A Fainting Encounter

“Hey, hey, hey!”

Tang Xingwan was merely passing by when she noticed a somewhat familiar, petite figure struggling to stand on tiptoe, attempting to press a vending machine button that remained just out of reach.

So, she simply walked over to offer assistance.

But she never expected the girl to collapse immediately after glancing at her!

What was happening?

Had she frightened her?

Her appearance wasn’t *that* terrifying, was it?

Without a moment’s hesitation, Tang Xingwan swiftly stepped forward, catching Bai Muxue just as she swayed into her arms.

“Are you alright?”

She had braced herself for a clumsy impact, yet the girl in her arms was incredibly light.

Her entire body, soft and seemingly boneless, felt utterly devoid of weight, like a feather.

Moreover, her forehead was burning hot.

Was she sick?

Tang Xingwan gritted her teeth, straining to move the girl from the scorching sun into the shade.

“I…”

Bai Muxue’s voice was faint as a mosquito’s buzz, her entire weight leaning against Tang Xingwan’s shoulder.

Each breath seemed to be an immense effort.

“I’m fine… just need a moment to recover…”

‘This voice, it’s so familiar,’ Tang Xingwan thought, ‘I’ve definitely heard it somewhere before.’

She turned her head, looking at the face so close to hers, and a sudden jolt of recognition struck her.

“Oh, is that… Miss Bai?”

Bai Muxue gasped for breath, her sunglasses and crossbody bag lying discarded nearby.

A feverish flush stained her pale, delicate face, and sweat had drenched her temples, slowly dripping down her hair strands.

“I didn’t expect to see you here again…”

She struggled to pull away from Tang Xingwan’s embrace, offering a strained smile to the other girl, seemingly wanting to turn and leave.

But at that moment, her face was ashen, her steps unsteady, and her petite frame swayed precariously.

She couldn’t even stand still, looking as if she might collapse the next second.

Only by gripping the nearby wall with her small hand could she manage to stay upright.

“Miss Bai, your condition really doesn’t look good…”

Tang Xingwan hurriedly jogged over, attempting to help the girl stand.

“Uh, should I call an ambulance for you? Or perhaps contact your family?”

“It’s fine, I’m just… a little unwell…”

Yet, the faint smile on Bai Muxue’s face appeared so incredibly weak in Tang Xingwan’s eyes.

Her exquisitely flawless face was now marred by a sickly pallor, and even her voice sounded weak and listless.

– It was completely unlike the Bai Muxue Tang Xingwan had first met, who, despite having tears in her eyes and a sorrowful expression, still exuded a confident yet gentle demeanor.

‘Miss Bai looks… so fragile…’

“Ugh, I have something else to do later, so I’ll be going…”

At this point, Bai Muxue’s mind was utterly incapable of coherent thought.

She merely bent down on instinct, picking up her crossbody bag and sunglasses, then staggered forward, one shaky step after another.

– ‘I can’t stay here; I don’t want Xingwan to see this vulnerable side of me.’

This was the only thought in Bai Muxue’s mind right now.

But thoughts were one thing; reality another.

The simple act of bending down seemed to have drained the last vestiges of Bai Muxue’s strength.

She slowly crumpled, slumping down at a street corner.

She tried desperately to stand up, but after several struggles, she fell back down.

One hand clutched her lower abdomen, and a faint sensation of nausea rose within her.

“How can you call *this* fine?!”

Tang Xingwan rushed forward to help Bai Muxue to her feet, then frantically pulled out her phone from her pocket.

“I’m calling an ambulance right now! It’s okay, I’ll stay with you!”

“No, don’t!”

Bai Muxue, dangerously weak, somehow summoned strength from an unknown reserve and grabbed the phone from Tang Xingwan’s hand.

“Don’t call an ambulance, don’t go to the hospital…”

‘If I’m truly being targeted by certain individuals, it would be too perilous to rashly go to a hospital in such a weak state…’

“Besides, I have an appointment later…”

She licked her pale, parched lips, whispering.

The girl’s slightly feverish breath brushed against Tang Xingwan’s neck, causing her to involuntarily flinch from the tickling sensation.

‘Ugh… Miss Bai is in this state, and she’s still thinking of meeting someone else? Isn’t that a bit…?’

‘Could it be a date with her significant other? Is that why she keeps thinking of that person?’

Tang Xingwan’s wild, imaginative thoughts began to wander once more.

“…”

“Miss Bai? Miss Bai?”

Tang Xingwan tentatively patted the girl’s back, but Bai Muxue showed not the slightest reaction.

As if she had lost consciousness, she leaned against Tang Xingwan’s embrace, her small mouth weakly parting and closing, seemingly having slipped into a semi-conscious state.

“She’s… she’s fainted!?”

Seeing this, Tang Xingwan’s heart lurched.

She struggled to free one hand, rummaging through her small bag.

“What do I do, what do I do? Is there anything useful… Ah!”

“Ugh, I’ll just have to make do with this for now.”

She pulled out a small, square cloth from her bag.

The image of a black-haired beautiful girl cradling a guitar, printed on it, was strikingly prominent.

This was merchandise from a girl rock band Tang Xingwan adored, but since she didn’t have a proper handkerchief on her, she could only make do with it for now.

After pouring the ice water she had just bought from the convenience store onto the cloth, Tang Xingwan wrung it out and placed it on Bai Muxue’s feverish forehead.

‘Though it probably won’t do much good… better than nothing, I suppose!’

“So, what should I do next? Logically, I should call an ambulance right now… but she wouldn’t let me call one!!”

Tang Xingwan ran a frustrated hand through her hair, thinking, ‘Could something have happened at this young lady’s home? Is she being hunted, which is why she doesn’t want to go to the hospital?’

‘No, that can’t be right… In broad daylight, where would vicious assassins come from?’

‘Monster Calamities are even less likely… Even though news about them plays on TV every day, Tang Xingwan has never actually seen a real, living monster in her life.’

‘Hmm, I have seen supernatural phenomena a few times, though.’

“Sigh, never mind. Even though Miss Bai said that… I can’t just abandon her here.”

Reining in her wandering thoughts, Tang Xingwan sighed, pressing a hand to her forehead.

She then looked at the street not far away, as if having made a firm decision, and muttered to herself:

“It’s not too far from home here.

A hasty decision might not be ideal, but there’s no other way!”

Tang Xingwan pressed her lips together, then, with a grunt, hoisted the petite girl onto her back.

“Uh, didn’t Miss Bai just say she had an appointment with someone?”

“Well, never mind.

Saving her is more important right now…”

Muttering to herself, Tang Xingwan carried the unconscious Bai Muxue away from the street.

No sooner had the two departed the street than Shen Jingyi, having changed into casual clothes, hurriedly arrived at their agreed meeting point.

“That girl… isn’t she here yet?”

Slightly breathless from running, Shen Jingyi didn’t even pause to catch her breath.

She pulled out her phone, glanced at the location Bai Muxue had shared ten minutes earlier, then looked around.

Her delicate brows furrowed slightly.

While it was perfectly normal for Miss Bai to be late, Shen Jingyi couldn’t shake the feeling that she had missed something important.

She gazed blankly at the now empty street, thinking this.