Chapter 750: Clear-Minded

Early the next morning, Ji Xiang took Sha Paozi out for a morning run.

Although he hadn't slept enough, fortunately Ji Xiang was young, and one night of staying up late didn't mean much to him.

Ji Xiang hadn't slept enough last night, and he hadn't slept well either.

In Empathy, Shen Lang told Ji Xiang about that time Professor Zhou encountered a case of cardiac tamponade that left the injured party in a Vegetative State, and how the Family Member's decision to give up on resuscitation had stuck in his throat like a fishbone.

At the time, Ji Xiang hadn't taken this "gossip" to heart; it was just gossip, after all.

But last night, Ji Xiang dreamed he had admitted a similar Patient, yet Ji Xiang still didn't know what he should have done.

Although he didn't know what to do, Ji Xiang had one good trait, also cultivated by his old man: if he couldn't figure something out, he wouldn't dwell on it.

There were millions of truths in this world, and it was impossible for him to figure them all out.

Running along with Sha Paozi, Ji Xiang felt refreshed and invigorated.

The lingering annoyance left behind by Empathy vanished into thin air.

Upon reaching the turnaround point, Sha Paozi found a spot to relieve itself, and Ji Xiang picked up the dog waste, put it in a bag, and found a trash can to throw it away.

That was the one downside to running with Sha Paozi: he had to be fully equipped with gear.

With an extra backpack on his back, it was a bit of a burden.

"Let's go." Ji Xiang threw away the waste bag and prepared to put Sha Paozi into the backpack to carry it, but he saw it trotting along behind him with a plastic bottle in its mouth.

He didn't know when it had picked up the bottle; Ji Xiang hadn't even noticed.

"Why are you carrying that thing?" Ji Xiang reached out, wanting Sha Paozi to hand the bottle over to him.

But the usually obedient Sha Paozi ignored Ji Xiang and instead pulled him toward an old man rummaging through a trash can in the early morning.

The old man was startled, but then noticed Sha Paozi wanted to give him the bottle; he tentatively took the bottle, and the wrinkles on his face bloomed into a smile.

"Your dog is truly amazing!" the old man said gratefully, "Usually, the dogs I see look down on people."

"Really?" Ji Xiang asked while gently stroking the dog's head.

"Yeah," the old man said while organizing his trash bag, "Dogs usually don't bark at people who are dressed neatly. For someone like me, most dogs will bark at me from far away."

Ji Xiang didn't want to continue this topic, so he started putting Sha Paozi into the backpack, "It must be hard for you to get up early every day to pick up things."

"It's not that hard, it's not like laying bricks at a construction site; it's quite easy. It's just that I can't go to the trash cans near the residential complex, so I earn a little less," the old man said.

"Oh? The security guards won't let you in?" Ji Xiang asked.

"The security guards don't stop me, the problem is that the residential complexes with good pickings already have people there; they belong to someone else's territory, and I couldn't compete with them."

Ji Xiang was slightly stunned. There were even regional divisions for picking up trash? And they had to divide territory?

Thinking of this, Ji Xiang recalled Bai Chuzhang telling him that the Scalpers at the hospital were all forged in real, cutthroat competition, and it wasn't just as simple as getting up early to queue or registering online.

"But, it doesn't matter, I don't care about that." The old man was amiable and very talkative. Ji Xiang felt he was a bit embarrassed after receiving a plastic bottle from Sha Paozi, so he chatted a bit more with him.

"Are you living alright? When I was in the South, I saw some homeless people, and it was okay there. Here in the Northeast, it's too cold, especially in winter; you can't just find any place to sleep."

"I'm doing alright, there are some abandoned buildings from before. Although there's no plumbing, I can livestream some wilderness survival when I go back, and I can earn a little bit."

"..."

He hadn't expected him to be a minor internet celebrity.

Ji Xiang looked at the old man carefully.

He didn't seem that old, maybe in his forties, but he didn't know how many days it had been since he'd groomed himself, and coupled with his own preconceived notions, he had thought he was quite old.

"It's good to be young. I always see you running early in the morning, and later bringing this little guy along. With your physique, you can run a dog until it collapses; I'm envious. I didn't have such good stamina when I was young, and now it's even worse."

The old man laughed heartily.

"It's alright, just young and full of energy." Ji Xiang put Sha Paozi into the backpack and lifted it onto his shoulder.

"Take care," Ji Xiang said very politely to the homeless man.

He looked up at Ji Xiang and gave a silly grin.

"Life is suffering, but I think I'm doing okay."

"Hm?"

The way he said that didn't sound like an ordinary homeless man.

"Especially in the middle of summer, with the scorching sun overhead, buying a bottle of ice-cold cola and taking a gulp. Tsk tsk, any amount of suffering is worth it."

Seeing that his words were interesting, Ji Xiang took out his phone, added his contact information, and then carried Sha Paozi all the way home.

He hadn't expected to meet such a fascinating person early in the morning.

But Ji Xiang didn't keep the homeless man's fascination to heart; he had heard many things from his old man since he was a child, and to this day, the old man's phone still had the WeChat of several Daoist priests, and occasionally he could see scenes of them wandering freely in the human world.

Playing guitars and singing songs, those Daoist priests also kept up with the times; they were different from what one would imagine.

Under the influence of Ji Yongchang, Ji Xiang added the interesting homeless man's contact information; if fate allowed, they would meet again in the future.

Doing interesting things and meeting interesting people was part of the meaning of life.

Regarding his comment about the scorching sun and taking a gulp of ice-cold cola, Ji Xiang felt this person was very clear-minded.

The small amount of lingering unhappiness in his heart also dissipated without a trace.

The weather wasn't good today; the sky was filled with thick clouds, and it looked like it was about to snow heavily.

After returning home and eating breakfast, Ji Xiang greeted the old man and rode his bicycle to the hospital.

Changing clothes, seeing Patients—this routine was day after day, year after year; it seemed it had never changed.

The Patient was safe and sound, and Ji Xiang was quite happy when he walked out of the ward.

Leaving the ward, he ran into Liu Zhuren, Liu Zhi.

"Zhuren," Ji Xiang greeted respectfully.

"Xiao Ji, the New Year is coming soon. Find a day when you have time to call your medical team to have a meal together," Liu Zhuren said with a smile.

"I have time whenever, whatever is convenient for you," Ji Xiang said respectfully, and Liu Zhuren was very satisfied with his attitude.

"Then let's make it tonight," Liu Zhuren said, "Do you drink?"

"If you can avoid drinking, it's best not to."

Liu Zhuren did not insist, patting Ji Xiang on the shoulder, "Don't waste your energy overthinking it. It's an old rule in the hospital that the director treats everyone to a meal during the New Year. Just bring your appetite; don't bring anything else."

"Understood."

After saying this, Liu Zhuren hurried back to hand over the shift.

Zhao Zhe darted out from the Duty Room at this moment, "Xiao Ji, Liu Zhuren really thinks highly of you."

"It's alright, I suppose."

"It should have been a matter of a phone call, yet he insisted on making the trip himself," Zhao Zhe said. "In all these years, I've never seen a situation like this."

"It's fine. Zhao Ge, are you going home for the New Year?"

At the mention of going home, Zhao Zhe's expression changed slightly.

"I... hahaha, I both want to and am afraid to."

(End of chapter)