Chapter 59

Shi Jian stared at the upright and stern face in front of her and stayed silent for only 0.01 seconds before making a decisive call.

"Deal!"

Shi Jian agreed very readily. Whether it was once or twice didn’t make much difference to her.

After all, she wasn’t the one dancing.

The head nurse clearly realized this too. She leaned in toward Shi Jian, her face full of suspicion. “How can you guarantee he’ll dance for me? I’m warning you, don’t even think about tricking me, or else…”

Shi Jian’s expression didn’t change. She gave a firm promise, “I have my ways. I don’t lie.”

Barrage comments floated by: [But she lies to ghosts.]

[Victim ghosts: Butler Tang, the village chief, and the ghost minions all call her a pro.]

[The residents of Rose Castle and Happy Village send their congratulations to the head nurse.]

The head nurse left a warning: “You’d better keep your word. If you lie to me, I’ll shock you with double the electricity!”

The normal shocks already had the ghost patients wailing in pain. Shi Jian felt that if she got the double dose, she’d be finished right there in the room.

The head nurse stood up and left. Tempted by the perky-butt male doctor, she abandoned her principles. When it was Shi Jian’s turn, the head nurse simply ignored her.

Amid the wailing all around, the head nurse announced, “Today’s psychiatric rehab exercises are complete.”

A nurse saw the obviously standing Shi Jian and reminded the head nurse, “There’s still one more…”

Shi Jian looked at the head nurse, raising an eyebrow—Can we not?

Front-row seat for the idol performance—still want it?

The head nurse came through. She just shot the little nurse a glance and repeated, “Today’s psychiatric rehab exercises are complete.”

The young nurse fell silent.

Even among ghosts, there was a hierarchy: Granny Yu managed the ghost minions, and the head nurse managed the rest of the nurses.

Shi Jian narrowly avoided the rehab session this time, but the head nurse’s syringe was already almost pressing against her back, silently urging Shi Jian to fulfill her promise.

Shi Jian: “…” She reminded the head nurse, “Careful, yeah? That needle’s sharp. If you poke me wrong, I’ll file a complaint.”

The head nurse snorted, “Stop stalling!”

Still, Shi Jian’s threat of a complaint might’ve had some weight. The head nurse moved the needle tip slightly farther from her back.

This time, Shi Jian actually didn’t plan to lie to the ghost—not just because of the needle at her back, but because she really did have a way.

The audience was all curious—how exactly was Shi Jian going to make the perky-butt male doctor dance?

It wasn’t like she had any real interaction with him.

Aside from that ECG test incident where she roasted him thoroughly.

...

Shi Jian really didn’t have any other interaction with the perky-butt doctor, but she could create one.

First, she asked the head nurse to find a quieter place—after all, dancing would need some space.The head nurse agreed—while the monk might run, the temple stays. As long as Shi Jian didn’t leave Renxin Hospital, she could be found.

Then Shi Jian went straight to the medical checkup center to look for the perky-butt male doctor.

It was obvious the perky-butt male doctor still remembered Shi Jian. With her looks, not many ghosts could forget her, and more importantly, she had harshly crushed his self-esteem.

After a day of adjusting, the perky-butt male doctor had barely pulled himself out of his emo mood. When he saw Shi Jian, his tone wasn’t exactly friendly.

“What do you want?”

The perky-butt male doctor thought Shi Jian had realized her mistake from yesterday and was now coming to apologize and try to win him over.

After all, the medical exam was a crucial step for patients wanting to be discharged.

So he immediately added, “Let me make it clear—I don’t accept your apology.”

The perky-butt male doctor felt like he had figured out what Shi Jian was up to, and arrogantly threw out that line.

The viewers in the livestream hadn’t considered she might be going to the checkup center, but they also figured Shi Jian probably needed to curry some favor with the perky-butt male doctor—after all, she still needed him to dance.

Judging from his expression and attitude, things didn’t look good for Shi Jian.

This ghost holds grudges.

However, after hearing him out, Shi Jian looked genuinely surprised. She felt completely baffled. “Who said I was apologizing to you?”

Did she even do anything wrong?

This little thing wasn’t even that good-looking, but sure was full of himself.

