In the following days, Shi Jin would flip through Shi Xingrui's files whenever he had free time, hoping to find some clues about his white moonlight. However, he was always left empty-handed. On the other hand, Lian Jun's efficiency was astonishing. On the same night after his meeting with Old Ghost, he had already finalized the list of personnel for the first batch to go to the southeast region, and set the departure time for two days later in the morning.

Number Two and Number Three were confirmed to be part of the first batch, and the Old Ghost would be joining them as well. Fei Yujing would temporarily stay behind and wait for the official personnel to arrive for assistance. In other words, the group of people who would be going to the southeast region with Lian Jun included the annoying Long Shi, the troublesome Fei Yujing, and a few unidentified official hangers-on.

When Shi Jin heard the news, he was lying on the bed in agony, letting Uncle Long give him a massage. His face was twisted in pain.

"So, are Number Two and the others leaving tomorrow...Ugh, Uncle Long, can you be a bit more gentle?" he asked, unable to resist begging for mercy.

Uncle Long's expression was cold as he patted Shi Jin's tense shoulders and said, "Relax, don't be so tense. The more you tense up, the more it hurts. If I use less force, the massage won't be effective. And you feel the pain not because I'm too strong, but because your muscles are injured. How can a man be so afraid of pain? Endure it for a while, and it will be better in a few days."

Shi Jin took a deep breath and forced himself to relax his body. He turned his head to look at Lian Jun, who was sitting by the bed with a frown, and said, "Young Master Jun, don't look at me like this. I must look stupid right now."

"Shh, don't talk, you might bite yourself," said Lian Jun as he reached out to touch the sweaty forehead of his boyfriend. Despite knowing he shouldn't, he turned to Uncle Long and asked, "Is massage therapy necessary, Uncle Long?"

Uncle Long's face fell at the question. "Young Master Jun, you don't even cooperate with your own treatment, and now you're here to ruin things for Shi Jin? Of course massage therapy is necessary. Otherwise, with all the muscle strains he has, how long do you think it'll take for his body to repair itself? Shi Jin, it's up to you. Do you want to endure long-term pain or short-term discomfort? Do you want to be bedridden forever?"

"No, no, no, Uncle Long, please continue the massage. I was just making noise," Shi Jin quickly expressed his stance and squeezed Lian Jun's hand to reassure him. "I'm fine, don't worry. You know me, I just can't keep my mouth shut."

With a furrowed brow, Lian Jun didn't say anything more. He picked up a towel and wiped the sweat off of Shi Jin's face before stepping back and gesturing for Uncle Long to continue.

"That's more like it. The sooner we cooperate, the sooner your body will recover," Uncle Long's expression softened as he finished examining Shi Jin's upper body. He then placed his hands on Shi Jin's waistband and pulled down his hospital pants, revealing his underwear.

Shi Jin was shocked and jumped like a frog, twisting his body and staring at Uncle Long in disbelief. Lian Jun's hand on the armrest also moved slightly, and his gaze shifted to the side.

"Why are you staring? Don't you know you have to take off your clothes for a massage?" Uncle Long retorted, pulling down his pants at the foot of the bed. He glanced at Lian Jun, who had weakly averted his gaze, and snorted. He deliberately walked back and patted Shi Jin's leg like he was pounding pork, complimenting, "Young man, you have long legs and a nice butt."

Damn, Uncle Long, why are you so skilled, like an old pervert.

Shi Jin couldn't take it anymore and turned his head to Lian Jun, his voice becoming dry. "Young Master Jun, why don't you go first..."

"I'll go get you a clean set of clothes. You'll need a shower after the massage," Lian Jun interrupted, sliding his wheelchair to the side of the bed and walking away without looking back.

As soon as Shi Jin heard this, his mood became very complicated. He felt a little disappointed, a little reluctant, and a little self-doubt. He sighed in his heart, "Xiao Si, your precious baby is really well-mannered and virtuous..." He didn't even want to take another look.

