BLPSG Chapter 124 Modern Extra

“—Quick, someone is drowning!”

 

In Songxiu City in July, the temperature soared past forty degrees at noon.

 

Accompanied by bursts of screams, ripples in the artificial lake danced like scalding phosphorescent light.

 

On the open ground by the lake, a young man knelt, hands crossed and interlocked, repeatedly performing compressions.

 

Gravel tore the skin on his knees, drawing streaks of crimson; under the scorching sun, his face turned as pale as paper.

 

Wen Qingci never stopped his movements.

 

“The ambulance is here!”

 

“Doctor, doctor, over here!”

 

The ambulance siren grew from distant to near. Only when he glimpsed nurses running over from the corner of his eye did Wen Qingci finally breathe a long sigh of relief, supporting himself on his knees to stand up with difficulty.

 

But the next moment, his vision gradually darkened, and he lost consciousness as if being sucked into a vortex.

 

In his last glimpse, Wen Qingci saw the drowning child awakening from unconsciousness, coughing heavily.

 

Thankfully, his efforts weren’t in vain…

 

*

 

Wen Qingci woke up in the emergency center.

 

When the child had been drowning, people around had called for emergency help.

 

Though the ambulance arrived a bit late due to traffic, it still pulled Wen Qingci back from the gates of hell.

 

Seeing him open his eyes, the surrounding doctors and nurses immediately breathed long sighs of relief.

 

Lying on the hospital bed, Wen Qingci felt as if his eyelids weighed a thousand pounds.

 

He blinked with difficulty, instinctively wanting to open his mouth to thank the medical staff.

 

The next second, Wen Qingci belatedly realized—he was still wearing an oxygen mask and couldn’t make a sound.

 

“Hey, little one, don’t try to speak yet,” a female doctor who appeared to be in her thirties, with a neat ponytail, smiled at him jokingly and said, “Rest well, you almost got into serious trouble this time.”

 

Though Wen Qingci had regained consciousness, the words of those around him still sounded somewhat blurred to his ears.

 

It took a few seconds for him to understand what she meant.

 

Wen Qingci nodded with some difficulty, then once again fell into unconsciousness.

 

This time he slept for a long while.

 

In his sleep, Wen Qingci had a long dream.

 

The scenes in the dream were somewhat scattered.

 

After waking up, he vaguely remembered that his dream had actually taken place in ancient times.

 

In the dream, he was no longer an ordinary sophomore college student, but an imperial physician in the palace…

 

It was quite absurd, how he had such a dream.

 

Could it be because he had read too many novels recently?

 

The more Wen Qingci thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

 

“What are you thinking about, Xiao Wen?” While Wen Qingci was lost in thought, the doctor making rounds reached out and waved his hand slowly in front of his eyes, asking, “Hungry from sleeping too long?”

 

“Nothing,” Wen Qingci smiled somewhat shyly and said, “I was wondering when I could be discharged and go home.”

 

The doctor smiled, stopping at the doorway as he left the ward, saying with some concern: “You can leave the day after tomorrow, but… do you have someone who can take care of you?”

 

Wen Qingci was exceptionally good-looking, and news of his heroic deed had spread throughout the entire hospital ward in no time.

 

The surrounding doctors and nurses were all willing to chat with him a bit more.

 

Wen Qingci, still a college student, was at an age without much caution.

 

Describing him as “answering every question” was most apt.

 

Before long, the doctors and nurses around knew that Wen Qingci’s family situation was somewhat special: his adoptive parents had passed away, leaving only him at home.

 

Wen Qingci was stunned for a moment, then responded with apparent ease: “Don’t worry, I can manage on my own. If necessary, I can also go to the neighbors for meals.”

 

This was an old school district, and the relationships between neighbors were very harmonious.

 

It seemed that before Wen Qingci’s adoptive parents passed away, they must have entrusted someone to look after him…

 

“That’s good,” the doctor, busy continuing his rounds, nodded, “If there’s any emergency, you can call me.” After speaking, he made a phone gesture.

 

“Alright, certainly.”

 

After these words, the doctor finally left with his team.

 

The ward instantly became quiet.

 

Wen Qingci took a deep breath, pursed his lips, and opened his phone’s lock screen.

 

After aimlessly browsing the web for a while, he turned it off again.

 

Finally, he let his gaze fall toward the window outside.

 

The doctor had guessed correctly; Wen Qingci’s adoptive parents had indeed entrusted the surrounding neighbors to look after him.

 

His relationship with those elderly grandpas and grandmas was also very good.

 

But the better the relationship, the less likely Wen Qingci was to let those elderly neighbors take care of him.

 

Even until today, he hadn’t told his neighbors about his hospitalization.

 

“Forget it, it’s just cooking… I’ll do it slowly, keep it simple,” Wen Qingci, lying on the hospital bed, tossed his phone aside, placed the back of his hand over his eyes, and muttered to himself.

 

After all, he was already accustomed to living alone.

 

The summer in Songxiu City was somewhat stuffy and hot.

 

Carrying various bags, Wen Qingci climbed the stairs. By the time he reached his doorstep, his bangs were completely soaked with sweat.

 

Just as he had struggled to find his keys in his bag, he heard a slight creaking sound in his ear.

 

The grandmother living across the hall opened her wooden door. Seeing the items in Wen Qingci’s hands, she asked curiously: “Qingci, are you just starting your summer vacation now?”

 

“Uh… no,” Wen Qingci smiled and turned to her, saying, “I stayed at a classmate’s place for a couple of days and just got back.”

 

“Oh, I see,” hearing Wen Qingci’s answer, the grandmother across the hall immediately smiled, “Young people should take advantage of the summer vacation to travel around. Once you start working, where will you find so much time?”

