On New Year's Day, Shi Wenli couldn't accompany her to Yonghe Temple to fulfill her wish. Early in the morning, he received an emergency call. Shi Wenli hugged her: "In the afternoon, I'll see if I can go with you." "No need. I'll go by myself in the morning." It was actually easier for her to go alone, without constantly worrying about being seen by colleagues. Xu Qinghe didn't forget to remind him: "Drive safely." Shi Wenli put on his coat, grabbed the new car keys from the console table, and hurried out. Xu Qinghe sat back at the table and finished the few remaining dumplings on the plate. The dumplings were made by Shi Wenli himself—from kneading the dough, rolling out the wrappers, to preparing the filling—all by himself. She couldn't think of anything he couldn't do.
After cleaning up the kitchen, she headed to Yonghe Temple. Fortunately, Shi Wenli didn't come with her. While waiting in line at the temple entrance, she ran into an acquaintance—Director Bao Jing from Obstetrics and Gynecology. Director Bao had been suffering from headaches; neurological compression and any pathological changes had been ruled out. As long as she didn't help her son with his homework, she was fine, but as soon as she entered his room, her head began to ache. She grabbed Xu Qinghe and vented helplessly. After venting, Director Bao remembered to ask: "Why are you alone?" What about that childhood friend boyfriend? Xu Qinghe: "They're all busy today." Director Bao nodded and didn't ask further.
At her age, she wasn't much for gossip. Marriage, relationships, and children—it was better not to bring them up. Bringing them up could raise blood pressure. She mentioned the Anesthesiology Department: "I heard from my husband that after the New Year, the hospital plans to select seven or eight key members from your neurosurgery anesthesia team to specifically assist with brain-computer interface surgeries and form a fixed brain-computer anesthesia crew. Director Zhao and your team leader are the initiators. The rest will be selected from your team. Aren't you going to try?" Director Bao's husband was part of the hospital's senior management, and they had discussed it casually. Xu Qinghe said: "The director mentioned it in a meeting before. At that time, it wasn't certain when the selection would take place." Director Bao interjected: "It's right that your subspecialty is fixed in the neurosurgery team. Otherwise, you wouldn't even be qualified to participate in the selection." She added another question: "The selection criteria are very strict. Do you have enough experience with awake craniotomies?" Xu Qinghe nodded: "Enough. I completed over 300 neurosurgery anesthesia cases last year, with more than 110 awake craniotomies." Her first surgery with Shi Wenli was an awake craniotomy with intraoperative wake-up. Director Bao recalled that Xu Qinghe didn't only handle neurosurgery anesthesia but also had to cover cardiac surgery. Since August of last year, she had been making up the required surgery volume for other basic departments. For a moment, she was at a loss for words and simply gave her a thumbs-up. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that the workload and pressure were unbearable for the average person. Director Bao couldn't help but sigh: "No wonder Director Jiang personally intervened in your conflict with Orthopedics." One must not only have the ability to anger the leadership but also the knack to make them both angry and fond of you. She teased: "Section Chief Wu said his blood pressure hasn't been stable all year." Xu Qinghe laughed: "I'll burn incense and pray for him later." Director Bao also laughed, returning to the brain-computer anesthesia crew: "Then you must definitely try out." Xu Qinghe nodded; she would certainly participate in the selection.
Shi Wenli was one of the core members of the hospital's brain-computer interface team. The team leader was the chief of neurosurgery and also Shi Wenli's postdoctoral supervisor. His rapid growth was undoubtedly due to his mentor's guidance. Shi Wenli not only delved deep into the brain-computer interface field but also spanned two tracks: complex skull base surgery and full-spectrum functional neurosurgery. He could independently perform complex skull base surgeries as well as functional surgeries. Looking at the entire country, experts who could simultaneously excel in these three major fields and perform independent surgeries could be counted on two hands. Hard work and talent were both indispensable. As a result, he became the youngest associate chief physician in the history of neurosurgery in the country. If it weren't for Shi Miao, he would have stayed at the neighboring hospital. For this reason, Dean Liu is still resentful to this day. Whenever Dean Jiang meets Dean Liu, he secretly shows off. Such a rare talent is something everyone wants. The overseas training program he attended was precisely related to brain-computer interfaces. Such a complex project, yet he managed to complete it ahead of time. That was why Xu Qinghe and Wu Xiaofeng were surprised by his early return. When Wu Xiaofeng saw him, his exclamation of "Holy cow!" probably echoed through the surgical corridor.
