Inside the isolation ward, Lian Jun put down his phone and let out a sigh of relief, weakly leaning against the bed.

On the other end of the video call, Shi Jin immediately leaned in front of the camera and nervously asked, "What's wrong? Is your stomach acting up again?"

Lian Jun looked towards the tablet computer on the bedside and mustered up his energy to smile at Shi Jin, reassuring him, "It's nothing, my stomach is fine. I'm just a little weak... I'm sorry I couldn't see you off on the day you left."

"It's okay. Did you sleep well these past few days? Are you still oversleeping?" Shi Jin asked softly, intentionally using more casual words to make Lian Jun feel more at ease.

Hearing this, Lian Jun felt a pang of sadness in his heart, but he managed to force out a smile and said, "I'm sorry, I slept for too long this time."

"No, you need to rest more to recover quickly. It's normal to sleep a little longer," Shi Jin looked at his pale face, trying hard not to let his expression collapse, and said, "I should be the one apologizing. I made you busy right after you woke up. Will you blame me for taking matters into my own hands? I didn't follow your previous arrangements."

"You did the right thing... cough, cough..." Suddenly, Lian Jun started coughing, and then began to retch in waves. Perhaps he was afraid that Shi Jin would worry, so he deliberately lowered his body and hid below the camera, not letting Shi Jin see.

Shi Jin became anxious and asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell again?"

"It's nothing... cough... don't worry, I'll just drink some water... it'll be fine." There was no image on the screen, only sound. Then the sound of the hospital room door opening could be heard, followed by footsteps approaching.

Uncle Long appeared on the screen, glancing at Shi Jin on the other end of the video and saying, "Don't worry, Young Master Jun just needs some rest." He then hung up the call.

The call interface disappeared, and Shi Jin stared blankly. His mind was filled with the suppressed coughs and retching of Lian Jun, and he looked at the progress bar in his mind that suddenly jumped to 600, pulling his hair in despair.

Xiao Si tried to comfort him, "It's okay, with Uncle Long there, everything will be fine for our baby..."

"I know." Shi Jin took a deep breath and sat up, watching the progress bar slowly dropping again. He guessed that Uncle Long had given Lian Jun some medicine, wiped his face, and said, "He just woke up and feels a little uncomfortable. I know, I'm fine." As he spoke, he got up and went to find Fei Yujing, who was reading in his room. "The air in the cabin isn't good. I'm going to play mahjong on the deck today," he said.

Fei Yujing looked at him, sensing that he was holding back some emotions. He casually put down his book, picked up his coat, and stood up.

......

In the sickroom, under the calming effect of the medication, Lian Jun stopped coughing and retching. Uncle Long furrowed his brow as he adjusted the speed of his IV drip. "You're too weak now. Don't force yourself to chat with Shi Jin. Your body can't handle it."

Lian Jun's eyes dimmed as he whispered, "I just want to hear his voice more... Uncle Long, how many days have I been in a coma this time?"

Uncle Long glanced at his expression, but didn't respond. Instead, he bent down and took out a small box from the bedside table. From inside, he pulled out a ring wrapped in red thread and handed it to him.

"What is this?" Lian Jun was stunned, staring at the ring in disbelief. He tried to sit up and take the ring from Uncle Long's hand.

"Don't move," Uncle Long held him down and placed the ring in his hand. "This is the birthday gift that Shi Jin gave you. The nurse was afraid that water would ruin the red thread on the ring while cleaning you, so she took it off."

Shi Jin's birthday gift... Lian Jun held the ring up to his eyes and gently touched it. "Which finger does it go on?" he asked.

Uncle Long looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"Which finger did Shi Jin put the ring on for me?" Lian Jun asked, his eyes shining with a rare sense of vitality since his rehabilitation.

Seeing him like this, Uncle Long felt a bit uneasy and replied, "It's the ring finger. He put it on your ring finger. The ring he gave you has the same design as the one you gave him. It's set with a blue diamond, and the red thread was wrapped by Shi Jin himself, because the ring..."

"Now it's too big for me." Lian Jun interrupted, lowering his eyes and slowly putting the ring on his ring finger. He looked at it straight on and suddenly smiled, "It fits perfectly."

As soon as the words were spoken, a few vague phrases suddenly flashed through his mind. It was as if someone had sat by his bedside, held his hand, and said the exact same thing. He was taken aback, furrowing his brow as he carefully tried to recall this dream-like memory. His hand, which was resting on the ring, unconsciously clenched tighter and tighter.

[If you can't gain enough weight to fit this ring perfectly, then we're finished.]

[It fits perfectly.]

[Get well soon. You promised to pick me up after your meeting. Don't break your promise.]

