“Tell me, do you think Elder Chen might want to take Dr. Gu as his disciple?”
Not long after, Dr. Zhou and Dr. Lu gathered again to discuss. They had both noticed the admiration in Elder Chen’s eyes for Gu Jianing—something impossible to hide.
“I think there’s a very high chance.”
“Talented people are welcomed everywhere, after all.”
In truth, Elder Chen did indeed admire Gu Jianing greatly. He had previously heard of her exceptional talent in medicine, and yesterday, he witnessed firsthand how she treated the injured. To be honest, even if some of the critically injured patients had been under his care, while he might have saved them, the treatment wouldn’t have been as flawless as Gu Jianing’s.
Every time she administered treatment, Elder Chen could describe it with one word: “perfect.”
It was as if she had practiced countless times in advance, honing her skills to the point of perfection.
If Gu Jianing could hear Elder Chen’s thoughts, she would have said: Elder Chen, you’re absolutely right. In the space, I practiced each treatment hundreds, even thousands of times until I mastered it completely, leaving no room for error. It truly reached a level of perfection—only then would the system judge my assessment as qualified.
In the afternoon, Elder Chen wasn’t in the Traditional Chinese Medicine department, so Gu Jianing finally didn’t have to talk as much.
It wasn’t that she was unwilling to speak. She didn’t mind sharing or teaching medical knowledge that wasn’t yet widely known, but after talking nonstop for hours, her throat couldn’t take it anymore.
Now, with some free time, Gu Jianing finally had a chance to sort through the rewards she’d earned during her day and night of rescue work in the disaster area.
There were many material rewards—almost every patient she treated came with one, covering all aspects of daily life: food, clothing, shelter, and transportation. Looking at the pile of items in her space, Gu Jianing felt she could open a small convenience store.
As for points, she initially had a little over 1,700. This rescue mission awarded points based on the severity of the patients’ injuries, and after deducting the points she spent on skills, she now had 2,590 left.
She was very satisfied with both the material rewards and the points.
After organizing everything, seeing that no one was around, Gu Jianing planned to enter the space to study. But before she could, she heard footsteps approaching her office.
Soon, a young woman, seemingly in her early twenties, appeared.
She seemed timid, her gaze toward Gu Jianing both cautious and hopeful.
“Are you Dr. Gu?” Qin Rou asked hesitantly.
“Yes, that’s me. Sister, are you feeling unwell?”
“I… I…” After hesitating for a moment, Qin Rou finally mustered the courage to speak. “Dr. Gu, I want to ask you to help me conceive a child.”
Gu Jianing: ?!
So soon? Someone was already coming to her for fertility treatment?
“I can try. First, tell me about your situation in detail.”
Encouraged by Gu Jianing, Qin Rou slowly began to explain.
It turned out that Qin Rou had married her soldier husband, Qi Yuancheng, a squad leader, through an arranged marriage. Though they met through matchmaking and spent little time together after marriage, their life wasn’t bad, and their relationship had remained strong over the years.
Last year, Qi Yuancheng was promoted to battalion commander, and she was finally able to join him as a military dependent.
Life in the Northwest Military Region was wonderful, and their marital bond grew even stronger.
But one thing remained a source of distress for both of them.
They had been married for over five years and had been trying for a child all this time…
“Actually, just a few months after we got married, I did get pregnant, but I had a miscarriage soon after.”
“Since then, up until now, I haven’t been able to conceive again.”
Her mother-in-law believed she was infertile and planned to have one of her brother-in-law’s three sons adopted by them. On the surface, it was framed as “continuing the family line” and ensuring they’d have someone to care for them in old age.
But Qin Rou refused.
If she and her husband could have their own child, naturally, that would be far better.
Moreover, Qin Rou didn’t like her brother-in-law’s three children. Those kids were spoiled rotten by their grandparents and parents—arrogant, ill-mannered, and constantly spewing vulgar language. As an elementary school teacher, Qin Rou found this utterly intolerable.
And besides…
Before she came to live with her husband as a military dependent, while her in-laws had treated her decently, her brother-in-law’s family—even those children—had been awful to her. They shoved all the household chores onto her while lazing around themselves. Sometimes, when her husband sent care packages with treats like biscuits or walnut cakes, those kids would brazenly take them.
Worse, after taking her things, they’d mock her behind her back, saying things like, *”You can’t even have kids—what right do you have to eat this stuff?”*
Hearing that had nearly made Qin Rou furious enough to explode.
But that wasn’t even the main reason. The real dealbreaker was something she once overheard from her brother-in-law’s family.
They were lazy freeloaders with no savings, no jobs, and kids who refused to study—yet they already saw Qin Rou and Qi Yuancheng’s property as theirs.
The third son, the one they planned to “gift” to her and her husband, even said that once the adoption was finalized and the assets were secured, they’d abuse and abandon the couple in their old age.
The sheer malice in those words sent chills down Qin Rou’s spine. A child like that? She wouldn’t take him even if he were free.
Later, Qin Rou told her husband everything she’d heard.
Thankfully, Yuancheng believed her.
Not long after, he was promoted to battalion commander and brought her to live with him on the military base.
Since then, the two had redoubled their efforts to conceive—but still, no child came.
After listening to Qin Rou’s story, Gu Jianing sighed inwardly. Sadly, situations like this—and families like her brother-in-law’s—existed in every era.
“Dr. Gu, my neighbor Bai He told me you treated her condition. So… I was hoping you could examine me too. If there’s something wrong with my body, I’m willing to undergo treatment.” Qin Rou’s eyes shone with determination.
Gu Jianing nodded. “I see. Alright, have a seat first. Let me check your pulse.”
“O-okay, sure.”
As Qin Rou sat down, Gu Jianing’s fingers rested lightly on her wrist while the scanner in her eyes began analyzing Qin Rou’s body.
But…
A few seconds later, the scan completed.
Two minutes after that, Gu Jianing finished taking her pulse.
Yet her brows furrowed slightly.
Seeing this, Qin Rou’s heart clenched with anxiety.
“Dr. Gu… is my condition very serious?”
“It… It can’t be untreatable, right?”
Tears welled up in her eyes at the thought.
Instead of answering directly, Gu Jianing asked another question.
“You came alone today. Where’s your husband?”
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