Director Bao said: "I also think you must try. You specialize in both neurosurgery and cardiac surgery, which gives you a natural competitive advantage." However, the neurosurgery anesthesia team was full of talent, and Xu Qinghe was young and lacked experience. "The selection probably won't be too late. It should start after the New Year, right? Prepare well." Xu Qinghe had been preparing all along. The selection was divided into two parts: theory and practice. The theory part would be designed by their director and team leader, while the practice part would be jointly evaluated by the brain-computer interface clinical team and the brain-computer engineers. And Shi Wenli, being a core member of the brain-computer interface team, was naturally one of the evaluators. In fact, a long time ago, she had foreseen this day. She was the candidate, and he was the evaluator. The only thing she hadn't expected was that by now, they were already husband and wife.
Today, the queue at the temple was like a long dragon, with no end in sight. The two chatted about the brain-computer anesthesia crew selection, and time passed quickly. When they were almost at the front, Director Bao asked her: "Why are you here to burn incense? What are you praying for? Love, career—you've got it all." Xu Qinghe said: "I'm here to fulfill a wish." Director Bao suddenly recalled that on her birthday, Xu Qinghe had mentioned a wish from Yonghe Temple in her Moments. In December, she had said that the wish from Yonghe Temple was getting farther away from her. Now, in February, she came to fulfill it, so it must have been about love. Director Bao sighed and explained why she was here to burn incense: "I'm here to pray for my son to get a passing grade in math." Last night, her husband told her not to worry, saying that their son might just be a late bloomer. She was speechless for a long time. You can't deceive yourself like that. Xu Qinghe comforted her: "Maybe he really is a late bloomer."
Today, Yonghe Temple was still packed with people. As soon as Xu Qinghe lit the incense and before she began to pray, someone suddenly stepped backward from beside her. She pushed the person to steady them: "Be careful not to burn your clothes!" The voice was too familiar. Section Chief Wu turned around and saw that it was indeed Xu Qinghe. They had actually run into each other at Yonghe Temple on the first day of the New Year. Who said the new year brings new changes? Xu Qinghe recognized the person in front of her and barely suppressed a smile: "Section Chief Wu, Happy New Year." "...Happy New Year." Xu Qinghe made conversation: "I almost burned your clothes." Section Chief Wu said it was fine: "My wife specifically found an old outfit for me to wear to the temple." Director Bao came over, holding back a laugh, and asked a nearby visitor to take a group photo of the three of them while they prayed. She specially posted on Moments: "Section Chief Wu, Dr. Xu, and I formed a group to burn incense and pray for everyone at Yonghe Temple. First wish: May the mountains and rivers be peaceful and the country prosperous. Second wish: May doctors and patients be at peace and treatments go smoothly. Third wish: May all parents be healthy and everything go well!" Everyone left messages with laughter and likes. The first laugh of the new year was brought by Section Chief Wu. In the photo, he looked quite out of sorts.
