Chapter 191: Awakening

Upon hearing that eating *guo'er* required a special trip to Gusu, Ouyang fell into a long silence. Qin Huai paid no mind to his good brother's silence, for the *san ding bao* in the steamer were ready.

【San ding bao, B-grade】

All of them were B-grade.

A stable performance.

Qin Huai lifted the lid himself. The moment it was removed, steam rushed out, the heat mingled with the wheat fragrance unique to steamed buns, silently declaring to everyone nearby that this batch was truly delicious.

Anyone who eats steamed buns often knows that whether a bun is good or not can be smelled through its aroma.

"Smell" is a relatively abstract concept, but for the neighbors living in the residential area near the Qin Family Breakfast Shop—especially the high school students who had to reach school by 7:00 AM, woke up early every day, and arrived at the shop hungry and full of anticipation just to eat that one bite of bun they craved—identifying buns by scent was a basic skill.

The aroma of a delicious bun is different from that of an ordinary one.

Especially with meat buns; even though the meat filling is tightly wrapped inside the dough, the fragrance still wafts out along with the scent of wheat.

That sweet, savory scent—filled with carbohydrates, fats, sugars, and a whole series of flavors representing humanity's most primitive pursuit and craving for calories—would rapidly occupy the nasal cavities of anyone in desperate need of a delicious breakfast.

In that moment, the scent of flowers, the smell of books, dust, or gasoline all vanished. Even if there were a braised-food shop next door, the aroma of the master stock could be temporarily ignored.

The entire world consisted only of the scent of buns.

And specifically, the scent of buns made by Qin Huai's own hands.

If someone were to insist on asking what the scent of buns made by Qin Huai was, those customers who came every morning holding the mindset of opening a blind box would surely tell them loudly:

It's just the scent of buns!

It's the scent of a bun where, if you just get a little closer and take a deep breath, you know today is going to be steady, you've bet right, and you'll get to eat your dream bun!

It's the scent of a bun that people would dare to queue for regardless of bitter cold, scorching heat, wind, or rain—even on a typhoon day, as long as the Qin Family Breakfast Shop was open!

It's the scent of a bun where, just by smelling it, your saliva automatically secretes and your brain automatically renders the image, making you feel as if you've already eaten it before the bun is even in your hand!

Unfortunately, only the residents near the Qin Family Breakfast Shop understood this feeling; the customers at the Yunzhong Canteen were destined never to understand.

Because the buns sold by Qin Huai and Qin Congwen at the Yunzhong Canteen were not priced the same at all; they were sold separately.

When buying buns there, people simply couldn't experience the joy of opening a blind box.

Qin Huai deftly took the buns out one by one and plated them. He didn't know how much each employee ate, but he knew everyone would definitely eat more than usual today. After all, having worked for so long, even those with small appetites should be hungry.

So, when Qin Huai prepared the last batch of buns, he portioned them according to Qin Luo's appetite, while also accounting for the individual portions for Ouyang, Chen Huihong, Chen Huihui, Luo Jun, Qu Jing, and even Chen Yingjun.

Qin Luo didn't need this batch; she wouldn't be back from school until evening, at which point Qin Huai would make them fresh for her.

Qin Huai served everyone a large, full plate of buns, accompanied by unlimited refills of tangerine peel tea and what looked like very nourishing gastrodia and pigeon soup. Everyone felt the illusion that it was the New Year.

A large plate of buns in front of them looked humble, but in reality, it was incredibly lavish.

Many waiters at the Yunzhong Canteen had never eaten so many *san ding bao* since they started working there.

One had to know that today's *san ding bao* were limited. The canteen couldn't truly limit everyone to five per day, but they could ensure that each purchase was limited to five. Many nearby residents queued from morning until noon just to buy a few more.

But how many were on the plates in front of everyone now?

A full 12!

These weren't ordinary *san ding bao*; these were special perks for Yunzhong Canteen employees, symbolizing privilege!

Carrying these 12 buns for a walk around the Yunzhong residential area would make you the most stylish person in the entire neighborhood; even Grandma Ding, carrying two large bags of fermented rice buns, couldn't overshadow your radiance.

