I Am Diagnosed as a Medical Titan

Chapter 193: Chapter 142: Exceptional Early Graduation

Cheng Xiyao had been very busy these past few days as well.

After pulling an all-nighter to finish the sequencing, she had volunteered to help the school clinic with screening and temperature checks.

She was utterly exhausted from running up and down the dormitory area every day.

In her dorm room, she overheard her roommates chatting.

”Hey, have you guys seen the news? CCTV specifically praised Yangcheng’s CDC for its rapid response. They’re calling it ’Yangcheng Speed’!”

”I saw! I heard some team managed to sequence the entire genome of that mutant virus overnight. Everyone online is guessing which academician was behind it. It’s incredible.”

Hearing all the praise, Cheng Xiyao couldn’t help but smile.

A roommate even asked her, ”Xiyao, did you see the news?”

Cheng Xiyao said calmly, ”I did. I think it’s just alright. I’m guessing only the leader of that team is any good. The rest are probably just assistants.”

With that, she pushed the door open and left.

Once outside, she stomped her feet, mimicking the sound of footsteps fading into the distance.

Then, she pressed her ear to the door to listen.

As expected, the trash talk began inside the room.

”Who is she trying to fool? Such a poser!”

”Seriously. ’I’m guessing only the leader is any good’? That’s hilarious. Anyone from that team could probably run circles around her.”

”Ugh, let’s not talk about her. Campus belle? More like campus joke.”

Hearing their mockery, Cheng Xiyao just smiled again.

’Right.’

’The boss collapsed.’

’I heard he’s recovering in the VIP ward at Affiliated Hospital No. 1.’

’I have to go see him today, no matter what.’

...

Affiliated Hospital No. 1, VIP ward area.

Cheng Xiyao carried a fruit basket, knocked on the door, and entered after getting permission.

”Boss, I...”

Before she could finish, she froze in place.

The scene before her was just too impactful.

Jiang He was resting his head on a girl’s lap, and she was breathtakingly beautiful. They wore matching couple’s rings—a perfect fit.

Cheng Xiyao stood there, stunned.

Then, she quickly realized:

’Sister-in-law is ten times more beautiful in person than in photos!’

”Hello, Sister-in-law! Hello, Sister-in-law!”

Being called ”Sister-in-law” twice made Shen Yu’s face flush.

She gently lifted Jiang He’s head, her face red as she got off the bed to put on her shoes.

”I’m not your sister-in-law, we’re just... very close,” Shen Yu said. ”Anyway, please, have a seat. I’ll go wash an apple for you.”

Cheng Xiyao’s gaze naturally fell to Shen Yu’s feet.

The girl’s ankles were slender and fair, the arch of her foot was elegant, and her toes were perfectly shaped and radiant, as if from a painting.

Cheng Xiyao was mesmerized and blurted out, ”Sister-in-law, your feet are so beautiful!”

Shen Yu: ”!!’

Jiang He, however, deeply agreed.

’Cheng Xiyao has good taste. A connoisseur, I see.’

In his past life, he’d often joked with his wife.

He used to tell her that her feet were true ”Yu-feet”—a play on the poetic term ”jade feet” and her name.

”Ahem.” Jiang He sat up and made the introductions. ”This is Cheng Xiyao, a member of our project team. And this is Shen Yu, Teacher Shen.”

Shen Yu had put on her shoes by now and composed herself.

She gave Cheng Xiyao a smile. ”Hello, I’m Shen Yu. Jiang He often mentions you to me. He says you’ve been a huge help to him in the lab.”

Jiang He: ”?”

He had never said that.

So he silently refuted it in his head: ’I didn’t, I haven’t.’

Looking at Shen Yu’s smile, Cheng Xiyao was instantly filled with a sense of immense fondness.

She introduced herself, ”Sister-in-law, just call me Xiaocheng! Um, for Shen Yu, which ’yu’ character is it?”

”It’s the character with the metal radical on the left and the character for ’jade’ on the right,” Shen Yu replied.