The tone was unfamiliar, as if it could burst into tears at any moment. Lian Jun covered his eyes with his hand, feeling a heavy sense of discomfort in his heart.

It wasn't a dream, it wasn't a dream after all...

Uncle Long furrowed his brow and called out, "Young Master Jun."

"Uncle Long," Lian Jun said, pressing his eyes with his ringed hand. "Has the most active period of the toxin passed? Can you bring me some food? I want to eat."

Uncle Long furrowed his brow even tighter and said, "But you were just..."

"I suddenly feel like eating, even if it's just liquid. Please bring me some. I need to eat to have the strength to fight the illness, right?" Lian Jun interrupted, putting down his hand and looking at Uncle Long with clear and serious eyes that could not be refused.

The Lian Jun who didn't listen to the doctor's advice had returned.

Uncle Long should have been angry, but he only said, "Okay."

The food was quickly brought over, just a small bowl of porridge that had been boiled to a pulp. Lian Jun was served and leaned back on the bed, first drinking some warm water to moisten his throat and warm his stomach, then scooping up some porridge and sending it towards his mouth.

He would definitely feel nauseous and want to vomit.

Uncle Long stood outside the ward, watching as Lian Jun covered his mouth and began to retch. He sighed heavily.

It was still too much for him, but... as he watched Lian Jun force himself to swallow the porridge after vomiting, his expression softened. Taking care of a patient with a strong will to live was much better than taking care of one who was lifeless because their lover was not by their side.

......

When he was feeling down, he would go to the mahjong table and win a lot of money, then generously give Number Two and Li Jiuzheng each a big red envelope. With the money he won from Fei Yujing, he played single-player mahjong on his tablet until two in the morning, until he was too tired to stay awake, and then he fell asleep.

It was a peaceful night without any dreams. At 10 o'clock in the morning, Shi Jin got up with a messy hairdo and headed to the bathroom to take a shower, wash his hair, blow dry it, and wash his face. Then he changed into a custom-made striped casual suit, put on various expensive accessories, and covered his hungry stomach as he walked towards the restaurant.

All of his outfits these days were specially made by Lian Jun's people, but he never had the chance nor the interest to wear them. Later, after deciding to take the young master route on the ship, he had Number Two call Number Six to pack up these clothes and send them over by helicopter.

Unexpectedly, Number Six not only sent the clothes but also included a full set of accessories, giving him more room to show off. Unfortunately, he didn't get to show the accessories to Lian Jun. He had worked so hard to figure out how to wear them properly. He touched the decorative button on his coat pocket and couldn't help feeling a little down.

"Xiao Jin."

As they entered the restaurant, a voice suddenly sounded from not far away. It shouldn't have been there.

Shi Jin stopped and looked towards the direction of the voice, then lowered his head, covered his forehead, and muttered to himself, "It seems like I haven't woken up yet. I'll just keep sleeping... Ah, I'm so hungry..."

His hunger was real.

His stomach growled in protest.

He stopped and looked at his stomach, blinked slowly, then turned his head towards the place where the "hallucination" had appeared earlier. Dressed in a handsome black and blue Air Force uniform, Xiang Aoting sat at the table by the window with a glass of water in front of him. He furrowed his brow and leaned forward, as if ready to chase after someone.

Shi Jin's eyes widened as he turned and ran a few steps to Xiang Aoting's side, grabbing his face and pulling it.

"What are you doing, Xiao Jin?" Xiang Aoting asked, frowning and grabbing his hand to release his face.

It was hot, lively, and real!

Shi Jin's face was full of disbelief as he asked, "Why are you here, Fourth Brother?"

"I was entrusted by Admiral Liu to come and help maintain order at the meeting," Xiang Aoting replied, looking him up and down and furrowing his brow even more. "What's with your outfit?"

In his memory, the only person who would dress so "boldly" like this was Rong Zhouzhong. On regular days, Shi Jin would dress more casually, wearing whatever was comfortable and never dyeing or perming his hair. He also didn't wear much jewelry, but he always looked clean and straightforward, which was very likable.

However, today Shi Jin was dressed in a high-quality striped suit. Although the color of the suit was low-key, the cut was different from a regular formal suit, with a bit of a hip-hop style that young people like. He looked like a star.

Moreover, Shi Jin had specially pulled his bangs back to reveal his forehead and wore various accessories that matched his outfit. He looked even more "grand" and radiant, like a young master preparing to attend a fashion banquet. Upon hearing this, Shi Jin tugged at his suit and said, "Ah, well, you see, because the leaders of other organizations are coming today, I specifically chose to wear a slightly more low-key outfit."

Slightly more low-key...Xiang Aoting looked at the various accessories on his body and began to wonder if he had misunderstood the definition of low-key.