063: Playing With Shang Jia

Jiangcheng City, Central Hospital, Emergency Department.

Wound Treatment Room.

[Shang Jia: B+ level male protagonist.]

The moment the man appeared, Qi Lin noticed the golden letters floating above his head, revealing detailed information about him.

[Shang Jia: Age 30, Position: Deputy Chief Physician at Jiangcheng Central Hospital, Chen Lili's boyfriend. Their relationship hasn't been made public due to the hospital's no-office-romance policy.]

After reading Shang Jia's information, Qi Lin grew thoughtful and looked at him with interest. Judging by Shang Jia's angry expression, it seemed like there was something going on.

Chen Lili, startled by Shang Jia's sudden outburst, was fortunate to have already finished stitching Qi Lin's wound. Otherwise, she might have accidentally hurt him.

"Shang Jia, I was treating my patient, and you scared me! Do you know that?" Chen Lili's eyes reddened with humiliation.

From her perspective, Qi Lin was her savior. It was natural for her to treat his wounds. She had a clear conscience—there was no reason for Shang Jia to yell at her.

Shang Jia, realizing he had acted out of anger, immediately softened. Yelling without understanding the situation would only push Chen Lili away, not solve anything.

He quickly changed his tone, apologetic now: "Lili, I didn't mean to accuse you. I just think, as a doctor, you could have let the nurse handle the bandaging and suturing."

Chen Lili felt calmer after his explanation and went back to finishing Qi Lin's treatment, cutting the sutures and wrapping gauze around his palm.

"Brother Lin is different. He saved my life, so I couldn't trust anyone else to take care of his injury."

"Brother Lin?" Shang Jia's face darkened instantly.

What did this mean? Were they getting close right in front of him?

"You said he saved your life? What happened?" This time, Shang Jia managed to control his anger and asked calmly.

Chen Lili spoke softly, "The car Dr. Zhao and I were in had an accident. It was about to explode when Lin risked his life to save me."

Shang Jia's face froze—he hadn't heard about this before.

"When did this happen? You had a car accident and didn't tell me?"

Chen Lili lowered her head. "I didn't tell anyone, not even my parents. I didn't want to worry you."

If this was true, then he couldn't really blame her for helping Qi Lin and being so caring. Saving someone's life warranted gratitude—more than just stitching a wound.

Shang Jia felt a pang of shame. Would he have risked his life if he'd been in Qi Lin's shoes? The answer, deep down, was probably no.

Although Shang Jia realized Qi Lin had earned this favor, he still grew more wary of him. As the saying goes, a life saved should be repaid with devotion, but Shang Jia wasn't ready to let that happen.

His eyes turned unreadable, but he forced a warm smile.

"So it's Brother Lin, then. I didn't realize I was being disrespectful. Thank you for saving Lili. I'm truly grateful."

He patted Qi Lin's shoulder with a friendly gesture. "As a doctor, I want to ensure you're well taken care of. Why don't you come to my office for a more thorough diagnosis?"

Qi Lin could see through Shang Jia's intentions. Shang Jia didn't want to repay him—he wanted to warn him to stay away from Chen Lili.

Chen Lili, seeing that Shang Jia seemed to understand now, smiled. "Dr. Shang Jia's medical skills are exceptional. Maybe you should let him take a look."

Qi Lin hesitated and glanced at Shang Jia's thick head of hair. "I heard the more skilled a doctor is, the less hair they have. With all that hair, are you sure Dr. Shang is any good?"

Chen Lili couldn't help but laugh. "Pfft! Brother Lin, stop teasing! You should trust me—Dr. Shang is really good at what he does. Maybe he just eats a lot of black sesame seeds."

Qi Lin nodded playfully, "Alright, I'll trust you this time."

Just as they were about to leave together, Chen Lili was called by a colleague.

"Dr. Chen, there's a new patient in the emergency room. We need your help."

Chen Lili sighed and waved to Qi Lin, "Brother Lin, make sure you tell me before you leave later. Dr. Shang, take good care of him."

Once Chen Lili left, Shang Jia's smile faded, replaced by a serious look. "Come with me," he said coldly, walking toward his office.

Inside the office, with just Qi Lin and Shang Jia, the air grew tense.

Shang Jia sat down, sipping coffee, eyeing Qi Lin cautiously. "What's your name, Mr. Lin?"

"Qi Lin," he replied, his tone neutral.

Shang Jia nodded slowly. "And where are you employed? What do you do for work?"

It was clear that Shang Jia was probing, trying to figure out if Qi Lin was someone powerful or just an ordinary man.

Qi Lin, understanding his intentions, smirked. "I'm just a security guard. My monthly salary is a few thousand yuan. Compared to someone like you, I'm way out of your league."

"Security guard?" Shang Jia blinked, then a look of disdain crossed his face.

Finally understanding that Qi Lin wasn't some powerful figure, Shang Jia's attitude shifted. The caution he once showed turned into open contempt.