Xiao Si didn't respond, remaining quiet as if it didn't exist.

Shi Jin was puzzled and called out, "Xiao Si?"

But Xiao Si still didn't make a sound, as if the system had died.

As he thought about it, Shi Jin realized that Xiao Si had not spoken a word since he and Lian Jun had confirmed their relationship.

He was shocked and tried to get up, but was forcefully pushed back by Uncle Long and scolded: "Now you know you can't bear to see someone leave, but why did you chase him away earlier? Young people with such thin skin, what's the point of being in love? Lie down for me! If you don't cooperate again, I'll strip off the last piece of cloth on your body and make you wait for Young Master Jun naked."

Xiao Si suddenly spoke up, full of energy and spirit: "Take it off! Uncle Long, I support you!"

Shi Jin was shocked by the loud shout that echoed in his mind and collapsed back onto the bed, in pain and exhaustion. He didn't know what to say for a moment.

Xiao Si fell silent again, not speaking anymore.

With Uncle Long around, Shi Jin was careful not to make any obvious movements or expressions. He simply raised his arm to cover his face and said, "I'm sorry, Xiao Si."

Xiao Si still didn't make a sound, but Shi Jin had a feeling that it was listening.

"I know you love your Baby deeply. Facing me, who took your treasure away, you must hate me and be angry. It's understandable. I'm sorry for what I did."

Xiao Si: "..."

"You can curse me or even shock me with electricity. You can cry loudly, and I won't complain about the noise. I'm fearless and willing to endure some hardship just to please the system."

Xiao Si: "..."

When Shi Jin saw it refused to respond, he closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and said with a heavy heart, "If you still won't forgive me, then I can only leave you and your baby--"

"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah--! I won't allow it!" Xiao Si screamed, like a madman.

Shi Jin covered his forehead, feeling both pained and amused. Hearing this spirited scream, it seemed that Xiao Si was still healthy and nothing had happened to him.

He felt relieved, but Xiao Si was going crazy. After screaming, it started crying, saying things like "You're actually going to abandon our baby," "How did you become like this, Shi Jin," and "I won't allow it, Daddy won't allow it."

Its voice was full of tears, and its words were all over the place, making anyone who heard it heartbroken and tearful. As Shi Jin listened, he felt like he was going crazy. He was in pain and said, "Stop crying, my ears hurt. I was wrong. I just wanted to scare you. I was afraid you would suffocate yourself. I never intended to abandon our baby."

Xiao Si cried uncontrollably, then asked between sobs, "Really?"

"Really. If I'm lying, I'll become a eunuch right now!" Shi Jin made a solemn vow.

"I don't want you to become a eunuch!" Xiao Si screamed again, finally managing to stop crying. It sniffled for a while before whispering, "If you fulfill one wish for me, I'll forgive you."

Shi Jin quickly followed its lead and asked, "What wish? Tell me."

Xiao Si answered quickly, "I want to see you and Darling have a baby monkey."

Shi Jin rubbed his ear and asked, "What?"

"I want to see you and Darling have a baby monkey!" Xiao Si answered passionately. Shi Jin fell silent, feeling that these words were all too familiar. He carefully recalled and gradually realized that he seemed to have misunderstood the system in his mind a little bit.

His expression instantly became calm and emotionless as he said, "Then continue crying."

It turned out that this system had impure intentions from the beginning. It's amazing that he even felt a little sorry for it. It was all fake!

Xiao Si choked up and started crying again.

Shi Jin remained heartless and ignored it, gritting his teeth in his mind - what a impure-minded system. Cry, cry until you're useless!

Upon hearing his thoughts, Xiao Si's crying intensified, unable to control its sadness.

After this double torture of physical (massage) and mental (Xiao Si's crying attack), Shi Jin was left lying on the bed in just his underwear, barely conscious and feeling hopeless. After finishing his task, Uncle Long left without even bothering to give Shi Jin a blanket, behaving like a heartless scumbag who only cares about himself.

