I Conquer the Entertainment Industry with My Medical Skills - Chapter 24

An Ningqing quietly took her pajamas and went to shower.

Outside the door, Xie Anran toyed with the Tranquil Spirit Incense—no, she corrected herself, it was actually a Tranquil Spirit Balm. Its dark, slightly purplish hue and round shape were adorned with a pressed rose pattern. Compared to the refined balms from high-end brands, its craftsmanship was rough, lacking in finesse. Yet one could sense the maker’s pursuit of quality.

A small, clean-cut piece had been carved from the balm’s edge, likely for regular use.

Anran lowered her head to inhale its scent. It was nearly identical to An Ningqing’s natural fragrance, though more concentrated. “Is it really this miraculous?” she wondered, her curiosity piqued.

But tonight, compared to testing the balm’s effects, she had a more pressing matter at hand.

She was determined to find out if An Ningqing truly ground her teeth and snored in her sleep.

After her shower, An Ningqing’s skin glowed with a rosy flush, her cheeks flushed, accentuating her fair, delicate complexion. Her full, sensual lips were particularly striking—plump, dewy, and vividly red. As she dried her hair, she reminded Anran, “Third Miss, it’s your turn to shower.”

Just to be safe, Xie Anran brought the Tranquil Spirit Incense into the bathroom with her. Perhaps she was in an exceptionally good mood, because An Ningqing, separated by only a door, could hear her singing—a song about taking a bath, no less.

An Ningqing listened for a while, then couldn’t help but chuckle.

Xie Anran was indeed soaking in the tub, singing and blowing bubbles as she bathed, leaving the floor wet. She calmly dried her hair, then stretched her back in front of the mirror. Her waist wasn’t particularly thick, but for some reason, it didn’t feel as slender and soft as An Ningqing’s when touched. After admiring herself in the mirror, she gracefully stepped out of the bathroom.

But—

An Ningqing was already sitting on the other side of the bed, quietly playing with her newly replaced phone. When she saw Xie Anran emerge, she smiled and winked.

That smile was like a hook, making Xie Anran’s heart pound twice. Suddenly feeling her lips were dry, she poured herself a glass of water and asked, feigning ignorance, “Does the phone have a signal now?”

An Ningqing put down her phone. “No.”

She had tried, but still couldn’t contact anyone outside.

There was no one outside she particularly missed or couldn’t let go of, but Xie Anran was different. With her harmonious family, Xie Xuanze would undoubtedly notice her absence.

An Ningqing patted the mattress with her left hand, her tone suggestive. “Third Miss, is your hair dry yet?”

Was this an impatient invitation?

Xie Anran took a few more sips of water but didn’t rush forward. “An Ningqing, you look… different tonight.”

Bathed in the soft glow, An Ningqing seemed to radiate an ethereal beauty, almost unreal.

An Ningqing smiled demurely. “Third Miss, you’re teasing me again.” She patted the mattress once more, then tentatively asked, “Perhaps the Third Miss would be willing to sleep on the sofa tonight? We could switch tomorrow.”

“Absolutely not,” Xie Anran replied.

She set down her glass and walked to the other side of the bed. As she leaned over, her hands resting on the edge, gazing at An Ningqing, inspiration struck. “The atmosphere is so perfect tonight… why don’t we have a drink?”

An Ningqing pursed her lips. “As you wish.”

Xie Anran stared at An Ningqing’s glistening lips, wondering if they would taste even more intoxicating when stained with wine. Suddenly, the water she’d been drinking felt utterly unsatisfying. She turned and called for the maid, who quickly brought over the red wine she’d requested. Xie Anran glanced at the label. “Li Xianzong is quite generous, isn’t he? He’s actually willing to bring out such expensive wine to entertain you.”

A hint of amusement flickered in An Ningqing’s eyes. “Third Miss, you’re teasing me again.”

She remained keenly aware of her status as a minor celebrity.

