Just the thought of something happening to her made Yu Mo’s chest tighten with pain.
So, in the end, he chose a lighthearted, healing romance film, hoping that Mu Fu would have a sweet dream that night.
After the movie ended, her food had digested enough, so the two of them left the third floor and returned to their rooms for the night.
When Mu Fu got back, she noticed Feng Ningran still hadn’t returned. Thinking of how pale she’d looked earlier, Mu Fu could only hope she was feeling better soon.
Meanwhile, Xu Kangning had stayed with Feng Ningran nearly the entire night and didn’t get back to the villa until just before dawn.
At the hospital, the doctor took her temperature and confirmed a high fever—she needed an IV drip. Xu Kangning had no choice but to stay and keep her company.
……
After a pleasant and relaxed morning jog with Ding Binbing yesterday, Wu Qingyi had agreed to go running with him again today.
As they came downstairs together, they just happened to see Feng Ningran and Xu Kangning returning.
Wu Qingyi looked surprised. “You two headed out this early?”
But Ding Binbing, being a doctor, immediately picked up on the scent of disinfectant. The faint hospital smell was unmistakable, and with one look at Feng Ningran’s pale and worn-out expression, he put the pieces together.
His brows furrowed as he asked with concern, “Ningran, are you feeling unwell?”
Feng Ningran gave a small nod. After running such a high fever, she didn’t even have the strength to say much.
Xu Kangning added, “She had a fever. They gave her an IV through the night.”
Neither of them had gotten much sleep at the hospital. Now they were both exhausted, looking completely drained.
Wu Qingyi realized she’d misunderstood and quickly said, “Ningran, do you want me to stay and help take care of you?”
But Ningran wasn’t someone who lacked awareness. Seeing them dressed in athletic gear and up so early, she figured they had plans to exercise and didn’t want to get in their way.
“It’s okay, Qingyi. I’m feeling much better now. I just need a bit more rest.”
She smiled at her reassuringly, and there was nothing forced about it.
Wu Qingyi nodded. “Alright, get some good rest. I’ll come check on you when I get back.”
After saying goodbye, Xu Kangning and Feng Ningran headed off to their rooms to sleep, while Wu Qingyi and Ding Binbing set out for their jog.
Because of her condition, Feng Ningran took the day off from school.
As for Xu Kangning, after staying up all night with her, he was running on fumes and also had to call in sick.
When Feng Ningran opened the door and stepped inside, Mu Fu was already awake.
“Are you feeling any better?” she asked, sitting down on the bed with a look of concern.
“Much better. Thank you for last night, Mu Fu,” Feng Ningran replied sincerely.
Mu Fu smiled gently. “Alright, then get some rest. I’m guessing you didn’t sleep well at the hospital?”
Feng Ningran nodded.
“Then catch up on some sleep. Oh, do you have any classes today? Do you need to call in sick?” Mu Fu asked.
“I already did,” Feng Ningran replied.
“Good.”
Mu Fu didn’t feel like going back to sleep. Strangely enough, even though she had gone to bed around 1 a.m., she was feeling wide awake. She figured it was probably because she’d napped too long yesterday afternoon.
After getting dressed and ready, she decided to find Yu Mo. It was just past six—perfect time for some morning exercise. And of course, she had no intention of going alone.
When Mu Fu knocked on Yu Mo’s door, he opened his eyes immediately. He’d already been awake since Ding Binbing had gotten up. Yu Mo was a light sleeper and had only just managed to doze off again when Mu Fu came by.
He ran a hand through his messy, sleep-tousled hair and opened the door, surprised to see Mu Fu standing there.
“You’re up this early? Couldn’t sleep?” he asked.
Mu Fu nodded, a little sheepishly. “Yeah… did I wake you?”
“No, I was already awake,” he replied, shaking his head.
Mu Fu glanced at him and raised her eyebrows. “You couldn’t sleep either?”
“Not exactly. I woke up when Ding Binbing did.”
“Oh, same here,” Mu Fu said. “Ningran just got back.”
Yu Mo’s gaze lingered on her fair, delicate face for a moment. Then, almost absentmindedly, he reached out and gently pinched her cheek.
“How’s she doing?”
Mu Fu swatted his hand away with a glare. “She looks better than she did last night.”
She meant to look stern, but in Yu Mo’s eyes, she just looked like a cute kitten baring its tiny claws—zero threat, all fluff.
His eyes sparkled with amusement. “Mm. And how about you? You feeling okay? Don’t forget to drink lots of water today.”
Mu Fu was speechless. Why was he still going on about water?
“I’m fine, really. You don’t have to worry. Actually, I was going to ask… I want to go for a run. Wanna come?”
“Sure. Just give me a minute,” Yu Mo said with a nod.
Mu Fu nodded. “Okay, but I need to go change first.”
She hadn’t known if Yu Mo would agree to join her, so she hadn’t bothered putting on workout clothes or changing her shoes before coming out.
Yu Mo nodded as well. He got changed quickly. Mu Fu, on the other hand, took her time.
By the time she stepped out, she didn’t see Yu Mo upstairs and figured he must’ve already gone downstairs. Sure enough, when she came down, she saw him at the water dispenser, filling up his thermos. Seeing him made her realize she was a bit thirsty, too.
“Can you pour me a cup too? I’m feeling a little parched.”
Yu Mo handed her a cup of water without hesitation.
Mu Fu took one sip and then stopped drinking.
Yu Mo raised an eyebrow. “Why aren’t you finishing it?”
