Chapter 173: Wishful Thinking

Chapter 173 -172: Wishful Thinking

At Qi Yue’s suggestion, the first gathering for the main members of the ultra-early cancer screening marker project was arranged at the Luwei Restaurant, a place Yu Zhiming had been to a few times.

Qi Yue was so enthusiastic in his recommendation of the Luwei Restaurant—a place that was indeed delicious, but whose prices were decidedly not.

It made Yu Zhiming secretly wonder, ‘Did Teacher Qi invest in this restaurant?’

Zhou Mo and Qiao Lei, benefiting from their proximity, also got the chance to attend the gathering.

The two of them had a very clear understanding of their role: to serve tea, pour water, and generally be of service.

After Academician Tan, Academician Zhang, Qi Yue, Yu Zhiming, and the others took their seats in the Luwei Restaurant’s luxurious private room, Zhou Mo and Qiao Lei bustled about, pouring tea, refilling water, and handing out hot towels.

Yu Zhiming wiped his face vigorously with a hot towel, trying to make himself look more alert.

“Dr. Yu, you look a little tired. A full day of physical examinations must have been exhausting.”

Yu Zhiming looked at Doctor Wang Yaxian, seated diagonally across from him, and replied politely, “Thank you for your concern, Doctor Wang. It’s mainly because I didn’t get a good night’s rest yesterday.”

“I’m young. A good night’s sleep will be all I need to recover.”

Wang Yaxian sighed. “It’s great to be young. Nowadays, if I have one busy and tiring day, it takes me three to five days to recover.”

After a pause, she added with a sincere expression, “Dr. Yu, regarding the matter with Zhang Rui, I need to formally apologize to you.”

Wang Yaxian stood up. “A lax teacher is a lazy teacher. Zhang Rui had ill intentions and made a mistake. It is my failure for not teaching her well!”

Seeing that Doctor Wang was about to bow in apology and unable to get to her in time, Yu Zhiming quickly shot a look at Zhou Mo, who wasn’t far from her.

Zhou Mo, understanding the unspoken command, took two large strides, reached Doctor Wang’s side, and supported her by the arm.

Yu Zhiming, who had also stood up, said hastily, “Doctor Wang, I can’t possibly accept such an apology.”

“Zhang Rui is an adult. Even her parents aren’t responsible for her actions, let alone you, who are just her teacher.”

Academician Zhang also spoke up. “Doctor Wang, your words are enough. You are a senior, after all.”

Wang Yaxian sat back down and sighed heavily. “To think that I, Wang Yaxian, would take on such a student. I’m truly ashamed.”

Qi Yue chuckled. “As doctors, no matter how much we wish otherwise, misdiagnoses and mistakes are sometimes unavoidable.”

“Accidentally taking on a bad student is also normal.”

Liu Yun also chimed in, “Doctor Wang, don’t take it so to heart. Society is fickle these days, and temptations are everywhere.”

“This situation is like a woman having a momentary lapse in judgment and ending up with a scumbag. It’s quite normal.”

Qi Yue teased, “Director Liu, how many scumbags did you run into when you were young?”

Liu Yun said with a domineering air, “Let any scumbag fall into my hands. If he dares to act the part, I’ll neuter him.”

“Director Qi, would you like to give it a try?”

Qi Yue quickly shook his head. “My wife and I have a wonderful relationship. I have no other thoughts whatsoever.”

Hearing their exchange, Yu Zhiming had to keep a straight face, struggling not to laugh. The two academicians, Tan and Zhang, however, had no such qualms and roared with laughter.

After the laughter died down, Academician Tan said slowly, “Alright, let’s tone it down a bit. We have a few junior colleagues present.”

Academician Zhang looked at Yu Zhiming and asked amiably, “Dr. Yu, do you have a girlfriend?”

Yu Zhiming shook his head. “I just arrived in Binhai. My main focus is on my studies and work. I’ll consider my personal life once things have settled down a bit.”

Academician Zhang offered some advice. “Dr. Yu, when it comes to relationships, allow me to speak from experience and pull rank as an old-timer…”

Yu Zhiming adopted a posture of one ready to receive instruction.

“With matters of the heart, don’t get bogged down in preconditions or positions. It all comes down to one word: action!”

“When you see someone who makes your heart flutter, pursue them immediately. Once you win them over, hurry up and get married and have kids.”

“Once you have a child, the relationship between husband and wife will basically be stable.”

“At that point, all you need to do is work hard and advance in your career, and occasionally treat your wife to a bit of romance. That will be more than enough.”

Yu Zhiming replied agreeably, “Academician Zhang, those are words of wisdom. I will keep them in mind.”

Gu Qingran giggled. “Dr. Yu, let me tell you, Academician Zhang’s children and grandchildren are all prime examples of early marriage.”