"I appreciate that you saved Lili, but let's be honest here—Lili comes from a different world. She's out of your league. I'm sure you understand what I mean."

Qi Lin raised an eyebrow. "I don't understand."

Shang Jia frowned.

"I'm just an ordinary guy. All I want is a girlfriend who's white, beautiful, gentle, considerate, and can make money. I'm fine living off of her income. Doesn't seem unreasonable, does it?"

Shang Jia nearly choked on his coffee. "You... what? You seriously think Chen Lili will fall for someone like you?"

Qi Lin leaned back, unfazed. "Didn't you see how much she cared about me earlier? She blew on my wound. That's got to count for something, right?"

Shang Jia's face turned red with anger. "Lili was just repaying a favor! She would never be interested in a security guard."

Qi Lin smirked. "And you're in charge of her life now, are you? What happens between Lili and me isn't really your business."

Shang Jia scoffed. "I'm her senior and a close friend. It's natural that I protect her from people with bad intentions."

Realizing that this argument wasn't going anywhere, Qi Lin suddenly gripped his injured hand tightly, causing blood to seep from the stitches.

He sighed dramatically. "You're right. Someone like me doesn't deserve to be around Lili. I apologize for what I said. But since you're so gracious, maybe you could compensate me, and I'll promise to stay away from her."

Shang Jia was confused at first but then smiled smugly. This was what he expected—a lowlife just looking for some quick cash.

"Sure, I'll give you 100,000 yuan as a token of my gratitude for saving Lili. If you need anything in the future, feel free to reach out. I'll help you out."

Shang Jia, thinking he was buying Qi Lin off, didn't realize what was about to happen next.

Qi Lin smirked. "I appreciate the gesture, but I'm afraid you're going to hate me from now on."

Before Shang Jia could react, Qi Lin cried out in pain, "Ah! Dr. Shang, please stop! I didn't mean it!"

The office echoed with Qi Lin's exaggerated screams.

Chen Lili, hearing the commotion from nearby, rushed toward the office.

"What's happening in there?" one of her colleagues asked.

"I'll check," she replied, already moving quickly.

When she opened the door, her face filled with anger. She saw Shang Jia gripping Qi Lin's injured hand, and blood was dripping onto the floor.

"Shang Jia! What are you doing?" she yelled, furious.

Shang Jia quickly let go of Qi Lin, realizing he had been tricked.

"Lili, it's not what it looks like. Qi Lin offered to shake my hand. I didn't mean to hurt him—"

Chen Lili rushed over to Qi Lin, cradling his bleeding hand. "Brother Lin, are you okay?"

Qi Lin, wincing in pain, shook his head. "I'm fine."

"No, you're not," Chen Lili said sternly. "What happened?"

Qi Lin, with a bitter smile, explained, "I don't know. Dr. Shang suddenly called me a loser and said you and I don't belong in the same world. Then he grabbed my injured hand..."

Shang Jia's face went pale with anger. He knew Qi Lin was lying, but he couldn't prove it.

Chen Lili, now on the verge of tears, glared at Shang Jia. "I thought you were a sensible person, but now you've really disappointed me. Brother Lin is just my savior. Why would you act like this?"

"Lili, he's lying! He even admitted that he likes you!"

"I don't want to hear any more," Chen Lili interrupted. "If this is how you're going to behave, I'll truly be disappointed in you."

Without another word, she helped Qi Lin out of the office.

"Brother Lin, I'm sorry about Dr. Shang. He's not usually like this. Please accept my apology."

Qi Lin, ever the charmer, smiled. "It's just a small thing. I don't hold it against him. Honestly, Dr. Shang seems like a good guy, and he clearly cares about you. You should consider him."

Chen Lili blinked in surprise at Qi Lin's response. After a moment, she sighed and chuckled, "You're the most understanding person I've ever met. If only Dr. Shang could be like you."

"Enough talking. Let me bandage your hand again," she said.

As she walked away with Qi Lin, Shang Jia, left behind in his office, was fuming with rage.

Slamming his fist on the table, he cursed under his breath, "Qi Lin, just wait. I'm going to make you regret this."

---

Wound Treatment Room

Chen Lili was carefully re-dressing Qi Lin's wound when he casually asked, "Lili, do you have time tonight?"

Chen Lili didn't think much of it and replied, "I'm not working overtime tonight."

Qi Lin smiled. "Then how about treating me to a movie tonight?"

Chen Lili was momentarily stunned. If Qi Lin had been the one to invite her to a movie, she would have immediately assumed he was pursuing her and likely refused. But asking her to treat him as a favor for saving her life—well, that was a different story.

Compared to the value of her life, two movie tickets seemed insignificant.

Completely caught off guard by Qi Lin's request, she hesitated for a moment before finally nodding. "Brother Lin, you're too polite. After you risked your life to save me from the car accident, treating you to a movie is the least I can do. In fact, I should be treating you to meals every day!"

Qi Lin smiled, satisfied. Girls who understand gratitude are always easier to win over.