Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

"Uh..." Xu Damao's hand froze in mid-air, his smile also frozen on his face. This doctor is really too disrespectful! He awkwardly withdrew his hand, cursed inwardly, and began to slowly unbuckle his belt.

While undressing, he tried to cover up his embarrassment with words: "Hehe, doctor, do you think this... premarital checkup, checking this... isn't it a bit of an overreaction? I'm in great shape! I grew up eating cornbread and pickled vegetables, I'm super strong! I can watch several movies in one night without getting tired! Don't you think so?" He tried to bolster his courage by labeling himself as a "working class" and by boasting.

The doctor ignored him and coldly ordered, "Lie down with your legs apart." His tone was professional but indifferent.

Xu Damao lay down as instructed, feeling extremely awkward and humiliated. Especially the thought of Ah Qiang standing expressionlessly at the door, staring at him, made him even more uncomfortable.

When the doctor put on disposable gloves and approached with the cold instruments, Xu Damao couldn't help but yell, "Ouch! Doctor! Be gentle! Be gentle! These are the precious tools for our working class to carry on the family line!" He tried to use exaggerated reactions and vulgar language to cover up his inner panic and shame.

The doctor's brow furrowed even more, a barely perceptible hint of disgust flashing in his eyes, yet his movements remained precise and efficient. The cold touch and indescribable embarrassment silenced Xu Damao, fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead. The examination itself wasn't long, but for Xu Damao, every second felt like an eternity.

"Alright, get up. Go to the lab next door and get a semen sample." The doctor took off his gloves, his tone completely flat, as if he had just examined an inanimate object.

"Huh? We...we still need to get that thing?" Xu Damao's face flushed red to his ears. He quickly pulled up his pants and fastened his belt, feeling like he had just been paraded through the streets. "This...this is too...too much, isn't it?" He looked at A-Qiang at the door for help, hoping he could say something.

Ah Qiang crossed his arms and looked at him coldly, as if watching a farce that had nothing to do with him. He moved his lips and uttered two words: "Go quickly."

Xu Damao was completely deflated, like a punctured balloon. He was led by the nurse to a small "semen collection room" next door, which contained only a bed and a sink.

The door closed from the outside, leaving him alone in the room. Looking at the cold, impersonal operating instructions posted on the wall, Xu Damao felt utterly absurd and humiliated.

He scratched his hair in frustration and muttered a few curses under his breath: "Damn it... Rich people have so many problems... Getting married is like investigating eight generations of ancestors... When I become the son-in-law of the Lou family..." While mentally preparing himself, he reluctantly and clumsily began to operate.

The process was extremely difficult, and the psychological pressure was immense. In the end, I barely managed to get a sample by doing it with a sense of completing a task and a sense of anger. I carefully put it into the small bottle given to me by the nurse.

When he walked out of the "sperm collection room" with an embarrassed expression and unsteady steps, A-Qiang was still standing like a stone statue on the bench in the corridor not far from the door. When he saw him come out, he just raised his eyelids and gestured for him to hand it to the testing window.

The ensuing wait was even more agonizing for Xu Damao. He and Aqiang sat side by side on a cold bench in the corridor, with one seat between them.

Ah Qiang closed his eyes to rest, like an old monk in deep meditation. Xu Damao, on the other hand, was restless, as if he had thorns growing under his buttocks. He would glance at the ticking clock on the wall, then steal a glance at the expressionless Ah Qiang beside him, and then stand up and pace back and forth. He wanted to find something to talk about, but Ah Qiang's unapproachable aura made him unable to speak.

Time passed by, minute by minute. People came and went in the corridor, and the groans of various illnesses, the conversations of family members, and the hurried footsteps of nurses all made Xu Damao feel irritable.

His mind raced with wild thoughts: Could they find something wrong? No way! I'm perfectly healthy! Maybe I'm just a little feverish... or maybe I'm still a bit shaken by what happened with Wei Chen... It's definitely nothing! Mr. Lou is just being too cautious! Let's see what you have to say when the results come out!

Just as he was beginning to reassure himself, the doctor with the serious expression from before walked over from the direction of the laboratory with several reports in his hand, heading straight for them.

Xu Damao immediately sprang to his feet, forcing a smile: "Doctor! How did it go? The results are in, right? I told you, with my body like this, I'm in great shape! There's definitely no problem, isn't there?"

The doctor didn't look at him, his gaze fixed directly on A-Qiang. He handed him the report, his voice low and clear: "Comrade, the results are in. This is the detailed test report."

