Dream Guide

Mei Yiqiu lay on the hospital bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. A doctor in a white coat came to check the ward, followed by several young trainee assistants.

The doctor called softly: "Professor, professor..."

The young man behind stretched his neck and watched curiously. They knew that this was the famous Professor Mei. Today, when academic research is becoming more and more subdivided and top scholars in the same subject cannot understand each other's papers, Professor Mei is known as the last all-round genius.

Generally, such big shots live in special care wards, which are in charge of specialized expert doctors and nurses. During ward rounds, doctors will not bring interns with them. They are all carefully selected by the hospital. They are all talented and have been trained as key talents by the hospital. This time, they are specially allowed to see them.

This is a real big shot!

Who doesn’t play Dream Guide these days, and who doesn’t have a space box in their hands?

Now, the inventor of the space box, the founder of DreamNet, and the actual head of the third space, lay in front of them. They could clearly see his heartbeat and breathing on the instruments.

Mei Yiqiu didn't respond, didn't even blink, and just stared at the ceiling blankly. His cheeks were thin, with only a layer of wrinkled skin covering his cheekbones. His eye sockets were sunken, but the whites of his eyes were a little bulging, as if he was glaring hard at the world.

The doctor looked at the vital sign monitor next to him, which showed that the patient's breathing and heartbeat were very weak, but still stable. He took the tablet from the nurse again, checked the data recorded on it, and then began to explain the medical case to the students behind him.

The young interns pretended to listen attentively, but they couldn't take their attention away from the old man on the bed, and took a few furtive glances from time to time.

The doctor spoke very quickly. After finishing speaking, he lowered his head and called softly: "Professor, Professor Mei..."

Mei Yiqiu finally moved, turned her head and glanced at the door of the spacious single intensive care unit, then quickly turned back, returning to staring blankly at the ceiling.

This sudden move proved that he was not dead, but it shocked the young interns. Everyone thought they were hallucinating, but didn't know whether they should ask questions.

They all looked towards the door. The door was tightly closed, not even a breath of wind could get through.

The doctor made a last-ditch effort and asked, "Professor, do you have anything to say? If you need anything, just tell me."

The young people looked at each other. They had never heard doctors and patients say such things. This usually indicates a critical illness, but the old man's condition was obviously stable, and his lung infection was improving. He had stopped coughing in the past few days, and he had no symptoms. No other faults were found.

Mei Yiqiu stretched out her withered hand, with a drip needle on the back of her hand. Yellow liquid flowed in the infusion tube, like the sand of time, from the infusion bag to the old man's blood vessels.

"Don't intubate."

He struggled to take off the breathing mask on his face and moved his lips, begging to retain his last dignity.

"I know, Professor Xiaomei has already told me." The doctor first agreed, and then comforted, "You are out of danger and will get better soon. The country needs you, science needs you, and mankind needs you!"

People saw the professor's wrinkled face move, as if he was smiling, but it seemed he wasn't.

After the doctor left, the young nurse was the only one left in the ward.

The nurse skillfully helped the professor change the drip and put on the respiratory mask again. When she put on the mask, she saw the professor's eyes look at her vividly, and there seemed to be some profound meaning in his eyes.

The nurse's hand holding the mask stopped in mid-air and asked: "Professor, what do you want to say?"

"Help me..." The professor was furious, "Bring me a message."

"What message?"

"No matter what happens to me, I must persist. Destruction is salvation, death is rebirth..."

The nurse seemed to understand, but she still tried to write down the sentence, and then asked: "Who? Who do you want me to take the message to?"

At this time, the door opened silently.

The door of the special care unit is of excellent quality. It makes almost no sound when it is opened and closed. The nurse did not hear it. She is still waiting for the answer to complete the mission assigned to her by the hospital leaders - to take good care of the elderly in front of her and satisfy her as much as possible. All his wishes.

Mei Yiqiu looked at the door, sighed, and said, "No need, she's here."

The nurse turned around and saw a beautiful woman standing at the door, smiling politely at them.

"Ah, Professor Xiaomei is here!" the nurse called Mei Ziqing.

"Thank you, Nurse Xiao Zhou." Mei Ziqing bowed slightly, always maintaining a pleasant and friendly look, "How is the professor?"

"Very good." The nurse said, "Director Zhong just left, and the professor's condition is better than yesterday. He asked me to bring you a message just now, and here you are."

"Really? What message?" Mei Ziqing asked.

Just as the nurse was about to say something, Mei Yiqiu coughed violently, and he could hear the sound of old phlegm billowing in his lungs.

The nurse quickly put the respirator mask in her hand on Mei Yiqiu's mouth and nose, and said reproachfully: "Oh, I was so busy talking, I almost forgot..."

Mei Yiqiu took a few deep breaths, and her undulating chest gradually calmed down.

The nurse felt guilty, helped the professor tuck the quilt, and said softly: "Professor, is there anything else you want me to do? If not, I will go out, and you can talk to Professor Xiaomei."

The phlegm in the professor's throat had not completely gone down yet, and he was snoring loudly, and he said vaguely through the breathing mask: "Fish... fish..."

"Fish?" The nurse looked at him doubtfully, and suddenly saw a hint of meaningful light in the professor's eyes, but it only flashed and soon returned to that straight look.

"Do you want to eat fish?" She looked back at Mei Ziqing with a look of help.

Mei Ziqing smiled and said: "Professor likes to eat fish the most. Nurse Xiao Zhou, go ahead and do your work. Leave this place to me. I will call you if necessary."

The nurse was relieved, tidied the professor's bed, picked up the tools and the disease recording tablet and left.

Mei Ziqing went straight to the professor's bed, bent down, and looked at the professor's face with pity, blocking the professor's view of the ceiling.

"Professor, if you want to eat fish, you can tell me. She is a nurse. Buying and cooking food is the family's business, not mine. Do you really want to eat fish?"

Mei Yiqiu nodded laboriously.

"Okay, I'll ask the doctor later. If the doctor agrees, I'll buy fish and cook it for you." Mei Ziqing said.

Mei Yiqiu's dumbfounded eyes finally moved as if they were alive. He stretched out one hand to take off the mask, but the other hand connected to the infusion tube was raised high and reached for Mei Ziqing's face.

Mei Ziqing did not dodge, letting the dry, rough, cold hand, like the carbonized Haloxylon ammodendron wood strips lying in the desert at night, touch her cheek and rub it gently.

"I don't want to be intubated. Let me go quietly." The professor said.

Mei Ziqing sat on the edge of the bed, held the professor's wrist with both hands, carefully held the infusion tube that had flowed out some red blood, put the professor's skinny fingers to her lips, and whispered:

"I know, I won't let you suffer."

Mei Yiqiu smiled, for real this time.

"Why don't you comfort me? Just like the doctor just now."

"You are not an ordinary person. I will not treat you like an ordinary person, let alone deceive you."

"But you lied to me for more than ten years."