The next day, the same sensation appeared again. It was slightly clearer than the previous day, just a little bit. He asked Sister Li to place her hand on his abdomen, and then he performed the same breathing exercise.
"Do you feel anything?" he asked.
Sister Li pressed her hand on his abdomen, trying hard to sense something. Her palm rested on his skin, her eyes fixed on her fingers, her expression as focused as if she were listening to a faint heartbeat.
"No, nothing at all."
Chen Jianguo was not surprised. The connection was too thin, so thin that only he could feel it. He wasn't even sure whether the connection truly existed or if his fingers were deceiving his brain. But he didn't dare to seek confirmation. What if the slight pull he felt today was merely a memory of yesterday's sensation? What if he could never feel it again in the coming days?
On the third day, he told Manstein about it.
