At this week's Wednesday gathering, Lu Kaicheng and Yao Siyuan couldn't make it due to scheduled surgeries.

Ever since Chen Lan turned down Lin Jie's job offer, perhaps feeling a bit awkward, they haven't attended the Wednesday meet-ups.

Surprisingly, Zou Manqing, who had never come before, joined An Kexin, Ling Mengjiao, and others this time.

For this gathering, Zhang Xiaoxiao suggested returning to simplicity, encouraging everyone to cook for themselves and enjoy the fruits of their labor.

An Kemeng contributed fried eggs, An Kexin made a vegetable salad, and Ling Mengjiao, Yang Leyi, Yu Momo, and others each cooked a simple vegetable dish.

Zou Manqing also enthusiastically made her so-called specialty dish, oyster sauce water spinach.

Lin Jie, Chen Qiuhua, and Qin Gang became the main chefs, each preparing two to three hearty dishes.

Watching them chat and laugh in the air-conditioned living room while eating fruit, while Lin Jie and the others worked busily in the kitchen, they couldn't help but marvel at how fast times have changed—the girls' status has really soared.

Chen Qiuhua snorted and said, "What right do you two have to complain? At least you both have beautiful companions, while I'm still single."

"According to statistics, due to the imbalance of more men than women, there are at least 30 to 50 million bachelors in the country."

"Considering that some rich, powerful, and talented guys might have multiple partners, the actual number of bachelors might exceed 50 to 60 million."

"So, you two should be content."

Lin Jie laughed a few times and jokingly said, "Chen Qiuhua, with your qualifications, if you're still single, it's your own doing. I know plenty of pretty young nurses at Tongren Hospital are quite attentive to you."

As he said this, he looked Chen Qiuhua up and down and pretended to be deep in thought, saying, "Honestly, is there something unique about your preferences? Or do you have some unspeakable secret?"

"I'm telling you, I'm a general practitioner, so you shouldn't be embarrassed!"

Chen Qiuhua raised the knife he was using to chop vegetables and threatened, "Lin Jie, if you keep talking nonsense, believe it or not, I'll give you a cut. No matter how good you are at surgery, I don't believe you could perform surgery on yourself in that situation."

Lin Jie seriously said, "In life-threatening or unavoidable special circumstances, it's possible to perform surgery on oneself."

"Hey, Chen Qiuhua, seriously."

He said solemnly, "People used to say you were torn between Han Xue and Hu Xinyi."

"Now it seems Hu Xinyi's character has serious issues, she's not fit to be a virtuous wife, and she hasn't returned from abroad."

"So you and Han Xue..."

Chen Qiuhua's face darkened, he waved weakly and said, "Let's not talk about this, there are things you don't understand."

He sighed deeply and said, "In short, it's impossible between Han Xue and me."

This seemed to hint at a major secret, but seeing Chen Qiuhua's reaction, Lin Jie decided not to pursue the topic.

"Brother, brother!"

Lin Miao ran into the kitchen, shouting, "Leyi said she's been feeling tired the past few days and hasn't had much appetite. She took her temperature just now and found she has a slight fever. Can you take a look at her?"

"Why didn't Leyi tell me?"

Qin Gang was a bit anxious too. He tossed his cooking to Chen Qiuhua and joined Lin Jie in the living room.

When Yang Leyi saw Lin Jie and Qin Gang approaching, she stood up, embarrassed, and said, "It might be because these past few days I've been moving between air-conditioned rooms and outside; the temperature difference gave me a cold."

"I'll just buy some medicine. It's all Miaomiao making a fuss!"

Lin Jie placed the back of his hand on her forehead and said, "A low fever is usually caused by the body's immune response. Generally, a low fever that subsides within two to three days is harmless and can even be beneficial."

"But a low fever that lasts more than five or six days requires attention."

Feeling the temperature from his hand, Lin Jie nodded, "Your body temperature is indeed a bit high..."

He observed Yang Leyi's face carefully, noticing her cheeks were slightly flushed, her eyelids showed signs of slight puffiness, and upon looking down...

