My Childhood Friend, Who Is An Omega, Has Become My Personal Secretary - Chapter 22

Mia said that in Zhang Linen’s contact list, the only person under the “Family” category was Ji Zeyuan.

After leaving the company, Ji Zeyuan silenced her phone to avoid being disturbed by the media.

Having taken half a sleeping pill, Ji Zeyuan fell asleep. Her mind had been racing with a myriad of thoughts over the past few days; now that she was away from the office, she wanted to completely clear her head and rest.

It wasn’t until six hours after her “forced shutdown” that Ji Zeyuan woke up. Bleary-eyed, she reached for the phone beside her just as Shen Jiuyue happened to call.

Feeling somewhat weary, Ji Zeyuan pressed the answer key. She placed the phone to her ear, and Shen Jiuyue’s characteristically playful voice drifted into her hearing.

“President Ji, I’ve called you more than ten times.” Shen Jiuyue’s tone held a hint of complaint, but because her voice was so soft, it sounded more like acting spoiled.

Ji Zeyuan didn’t respond, listening quietly.

Shen Jiuyue was already used to Ji Zeyuan ignoring people and continued on her own: “The hype is so high right now; the traffic for our pre-sale livestream tonight is bound to explode. Isn’t President Ji going to praise me?”

Ji Zeyuan gave a formal word of praise: “You did well.” She didn’t forget to point out a flaw, however: “But your fans are too fanatical. You forgot to consider this factor beforehand; the risk level of this marketing method is still too high.”

Shen Jiuyue immediately laughed and retorted: “Does President Ji know the saying, ‘Nothing ventured, nothing gained’?”

Ji Zeyuan remained silent. No matter how hard Shen Jiuyue tried to liven up the conversation, Ji Zeyuan’s mind was occupied by someone else, making it difficult to avoid being distracted.

Shen Jiuyue was sensible enough not to waste any more words: “Then bye-bye, President Ji. Remember to watch my stream.”

Ji Zeyuan replied indifferently: “Bye-bye.”

After hanging up, Ji Zeyuan habitually began processing the backlog of messages. She was startled to find that Zhang Linen’s chat box showed “33+”.

Zhang Linen usually messaged her frequently, but she wasn’t the clingy type; if she sent several messages without a response, she wouldn’t normally keep firing them off like a machine gun.

A heavy, ominous premonition surged in Ji Zeyuan’s heart. Her hand trembled uncontrollably as she tapped on Zhang Linen’s message box.

Out of thirty-three messages, thirty-one were missed voice calls.

“Jessica, your secretary fainted. She is currently at the A-City Third People’s Hospital, Building 2, Room 402.”

“Sorry to disturb you, but in her contacts, you are the only one listed under the ‘Family’ category. I could only message you.”

In an instant, Ji Zeyuan’s mind went blank, and her ears began to ring.

After a brief moment of paralysis, she reacted quickly. She scrambled out of bed, tripping over the blanket wrapped around her legs and falling hard face-first.

Ji Zeyuan let out a muffled groan, but she didn’t care about the pain. She scrambled up immediately and rushed out of the house like an arrow released from a bow.

“Miss Zhang, due to your long-term use of medication, the pheromones that have been suppressed in your body for too long without release have become disordered. The preliminary diagnosis is that you have likely developed Pheromone Phobia.”

Lying on the snow-white hospital bed, Zhang Linen’s cheeks were even paler than the sheets. She remained indifferent to the doctor’s words, not even bothering to nod.

The doctor glanced at Zhang Linen and spoke: “Miss Zhang, the Sertraline tablets you take long-term need to be used according to medical advice. From your blood test results, you have recently taken a large amount in a short period of time. Doing so causes great harm to your body.”

Zhang Linen remained downcast and silent, staring hollowly at the bedsheets.

The doctor sighed softly and, without saying more, turned to leave the ward.

Outside the ward, Mia was sitting on a long bench in the hallway. As soon as the doctor pushed the door open, she stood up and asked, “Doctor, what’s wrong with her? Is she okay?”

The doctor looked this flamboyantly dressed foreigner up and down and asked, “Who are you to her?”

Mia said, “I… I’m not really anyone. I’m a friend of her friend.”

The doctor looked skeptical, seemingly thinking, What kind of relationship is that?

“The patient’s vital signs are now stable. However, due to the specific nature of her condition, she cannot have close contact with Alphas or Omegas for the time being.” The doctor stated the facts and then asked, “Where are the patient’s family members?”

Mia looked troubled: “I can’t get in touch with her family.”

The doctor seemed accustomed to this and didn’t ask further, merely shaking his head with regret and pity before turning to leave.

Because it was an emergency, Mia hadn’t chosen the best hospital; she had simply picked the “Third Hospital” because it was the nearest on the navigation system.

The Third Hospital was small and dilapidated. The lights in the hospital corridor were old and flickering, the lighting was dim, and there were many makeshift cots set up by accompanying family members along the hallway. It was dark, crowded, and lifeless.

Mia didn’t like the atmosphere here. She got goosebumps and pushed open the door to the ward.

“Miss Secretary, how are you feeling now?” Because the doctor had warned that Zhang Linen could not have close contact with Alphas or Omegas, Mia only stood at the door and did not enter.

Zhang Linen looked at Mia expressionlessly and nodded slightly: “I am fine. Thank you for bringing me to the hospital. You can leave now.”

