High Fever

(Two updates tomorrow, one at noon and one in the evening, but each update will be 3000 words, so the total word count will remain the same.)

"Watch out!" Xie Haining shouted, but Xiao He had already moved. He rushed forward like lightning and caught Ye Wanqing, preventing her from falling to the ground.

Xiao He checked the girl in his arms; her eyes were glazed, her breathing was rapid, and her face was flushed.

But as soon as he caught Ye Wanqing, he realized something was wrong: she was burning hot.

"Do you have a fever?" Xiao He asked, frowning.

"I don't know, I feel a little dizzy..." Ye Wanqing struggled to sit up, but failed after one attempt. Lying in Xiao He, she gasped for breath, "No, I can't muster any strength..."

"Xia Yu, go find Chief Cui," Xie Haining instructed Xia Yu. "I'll go find the medical staff!"

Xia Yu responded and quickly followed him out of the training room.

Xiao He helped Ye Wanqing to her feet, then put his arm around her shoulder and led her to sit down. He used the towel around her neck to wipe her sweat. "Is your cold still not better?"

"I don't know... I don't feel very uncomfortable, I haven't sneezed or had a runny nose, and I haven't coughed..." Ye Wanqing said with difficulty, but she looked very weak.

"Hang in there a little longer, the doctor will be here soon," Xiao He coaxed her softly.

Soon, the doctor arrived at the scene and took Ye Wanqing's temperature, which was 39 degrees Celsius.

"High fever..." The doctor frowned after looking at the numbers. "She needs to be brought down immediately. I need help. She's sweating too much; we need to wipe her body with a cold towel first, then use an alcohol rub to lower her temperature physically."

"I'll do it!" Xia Yu said, standing up. Then she took Ye Wanqing from Xiao He and prepared to take her to the girls' bathroom.

But just as Xiao He was about to hand Ye Wanqing over, he discovered that Ye Wanqing was holding onto his hand tightly.

"Old Xiao... you... I wouldn't..." Ye Wanqing mumbled, clearly delirious from the fever.

"Hurry, it's an emergency!" the doctor urged, frowning. Xia Yu replied, "He's my boyfriend, he should be fine!"

"Huh!?" Xiao He was stunned, momentarily at a loss: if he went in with them, wouldn't Ye Wanqing skin him alive afterward? But the situation was urgent...

Just as Xiao He decided to sacrifice himself, Cui Man and Xie Haining returned.

"Wanqing, Sister Man is here, it's alright." Cui Man patted Ye Wanqing's head to comfort her, and Ye Wanqing then let go of her hand.

"You two wait at the bathroom door," Cui Man instructed, pointing to Xiao He and Xie Haining. Then, she and Xia Yu carried Ye Wanqing into the women's bathroom.

Xiao He pretended not to care about the slight disappointment in his heart and waited at the door with Xie Haining. After about five minutes, Cui Man and Xia Yu carried Ye Wanqing out. By this time, she had wiped the sweat off her body and changed into clean clothes.

"Let's take her to the infirmary, let's go." Cui Man breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Her temperature has gone down a bit, we'll get further treatment at the infirmary."

Xiao He took Ye Wanqing from her arms and carried her toward the infirmary.

"What happened?" Cui Man asked, frowning. "Why didn't anyone notice that Wanqing has a fever?"

"She was perfectly fine during the day," Xiao He replied. "She was even jumping around and beating me up when we had breakfast this morning."

"Yes, Little Xiao and I were practicing on the side when Wanqing suddenly slowed down and then fainted," Xie Haining explained.

Xiao He thought carefully for a moment, then shook his head. "No... her complexion was indeed a little paler than usual, but because she's naturally fair-skinned, I didn't notice. If I had paid closer attention to her, I probably would have noticed earlier."

"It's alright, Brother Xiao, it's not your fault..." Xia Yu said, patting his shoulder.

Cui Man didn't say anything. The group moved Ye Wanqing to the infirmary, made her lie down, gave her an IV drip of fever reducer, and then applied a cold towel. Only then did the doctor take her temperature again.

"Thirty-eight degrees Celsius." Looking at the temperature, the doctor breathed a sigh of relief. "She's out of the high fever range, but we still need to take good care of her. Make sure she stays hydrated. Change her cold towel every fifteen minutes and keep her body dry."

"What's causing the fever? Can you tell?" Cui Man asked, frowning.

"Well... we'll need to do some testing to know for sure," the doctor said, turning to Xiao He. "What about her boyfriend? Does he know if she's had any symptoms lately? The Flu? Or a cold? Something like that?"

"She has been sneezing occasionally lately, but she doesn't have a runny nose or cough," Xiao He replied.

"Let's draw some blood first and do a nasopharyngeal swab." The doctor nodded and took a syringe from the side.

After obtaining the sample, the doctor replied to Cui Man, "We will notify you as soon as we have any news, but it's likely the Flu. It's currently the change of seasons, which is peak Flu season. Plus, this child had been doing strenuous exercise, so her fatigue probably lowered her immunity, leading to the high fever."

"Hmm." Cui Man nodded, still lost in thought after the medical staff left. Xiao He sat down next to Ye Wanqing, looking at her flushed face, and suddenly felt a pang of heartache.

"Really... if you're tired, just say so. Why force yourself?" Xiao He sighed, brushing the bangs from her forehead.

Ye Wanqing's brows were still furrowed, and her small hands were flailing about on the hospital bed.

Seeing this, Xiao He reached out to take her hand, but hesitated after reaching out. As soon as Ye Wanqing's fingertips touched his hand, she gripped it tightly and quieted down.

Xiao He had mixed feelings. He checked the time; it was a little past four in the afternoon. But given Ye Wanqing's condition, he figured she wouldn't be able to go back today.

"Let her stay here tonight," Cui Man said, glancing at Xiao He, "You..."

"Of course I'll stay and take care of her," Xiao He said casually. "I have the 'Miracle Factor' in my body, so I won't be infected. I'm the best person to look after her, right? It's okay, I can just skip class tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll ask for leave for you." Cui Man nodded, looking hesitant, but in the end she didn't say anything and silently pushed open the door and went out.

Before leaving, Xie Haining patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, "Don't worry too much."

"It's just the Flu, what's there to worry about?" Xiao He said with a nonchalant smile, but in reality he was panicking.

Xie Haining simply smiled meaningfully, as if she had already seen through him, and then pushed open the door and left.

"Sigh, you little rascal..." Xiao He sighed helplessly. He originally wanted to poke her head, but after reaching out his hand, he couldn't bear to do it and instead patted her head instead.

Xiao He thought for a moment, then took her hands in his own. Ye Wanqing muttered something softly, so Xiao He leaned closer and realized she was calling his name.

"Old Xiao..." Ye Wanqing mumbled in her sleep, and Xiao He was immediately touched: she was even calling his name in her dreams while she had a fever. It seemed she really had feelings for him. Perhaps he should confess to her after she recovered?

Immediately after, Ye Wanqing added, "I hate you the most... you stinky pig..."

"Confess my ass!" Xiao He spat angrily.