Chapter 2: The Canary

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"No," Jianqing replied coldly and dismissively, releasing her hand. "I don't have any diseases that can be transmitted through the blood."

You're crazy!

The stomach churned violently, and the deer glared at her with malice, raising its left hand to cover its mouth, trying hard to suppress the urge to retch, and wiping its lips vigorously. Soon, the back of its hand was stained with bright red bloodstains.

Jianqing pulled out a medicine box, sat on the other side of the sofa, and quietly observed the wound on her left palm under the gentle glow of the lamp.

On the palm of her left hand, just below the little finger, there was a slanting wound about 5cm long, visible along the horizontal lines. The edges of the wound were tidy, and there was a slight bleeding. She could move her fingers freely without any restrictions.

Hand cuts caused by sharp tools have two major concerns. Firstly, there is a risk of nerve and tendon damage, which may require a local anesthesia surgery for repair. Secondly, there is a possibility of infection by tetanus spores, leading to tetanus.

Just as they were locked in a standoff, she reached out and grabbed the dagger. Deer Yinxi almost instantly let go, allowing her to snatch away the dagger, which is why the cut on her left palm wasn't particularly deep.

The dagger had been soaked in alcohol for disinfection, so there was no need to worry about tetanus infection.

Apply pressure to stop the bleeding, clean and stitch up the wound, and avoid infection to the wound.

Stopping the bleeding and cleaning the wound were not difficult tasks. The trouble was her injured left hand; it was inconvenient to perform the stitching operation with just her right hand.

The wound was 5cm long, and if left un-stitched, it would easily bleed repeatedly, heal slowly, and could easily become infected.

After carefully cleaning the cut on her left palm with iodine and saline solution, she rummaged through the medical kit but couldn't find any substitute for sutures like skin staples or medical glue. She had no choice but to bandage it for now, to avoid leaving the wound exposed to the air for too long.

As the deer drank from the stream, it caught a glimpse of her skilled and professional movements, as if she had practiced them a hundred, a thousand times before. It finally dawned on the deer that she was a doctor.

She was an oncologist.

And just like the deer that she once encountered, they shared the same profession.

Noticing her gaze, Jane turned her head to look at her.

Their gazes locked, Deer Drink Creek clenched her teeth, let out a cold hum, and turned her head away, avoiding direct eye contact. She gazed out of the floor-to-ceiling window in the living room.

The floor-to-ceiling window was covered tightly with black curtains, blocking out any trace of light.

The huge living room felt like an impenetrable prison.

Five minutes ago, after a resounding slap, Deer Drink Creek finally recalled why the name "Jane" sounded familiar.

She had read it in a novel.

Last night, under the clear moonlit sky, beside the radiant moon, there were two exceptionally bright stars.

The news was reported that it was a rare celestial event, with twin stars accompanying the moon - Venus, Jupiter, and the Moon appearing together in the night sky.

She moved a computer over and sat outside on the balcony, gazing at the moon and the stars. Meanwhile, she attended to the emails related to her work.

Every now and then, some ads would pop up in the bottom right corner of the computer. She kept closing them repeatedly, but unfortunately, a novel promotion kept appearing that she just couldn't get rid of.

Reluctantly, she clicked on it and took a glance, only to discover that it was a city-themed romantic novel. The protagonist was a thoracic surgeon and the female lead was an actress in the entertainment industry. The title of the book was "Starlight on the Edge of the Knife".

Deer Drinking from the Stream was an actress who had also studied medicine at a university for two years. She was familiar with both the medical and entertainment industries. She couldn't help but take a closer look and noticed that there was a supporting character in the book who shared the same name and surname as her.

Having the same name and surname was one thing, but even her family background and appearance were almost exactly as she had described. It even portrayed her being supported by another woman romantically.

This is complete nonsense.