 

Wen Qingci smiled and nodded.

 

 

He wasn’t good at lying, and due to nervousness, cold sweat had seeped from his back.

 

Fortunately, in these older apartment buildings, there was always a slight cool breeze in the hallway.

 

Seeing Wen Qingci standing motionless at the door, the grandmother urged with some confusion: “Alright, you should go in now, why are you standing in the hallway?”

 

The next second, the young man finally inserted the key into the lock, pushed open the door and walked in: “Okay, goodbye, Grandma! I’ll come visit you in a few days.”

 

“Sure, just let me know in advance, and I’ll make you something delicious. Then Grandma can see the photos from your trip!”

 

After speaking, she finally slowly closed her door.

 

Wen Qingci: “…”

 

Photos?

 

Though Wen Qingci studied out of town, his academic schedule was tight, and he had never really gone out to play, let alone had any photos to show others.

 

Well, he’d cross that bridge when he came to it.

 

Wen Qingci moved his luggage back to his room with some difficulty.

 

Perhaps by that time, the grandmother would have forgotten about today’s conversation—Wen Qingci consoled himself.

 

Having stayed in the hospital for several days,

 

Though Wen Qingci had recovered well, taking care of himself was indeed somewhat difficult.

 

After returning home, he lay in bed for half a day, and when he opened his eyes again, it was already evening.

 

“Boom—” A muffled thunder arose from the horizon.

 

The next moment, heavy rain poured down.

 

Suddenly, fierce winds blew, and the curtains fluttered wildly.

 

Wen Qingci couldn’t help but cough a few times, slowly getting up to close the window.

 

From morning until now, he had only eaten breakfast.

 

Finally feeling hungry after waking up, Wen Qingci slowly walked to the kitchen.

 

The old-style upright refrigerator had a yellowish-white exterior.

 

Wen Qingci pulled the door open with a slight effort.

 

“Why is there nothing…”

 

The refrigerator was completely empty, with only a bottle of cold water that he had casually thrown in on the day he returned home for vacation standing lonely inside.

 

Already somewhat hungry, Wen Qingci felt even worse seeing the state of the refrigerator.

 

Normally, Wen Qingci might have chosen to hold out until tomorrow.

 

But having just been discharged from the hospital, he didn’t want to return to that familiar place due to low blood sugar.

 

With no choice, Wen Qingci returned to the living room and placed an order through a food delivery app.

 

The house his adoptive parents had left him, though somewhat old, was quite spacious.

 

Sitting alone in the empty living room, he suddenly felt a bit lonely.

 

Fortunately, the old district had well-developed commerce.

 

Not long after Wen Qingci placed his order, his phone rang.

 

“Hello… third floor, east unit, right? Your delivery is here, please open the entrance door downstairs for me.”

 

“Alright, please wait a moment.”

 

Wen Qingci quickly walked to the door with his phone, but then he discovered—the door intercom wouldn’t light up no matter how he pressed it.

 

“…Still not open?” Seeing the iron gate still motionless, the person on the other end of the phone couldn’t help but urge.

 

“The intercom might be broken,” Wen Qingci said while changing his shoes, “Please wait, I’ll come down to open the door for you.”

 

“Okay.”

 

Fortunately, Wen Qingci’s floor wasn’t too high.

 

Though he was just recovering from illness and not in good condition, he still managed to walk down smoothly, holding the handrail.

 

Seeing Wen Qingci come out, the delivery person who had been waiting somewhat anxiously for a while directly handed him the food and hurriedly left.

 

Just as Wen Qingci took the food, lightning flashed on the horizon again.

 

Followed immediately by a muffled thunder.

 

Standing at the entrance of the building, Wen Qingci instinctively looked up in the direction of the sound.

 

He didn’t see the lightning, but at that moment he saw…

 

In the newsstand not far ahead, there was a boy who looked about sixteen or seventeen, sitting with his knees drawn up to his chest.

 

The boy’s hair was somewhat long, now completely wet from the rain and sticking to his face.

 

He looked lonely and somewhat disheveled.

 

Just as Wen Qingci was observing the boy,

 

The other also slowly fixed his gaze on him.

 

Wen Qingci was involuntarily stunned.

 

Those were light amber-colored eyes; in his life, he seemed to have never seen anyone with such eye color.

 

Just as Wen Qingci was in a daze, the boy under the newsstand suddenly stood up and slowly walked toward him.

 

It was only a little past seven, but the residential area was already empty due to the heavy rain.

 

Seeing the boy walking toward him, Wen Qingci instinctively stepped back.

 

But his movement was a bit too slow.

 

By the time Wen Qingci came to his senses, this rain-soaked boy was already standing opposite him.

 

At this moment, his subconscious suddenly told him—the person before him had no ill intentions.

 

Though there was no expression on the boy’s face, Wen Qingci saw in those eyes the same loneliness as his own, even sadness and grievance?

 

Like an abandoned large dog.

 

Wait… what nonsense was he thinking?

 

Around Wen Qingci’s residential area, there were several well-known middle and high schools.

 

Students from nearby often came here to rent places to live.

 

Perhaps he was renting here and had run away from home after quarreling with his family?

 

The more Wen Qingci looked, the more he felt his guess was correct.

 

Outside, the rain was still heavy.

 

Though the boy was already soaked through, Wen Qingci still made way for him at the entrance: “Come in first, don’t stay in the rain, be careful not to catch cold.”

 

Another muffled thunder sounded.

 

The boy nodded slightly, obediently left the rainy area, and stepped into the hallway, bringing a chill with him.

 

Author’s Note:

Successfully acquired: Runaway high school student character setting x1.

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