocket and handed him a square card.

Slightly annoyed by his suspicion, her tone stiffened. “This is my work ID. If you don’t believe me, you can check with the medical office.”

The instructor took the card, scanning it while his face showed disbelief. Then his expression twisted and dark smoke seemed to rise from him.

Fu Yuan watched calmly, unafraid. She softened her voice and persuaded him, “I know you mean well. Many kids nowadays neglect their physical fitness, but this child has reached his limit and needs to rest. There’s an old saying: haste makes waste.”

The instructor seemed to consider her words. His face grew thoughtful, the black smoke subsided, and his twisted features gradually returned to normal.

He opened his mouth, his voice hoarse as if from an overworked machine, “Fine, but only for a short while.”

.

At 1:21 p.m., Fu Yuan woke up, realizing she had slept about forty minutes, the latter half being a rare pleasant dream.

Her arms tingled from having been pressed down. As she stretched lazily, she noticed a black trench coat she hadn’t seen before sliding to the floor.

She turned on her side to pick it up, brushed off invisible dust, and placed it on the sofa.

On the table where she had been sleeping was a boxed mousse cake. Judging by the packaging, it was from a bakery she frequented in college, and the flavor suited her perfectly. Underneath the cake was a piece of paper, its handwriting delicate and elegant, exuding a faint scholarly fragrance.