During the kidnapping incident, for instance, if Xie Anran hadn’t been there, An Ningqing feared her clothes would have been stripped off the moment she was thrown into that abandoned warehouse. The kidnappers had a clear objective and wouldn’t have wasted time on unnecessary actions, leaving her no opportunity to save herself.

After all, she was just a frail woman, no match for five grown men.

But Xie Anran’s presence had stirred their greed, forcing them to improvise their plan. Their lack of preparation led to their downfall. Xie Anran had been the decisive variable.

Xie Anran let out a haughty hum through her nose.

She expertly opened the wine and poured it in one smooth motion, a routine she’d performed countless times.

An Ningqing found her grip on the wine glass inexplicably captivating. She accepted the glass from Xie Anran, the red wine swirling gently within the crystal, releasing its intoxicating aroma. After taking a small sip, she suddenly asked, “When did you learn to drink, Third Miss?”

It was impossible to develop an addiction in such a short time.

The question drew Xie Anran into a moment of recollection. She frowned, “I was sixteen, maybe fifteen.”

She remembered the day she had a massive fight with Xie Xuanze, storming out of the house in a fit of anger. As she wandered aimlessly, she ended up at a bar. Perhaps because she had always been taller than her peers and had a knack for dressing well, the somewhat shady establishment allowed her, an underage girl, to enter. Xie Anran ordered several expensive drinks and, before she knew it, was completely drunk. When she woke up, she was lying in her own bed at home.

Later, her Second Brother told her that their Eldest Brother had flown into a rage, mobilizing a small army to find her passed out at the bar. Fortunately, he found her in time; otherwise, Xie Anran might have been taken away. As for the man who had his arm broken and the bar itself, they were never seen again.

But Xie Anran remembered the liberating feeling of being drunk. After that, whenever she argued with Xie Xuanze, she would secretly find a place to drink. The more he forbade it, the more she rebelled.

Eventually, whether she had fought with Xie Xuanze or not, she developed a habit of taking a few sips.

Thinking of this, Xie Anran suddenly turned to An Ningqing beside her. An Ningqing’s eyes glowed with a gentle light, the kind of gaze that could draw anyone in at first glance. Xie Anran drained her glass in one gulp, then knelt on the mattress, leaning closer. “Suddenly asking about my past, An Ningqing… are you trying to…” The obvious flirtation didn’t need asking, but Xie Anran’s words twisted into a different question: “…up to some new trick again?”

An Ningqing didn’t finish her drink and casually handed the glass to Xie Anran. “I can’t get up easily. Would you mind putting this down for me, Third Miss?”

Can’t get up easily?

What does that mean?

Xie Anran’s gaze swept over the part of An Ningqing’s body covered by the blanket, but before she could figure it out, her hand had already taken the glass and placed it on the bedside table. She glared at it in frustration, thinking, I might as well cut this hand off.

“Third Miss.”

“Hmm?”

The voice behind her was so close she could feel An Ningqing’s fragrant breath. Xie Anran turned her head unguardedly, and then everything went dark. “You—”

An Ningqing caught Xie Anran as she fell backward and gently moved her onto the bed. Hesitating for a moment at the sight of Xie Anran’s disheveled nightgown, which had slipped down to her thighs, she finally straightened it and thoughtfully covered her with a thin blanket. After finishing, she glanced at the sleeping figure. In her slumber, Xie Anran lacked her usual flamboyance and aggressive edge, appearing almost docile. Her beautiful features looked delicate as a doll’s, but An Ningqing knew this was just an illusion.

When she wakes up tomorrow, she’ll likely throw another tantrum.

An Ningqing’s lips curved into a barely perceptible smile. “Third Miss, you’re a good girl. Good night.”

After giving the bed to Xie Anran, she walked barefoot to the window. The moon hung in the sky, neither too close nor too far, just as it had for many nights. She couldn’t discern any difference between the moon in this world and the one in her own. As the Mid-Autumn Festival approached, it grew increasingly round and full.

Different worlds, same moon.

