Fear of food

Chapter 9 Careful Xu An'an
The Mediterranean doctor was speechless.

The two nurses behind him looked Chen Qi over with interest, and said in a serious tone:
"Open it so we can check it!"

"No," Chen Qi refused.

"Why not?"

Why should we give it to them?

"We suspect you are carrying prohibited items! Please cooperate with our inspection!"

“You are violating my privacy, and I refuse to cooperate.”

As the two were arguing, the Mediterranean doctor suddenly reached out to snatch Chen Qi's handbag.

Chen Qi reacted quickly, shielding the bag behind his back, leaving Chen Qi with nothing.

The Mediterranean doctor persisted, leaning forward and trying to continue snatching it.

Chen Qi didn't expect the doctor to do such a thing, but seeing that the two nurses were also going to help, he quickly turned to the side and used one shoulder to hold the Mediterranean doctor firmly in place, guarding the elevator door.

At the same time, he moved one foot back for support, then bent his knee, pressed his body down to gather strength, and delivered a powerful shoulder strike that sent the Mediterranean doctor staggering back several meters.

Chen Qi immediately stepped back, but before he could press the close button, the elevator doors had already closed automatically.

By the time the two nurses realized what was happening and pressed the elevator button, it was too late.

The elevator doors closed completely, and the elevator continued its ascent to the 15th floor.

Chen Qi breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't want to have a direct conflict with the medical staff and tried his best to persuade them to back down through words.

Even if it means interrupting my eating plan, I can still find another opportunity to eat the sticky rice cakes later, which is perfectly acceptable.

But to his surprise, the other party insisted on checking his handbag and even went so far as to forcibly take it from him.

If the sticky rice cakes, this "spoiled food," are discovered, they will definitely be confiscated again, which Chen Qi cannot accept.

These are two whole pieces of wild food, which he found at great risk and after spending a lot of time.

Even if the Heavenly King himself came, he couldn't take my food!

For Chen Qi, this was not just food, but also his hope for recovery and his personal freedom.

Fortunately, the four wild foods he had eaten earlier had restored much of his strength; otherwise, even against the thin, Mediterranean doctor, he might not have been able to push him that far.

As the elevator continued to run, Chen Qi dared not waste any time. Without the slightest hesitation, he picked up the sticky rice cake and continued eating.

He knew that although he had temporarily gotten rid of the three medical staff, he had still had a physical altercation with them, and this matter would not end there.

Maybe the Mediterranean doctor has already gathered more people to arrest him.

If he doesn't hurry up and eat the sticky rice cake now, he might not have another chance later.

Eating sticky rice cakes wasn't as easy as eating steamed buns or hamburgers. Chen Qi took a bite but couldn't bite it through; it even stretched into strands.

It sticks to the palate and teeth from time to time while chewing.

Eating this stuff feels like your mouth is fighting.

At this point, Chen Qi couldn't care less about anything else and could only swallow it whole.

It still incorporates crumbs of crispy noodles, which neutralizes its stickiness; otherwise, it would be even stickier to your teeth.

Fortunately, it still tasted good; wild food is never bad.

"It should be enough time..." Chen Qi glanced at the number 12 on the elevator panel.

Next, the elevator will pass through thirteen floors and finally stop on the fifteenth floor.

In Chen Qi's plan, the 11th floor was the most dangerous floor.

The elevators on floors 3, 5, 7, and 9 have a time difference and are covered by other elevators, making it virtually impossible for them to be stopped.

After passing the 11th floor, the 13th floor is the closed ward area.

Closed wards are different from other wards.

Once the medical staff are drawn into the hatred, they will have to pass through several blocked doors to get to the elevator lobby, which will take too long.

Therefore, the 13th floor is most likely safe.

As expected, the elevator did not slow down when it passed the 13th floor and passed through smoothly!

There's no suspense from here on out; the elevator will stop on the 15th floor, regardless of whether there are people outside.

Chen Qi doesn't need to worry about the outside world now; he just needs to focus on fighting the sticky rice cakes in his hands.

After the intense eating he had just consumed, his cheeks were aching slightly, and now he was facing a tough opponent like sticky rice cakes.

Normally, a sticky rice cake is only a couple of bites, but Chen Qi's sticky rice cake is tastier and bigger than usual.

It gets even bigger after being coated with crumbs of crispy noodles.

Moreover, its stickiness is extraordinary; the soft, sweet sticky rice cake lingers on his palate, making him reluctant to swallow it.

