The night diner operated as usual, serving night owls even amidst the reduced foot traffic on the streets due to the impact of the novel disease. But this hadn''t greatly affected the business of the small eatery.


    "The impact of this new disease is quite significant, huh? Even the bar across the street has closed down, saying it''s to prevent gatherings and spread of the virus," a regr customer removed his face mask and took a sip of beer.


    "Exactly! We were saying we''d go for a drink after work, but now we can onlye here to the boss''s ce," Two customers sitting opposite the regr, who seemed to have just finished work, chimed in upon hearing his remarks.


    Perhaps somewhat wary of contagion, the two didn''t sit together as usual but instead left two seats empty between them.


    Hearing the customer''sment, the owner, who was wearing a mask, poked his head out of the kitchen and jokingly asked, "What, is the liquor here not good enough for drinking?"


    "Boss, we can only drink three sses here, can''t really enjoy ourselves to the fullest!" The customerined half-jokingly. The rule of a maximum of three drinks per person was well known to all the regrs, and no one had ever broken this rule.


    However, the owner was unfazed by the customer''sint, "Drinking less is good for your health. ce an order, what would you like to eat?"


    "Two servings of curry chicken rice! And two more bottles of beer," After exchanging a look with hispanion, the customer ced their order.


    "Just a moment,ing right up," the owner nodded, ced two bottles of beer and cups in front of the two, and then returned to the kitchen to make their curry chicken rice.


    As the owner busied himself with the cooking, the door to the diner was pulled open.


    "Good evening, boss. Can I have a serving of steamed ms with wine and a cheese pork cutlet over rice?" Yu Chen ced his order with the boss while sitting down alongside Hiromi Jounouchi.


    Hiromi Jounouchi pulled her mask down to her chin and called out to the boss as well, "Boss, a serving of fried chicken nuggets and a pork set meal, please."


    "Doctor Chen Yu, Doctor Jounouchi, have you just finished your shifts?" The boss greeted the two from the kitchen upon hearing their orders.


    "Yep, it''s been somewhat busy at the hospital recently." Yu Chen nodded, nced at the other three customers sitting in the diner and couldn''t help praising the boss, "Business seems good here today, huh!"


    "It''s just a few regrs. With the current situation, even the regrs may not dare toe," The boss replied with a wry smile. While it appeared that there were a few customers that day, the business had indeed been affectedtely.


    However, as the owner of the diner, he didn''tin to Yu Chen, merely smiled before asking, "I heard there was an attack at your hospital a few days ago, and someone died, right? It hasn''t affected your work much, has it? How could such an attack happen in the hospital?"


    "The hospital has very strict security measures now, so there hasn''t been much impact, and the police have sent people over. The problem is the reporters—hovering at the hospital entrance all day, hoping for a big scoop. The previous attacker managed to sneak in a knife within a camera tripod, so now, nobody really likes the presence of reporters," Yu Chen exined to the boss. Although he didn''t care much about the attack itself, the impact of the reporters on the hospital was tangible.


    Because of therge number of reporters blocking the entrance, patient appointments were even affected. When Yu Chen and Hiromi Jounouchi were leaving work, reporters were still lingering at the hospital entrance, forcing the two to employ a little trickery to exit the premises.


    "It''s because your hospital has been in the news, right? After all, such a major incident happened, and the experiment was even broadcast on TV. It''s normal for reporters to be camping out," The regr customer seemed used to such incidents and said with a mncholic tone, "I remember over a decade ago, when a famous rock singer was hospitalized, I went there as a fan, but the entrance of the hospital was almostpletely surrounded by reporters, and we couldn''t even push through.


    If only you had been there, Doctor Chen Yu, she might not have died from falling down the stairs."


    "Such is life—unpredictable. The matters of life and death, who can say for certain?" The words of the regr customer seemed to strike a chord with the boss, and he couldn''t help but interject.


    However, Yu Chen shook his head in response to their sentiment, "Sure, being alive is what everyone looks forward to, but who knows if death isn''t just another beginning? Perhaps, for those who have passed away, they might be happier than when they were alive."


    "Indeed, bing a Buddha after death is better than suffering in this world," Perhaps due to his age, the regr customer seemed to resonate with Yu Chen''s words.


    "I don''t think so. Being alive is what''s most important. Once you''re dead, there''s nothing left! So, living well and enjoying every minute of life—that''s what matters most!" Another customer, one of the two younger ones nearby, suddenly disagreed, voicing the concerns of someone younger who cared more about enjoying life.


    Yu Chen didn''t wish to add furtherment on their perspectives. Though the topic had started with him, he found such debates pointless since there was no definitive answer. Whether life or death is happier is merely a matter of perspective.


    While the regr customer and the two younger customers debated, the boss served the meals ordered by Yu Chen and Hiromi Jounouchi.


    "It smells delicious! Boss, how do you make these steamed ms with wine? I''ve tried making it at home but can never get it as fragrant as you do," Hiromi Jounouchi praised while tasting the delicious broth and tender m meat from a m she picked out of Yu Chen''s bowl.


    "Heh, it''s just a verymon method, you take the ms…" The boss was about to exin his method for steaming ms with wine to Hiromi Jounouchi when the diner''s door was pulled open again.


    The boss was visibly taken aback by the person who entered, but his expression fell when he saw another person behind her. He turned and went back into the kitchen without greeting them, apparently not wanting to speak with these two people.


    "Daddy!" The woman who entered called out softly to the boss, who had his back to her, after biting her lip for a moment.


    And at that call of "Daddy," everyone in the diner felt a bit surprised. Even the regrs didn''t know the boss had such an adult daughter.