When Lian Jun entered the room with a clean hospital gown, he was greeted by the sight of Shi Jin lying on the bed, shamelessly exposing his body.

Pausing for a moment, Lian Jun quickly scanned Shi Jin's body with his eyes before lowering his gaze and approaching him. He covered Shi Jin with the blanket first, then asked in a gentle voice, "Do you want to take a bath?"

Shi Jin turned his head to look at him. Compared to the demonic Uncle Long and the crying goddess Xiao Si, he felt that Lian Jun was like a beacon of light, radiating warmth and strength. He bravely sat up and threw himself into Lian Jun's arms, resting his head on his shoulder.

In this cold and heartless world, only this embrace could bring him a little bit of warmth. The blanket slipped off, revealing Xiao Si's bare body glistening in the light. Lian Jun quickly reached out and wrapped his arms around him, rubbing his back gently.

"What's wrong? Does it still hurt? Taking a bath might make you feel better," he said, turning his head to look at him.

"...Gah," Xiao Si exclaimed.

Shi Jin: "..."

If this had happened earlier, Shi Jin might have foolishly thought that Xiao Si was simply trying to imitate a duck's quack. However, after seeing through some of Xiao Si's hidden thoughts, Shi Jin immediately realized that the reason for its vocalization was due to some kind of 'stimulation'.

He looked down at his naked body, then at the close proximity between himself and Lian Jun, and despairingly realized one thing - the one who would definitely disturb his love life was not the official "third wheel" Fei Yujing, who brought trouble with his attributes, but rather Xiao Si, the 24-hour online system.

Just imagine, if he wanted to get intimate with Lian Jun in the future, would its start quacking in their minds just as they hugged each other tightly?

Xiao Si angrily spoke up, "Jin Jin, you have to trust my integrity as a system!"

Shi Jin remained expressionless, "Is it necessary for your integrity to understand everything I'm thinking in my heart?"

Xiao Si was speechless and gritted its teeth in pain as he said, "I-if you really mind my existence, then let me teach you a method to temporarily block me. It's simple, just use your mind to activate the progress bar that belongs to you and your treasure, and put it in a semi-active state. I will be blocked from all perception. But be careful, this method should be used sparingly because once the progress bar enters a semi-active state, it will no longer update in real-time. You have to activate it again to restore it to normal."

Upon hearing this, Shi Jin was surprised. He didn't expect to learn this just by teasing Xiao Si. He couldn't resist trying it out.

He activated the progress bar, and its color turned half-gray. Then, the whole world became quiet.

Could it really work? Shi Jin quickly pulled the progress bar back and was about to express his amazement to Xiao Si and give feedback on his first use when he heard Xiao Si's weak and pitiful crying: "Jin Jin, boo hoo, do you really not want me anymore, boo hoo..."

Shi Jin's heart softened a bit and he resigned himself to comforting the child. The two of them communicated happily in their minds, briefly forgetting about Lian Jun waiting outside to take Shi Jin to take a bath.

When Lian Jun waited for a long time without getting a response, he retreated slightly and looked at Shi Jin's expression, only to find that Shi Jin was happily playing with his own face.

Lian Jun: "..."

When Shi Jin noticed his gaze, he quickly sat up and regained his focus. He remembered the little creature he had just soothed and, with a sudden impulse, blurted out, "Young Master Jun, actually I've raised a son for us. Well, maybe it's a daughter, but it's really cute. If we have a chance, I'll introduce you to it."

The little creature let out a surprised quack with a hint of tears, and shyly replied, "I-it's not that cute. If you say that, I'll feel embarrassed. Actually, I'm gender-neutral, not a boy or a girl... If possible, I'd rather be your dad..."

Shi Jin quickly changed the subject and smiled at Lian Jun, saying, "I was just kidding. Let's go take a bath, shall we?"

Xiao Si: "..."

Lian Jun: "..."

