The workman was remarkably patient, meticulously scanning the room with his device. Turning to Zhao Mingzhen, who had been tailing him the whole time, he said, “Ma’am, could you go shut off the main breaker for me? I need to test this connection.” “Are you sure this is it?” Zhao Mingzhen asked, her voice laced with impatience. “There’s nothing wrong with the wiring in this house.” “That's exactly why I need you to flip the breaker. To be sure,” the workman retorted, clearly used to this kind of complaint. “If I don't test it now, I'll just have to come back some other day. And if there's no problem, then you've got peace of mind, right? These checks are becoming routine. Better this than a blackout that affects the whole neighborhood, and then everyone starts complaining. We're the ones who have to deal with it, and frankly, we're getting worn out.” “Well, just be quick about it. Such a hassle…” Zhao Mingzhen’s grumbling faded as she walked away. The moment she was gone, I shot up from the bed and hurried to the bathroom. I retrieved the medicine packet—a long, thick pouch that looked uncomfortably like a sausage—and handed it to the workman. He gave me a bewildered look before taking it. His expression made me want to die of embarrassment. But what choice did I have? This was about survival. If I’d had any other suitable container, I never would have used… *that thing*. It was utterly humiliating. I didn’t have a second to dwell on it before I heard the sound of Zhao Mingzhen’s returning footsteps. I scrambled back to the bed, pulling the blanket over myself just as Zhao Mingzhen re-entered the room. The workman tinkered for a few more moments, gave some parting instructions, and then left. Apparently still suspicious, Zhao Mingzhen returned to my bedside to watch me for a moment. She prodded me with her hand, and seeing no sign of me waking, she finally turned and left, muttering to herself. The door slammed shut behind her, the sound echoing in the quiet room. Once everything was quiet again, I let out a slow breath. I pulled out my phone and opened the surveillance app I’d been so desperate to install the moment I got the phone back. On the screen, I saw Zhao Mingzhen go into Sanbao’s room. It was his naptime. From the looks of it, she was genuinely attentive to him, her care meticulous and without fault. A moment later, I watched as she casually locked the front door and left. When she returned, her hands were full of grocery bags—it looked like she’d been to the market. I made a mental note of the time she left. The next day, when she headed out for the market again, I shut off the monitor and went back to Deng Jiazhe’s study. But the keys were gone. I couldn't find them in the hidden compartment. A knot of anxiety tightened in my stomach. Had Deng Jiazhe discovered I'd moved them? Why else would he have suddenly taken the keys? I searched frantically for a while longer, but it was no use. I had to give up. I went back downstairs and tried the front door. Just as I suspected, it was deadbolted from the outside. There was no way to open it from within. Zhou Haizhen had been right. I was a prisoner in my own home, placed under house arrest. To the outside world, I was abroad seeking medical treatment. It was all arranged so perfectly, so seamlessly, that if I were to die here, no one would ever know. On the evening of the fourth day, Deng Jiazhe finally reappeared. I hadn't seen him in days. He came straight to my room, sat down on the edge of my bed, and just… watched me. For a long, unnerving time, he stared at my ‘peacefully sleeping’ form. He didn't move until Zhao Mingzhen called him for dinner. As he stood up, I peered at him through slitted eyes. Just as he reached the doorway, he whipped his head back around to look straight at me. A sinister smile spread across his face, a look so malevolent it sent a chill down my spine. At that exact moment, the phone hidden beneath me buzzed silently. The vibration sent a jolt through me. My heart pounding, I carefully slid it out, keeping my eyes locked on the door. I answered the video call. On the screen, Zhou Haizhen’s face appeared, her expression puzzled. “Danni, we got the test results back on the medicine,” she began. “There’s… there's nothing wrong with it. It’s just a health supplement, a tonic. It’s completely harmless.” “What?” The words jolted me upright in bed. My mind went blank. “Impossible,” I whispered, shaking my head. “That's impossible!”