A-Qiang opened his eyes, took the report, and quickly and attentively flipped through it. His gaze swept rapidly over the dense data and conclusions, finally settling on the last few lines of concluding text circled in red pen.

His face, which was usually as hard as stone, furrowed its brows for an extremely rare and very slight time before returning to its icy expression.

He raised his head, his gaze, for the first time carrying an undisguised, almost tangible scrutiny and...disdain, falling on Xu Damao, who was craning his neck and looking expectantly beside him.

That gaze, icy and piercing, carried a disdainful indifference as if looking at trash, instantly freezing the smile on Xu Damao's face, sending a chill from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.

"Comrade Xu," A-Qiang's voice was colder than hospital disinfectant. He held one of the most crucial reports between two fingers, as if handing it to Xu Damao, "Take a look for yourself."

Xu Damao's heart sank, and his hand trembled slightly as he took the thin piece of paper. His eyes searched anxiously for the unfamiliar medical terms. "Sperm density," "motility"... he didn't quite understand. His gaze finally fixed on the last line, clearly marked in red pen:

Diagnosis: Severe kidney essence deficiency, extremely low sperm motility, and high rate of sperm abnormalities. The chances of natural conception are extremely low.

"Sperm...sperm motility...almost zero?" Xu Damao murmured, each word like an ice pick piercing his heart. He jerked his head up, his face ashen, his lips trembling, and looked at the doctor: "Doctor...what...what does this mean? Zero motility...what does it mean? Does it mean...does it mean I don't...don't have that...ability?"

The doctor adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses, looking at Xu Damao's distraught state. His eyes held no sympathy, only professional composure and a barely perceptible hint of contempt. He explained in a flat, emotionless tone:

"That means the number of sperm in your semen that are normally motile and capable of fertilizing an egg is extremely small, almost undetectable. In layman's terms," ​​the doctor paused, seemingly choosing his words carefully, but ultimately opted for the most straightforward expression, "your chances of having a healthy offspring are extremely low, close to zero."

"I am childless!" These two words exploded in Xu Damao's mind like two thunderbolts!

"No...impossible!!" Xu Damao jumped up suddenly like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. His voice was so sharp that it cracked and sounded particularly jarring in the quiet corridor, attracting surprised glances from those around him.

He waved the report in his hand, his eyes bloodshot, staring intently at the doctor, then suddenly turned to Ah Qiang, "It's fake! This report is fake! There must be a mistake! I'm perfectly healthy! How could I... how could I be incapacitated?! Uncle Qiang! Believe me! The hospital must have made a mistake! They must have mixed it up!"

He grasped at the last straw and stammered to Ah Qiang, "Uncle Qiang! I...I'm really fine! I...I even wet the bed when I was little! I'm very strong! I...I..." He was sweating profusely, but he couldn't find any strong evidence to prove that he was "good enough".

Looking at his hysterical, almost insane state, Ah Qiang's contempt and impatience were almost overflowing. He gave a cold snort, not loud, but like a bucket of ice water poured over Xu Damao's head.

"Comrade Xu," A-Qiang's tone was icy cold, as if he were reading a verdict, "You've seen the report, and the doctor has explained it clearly. Facts are facts." He reached out and swiftly snatched the crumpled report from Xu Damao's hand, carefully folded it along with several others, and put it into the inner pocket of his Zhongshan suit.

"You should go home first," Ah Qiang said, looking down at Xu Damao, whose face was ashen and who was trembling all over. His eyes were like those of someone looking at a pile of disgusting garbage. "Think carefully about how you're going to give the master an explanation."

After saying that, A-Qiang didn't look at Xu Damao again, as if looking at him would dirty his eyes. He turned around and walked straight towards the hospital gate with steady and indifferent steps, leaving behind a resolute and cold back view.

"Uncle Qiang! Uncle Qiang! Wait! Listen to me! This must be a misunderstanding! Uncle Qiang!!" Xu Damao suddenly realized what was happening and shouted as he chased after him.

He rushed in front of Ah Qiang, spreading his arms to stop him, tears streaming down his face, filled with despair and pleading. "Uncle Qiang! Please! Give me another chance! It must be a mistake! I... I'll pay! I'll spend the money! Let's check again! Please, Uncle Qiang!"

A-Qiang stopped in his tracks, looking at the distraught, undignified man before him. His eyes were devoid of any emotion, only utter indifference and disgust. He reached out his gloved hand and shoved Xu Damao aside without any politeness, the force so great that Xu Damao stumbled and almost fell.

"Get out of the way." Ah Qiang uttered only two cold words, then strode away without looking back. The black Volga sedan quickly started and sped away, disappearing into the traffic outside the hospital.