After the Cannon Fodder A Accidentally Marked the Paranoid Female Lead - Chapter 50

In the past few days, Ming Sian and He Yining had been handling cases together. Because they were constantly leaning close to one another, “accidents” would happen from time to time, leading to quite a bit of tossing and turning.

Left with no choice, the two had to obediently wear suppressant patches. Normally at home, they didn’t wear them—this was actually He Yining’s request.

After all, the Eldest Miss was very fond of the tipsy scent of cherry rum. As long as Ming Sian didn’t deliberately release her pheromones, her scent was like “scratching an itch through a boot”—it only served to make one’s heart itch without actually relieving it.

He Yining was hopelessly addicted to this faint, elusive, and push-and-pull sensation.

It was another overtime session. This time, Ming Sian had learned to be smart; she requested to work overtime at the law firm and, specifically in front of everyone, carried her materials into He Yining’s office.

The crowd watching this scene was stunned.

“I didn’t hear the Boss call her.”

“How did she go up by herself? Didn’t the Boss say that if there’s business, we find Group Leader Huo first, and only after the Group Leader requests it and the Boss agrees can we enter the office?”

“Exactly. How did An just go in like that? It’ll be so embarrassing when she’s kicked out in a moment. Everyone’s going to laugh.”

“Ming Sian has been at Anning for quite a while now; how could she still make such a mistake? Is she going to be fired by the Boss?”

“Probably not. The Boss has been bringing her along for all her recent cases; she’s practically becoming the Boss’s assistant. She won’t be dismissed over something this small.”

“Why wouldn’t she be? Ming Sian has gotten arrogant. She probably thinks her relationship with the Boss is better than everyone else’s.”

“Just you wait. The Boss hates this kind of self-righteous subordinate who lacks boundaries and thinks they’re special.”

“Let’s make a bet. If she gets kicked out, I’ll resign. If she doesn’t get kicked out, you all resign voluntarily.”

“Then she’s definitely getting kicked out… Group Leader Huo.”

It turned out that Huo Qi had seen these people gathered together gossiping and walked over. These people were actually criticizing the Boss’s favorite official; did they not want their jobs anymore?

“Favorite official” Ming Sian, or perhaps the Queen’s only male concubine? Using “concubine” wasn’t quite right, since the two were aiming for marriage. Ming Sian would be the Empress in the future; for now, before marriage, she was definitely a “favorite official.”

As for her? At most, she was a “senior official.”

Huo Qi looked at these people coldly, silently noting them down in her heart. When she found a chance, she would fire them.

Especially those two old employees who did no work and had started watching the drama. When she and He Yining first arrived, she thought Anning was a firm where colleague relationships were distant, everyone worked silently, and there was no communication.

Over time, she realized that these people only put on a front when she and He Yining were around. In reality, this group was very good at faking it—a bunch of slackers.

She slacked off too, but doing so without finishing one’s own work was unacceptable. They were receiving high salaries, at least twenty or thirty thousand a month—lawyers’ salaries were only higher—yet they did nothing. The law firm wasn’t a charity.

The current state of Anning was that the old employees from before they arrived just drifted along, and now they were “performing” for them.

Huo Qi’s cold demeanor made these people lower their heads. They wanted to leave but didn’t dare, and could only wait for her next words.

“Gossip-mongers.” Huo Qi snapped in Cantonese, then turned and walked upstairs. She had to talk to He Yining about how to get these people to leave quickly.

When she reached the top floor, she hesitated for a moment. Based on her observations of her friend, her friend and Ming Sian must be doing “this and that.” What if the two were in the office… Forget it, she would wait until Ming Sian went down.

Ming Sian had no idea about the farce downstairs or Huo Qi’s thoughts. She kept it simple: with so many cases lately, she and He Yining had to be busy for a long time every day, but at the office she could claim overtime pay. She couldn’t exactly invite He Yining downstairs to work with her, so she naturally went upstairs.

He Yining’s office was like a small suite—spacious and quiet, more suitable for work.

When Ming Sian brought the materials to He Yining’s office, she saw no sign of He Yining at all.

She could only walk to the outside of the small inner room and gently push the door open, where she indeed found He Yining.

She was actually sleeping! No wonder she dragged her into working overtime at night.

Wait, the Eldest Miss was a very quiet sleeper; she wouldn’t be curled up like she was in pain. Ming Sian hurried forward and saw the Eldest Miss’s cheeks were flushed. She immediately tested her forehead.

“So hot!”

The Eldest Miss had a fever!

Ming Sian quickly bent over, deciding to carry He Yining to see a doctor, but He Yining grabbed her arm. “No.”

“What do you mean ‘no’? You have a high fever.”

“People.”

Ming Sian understood He Yining’s meaning. There were still many employees in the firm, and she didn’t want her current state to be seen by them.

He Yining’s level of pride meant that even if words were at the tip of her tongue, she had to say them toughly; how could she let her weak side be discovered?

“I’ll pour you a glass of water.” Ming Sian spoke in a low voice, able only to be obedient.

She sent a message to Ali: Fever medicine, cold medicine, a thermometer, and physical cooling patches too. Bring them to He Yining’s office.

Fearing Ali wouldn’t see it, she dialed the phone and hung up only after Ali answered.

Ali: “?”

Then she saw the message Ming Sian sent and frowned. She didn’t think it was Ming Sian; it had to be the Eldest Miss.