Shi Wenli saw Director Bao's post at around 3:30 in the afternoon, shortly after finishing a surgery. The circulating nurse hadn't delivered the boxed lunch yet, so he scrolled through his phone. He first asked Xu Qinghe how she had managed lunch, then liked Director Bao's post. Xu Qinghe: [Section Chief Wu treated us to lunch~ I ate with Director Bao.] Xu Qinghe: [You haven't eaten yet, have you?] Shi Wenli: [Mm. The boxed lunch will be here soon.] He then asked: [Where are you now?] Xu Qinghe: [At the temple fair with Director Bao. Director Bao bought me a phoenix sugar painting~ So sweet, I can't finish it.] Shi Wenli: [If you can't finish it, bring it back for me. Do you want to come pick me up at the hospital after the temple fair?] Xu Qinghe hesitated for a moment: [I'd better not. It would be too conspicuous.] Then she added: [But I do miss you a lot.] Shi Wenli: [Come over. No one knows if you're on duty today or if you came specifically to find me.] Xu Qinghe: [Then I'll finish the sugar painting first before coming over.] Carrying the sugar painting, it would be obvious she was going to meet someone. Shi Wenli: [No need to finish it. Don't you have a spare set of keys in your bag? Just leave it in the car with the window slightly open. At this temperature, it won't melt. I'm driving the car your parents gave us today. No one knows it's mine.] He had been using the same license plate for over ten years on his own car, which most colleagues recognized. To make it convenient for him to pick up and drop off Xu Qinghe, his in-laws had given them a new car as a housewarming gift. The new car was a new energy commuter model; dozens of colleagues in the hospital had bought the same model. The license plate was also ordinary; even after seeing it eight or ten times, people would forget it by the next day. Xu Qinghe didn't reply for a long time. Twenty minutes later, she sent: [Just now Director Bao was holding my arm, so it wasn't convenient to reply. We're shopping at the mall. I bought a hat and also a down jacket with a hood; both were on sale.] She had actually forgotten about the hat, but Director Bao remembered that her ears were red from the cold. She told her that walking to work in winter could easily cause chilblains, so she should wear a hat. Taking the advice, she bought two hats and a thick down jacket that was mediocre in style but warm. In the future, if there were an emergency in the middle of the night, she wouldn't ask Shi Wenli to drive her; she'd just scan a shared e-bike. With a hat and a thick down jacket, she wouldn't worry about the cold. Shi Wenli asked: [How much was it?] Xu Qinghe: [Director Bao and I combined our orders; we each bought one, and the second item was half price. After splitting it, it was less than 1,500.] Shi Wenli transferred 2,000 yuan to her. The money came from his allowance. Xu Qinghe quickly replied: [Thank you, hubby (snicker)] Then she added: [Wait, I'll screenshot the payment record and send it to my dad, then ask him to reimburse me (snicker)(snicker)] Shi Wenli laughed: [No need to ask your dad. I'll transfer you another 2,000.] Xu Qinghe: [No, no, no, that doesn't conflict (laughing)] Xu Qinghe: [I'll go to the hospital to find you right away.] Shi Wenli: [Okay.] Xu Qinghe picked up the down jacket and left with Director Bao, chatting as they went. Director Bao's reason for buying this thick down jacket was similar to hers. After the New Year, Director Bao was going to move into a rental apartment to make it easier for her son to go to school without needing to be picked up and dropped off. However, that meant commuting to work would be less convenient than before. The area around the rental apartment was particularly congested; driving was no faster than walking. In the event of a critical emergency cesarean section, every second counted. The reason she could get along so well with Director Bao was the goodwill built up over years of working together. The two had cooperated seamlessly many times during high-risk emergency cesarean sections, ensuring both mother and baby were safe without any postoperative complications.
Just as they exited the mall, Xu Qinghe received an emergency call. Director Su from the Emergency Department informed her: "The patient has a difficult airway, severe obesity, facial trauma, and failed intubation twice." "Failed both times?" "Yes. The larynx is edematous and bleeding." "I'm near the hospital. I'll be there immediately." Director Bao quickened her pace: "I'll drive you." In less than ten minutes, they arrived at the hospital. The security guard saw her taking the stairs two at a time; her partner had also been in a hurry this morning. The young couple couldn't even have a proper New Year. Xu Qinghe changed into her work clothes and quickly entered the resuscitation room. The patient was on a face mask with oxygen. She glanced at the monitor; the oxygen saturation was barely maintained at 94%. On the way, she had already been briefed on the patient's condition. Both laryngoscopy attempts had failed to visualize the vocal cords. However, among the difficult airway cases she had encountered, this patient's situation was not the worst. After administering a muscle relaxant, Xu Qinghe pressed her fingertips gently on the patient's cricoid cartilage to prevent gastric contents from refluxing. She first used a suction device to remove the clotted blood from the previous intubation attempts in the patient's pharynx. After clearing the blood, she switched to a fiberoptic bronchoscope, advancing it while sucking away the continuously oozing blood. From inserting the scope to delivering the tube, it took 58 seconds. Successful intubation. The people around her breathed a sigh of relief. Director Su: "Thank you for your hard work. Happy New Year." He especially enjoyed working with Xu Qinghe during critical situations.
