After being separated from my family, I became a darling of the military region thanks to my medical

General Hospital of the Military Region, Logistics Auditorium.

The lingering chill of early spring hadn't completely dissipated, yet the auditorium was as hot as a steamer. If you looked closely, you'd notice that those sitting in the first few rows of "VIP seats" were all gray-haired, with two or three pens clipped to their Zhongshan suit pockets—these were all top-tier hospitals in their respective provinces, the kind of people who could shake the ground with a stomp of their feet in their own territories.

At this moment, these deans are scrambling for a good spot to take notes, their faces flushed and necks red.

"Old Li! Pull your elbows in! You've crossed the line!"

"Why are you pushing? I reserved this spot last night with my military water bottle!"

"Quiet! Everyone, be quiet!"

A loud, booming shout rang out. Zhao Degong, the president of Shanghai First People's Hospital, stood proudly beside the podium, a bright red armband pinned to his left arm and a pointer in his hand, looking like an old farmer tending a melon patch.

Ever since Ye Zhen appointed him as the temporary class leader of this training course, Old Zhao has been incredibly smug, walking with a swagger.

"Who's that? Old Wang from Harbin Medical University, right? Sit down! If you keep making noise, you'll lose two credits for this class! If you don't get your graduation certificate, do you still want to take that Siemens ultrasound machine back to Northeast China?"

The audience fell silent instantly. Dean Wang's face turned a deep purplish-red, but he dared not utter a sound. After all, the agreement contained a "tyrannical clause" stipulated by Ye Zhen—"Those who fail the training assessment will be disqualified from receiving employment."

Just then, the side door creaked open.

Wearing a white lab coat and holding two pieces of chalk, Ye Zhen walked briskly to the podium. She didn't bring any handouts or a microphone; she simply stood in front of the blackboard, and the professional aura emanating from her very being instantly captivated the entire room.

"Today we will discuss the spectral analysis of the Doppler effect in mitral regurgitation."

Ye Zhen turned around, her wrist flicking. The chalk drew an extremely smooth parabola on the blackboard, accompanied by a teeth-grinding yet satisfying scratching sound, and a precise spectrum of cardiac blood flow appeared.

"This is the algorithmic foundation that made even the Germans kneel in awe." She turned around, her gaze calmly sweeping over the eager, inquisitive old eyes below the stage. "If you can't remember it, the machine will just be scrap metal."

A series of synchronized "scratching" sounds erupted from the audience—the sound of dozens of pens frantically rubbing against paper at the same time.

In the corner, Gu Linlin, who had recently cut her hair short and neat, was carrying a thick stack of mimeographed documents as she moved through the corridor. Her movements were swift and her eyes were resolute; she was no longer the affected young lady she once was. She was distributing lecture notes to the deans, who were older than her father, urging them, "Hurry up and pass them on. Professor Ye's lectures don't wait for anyone; missing a single word would be your loss."

This is Ye Zhen's current status—the dean is the class monitor, the daughter of a military family is the teaching assistant, and a single class is worth a fortune.

……

At the same time, at Beijing Railway Station.

A green jeep with a military license plate starting with "甲" (Jia) was parked at the exit like a wild beast. Gu Zheng leaned against the car door, his hat pulled low, idly tossing the car keys in his hand.

As the bustling crowd surged out, a group of people with an exceptionally different aura appeared.

The middle-aged man at the head of the group was dressed in civilian clothes, but his straight back and hawk-like eyes clearly indicated that he was used to giving orders in the military. Beside him was a kind-looking middle-aged couple, Gu Zheng's fourth uncle, Gu Jianye, and his fourth aunt.

The middle-aged man with the dark face was Gu Zheng's second uncle, Gu Jianguo, the current deputy commander of a major military region.

Behind Gu Jianguo was a quiet young woman in a woolen coat; she was Gu Yue, the only daughter of his second uncle.

"Second Uncle, Fourth Uncle, Fourth Aunt, Yueyue." Gu Zheng straightened up, gave a not-so-standard military salute, and wore his signature roguish smile. "You must have had a long journey. Grandpa has been talking about it for days."

When Gu Jianguo saw his nephew, he snorted heavily and his eyes were like knives slicing across him.

