Mu Qing's eyes flickered, "Don't you remember?"
Ning Wei feigned ignorance, "Remember what?"
Mu Qing shook her head repeatedly, "You're too lazy today, you slept in, so you'll have to wait for lunch."
"Then I'll hold on a little longer," Ning Wei didn't want to argue with her.
This was exactly what Mu Qing wanted. This morning, she had seen that Ning Wei wasn't awake and had intended to wake her, but was stopped by the head nurse.
The head nurse said Ning Wei was a highly intelligent antisocial patient. Although she seemed normal on the surface, there was no guarantee she wouldn't plot harmful schemes behind their backs.
So the doctor prescribed Ning Wei another medication that would make her drowsy. This way, she wouldn't have time to cause trouble.
Mu Qing genuinely treated Ning Wei as an ordinary person and had no reason to guard against her.
However, she couldn't ignore the head nurse's words, so Mu Qing could only placate Ning Wei.
After Mu Qing left, Ning Wei's gaze sharpened, revealing that she was enduring something.
At noon, Mu Qing brought the food over early, "Didn't you say you were hungry? Eat up."
Normally, medication was taken before lunch to prevent patients from secretly spitting it out.
By watching the patient take the medicine and then eat their meal, no medication could be expelled, as it would have already been absorbed by the body.
Ning Wei hadn't taken her medication that morning, and Mu Qing brought her lunch.
How could a patient not take their medication? The only explanation was the lunch Mu Qing was holding.
Ning Wei's mind raced as she considered whether to mention the medication.
Seeing Ning Wei's silence, Mu Qing called out again, "Ning Wei?"
Ning Wei took the tray and casually asked, "Don't I need to take my medication?"
Mu Qing's hand trembled, nearly dropping the plate.
With this small reaction, Ning Wei understood everything; her earlier suspicions were confirmed.
"Didn't I tell you you've been behaving well? So you don't need to take your medication for a few days."
"Then can I go home?"
"Soon, very soon."
Mu Qing was truly terrible at lying. After a few perfunctory words with Ning Wei, she fled.
Ning Wei placed the food on the table and sat down, staring blankly at the meal.
The medication was definitely in the food, but she couldn't refuse to eat it, or the nurses would notice something was wrong.
Ning Wei gripped her chopsticks tightly, thinking about how unlucky she was.
To confirm if the midday medication was the same as last night's, Ning Wei closed her eyes and finished the meal.
Since she hadn't eaten breakfast and was hungry, she decided to just give up and eat the entire lunch.
Of course, she also ingested all the hidden medication.
When Mu Qing returned to collect the tray, she saw Ning Wei lying on the bed, drowsy. Mu Qing's lips moved as if to say something, but in the end, she said nothing and quietly left the room.
After she left, Ning Wei clutched her blanket, grimacing in pain.
To resist the medication's effects, she had been tough on herself, likely leaving dark bruises on her thigh.
After the patients finished their lunches, the nurses would take turns eating, which was their break time. They usually stayed in the lounge and didn't come out.
Ning Wei finally managed to hold on until this time and, through the door, called out to Li Ye in the opposite room.
Li Ye was either basking in the moonlight or the sun, so Ning Wei spotted him through the peephole.
Speaking would attract the nurses' attention, so Ning Wei gesticulated wildly in her room, indicating that she had eaten the same meal as last night and would soon lose consciousness.
Li Ye watched her exaggerated performance with a stern expression, eventually showing a hint of a smile.
He merely changed his expression; he didn't make any other gestures to show understanding, nor did he give Ning Wei any emotional glance.
Ning Wei gritted her teeth in anger and muttered under her breath, "Don't you understand, you idiot!"
Hearing Ning Wei curse, Li Ye became annoyed.
He rolled his eyes at Ning Wei, then turned and sat by the window to continue sunbathing, ignoring Ning Wei's calls.
Ning Wei also became angry and fell onto the bed. The white walls began to swirl.
She knew she was about to lose consciousness.
In the last moment before closing her eyes, she still covered herself with the blanket.
Even if she was unconscious, she couldn't catch a cold, as her master had told her in the Taoist temple.
The memories of that time were still vivid. Ning Wei used to kick off her blankets when sleeping, and her master would personally ensure she was covered before leaving.
After she fell into a deep sleep, Mu Qing and the head nurse came to observe her for a long time.
They didn't try to hide their conversation from other patients, so Li Ye overheard everything.
"Are you sure Ning Wei has finished her meal?" the head nurse asked Mu Qing.
Mu Qing nodded, "She said she was hungry when she woke up this morning, so she ate all of her lunch."
"Did she go to the restroom after eating?"
Mu Qing replied, "Yes, she did, and came out in less than a minute, so the possibility of her inducing vomiting is slim."
The head nurse was satisfied but still cautioned Mu Qing, "Ning Wei is a very intelligent patient, so don't let your guard down. From now on, all her medication will be added to her food to ensure she takes it all."
Mu Qing didn't understand why the head nurse was suddenly paying so much attention to Ning Wei. Was it because her own work wasn't good enough, and the head nurse was helping her?
Or was Ning Wei truly getting better?
Mu Qing couldn't figure it out, so she cautiously tried to inquire with the head nurse.
"Is the sudden change in Ning Wei's medication because she's getting better and can leave the hospital?"
Upon hearing this, the smile on the head nurse's face was incomprehensible to Mu Qing, even a little frightening.
"Yes, she's leaving the hospital soon, so you must keep a close eye on her during this period and ensure she takes every dose of her medication."
Mu Qing stopped thinking and nodded, assuring the head nurse, "I will take good care of Ning Wei."
The head nurse was very pleased and started to walk forward. This was part of her daily routine at noon; she checked on every patient to ensure they were under her control.
Mu Qing felt that the head nurse was very dedicated and responsible in her work and admired her greatly.
She heard that the head nurse had been working in this psychiatric hospital for over a decade and was an elder there. She was diligent and responsible with her patients, never delegating tasks, and knew the condition of every patient intimately.
To work in a psychiatric hospital for several years was remarkable, as one was constantly around those who were not mentally sound.
Mu Qing admired her from the bottom of her heart and hoped to become like her.
After the two nurses left the fifth floor, Li Ye's gaze darkened.
This head nurse clearly had an agenda, and it seemed Ning Wei had become her target.
Li Ye saw the unconscious Ning Wei through the peephole of the door and murmured to himself, "I wonder if this little ant has noticed something is wrong."
The little ant, of course, did not know, because she had already passed out.
By the time Ning Wei woke up, it was almost dark.