Xu Qinghe changed clothes and came out of the emergency department at almost five o'clock. Originally, she was supposed to pick up Shi Wenli from work, but now it was the other way around: he was waiting for her. Shi Wenli left her a message: [Call me when you're done.] Xu Qinghe sent him a direct message: [You'll have to wait a few minutes. I need to go back to the office to get my clothes and the sugar painting.] At the time, she didn't have time to return to the anesthesia office, so she had to ask Director Bao to bring her things there for her to pick up later. Shi Wenli said: [The clothes and sugar painting are with me.] Xu Qinghe: [!!] Her head buzzed. How did they end up with him? They should have been on her desk in the anesthesia office, and the sugar painting should have been in the anesthesia duty room's refrigerator. In any case, they shouldn't be with him. Shi Wenli: [I ran into Director Bao at the elevator entrance.] It all started half an hour ago. Shi Wenli was eating when he received a message from Xu Qinghe saying she was on her way to the emergency department for a difficult airway intubation and that fortunately Director Bao was with her, otherwise taking a taxi would have wasted time. After eating, he planned to go back to the neurosurgery ward to wait for her. As soon as he reached the elevator lobby, an elevator stopped at the surgical floor, and the person stepping out was Director Bao. Meeting on the first day of the New Year, they exchanged pleasantries. Director Bao wasn't gossipy, but she had to congratulate him: "When can I have a taste of your wedding wine?" Shi Wenli smiled: "Probably this autumn. It depends on work. If it's not too busy, maybe even earlier." In reality, it depended on how his relationship with Xu Qinghe was progressing. When they had just gotten their marriage certificate, they planned to hold the wedding in September or October. Given their current state, April or May might be feasible. Director Bao congratulated him again: "It's not easy, not easy." She recalled that when she first met him, he was just over twenty, rotating through Obstetrics and Gynecology. Even though he wasn't planning to specialize in that direction, he still diligently and thoroughly studied behind her, filling several notebooks. At that time, she joked: "Shi Wenli, why don't you stay in OB/GYN?" It wasn't just her; every time he rotated through a department, his supervising teacher would ask if he had any intention of switching specialties. They were always welcome. Many people teased the chief of neurosurgery: "You need to keep a close eye on him. So many people are eyeing him!" The "persuasion" from other departments in the hospital was just a joke, because they knew he wouldn't change his direction, but the neighboring hospital had seriously tried to poach him. However, they didn't succeed. Dean Jiang wasn't worried about Dean Liu poaching Shi Wenli; as long as Shi Miao was here, he wouldn't leave. Later, there were rumors that Dean Liu, frustrated that he couldn't recruit Shi Wenli, went to Shanghai to bring back Shi Jianqin. He couldn't recruit the son, but he recruited the father, which was some consolation.
Director Bao said: "A while ago, I told my husband that all the big names in our hospital are single. It must be a feng shui problem. I told him to go with Dean Jiang to the Marriage Pavilion to pay respects." Shi Wenli laughed: "It's that fate hasn't arrived, not a feng shui problem." Seeing that she was carrying two shopping bags, he casually asked if she was looking for someone. Director Bao said: "Oh, these belong to Dr. Xu. We ran into each other at Yonghe Temple, then ate together and went to the temple fair. Just as we were enjoying ourselves, Dr. Xu got an emergency call. These are her purchases. I'm taking them to her office." Shi Wenli reached out: "Give them to me. I'll give them to her later." Without a second thought, Director Bao handed them over: "Then she won't have to run upstairs after she's done." At that moment, her first thought was that they were good friends and lived in the same neighborhood, so giving Xu Qinghe a ride was normal, right? After giving the items to Shi Wenli, she even took the same elevator down with him. During this time, she didn't find anything unusual. Shi Wenli pressed the button for the neurosurgery ward floor and also pressed the first floor for Director Bao. Not only did Director Bao not sense anything amiss, but she also chatted with him normally: "You'll be busy again after the New Year." Shi Wenli had previously said that the wedding date would be determined based on work, and she didn't think that was an exaggeration at all. Shi Wenli responded: "Yes, it'll be busier than before the New Year." Elective surgeries would resume on the fourth day of the new year. On the eighth, there was a semi-invasive brain-computer interface surgery. After officially returning to work, he would have weekly online joint consultations with the brain-computer team from the neighboring hospital and monthly in-person case discussions. A new research project was about to start. Routine teaching couldn't be neglected either. Xu Qinghe was busy, and so was he. Unless they were on the same surgery team, even seeing each other during the day was difficult. While they were talking, the elevator stopped at the neurosurgery ward floor. Director Bao waved: "Wishing you all the best in the new year." "Thank you. I hope your son's math grades improve steadily in the new semester." Director Bao laughed: "Thank you. May your words come true!" When the elevator doors slowly closed, leaving her alone in the quiet, confined space, she gradually came to her senses. Hadn't Shi Wenli moved on the twenty-ninth of the twelfth lunar month? And so many people had gone to celebrate the housewarming. After calming down and thinking it over, the more she thought about it, the more she felt something was off. Neither Shi Wenli nor Xu Qinghe was single anymore, and they didn't live in the same neighborhood. Even if they were just good friends of the opposite sex, why would he specifically wait for her to finish her work? Besides, these two had always been measured. Could it be...? Director Bao was startled by her own thought. She really didn't like gossiping, but she couldn't hold it in: [Chief Shi, should I be congratulating you and Dr. Xu? If I'm wrong, please don't mind.] Shi Wenli: [You're not wrong.] Director Bao couldn't believe it. Her mind was in a bit of disarray. When she got to the parking lot, she unlocked her car from a distance, but when she tried to open the door, it wouldn't budge. Looking more closely, she realized she was pulling on someone else's car door.
