Chapter 53: I will be considerate and caring when I fall in love
When he wakes up, he can see Meng Weishen's face, which is only a few centimeters away from him, and he can even distinguish each eyelash clearly - Jiang Ranxu can't think of a better wish than this.
It was still early, the light young, a hazy white behind the curtains, softening and blurring the other person's facial features. The bedroom lingered with the sweet, overripe scent of fruit; he remembered the slippery liquid he'd used last night was peach-flavored.
The scene before him gave Jiang Ranxu a sense of confusion and unreality. Was he dreaming? Wishes coming true wasn't something he usually experienced; after all, he had never been one for luck.
Meng Weishen suddenly moved his arms, as if trying to wake up. Jiang Ranxu's heart tightened, and he quickly closed his eyelids and pretended to be asleep.
According to his assumption, Meng Weishen should be rubbing against his arms now. But Meng Weishen jumped up from the bed, making a rustling sound against the wooden floor, probably looking for slippers.
Jiang Ranxu couldn't pretend anymore. He reached out and tightened his grip around the man's waist. "Where are you going?"
Meng Weishen obviously thought that he had woken him up because of the noise he made. He said shamefacedly, "I forgot to give Qin Shi Huang some food last night. I have to go down and check it out."
Every time I wake up, I think about that stinky dog! Jiang Ranxu was sure this wasn't a dream, and immediately her stepmother instincts broke out: "It's already overnourished. Will it starve to death if it's hungry for a few minutes?"
"Okay, but I'm afraid it will eat the grass."
"Is it that stupid? Chewing the grass is just grinding its teeth, it won't swallow it. Besides, don't you have anything else to do besides serving the dog?"
"Other things..." Meng Weishen tried hard to understand his intentions.
Jiang Ranxu took advantage of the situation and wrapped his arms around the man's back, following the direction of his spine and kissing from the back of his neck. Meng Weishen suddenly realized what was going on and obediently slid into the air-conditioned quilt to play the lip-biting game with him.
After a night, Meng Weishen's body had transformed from hard stone into pliable lake water, and re-entering it would be much smoother. Jiang Ranxu slowly sailed towards the depths of the lake, leaving ripples in his wake.
Afterwards, the male stepmother still refused to let Renren walk the dog. Even though Meng Weishen had half-sat up, Jiang Ranxu still firmly occupied the position between his legs, making it impossible for Meng Weishen to get out of bed and put on his shoes.
Meng Weishen had already entered the post-cigarette stage, stroking his curled-up back like a big cat, but his mind was thinking about something else: "I think I hear Qin Shi Huang scolding me. Can we hear the dog barking on the first floor?"
Jiang Ranxu snorted coldly, "Don't be so sentimental. It might have dug a hole in the ground to find Springer next door."
Meng Weishen was rarely angry. "No, I don't like that Springer Spaniel. A man with long hair and a permed head is unreliable. Qin Shi Huang absolutely cannot be with him."
"Now you understand how your mother feels when she sees you getting married." Jiang Ranxu refused to move. "It's useless even if you don't allow it. The puppy has his own ideas."
Perhaps every child who had an unhappy childhood is most afraid of seeing their parents' shadows reappear in them. Meng Weishen finally became depressed.
Meng Weishen used his index finger to outline the shape of his butterfly bone, and wanted to answer him again: "I still haven't decided what to give you."
Jiang Ranxu didn't care: "If you can't think of it, forget it. Just treat me to a meal."
"Inviting everyone to dinner is so shabby! I'm embarrassed to say it in front of the camera."
"I told everyone you gave me a big villa. It's over a thousand square meters and very luxurious. But it's a bit far away in Hebei. It takes more than five hours to drive there, so it's not convenient to go and see it."
But Meng Weishen disagreed: "Eating is still not enough. At least the price of the gift should be appropriate. How much did you spend on the gift?"
"I don't want to tell you. And you shouldn't ask." Meng Weishen had forgotten the most important point of knowledge again, and Jiang Ranxu felt the need to help him review his lessons. "I've told you, relationships shouldn't be about giving and receiving, especially not measuring it with money. If you really have to calculate, the condom price can be split in half, and the utilities, car fees, and room and board fees should all be paid based on the duration of use. Do you have the math clear?"
