The True Face of Gu Manman

To confirm, Ye Shuang looked at the girl before him and asked, "Are you Gu Manman?"

Gu Manman, hearing her name called out, gave Ye Shuang a strange once-over. "How do you know my name? Who are you?"

"Your cousin is in such a state. If you two were so close, why are you standing by and doing nothing?" Ye Shuang questioned.

"Who told you we were close? Weirdo." Gu Manman rolled her eyes at Ye Shuang, then pointed at Gu Wanqing, who was kneeling on the ground. "It’d be best if she died."

Just as Ye Shuang was about to speak, he noticed the clock in the upper-right corner had already struck twelve.

"That fast?"

His vision was once again engulfed in blinding white, and his ears erupted with a deafening buzz, as if his eardrums were about to shatter.

……

……

By the time he returned to his own timeline, his surroundings had reverted to the entrance of Class 1-E. Ye Shuang steadied himself, looking at Gu Manman, who stood by the classroom door with a puzzled expression.

"Gu Manman."

"Yes, Doctor Ye, what is it?" Gu Manman smiled sweetly, her face radiating innocent charm.

"You mentioned earlier that Gu Wanqing’s suicide attempt was connected to your uncle and his family. I’ve already informed the reporters," Ye Shuang said, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"Really?! That’s wonderful." Gu Manman’s eyes lit up, her shoulders relaxing as if a weight had been lifted.

Ye Shuang observed her reaction before asking, "Did you visit Gu Wanqing yesterday afternoon?"

"Of course. She was still in critical condition—I was so worried." Gu Manman sighed, her eyes instantly reddening. "She’s my only cousin, and we were so close… I never thought something like this would happen…"

"I see. You can head back to class now," Ye Shuang said with a faint smile. "We’ll talk another time."

"Okay~" Gu Manman replied cheerfully, wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes.

The two turned away simultaneously—but the moment their backs faced each other, the smiles on both Ye Shuang and Gu Manman’s faces vanished in an instant.

Ye Shuang shoved his hands into his pockets and headed straight back to the infirmary.

He was starting to piece things together. Gu Wanqing’s suicide attempt was almost certainly tied to Gu Manman, but how much of what Gu Manman had told him yesterday was true remained unclear.

Ye Shuang suspected that Gu Manman hadn’t anticipated Gu Wanqing’s suicide attempt. Fearing she might be implicated, she shifted the blame onto Gu Wanqing’s parents—her uncle and aunt—since their relationship with their daughter was already strained.

As for why she had confided in Ye Shuang, it was likely under the guise of seeking psychological counseling. Given that Ye Shuang had been involved in the rescue, reporters might approach him for comments. By feeding him misleading information, she could manipulate the narrative.

That would also explain why Gu Manman had gone out of her way to visit his infirmary instead of the one near her own grade.

"What a scheming little girl," Ye Shuang mused, slightly taken aback by his own deductions.

"Tch…"

The image of Gu Wanqing kneeling on the ground, surrounded by onlookers, flashed through his mind, and he shook his head.

The rhythmic clicking of a game controller beside him paused. An Shiyu, sucking on a candy that crunched between her teeth, glanced at him with dull, unimpressed eyes.

"Why the long face? Dying or something?"

"…" Ye Shuang sighed. "Can’t you say something nice for once?"

"Fine, something nice." An Shiyu lifted the hem of her skirt slightly, revealing sheer stockings. "Wanna guess the color of my panties?"

"No thanks," Ye Shuang replied flatly. That wasn’t the kind of "nice" he had in mind.

"Must be trouble in the bedroom, old man." An Shiyu gave him a pitying look, as if to say, "Three seconds is already impressive."

"That’s not it at all!"

Ye Shuang stood and walked to the window, hands in his pockets, tilting his head at a 45-degree angle as he gazed solemnly at the sky. "Sometimes, I feel like I might be the protagonist of some story."

"Protagonist?" An Shiyu resumed fiddling with her controller, her tone lazy. "You mean the kind who’s pushing thirty and still single? Or the kind whose startup collapsed after two and a half years?"

Ye Shuang: "…"

He suddenly felt the urge to spank her.

Knock knock knock. "Doctor~ Can you check me out?" A sugary voice called from the doorway. Ye Shuang turned to see a familiar face.

"Come in and take a seat," he said.

"Carry me~ I’m too tired to walk~"

"…I’ll close the door, then."

"Mean~"

Ye Shuang knew this girl wasn’t actually sick, but out of professional duty, he checked her records. However, he suddenly noticed something—when he pulled up her information, the inverted clock in the corner seemed to tick forward slightly.

What did that mean?

A realization struck him, and he turned to look at An Shiyu.

[Character: An Shiyu

A girl with hyperthymesia. Maybe kissing her would make her remember you forever.]

The clock in the upper-right corner advanced another notch.

"So… viewing people’s information charges the clock?" Ye Shuang muttered. He rarely used this ability intentionally, preferring to respect others’ privacy—most of his past uses had been accidental.

But ever since becoming a school doctor, he’d been checking students’ conditions almost daily.

Which meant…

He could’ve unlocked this ability much earlier if he’d used it more often?

The thought left him speechless.

Nobody had told him any of this. There wasn’t even a tutorial—it felt like some half-finished feature.

"Alright, you’re fine. Drink more water," Ye Shuang said after finishing the examination.

"Doctor, everyone’s freaking out about that stalker lately. Rumor has it the police can’t even confirm his identity or appearance," the girl said with a giggle.

"That can’t be right," Ye Shuang replied. With surveillance everywhere these days, how was that possible?

"Well, that’s what I heard. Don’t know the details, though."

After some more small talk, the girl finally left, albeit reluctantly.

"Such a popular man, Doctor~" An Shiyu teased.

"…" Ye Shuang shot back, "Says the one who loafs around here the most."

An Shiyu stretched her stocking-clad legs onto the table. "Wanna go out instead, old man?"

"No."

"Then I’ll go alone." She shut her laptop and sprang to her feet.

"Where to?" Ye Shuang asked.

"The rooftop. Gonna jump off."

"Ah. Be careful." Ye Shuang watched her leave before suddenly processing her words. "Wait—you said where?!"

He bolted after her.