"Little Ling'er is so smart," Chen Fan said, reaching out to pat her head.
Qin Shuran shot Chen Fan a surprised glance.
However, Chen Fan pretended not to see it. After playing with Little Ling'er for a while, he left the stall with Qin Shuran.
"You owe me another meal," Qin Shuran said to Chen Fan as they left the stall.
Chen Fan was taken aback and asked, "Why?"
"You took advantage of me just now, telling Little Ling'er I'm your girlfriend?" Qin Shuran questioned.
Chen Fan explained helplessly, "Didn't you see Little Ling'er wanted to introduce someone to her mother? If I hadn't said that, she would probably have called me 'Dad' from now on."
Qin Shuran chuckled, covering her mouth. "That would be nice, wouldn't it? No effort, and you'd have a cute daughter."
Chen Fan's forehead was instantly covered in dark lines.
Qin Shuran then asked, "You said you could cure Little Ling'er's leukemia. Is that true?"
Chen Fan nodded. "My ancestors had a secret remedy that specializes in treating this illness."
"Another secret remedy? What exactly did your ancestors do? How do you always have so many secret remedies for difficult and complicated diseases?" Qin Shuran asked, looking at Chen Fan strangely.
Chen Fan replied with a smile, "My ancestors were traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. We have many such remedies."
"Does treating menstrual pain also count as a secret remedy from your ancestors?"
Chen Fan rubbed his nose. "You could say that."
Qin Shuran was speechless. "The field of traditional Chinese medicine your ancestors were involved in is truly vast."
However, she then reminded him, "But I think you should be cautious. Leukemia is not an ordinary illness. If you can't cure it, or if it causes other complications, how will you handle the aftermath?"
Chen Fan knew Qin Shuran was reminding him out of good intentions. He nodded with a smile. "I know. Thank you for your concern, Dr. Qin."
Qin Shuran's face flushed. "Who's concerned about you? I'm concerned about you damaging our hospital's reputation."
With that, Qin Shuran walked quickly towards the roadside, intending to hail a taxi back to her residence.
Chen Fan was stunned. He had only said it casually, and he hadn't expected Qin Shuran to react so strongly. Nevertheless, he quickly followed her.
Back at their residence, Chen Fan looked at the two remaining packets of medicinal herbs in the room.
He decided to come back early after work the next afternoon to decoct the medicine. If he decocted it at this hour, he was sure their neighbors would come knocking down the door in the middle of the night. For safety's sake, it would be better to decoct the medicine during the day.
The next morning, Chen Fan and Qin Shuran arrived at the hospital together.
However, the hospital was different from yesterday. The lobby was decorated with lanterns and streamers, and there was a banner that read: "Welcome Dr. Liu Qianze, a returned medical scholar, to work at our hospital!"
"Dr. Qin, Liu Qianze's name sounds good. A returned scholar, why did he choose a psychiatric hospital? That's very unusual," Chen Fan said, stroking his chin as he looked at the name on the banner.
Qin Shuran, however, had a cold expression and ignored Chen Fan, turning and walking into her consultation room.
"What's wrong? Such a bad temper first thing in the morning. Didn't her period end yesterday? Why is her mood still so volatile?" Chen Fan muttered, watching Qin Shuran's retreating back.
"Dr. Chen, I was looking for you everywhere. Dr. Liu will be here soon. Hurry and come with me to welcome him," Lian Wenxin said, walking over from the side.
Chen Fan nodded. After all, he was the second doctor in their surgery department, a future colleague with whom they would fight side by side. He had to go and welcome him.
The two arrived at the entrance just as Luo Yongtang's car was entering the psychiatric hospital.
At this point, doctors and nurses from almost every department had gathered at the entrance, eager to see what this returned medical scholar looked like.
Luo Yongtang's car stopped at the entrance of the hospital lobby. The rear door opened, and Luo Yongtang stepped out with a young man.
"Wow! He's so handsome!"
When the nurses saw the young man who got out of the car with Luo Yongtang, a commotion ensued. They looked at the young man with infatuation.
The male doctors around them said disdainfully, "Tch, he's just a bit good-looking. What's so great about that?"
The male doctors' words quickly drew the displeasure of the female doctors and nurses. "If you can, why don't you be as handsome? You're just sour grapes. Besides, he's a returned medical scholar. Look at yourselves, can you compare?"
The words of the female doctors and nurses left the male doctors looking dejected, unable to retort.
"Everyone, please be quiet. I'd like to introduce your new colleague," Luo Yongtang said at this moment.
The crowd quickly quieted down.
Luo Yongtang looked at the handsome young man beside him and introduced, "This is our hospital's new medical scholar, Dr. Liu Qianze. His specialty is surgery, and before graduation, he had already been involved in several world-class medical research projects."
Wow!
Everyone present was shocked.
World-class medical research was not something anyone could participate in. Even in China, only top surgical experts had the opportunity to be involved in such research.
"Dr. Liu is truly a young talent! It is our hospital's fortune to be able to recruit talent like Dr. Liu!" Lian Wenxin resumed his flattery and stepped forward to shake Liu Qianze's hand.
However, to everyone's surprise, Liu Qianze didn't even spare Lian Wenxin a glance.
This made Lian Wenxin, who had offered a warm welcome only to be met with a cold shoulder, blush and awkwardly withdraw his hand.
After getting out of the car, Liu Qianze's gaze had been sweeping over the crowd, as if searching for someone. He didn't care who was trying to shake his hand.
Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Luo Yongtang explained to Liu Qianze, "Dr. Liu, this is Dr. Chen Fan from your surgery department. He is also a very good doctor."
Chen Fan stepped forward and extended his hand to Liu Qianze.
However, Liu Qianze still didn't look at Chen Fan. After scanning the crowd, Liu Qianze's brow furrowed slightly, and he asked Luo Yongtang, "Dean Luo, isn't Dr. Qin Shuran from your hospital here?"
"Qin Shuran?!"
For a moment, the scene fell silent, and everyone stared at Liu Qianze in disbelief.
"This Dr. Liu knows Dr. Qin Shuran?"
"Could it be that Liu Qianze came to our hospital because of Dr. Qin?"
"It's quite possible. With his abilities, he could have entered any top international hospital, but he chose ours. Could it really be for Dr. Qin?"
"Then won't our Dr. Chen be under pressure?"
"Yeah, this guy has the ability and he's handsome too. Dr. Chen is probably in danger!"
After a moment of silence, the crowd began to whisper again. Chen Fan, standing in front of Liu Qianze, also frowned slightly.