Shi Jian crossed her arms in front of her and lifted her delicate chin, glancing at the perky-butt male doctor. “You’re going to participate in Dancing Youth?”

Shi Jian knew he was going to participate in Dancing Youth only because he had blurted it out himself. Back when she showed him what a real performance looked like, he’d broken down and shouted in the ECG room that he had no confidence to go anymore.

Shi Jian guessed it must be some kind of dance competition show.

The perky-butt male doctor’s eyes turned wary. “Why?”

Shi Jian slowly shook her head and commented, “With dancing skills like yours, you won’t make it.”

Perky-butt male doctor: !!!

Livestream viewers: !!!

They were wrong—they thought Shi Jian had gone to negotiate, to ask him for help. Who would’ve thought she came to mock him.

Girl, are you sure about this? Aren’t you afraid he’ll hold a major grudge?

It’s one thing to offend someone, but you still need this guy, don’t you?

Not only did the perky-butt male doctor not get the apology or flattery he expected, he ended up taking another hit to the soul—from Shi Jian, again.

The perky-butt male doctor’s eyes widened. They began to turn bloodshot. His entire ghostly self broke down. He shouted, “Who says I can’t?! Who do you think you are?!”

Shi Jian frowned in displeasure. “You’re being too loud. You’re hurting my ears.”

The perky-butt male doctor looked furious. Shi Jian wasn’t entirely sure he wouldn’t lash out at a patient in this state, but he was already so provoked...

Shi Jian's lips curled slightly. Wasn’t this the perfect time to introduce herself?She hadn’t done a self-introduction in a while, and this kind of thing needed to be repeated often to accommodate new viewers.

So, taking the opportunity when the perky-butt male doctor questioned her, Shi Jian's iconic self-introduction made a comeback. With full emotion, she recited that familiar line:

“I’m an artist, primarily an actress, but I’ve also crossed over into singing and modeling. In my debut year, I won Best Newcomer, and I’ve won multiple Most Popular Actress awards. I’ve starred in over twenty film and television works, all as the female lead.”

The last part was spoken with extra emphasis.

The perky-butt male doctor abruptly stopped shouting. Watching Shi Jian, completely absorbed in her own monologue and ignoring him entirely, he felt emotionally exhausted.

Why didn’t she care about anyone else? Why did she only care about herself?

The perky-butt male doctor had zero interest in hearing any of this. He shouted, “What does that have to do with me?”

Shi Jian knew it was time to get to the point. She acknowledged that he had asked the right question: “I’ve served as a mentor on many shows. I can help you.”

The perky-butt male doctor was skeptical. Just because Shi Jian claimed to be a mentor, did that make it true?

Shi Jian had assumed standing here was evidence enough, but since he wanted more convincing, she spoke clearly and powerfully:

“What is your dream?”

The moment those words left her mouth, the perky-butt male doctor’s expression instantly changed. All his previous anger and doubt vanished. He looked at Shi Jian with new respect.

“That’s the vibe!”

“You must be a famous mentor... Mentor Shi!”

He even changed how he addressed her, instantly becoming deferential.

Still, the perky-butt male doctor had concerns. “But why would you want to help me...?”

Shi Jian: Obviously because I need you to dance for the head nurse.

Before she could think of a reasonable excuse, the perky-butt male doctor had already filled in the blanks himself, “You want me to go easy on you during the medical exam, right? The checkups are getting harder and harder...”

“I can help you with that, but nothing else. I don’t want to lose my job or get punished...”

His voice trailed off.

Shi Jian: ?

She hadn’t even considered that. Was this killing two birds with one stone?

So Shi Jian nodded immediately. “Ah, yes, yes, exactly.”

“Then let’s get started soon. I need to see your basics before I can give you any guidance… Oh, and there’s another audit student joining. A colleague of yours. You don’t mind, do you?”

The perky-butt male doctor was eager to receive Shi Jian’s feedback and immediately said he didn’t mind.

Shi Jian not only got him to willingly dance, she even got him to open a backdoor for her—

He’d go easy on her during the medical exam.

...

