Chapter 32: Consolation Visit

Afternoon sunlight slanted through the window, adding a touch of brightness to the dim ward.

Su Bai sat on the edge of the bed. Her fair, slender legs could not reach the floor and simply dangled, unconsciously swinging back and forth.

“Sister Lan, it’s been so many days and you’ve been taking care of me all by yourself. You must be exhausted…”

Su Bai looked at Jiang Yuelan, who was resting on the chair, and could not help feeling a little uneasy.

“Xiao Bai, did you forget? During military training when you got heatstroke, it was you who took care of me.”

Su Bai shook her head. “I didn’t really take care of much… I’m not very good at looking after people.”

“Don’t think about that. We’re preparing for discharge tomorrow. You should start thinking about your studies.

We’ve already missed several days of classes. These past few days our counselor even asked me about your situation.”

No way.

Hearing this, Su Bai felt a headache coming on. She had almost completely forgotten about the whole matter of attending school.

She had never been particularly smart to begin with, and now she had fallen behind in classes. It felt like even the goal of passing the final exams was no longer achievable.

The topic suddenly made the ward fall silent once more.

“Everyone move aside. People over there, don’t come any closer…”

A burst of noisy footsteps and clamor from outside the door broke the quiet inside the room.

Accompanying it was an unconcealed fluctuation of magic.

Su Bai and Jiang Yuelan both looked toward the door at almost the same time. Neither of them had often seen magic being released so wantonly.

“I’ll go check what’s going on. Don’t move yet.” Jiang Yuelan was very alert. She quickly stepped to the ward doorway and looked out through the small window on the door.

There were many people in the corridor. Besides the usual patients and nurses on this floor, there were also several bodyguards in black suits and black sunglasses.

Behind them one could faintly see some very professional photography and camera equipment being held high.

In the middle of the crowd someone seemed to be surrounded. The window was too small, so Jiang Yuelan’s angle still could not see into the center of the group.

But she could roughly guess it was the one continuously releasing magic.

“Looks like they’re here for an interview. Xiao Bai, want to come take a look?”

Jiang Yuelan saw the curious expression on Su Bai’s face and could not help inviting her.

“I’ll take a look.” Su Bai slowly got out of bed. By now she had recovered almost fully, and walking a few steps was still possible.

The two of them quietly pushed the door open just wide enough for one person to squeeze through and secretly observed.

“Unauthorized personnel, please step back. Young Miss, please come in.”

A middle-aged man in a white coat stood beside the magical girl and was introducing things to her.

He guessed the other party should be someone like the hospital director.

The three accompanying bodyguards stood separately on the outer perimeter, slowly pushing the onlooking crowd outward a certain distance.

The emptied space was about the size of two or three wards and just happened to include Su Bai’s ward as well.

“How did you arrange this? The ward is narrow and stuffy, and it even smells. I’m not going in.”

The magical girl crossed her arms over her chest, wearing an expression that said she would refuse to continue cooperating if her demands were not met.

“Alright, alright, alright. I’ll have someone push the hospital bed out. We’ll just film right here.”

The hospital leader nodded and bowed to the girl, then began instructing the surrounding doctors.

Jiang Yuelan and Su Bai exchanged glances, both showing a trace of astonishment.

This is…?

Su Bai carefully searched her memory for a while before speaking with delayed realization:

“I think I have an impression. I often see her on television and the internet. She seems to be the magical girl called Moonlit Sakura.”

Jiang Yuelan nodded. Hearing Su Bai say that, she also remembered.

“I recall she’s quite popular. I heard she even held a concert before, and tickets were hard to get.”

Their curiosity grew even stronger, and they could not help wanting to see what this whole production was really about.

After a short while, several nurses pushed a hospital bed into the corridor.

Su Bai and Jiang Yuelan were startled when they saw the patient on the bed. The person was completely wrapped in bandages, with a cast on one arm as well.

The injuries looked far more serious than Su Bai’s.

Then several people carrying cameras, microphones, and holding reflector boards walked out from behind.

“Then let’s start quickly, Miss Moonlit Sakura. When we say start, just finish saying these lines.”

Someone held up a tablet teleprompter and raised it to a position beside the ward.

Moonlit Sakura was clearly a little impatient and immediately nodded to signal they could begin.

“Action.”

At the director’s command, all the crew members instantly entered work mode.

The Moonlit Sakura who had been wearing a look of disgust just moments ago suddenly seemed like a completely different person.

“Hiヽ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノ Hello everyone, I’m your Moonlit Sakura.”

Moonlit Sakura made a lively and cute gesture toward the camera while delivering this classic opening line.

“Today I’ve come to XX Hospital in C City. Everyone has heard about the recent events, right? I truly feel so sorry.”

Moonlit Sakura put on a sorrowful expression and continued:

“I came to this hospital today to see if I can offer some help to the people injured in this disaster.”

As the words fell, the camera turned to the patient on the hospital bed.

“May I ask, how are you feeling right now…”

“I feel very well. Thank you to the magical girls, and thank you to the Association for the help they’ve given me…”

Moonlit Sakura began chatting with the patient. The content was nothing more than expressing concern and then reconstructing the situation at the scene, and so on.

They played off each other perfectly, and the program effect was excellent.

“All the viewers will feel sad for what you’ve gone through. I also want to do my part. We will open donation channels for you…”

Moonlit Sakura began introducing the methods related to the fundraising drive toward the camera. Her sincere gaze was moving.

Su Bai and Jiang Yuelan also understood the purpose of these people’s visit. Most of those injured in the disaster had been transferred to this hospital for treatment.

So this person should also be a disaster victim, and the magical girl had come here to offer consolation.

“Cut. Well done, Miss.”

A member of the filming entourage nodded in satisfaction, then waved to signal the others to pack up.

After Moonlit Sakura finished the prepared closing remarks, the sincere and compassionate smile on her face vanished in an instant.

“What a hassle. Couldn’t they just film against a green screen? The people my dad found are too unreliable. This young lady actually had to come to this godforsaken place herself.”

Moonlit Sakura impatiently muttered a couple of complaints, then strode quickly toward the outside.

“Miss, live filming has a different feel. Should we go visit a few other wards… Miss, please slow down…”

Seeing that she was about to leave, the group seemed afraid of offending her and hurriedly followed.

They kept explaining the purpose of this trip as they trailed behind her.

The noisy voices grew farther and farther away. In no time at all, the corridor that had just been so lively returned to its former quiet.