An Ningqing could only comfort herself with the thought that perhaps it was the same sky. When she missed her homeland, she could still look up and see it. She might as well pretend she’d accidentally wandered into another country and couldn’t return home for a while.

She stood by the window for half an hour until the cold seeped into her feet. Then she turned off the room’s lights, leaving only the bedside lamp on, wrapped herself in her small blanket, and closed her eyes.

A moment later, she opened them again. Looking down, she could smell the lingering scent of another person on the blanket—a clean, sun-dried fragrance.

Never mind. I’ll just sleep like this.

After An Ningqing fell asleep, Li Xianzong, in his office at the other end of the estate, coughed violently and suddenly vomited a mouthful of bl00d. His bodyguard immediately moved to call the family doctor. “No need,” Li Xianzong rasped.

The diagnosis had already been made.

Calling a doctor was just the same old routine: “Relax, take good care of yourself, don’t overwork, you can’t keep up this intensity…” He was tired of hearing it all.

Li Xianzong refused to believe in fate. He consulted other authoritative doctors, but the results confirmed An Ningqing’s words: he had less than six months to live. After wiping his mouth with a fresh handkerchief and taking his medicine, he asked, “What has Miss An been doing these past two days?”

The bodyguard reported every detail of their daily activities, including their meals, preferences, and dislikes, leaving out almost nothing.

Li Xianzong had deliberately been ignoring An Ningqing. He knew better than to trust a celebrity’s words. Though he didn’t know how she had stumbled upon his remaining lifespan, now that she was on his territory, he was confident she would obey.

But after hearing the bodyguard’s report, Li Xianzong froze. “You’re telling me they’ve just been eating, drinking, and strolling in the garden? Nothing else? Not a single question about me?”

How could Miss An be living a more health-conscious life than this old man?

Bland, light meals followed by leisurely digestion walks.

Isn’t this exactly what Dr. Jiang asked him to do?

The file said she was only twenty-six, quite capable of causing trouble.

“Didn’t she ask Anne about me either?”

“Then what have they been doing?”

“Sir, no, they mostly stay in their rooms. It’s very quiet. The maid says they seem to be reading books and magazines. Miss Xie also does yoga and dances. However, Sir, Miss An made a request to Miss Anne today.”

“Oh? What kind of request?”

Li Xianzong immediately suspected the worst. An Ningqing has finally run out of patience and is about to make an outrageous demand. But as long as he could keep her here for six months, isolated from the outside world, he was willing to grant her any reasonable request.

Money was nothing to him—mere pocket change. A casual splurge could sustain some people for a lifetime.

The bodyguard spoke into his walkie-talkie, and moments later, there was a knock at the office door. Someone handed over the list An Ningqing had prepared.

Li Xianzong frowned at the densely packed writing on the paper from a distance. But when he examined it up close, he was immediately captivated by the elegant calligraphy. People often said that handwriting reflects character, revealing a person’s temperament and personality through the strokes and flourishes.

“Did An Ningqing write this?”

“Yes, Boss.”

Li Xianzong studied the calligraphy—bold strokes like dragons soaring and delicate hooks like scorpion tails, radiating the air of a master. He examined the contents more closely, finding not gold or silver, but instead, he murmured, “Baskets, sickles, pestles…”

Having come from humble beginnings himself, Li Xianzong recognized the baskets and sickles. “But what’s a pestle?”

The list contained many unfamiliar items. Initially, they had been clueless until they consulted Dr. Jiang, who helped them piece together the collection. “Dr. Jiang said pestles were traditionally used to grind medicinal herbs into powder. Nowadays, specialized machines have largely replaced them in hospitals, though some traditional Chinese medicine practitioners still prefer grinding their own herbs, despite the inefficiency.”

Li Xianzong fell silent.

Noticing his boss’s concern for the two guests, the bodyguard added, “Miss An and Miss Xie plan to explore the forest again tomorrow. Miss An seems particularly fond of the woods.”

Li Xianzong chuckled wryly.

“They’re treating this place like a honeymoon resort.”