Viewers in Shi Jian’s personal livestream were now watching the beginning of her mentor show.When it came to professionalism, Shi Jian was always serious. She was genuinely giving guidance to the perky-butt male doctor, and with every word she spoke hitting the mark, he became extremely attentive and eager to please.

He even wanted to massage Shi Jian’s shoulders, but was promptly stopped by her. Shi Jian said sternly, “Guidance is guidance—don’t try to take advantage of me!”

Livestream viewers: Yes, why are you trying to take advantage of our wife!

Leave the shoulder massaging to us!

So the perky-butt male doctor switched tactics and handed her a bottle of water instead. “Here, water for Mentor Shi.”

He was completely convinced by Shi Jian now. What dancing twice—he was ready to do it a billion times.

Meanwhile, Shi Jian’s personal livestream viewership was skyrocketing.

First of all, Shi Jian the stunning beauty was dancing!

Even though Shi Jian only danced a little bit to demonstrate her guidance, her casual movements alone were enough to dazzle everyone.

How could someone look this breathtaking in a striped hospital gown?

Even the patient outfit couldn’t hide Shi Jian’s amazing figure. Her eyes sparkled, her skin was so fair it looked like it could reflect light, and when she smiled, it felt like she was casting a spell.

Secondly… Shi Jian the stunning beauty was dancing!

Viewers: What more reason do we need? Watching Shi Jian dance is enough!

Of course, getting to see a bit of the perky-butt male doctor too—having the anchor guide a ghost doctor—was just an added bonus to this eye-candy overload.

【What the hell am I watching? Isn’t this a horror game stream? This is so weird. Gonna rewatch it ten more times.】

【I’m a serious person. And I seriously love watching this.】

【Shi Jian: My days as a mentor at Renxin Hospital.】

【Sorry, perky-butt doctor. No matter how perky that butt is… all my attention is on the superstar. A star’s truly a star!】

【The star’s got a perky butt too. (super quiet)】

【Chicken coop warning!】

After coaching the perky-butt male doctor for a while, Shi Jian got tired. She reached out her slender fingers, gathered her silky, thick hair, and tied it up. Her hair had been in the way, and now her perfectly sculpted face was fully revealed, her jawline smooth and sharp.

Shi Jian walked over to the head nurse. The perky-butt male doctor had danced more than twice already, and the head nurse was still there.

Shi Jian wanted to talk with her.

The head nurse noticed Shi Jian approaching and thought she was about to be shooed away. She pointed at the perky-butt male doctor, who was still practicing diligently, and asked Shi Jian, “Can’t I keep watching?”

Shi Jian wasn’t there to kick her out. She stopped beside the head nurse. “You can watch.”

“You really enjoy watching him dance?”

“Don’t you have any other thoughts today?”

Like maybe… switching to being her fan.

Shi Jian patiently waited for the head nurse’s answer. It wasn’t arrogance—she was simply confident in her own charm.

But the head nurse remained unmoved. She nodded, “I like it. What other thoughts?” She seemed genuinely confused—she had no other thoughts.Shi Jian, "……" Alright, she got it.

“Sweetie, our deal is done, you can leave now.”

Head nurse: ?

“Didn't you just say I could keep watching?” Why was she being kicked out so soon?

Even the head nurse couldn’t figure out Shi Jian, who changed her tune like the wind.

Shi Jian nodded perfunctorily, “Yeah, you can watch—but now it costs money.”

How could she have watched her dance and still not become a fan!

Then goodbye.

Shi Jian suspected the head nurse had vision problems.

The head nurse didn’t want to pay, so she left.

After Shi Jian kicked the head nurse out of the room, it was indeed confirmed—her eyesight really wasn’t good.

The perky-butt male doctor, afraid the head nurse would compete with him for Mentor Shi’s guidance, immediately tried to throw her under the bus.

“Mentor Shi, the head nurse wanted to learn dancing too, right? But she’s not suitable. She’s severely nearsighted and doesn’t like wearing glasses. Besides, I didn’t see her following along at all…”

After hearing the truth, Shi Jian wasn’t as annoyed anymore. No wonder the head nurse was so indifferent—turns out she just had poor eyesight.

……

Shi Jian thought her deal with the head nurse was over, but she didn’t expect the head nurse to play nice on the surface while scheming behind her back.