"Hard work? It's only because you're from the Gu family that you can do this. If anyone else dared to do it, I'd kill them!" Gu Jianguo walked up to Gu Zheng in a few steps, lowered his voice, but his anger still flared up. "You're something else, kid. One phone call, and you've got a thousand boxes of praziquantel transferred from the war reserve! Do you know that Old Zhang from the General Logistics Department almost overturned my desk? He pointed his finger at me and called me a spendthrift!"

That's a military reserve drug! This guy is really willing to go to great lengths for his wife's sake!

Gu Zheng remained calm, instead grinning and reaching out to open the car door for his second uncle: "Second Uncle, calm down. We soldiers protect our country, and those fellow villagers from Lanniwan are also part of the country. Besides, you and Fourth Uncle were both on duty at the front line during the Spring Festival, and you didn't even get to eat dumplings while guarding the border. Now that you've finally got a make-up leave to come to Beijing, let's not talk about those unhappy things."

Fourth Uncle Gu Jianye also tried to smooth things over, patting Second Brother on the shoulder: "Yes, Second Brother, Zhengzi was just eager to save people. Besides, Third Brother passed away early, and both our families have daughters. Zhengzi is the only son in the Gu family. This child has always been very opinionated, as you know."

Mentioning the name of the martyr Lao San, who had sacrificed his life many years ago, Gu Jianguo's expression softened slightly, but he still glared fiercely at Gu Zheng: "Get in the car! I'll deal with you when we get back! I think you've been bewitched by your wife; you're completely lawless!"

Auntie Si peered into the car from the side, looking somewhat disappointed: "Zhengzi, where's Linlin? That girl, she didn't even greet her own parents when they came?"

"Don't worry, Fourth Aunt." Gu Zheng started the car and turned the steering wheel quickly. "Your daughter is doing very well now. She's a capable assistant under her sister-in-law. You really can't get her to do things for just anyone."

……

Dinner at the Gu family's old house.

The restaurant was brightly lit, and the long table was laden with steaming dishes. Two bottles of aged Moutai were also specially opened. Old Master Gu sat in the main seat, his face unusually radiant.

Uncle Gu Jianguo drank two glasses of wine, his expression softening slightly, but he still had a stern face, clearly still brooding over the old debt of "a thousand boxes of medicine." Gu Yue, sitting next to him, quietly ate her food.

Just then, the door was pushed open.

"Grandpa! Dad! Mom! Second Uncle! Second Aunt!"

Gu Linlin rushed in, carrying a stack of newspapers. She was wearing a military overcoat with chalk dust on the cuffs, and her hair was messy, but her eyes were surprisingly bright.

Auntie's eyes reddened; she almost didn't recognize her. Where had that spoiled brat who always needed to apply face cream and had her hair curled like a doll gone?

"What happened to this child...?"

"Mom! Why are you crying!" Gu Linlin slammed the newspaper on the table, her tone as excited as if she had just won a battle. "You have no idea what it was like today! More than a dozen deans were being scolded like grandsons by Sister-in-law Ye! Even that arrogant Dean Zhao from Shanghai was obediently wiping the blackboard for Sister-in-law Ye!"

Gu Linlin proudly pulled out a newspaper, a copy of the German magazine *Der Spiegel* that Hans had brought: "Second Uncle, look! This was written by a German! They say my sister-in-law has 'hands kissed by God,' and that she's an 'Oriental witch'! Our Gu family has really made a name for itself this time!"

Gu Jianguo glanced at the newspaper, his brows furrowed deeply, but he still reached out and picked it up.

"Hmph, those foreign devils love to brag." Gu Jianguo put down his newspaper. Although his tone was harsh, the anger in his eyes had clearly subsided considerably. "However... being able to make the Germans bow down technically does take some skill."

Just then, Ye Zhen and Gu Zheng walked in one after the other.

Ye Zhen had just washed her hands, and her fingertips still carried a faint smell of disinfectant. She walked to the table and greeted the elders with poise and grace, her expression neither humble nor arrogant, showing none of the awkwardness a new bride would feel in such a grand setting.