Academician Zhang’s eyes widened. “What’s wrong with getting married early? With a stable family, you can focus all your energy on your career.”

“So many young people these days are a mess when it comes to love. They date one person after another, their relationships go nowhere, and their work ends up in shambles too.”

At this, Liu Yun couldn’t help but retort, “Academician Zhang, your children and grandchildren married early because you had already laid a strong financial foundation for them.”

“When they got married, they had houses if they wanted houses, and cars if they wanted cars.”

“But many young people don’t have that advantage.”

“Girls these days are incredibly practical. They won’t marry someone without a car or a house…”

Ding Ye giggled and joked, “Even though Dr. Yu doesn’t have a house yet, if he’s willing, I’d marry him in a heartbeat.”

“The kind where we go register the marriage tomorrow.”

Yu Zhiming quickly made his stance clear. “Dr. Ding, don’t you go daydreaming. I’ll never let you have me…”

Amid a wave of laughter, the waiters began to serve the dishes.

The gathering then transitioned into a mode of eating and talking.

The atmosphere of the discussion remained cheerful and harmonious, but the topic shifted to more formal matters.

“Out of one hundred and ninety-four high-risk volunteers, we detected two cases of liver cancer and one case of stomach cancer.”

Academician Tan said gravely, “Although this is much higher than the one-in-ten-thousand and three-in-ten-thousand incidence rates for liver and stomach cancer, respectively, this detection rate is still a bit low!”

“We urgently need to establish a more precise definition for the so-called high-risk cancer population.”

“That way, once our ultra-early cancer screening markers are finalized, we can screen the target population more effectively.”

Academician Zhang nodded slowly. “This can be a sub-project for our research.”

He then looked at Wang Yaxian and chuckled. “Doctor Wang, you’re the lucky one. You managed to acquire a breast cancer patient with no effort at all.”

“Doctor Wang, your group now has the most research samples out of our three groups.”

Wang Yaxian smiled faintly. “It was just a stroke of luck. That kind of luck can’t strike twice.”

“For subsequent research samples, we’ll still need Dr. Yu to detect them from among a large number of potential patients.”

Wang Yaxian turned her gaze back to Yu Zhiming.

She said with a placating smile, “Dr. Yu, about the detection of potential breast cancer patients…”

Yu Zhiming understood what she meant. She wanted him to reverse his decision to postpone it indefinitely.

He mulled it over for a moment, then said, “My time and energy are limited, and I also need to focus on my own professional development.”

“Given my current workload and schedule, I feel that I’m already at full capacity.”

Yu Zhiming didn’t state it outright, but Wang Yaxian caught his unspoken meaning.

‘Lifting the postponement is possible.’

‘But the time required for these examinations will have to be taken from someone else’s share.’

Wang Yaxian glanced at the wary expressions on the faces of Academicians Tan and Zhang and knew this matter would require intervention from the hospital’s upper management.

‘She definitely wouldn’t be able to negotiate it herself.’

Wang Yaxian turned her gaze back to Yu Zhiming and changed the subject.

“Dr. Yu, I was wondering, has a Mr. Ge Yunlun from Capital City contacted you?”

“His son has been frail and sickly for many years. He’s seen more than a dozen specialists over the years, but none have been able to cure him.”

“My friend in pediatrics, Doctor Jia Wei, told me that she recommended you to him, Dr. Yu.”

At these words, Yu Zhiming, along with Zhou Mo and Qiao Lei, all turned their gazes toward Qi Yue.

‘Wasn’t Ge Yunlun’s son the patient they were going to Capital City to see this Sunday?’

Qi Yue’s expression stiffened, and his face darkened.

‘Goddamn it. So I was just flattering myself.’

‘If the first time they contacted him was because of his reputation… ‘

‘…then this second contact was clearly for his precious genius student, Yu Zhiming.’

This sent a wave of complex emotions through Qi Yue.

Seeing his teacher remain silent, Yu Zhiming didn’t answer Wang Yaxian’s question, but posed one of his own. “Doctor Wang, I don’t believe I’ve ever crossed paths with this Doctor Jia Wei, have I?”

“Why would she recommend me?”

Wang Yaxian chuckled. “Dr. Yu, to be honest, Doctor Jia Wei has treated that child before.”

“But it wasn’t very effective.”

“Doctor Jia Wei, however, knows a great deal about your abilities, Dr. Yu. She believes that if anyone can find the cause of that child’s illness, it has to be you.”

“Therefore, Doctor Jia solemnly recommended you to Mr. Ge Yunlun.”

After a pause, Wang Yaxian asked again, puzzled, “Dr. Yu, so Mr. Ge Yunlun hasn’t contacted you?”

Qi Yue, having composed himself, quickly answered first, “Doctor Wang, the father contacted me.”

“The morning after tomorrow, I will be taking Zhiming to Capital City to give his son a physical examination.”