Meng Weishen finally gave up on arguing with him, but he also didn't accept his suggestion of treating him to a meal. The next interview was postponed indefinitely.
In early July, Xiao Niu Ya's custom-made expander arrived. Xiao Niu Ya had just finished his final exams and was about to face the dreary days of orthodontics. He also had no chance to enjoy delicious ice cream during summer vacation. No wonder he looked so worried when his mother dragged him to the clinic.
Perhaps because his recent life had been so smooth, fate had struck him. The bucktoothed child's mother, having somehow bought into rumors that arch expansion and bone screw placement would yield quicker results, demanded a change to the already established orthodontic plan. She required the use of an MSE expander and the insertion of four bone screws in the child's upper jaw.
This was the type of parent pediatricians hated the most. Furthermore, Meng Weishen had endured a lot of workplace bullying at the hands of his bucktoothed father, and Jiang Ranxu resented the couple and had little affection for them. If it weren't for Director Tan's tyranny, he'd have wanted to ask for a refund and leave. He'd have just given up.
Jiang Ranxu remained patient for the time being. "Lin Jiaqi is still young, and his bones are very plastic. Dental expansion can drive the expansion of the alveolar bone. If nothing goes wrong, the ideal treatment effect can be achieved without bone screws. Moreover, children's bones are soft, and bone screws are not secure. Loosening and falling off mid-process will be even more troublesome."
Unfortunately, the mother of the little bucktoothed child doesn't use science, but only uses experience: "But I asked other parents in the class, and they said that orthodontics requires nails, and there will be no effect without nails."
"That depends on how you interpret 'effect'. They're just ordinary children, there's no need to suffer for extreme aesthetics."
"An ordinary child?" The woman raised her voice, not knowing why this word irritated the other person.
Jiang Ranxu had no choice but to explain: "It means children who don't want to pursue a career in acting. It doesn't mean that they are not good enough."
But the other party had already pulled out the killer card: "You don't have the final say, I want to see your director!"
Jiang Ranxu was so annoyed that he wanted to sneer, and took the initiative to point the other party in the direction: "Director Tan's office is at the end of the corridor on the second floor."
Half an hour later, Director Tan arrived as expected. Hearing the clanging footsteps of the fat old man in the corridor, Jiang Ranxu mentally prepared himself to play along, demonstrating the stern teacher-produced-brilliant-apprentice trope.
Without waiting for Director Tan to question him, Jiang Ranxu took the initiative to repeat his judgment on the plan.
Director Tan feigned seriousness and brought up some trivial points, reprimanding, "My dear disciple, I've warned you long ago that you need to be mindful of your expression. When communicating with non-professionals, the first thing to do is to make it easy to understand and avoid using too many technical terms. Look at you, haven't you explained the plan clearly enough, leading to misunderstandings?"
"Yes, Director Tan. I will practice my eloquence more in the future." Jiang Ranxu said obediently, "Then in a case like Lin Jiaqi's, does he really need bone screws? Please give the parents an authoritative answer."
"Well, parents, I've looked at the child's dental X-rays, and there's really no need for bone screws. The child is so young, it would be too much pain for him." Director Tan always managed to perfectly capture the demeanor of a seasoned doctor. "Please rest assured, parents. The students I teach are absolutely skilled and have high medical ethics. Our treatment plan is the result of the hard work of many experts. How could it be wrong?"
The same medical diagnosis, as long as it comes from an industry authority like Dr. Tan, parents are willing to trust it. The mother of the little bucktoothed child is convinced and can't think of a bad word.
The disaster wasn't over yet. As work was about to end, Director Tan sent a message asking Jiang Ranxu to come to his office for tea.
Jiang Ranxu knocked on the door. Director Tan smiled and asked him to sit down—a look that surely meant something bad. His right eyelid twitched, and he didn't dare sit down. He stood in front of the other person's desk, waiting for the storm to come.
Director Tan smiled and said, "My beloved disciple, you have had a comfortable life this year, and your family has been well established."
A fulfilling life means that one's mind is not on work. Jiang Ranxu already understood the other party's intention: "Let's not talk about that, let's talk about work."