Every time my mouth opens and closes, it feels like a hard pull on my upper palate.

Chen Qi forced himself to swallow, and could still feel the sticky rice cake clinging to his esophagus, slowly and reluctantly descending.

As it turns out, Chen Qi overestimated himself and underestimated the sticky rice cake.

When the elevator reached the 15th floor, he still had a little bit of sticky rice cake left in his hand.

"Can't waste it."

"There's still time!"

Chen Qi chewed with difficulty.

The elevator doors finally opened, and there was no one outside.

But Chen Qi knew this was only temporary. If he wasn't mistaken, the medical staff in the closed ward on the 15th floor were on their way.

The medical staff on the two lower floors will also come up the stairs later.

Chen Qi leaned his handbag against the elevator door to prevent it from closing automatically before stepping out.

He continued to struggle with the sticky rice cake while observing the situation.

"The elevator that just stopped on the 11th floor is now going up. Is it the Mediterranean doctor and his team catching up?"

A few seconds later, Chen Qi heard the sound of gears turning from the electronic door on the 15th floor, and he could also faintly hear dense footsteps in the corridor.

It's about time to go... Chen Qi picked up his bag, rushed into the elevator, and pressed the button for the first floor.

The elevator doors closed again, and the elevator slowly accelerated downwards.

Only then did Chen Qi finally relax completely.

"People on floors 11 to 14 are being drawn to the 15th floor. I'm taking the elevator down now, and I shouldn't be stopped before the 9th floor."

"I've had more than enough time to eat this half of a sticky rice cake."

When the elevator descended to the 13th floor, Chen Qi had already swallowed all the sticky rice cakes into his mouth.

When the elevator descended to the 10th floor, Chen Qi finally swallowed all the sticky rice cakes.

At this moment, he clearly felt the elevator slow down, so he turned around, with his back to the elevator door, and rinsed his mouth with water to clean the sticky rice cakes remaining on his teeth and palate.

Ding!
The elevator stopped on the 9th floor, and the elevator doors slowly opened.

Chen Qi then slowly turned around, looked at the five or six medical staff outside the elevator, and revealed a satisfied smile.

How can you not feel good when you're full?

He hadn't felt "full" for a very long time.

After eating the sticky rice cakes and crispy noodles, Chen Qi's blood was replenished once again, making his body stronger, his stamina more abundant, and his spirit more vibrant.

In a short time, he ate six wild foods!
This would normally be about a week's worth of his food intake.

He had to eat six kinds of wild food over six days, and he also needed intravenous fluids to barely stay alive.

However, eating six wild foods at once can greatly replenish the deficiencies in his body.

The feeling of regaining his health was wonderful, and it allowed Chen Qi to fully accept wild food. At least for now, eating wild food had only brought him benefits and no harm. Looking at the stern faces of the medical staff outside, Chen Qi knew that it would be the same old questioning again.

Every time he was caught red-handed while sneaking food, he would inevitably be pinned to the ground and given a lecture.

If he wasn't caught red-handed, he would of course deny it to the death.

But the medical staff wouldn't just let him leave. They would always question him a few times and then have someone forcibly send him back to his ward on the 4th floor.

Chen Qi spoke first, not giving them a chance to ask questions, and said, "What a coincidence? You're also out for a walk?"

“We…” The medical staff were stunned. They didn’t know what they were there for.

Their pursuit of Chen Qi seemed more like an unconscious act driven by instinct.

But he wasn't surprised to be there.

"Why are you out for a walk so late?" a doctor asked.

"Yes, you guys are too."

"Which ward are you in?" a nurse asked.

"I'm on the fourth floor. I'm tired from shopping and I'm just about to go back to sleep."

The medical staff looked at each other, suddenly at a loss for words.

It seems there's nothing wrong with Chen Qi.

Just then, hurried footsteps came from the stairwell, and a group of people rushed out.

Leading the way was the Mediterranean doctor.

"It was him who carried prohibited items and used violence against us medical staff!" the Mediterranean doctor accused.

"Don't talk nonsense. You were the one who tried to take my things first."

"I suspect you're carrying prohibited items. What's in your bag?"

Chen Qi opened the bag, which contained only a half-empty bottle of mineral water.

He is now fearless; the food is already in his stomach, so what else is there to fear?

And that was indeed the case. The Mediterranean doctor couldn't do anything about Chen Qi either, since Chen Qi was a patient at their hospital, and although he was bumped, he was actually fine.