”Yu? What a coincidence! One of my favorite medical experts, his ID on the Dingxiang Garden forum is [Zhiyu]! Your names share the same character~”

”Is that so?” Shen Yu was a little curious.

Jiang He cut in, ”Cheng Xiyao, have you finished reading those core papers on miRNA extraction and purification from trace serum that I gave you?”

The moment she heard ”papers,” Cheng Xiyao immediately turned serious. ”Boss, I’m already halfway through them!”

Then, she added mysteriously, ”Boss, I came today mainly to tell you a piece of earth-shattering gossip! You’re cooped up in the hospital all day, so you definitely don’t know!”

Jiang He: ”What gossip?”

”The High-Tech Zone! It was suddenly surrounded by construction vehicles yesterday! They even put up a cordon!”

”I heard the professors at school whispering about it. They say a BSL-3 biosafety lab is being built there! Boss, that’s BSL-3! Everyone is saying it must be a major national project coming to Yangcheng. What kind of project is it? I heard the person in charge is some super mysterious big shot, and the entire provincial department is paving the way for him!”

Jiang He: ”...”

’Here we go again.’

’How does this Cheng Xiyao person always manage to pinpoint the exact project I’m working on and then praise it right to my face?’

’This has happened three or four times now. It’s almost making me paranoid.’

’Could she be doing it on purpose? Is she trying to mess with me?’

’But on second thought, that would be too much. Cheng Xiyao probably isn’t that clever...’

In any case, Cheng Xiyao would be working in that lab once it was built.

So, there was no hiding it.

So Jiang He said, ”Oh, that lab. It’s being built for us to use.”

Cheng Xiyao: ”?”

Time seemed to stand still.

Seeing her reaction, Jiang He was certain. This girl definitely hadn’t planned this. She just had incredibly bad luck...

”Uh.” Cheng Xiyao seemed to have misheard and sought confirmation. ”For... for us to use? Boss... so, that mysterious big shot... is you?...”

Jiang He clarified, ”To be precise, it’s designated as a national-level joint research laboratory. I’ll be leading the research, and Director Yang’s name will be on it as a figurehead. Once it’s built, both our miRNA project and the SAP prediction project will be moved there.”

Cheng Xiyao: ”...”

A full thirty seconds passed.

She felt like she could just die.

’This is so embarrassing! Ugh! How did this happen to me again?!’

’Somebody save me, waahhhh. I’m never praising someone else in front of Jiang He ever again, waahhhh.’

Shen Yu cut the peeled apple into small pieces, stuck a toothpick in one, and handed it to Cheng Xiyao.

”Have some fruit.”

Cheng Xiyao woodenly took the apple slice. ”Th-thank you, Sister-in-law.”

Shen Yu immediately came to her rescue, speaking in a gentle voice, ”Actually, I heard from Chen Hao that there are only two girls on your project team. It must be very tough, doing experiments and pulling all-nighters to process data, right?”

Cheng Xiyao snapped back to her senses and quickly waved her hands. ”Not at all, not at all! The boss has taught me so much. You can learn real skills following him.”

”I know Jiang He. The moment he steps into a lab or an operating room, he’s a total workaholic. He’s not the type who can easily pay attention to others’ feelings. While he’s here in Yangcheng, it’s thanks to friends and team members like you looking out for each other. If Dr. Jiang is ever a bit thoughtless, I hope you’ll bear with him.”

Her words were exceptionally gracious.

Eating the apple, Cheng Xiyao felt a warmth spread through her heart.

She was completely won over by this ”sister-in-law.”

Beautiful, soft-spoken, and with incredibly high emotional intelligence.

She was a perfect match for the boss.

”Sister-in-law, don’t you worry! With me in the lab, I’ll definitely help you keep a close eye on the boss. Aside from experiment data, I won’t let any other girl get within a foot of him!”

Jiang He said helplessly, ”Alright, you’re getting carried away. Just eat your apple.”

They chatted for a little while longer.

