On Wednesday morning, as Yan Feifan got out of bed and left his bedroom, he heard his uncle groaning and moaning from the living room sofa.
Out of respect for his elders, the only spare guest room in the house was supposed to have been given to his uncle, which would have left Yu Chuanbai to sleep on the sofa.
But unfortunately, his uncle was having a bad case of diarrhea.
"Feifan, I’ve been running to the bathroom all night. I’m completely wiped out, and more importantly, the pain is killing me."
"Jeez, who knew taking a dump could be so terrifying?"
"Feifan, you got any remedies?"
Suppressing a laugh, Yan Feifan said with a hint of glee, "Uncle, who told you to act so tough last night? You can’t handle spicy food, yet you ate so many chili peppers."
"And now you’re paying the price!"
Yan Feifan then explained, "All that undigested capsaicin is irritating the skin and mucous membranes in your anal region, so of course it’s going to hurt."
"There’s no quick fix..."
Yan Feifan heated a cup of milk for his uncle in the microwave and continued, "The simplest things you can do are to wash the area and take some medicine that helps cool your system down."
Yan Feifan couldn’t help but smile. "Uncle, you’ve been at it all night. You should be pretty much cleared out by now."
Pushing himself up to lean against the back of the sofa, Shu Lei shot Yan Feifan a few harsh glares with his dark-circled eyes. He then downed the lukewarm milk in one gulp before getting up and rushing back to the bathroom...
At 7:10 in the morning, the Yan siblings, the Yu siblings, and a much more energetic Shu Lei were all having breakfast together.
"Ruoruo, remember to leave me the car keys when you go to work."
Shu Lei said, full of fighting spirit, "I’m going to Xinfeng Restaurant this morning. I have to check on the aftermath of last night’s incident."
"And while I’m at it, I’ll ask Mrs. Xia out for some tea and a chat."
"No problem," Yan Ziruo said with a beaming smile.
"Oh, Uncle, I thought of a great excuse for you to ask Mrs. Xia out to eat at that private restaurant we invested in."
"You can act like a concerned investor and ask for her help. Ask her to critique our investment from a professional’s point of view."
"I don’t think Mrs. Xia would refuse."
Shu Lei’s eyes lit up. "My dear niece, that’s a brilliant idea! I was dreading the thought of having to force myself to eat that spicy Hunan food again."
Yan Feifan reminded him, "Uncle, if you’re really set on pursuing Mrs. Xia, you’ll have to get over this food hurdle."
"Luckily, building a tolerance for spice is something you can work on gradually."
Yan Feifan then turned to Yu Chuanbai and asked, "What are your plans for today?"
Yu Chuanbai swallowed the food in his mouth and answered with a question of his own. "I heard Su Ye say this morning that you’re planning to host a national seminar with a live demonstration on intraspinal tumors?"
Yan Feifan said with a hint of resignation, "It’s not me who wants to host it, it’s my teacher, Mr. Lo."
"He’s so enthusiastic that he just went ahead and decided on it himself."
He then let slip, "Chuan Bai, Mr. Lo is also thinking of hitting up your Baining Medical Technology for a sponsorship."
Yu Chuanbai chuckled lightly. "A seminar like this is a great opportunity to make a name for yourself."
"When you’ve achieved something great, you need to let the world know."
"As for the sponsorship..."
Yu Chuanbai took a sip of milk and continued, "Your puncture and injection technique is a key feature of the surgical robot."
"An opportunity this good to network with neurosurgery experts from all over the country? Mrs. Lian won’t let it pass."
"I’ll contact Mrs. Lian about it later."
"It’s very likely I’ll be the one representing Baining Medical Technology to make the initial contact with your Mr. Lo about the seminar."
Yu Chuanbai sighed softly. "I suppose this can be another small contribution I make to the family."
"So you’ve made up your mind?" Yan Feifan asked.
Yu Chuanbai grunted in affirmation. "If I keep toiling away in the family business, there’s no chance I’ll get ahead anytime soon."
"With such a great opportunity to prove myself right in front of me, I’d be an absolute fool not to seize it."
"And what about her family?" Yan Feifan pressed, his curiosity piqued.
Yu Chuanbai said slowly, "The circumstances are what they are. They’re well aware of the current situation, so they shouldn’t be holding on to any illusions."
"I’ll go back and have a proper talk with them. They’ll understand."
After a pause, he changed the subject. "Su Ye also mentioned you’re doing an experimental surgery today? A penis reconstruction?"
Yan Feifan nodded. "That’s right. We’re using a phalanx from a toe as a ’penile bone’ for support. It’s to solve the problem of previous artificial penises being too soft to get erect, serving only a cosmetic purpose."
Yu Chuanbai chuckled. "If your experiment is a success, it’ll be a godsend for a lot of people—those who’ve had penile injuries from accidents, and also for female-to-male transgender patients."
"The problem is, pulling it off won’t be easy."
Yan Feifan mused for a moment, then looked at Yu Suye. "Su Ye, I’ve been thinking. I believe it would be better to use ligaments to create a flexible connection between the phalanx and the pubic bone."
"If we use a rigid, fixed connection, it would be very uncomfortable for the patient when they’re lying on their stomach to sleep or rest."
"Plus, it would create a noticeable bulge, which could look awkward in the summer when wearing thinner clothing..."