Lin Jie's gaze moved back up a bit,

He suddenly noticed that Leyi's chest seemed a little larger than he remembered.

Considering it's mid-summer, she likely wasn't wearing padded undergarments.

Lin Jie pointed a finger and asked, "Do you feel any discomfort here?"

With that question, Leyi's face flushed red, and she replied softly, "Not really discomfort, just a bit sore."

"That's because sometimes... sometimes..."

She glanced at Qin Gang and lowered her head, saying, "He's a bit too strong..."

With that, Zhang Xiaoxiao, Ling Mengjiao, and others in the living room had odd expressions when they looked at Qin Gang.

Feeling embarrassed, Qin Gang didn't know where to put his hands and feet, and he murmured, "Lin Jie, could it be my strength caused the injury?"

Lin Jie chuckled lightly and said, "Let me explain, this area is filled with fat and connective tissue. As long as you're not too forceful, it won't cause damage."

"Ah Jie..."

An Kexin glared at Lin Jie, saying, "What are you babbling about? You'll mislead the kids. Quickly tell us why Leyi has a low fever."

Seeing An Kemeng, Lin Miao, and others stifling their laughter, Lin Jie cleared his throat and said seriously, "Fatigue, low fever, loss of appetite, chest soreness—there's another possible cause: pregnancy!"

"Qin Gang, go get a pregnancy test or something..."

Before Lin Jie finished his sentence, Qin Gang dashed out like a wild horse.

More than half an hour later, when Qin Gang returned, he was soaked with sweat, as if he had been washed with water.

He handed a small bag to Yang Leyi, smiling and saying, "I bought six different test kits, go try them all."

A few minutes later, all six test kits showed the same result—Yang Leyi was pregnant.

Everyone naturally offered their congratulations...

Over an hour later, the dinner officially began.

With Yang Leyi and Qin Gang beaming with happiness, they became the subject of jokes around the table.

"Brother Jie, when are you and sister having a baby?"

An Kemeng's sudden question caught Lin Jie off guard, and he deflected, "I haven't married your sister yet; we'd have to wait until after the wedding."

Though Lin Jie somewhat envied Qin Gang and Yang Leyi, the thought of An Kexin being in that situation frightened him, creating an inexplicable sense of dread.

Having grown up without parents, Lin Jie worried about his capability of being a good father and raising a child properly.

Not satisfied with Lin Jie's answer, An Kemeng retorted, "Leyi and Qin Gang aren't married either, and now they're having a baby."

An Kexin stuffed a piece of ham into An Kemeng's mouth, saying, "Is this your concern? Besides, I'm really busy; I've got so many things waiting to be done!"

An Kemeng swallowed the ham and huffed, "Those are just excuses, it's just fear of having a baby!"

Feeling guilty, Lin Jie and An Kexin exchanged a glance, then buried themselves in their food...

Just then, there was a sudden, urgent knock on the door.

Zhang Xiaoxiao got up to open the door.

Moments later, she returned and approached Lin Jie, whispering, "It's Kong Mingqing and a colleague of his. They said they need to verify something with you."

Lin Jie went to the living room and saw Kong Mingqing first formally show his work ID before saying, "Lin Jie, I've come here to verify something about You Huangjie."

He further explained, "We have strong suspicions that You Huangjie was the one who attacked the motorcycle with steel rods that night."

Lin Jie's eyes widened in disbelief, "How can this be?"

Kong Mingqing sighed and said, "I hope it's not true either."

"After I released that notice at noon, the community police officer from You Huangjie's neighborhood was eager to help by checking out his home to find clues to his whereabouts."

"Previously, the community officer had learned that You Huangjie left only with personal belongings, leaving everything else for the buyer."

"With the buyer's consent, the community officer entered You Huangjie's home and unexpectedly found dozens of steel rods cut to about a foot long."

Kong Mingqing further explained, "Out of professional sensitivity, the community officer investigated with the surrounding neighbors and unexpectedly found that You Huangjie's wife seemed to have died from a heart attack triggered by motorcycle noise at night."

"Considering everything, we believe there is a strong likelihood that You Huangjie committed the crime."

"Currently, he is our primary suspect..."

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