Chapter 148 - 146: Breakfast

Words : 1136 Updated : Sep 17th, 2025

For Chen Xin, this may have been the most comfortable sleep he had in a long time. Soft white noise, warm-toned dim lights, and Hong Rui’s specially-made incense, all of these helped ease the tension he had been carrying for this period of time. Once he relaxed, he naturally fell into a deep sleep and woke up naturally. Opening his eyes, Chen Xin saw Qin Lan asleep at the bedside, showing a surprised expression, he moved slightly, waking Qin Lan up. "Xin, you’re awake?" Qin Lan seemed not to be in a deep sleep, she quickly woke up and upon seeing Chen Xin awake, she hurriedly asked with concern: "How are you feeling, any better?" "Much better. After sleeping, I’m fine now. Lan, why didn’t you sleep in the bed next to mine? Lying like that is uncomfortable!" Seeing the red mark on Qin Lan’s face from leaning for too long, Chen Xin felt a bit distressed. However, Qin Lan just smiled indifferently and comforted Chen Xin: "Don’t worry about me, I am a special forces officer, trained professionally. This is nothing to me." After saying this, Qin Lan stood up, stretched lazily, moved her muscles to show she was fine, then with some guilt, she said to Chen Xin: "Sorry for making you witness that scene last night. I should have handled it better, aiming for the torso." If Chen Xin didn’t know anything, maybe he would believe Qin Lan’s words. But he saw with his own eyes his bullets leaving the gun, hitting the heads of those three criminals. Yet, Chen Xin couldn’t say this aloud because he knew Qin Lan claimed responsibility to protect him. So, Chen Xin could only apologize to Qin Lan: "It’s my fault. If I could handle things better, it would’ve been different." Saying this, Chen Xin also sat up from the hospital bed and asked Qin Lan with concern: "Did my shooting cause any trouble for you? I wouldn’t have pulled out the gun if I’d known!" Chen Xin’s guilt was genuine; he truly didn’t want to cause Qin Lan any inconvenience or trouble. To this, Qin Lan simply shook her head and comforted Chen Xin: "Xin, you were anxious because you care! Did you forget the situation we’re in? Besides, I’m in special forces. The team already issued a policy; in such situations, shooting to kill is permissible. As for you having a gun, that’s not an issue, the political officer knows you have a gun. Besides, what you did last night, even in the past, had you killed those three people, it would at most be considered excessive self-defense, not a crime." Hearing Qin Lan say this, Chen Xin felt relieved a lot, nodded, and said no more. Seeing Chen Xin no longer dwell on this matter, Qin Lan felt a sigh of relief inwardly, then asked him: "Xin, are you hungry? The hospital food here is quite good. I’ll get you some breakfast, while you can rinse your mouth or wash your face! There’s a sink over there, you can use it for the time being." As she said this, Qin Lan pointed to the sink in a corner of the hospital room, while taking out a handkerchief from herself and handing it to Chen Xin. Taking the handkerchief Qin Lan handed over, Chen Xin nodded, while Qin Lan left the room to get him some food. The hospital food is indeed better than that of the special forces team, not because the hospital treatment is better, but because their needs differ. The special forces team and city bureau require high-calorie food that can fill and sustain energy, whereas the hospital food offers various nutritional meals that speed up patient recovery, which results in hospital food being quite different and even better. In some sense, the hospital’s food is currently the least changed thing compared to before the disaster. In the hospital cafeteria, Qin Lan even got porridge, buns, and even soy milk. This made Qin Lan swallow hard, trying to resist the temptation in her stomach while smelling the aroma from her breakfast, she then carried the meal towards the hospital room. However, when Qin Lan returned to the room, she saw not only Chen Xin. Hong Rui, responsible for treating Chen Xin, was checking Chen Xin’s condition. "Good morning, Dr. Hong!" Qin Lan greeted Hong Rui, after placing down the breakfast, she asked: "How is Xin’s condition? Is he okay?" Hong Rui nodded and answered affirmatively: "Recovering well, a bit more rest and he can go home. Once back, just rest and avoid stressing yourself too much." "Is that so? Thank you so much, Dr. Hong!" Hearing Hong Rui said Chen Xin was fine, Qin Lan immediately thanked her with joy. Hong Rui did not pay much attention to Qin Lan’s gratitude, just smiled then said to Chen Xin: "Regarding those herb seeds, I’ll give you some later, it’d be fantastic if more could be planted." "Don’t worry, Dr. Hong, my planting greenhouse is quite large, planting some herbs won’t be a problem." Chen Xin assuredly responded to Hong Rui’s words. After Hong Rui left, Qin Lan then asked Chen Xin: "Xin, what were you talking to Dr. Hong about?" "We were discussing the incense." Chen Xin did not hide anything from Qin Lan, while picking up the breakfast to eat, he explained: "Last night, the incense Dr. Hong used was homemade. I was curious about her formula, so I asked. Dr. Hong said many herbs can’t be bought now, hence she has to grow them herself. I said I could help her plant some, after all, my greenhouse is sizeable. With a few pots, I can help grow some herbs. Later, I could also make some incense to improve the air in the shelter. Relying solely on the ventilation system leaves an odor over time, anyway." Upon hearing Chen Xin say this, Qin Lan suddenly became interested too and said with deep concern: "Could you give me some incense once it’s done, Xin? I feel my room could use some, too!" Chen Xin was eating the long-missed buns while nodding enthusiastically, agreeing to Qin Lan’s request. "I didn’t expect to find buns and soy milk at the hospital, their food here is really decent!" Chen Xin was eating buns, and passed the soy milk and another bun to Qin Lan, intending to have some porridge and a bun as breakfast himself. Regarding this, Qin Lan accepted the bun Chen Xin shared, without showing reluctance, eating bun and drinking soy milk, she agreed: "The hospital’s supplies are directly provided by the plantation area, although not in large quantities, the variety is guaranteed." "Then I should find a way to trade seeds with them!" Chen Xin nodded thoughtfully, now evidently eyeing their seeds.

Chapter 148 - 146: Breakfast

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