The Eldest Miss’s throat had been uncomfortable in the morning and she had drunk a lot of water. The Eldest Miss, who didn’t eat sweets, had even asked her for throat lozenges. She thought it was just a throat issue, not a cold and fever.

So when Ming Sian spoke, she guessed it was the Eldest Miss who was sick.

Ali replied to Ming Sian saying she was on her way to buy medicine.

Ming Sian felt relieved upon seeing the message. She helped He Yining up. “Drink some water.”

Listening to the gentle comforting in her ear, He Yining obediently opened her lips. The warm water slid down her throat, easing the pain.

Ming Sian helped her take off her jacket, then said softly: “Your body is too hot. Is it okay to expose your limbs?”

He Yining didn’t hear clearly and gave a groggy hum.

“Lie still.” Ming Sian didn’t even notice how gentle her own voice was. She removed the excess clothing from He Yining’s body.

He Yining likely felt the sudden coolness and whimpered something; Ming Sian hurried to comfort her in a low voice.

“It’ll be fine once your temperature goes down.”

Without a thermometer, she couldn’t measure the temperature just by using her hand.

Fortunately, Ali was fast and knocked on the door of the small room before long.

Ming Sian gently moved He Yining’s hand, which was clutching her hem, to the side. “I’m going to get some things. I’ll be right back.”

He Yining closed her eyes as if she heard her, and her hand didn’t reach for her hem again.

She opened the door. Ali was outside with a worried face, though her gaze didn’t look inside. “How is the Eldest Miss?”

“Fever. I don’t know how many degrees.”

She took the bag and took out the ear thermometer. One measurement and she found it was actually 39.3°C. How could anyone endure such a high temperature? No wonder He Yining was groggy and couldn’t seem to get up.

Ming Sian quickly found the fever medicine inside, helped He Yining up, and spoke softly: “Take the medicine.”

However, the only response was silence. She saw He Yining pursing her lips, clearly very resistant.

Ming Sian was helpless. How could she get He Yining to swallow this pill? She wrapped He Yining in a blanket and called out loudly: “Ali.”

“What is it, Miss Ming?” Ali was standing right outside the room, waiting in case Ming Sian needed her for anything.

“He Yining won’t take the medicine. Do you have any ideas?”

Ali shook her head. “The Eldest Miss has a good constitution and hasn’t been sick much since childhood. It’s just that every time she is sick, she doesn’t like taking medicine. Only when she can’t take it anymore and I call the doctor will she be obedient under the doctor’s compulsion.”

Had the Eldest Miss been this stubborn since she was a child?

Ming Sian shook her head with amusement. The problem was that the Eldest Miss wouldn’t even open her eyes now; how was she supposed to force her to take the medicine?

“Sister, take the medicine first, okay?”

She was sure He Yining wasn’t asleep; she was just ignoring her or didn’t want to take the medicine and was ignoring her on purpose.

“Then I’m going to feed you directly.” She gave a low-voiced warning.

Ming Sian frowned, reached out to pinch He Yining’s cheeks, and saw her mouth forced open. She stuffed the pill directly into He Yining’s mouth and then placed the water at her lips.

The bitter taste of the medicine spread in her mouth. He Yining hurried to find the water source near her lips. After drinking a few more sips of water, the bitter taste gradually vanished.

He Yining opened her eyes weakly. Ming Sian could see “fume” in her eyes.

“So good.” Ming Sian praised with a smile.

The only response was He Yining’s silence.

Seeing He Yining lie down groggily again, she went to get a basin of lukewarm water, about 35 degrees, and then wiped He Yining’s body and limbs.

Ming Sian searched online for ways to quickly reduce a fever. It said: Cold hands and feet mean the body temperature is still rising. At this time, you need to keep the hands and feet warm and leave other parts exposed. If the hands and feet warm up, the temperature will slowly drop.

She touched He Yining’s hands and feet; they were indeed very cold. So she covered He Yining’s hands with the quilt and then pulled the other’s feet into her embrace.

When the ice-cold feet touched her stomach directly, Ming Sian shivered from the cold. They were truly cold. She rolled her clothes inward a bit, just enough to wrap around He Yining’s feet.

The two leaned together in this posture. When she grew tired of sitting, she lay on her side by He Yining’s legs. Feeling He Yining’s feet getting warmer and warmer, she quickly got up and measured He Yining’s temperature with the ear thermometer again.

38.9°C. Although the temperature was still high, it was at least below 39. As long as the temperature was receding, it was fine.

Perhaps the medicine had taken effect, or perhaps the physical cooling was useful. Ming Sian finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Thinking of Ali outside, she walked out and said, “Ali, prepare the car first. When most of the people have left after work, I’ll take her down.”

“Okay.”

Ming Sian still remembered that He Yining didn’t want to be seen in her weak state, so she could only wait it out.

Fortunately, He Yining’s fever was receding. She simply started working. Fearing she would disturb He Yining, she found a few sheets of white paper and wrote by hand. Compared to the clack-clack of a laptop keyboard, the sound of writing was negligible.

Every so often as she wrote, she would touch He Yining’s forehead with her hand. Only after feeling that He Yining’s forehead had cooled significantly did she measure with the ear thermometer.

Slowly, He Yining’s temperature dropped to 38.4°C.

Anything above 38.5 is a high fever; dropping below that meant the situation was improving.