"Ah Jie, wake up!"

Under An Kexin's call and shaking, Lin Jie finally opened his eyes and asked groggily, "What time is it?"

"It's almost six, time for dinner."

An Kexin was dressing while urging, "Get up quickly, Kemeng and Manqing are coming over soon."

At noon, when they arrived at the Sunshine Hot Spring Resort, Lin Jie thought about playing with his students, who might feel a bit restrained, so he and An Kexin left the main group.

They first soaked in the hot spring for an hour, then went for a spa together.

After the spa, Lin Jie and An Kexin felt so comfortable they just wanted to sleep.

The two of them quickly decided not to go out for fun and rented a room in the resort's hotel to take a big nap.

Lin Jie stretched lazily, yawning as he slowly started to get up and get dressed.

Before he could tidy up, there was a knock on the door, along with a shout, "Sister, Brother Jie, hurry and open the door."

An Kexin opened the door, and Zou Manqing and An Kemeng ran into the room.

Seeing the messy bed, Zou Manqing teasingly asked, "Cousin, have you two been battling all afternoon? Can't believe cousin-in-law is so fierce."

An Kexin rolled her eyes at her, put on a serious face, and said, "Don't talk nonsense in front of Kemeng."

She explained further, "Whether you believe it or not, Ah Jie and I slept all afternoon. After the spa, we felt extremely sleepy and just got a room to sleep."

An Kexin then asked, "Kemeng, how was your time?"

An Kemeng sat on the soft chair in the room, grinning, "I hung out with Miaomiao and Xiaoxiao, played lots of fun games, and then we all did a spa and soaked in the hot spring. Feeling so relaxed now."

An Kexin took out a wet wipe and carefully wiped the fine sweat off An Kemeng's face, meaningfully asking, "Manqing, how about you, any gains?"

"Don't mention it!"

Zou Manqing waved her hand dejectedly, complaining to Lin Jie, "Cousin-in-law, what's up with your students, they're either clueless or have issues with their eyesight."

"When I tried talking to them, they barely even responded."

"It's really aggravating; I spent several hundred bucks on a new hairstyle just for today."

Lin Jie glanced at Zou Manqing's somewhat disheveled medium-length hair, dyed in rose purple.

He truly didn't see what was particularly attractive about the hairstyle.

"Not all of them ignored you!"

An Kemeng teasingly exposed, "I saw that Uncle Xiao being quite attentive to you, very enthusiastic."

"The way he is, old and ugly, he should take a good look in the mirror!"

Zou Manqing said disdainfully, "He doesn't even need makeup to scare kids at night. He really lacks self-awareness; no wonder he's still single at this age."

Lin Jie was immediately displeased and said unhappily, "He's not that old, just slightly over thirty, just looks mature. The reason he doesn't have a girlfriend is just because he's always busy with work and studies, no time for dating."

An Kexin also advised, "Manqing, be careful with your words."

"Honestly, you don't have the right to disdain them; instead, they could easily find you lacking."

"Look at your own qualifications, a third-tier university, barely graduated, even with some looks, but lacking in both curves."

"And them, they are graduates from prestigious universities in medical master's and doctoral programs. In a few years of work, they'll be respected attending physicians, with a future as promising physicians possible."

"Cousin..."

Zou Manqing had a face full of grievance and said, "I'm your cousin, how can you say that about me?"

An Kexin said mercilessly, "It's because you are my cousin that I have to say it."

"You know, men don't rely on looks and stop indulging in those unrealistic fantasies."

"Think about it, would those 23-24-year-olds, slightly handsome but only know how to eat, drink, and play, satisfy my aunt's strict requirements?"

Zou Manqing glanced at Lin Jie and murmured softly, "Cousin-in-law can satisfy them."

Though she said it softly, An Kemeng, who was closer, heard it and hurried to Lin Jie, grabbing his arm, saying, "Brother Jie belongs to Sister, Cousin, you can't take him."