“You seriously don’t know you’re not supposed to drink too much water before running? It’ll give you a stomachache.”
Yu Mo blinked. “…I didn’t know that.”
Honestly, it wasn’t really his fault. He usually worked out after dinner, hours later, and by then he rarely felt thirsty.
Mu Fu glanced at the thermos in his hand. “Did you use boiling water?”
“No,” Yu Mo replied. “I mixed it with cold water—just warm enough.”
Once they were all set, the two headed out together.
The morning fog by the sea gave the whole landscape an ethereal feel, like stepping into a dream. It was soft and mysterious, like walking through a fantasy. To Mu Fu’s surprise, there were quite a few other people out jogging that early as well.
They jogged along the road for a while before Mu Fu began to feel winded. She turned her head to glance at Yu Mo beside her.
He was running at the same pace, even slowing down occasionally to match hers. What really made her envious was how effortlessly he did it—his breathing was calm and steady, and there wasn’t even a drop of sweat on his forehead.
Mu Fu’s mind started to wander. She thought back to yesterday afternoon. The stamina this guy showed in bed was unreal. And even with the system enhancements she had, she’d barely managed to keep up. Who would’ve thought someone who looked lean and mild-mannered could be that strong underneath?
“How… how are you not even out of breath?” she asked between gasps.
Wasn’t his body supposed to be weaker? His hands were always so cold—she’d assumed his constitution wasn’t great.
Yu Mo replied calmly, “This pace is totally fine for me.”
Mu Fu couldn’t help but ask the question that had been nagging at her.
“I thought your constitution was weak?”
Yu Mo turned to look at her, his expression unreadable—like he didn’t even know where to start. Mu Fu got the distinct feeling that his eyes were silently saying, Is this girl I like a little… silly?
“My health’s not great,” he replied calmly, “so I train regularly. I even have a lot of gym equipment at home.”
“…Oh.” Mu Fu had always assumed those treadmills and machines at his place were just collecting dust.
Yu Mo continued, a subtle smirk tugging at his lips. “Besides, didn’t you get a taste of my stamina yesterday?”
If she hadn’t, he’d be more than happy to give her a full experience—maybe tomorrow. He couldn’t help but wonder how she was feeling down there now. He recalled the view he’d seen while helping her apply medicine yesterday, and his throat tightened at the memory.
That scent had been tempting him, pulling at his restraint. Desire urged him to taste her, to claim a little more. But he’d held back. He wanted her to be fully awake, fully conscious—to experience that pleasure with a clear mind. He’d heard girls liked that kind of consideration.
Mu Fu, meanwhile, felt her thoughts slipping again, revisiting those scenes from yesterday. His words stirred something in her. She hadn’t expected that little pearl-shaped pill—the “Jade Marrow”—to work so well. Her body felt noticeably stronger. Maybe she should buy more of those from the system in future worlds. Then at least she wouldn’t keep lagging behind whenever her boyfriend got too enthusiastic. She hadn’t bought them before because… well, because she was cheap.
Her cheeks flushed pink. She quickly turned her head away, coughing lightly. “Ahem. There are a lot of people over there. Let’s go check it out.”
Before Yu Mo could reply, she darted ahead.
Watching her run off, Yu Mo chuckled softly.
When Mu Fu reached the crowd, she realized it was a small traffic accident. A young man on a bike had supposedly hit an elderly man.
According to witnesses, the biker had been riding slowly and had even swerved to avoid the old man. But just as he passed, the elder suddenly collapsed to the ground, groaning loudly. When the boy got off to help, the old man grabbed his leg and started demanding compensation, insisting he’d been hit.
Mu Fu didn’t need to hear more—this was clearly a scam. From the looks of it, the scene had already unfolded some time before she arrived.
The boy, even though he was young, was pretty responsible. He lived nearby in one of the villas, and his family had money, so he offered to take the old man to the hospital for a check-up. But the old man refused—he only wanted cash.
It didn’t take long for the boy to realize something was off. The old man’s refusal and insistence on money made it clear: he was being scammed. Without hesitation, the boy called the police.
As soon as the old man saw him dialing, he started to panic.
He’d heard from a friend that the people living in this area were rich and easily fooled—easy targets. That same friend had made tens of thousands in a similar scam around here. That’s what gave him the idea to try it himself. Of course, he didn’t want to actually get hurt, so he picked someone who looked like a high schooler—young, naive, and easy to manipulate.
But he hadn’t expected this particular boy to call the cops so quickly. Weren’t rich people supposed to care about their reputation and just pay up to avoid trouble? Why were the ones here so… different?
Now terrified of getting caught, the old man decided to cut his losses and run.
As he limped away, he muttered bitterly to himself. “What kind of young man was that—well-dressed and supposedly educated, but no compassion for the elderly! All he had to do was hand over some money, and the old man would’ve left in a second.”
He thought back to visiting his scammer friend yesterday, who was currently “recovering” at home while feasting on expensive meals and living the good life. The old man couldn’t help feeling a pang of envy.
“Screw it,” he muttered. “Guess I was unlucky today. Good thing it’s still early—I can try somewhere else. Maybe this time I’ll let myself get hurt a little.”
Eventually, he spotted a luxury car that looked pricey enough and walked right into its path.
This time, his foot was run over—completely fractured.
He rolled on the ground, screaming in pain, but to his horror, the car didn’t even stop. The driver just sped off.
To make matters worse, he had purposely chosen a spot with no surveillance cameras to avoid getting caught during the scam. Now, even if he wanted to report it, he had no proof, no evidence, and no help.
Axolotl Translations 
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