Sitting on a crowded bus, Lan Lingling coughed and covered her nose. The packed bus in hot weather and the smell of smoke suffocated her.
Nearby, someone complained about secondhand smoke leading to health issues, which made Lan Lingling smile. She took a deep breath of the smoke, silently wishing for illness.
A kind elderly woman warned her against inhaling the smoke, suggesting she might get cancer. Lan Lingling thanked her, claiming to feel suffocated but hoping for illness. The woman advised her about motion sickness medication and its potential harm. Lan Lingling responded that she would avoid it in the future.
No medication is good!” Lan Lingling laughed, sticking out her tongue. “If it could help me die, taking more wouldn’t be bad!”
“West Ming Hospital arriving! Passengers, please exit carefully!” A pleasant voice called, and Lan Lingling jumped off the bus.
Another familiar hospital.
“Oh, another patient died recently. Everyone’s feeling down,” a beautiful nurse complained to her colleague near the entrance.
“Yes, facing death and injuries all the time leaves a shadow on our hearts,” the other nurse agreed.
Another death? Why can’t it be me? Oh God, just grant me a knife from the sky!
Lan Lingling dragged herself up to the second floor.
“Knock knock! Dr. Chen here?” she called, raising her hand to knock on the door.
“Come in! Is that you, Lingling? How have you been feeling lately?” Her attending physician, who had been caring for her since birth, greeted her with warmth.
“I’m okay! Dr. Chen, why can’t I seem to die? What’s the reason?” she asked, feeling comfortable sharing her thoughts with him. He would always keep her secrets.
“You! So young, always thinking about dying! What trouble have you been up to recently?” He knew her well enough to expect mischief whenever he hadn’t seen her for a few days.
But this girl was much more resilient than he imagined, seemingly unable to die. He recalled when she was hit by a truck and suffered only minor injuries, which was hard to believe.
“Forget it! You’re a doctor treating physical illnesses, not mental ones! Dr. Chen, let’s skip the full checkup today! The results are always the same, nothing new!”
“Stop! Don’t you listen to me anymore? Take this form and go for a checkup!” Lan Lingling always worried him with her strange ideas.
“Alright, Dr. Chen, I’ll go! I’ll be right back!” she said, took the form, and hurried out.
As the door closed, Dr. Chen sighed. Although Lan Lingling appeared fine on the surface, her inner world was more tragic than that of someone her age. At nineteen, she didn’t even have a close friend.
“Dr. Chen! Dr. Chen! Lan Lingling just fainted at the examination door. Please come and take a look!” the head nurse rushed in, anxious.
“What? Quickly take me to see!” This girl never let him rest easy. Each visit to the hospital brought new concerns. He wondered what he did wrong in his previous life to be stuck with such challenges.
Chen.
“Why would you be angry? You’re the one who fell asleep!” he replied, masking his concern with a smile.
“Fell asleep? I just closed my eyes for a moment!” Lan Lingling insisted, still grinning. “So, what did you do while I was napping? Watch the clock?”
Dr. Chen sighed again, glancing at the clock. “I’ve been here the whole time. You’ve been sleeping for hours.”
“Oh, how boring! Didn’t you have any surgery or patients to check on?” she asked.
“I do, but I couldn’t leave you like this,” he said, feeling a sense of responsibility for her well-being.
“Fine, but next time, bring a book!” she joked.
Dr. Chen chuckled, relieved to see her lively spirit returning. “Maybe I will.”
Lan Lingling sat up slowly. “What should I do now? Am I free to go home?”
“Once the doctor checks on you and confirms you’re okay, you can leave. Just take it easy,” he advised.
“Okay, I promise! Just… no more sleeping in hospitals!” she laughed.
Dr. Chen nodded, feeling hopeful that this would be the last time she’d need to stay.
Chen was startled, patting his chest and exclaiming, “You scared me! You really scared me!”
“You’re not dead yet!” He couldn’t help but think how neurotic Chen was.
Just then, Lan Lingling jumped from the bed to the floor, rushing towards the door. Always so rough, he worried she’d bump into something or fall.
“Nothing! Just thinking about how to die! Dr. Chen, bye-bye!” she replied, waving cheerfully as she swaggered out.
Once again, her antics made him feel like he was losing his mind. He believed that when she finally became normal, he would definitely go crazy.
Dr. Chen adjusted his short hair, feeling numbness in his right hand. Shaking it off, he blew on it and casually walked out, remarking, “Since the sunlight is so beautiful, why waste life? Friends, don’t be like Lingling; that would be disrespectful to the sunshine!”
Ah! Can’t even die! Lately, had he been offering fewer incense? Maybe the heavens were punishing him, especially after cursing them last time. They were too petty! Was it really worth getting so angry over just a few words?
Chen advises, “Keep talking about the heavens, and you might get struck by lightning!” Lan Lingling laughs mischievously, “I wish!”
Suddenly, a sharp female voice broke through the atmosphere. “Help! Please save my baby!” People on the street rushed over to witness the commotion.
“What’s happening? What’s going on?” Lan Lingling thought, feeling overwhelmed by the chaos around her. The situation seemed to toy with her patience.
The young woman knelt, crying and begging passersby, “Please, kind people, quickly go down and save my child! I can’t swim!”
People murmured in fear, “What can we do? The water is too deep! No one who has gone in has ever come out alive!”
“I heard a good swimmer jumped in once but didn’t resurface. They found his body later; it was tragic.”
Despite the cries for help, no one stepped forward to save the child, who appeared to be around ten years old and was struggling against the water, slowly sinking.
What cold-blooded people!
All talk, no action!
Lan Ling’er looked at the faces around her and jumped into the water to everyone’s surprise.
“Come, grab my hand! Don’t let go!” She paddled desperately toward the drowning child, despite having never swum before. But she was clever and determined.
“Sister, save me, save me!” The child, making a final struggle, reached for her hand.
“Don’t be afraid! I’ll pull you to shore, then climb up quickly!” The water felt strange, pulling at her legs, making it hard to swim.
She was running out of strength! Before reaching the shore, the child would drown with her! No, she had to do a good deed! Maybe the newspaper would report: A woman named Lan Ling’er drowned while saving someone—what a story! (Dr. Chen reprimanded: What time is it, still thinking about fame? Save the person first! Lan Ling’er stuck out her tongue playfully!)
With her last bit of strength, she pushed the child toward the shore, knowing it was enough.
“My child! Are you okay! Are you okay!
The young mother was on the shore, excitedly hugging and kissing her son as he reached her.
“Mom! Mom!” The child’s tears flowed as he tightly hugged her arm, crying loudly.
Watching their reunion, Lan Ling’er smiled slightly, her body slowly sinking. Dr. Chen anxiously asked, “Why isn’t anyone saving you?” Lan Ling’er replied, “Don’t mention it, I have bad luck; it’s normal no one would save me! If you were there, Dr. Chen, I wouldn’t be so miserable!”
Suddenly, someone shouted from the roadside, “Look! The girl disappeared!” Everyone recalled Lan Ling’er, who had saved the child, and looked into the calm water, but there was no trace of her. Arguments began among the crowd.
“Savior! Please find a way to save her!” the young mother pleaded as she knelt before the crowd.
