Chapter 31: Quite Clean, but Truly Cooling

"It doesn't matter. Didn't Uncle Wei say that charred food helps clear internal heat?" Shen Nanzheng finished his sentence and popped it into his mouth. The meat was burnt on the outside and didn't taste good on the inside, but in order to maintain a good impression, he ate it with apparent relish.

Wen Ran: "..."

She wasn't stupid; how could she not see that he was trying to curry favor with her mother? She just couldn't figure it out—in this life, they hadn't even met twice, so why had things suddenly hit the fast-forward button? She even thought with a touch of narcissism: Could it be that Shen Nanzheng had fallen for her at first sight? All that talk about him being willing to wait and grow with her was clearly just him wanting to pursue her! But this didn't match his personality. In her memories, even if he liked someone, he wouldn't be so blatant and unrestrained about it.

While she was lost in thought, Teacher Liu nudged Factory Manager Wei with her foot. The manager's eyelid twitched; he tentatively reached his chopsticks toward the last piece of braised pork, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it and shifted them to a different dish instead.

Lu Meiqin felt Shen Nanzheng was being overly accommodating, but fearing he might upset his stomach, she quickly said, "Little Shen, try the other dishes I made."

"Alright." Shen Nanzheng didn't argue and tried everything.

Wen Ran knew he had a chronic stomach ailment and felt worried. The amount of food he had consumed tonight exceeded his usual intake, and he had eaten so much of the charred pork—if his stomach acted up, he would be the one suffering.

By the time they left the Wei residence, it was already dark. Wen Ran and Lu Meiqin accompanied the Wei couple to politely see Shen Nanzheng out of the family compound. As the dim streetlights of the compound faded at the gate, she saw him touch his stomach, only to quickly pull his hand away.

She couldn't help but ask, "Comrade Shen, is your stomach feeling uncomfortable?"

Shen Nanzheng, who was already reluctant to leave, turned back immediately upon hearing her concern. "A little, but it's nothing serious." He wanted to say it didn't hurt, but he was greedy for a bit more of her attention.

Wen Ran said softly, "Then have a few raw peanuts when you get back."

Shen Nanzheng’s head buzzed, and he was instantly transported back to his previous life. Back then, when his stomach hurt, Wen Ran would silently prepare raw peanuts for him. She would also brew stomach-soothing porridge and tea. The method of eating raw peanuts to soothe the stomach wasn't rare, but hearing it from her made it feel exceptionally intimate.

Driven by an impulse, he asked, "How did you know I had a stomachache?"

Wen Ran replied calmly, "I saw you touch your stomach just now, and you ate that charred meat tonight, so I figured it must be a stomachache."

Shen Nanzheng: "..."

For a moment, he actually thought she shared the memories of their previous life. Only after hearing her explanation did he realize she was just observant. To be honest, he didn't want her to have those memories; they would surely be painful for her. It was best for her to live the rest of her life carefree. Facing her concern, he managed a "Thank you."

That night, he suffered from insomnia. He wanted to marry her soon and bring her happiness. He kept thinking about how to get closer to her and earn her approval. Just as he was drifting off into a daze, his stomach began to ache. The power of the charred pork was not to be underestimated; he ran to the bathroom six or seven times in the second half of the night and vomited three or four times.

His comrade-in-arms, Ruan Liangze, went to the infirmary to get him some medicine. After he took it, Ruan asked, "You didn't eat anything dirty tonight, did you?"

"It was quite clean, it just really cleared my internal heat," Shen Nanzheng said, his face pale. The medicine hadn't kicked in yet, and as soon as he finished speaking, he felt the urge again and rushed to the bathroom.

Ruan Liangze was completely baffled, but one thing was certain: it really did "clear heat"! If he kept purging like this, there wouldn't be any "heat" left. Because his mother was a hospital director, he knew some basic common sense. Fearing that Shen Nanzheng would become dehydrated, he poured him an enamel mug of hot water with some sugar and salt. Unlike dehydration from intense exercise or heatstroke, acute gastroenteritis required the timely replenishment of sugar and salt.

Shen Nanzheng was ill, and Ruan didn't get any rest either. The medicine he had just taken was vomited back up shortly after, and Ruan had to take him to the infirmary to get an IV drip. They were up until dawn before he felt slightly better. Shen Nanzheng hadn't expected the charred pork to have such a serious effect, but if given another chance, he would still eat it. It was rare to have such a good opportunity to please his future mother-in-law, and he had to show some sincerity to win her favor.

What he didn't know was that even without him risking his health, Lu Meiqin's impression of him was already extremely high. Lu Meiqin hadn't slept for half the night either, spending the time talking to Wen Ran about Shen Nanzheng. Opportunities like this were rare; Shen Nanzheng was top-tier in terms of character, family background, and overall quality. She was afraid that if they missed out on him, they wouldn't find such a suitable candidate again. Her own marriage had been a failure, and she didn't want her daughter to follow the same path. There was a light in Shen Nanzheng's eyes, and whenever he looked at her daughter, that light would follow her—not with lecherous intent, but with a fervor she couldn't quite name. That was why she wanted her daughter to give him a chance, and to give herself a chance, to try and get to know him.

Wen Ran let it go in one ear and out the other. Her mind was full of question marks. She felt that too many things were coincidental, as if they had been arranged in advance, but she had no proof.

She eventually drifted off into a restless sleep. The next day, after washing up, she went to work in her best state. As the time for the assessment drew closer, Ruan Ling put all her focus into studying. However, Jin Baoli seemed to have lost her soul, even more distracted than before, and accidentally knocked over all the medicine the three of them had just organized. Fortunately, nothing broke, or all three of them would have been finished.

This made Ruan Ling completely furious. "Jin Baoli, what are you trying to do?"

Jin Baoli knew the head nurse would be coming to inspect soon and felt a bit guilty. "I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Whether you did it on purpose or not, you're responsible. If you don't want to work, don't drag us down with you!" Wen Ran picked up the medicine from the floor and commanded, "What are you waiting for? Start organizing!"

This was the first time Jin Baoli had seen Wen Ran lose her temper, and her heart actually skipped a beat. Furthermore, she wanted to learn from Wen Ran to pass the assessment, so she immediately started working under her direction. Ruan Ling had wanted to say more, but seeing that Jin Baoli was being sensible, she joined in the work.

The three of them didn't stop for a moment, managing to finish just before the head nurse arrived. The head nurse was generally satisfied and sent the three of them off on errands. As Wen Ran was delivering medicine to the inpatient department, she saw little Zhi, the boy with acute laryngeal edema. He was recovering well and seemed more energetic while receiving his IV drip. His mother, Wu Xiumin, saw Wen Ran in her white uniform and, mistaking her for a full-time nurse, called out, "Nurse, could you please check my child's hand? He keeps saying it hurts!"

Wen Ran looked around, and seeing that no other nurses were present, confirmed she was the one being addressed and walked over. Upon seeing that the back of little Zhi's hand was raised in a bump and slightly swollen, she immediately concluded, "The needle has slipped!"