Mia gave a faint smile and placed Zhang Linen’s phone on the cabinet by the door, saying: “This is your phone. Sorry, I took the liberty of using your fingerprint to unlock it, but I only sent Jessica the news of your hospitalization; I didn’t look at anything else.”

Zhang Linen suddenly turned her head, staring straight at her phone, and asked, “What did she say?”

Mia scratched her chin: “She seemed busy and didn’t reply, but I sent her your room number. If she sees it, she will definitely come.”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Linen closed her eyes in despair and gave a self-mocking smile.

Mia felt something in her heart, but couldn’t say why. After lingering for a moment and deciding she couldn’t offer any more positive help, she left.

…

By the time Ji Zeyuan rushed to the Third Hospital, it was already 7:50 PM. The inpatient department of the Third Hospital closed at 8:00 PM, and she was nearly blocked by the security guard.

The sky was already dark, and the streetlights of the hospital were dim. Ji Zeyuan managed to find Building 2 with great difficulty, but there was no elevator, so she had to climb the stairs.

The nurse on duty heard the hurried footsteps in the corridor and looked up. Ji Zeyuan leaned against the reception desk and asked, “Hello, where is Room 402?”

The nurse froze, feeling that the person in front of her looked somewhat familiar. She pointed to the end of the corridor: “The last one on the right is it.”

As soon as the words were out, Ji Zeyuan turned and ran in the direction the nurse pointed.

Only after Ji Zeyuan left did the nurse suddenly realize that the patient in 402 was supposed to be isolated from Alphas and Omegas. She hurried after her, shouting, “Hey, wait! Family member!”

Ji Zeyuan, whose only thought was to see Zhang Linen, didn’t hear the nurse’s shouting behind her at all. She rushed to Room 402 and pushed open the door.

There were two beds in the ward, both of which were empty. Zhang Linen, dressed in a hospital gown, was leaning against the wall by the window, looking outside. She didn’t turn around when the door opened.

At the sight of Zhang Linen’s lonely and thin silhouette, Ji Zeyuan’s eyes grew hot. She stepped forward and was about to speak when someone suddenly grabbed her from behind.

“This… this family member, the patient’s current condition doesn’t allow for contact with Alphas and Omegas. Please leave,” the nurse said, catching up while out of breath.

At that moment, Zhang Linen slowly turned her head. The moment she saw Ji Zeyuan, her originally dull eyes lit up instantly, and a trace of a smile appeared on her tightened lips.

“Nurse, she’s fine.” As Zhang Linen spoke, she walked toward Ji Zeyuan, and her body truly showed no signs of rejection.

The nurse looked in astonishment at Zhang Linen, who showed no abnormality, and then at Ji Zeyuan. She was full of shock: “This… this is incredible. I’ll go call the Chief over now.”

With that, the nurse left. She ran very fast, as if afraid this shocking discovery would be snatched away by someone else if she were a moment late.

Ji Zeyuan was still in her pajamas, and her shoes were mismatched—she was wearing one white and one pink slipper.

“Miss, why did you come dressed like this?” Zhang Linen asked with a light smile.

Zhang Linen’s calm appearance was the same as always; she tried to pretend everything was fine, but the deathly pallor of her face was impossible to ignore.

Ji Zeyuan had no time to explain her attire and asked anxiously, “How are you? Why did you faint?”

Looking at Ji Zeyuan’s nervous expression for her sake, the corners of Zhang Linen’s mouth nearly curled up uncontrollably.

She raised her arms to embrace Ji Zeyuan. Although Ji Zeyuan felt a bit awkward, she didn’t push her away; she just leaned her body back slightly, her hands hanging naturally at her sides without returning the hug.

“I’m fine now. Since you came to see me, I’m fine.” Zhang Linen’s voice was light, as if she truly were alright.

Ji Zeyuan frowned in silence. She wasn’t sure if it was psychological, but Zhang Linen’s body seemed even thinner than before.

“Why did Mia bring you here? Where is she?” Ji Zeyuan asked in a low, gentle voice.

Zhang Linen didn’t want to let go of her embrace and whispered in her ear: “She’s already left. She came to the company to find you today, and I fainted while receiving her, so she brought me to the hospital.”

Ji Zeyuan was silent for two seconds before asking again, “Has Aunt Zhang been here yet?”

Zhang Linen went silent and did not answer.

After a moment, Zhang Linen let go of Ji Zeyuan, seemingly wanting to avoid the question. She turned and sat back on the hospital bed.

A wave of bitterness surged in Ji Zeyuan’s heart. She suddenly realized something she had taken for granted.

She had been gone for too long; things had changed, and Zhang Linen had naturally changed a lot too.

In the past eight years, she didn’t know what Zhang Linen had experienced or how she had changed.

“Mom is too busy,” Zhang Linen suddenly spoke, explaining nonchalantly.

Ji Zeyuan found it hard to imagine what exactly had happened to Zhang Linen; Aunt Zhang used to dote on her the most.

Mia said that in Zhang Linen’s contact list, the only person under the “Family” category was Ji Zeyuan.

She had been gone for eight years—how had Zhang Linen spent those eight years in loneliness?

“En-en…” Ji Zeyuan spoke sadly. At that moment, a doctor and the nurse who had given her directions entered the ward.

The doctor wore a pair of heavy framed glasses. While adjusting her glasses, she looked at Ji Zeyuan and asked, “Are you Zhang Linen’s family member?”

Zhang Linen was just about to open her mouth to deny it when Ji Zeyuan nodded without hesitation and replied, “Yes.”