"You have such a great work-life balance! Even I, your teacher, can't match you in this regard. In the future, please publish an academic book on balance, and I'll have to buy one to study. My daughter still complains that I was always in the hospital and even missed her graduation ceremony."
Jiang Ranxu took the initiative to admit his mistake: "Don't say that, Director Tan. I still need to learn from you. I understand what you mean. I have been slacking off on my work recently. I will strive to exceed the business targets for the second half of the year."
"You still remember the performance indicators," Director Tan said leisurely. "Then why didn't you allow today's young patient to have a bone screw inserted? Bone screws can add several thousand yuan to the fee. You haven't forgotten the hospital's fee standards, have you?"
Jiang Ranxu's chest tightened, and his heart was dragged down by the heavy feeling of fatigue and slowly sank.
He didn't need to explain his medical judgment to Director Tan. Director Tan knew better than anyone that bone screws shouldn't be inserted. In essence, he should recognize his current identity and stop dreaming of the title of "angel in white." He was actually a salesman and a servant of his mentor.
Director Tan continued, "Also, your years as an attending physician already meet the requirements for associate senior appointment, right? Where are your application materials? How are they going? Regarding the required popular science article, could you please write a first draft and send it to me? Should that be ok for next week?"
The deadlines he set were never negotiable. Jiang Ranxu had no choice but to agree: "If there's nothing else urgent, it should be fine."
He had already touched the door handle of his office when Director Tan called him back. "By the way, I have a few journal submissions in my mailbox. Could you please respond to the reviewer suggestions for me? The editorial board is quite anxious, so please try to get feedback by the weekend."
"What about the popular science article?"
"Evaluating your professional title is your own business. Don't make me anxious."
——
Jiang Ranxu has no interest in academic research.
While clinical work occasionally offers the sense of accomplishment of saving lives, academia is pure waste, painful, and meaningless, its sole contribution being the daily activity of AI software. Jiang Ranxu's doctoral work was rife with this kind of vain pain, and now it's just an aftershock.
At 23:45 on Sunday, Jiang Ranxu successfully met the deadline and submitted the first draft to Director Tan for review.
He drove home from the hospital, and it was past midnight. The living room was silent, with only a warm yellow evening light on.
Meng Weishen's bedroom door was tightly shut, and no sound could be heard. Jiang Ranxu guessed that he had fallen asleep, so he completely relaxed and allowed himself to become a puddle of filthy mud.
He couldn't bring himself to shower. But he couldn't enter the bedroom without a shower. The sofa and chair upholstery had been freshly washed, so they couldn't get contaminated. Looking around, the only thing in the room that matched his filth was the tile floor.
Jiang Ranxu had no right to be picky. He could only lie on the living room floor for a while until he had enough power to take a shower.
He might have fallen asleep. In a daze, someone was shaking his arm: "Jiang Ranxu, you didn't drink, right? It's late, go back to the bedroom and sleep."
"What time is it?"
"It's almost one o'clock."
Jiang Ranxu reached for his phone in his pocket. The screen lit up, indicating the arrival of a new week, a new Monday.
The aftershocks of pain wreaked havoc on his body, and his newly rebuilt rationality crumbled once more. He covered his eyes sleepily, "It's Monday again."
The other party asked with concern: "You are busy on the weekend, why don't you apply for a day off tomorrow?"
"No, I have an appointment this morning and have to see a patient. I have to meet the stupid parents again. It's so annoying." Jiang Ranxu had completely lost the ability to think and cursed easily. "Clinic care is annoying, and the thesis is even more annoying. There's nothing that doesn't bother me on Monday."
The other party asked him: "What happened in the hospital? Did anyone give you any trouble? Can you tell me?"
Director Tan was right. He'd been living too comfortably lately, too relaxed. In the gentle, warm glow of the living room, he easily let down his guard and unleashed a chaotic, dreamlike tangle of words: "Making it difficult for me? It's probably mainly for her child. Being a parent is so cheap; one shot gets you a free worker. What the hell is that idiot supposed to be a parent? That idiot deserves to have no children. Humanity should completely eliminate inferior genes to truly achieve evolution..."
Jiang Ranxu's belt snapped, and he swallowed the rest of his nonsense. But it was too late. The other person looked at him in horror, and he withdrew his hand from his shoulder.
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