CHAPTER 133: TROUBLED QIAOQIAO

Back in the emergency department, Liu Banxia focused his attention entirely on his body. After careful assessment, he discovered that his non-dominant hand—his left hand—had become significantly more flexible than before.

This surprise finding led him to plan his enhancement strategy. He brought up his attribute panel.

Liu Banxia: Level 31, 50,087/52,931

Title: Somewhat Knowledgeable Doctor

Mental: 62 points (Comprehension, memory, focus increased by 10.71%)

Agility: 65 points (Stability, speed, tactile sensitivity increased by 20.37%)

Strength: 52 points (Strength, instrument mastery, instrument effectiveness increased by 20.93%)

Endurance: 44 points (Resilience, stamina increased by 12.82%)

Attribute points: 12 points

Glory Points: 73 points

Dressing Change Technique: Level 2, 16,738/19,999

Suturing Technique: Level 2, 15,574/19,999

Diagnostics: Level 3, 27,118/49,999

Although he had accumulated 12 attribute points, Liu Banxia decided not to use them just yet. Since these points could be freely allocated, he turned his attention to his Glory Points.

Every day, he had to train in the Dreamland dimension. He hadn’t accumulated many Glory Points, but they were much easier to earn than attribute points, so he could afford to spend them more liberally.

He had previously exchanged for stones that boosted his mental, agility, and strength attributes. This time, he decided to exchange for a gemstone that added to his endurance. Experience had shown that stamina was his weak point, and it was more wasteful to rely on stamina potions during emergencies.

He acted upon his decision immediately, spending 40 Glory Points to exchange for an emerald that increased endurance, thensocketed it.

DING! Gained 5 points of endurance, now at 49 points. Resilience and stamina increased by 25.64%.

Anyway, after socketing the gem, Liu Banxia felt revitalized. Once he had more Glory Points, he could further improve his attributes.

Although percentage-wise his endurance had increased the most, it was actually the attribute with the least effective overall improvement because his base endurance was so low. It seemed he would have to keep working on it in the future.

Having prepared himself, Liu Banxia was now ready to face even greater challenges. After all, he now possessed four gemstones. His physical shortcomings had improved somewhat, and his confidence was soaring.

Meanwhile, in a villa, Qiaoqiao was vigorously ruffling Tang Dou’s head while complaining about Liu Banxia.

"Yanzi, do you think he’s taking advantage of me?" After venting for a while, she looked at Wang Xiaoyan.

Wang Xiaoyan yawned. "Didn’t you say he might have misspoken? Why are you still dwelling on it? Weren’t you the one who eagerly threw yourself into it? Can you leave poor Tang Dou alone?"

"Are you serious? Aren’t you my best friend? Why are you defending him? I’ve never suffered such a hidden loss in my entire life!" Qiaoqiao continued to fume.

"So, what’s your plan then? Gather some guys to go beat him up?" Wang Xiaoyan responded with disinterest.

"Oh, come on, be serious. Should I text him again, maybe test the waters a little more?" Qiaoqiao finally let go of Tang Dou and moved closer to Wang Xiaoyan.

Despite his injured leg, Tang Dou was a dog of indomitable spirit. With sheer determination, he jumped down from the bed and hopped on his three good legs into the living room.

No more head-ruffling from her; otherwise, all his fur might fall out!

"Hey Qiaoqiao, are you actually falling for that guy? I must admit though, he’s pretty good-looking," Wang Xiaoyan asked with a mischievous grin.

"Him? You must be joking," Qiaoqiao said disdainfully.

"I was just thinking it’d be convenient to know a doctor, you know, for future hospital visits. This guy seems pretty influential at the Second Hospital too; he even got promoted."

"Well then, why don’t you ask if he’s interested in you? If he is, you should consider giving him a chance," suggested Wang Xiaoyan, always up for stirring the pot.

Qiaoqiao shot her a glare before whipping out her phone and sending a message to Liu Banxia: When exactly is "some other day"?

After waiting a little over two minutes, a message whizzed back: Big Sis, I really can’t say right now. How about next Sunday? I’ll probably have some time then. But it would have to be in the evening, as I might need to go to Jinshui District first.

"Damn! This guy really has some guts! He dared to call me ’Big Sis,’ and he dared to blatantly suggest next Sunday!" Qiaoqiao erupted instantly.

Wang Xiaoyan also perked up, peeking over to read the message. "Today is Saturday. Are you sure he isn’t just being serious? It looks pretty straightforward to me. I think you’re overthinking things."

"How come you’re taking his side again? Why couldn’t he just specify a day? I seriously suspect he’s indirectly making inappropriate remarks to me. I can’t tolerate this!" Qiaoqiao said.

"Alright, fine. If you can’t stand it, go get your revenge," Wang Xiaoyan lost interest again.

She knew Qiaoqiao all too well; her thinking was simple—she said whatever was on her mind and did whatever she wanted. It was likely the lingering effect from when Qiaoqiao took Jiaojiao to see the doctor last time; this girl had decided Dr. Liu was not a good person.

"Actually, it’s not really about taking revenge... but I invited him to dinner, right? Why does he keep making excuses? Don’t I have any dignity?" Qiaoqiao’s ire had subsided somewhat.

"Ah, so your true intentions are showing? Just relax. If he’s genuinely interested in you, be proactive. If he isn’t, you still be proactive," Wang Xiaoyan advised.

"Why should I?" Qiaoqiao asked, baffled.

"That’s a hospital, right? So many handsome doctors and pretty nurses work together all day. Don’t you think you need to take some initiative?" Wang Xiaoyan pointed out.

"Was that what I was asking? I’m not interested in him, so why should I be proactive?" Qiaoqiao said, looking vexed.

"To apologize and make amends, of course! Remember how you yelled at him last time? We only considered apologizing after realizing we had misunderstood him. And about Tang Dou’s leg, you inquired about that too, didn’t you? Even just for setting the bone, you wouldn’t get it fixed for less than one or two thousand yuan."

"Besides, if you build a good relationship with him, won’t it be easier for us to ask for his help in the future? We never thought about these things until we went to the hospital and realized how fragile our lives can be."

"Qiaoqiao, darling, maybe you should make a little sacrifice for your sisters. It’s not like you’ll lose out; Dr. Liu is indeed quite handsome. His current buzz cut makes him look even more energetic than before."

"Get lost! Why don’t you make the sacrifice? Go cook something for me and Tang Dou. We skipped lunch; his nonsense filled me up with anger!" Qiaoqiao said impatiently.

Wang Xiaoyan was highly amused. The usually carefree Qiaoqiao rarely fretted over anything. Even when their club, Lang Tao Sha, was temporarily shut down last time, she hadn’t seemed so distressed.

Of course, she knew Qiaoqiao hadn’t suddenly fallen in love with Liu Banxia; that would be absurd. Qiaoqiao had always had a relatively smooth life, and now she was just stubbornly fixated on Liu Banxia.

Indeed, Qiaoqiao was feeling quite conflicted. She genuinely wanted to figure out whether Liu Banxia had taken advantage of her or not, and in doing so, she had inadvertently made things more complicated.

She had to get her revenge. Helping her was one thing, but he absolutely couldn’t use that as an opportunity to take advantage of her. Even if she couldn’t be sure right now, she’d just assume he had!