Chapter 1 The Midnight Hour

In the wee hours of the morning, a man lay in bed in Jiang City, his hands resting peacefully beneath the covers, positioned between his abdomen and chest.

Fatty was still sleeping in the living room outside the bedroom.

The difference was that Jiang Cheng hadn't closed the bedroom door today.

Fatty was probably genuinely scared, tossing and turning on the old sofa in the living room. He eventually moved the sofa in front of the bedroom door, so he could see Jiang Cheng lying inside the moment he opened his eyes.

But this was somewhat terrifying for Jiang Cheng. He only had to turn his head slightly to see a round head in front of the bedroom door, with a pair of eyes staring at him.

Fortunately, Jiang Cheng didn't do that. His breathing gradually evened out, and he slowly fell asleep.

Seeing Jiang Cheng acting so calm, Fatty couldn't help but feel safer. Perhaps it wasn't accurate to say that, but as long as he was by Jiang Cheng's side, Fatty felt like he couldn't die.

The closer, the safer; the harder to die.

Thinking about this, Fatty's eyelids began to droop, and his consciousness gradually blurred.

In the morning, a strange sound woke Fatty from his slumber.

He turned over, then opened his heavy eyelids after a few seconds.

Jiang Cheng was gone from the bedroom.

Fatty was instantly wide awake. He sat up from the sofa with a gulp.

"Creak—"

A sound came from downstairs.

After a while, Fatty finally found Jiang Cheng downstairs, much to his relief. Jiang Cheng was moving the shelf where the patient files were stored, and Fatty helpfully went over to assist.

"Doctor," Fatty said as he braced his shoulder against the shelf, "leave this kind of work to me from now on. You don't have to do it yourself."

After placing the shelf, Fatty went to wash up and then rushed into the kitchen to prepare a nutritious breakfast for Jiang Cheng.

He had woken up too hastily this morning, so Fatty simply prepared two bowls of cereal, mixed with 1L of discounted pure milk he had snatched up at the supermarket. Worried that it wasn't nutritious enough, he also boiled two eggs for Jiang Cheng.

Fatty didn't relax until he saw Jiang Cheng finish everything.

"Doctor, are you full?" Fatty asked as he cleared the table. "Should I fry another egg for you? I bought a nice barbecue sauce."

"I'm full."

"Then, Doctor, please take a rest," Fatty said before taking the dishes to the kitchen to wash.

Fatty boiled water as soon as he came downstairs and poured it into Jiang Cheng's favorite pink Peppa Pig thermos. So now, Jiang Cheng could sit and rest while making himself a cup of coffee.

He picked up his coffee cup, took a slow sip, and savored the sensation of the 1.5 yuan instant coffee exploding on his tongue.

"Fatty," Jiang Cheng suddenly asked, "what day is it today?"

Fatty's voice, mixed with the clatter of pots and pans and the sound of running water, sounded particularly lively. "It's Friday, Doctor."

"The end of the month?"

"Doctor, your memory is amazing!"

What Jiang Cheng admired most about Fatty was this. Although he was timid, his ability to adjust was excellent. As long as he wasn't scared to death the day before, he would wake up the next day as a brand-new Fatty.

Fatty shouted from the kitchen, "Doctor, should we have sweet and sour fish or boiled fish for lunch? I'm going to start preparing!"

Jiang Cheng took another sip of coffee and replied after a few seconds, "Sweet and sour. Boiled fish uses too much seasoning."

"Got it, Doctor."

After hearing Jiang Cheng's words, Fatty took the fish he had bought the day before out of the refrigerator.

Having done everything, Fatty went to the bathroom and carefully washed his hands three times with hand sanitizer until he couldn't smell even a hint of fishiness. Only then did he come out of the bathroom and approach Jiang Cheng.

He sat obediently on the sofa opposite Jiang Cheng, not speaking, his hands resting flat on his knees, and stared at Jiang Cheng.

Jiang Cheng picked up his phone and replied to a few messages, then put it down, seemingly thinking about something. At the same time, he finished the last of his coffee.

Fatty licked his lips, his eyes unable to hide his eagerness.

"I didn't get the mission reward," Jiang Cheng said calmly after putting down his cup and looking up. "Someone left through the door before me."

Fatty blinked in disbelief.

"Also," Jiang Cheng leaned back in his chair, retracting his arm, "I ran into an acquaintance this time."

Fatty blinked. "That innocent girl, Chen Xiaomeng?"

Jiang Cheng frowned. "How did you know?"

He subconsciously thought that Fatty's brainwaves had sent him the information. Last night, he had realized that nightmares were most likely spread through brainwaves. Could it be...?

"Doctor, we've only experienced two missions," Fatty seemed to realize that Jiang Cheng had misunderstood, so his expression was a little embarrassed. "In two missions, besides the two of us, only Chen Xiaomeng survived."

Jiang Cheng: "......"

"Doctor, none of that matters. Tell me about your mission this time," Fatty asked with curiosity.

He thoughtfully refilled Jiang Cheng's cup with water.

Jiang Cheng began to recount the events he had encountered in this mission, as expected.

It had to be said that Jiang Cheng had a great talent for storytelling. The already dramatic plot became an epic drama in his hands.

Of course, he was the only male lead.

And in his story, there were also three women fighting over him.

Fatty listened intently.

When Jiang Cheng talked about digging up the landmines buried by the village chief and others, and then burying them at the entrance of the village, Fatty was stunned. He couldn't help but exclaim, "No wonder you're an orphan, Doctor. No normal person would do that."

"Tsk," Jiang Cheng stopped talking immediately and looked at Fatty askance.

Realizing that he had misspoke, Fatty immediately explained, "Doctor, don't misunderstand. I meant to praise your ingenuity."

After coaxing him for a long time, the matter was settled.

Fatty promised to stir-fry spicy chicken for lunch as an apology to Jiang Cheng.

However, after hearing the story of Asumu, Fatty fell silent. Judging from what he had done before, Asumu was definitely not a good person, but his decision at the last moment of his life was admirable.

Good and evil were just a matter of thought.

"But speaking of which," Fatty said, wrapping his clothes tightly around himself, "that woman named Li Lu was too amazing. She was able to deceive both you and Chen Xiaomeng and even set a trap to kill you."

Of course, one reason was that Jiang Cheng and Chen Xiaomeng were wary of each other, but there weren't many people who could do this.

Speaking of this, Fatty's expression suddenly became subtle. He moved closer to Jiang Cheng and asked with a smile, "Doctor, I have a question."

Jiang Cheng glanced at him, apparently signaling him to continue.

Fatty swallowed, his face slightly red with excitement. "The night you and Chen Xiaomeng stayed together...did anything happen?"