Gu Jianguo looked Ye Zhen up and down. She was thin and frail, and her hands looked like they had hardly any flesh on them. It was really hard to associate her with the ruthless character who dared to cut open her heart to perform surgery.

"Have a seat," said Old Master Gu. "We're family, don't be so formal."

The atmosphere at the dinner table gradually warmed up. Gu Linlin, like a dedicated Ye Zhen fan, vividly recounted how Ye Zhen had humiliated the British experts in Germany and how she had miraculously brought the patient back to life on the operating table. Gu Yue, listening from the side, was wide-eyed with amazement, clearly not expecting her cousin-in-law to be so formidable.

Gu Jianguo, however, remained silent, drinking his wine, occasionally frowning. He was a meticulous soldier who had witnessed countless deaths and injuries. Hearing these almost mythical stories, he instinctively felt a sense of revulsion—they were praising him too highly, which could easily lead to a fall; arrogance in young people was not a good thing.

"Alright."

Gu Jianguo suddenly put down his wine glass, the bottom of which hit the table with a dull thud.

The entire table fell silent instantly, even Gu Linlin was so frightened that she shut her mouth.

He raised his head, his eyes, which could frighten new recruits during military parades, staring directly at Ye Zhen. His tone was heavy: "Niece-in-law, you do have skills, but don't exaggerate. For those in the medical field, the most taboo word is 'arrogance.' Some illnesses are called by the King of Hell; even a god can't save you."

Gu Zheng's face darkened, and he was about to speak up to protect his wife when Ye Zhen gently pressed down on the back of his hand under the table.

Ye Zhen picked up her chopsticks, took a bite of stir-fried cabbage with vinegar, and said calmly, "Second Uncle is right."

Seeing that she didn't respond, Gu Jianguo became even more enthusiastic. He sighed, took out a neatly folded diagnosis report from his shirt pocket, slapped it on the turntable, and spun it in front of Ye Zhen.

"Since everyone says you're a god, then take a look at this."

Gu Jianguo pointed to the paper, his voice filled with a deep sense of helplessness. "This is the only daughter of my old comrade-in-arms, the political commissar of our military region. She's only nineteen, and she's good friends with Yueyue. She was just diagnosed the day before yesterday. The best experts in the south have all seen her, and they say it's a 'genius disease,' that her blood vessels are as fragile as paper and could burst at any moment. They've given her a death sentence and told her to go home and eat well. I came here on his behalf, hoping to find someone in several major hospitals in Beijing to see if it can be treated."

"Genius disease," scientifically known as Marfan syndrome, is synonymous with terminal illness in this day and age. Patients typically have an unusually tall and slender physique, but their aorta is like a balloon inflated to its limit; any strenuous exercise, or even a sneeze, could cause the blood vessel to rupture, leading to instant death.

"The old experts from the South said this surgery is impossible. The blood vessels are too fragile; every stitch will tear, and the probability of dying on the operating table is one hundred percent." Gu Jianguo looked at Ye Zhen, his tone carrying a hint of admonition and a touch of probing. "Niece-in-law, it's not shameful to admit that there are people you can't save."

He meant well. He didn't want Ye Zhen to be praised to death, and he didn't want the Gu family to be burdened by her arrogance.

Gu Linlin panicked: "Second Uncle, what are you doing..."

"Marfan syndrome, with aneurysmal dilatation of the ascending aorta."

Ye Zhen put down her chopsticks. She picked up the diagnosis report, glanced at the data, and spoke in a cold voice, like jade striking against a stone.

"It is indeed very difficult. The blood vessel walls are as thin as cicada wings; traditional suturing would almost certainly result in death."

Gu Jianguo nodded slightly, thinking that this girl knew how to behave, and was about to say a few words of comfort.

However, the next second, Ye Zhen raised her head, and a fire ignited in her clear black and white eyes, making it impossible for anyone to look directly at her.

"But here, there is no absolute death penalty."

Ye Zhen picked up a napkin and wiped her mouth, her movements as elegant as if she were attending a grand feast rather than facing a fatal medical problem.

"Second Uncle, please tell that political commissar: as long as the person is still alive, I can replace this tube. I can repair the person."

Gu Jianguo's chopsticks fell onto the table with a "clatter," and Gu Yue was so surprised that her mouth dropped open.