Deer Drinking from the Stream quickly skimmed through a few pages, flipping directly to the back. She discovered that the wealthy supporter, who had been unassuming and detached in the early chapters, had transformed into a heartless villain who didn't hesitate to commit murder.

She hurriedly searched for her own fate and came across the later version of "Deer Drinking from the Stream." Time and time again, she betrayed her wealthy supporter. Out of anger, the supporter imprisoned her in a villa. Unable to bear it any longer, she chose to end her life and was ultimately buried beneath a plum blossom tree, becoming fertilizer for the flowers.

Having the same name and surname was too much of a coincidence. After reading the novel with excitement, Deer Drinking from the Stream tried to close the webpage. She clicked the mouse several times in succession, but there was no response.

It seemed like the webpage had frozen. She closed the laptop directly, turned it off forcefully, and went to take a bath before going to sleep.

Little did she know, when she woke up, she found herself in this unfamiliar world, transformed into a canary. She wondered if in the future, she would also be buried beneath the plum blossom tree by this beautiful yet cold-hearted woman, becoming fertilizer for the flowers.

Deer Drinking from the Stream averted her gaze, hugging her knees tightly while curled up in the corner of the sofa. Her eyes were red, and as she pondered more, her despair grew deeper.

Following Deer Drinking from the Stream's gaze, Jian Qing also glanced at the French windows for a few seconds.

With one hand, she tidied up the medical kit. As she was about to put it back in its original place, she glanced at Deer Drinking from the Stream's blood-stained hand. She opened the medical kit once again and took out a sterile gauze and a no-rinse hand sanitizing gel. She walked up to Deer Drinking from the Stream and handed them to her.

Deer Drinking from the Stream turned her head, ignoring it/him/her/them.

Her good intentions were not accepted, so Jian Qing didn't say anything. She placed the items on the coffee table and gently clasped Deer Drinking from the Stream's left hand with her right hand.

"Don't touch me!"

Deer Drinking from the Stream instinctively tried to break free, but was held tight and couldn't escape.

In her desperation, she grabbed Jian Qing's injured left hand and squeezed it with all her might, hoping to cause her pain and make her let go.

The bandaged palm oozed fresh red blood once again, causing a piercing pain. Jian Qing remained silent, still not letting go, but she furrowed her brow in discomfort.

Deer Drinking from the Stream saw the blood and her face turned pale. She stopped struggling and stared blankly at the person before her.

Does this person not feel any pain?

Jian Qing saw her calm down and took a deep breath. She then picked up a gauze soaked in disinfectant gel and gently wiped the blood stains off her hand.

A strong scent of alcohol wafted into the nostrils.

The familiar and long-lost scent.

Deer Drinking from the Stream felt a bit dazed.

After a while, a warm sensation covered the corners of the lips.

Jian Qing started using a gauze soaked in warm water to gently wipe away the blood stains from the corners of her lips.

Her movements were gentle, her gaze focused and serious, as if she were carefully wiping a delicate piece of artwork.

As the deer drank from the stream, it suddenly snapped back to reality. It grabbed her hand, its eyes welling up with tears, and said, "I can manage on my own, don't bully me."

Jian Qing's movements paused for a moment.

Her left palm and cheek were still hurting badly...

Who exactly is bullying whom?

In the end, without saying a word, Jian Qing handed the clean gauze to Deer Yinxi. She walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window and tossed the soiled gauze into a trash bin covered with a yellow garbage bag.

Deer Yinxi wiped away the bloodstains, raised her wrist to dab away her tears, and then looked at the blood-soaked gauze in her hand. She hesitated for a few seconds, but eventually walked over and tossed the gauze into the trash bin.

Yellow garbage bags are typically used to hold medical waste.

Jian Qing stood by the floor-to-ceiling window and touched the electronic screen on the wall.

The curtains automatically parted, revealing moonlight pouring in, illuminating the floor with a gentle glow.

Deer Yinxi looked up for a moment.