"Everyone has worked hard all day, eat up and nourish yourselves," Qin Huai said with a smile.

There was no need for Qin Huai to urge them; some had already started eating.

The first to start was An Youyou; the speed at which she picked up a bun and stuffed it into her mouth was even faster and more decisive than Ouyang's.

While other employees were still hesitating and wondering if this plate was for one person or several, whether to eat one or two and pack the rest for their families, or just eat their fill happily without thinking too much, An Youyou's bun was already in her mouth.

An Youyou had already eaten *san ding bao* yesterday.

But she felt it wasn't enough—far from enough.

Such delicious buns could never be eaten enough.

When she had money in the future, she would have one *san ding bao*, one *wu ding bao*, one *si xi* dumpling, and one fermented rice bun every morning. She would eat whatever the canteen had, and she would definitely have a hearty meal before going to work every day.

Soon, the employees of the Yunzhong Canteen, who had originally been slumped over their chairs, exhausted and disheveled, were all holding buns, happily wolfing them down, alternating bites of bun with sips of tangerine peel tea, their expressions intoxicated.

This was the scene Qu Jing saw when she walked into the canteen.

As a professional neurologist, Qu Jing's first reaction was to call the police.

Then, Qu Jing took a look at what everyone was eating.

*San ding bao*, tangerine peel tea.

It was fine.

When Qu Jing entered, Qin Huai was eating the gastrodia and pigeon soup.

The ordinary gastrodia and pigeon soup formed a sharp contrast with the delicious *san ding bao*. Qin Huai took a bite of pigeon and a bite of bun, deeply feeling that Gong Liang truly loved him.

To be able to eat D-grade gastrodia and pigeon soup after having eaten S-grade *san ding bao*, and to do so every few days—

He was worthy of being a gold-medal salesman!

"Qin Huai, long time no see." Qu Jing smiled and took off her mask after entering. "Your return has caused quite a stir. Everywhere I walked this morning, there was the scent of buns. The director of neurosurgery ran to our department to find me, asking if I could help him buy *san ding bao*."

Qin Huai could only ask, "Have you eaten?"

Qu Jing shook her head, and Qin Huai pushed the buns in front of him toward her: "Eat some."

Qu Jing didn't stand on ceremony and sat down to eat the *san ding bao*.

Qin Huai took a brief look at Qu Jing. Very good: her complexion was rosy, her lips were a normal color, and her *qi* and blood were sufficient.

She wouldn't die in the short term.

Noticing Qin Huai observing her, Qu Jing smiled: "My mental state has been very good lately."

"Although I am still occasionally complained about by patients for being too wrapped up and disrespectful, and I am helpless against most patients with Alzheimer's, and the progress of my new paper is not going smoothly, and occasionally when I face the computer in the middle of the night, I still have a strong urge to take a few cuts at my wrists—but it's already very good," Qu Jing said softly. Her voice was calm, and one could tell she wasn't forcing a smile but truly believed it.

"Sister Hong is always very worried about me. She often finds excuses to bring me fruit at nine or ten in the evening, bringing a large bag of imported fruit or even pre-cut fruit platters to my house to check on me. She only feels at ease after ensuring there are no paring knives on the table and that all kitchen knives are back in their places."

"She also often complains to me that you've been in Gusu for so long without returning; she has neither tangerine peel tea to drink nor snacks to eat. The cross-province delivery she orders from Huang Ji only delivers the shortbread properly; the fermented rice buns don't have the fluffiness and chewiness of being eaten fresh out of the steamer when sent from Gusu."

Qin Huai was shocked: "Sister Hong really ordered cross-province delivery?!"

"Yes, but it seems she piggybacks on Mr. Luo's cross-province delivery. Mr. Luo drinks tangerine peel tea every morning, all of which is sent from Gusu the day before."

Qin Huai didn't understand; Qin Huai was deeply shocked. He had only been talking, never expecting Luo Jun to actually do it.

Qin Huai thought for a moment, not knowing what to say, and could only steer the topic back to Qu Jing: "I can tell your complexion is quite good now."