After finally finding out Chen Qi's room number, they arranged for someone to take Chen Qi back to room 408.
-
At three o'clock in the morning, Chen Qi returned to the ward, feeling satisfied.

Even Sun Xuechao's eerie big eyes look much more pleasing to the eye now.

"A successful late-night snack!"

Tonight's meal was a great success.

Although a direct conflict occurred with the Mediterranean doctor along the way, it was unavoidable.

They ate at least six wild foods completely.

This gave Chen Qi even more confidence in his successful discharge from the hospital.

"The feeling of weakness in my body has disappeared, and my strength has been restored quite a bit."

"Your weight should have changed as well, but not by much..."

Chen Qi did some simple exercises and felt the changes in his body.

My body hasn't fully recovered to its peak condition yet, especially my weight; it will take time to recover.

But he is confident that if he were to have his physical measurements taken now, they would be significantly better than before.

Previously severely malnourished, now it's probably moderate or even mild.

Overall, apart from being too thin, he no longer looks like a patient in terms of complexion, mental state, etc.; he is just a slender young man.

To put it bluntly, it's a greyhound.

Chen Qi lay in bed, fantasizing about how he would use facts to convince his parents and doctors to agree to his discharge from the hospital the next day.

Lost in thought, the sky gradually brightened.

Chen Qi got up and stood guard at the ward door, waiting for Nurse Xiaoru to start work.

He will be tested by Dr. Zhao at noon today, and will only be able to contact his parents by phone this afternoon.

Therefore, he planned to have Xiaoru take him for a full body check-up in the morning to determine his current physical condition.

Words alone are not enough; only data can convince doctors and parents that he has recovered.

As he waited, Chen Qi's eyes suddenly lit up.

Instead of waiting for Nurse Xiaoru, we met Xu An'an first!
Xu An'an was wearing a white coat and carrying a paper bag. She kept looking up at the room numbers of the wards she passed.

Finally, she saw Chen Qi leaning against the door frame, and her pace quickened as she walked straight toward room 408.

Chen Qi remembered that Xu An'an had promised to bring him dried bread yesterday, but later he asked Xu An'an to get him jianbing guozi (Chinese savory crepe), and Xu An'an refused and then stopped replying to his messages.

Therefore, Chen Qi didn't know whether the promise of bringing bread still counted.

Chen Qi was pleasantly surprised to see Xu An'an here; he was indeed very curious about the dried bread.

"Here, this is your bread."

Xu An'an approached Chen Qi and picked up the paper bag in her hand.

Chen Qi saw a fist-sized piece of dried bread in the paper bag, which was more than half the size of the bread Xu An'an had eaten yesterday.

Xu An'an said, "I didn't know if you would like it, so I made you a small one first."

"Thank you!" Chen Qi took the paper bag.

He stepped aside and said, "Come in and have a seat."

"No, I'll be leaving soon." Xu An'an shook her head and added, "Two pieces of bread, remember to transfer the money."

"Huh?" Chen Qi was slightly taken aback.

"I also bought the bread-making ingredients from outside; the cost price was two yuan."

"Okay, I'll transfer it to you this afternoon when I get my phone."

Chen Qi didn't think anything of it. He felt embarrassed to ask someone else to pay for his bread.

If he can actually eat this bread, and might need Xu An'an to supply it to him long-term, then he should definitely pay for it.

Xu An'an looked up at Chen Qi and asked with some doubt, "Your complexion looks much better than yesterday."

"Even you noticed," Chen Qi said in a low voice. "I ate a lot of wild food last night, and my body has recovered quite a bit."

Xu An'an suddenly tiptoed closer to Chen Qi's ear, her breath brushing against his neck, giving him goosebumps.

"I left the things in the fourth-floor hallway," she said softly.

thing?

what?
Is it...

Chen Qi's heart suddenly started racing.

Jianbing Guozi!

Did Xu An'an bring in the jianbing guozi he had been longing for?

Didn't she refuse very firmly yesterday?

"Even if something happens later, I won't admit it even if you betray me."

After Xu An'an finished speaking, she turned and left.

Chen Qi finally understood that Xu An'an had probably already decided to help him yesterday afternoon, and the reason she didn't agree during the WeChat chat was that she didn't want to leave any evidence against her.

She's so cautious at such a young age, has she been scammed before?

Watching Xu An'an's departing figure, Chen Qi waved and said, "Thank you!"

(End of this chapter)