After sending the seemingly already massaged and tormented Shi Jin to the bathroom, Lian Jun slid his wheelchair back to Shi Jin's bedside and called for a nurse to change his sheets and blankets.

Once the nurse left, he remembered Shi Jin's previous words about his son or daughter, and his gaze couldn't help but wander over Shi Jin's various personal belongings.

Things that could be raised like a son or daughter... He scanned various small objects, and finally his gaze fell on the tablet.

During Shi Jin's recovery period, there were very limited things he could do every day, such as sleeping, eating, playing mahjong, and browsing Shi Xingrui's information. Lian Jun thought for a moment, reached out and picked up the tablet, quickly scanned the contents, and moved his fingers to open the mahjong app.

As soon as the software opened, the character page appeared. Lian Jun noticed that it was different from the basic set he had seen before. The character now had a cute doll skin and a small pet curled up at its feet, which must have just been purchased.

He felt a flutter in his heart and logged out of this account, then logged into the account that Shi Jin had helped him apply for. His own account had also changed, with the character wearing a new skin, also in the form of a doll, but with a slightly different style from Shi Jin's, and a small pet curled up at its feet.

This was clearly a set of couple skins. Lian Jun's heart was in turmoil. He switched back and forth between the two accounts several times, and then had someone send over a tablet so he could log in to both accounts and compare the two character interfaces side by side.

They had matching couple skins and two pets, possibly a son or a daughter...Lian Jun raised his hand to cover the lower half of his face, staring straight at the two pages until he heard the water in the bathroom stop. Then he quickly closed the pages and carefully put Shi Jin's tablet back where it belonged.

Since Shi Jin said he would "have the chance" to introduce him to his "son" or "daughter," Lian Jun decided to respect his wishes and pretend he just found out when the time came for Shi Jin to bring it up.

He felt quite pleased with himself.

When Shi Jin came out, he noticed that Lian Jun was looking at him with a strange, deep, and gentle gaze, tinged with a hint of excitement. This made his heart race, but he pretended to be calm and asked, "What's the matter?"

Lian Jun shook his head and took his hand, saying, "I just feel like I owe you... I can't give you many of the things that ordinary people can give their lovers, I'm sorry."

Shi Jin was touched by the term "lover" and immediately held his hand back, saying, "There's no debt at all. You give me food, clothes, work, pay, and even take care of me when I'm sick. What do you mean by owing me? When you say ordinary people can give their lovers things like going on dates and watching movies, do you mean that? I don't care about those things. We're together every day, and if you want, every meal can be a date. And you've given me everything I want, like the information I asked you to help me find. If it were someone else, who could have found those things for me?"

"What warped logic." That's what Lian Jun said, but his smile deepened, making his complexion look healthier.

Seeing this, Shi Jin couldn't help but laugh. He was still pondering over the word "lover" that Lian Jun had used to describe him. He couldn't believe that he was Lian Jun's lover.

......

Late at night, when the world was quiet, Shi Jin woke up from his nap, unable to fall back asleep. He sat up in bed and looked over at Lian Jun, who was sleeping on the accompanying bed. He began to contemplate life and chat idly to himself.

"Come to think of it... why did Lian Jun suddenly kiss me that day? Did he already like me? When did he start liking me?"

Xiao Si always caught Shi Jin off guard with its quick wit. "Shi Jin, you've kissed and hugged your sweetheart, whispered sweet nothings, and even bought matching skins for your game characters. Now you're only just thinking about this? Don't you think it's a bit late?"

Shi Jin felt embarrassed by Xiao Si's words, but he still tried to save face. "I was just too shocked at first. And besides, how could someone as great as Lian Jun be interested in me?"

"But Shi Jin, you're great too," Xiao Si wouldn't allow any uncertainty in Shi Jin's feelings.