Qu Jing nodded: "It might be because I've been secretly sunbathing lately."

Seeing Qin Huai slightly stunned, Qu Jing continued: "For these years, I've been pretending to have a severe ultraviolet allergy, and I pretended so well that I even believed it myself. Not only did I wrap myself up tightly every day, but I also avoided the sun whenever I saw it. Even the house I rented previously didn't face the sun, and I would pull the blackout curtains tight every time I slept to ensure no sunlight would shine into my room."

"But the bedroom of the room Sister Hong rented for me faces the sun."

"One night, when Sister Hong came over to chat with me, she opened the curtains in my room to ventilate it. That night, I wrote my paper until two or three in the morning, and I didn't pay attention to the curtains before going to sleep. The next morning, I was woken up by the sunlight."

"It was particularly warm sunlight, warm and cozy. The moment I woke up, I suddenly felt that I hadn't stayed in the sun like that for many years."

"At that time, I was thinking, so sunbathing is such a comfortable thing. So I really can live the life of a normal person."

"Even if my body is full of scars, winding and hideous. Even if I self-harm at the drop of a hat, losing my sanity, and every time I have to let Mother Qu bandage me while she cries."

"Even if I have to wear a mask every day to pretend I have an ultraviolet allergy, and when I'm alone, I always feel like a dark monster living in a sewer all year round. I can't see the light, and I dare not show my true face to others; as long as others discover what I am, they will avoid me."

"But I can still live the life of a normal person."

"There will still be normal people like you, Sister Hong, and Mr. Luo who accept me and understand me."

"I can still sunbathe when the sun is bright and take off my gloves in front of you."

"There will still be doctors and nurses in the department who know my personality is strange, that I am not good with words and don't like to talk to people, yet they still pull me to chat and gossip, just to get me to help them buy tangerine peel tea and *san ding bao*."

"And I really can control myself not to self-harm."

Qu Jing said with some pride: "I haven't had a new wound for a full 45 days."

Hearing Qu Jing say this, Qin Huai only felt very moved.

Qu Jing's side quest was the most difficult one to complete on Qin Huai's side; there were no clues, no direction, no leads, and most importantly, Qu Jing only had one dream segment.

Qin Huai had to complete this baffling side quest to obtain Qu Jing's only dream segment.

Simply put, there was no way to take shortcuts with Qu Jing's quest.

Before going to Gusu, Qin Huai had already tried his best, but it was useless.

This directly led to Gong Liang's quest overtaking hers; before Qu Jing's dream was obtained, Gong Liang's memory had already been unlocked.

But in terms of the level of crisis, Qu Jing was certainly far superior to Gong Liang; her obsession was deeper than Gong Liang's, and she was in her final lifetime, on the verge of failure.

At first, Qin Huai didn't quite understand why Luo Jun and Chen Huihong would patch things up for him in advance, hinting that not every spirit could successfully pass their tribulation, and that he shouldn't have any psychological burden even if they failed.

After reading all of Luo Jun's memories, Qin Huai understood a little.

Many times, it is not that the spirits cannot undergo the tribulation, but that they themselves do not want to. Their tribulation has never been others; it is their own inner heart. They cannot get past the hurdle in their hearts, and because of all sorts of reasons, they cannot forgive themselves, leading to deeper and deeper obsessions, until they are beyond redemption.

But Qin Huai didn't expect Chen Huihong to say one thing but do another. She said that Qu Jing's tribulation was hard to pass, and that Qin Huai shouldn't feel guilty or blame himself even if she failed, as these were the fates of the spirits themselves and there was little others could do.

Yet she herself went to steal fruit from Luo Jun's house every day, ran to Qu Jing's house to talk to her, and checked the knives to strictly forbid self-harm.

It could only be said that these plant spirits were born with warm hearts.

Qin Huai looked at Qu Jing, feeling that after not seeing her for more than a month, she was different from before.

The previous Qu Jing was always calm, looking at everything calmly; except for being extra attentive and slightly enthusiastic toward patients, she treated other things equally, as if everything were like floating clouds to her.

