Chapter 385: Chapter 385: It’s a Habit

Shen Lu glanced at Bai Wanwan, then at Li Long, before inviting them into the ward’s small sitting room.

The refreshment station only had water, with no tea, juice, or anything of the sort. Still, a guest was a guest, so Shen Lu poured each of them a glass of plain water.

"The weather’s so bad today, why did you still come over?" Shen Lu asked politely, unsure of their reason for visiting. "Fu Cheng’s surgery was a success, but he’s very weak right now and isn’t up for visitors."

Bai Wanwan waved a cheerful hand. "No worries. In that case, just let him get his rest."

’She hadn’t come to see Fu Cheng in the first place, anyway.’

Li Long gave a slight nod, and the assistant beside him immediately piled the nutritional supplements and fruit he was holding onto the coffee table. "Just a little something."

"I brought things too! I brought things too!" At the reminder, Bai Wanwan also remembered the fruit and fresh flowers she had her driver bring, and she quickly had them placed on the coffee table. "Little Deer, Fu Cheng’s surgery is over, and the nurses are here to watch him. Why don’t you come and sleep at my place? The companion beds at the hospital are narrow and hard; they’re not comfortable at all."

She had stayed at the Upper City Hospital for a few days before. She had slept on the companion bed while her younger brother took the sofa, and it had nearly broken her back.

Li Long pressed his lips together. He also wanted to invite Shen Lu to stay with the Li Family, but the young lady from the Bai Family had already spoken up. It would be somewhat inappropriate for him to make the same offer now.

Li Long sighed in frustration. ’If only Li Zexing were a daughter,’ he thought, ’it would be so much more convenient to invite Shen Lu over.’

’I hope my wife has a daughter this time. I’ve been jealous of other people’s sweet, cuddly little girls for a long time now.’

Shen Lu didn’t agree. At the thought of leaving Fu Cheng—unable to speak or move his limbs—alone in the hospital, she just couldn’t bear it.

Bai Wanwan pestered her for a little while longer, but Shen Lu wouldn’t relent, so she could only give up.

Li Long went in to see Fu Cheng for a moment, offered a few words of comfort, and even brought up Li Zenan’s recent situation.

"Ah Nan is doing very well. He’ll be coming back early, once the sandstorm season in the Imperial City passes."

Fu Cheng hadn’t known that Li Zenan was returning to the Imperial City ahead of schedule. The two of them had lost contact ever since Li Zenan went back to the front lines.

Fu Cheng could only catch snippets about him from the news, but news reports were always polished before being broadcast. Besides, Li Zenan’s rank wasn’t high, so he was almost never mentioned by name.

So now, hearing news of his friend made Fu Cheng very happy.

Li Long and Bai Wanwan took their leave one after the other, and Shen Lu personally saw them downstairs.

Back in the hospital room, she put away the things they had brought.

It had been a long time since Shen Lu had seen real, fresh flowers. Bai Wanwan had brought a bouquet of stargazer lilies, with glistening dewdrops clinging to their petals. They were heart-wrenchingly beautiful.

Seeing how much Shen Lu adored the stargazer lilies, Fu Cheng secretly made a mental note.

’That’s right. At the end of the day, Shen Lu is just an eighteen-year-old girl. It’s only natural that she’d also like the things other young girls do—flowers, jewelry, pretty dresses.’

’I can’t believe I overlooked that for so long. I really shouldn’t have.’

The day passed quickly. In that time, the doctor came by twice to check on Fu Cheng’s condition.

Shen Lu tried to follow and take a peek, but a nurse stopped her.

After the doctor and nurse left, Shen Lu tucked Fu Cheng in and muttered under her breath, "What’s wrong with me taking a look? It’s not like I’d touch anything."

Fu Cheng’s gaze rested gently on the top of her head.

’What a silly girl. What’s there to see in a surgical wound?’

’It’s not a bloody mess, but it’s badly red and swollen. The dressing has to be changed three times a day, and he needs continuous anti-inflammatory IV drips just to manage the risk of a post-op infection.’

The nurse was just worried that having too many people near the wound could cause an unnecessary infection and hinder his recovery.

In the blink of an eye, two days had passed at the hospital. Fu Cheng was recovering extremely quickly, and his wound was healing nicely.

Seeing that his condition was stable, Shen Lu started wanting to go back to her shop.

’It’s the first time I’ve been away from the shop for this long. It feels strange.’

Fu Cheng could see that Shen Lu was eager to return, so he immediately arranged for a car to take her back.

"You rest well. If you need anything, just send me a message," Shen Lu instructed, still worried. "And if you feel like eating my cooking, tell me. I’ll have Bai Wanwan’s driver bring a portion for you."

"Okay."

Back at the shop, Shen Lu let out a long sigh of relief. Finally, she could relax.

’At the hospital, I always had the strange feeling of being watched. I just couldn’t get used to it.’

Cai Su immediately reported to her on the past three days’ business, and Shen Lu listened while inspecting the kitchen.

"More people have been coming to deliver materials. I had Wang Daguo help screen them, and we filtered some out. I don’t know if what we accepted meets your requirements."

"I’ll go take a look."

Walking into the small room where the metal materials were stored, Shen Lu had the system check them over.

Wang Daguo was quite reliable. Aside from a very few exceptions, most of the materials were up to standard.

Shen Lu took a look. If she gathered just a little more, she could upgrade the stove.

The materials required for the stove were all relatively common, except for one type of heat-resistant metal alloy that wasn’t easy to find at the garbage dump.

Shen Lu decided she would just buy some.

Upgrading the stove would speed up food preparation, greatly improving their current efficiency.

That night, after washing up, Shen Lu came out of the bathroom and gazed at the empty living room, her mood inexplicably sinking.

Usually, Fu Cheng would be in the living room at this time. They would chat idly, watch a bit of TV, and then say goodnight to each other.

She hadn’t thought much of it before, but now that Fu Cheng was suddenly gone, Shen Lu felt as if a piece of her heart was missing.

"Ah... I guess I just got used to it..."

Shen Lu sighed. She sat down on the sofa, took out a bottle of hot milk, and drank it while watching TV.

’This is so boring,’ she thought. ’I might as well go to sleep.’

The next day, before Shen Lu even opened her eyes, she heard the howling wind outside.

The room was well soundproofed, so the fact that she could still hear the wind meant it must be incredibly strong.

Shen Lu crawled out from under the covers, used the remote to open the curtains, and took a peek.

The sky was a blackish red, flashing with lightning. Giant tornadoes rose from the ground—at least seven or eight of them—darting about without any pattern.

In weather like this, they couldn’t even do deliveries. They could just stay home and take it easy.

Shen Lu posted an announcement in the work group chat that they would be closed for the day. She also made a video to post online, not only telling everyone about the closure but also reminding them to stay safe.

Shen Lu snuggled back into her blankets, closed the curtains, and planned to enjoy a nice, long sleep-in.

Barely two minutes after she closed her eyes, they snapped open again.

’I can’t just lie around. This is the perfect opportunity to upgrade the shop.’

’This is so unfair. I’m supposed to be the boss, but I’m the busiest person here. The employees all get a day off to rest, and I still have to work.’

Grumbling to herself, Shen Lu went to the store to buy materials and an expansion permit.

After she bought everything, all she had to do was select an expansion template and click confirm.

Fortunately, this expansion, unlike previous ones, didn’t forbid people from entering or exiting, so they could still carry on with their lives in the shop as usual.

After all that fuss, Shen Lu was no longer sleepy. She got up, washed her face, changed her clothes, and went downstairs for breakfast.

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