Although it was a bit shameless to say, Shi Jin felt that Xiao Si was right to praise him. He gingerly got off the hospital bed and approached the bedside of the companion bed. He crouched down and leaned over to look at Lian Jun's sleeping face, feeling like he was dreaming: "He actually likes me, it's really unbelievable."

Xiao Si continued to encourage him: "I think my dear has liked you for a long time. He has always treated you differently from others. Haven't you noticed?"

Shi Jin then thought back along these words and realized, belatedly, that Lian Jun was indeed different towards him. Although it was more subtle, Lian Jun was obviously more indulgent and tolerant towards him than towards others.

Suddenly, his heart was filled with a soft and sweet feeling, like being infused with syrup that was so sweet it almost bubbled over. Unable to resist, he stood up and lifted a corner of the blanket on Lian Jun's body.

He squeezed his not-so-small body onto the narrow single companion bed and hugged Lian Jun in his arms.

Xiao Si: "......"

"This way, I can finally fall asleep." He scooted over to make more room for Lian Jun on the bed, closing his eyes with satisfaction.

Lian Jun, who was being held by him, still had his eyes closed, as if he hadn't been disturbed by his big movements at all.

But Shi Jin couldn't help but open his eyes again, looked at him for a while, leaned down and gave him a secret kiss on the corner of his mouth, whispered, "Goodnight," and then closed his eyes again.

For a long time, until the person next to him breathed evenly and the arm around him completely relaxed, Lian Jun slowly opened his eyes, reached out to hug Shi Jin, pulled him back against the edge of the bed, and rubbed his back.

"Silly." He whispered with a smile, locking all the satisfaction and happiness in his voice, "Goodnight, sweet dreams."

......

When Shi Jin woke up at dawn, he found himself alone in the hospital room. He wondered where Lian Jun had gone.

After sitting up for a moment, he suddenly sprang out of bed and grabbed his tablet to frantically search through Shi Xingrui's information.

His sudden movements startled Xiao Si, who asked, "What's wrong with you?"

"Got a clue!" Shi Jin excitedly flipped through the materials and exclaimed, "If someone really likes another person, how could they resist not seeing them or treating them well? If Shi Xingrui really had a deep, deep love for someone, with his personality, even if the person he loved didn't love him back, he would definitely use all means to keep them by his side. So the only reason why there is no trace of his white moonlight in his network is that he simply doesn't know where the person is! He may not even know the person's name!"

Xiao Si didn't quite understand and asked, "But if he doesn't even know the name, how could Shi Xingrui fall in love with that person?"

"In those days, due to the lack of information and the fact that mobile phones had not yet been invented, long-distance communication could only be done through letter writing. This gave rise to a form of friendship that has now largely disappeared - pen pals! With pen pals, there was no need to meet in person or reveal one's real name. Everyone could communicate while wearing a mask, just like chatting online now! Do you know about online dating? For people like Shi Xingrui who don't easily reveal their inner thoughts, is it possible to have a pen pal with whom they can freely express their innermost thoughts?"

Xiao Si listened intently and asked, "Can someone fall in love with another person just by exchanging letters?"

"Don't underestimate the power of words," replied Shi Jin. As he flipped through the documents, his hands gradually slowed down and his eyes grew brighter.

Suddenly, he slammed the tablet with force and exclaimed, "This is it! Since elementary school, Shi Xingrui has had a habit of writing articles and submitting them for publication. At first, it was essays, but as he grew older, he wrote small stories and essays. He would occasionally earn some money to support his family. Families with children like this would definitely have a lot of correspondence, but there is not a single record of letters related to the Shi family in this material! What does this prove? It proves that Shi Xingrui must have intentionally erased this information!"

Xiao Si finally understood and became excited as well. "So, does that mean if we can find Shi Xingrui's past correspondence, we can follow the trail and find the mysterious white moonlight?"

"Very likely!" Shi Jin replied confidently. His heart was racing with excitement as he couldn't resist slamming his tablet shut and turning to run out of the hospital room. He was eager to share his new discovery with Lian Jun.