But now.

Although she was still calm, there was a hint of humanity.

Before, Qin Huai wasn't sure if Qu Jing could live for a long time, but now he was sure.

Qu Jing would likely be able to die of old age in this lifetime.

Qin Huai smiled and said: "Then Dean Qu should be very happy."

Qu Jing nodded and took a scarf out of her bag: "Mother Qu is very grateful to you all and specially knitted a scarf for you, Sister Hong, and Mr. Luo each. Qin Huai, yours was the first to be finished. This is a picture Mother Qu specially picked out on the internet. I think it looks quite good, but I don't know why it looks a bit familiar; it might be a copycat."

Qin Huai hurriedly took the scarf and looked closely.

Hmm...

It was indeed very familiar; this logo couldn't be more familiar.

L... V.

Dean Qu's aesthetic was impressive; among a pile of internet pictures, she accurately picked out the most well-known luxury brand.

Qin Huai didn't say anything and silently accepted the scarf.

Don't say, Dean Qu's craftsmanship in knitting was really quite good; the stitches were excellent, and the scarf looked very beautiful as a whole, not even looking fake from a distance.

Who could refuse a truly handmade L-style wool scarf?

Qin Huai glanced at the time and realized it was not even 3 o'clock, finally realizing that something was wrong, and asked:

"Are you on the day shift or the night shift today?"

She definitely wouldn't be off work at this time on the day shift, and she should be sleeping at this time on the night shift. How could Qu Jing appear at the Yunzhong Canteen at this time?

"I got off work early today," Qu Jing said. "Our hospital sent me to the Gusu branch for two months of study. I'm leaving the day after tomorrow, and I don't have to work this afternoon or tomorrow, so I'm going home to pack my luggage."

"I came here specifically to ask you about the situation in Gusu, to see what seasonal clothes I need to bring, what the weather is like there, and if commuting is convenient."

"I can live in the hospital's staff dormitory while I'm studying there, but you know my situation; it will inevitably be inconvenient to live with others, so I plan to rent a house outside."

"Do you have any recommended areas?"

Qin Huai thought for a moment: "I don't know the areas, but I have recommended full-set smart home appliances, and a recommended traditional Chinese medicine bone-setting shop."

Qu Jing:?

"However, since you are going to Gusu to study the day after tomorrow, I have an uninvited request I want to entrust to you," Qin Huai said with a solemn face.

Qu Jing was misled by Qin Huai's solemn expression, thinking it was something very important, so she immediately sat up straight, looked serious, and nodded affirmatively: "Tell me."

"When you get there, I'll make you some special meals, don't say they were bought from Huang Ji."

"And don't call a delivery service to buy snacks from Huang Ji."

Huang Ji's business was already very good; it couldn't be better.

Qin Huai was truly afraid of the private hospital where Qu Jing worked. How high is the salary your hospital pays doctors, why are you so rich?

Qu Jing nodded in confusion.

Although Qin Huai had lived in Gusu for more than a month, he didn't know Gusu very well; after all, his range of activities was limited to within 1 kilometer of Huang Ji.

However, Qin Huai could help with Qu Jing's house hunting. He asked Qu Jing for the address of the hospital in Gusu, then sent the address to Gong Liang, asking Gong Liang to have his assistant look into nearby housing sources.

Qu Jing still had to go home to pack her luggage, so after packing the special meal, she didn't stay long and went back.

After Qu Jing left, Qin Huai pondered her state, thought for a moment, clicked on the game panel, and flipped to the illustrated handbook.

When Qin Huai looked at the recipes last time, he really hadn't paid attention to the status of others in the handbook.

Qu Jing's handbook entry was ranked fourth.

Name: Qu Jing

Species: Unknown

Status: About to awaken

Dream: 0/1

Recipe: None

Gift: None

Sure enough, Qu Jing's status had changed.

Chen Huihong's fruit hadn't been stolen in vain; Qu Jing's status had changed from completely amnesiac to about to awaken. It could be said that Qu Jing was only one final opportunity away from starting to awaken.

This round, the plant spirits scored big!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 192 =====