On the other side, Shi Wenli carried the two shopping bags back to the neurosurgery ward. Everyone who saw him assumed he had bought them for his girlfriend. But then they thought again, that didn't seem right. He had been in the operating room since morning and had just finished surgery and eaten. How could he suddenly have women's clothing in his hands while walking from the OR to the ward? Even Ding Qihang couldn't figure it out.
...
After hearing the whole story, Xu Qinghe laughed: "If you admit it every time someone asks, soon everyone will know." Shi Wenli: "I never planned to hide it from the start. From now on, we'll take it as it comes." Originally, the day after the blind date, he had intended to announce that they were together. He took off his white coat: [Go wait in the car first. I'll be right down.] Xu Qinghe: [I'm looking for the car. I forgot the license plate number...] Shi Wenli smiled wryly. If she couldn't even remember it, then no one else would. Xu Qinghe used the car key to find the car. Soon, Shi Wenli came downstairs. Neither of them had seen each other for nearly ten hours, and they both missed each other. After getting into the car, Shi Wenli didn't rush to start the engine but leaned over to kiss her. Xu Qinghe let go of the seatbelt and naturally wrapped her arms around his neck. His kiss was gentle, and she responded gently as well. When the kiss became passionate, simply kissing felt inadequate. Shi Wenli ended the kiss and started the car to leave the hospital. Xu Qinghe, when she used to get rides from him, always thought the road from the hospital to the neighborhood was too short; before she could even have a proper conversation, the car would already be parked. The distance from the hospital to the new home was about the same as to the old neighborhood, but today, she felt it was a bit long. When they first started dating after the blind date, they had to agree in advance on how many times they would kiss each day and whether they would share a room after getting the marriage certificate. In just a few short weeks, after only being apart for a single day, they already longed for each other intensely. Xu Qinghe had always thought her desire for sex was mild. Even if not mild, at least normal. But now she realized that since they started having a marital relationship, her desire in this area had become increasingly strong. And it was easy for her to reach climax multiple times. Once home, Shi Wenli didn't forget to put her sugar painting in the fridge. Xu Qinghe went straight to the master bathroom. If it had been before last night, she would have been too shy. But yesterday morning, he had kissed her there again and again. After the New Year's Eve dinner and some TV, they had returned to the bedroom, where he held her on the sofa and kissed her there once more. At that time, the floor lamp beside the sofa was on. He knelt in front of the sofa. That time, there was no intercourse; he only used his mouth. It was still embarrassing: when he sucked last time, her calf cramped up again.
...
After showering, they were soon kissing again. The agitation from the kiss in the car was still there. As soon as Shi Wenli lifted her up, Xu Qinghe kissed his lips. Before the deep kiss, they both already felt aroused. Xu Qinghe wrapped her arms around his neck and said she didn't want another leg cramp. So Shi Wenli didn't kiss her there; instead, he kissed her and asked, "Can you try not to turn your face away?" Xu Qinghe nodded. They made love while looking into each other's eyes. When their emotions became too intense, both sought each other's lips. Once their lips and tongues met, caught up in their longing, they couldn't bear to part. They kissed passionately as they moved together. Only when she showered again did Xu Qinghe notice the two scratches on Shi Wenli's back.