The head nurse wanted to kill Shi Jian.

After finishing a series of tasks, Shi Jian regrouped with Tang Tian. The two of them exchanged some updates.

Shi Jian first thanked Tang Tian for her intel—it had been helpful.

She also asked about Tang Tian’s rehab exercises.

Shi Jian’s side had electric shocks; Tang Tian’s involved a traction device. It was the thing they saw when Tang Tian first entered the instance—patients hanging with their heads in a traction harness, bodies off the ground.

Both were utterly inhumane.

Shi Jian’s neck had already started to ache. Seeing Tang Tian unharmed, she figured Tang Tian had dodged it somehow. While patting Tang Tian’s shoulder to comfort her, she asked, “So how did you get around it?”

Tang Tian replied, “An old guy in my previous ward really loved using that thing. The nurses probably don’t remember my face, so I gave him snacks, and he did it for me.”

Being easy to overlook by both humans and ghosts had saved Tang Tian yet again.

But Tang Tian was still worried. “I think I just got lucky this time. The head nurse looked like she was dozing off. I have no idea what I’ll do next time.”

Shi Jian was troubled too. She wasn’t sure if relying on the perky-butt male doctor would still work next time.

Both of them sighed in unison. All they could do was take it one step at a time. But then Tang Tian suddenly felt something was off.

She looked around cautiously and said to Shi Jian, “Wait… doesn’t this hallway feel a bit long today?”

“Have we ever walked this far before?”Thanks to Tang Tian's reminder, Shi Jian felt a jolt in her heart. She temporarily abandoned all other thoughts and stopped to observe her surroundings.

They were currently walking down the corridor toward the patient rooms. It wasn’t fully dark yet, so the lights hadn’t been turned on. However, due to the building’s layout, the corridor was dim. Long and shadowy, it was filled with the unpleasant smell of disinfectant.

At first, all Shi Jian and Tang Tian had been focused on was avoiding those deadly rehab checks. Now, Shi Jian noticed something else—there was no sound at all in the corridor.

No streamers, no patients, and not a single nurse or doctor in sight.

Only her and Tang Tian remained.

“Let’s go back to the room.”

Shi Jian and Tang Tian said it at the same time.

They didn’t know what was going on, so heading back to the room seemed safest.

But then something even stranger happened.

Shi Jian and Tang Tian picked up the pace and walked forward nonstop, but they couldn’t find their room numbers. Shi Jian grabbed Tang Tian’s arm.

Shi Jian motioned for Tang Tian to look at the door number beside them.

“401.”

“We left from 401 earlier. Now we’re back here again.”

Shi Jian tried to stay calm, but in this situation, it was nearly impossible.

They seemed to have entered an infinite loop—wandering in circles down this hallway.

No matter how far they walked, they kept ending up in the same place.

Classic case of ghost-wall entrapment.

……

The corridor stretched endlessly, with nothing but walls and empty rooms on either side. Shi Jian called out a few times, but no one responded. That sense of helplessness could easily lead someone into despair.

Tang Tian didn’t know how to handle this either. She was scared too, but still held a sliver of hope.

Tang Tian told Shi Jian, “You stay here and wait for me. I’ll see if I keep walking straight, will I still end up back with you.”

Shi Jian took out her high heels, ready to react if anything sudden happened.

Fortunately, nothing strange appeared. Tang Tian’s figure grew more distant… until she reappeared at the other end of the corridor, right back beside Shi Jian.

Shi Jian, “……”

The two of them looked at each other—they really were trapped in this hallway.

No ghosts had shown up, but being stuck in a looping hospital corridor was a different kind of torment. No water, no food—if they couldn’t get out, death was only a matter of time.

The viewers watching were getting anxious too.

【Why can’t they get out all of a sudden?】

【Someone must’ve set this trap on purpose.】

Tang Tian asked Shi Jian, “There has to be a clue, right?”"Should we try looking for clues?"

Tang Tian was frustrated. "I was worried there'd be too many ghosts in the instance, but now I'd welcome even half a ghost. Maybe I could hit the bathroom and dig up something there..."

Information gatherer from the restroom—Tang Tian had now lost that option.

