Xiao Yan could only glare in frustration, but there was nothing she could do. She had no choice but to treat the patient's wound herself.

After thinking it over—recalling Lin Xiaoxiao's temper and past behavior—she realized that if things really escalated, she wouldn't come out on top. So, she decided it was better not to provoke Lin Xiaoxiao again.......That evening, when Zhou Huai'an returned from work, the neighbor's house was still noisy as ever. Old Mrs. Wang was sitting in the yard washing clothes while scolding her grandchildren.

The moment she saw Zhou Huai'an, she fell silent and bent her head over the washing.

Not seeing Lin Xiaoxiao in the yard, Zhou Huai'an ignored the old woman and pushed open the door to go inside—only to be startled by the scene that greeted him.

Lin Xiaoxiao was lying on the small bed, her face covered with cucumber slices. She held half a cucumber in one hand, munching on it as she read a book.

Her normally fair face was now a patchwork of green. His first thought was that she must be unwell. He hurried over. "What's wrong? Are you feeling sick?"

Lin Xiaoxiao waved the cucumber slice in her hand, careful not to move her mouth too much.

"I'm fine," she mumbled. "This is a beauty treatment. It's good for the skin."

Zhou Huai'an was puzzled. Cucumbers could improve the skin? As she spoke, a cucumber slice slipped from her face. He quickly caught it and gently pressed it back into place.

Lin Xiaoxiao giggled. "You're pretty good at that. You can help me put them on from now on."

Zhou Huai'an sat on the edge of the bed, steadying her fidgeting head. "How was your day at work?"

Lin Xiaoxiao thought for a moment. "It was fine, I guess. No one dared to bother me. But why is Luo Caixia there? Is she after you, or someone else?"

Zhou Huai'an frowned. "I'm not sure. I'll look into it."

Suddenly, Lin Xiaoxiao had a thought. She swept the cucumber slices off her face and sat up quickly. "I just realized something—Luo Caixia has been following your every move. When you were in the city, she showed up there. Now that you're back at the unit, she appears here."

"Why now? Why not earlier? Does she have some other motive? Even if she's involved with Li Guohao, she could've come here long ago. And does Li Guohao even know that you and Luo Caixia know each other?"

Zhou Huai'an shook his head. "Probably not."

After all, Luo Caixia had never come to his workplace before. Even her letters never included photos, and he had never written back.

The more Lin Xiaoxiao thought about it, the more convinced she became that Luo Caixia hadn't given up on Zhou Huai'an.

And Zhou Huai'an, prompted by her words, began to wonder—did Luo Caixia have another agenda?......Over the next few days, Lin Xiaoxiao didn't run into Luo Caixia again. Xiao Yan also kept to herself, making Lin Xiaoxiao's time at the medical station relatively peaceful.

With little to do, Lin Xiaoxiao spent her time reading—preparing for the reinstatement of the college entrance exams—and also studying traditional Chinese medicine, learning enough to perform basic pulse diagnosis.

But she was growing anxious. She clearly remembered that the exams were reinstated in the winter of this year, but it was already mid-July, and there was still no news.

She couldn't recall the exact date the announcement was made. Her biggest worry was whether her presence here might have caused a butterfly effect—what if the timing had changed?

While lost in thought at her desk, Zhou Xiaoling sneaked in and tapped her on the shoulder. "Sis!"

Startled, Lin Xiaoxiao turned and couldn't help but laugh. "Aren't you a little old for that? Do you have the day off again?"

Zhou Xiaoling pulled up a stool and sat close. "Yeah, I'm off today. I bought two jin of pork. Let's make dumplings tonight—it's my birthday."

Lin Xiaoxiao was surprised. "Your birthday? Why didn't you say something earlier? Is it too late to buy fish?"

Zhou Xiaoling grinned. "No need. Back home, my mom always made lamb and radish dumplings for my birthday. I don't know if she misremembered, but she always said it was my favorite—even though I never really liked them."

Lin Xiaoxiao smiled. "Maybe she decided you should like them. But being able to have dumplings on your birthday is pretty nice."

Zhou Xiaolong nodded eagerly. "Yeah, yeah! I'm going to call my mom later. It's just... weird. For my brother and sister's birthdays, she's perfectly normal. But every year on my birthday, she gets sad and sometimes even cries."

It always made her wonder—had she done something wrong? Did her mother regret having her?

Or was she disappointed that she wasn't more obedient?

Lin Xiaoxiao felt that Li Yunlan was a woman of deep emotions. "Maybe she had a difficult time when you were born, or something sad happened around then. That might be why she gets emotional."

Zhou Xiaoling sighed. "What could be more important than having me? Ah, I don't get it. Never mind—let's not think about it. We'll go make dumplings as soon as you get off work."

At the mention of dumplings, Lin Xiaoxiao shot a meaningful glance in Xiao Yan's direction. She hadn't forgotten how Xiao Yan had once shown up at their house with dumplings.

After work, Lin Xiaoxiao took Zhou Xiaoling home.

At the entrance to the residential compound, they ran into Luo Caixia. She was dressed simply—a white blouse, black patched trousers, and cloth shoes. The only thing missing was her green scarf.

Walking arm-in-arm with her was Dong Hongmei, who was wearing the green scarf. The two were chatting and laughing warmly. When Dong Hongmei saw Lin Xiaoxiao, she greeted her enthusiastically. "Xiaoxiao, off work already?"

For a moment, Lin Xiaoxiao felt the world had turned upside down. Luo Caixia and Dong Hongmei were this close? What was Luo Caixia thinking, getting so near to Dong Hongmei?

Noticing Lin Xiaoxiao's gaze, Dong Hongmei quickly explained. "This is Luo Caixia. I heard you two know each other. Who would've thought she's actually a distant cousin of my Lao Li? She came here recently to stay with family, and Lao Li arranged for her to cook at your medical station."

She sounded almost reproachful. "Lao Li was afraid I'd be upset, so he kept it from me. I only found out when I got a telegram from his aunt."

Lin Xiaoxiao couldn't make sense of this turn of events. How could Dong Hongmei believe such a clumsy lie?

She stared at Luo Caixia and smiled. "What a coincidence."

Dong Hongmei laughed. "Isn't it just? Who would've thought Lao Li's cousin would be from the same village as Xiao Zhou? We should all get together sometime."

Lin Xiaoxiao didn't respond, her eyes still fixed on Luo Caixia. She noticed a faint, sickly yellow tint around Luo Caixia's eyes. When she wasn't smiling, her gaze seemed dark and gloomy.

Luo Caixia tugged at Dong Hongmei's arm. "Sis, it's getting late. I should be going. I'll visit you and Brother another time."

Zhou Xiaoling had been quietly observing the scene. After Dong Hongmei walked Luo Caixia out, she whispered to Lin Xiaoxiao, "Sis, who was that?"

Lin Xiaoxiao didn't answer. Her mind was filled with the image of Luo Caixia's eyes. She hadn't paid much attention before, but upon closer look, something felt off.

Luo Caixia's symptoms... they looked very much like poisoning.