Cheng Xiyao tactfully checked her watch, then stood up and said, ”Boss, Sister-in-law, I’ll be heading back to school now. By the way, Sister-in-law, you came to visit the boss, right? When are you heading back?”

At the mention of this, the atmosphere in the room grew a little heavy.

Shen Yu said softly, ”I’m leaving tomorrow morning.”

”Oh, I see. Come visit more often, Sister-in-law! I’ll take you out for some good food next time!”

”Okay, thank you, Xiyao~”

After Cheng Xiyao left.

A wave of reluctance washed over Jiang He.

He grabbed Shen Yu’s wrist and asked, ”Hey, um, how about you leave a few days later? I haven’t even taken you out anywhere.”

Shen Yu said gently, ”I can’t. I’ve already taken a long leave of absence. If I don’t go back soon, I’ll lose all my participation points for class.”

Seeing Jiang He’s crestfallen look, Shen Yu’s heart softened. She grasped his hand in return and comforted him softly:

”Don’t be sad. When I go back this time, besides attending class, I’m going to finalize my exchange student application. If everything goes smoothly, I’ll be able to come to Yangcheng as an exchange student after the New Year.”

Jiang He: ”Really?”

”Really. And when that time comes, hmph, I’m going to supervise your sleep schedule! You’ll have to get proper sleep every day!”

”How will you supervise? By moving in together?”

”Hey, hey, hey! Don’t! You! Talk! Non! Sense!!!!”

They bickered playfully, all lovey-dovey.

Then, someone else arrived.

This time, it was Yang Xu.

His mentor walked in holding a sealed file folder.

With a gratified expression, he first took a careful look at Jiang He’s complexion and asked, ”How are you feeling today?”

Jiang He sat up straight. ”Much better, Teacher.”

Shen Yu also quickly stood up and took half a step aside, looking a little reserved.

Only then did Yang Xu notice the girl by the bedside.

He stopped, a questioning look in his eyes.

Jiang He took the opportunity to introduce them. ”Teacher, this is Shen Yu. Shen Yu, this is Director Yang Xu from the Hepatobiliary Surgery Department of Affiliated Hospital No. 1, my mentor.”

Shen Yu bowed slightly and greeted him politely, ”Hello, Director Yang.”

Yang Xu sized up Shen Yu and nodded. ”Hello. I always wondered why this kid wears a ring. Now I finally get to meet you.”

Shen Yu stammered, but ultimately decided not to explain.

Yang Xu said with a smile, ”You have good taste. Jiang He is the most outstanding student I have ever taught, bar none. Yangcheng owes him a great deal this time. His future achievements will definitely place him among the absolute top tier in the country. Moreover, in all this time, I’ve never heard any rumors about him. He’s a trustworthy person.”

Hearing such high praise from a giant in the field, Shen Yu felt both proud and a little shy.

Yang Xu smiled faintly and didn’t say any more pleasantries.

He walked to the bedside and handed the file folder to Jiang He.

”See for yourself. This is the official evaluation report issued personally by Minister Lin. It was delivered by special vehicle to the hospital director’s office just half an hour ago.”

Jiang He opened the folder and pulled out the papers inside.

[In light of the performance of Jiang He, an ’06 undergraduate student of clinical medicine at Southern Medical University, in coordinating the red-tag emergency zone during the major Ring City Expressway accident, as well as his leadership in the R&D work to combat the novel respiratory virus in a national-level BSL-3 laboratory... the clinical intensity and professional depth he has demonstrated far exceed the combined total of a typical medical student’s five years of internships...]

After reading it, Jiang He quickly understood the minister’s intentions.

Yang Xu said, ”Minister Lin has already sent a copy of this report to the university president. The school held an emergency joint meeting of the Party Committee and the Academic Affairs Office last night, and they made a final decision.”

”Southern Medical University will form a special expert defense committee, consisting of five professors, just for you.”

”Simply put, the university is making an exception to let you graduate early.”

”Start preparing, Dr. Jiang.”