"He..." Qin Si Ye's arm suddenly lifted, halting before he could speak.
"Don't move," Gu Lin cautioned him, glancing at his left arm. "Your wound here, it was bandaged a few days ago, wasn't it? Why haven't you changed the dressing?"
Qin Si Ye angled his head to look. It had become slightly red and swollen. He remained silent.
Picking up a cotton swab, Gu Lin dipped it in iodine and spread it evenly. "You don't have to say anything, I know. Did Hong He's people kidnap Shen Xi and threaten you? If I'm not mistaken, she was the one who treated this wound for you."
Qin Si Ye stared at him with a cold expression, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
"You don't have to look at me like that. On Sunday, when I was asking about you, Zhao Ze accidentally let it slip," Gu Lin said, a slight curve to his lips.
Fu Ji Heng swirled the red wine in his glass and took a sip. "You said you didn't like her, but for her, you even took down Hong He's entire operation."
"Yes, you two really are fated. You run into each other even when you go on a business trip," Gu Lin said, slowly applying a white dressing to the wound, his lips curving upwards.
Qin Si Ye put on his clothes. The memory of Shen Xi's resolute departure that day instantly ignited his anger.
"You two stop talking nonsense. If you make such a foolish joke again, don't blame me for being impolite." Recalling the last time they had tricked Shen Xi into coming, Qin Si Ye had found them the next day and furiously berated them.
The two exchanged a glance and quickly plastered on smiles. "Alright, alright, we were wrong, okay? Come, let's drink."
"Tonight, we only drink, no talk of women."
In another private room, Shen Xi had just entered with her colleagues. Everyone immediately presented their gifts to Dr. Liao, placed the cake, lit the candles, and sang "Happy Birthday."
Dr. Liao closed his eyes happily, made a wish, and blew out all the candles in one breath.
"Thank you everyone for celebrating my birthday today. I'm truly happy," Dr. Liao said excitedly, looking at everyone and raising the glass of red wine in front of him.
Everyone offered him more blessings.
After several rounds of drinks, Dr. Wang stood up and looked at Shen Xi. "Dr. Shen, last time was our petty suspicion. Today, we all apologize to you."
Everyone present, whether they had been involved in that incident or not, stood up together and raised their glasses to Shen Xi. The previous week's public breakup between Qin Si Ye, the richest man in K City, and Lu Yushan, the eldest daughter of the Lu family, had implicated Shen Xi. Everyone had seen it. It turned out Shen Xi was Qin Si Ye's specially appointed doctor, and Qin Si Yue in the CT room was Qin Si Ye's own sister. No wonder the hospital had reissued punishments the day after that incident; Qin Si Ye must have had a significant influence.
Shen Xi also quickly stood up. "There's no need to mention this again. I've long forgotten about it. We are all colleagues, and we must unite, learn from each other, serve patients better, and generate revenue for the hospital."
"Very good, very good, Dr. Shen is indeed magnanimous," Dr. Liao said with a chuckle, glancing at Shen Xi, then sweeping his gaze across the crowd. "Come, let's all finish this glass together. This matter is now in the past."
After that, everyone toasted each other, chatting and laughing, filling the room with harmony. Someone picked up the microphone and started singing karaoke, one song after another, singing with great enjoyment. Two young nurses even kept winking at Dr. Liao and singing love songs, but Dr. Liao only focused on his drink, completely ignoring them.
Shen Xi sat in the center. Someone urged her to sing a song, but she politely declined. At this moment, she felt like a thorn in her side, sensing she didn't fit in with such an occasion. She wanted to go out for some fresh air. After informing Dr. Wang, she stood up and headed towards the restroom.
Upon exiting the restroom, she hesitated whether to stand outside for a moment or return to the private room. Dr. Liao's voice suddenly sounded from behind her.
"Dr. Shen. Are you planning to leave?"
Shen Xi turned back with a smile. "No. I just wanted to get some air."
"Actually, I don't like overly noisy environments either," Dr. Liao said with a slight smile, pointing ahead. "There's a window sill over there, and the air is quite nice. Why don't we go stand there for a bit together?"