Upon arrival, the two of them took off their backpacks. One lay down, and the other crouched, motionless on the large stone.

Lele was even more mischievous, lying directly on top of the two of them.

When Zhang Xiaoxiao and An Kexin arrived, they also flopped onto the large stone after taking off their backpacks.

The last to arrive was Lin Jie. Using his trekking pole, he prodded the bodies of An Kemeng and Lin Miao and jokingly said, "Weren't you two bragging about covering 800 miles a day without getting tired?"

"Ugh... ugh..."

Lin Jie suddenly heard Zhang Xiaoxiao's retching sound. He turned his head to see her face ashen, bent over and dry heaving. He immediately understood that it was her body's respiratory system that couldn't handle the demands of endurance exercise.

He hadn't expected that Zhang Xiaoxiao, who was supposed to be in the best physical condition among the four of them, would be the first to falter.

"Xiaoxiao, what's happened to you?"

"Brother, take a look quickly!"

An Kexin, Lin Miao, and An Kemeng all looked worried.

Lin Jie took out a bottle of water and handed it to Zhang Xiaoxiao, saying, "Don't worry. It's just your body's natural reaction to oxygen deprivation; you'll feel better after a rest."

Zhang Xiaoxiao took the water, rinsed her mouth, and drank a few sips. Leaning against her backpack, she rested for a minute or two, and her face gradually regained some color.

At this point, An Kemeng, Lin Miao, and An Kexin all exhaled a sigh of relief, regaining a bit of energy.

"Brother Jie, actually, actually..."

An Kemeng mumbled and said, "Actually, in my mind, your stamina was supposed to be the weakest. I even thought about carrying your backpack for you, but unexpectedly, your stamina is the best among us."

Lin Jie snorted and said, "Me, have the weakest stamina? I exercise regularly every day."

"A major surgery can take seven or eight hours, which is considered short. Without ample physical strength and endurance, it's impossible to handle it."

"Little Mengmeng, to become an excellent surgeon, a healthy body is essential."

An Kemeng responded with an "Oh," waved her small fists, and said, "Brother Jie, I promise to exercise regularly from now on."

After resting for a while, An Kemeng and Lin Miao began pulling snacks from their backpacks, like beef jerky, dried meat slices, small bread, marinated chicken wings, dried tofu, marinated eggs, and small pickled vegetables, soon revealing a large pile.

An Kexin laughed and said, "It looks like you two have turned this hiking trip into a gourmet journey, bringing so many snacks with you."

"But it hasn't been long since we had breakfast, and it's not even lunchtime yet. Are you really that hungry already?"

An Kemeng tore open a marinated egg package and handed it to Lele, saying, "Sister, carrying these snacks on us is heavy, so the more we can finish, the better."

"Here, this is for you..."

An Kexin accepted a small packet of dried meat, shaking her head with amusement as she began to eat.

Lin Jie also shared some snacks, and the group sat slowly by the riverside, munching on the food.

After half an hour of rest, they set off once again.

For the subsequent journey, Lin Jie intentionally controlled their pace, walking for half an hour and resting for half an hour, leisurely taking in the scenery along the way, which was quite pleasant...

Around one in the afternoon, Lin Jie unexpectedly received a call from Chen Shi.

"Lin Jie, why was your phone always unreachable? You're not deep in the mountains, are you?"

Lin Jie looked at his phone signal, which was just a short vertical line, and said, "You've guessed right, we're hiking in the mountains, and the signal is really bad. If there's anything urgent, you better say it quickly; we might lose signal again soon."

"Be careful and stay safe!"

Chen Shi warned and continued, "This morning, the Binhai Branch of the Chinese Medical Association held a meeting and inducted you as a member. You have been elected as a director of the Binhai Branch and vice president of the Binhai Surgery Society."

Lin Jie was taken aback and said, "I don't recall applying to join any societies or associations?"

"Hello, hello..."

Unfortunately, the call was suddenly dropped.

Hearing the phone call, An Kexin laughed and said, "The Chinese Medical Association is a national-level industry association, and almost every medical professional participates."

"For a renowned doctor like you, it's only natural you wouldn't be excluded by the Chinese Medical Association. Giving you the title of a branch director, along with vice president of the Surgery Society, is quite decent."

Lin Jie inquired, "So what's the benefit of joining this association?"

"There are quite a few benefits!"

An Kexin brushed a few strands of hair from her forehead and said, "Although the Chinese Medical Association is an industry association, it has strong official backing. Having a good relationship with the association greatly helps when applying for various government research funds."

"Moreover, the Chinese Medical Association isn't short of funds."

"You know, the association receives substantial sponsorships from pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, and various enterprises annually. A large portion of these funds is used for research funding, doctor skill training, various evaluations and awards, and domestic and international academic exchanges."

An Kexin smiled and said, "In short, for a well-known person like you, joining this association has many benefits..."

According to the usual itinerary, starting from the National Village at noon, they could reach the destination by evening to see the spectacular and beautiful waterfall.

However, as dusk fell, Lin Jie and the others still hadn't seen the waterfall, nor did they hear any sound of it.

They continued along the small path by the stream bank, even encountering several groups of tourists kayaking downstream, proving they hadn't taken a wrong route.

The only explanation was that their pace... was too slow.

Lin Jie looked around and at the twilight sky, saying, "Let's find a spot to camp. It's getting late, and with these rugged paths, it's easy to twist an ankle."

The others wholeheartedly agreed with Lin Jie's suggestion.

They found a flat area full of small stones on the stream bank and began setting up tents.

Utterly exhausted, Lin Miao and An Kemeng had lost all enthusiasm from the start. Once they finished setting up the tents and preparing the sleeping bags, they immediately wanted to fall asleep.

At Lin Jie and An Kexin's insistence, the two stayed up just long enough to brush their teeth, soak their feet in hot water, spray on some mosquito repellent, and seal the tent shut before finally drifting into deep sleep.

As for Lin Jie and An Kexin, they didn't have the inclination for sentimental conversations by the creek under the night sky either, retreating into their tent for an early rest as well.

As for Lele, it was left outside the tent, acting as the group's guard...

In a foggy daze, not knowing how long he had slept, Lin Jie was suddenly awakened!

"Woof woof... woof woof..."

Lele's frantic barking came from outside the tent!

The sound was so urgent and loud, Lin Jie had never heard it bark like this before...

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