An Kexin was amused and laughed, "Manqing, Ah Jie certainly meets all the conditions set by you and aunt. There are excellent boys in Binhai City who meet your and your aunt's criteria, the question is..."

"Do you meet their criteria?"

"They also get to choose, picking relatively the best girl as their girlfriend."

These words seemed to strike a chord with Zou Manqing.

She looked pitifully and pleaded, "Cousin, then what should I do?"

An Kexin didn't answer directly, but turned to Lin Jie and asked, "That student of yours, Xiao Ganghao, what's his situation?"

"Contrary to his rough appearance, Xiao Ganghao is emotionally sensitive and gentle at heart..."

Before Lin Jie finished, Zou Manqing impatiently asked, "Cousin-in-law, what's his family's economic situation?"

Lin Jie rolled his eyes and said impatiently, "I truly don't know, but I do know one thing, Principal Pan of Binhai University is his uncle."

"Principal of Binhai University, uncle!"

Zou Manqing's eyes began to glitter, asking, "Cousin, Principal of Binhai University, what is the rank of his position, deputy province-level?"

An Kexin hummed, "Binhai University is directly under the Ministry of Education and has consistently ranked among the top five in the nation. Its president is of a high-level ministerial rank."

She advised, "Manqing, try to interact with Xiao Ganghao, even if you can't become a couple, being friends is beneficial and harmless..."

At this time, Lin Jie's phone rang, and it was a call from Zhang Xiaoxiao.

As soon as he answered, Zhang Xiaoxiao's complaint came through, "Ah Jie, where are you and Kexin, haven't seen you all afternoon?"

"Come to the Rice Fragrance Hall at the resort quickly, it's dinner time, Miaomiao's stomach is already growling."

Lin Jie explained briefly on the phone, promised to head over immediately, hung up the call, and got up saying, "Let's go, we should eat."

"Wait a minute, I need to tidy up first!"

With that, An Kexin took her handbag and ran into the restroom.

It took almost twenty minutes of fussing before she gracefully emerged, looking more radiant and prettier, she smiled at Lin Jie and said, "Let's go."

Lin Jie and the others left the room, just as they reached the hotel lobby, a voice of surprise called out, "Mr. Lin, what a coincidence, didn't expect to meet you here!"

He turned towards the sound and saw a somewhat familiar-looking man striding over.

When the man, full of excitement, came closer, Lin Jie felt he looked familiar but couldn't quite place him, so he awkwardly said, "Hello, sorry, you are?"

The man introduced himself, "Mr. Lin, I'm Liang Xuehai, a doctor at Binhai University's hospital, I've attended your lectures a few times."

Lin Jie finally recalled who he was.

A couple of days ago, at the university hospital, they had done an emergency liver injury repair surgery together.

Remembering this, he couldn't help but ask, "Dr. Liang, how are you! How is the teacher who was injured from the fall?"

Liang Xuehai smiled, "He was transferred to the affiliated hospital and is recovering. However, his situation seems precarious. I heard the decision to dismiss him was passed at the principal's office meeting."

"His wife also decided to divorce."

Liang Xuehai sighed, "Such a promising young and mid-career teacher, ruined by a single misstep."

Knowing some of the inside scoop, An Kexin discontentedly snorted, "What do you mean by a single misstep? It's his inability to control his desires, purely self-inflicted, serves him right."

"Yes, yes, it indeed serves him right."

Liang Xuehai echoed, and asked, "Mr. Lin, are you leaving here or planning to have dinner?"

"Going to dinner first, then returning to the city afterwards."

Lin Jie responded and politely asked, "Dr. Liang, what about you?"

Liang Xuehai smiled, "Here for the weekend with my wife and kids, waiting for them to come down from upstairs, and then we'll head back to the city together."

Just then, the elevator door in the lobby dinged open.

A heart-wrenching cry suddenly echoed from inside, "Help! Save my child..."

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