“Yeah, I’ve always loved the night sky. But how did you know that, Chenfei?” Gu Sisi tilted her head, smiling.
“I just guessed… figured it would fit you.” Gu Chenfei’s cheeks warmed—she had almost said something she shouldn’t. She tried to laugh it off.
“You’re so clever, Chenfei. I wish I were as smart as you.” Gu Sisi’s grin became a little silly. Gu Chenfei wondered, half-amused, half-worried if Sisi had had too much to drink.
But judging by how little she’d had, Gu Chenfei thought it unlikely.
“Chenfei—cheers!” Sisi raised her glass, then, without warning, collapsed face-first onto the table and was gone.
“Gu Sisi, you can’t be serious—she got drunk on that?” Gu Chenfei teased, but the laugh died in her throat. Sisi’s face was flushed hot, and it didn’t look like ordinary intoxication.
She touched Sisi’s cheek—burning. The bottle’s label showed a low alcohol content. This wasn’t right.
She called someone, quick and sharp.
Ten minutes later, a breathless figure scrambled through a window and landed on the balcony, panting dramatically. “My God, I’m exhausted. It’s the middle of the night—what emergency is this?” he wheezed, addressing Gu Chenfei.
There was a bottle in his hand. “Alcohol—perfect timing. I ran all the way over. I’m parched,” he said, and before anyone could stop him he tipped the bottle toward his lips.
“Hey, wait—don’t drink yet. Look at her first.” Gu Chenfei snatched the bottle away and pushed the man in front of Sisi.
“What? Don’t be stingy. You won’t even let me have a sip—this isn’t your bar.” The man was a handsome, theatrical type. He shrugged and made a show of it, but Gu Chenfei’s warning made him freeze, and the drink almost sprayed out of his mouth.
This was Ji Ling—Gu Chenfei’s private doctor and the kind of friend who cursed as easily as he flirted. He hadn’t had steady work in ages; his “job” was being dragged to emergencies like this. His entrance—clambering over a wall—was ridiculous but not surprising. He always took the most dramatic way in.
He poked Gu Sisi’s face with a finger. “Who’s this?”
“Take your hand off her—don’t poke,” Gu Chenfei snapped, swatting his hand away.
“You’re no fun. How am I supposed to check her if you won’t let me touch?” Ji Ling protested with mock indignation, but his hands moved efficiently, checking pulse, pupils, temperature.
After a long moment he straightened and his expression dropped into seriousness.
“Who is she?” he asked, almost casually.
“Mrs. Huo—Huo Cheng’s wife. Now tell me what’s wrong,” Gu Chenfei said, impatience fraying.
“Huo… Huo Cheng?” Ji Ling covered his mouth, eyes wide. He looked genuinely shocked.
“Answer me,” Gu Chenfei’s patience snapped.
Ji Ling composed himself in two breaths, sliding back into his lounge-lizard act as if nothing had happened. “It’s nothing life-threatening. She has a small amount of a hallucinogenic agent in her system. It reacted with the alcohol and knocked her out.”
He produced a tablet and popped it into Sisi’s mouth like it was routine. “She’ll be fine. Won’t be long before she wakes.”
“Done? You’re leaving?” He started stretching by the balcony rail, already scanning the wall he’d climbed in through.
“Wait. Say that again—hallucinogen? How would she come into contact with something like that?” Gu Chenfei grabbed his collar, dragging him back. Her voice was hard. “Tell me now.”
Ji Ling’s eyes widened. “Miss Gu, seriously—how would I know who dosed her? I just know the levels are tiny. If it were a large dose, she’d be dead by now, not just asleep.”
“You didn’t run tests. How can you be sure it’s a hallucinogen?” Gu Chenfei’s gaze sliced into him, skeptical.
Ji Ling gave a half-smile. “You’ve known me long enough—when have I ever treated someone ordinary? Before I was your private doctor, I dealt with plenty of strange cases. I don’t need lab results to know what I’m looking at.”
Gu Chenfei hesitated for a beat, thinking back to whatever wild résumé he’d once shown off. She let go of his collar, albeit reluctantly.
Ji Ling breathed out in relief and began to gather his things. Gu Chenfei wasn’t done.
“You tell me who would want to do this. Don’t try to be coy—this is Huo Cheng’s wife. If this turns into something bigger, and she keeps passing out like this, don’t think I won’t come after you even if he doesn’t.” Her voice turned cold; the warning was clear.
Ji Ling shivered despite his bravado. “Could you ease up on the threats? They really don’t—”
He stopped mid-sentence when Gu Chenfei shot him a look that could freeze blood. “Alright, alright. Point taken.” He held his hands up in surrender.
He shrugged, then explained in a more measured tone. “The dose is so low it could have been introduced through food—something added a little at a time until it built up in her system. But these kinds of hallucinogens aren’t something the average person has access to. That’s why I was surprised. I figured she was just an ordinary girl. When you said she was Huo Cheng’s wife, something clicked. In a family like the Huo clan, where someone might be kept on the margins… this sort of thing wouldn’t be unheard of.”
He finished packing, checked the low patch in the balcony wall he’d used as an exit, and sauntered toward it. “I’ll keep an eye on the corner for a minute,” he said, then, with a flourish, began scaling the wall. “I’ll be back if she doesn’t wake.”
As he dropped out of sight, Gu Chenfei watched him go, worry and a cold sort of dread settling in her chest. Someone had slipped something into the life of Huo Cheng’s wife—and whoever it was had access, patience, and a willingness to hide it in plain sight.