"Hello?" Jiang Ye answered.
"Jiang Ye, get home quickly. I have something urgent to tell you!" Isabel's tone was stern. "This matter is bigger than the sky!"
"I'm already home, at the hot spring house."
Jiang Ye's expression was subtle. He could hear the tension in Isabel's voice. She was always so carefree; what could make her uneasy?
"Wait a moment, I'll be there soon. We'll talk when we meet," Isabel hung up.
Less than two minutes later, a flying car whizzed and landed.
Jiang Ye went downstairs. Isabel rushed in, wrapped in a thick white down jacket.
"Jiang Ye, can I trust you?" Isabel grabbed his shoulders, her expression extremely serious.
"Of course," Jiang Ye felt a bit uneasy. He sensed that the atmosphere tonight was somewhat strange.
"Can you keep a secret?" Isabel asked again.
"Yes, as long as you trust me," Jiang Ye frowned slightly. "What is it?"
Isabel leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Li Nannan is here."
Jiang Ye felt struck by lightning, his mind buzzing.
"What did you say?" Jiang Ye's eyes widened.
"Li Nannan is here," Isabel repeated. "She's in the car."
Jiang Ye turned to look out the window in shock. Isabel's flying car hadn't been turned off yet, its red headlights illuminating the ground in the yard. But the car windows were tinted, completely dark, making it impossible to see inside. Perhaps Li Nannan was looking at him from the car.
"She needs to stay here, secretly, for a while," Isabel stared at him seriously. "You must absolutely keep it secret, and absolutely not leak any information."
Jiang Ye smelled a strong whiff of conspiracy, his heart pounding like a rabbit's.
He stared at Isabel's face, almost not recognizing her. Tonight, Isabel looked like a female spy, carrying a huge secret.
His mind was in a mess. He had just seen news in the star network group saying that Li Nannan's unit had infiltrated deep into enemy territory, facing a life-or-death situation.
But now, how had she suddenly returned from the battlefield, come here, and made it so mysterious?
"I know what you're thinking. Don't worry, it's Li Nannan herself. I've verified it," Isabel said in a low voice. "Her unit was captured by the Mil people. Later, after some unknown events, she suffered severe psychological trauma and is now a bit mentally unstable, and her body is injured. I'll bring her in first, let her sleep upstairs, and then we'll talk slowly, okay?"
"Okay," Jiang Ye nodded.
"Come help me," Isabel turned and went out.
Jiang Ye had a bad premonition. Why did he need to help?
When Isabel opened the car door, he was stunned.
A small figure was curled up on the car seat, wrapped in a thick white blanket, with only half of its head exposed.
Her head looked like it had been shaved haphazardly with clippers; only patches of hair remained, revealing large areas of pinkish-white scalp, matted with blood scabs. She looked like a kitten that had its fur scalded off in boiling water. Perhaps due to strong radiation or some torture, her once flowing hair was gone.
Fortunately, her face was unharmed, still Li Nannan's face.
But her demeanor was not like Li Nannan's. Her expression was extremely terrified, her eyes darting. She seemed like a small animal trapped in a cage, waiting to be slaughtered, so frightened because she had witnessed her own kind being disemboweled.
Li Nannan trembled slightly, shrinking back.
Isabel got into the car and gently hugged her. "Don't be afraid, you're safe here. Look at that person, you know him, remember?"
Li Nannan's eyes trembled as she cautiously looked at Jiang Ye.
Jiang Ye was stunned by her appearance and for a moment, he didn't dare to approach, afraid of scaring her.
Heaven knows what she had been through during this time to become like this?
"Doesn't he look familiar? You've met him before, he even gave you money. Think carefully," Isabel's tone was like coaxing a child.
"Jiang... Jiang Ye?" Li Nannan's voice was softer than a mosquito's.
Jiang Ye was relieved that she at least remembered his name.
"Don't be afraid, you'll be staying at his place for now. I'll take you upstairs, it's a very beautiful big house," Isabel took Li Nannan's small hand. Jiang Ye noticed that each of her fingers was missing a fingernail, and her fingers were very swollen.
"Why... why do I have to stay at his place?" Li Nannan didn't move.
"He's the commanding officer of this planet. His home is the safest. No police will search it, no thieves dare to trespass, and if something happens, he can help you escape," Isabel explained gently. "Besides, he's driven all his friends away, and no one wants to visit his place anymore. If you stay here, no one will bother you."
Li Nannan finally moved, reaching out to hug Isabel, clinging to her like a koala.
Isabel carried her out of the car and straight into the house. They went upstairs, familiar with the way, heading directly to the bedroom, lifted the covers, and put Li Nannan in.
After tucking her in, Isabel touched her forehead. "You're sleepy, right? Go to sleep. Don't worry, you're safe here."
Jiang Ye stood at the door. Li Nannan looked at him, then at Isabel, nodded obediently, and closed her eyes.
Within a few minutes, her breathing became even, and she fell asleep soundly.
Isabel tiptoed backward, closed the door, and pulled Jiang Ye downstairs.
Jiang Ye had an illusion that he was the father, Isabel was the mother, and Li Nannan was the baby, and the parents had just put the baby to sleep.
The two sat down on the living room sofa and began to talk seriously.
"How did Li Nannan get back? Wasn't she at the front line? Did she sneak back from under the noses of the Mil people?" Jiang Ye asked immediately.
"I don't know yet, but two people from the military secretly brought her here like thieves in the middle of the night, instructing me to take care of her," Isabel said. "She has problems with both her mental and physical health and needs a period of recuperation. If the news of her return gets out, it will be very troublesome."
"I'm her best friend, so naturally, she came to me to live in seclusion and recuperate. But lately, the police have been searching everywhere for illegal elements, knocking on my door every day. Especially a young man who might have a crush on me; he always chats with me for a long time whenever he comes..."
"So Li Nannan wasn't safe at your place, and if she was discovered, she'd be sent to me," Jiang Ye understood.
"Yes, I'll give you some instructions," Isabel said. "Find a place to write them down."
Jiang Ye took out his phone and created a new note.
"First, you must not tell anyone she is here, absolutely no leaks," Isabel began.
"Second, she is currently incontinent, so diapers need to be changed regularly."
"Third, her stomach is bad, so she can only eat liquid food. It can't be too cold or too hot. Small, frequent meals."
"Fourth, feed her medication on time. A total of 14 types of medicine, three pills of each per day, one pill each in the morning, noon, and evening."
As Isabel spoke, she took out a large yellow medicine box from her embrace. The box was divided into sixteen small compartments, and in each compartment, capsules were neatly arranged in red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple, looking exceptionally vibrant.
Jiang Ye took the medicine box with both hands and nodded.
"Fifth, and most importantly," Isabel said.