All the doors looked identical. Shi Jian glanced around and felt like she was in some puzzle game.

……

There were clues—but extremely hard to find.

"All a waste of effort."

The head nurse stood in the real corridor, hands in her pockets, looking completely at ease.

Although she had used her connections to let Shi Jian watch the male doctor dance, the head nurse had long been prepared to strike from the shadows.

She didn’t want Shi Jian alive. Shi Jian would keep circling in the hallway, never finding the exit, until she was eventually tormented to death in pain and despair.

The head nurse had already killed many this way. The last group of streamers like Shi Jian—two of them were still in the morgue.

She saw nothing worth paying attention to here and was about to move on, but before she could even lift a foot, she heard a crunching noise.

It grew louder and louder, until with a loud bang, she was stunned to see her barrier break open—through the hole poked a Barbie-pink high heel.

The Barbie-pink heel was held aloft by a fair, delicate hand. The pose was defiant—less like someone raising a shoe, more like someone hoisting a Best Actress trophy.

A familiar voice called out from within the hole.

"This is definitely the place!"

Tang Tian eagerly joined in, "Shi Jian, you're amazing! I'm with you—let’s break through together!"

Two Barbie-pink heels poked through. Accompanied by the constant smashing of the barrier, the head nurse’s liver practically spasmed with pain. Shi Jian stepped fully into the real corridor.

From the nurse’s point of view, Shi Jian seemed to appear from thin air—but for Shi Jian and Tang Tian, trapped in the looping hallway, they had found a flaw and broken out through the wall.

Shi Jian sensed the change in atmosphere and people flowing around—her heart lifted. She knew she’d hit the right spot and made it out.

She reached back into the barrier to pull Tang Tian through.

The head nurse was not one to show emotion, but in this moment, she was dumbstruck.

Broken?

Shi Jian actually got out of the looping hallway?

The head nurse never expected Shi Jian to be this smart.

To escape the loop, one had to find the correct point—and that point was a plaque introducing an outstanding medical staff member in the corridor.

Renxin Hospital’s hallway had many such plaques—listing departments, doctors or nurses, their alma maters, achievements.

That particular plaque wasn’t eye-catching among the others, easy to overlook. Hardly anyone would think to examine it.

But during the search with Tang Tian, Shi Jian had pointed it out, “This one’s different—the metal’s a little short.”

Then she started smashing at it—and she’d been right.The head nurse's expression darkened—she realized she had underestimated Shi Jian. This woman had actually noticed something so subtle.

Then the head nurse heard Shi Jian complaining to Tang Tian, who had also just escaped danger: "I used to be able to see myself from the neck down in the reflection here, but now I can only see my face."

"Isn’t that weird? My face didn’t get bigger."

Shi Jian would always check herself in anything reflective as she walked by—Did she still look beautiful today?

She did.

She hadn’t overlooked even the hallway’s info plaques. While the plaques themselves weren’t reflective, the metal frames around them were.

When Tang Tian mentioned looking for clues, Shi Jian had sharply noticed that her face looked enlarged in the reflection from one particular plaque. So she tried probing it.

Head Nurse: ????

What kind of ridiculous method of cracking a barrier was that?! She’d never seen anyone take this wild of a path!

Shi Jian looked up and saw the head nurse. Faced with her expression, Shi Jian instantly understood the truth behind the looping hallway.

The head nurse wanted her dead.

The head nurse questioned her entire ghostly existence, but she wasn’t afraid to offend Shi Jian. She stood coldly to the side—what, was Shi Jian going to confront her?

Only if she had the ability.

But Shi Jian flashed a radiant smile, looking at the head nurse like she was a long-lost relative.

"Head Nurse, were you waiting here for me?"

"Was that your gift to me? It was fun—but let’s not play that game again."

Then Shi Jian got to the real point. "At first I felt a little embarrassed to keep asking for your help, but since you’ve come to me yourself... I’ll be counting on you for our future rehab training too!"

Just moments ago, Shi Jian and Tang Tian were fretting over how to escape the rehab exercises—but the very ghost who could solve their problem was standing right in front of them.

Shi Jian: Don’t run, Head Nurse—you’re already here, so help us out.