Lin Xiaoxiao felt like she'd seen a ghost. In Zhou Chang'an's current condition, just getting out of bed was an achievement—there was no way he could be here.

But that fleeting face, and even the build, looked exactly like Zhou Chang'an.

She trusted her memory. While not photographic, it was reliable enough to recognize someone at a glance.

Little Zhu, having washed his hands, tugged at her clothes and pointed inside, wondering why she was just standing there.

Snapping back to reality, Lin Xiaoxiao followed him back in. Since she wasn't sure, she decided not to mention it to Zhou Huai'an.

Zhou Huai'an was busy comforting Third Grandpa: "Thankfully we caught it early. Once it's treated, it won't hold him back."

Third Grandpa sighed heavily: "I'm just afraid something might really be wrong with Little Zhu. What would your Third Grandma and I do?"

When dinner arrived, Third Grandpa was too upset to eat more than a few bites.

The shop didn't serve milk-egg fermented rice in the evening, but they had wontons and dumplings, both of which were quite tasty.

Sensing the somber mood, Lin Xiaoxiao quietly served Little Zhu some dumplings and focused on her own meal.

The next morning, they first returned to Zhou Village to explain to Third Grandma that the county hospital couldn't handle the case and they needed to go to the city hospital. After packing a change of clothes, they set off directly for Longbei City.

They skipped Jiangyang City, where Zhou Village was located, mainly because Zhou Huai'an wasn't familiar with it. Instead, he trusted the military hospital in Longbei more.

Lü Zhigang and Zhou Huai'an took turns driving without stopping, arriving in Longbei by evening.

They went straight to the hospital. Fortunately, an acquaintance was on duty and helped admit Little Zhu. He would be examined first thing in the morning.

For convenience, Zhou Huai'an and the others checked into a military guesthouse near the hospital.

To Lin Xiaoxiao's delight, the guesthouse had a bathhouse—women's on the second floor, men's on the first.

During her days in the countryside, a proper shower had been out of the question; even a sponge bath felt like a luxury. She grabbed clean clothes and her basin and headed for the baths.

After her first experience, Lin Xiaoxiao was now completely unfazed by a room full of naked women. As she scrubbed, she even glanced around, subtly comparing figures.

She concluded, quite confidently, that her own body was the best—slim where it should be, without an ounce of extra fat, and full where it counted, like ripe peaches, plump and juicy.

After showering and admiring herself, she reached a conclusion: Zhou Huai'an was going to be a lucky man someday.

The thought made her giggle to herself as she got dressed.

While drying her hair, she felt an itchy scalp. Strange—hadn't she just washed it? Why did it still itch?

She scratched, feeling a faint, tingling sensation moving across her skin.

Lin Xiaoxiao paused. Could an insect have gotten into her hair?

Scratching only made her whole scalp itch more. She decided to ask Zhou Huai'an to take a look.

She stood outside the room shared by Zhou Huai'an and Lü Zhigang and called: "Zhou Huai'an, Zhou Huai'an..."

Zhou Huai'an emerged quickly. Seeing Lin Xiaoxiao with her hair still dripping, he asked: "What's wrong?"

Lin Xiaoxiao pointed to her head: "I keep feeling like there's something crawling in my hair. Can you check for me?"

Zhou Huai'an's expression stiffened slightly, as if recalling something, but he said nothing and followed her to her room.

Lin Xiaoxiao sat on a stool, scratching her head: "Right here, it feels like little bugs moving. Hurry, help me look."

Zhou Huai'an obediently bent over, his fingers somewhat stiff and clumsy as he parted her hair, carefully searching. After a moment, he actually found a small insect.

Seeing Zhou Huai'an's awkward expression, Lin Xiaoxiao asked: "What is it?"

Zhou Huai'an pressed the insect into his palm to show her: "Not a bug. It's a louse."

He crushed it with his fingernail, leaving a small spot of blood.

Lin Xiaoxiao nearly jumped up: "A louse? How did I get lice?"

She hadn't even heard of these in the modern world—how could they be on her?

Zhou Huai'an wasn't sure either: "Sit down. Let me check more. Lots of people have lice now."

Instantly, Lin Xiaoxiao felt a creepy-crawly sensation all over her body. She sat down hurriedly: "Please check carefully! I don't want these things everywhere!"

If she had lice, she'd probably picked them up during those two nights at the Zhou house. No wonder her scalp had been itching—she'd thought it was just dirty hair.

Zhou Huai'an clumsily continued searching, carefully parting her hair strand by strand.

Lin Xiaoxiao, who had been anxious, suddenly realized the scene—Zhou Huai'an picking through her hair for lice—looked just like monkeys grooming each other at the zoo.

She couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Zhou Huai'an looked at Lin Xiaoxiao, who had been ready to jump out of her skin just moments ago and was now laughing to herself. After a while, he said: "I don't see any more adults, but there are some nits. Tomorrow we'll buy a fine-toothed comb and go through your hair properly."

Looking at her hair, which fell almost to her waist, he thought even with a comb, it would be troublesome.

Lin Xiaoxiao, however, was pragmatic: "Tomorrow I'll find a barbershop and cut it short. Shorter hair will be easier to manage."

She then turned to Zhou Huai'an: "What about you? Do you have them? Let me check you."

Before Zhou Huai'an could react, Lin Xiaoxiao stood up, pulled him down onto the stool, and started running her fingers through his coarse hair without hesitation.

Lin Xiaoxiao realized Zhou Huai'an was really tall—even sitting, he reached above her chest.

And his hair was wonderful—thick, coarse, and dense. It prickled against her fingertips, sending a strange, tingling sensation straight to her heart. At least he'd never have to worry about hair loss.

Like a female monkey grooming a male, she went through his hair thoroughly but found nothing: "Strange, how come you don't have them?"

Zhou Huai'an's hands on his knees were sweating. Lin Xiaoxiao, completely unaware, continued tracing his scalp with her cool fingertips. He forced himself to suppress the unfamiliar shiver running through him.

He felt goosebumps rising all over his skin.

It was like an electric current.

Lin Xiaoxiao noticed Zhou Huai'an's ears turning red again. How could a grown man be so easily embarrassed?

That night, Lin Xiaoxiao barely slept, constantly feeling imaginary bugs crawling all over her. She got up in the middle of the night, took out all her clothes, inspected every seam, and worried her hair was infested, scratching furiously.

Zhou Huai'an didn't sleep well either. He rarely dreamed, but that night he dreamt of Lin Xiaoxiao—the girl crying beneath him like a small, helpless creature...

He got up halfway through the night to wash clothes in the utility room.

Lü Zhigang woke up in the morning puzzled: "What's wrong with you, washing clothes in the middle of the night?"

Zhou Huai'an ignored him, focusing on tidying the bedding.

Although also single, Lü Zhigang had heard his share of crude jokes and read his share of risqué books. Seeing Zhou Huai'an's discomfort, he grinned mischievously: "Did you dream about something you shouldn't have last night?"