Outside the window, the moon was bright and the stars were scarce. Next to the radiant moon, there were only two exceptionally bright stars.

Then he turned his head and looked to his right, where Jian Qing was standing.

Jian Qing stood quietly under the moonlight, her profile as graceful as jade, her back straight like a pine tree. Her temperament was icy and her beauty was like that of a fairy who absorbed the essence of the sun and the moon.

Is this person a spirit that has cultivated into an ice block on top of a tall mountain?

So cold that it could freeze someone to death.

Jian Qing noticed Deer Drinking from the Creek's gaze and turned her head to look at him as well.

They looked at each other in silence.

As he looked closely at the bright and swollen handprint, Deer Drinking from the Creek felt a bit embarrassed. He averted his gaze and gazed out the window.

Outside the window was a garden, in which numerous plum trees were planted. Each one bore crimson plum blossoms, vibrant as rouge, standing proudly on the branches. On the branches, there were several delicate snowflakes, one red and one white, juxtaposing each other.

Underneath the moonlight, in front of the flowers, Deer Drinking from the Creek had no intention of enjoying the scenery. He took a step back, preparing to leave, but his left wrist was suddenly entangled by a snake-like, icy-cold, and delicate touch.

Jian Qing tightly grasped Deer Drinking from the Creek's wrist, not letting her go.

His wrist was firmly held, and Deer Drinking from the Creek couldn't break free.

She remembered his quick-tempered nature and became a little frightened. She stumbled through her explanation, "Dr. Jian, slapping you was wrong, but I only used the dagger in self-defense. You were the one trying to take it from me, I had no intention of hurting you first. Besides, you insulted my dignity first... and then you, you just went on and forcefully... taking off my clothes..."

Jian Qing remained silent, standing in front of Deer Drinking from the Creek, with his intact right hand firmly holding her left wrist, pressing it against the French window. He lowered his gaze, looking at her coldly and indifferently.

"Please, speak properly... Don't get so close..." Every breath was filled with the unique cold fragrance of a woman. The air around them seemed to thin out even more. Deer Drinking from the Creek couldn't help but take a half-step back, her back pressing tightly against the French window.

Jian Qing took a step closer, his eyes, as dark as ink, gazed directly at her, as if he wanted to see through her external shell and find the essence of her soul.

As they took a step back and a step forward, they drew closer to each other. Their bodies pressed against one another, their noses touching. Their breaths intertwined and entangled with each other.

Under the moonlight, two figures on the ground were pressed closely together, as if they were an inseparable pair of lovers.

After staring for a moment, Jian Qing slightly averted his head, his lips parted and closed, "I remember you used to rely on your right hand, when did you become left-handed?"

A warm breath brushed against her ear, causing Deer Drinking from the Creek's heart to beat rapidly. Unconsciously, she tensed up her back.

How could this be argued against?

She was indeed left-handed (lefty), and just now many of her actions were instinctively done with her left hand.

But Deer Drinking from the Creek was not the same as in the book.

In the book, "Deer Drinking from the Creek" was created based on her, but she wasn't entirely the same.

She thought about the common excuse used in TV dramas where the protagonist travels through time and conveniently suffers from amnesia. However, without any significant head injury or psychological triggers, pretending to suddenly lose her memory in front of a doctor would be like playing with fire.

Moreover, losing one's memory wouldn't suddenly transform someone from being right-handed to left-handed.

"I have always been..." her palms grew slightly sweaty, as Deer Drinking from the Creek explained with a mixture of truth and falsehood, "I pretended to be normal before because I was afraid of being discriminated against by you. This is the first time we have spent such a long time together tonight, and I was too nervous. I forgot to hide it..."

She decided to take a chance.

At this moment, they had only met a few times before. Tonight would be the longest time they would spend together.

As for Jianqing and her, they were not very familiar with each other yet.

"You are very used to using your right hand, it's not a pretense," Jianqing looked at her, with a cold gaze, "to tell the truth."