After ten in the morning, Lin Jie returned home and found Zhang Xiaoxiao sorting the fresh meat, eggs, vegetables, and fish sent by the Fu Family.

Feeling a bit distressed, Lin Jie said, "Xiaoxiao, how about canceling today's gathering? If you don't want to go to the hospital, just rest well at home."

"No need to cancel! A-Jie, you don't need to worry about me."

Zhang Xiaoxiao straightened up, tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear, and said, "Being lively and busy makes me feel better, and time passes more quickly."

"Really, this is from the bottom of my heart. I'm not lying to you."

Lin Jie sighed and said, "Alright then, let's go ahead with the gathering as planned. But Xiaoxiao, don't hold it in—if there's anything on your mind, make sure to talk about it."

"Miaomiao and I have always regarded you as a sister, sometimes even like a mother."

"A mother? Do I look that old? Being a sister is enough."

Zhang Xiaoxiao pretended to be angry and glared at Lin Jie, then said, "Actually, I also consider both of you as my family. Maybe what we have is more of an emotional need for each other."

As she spoke, a hint of melancholy flashed across her face, and then she quickly changed the subject.

"A-Jie, a transfer of over sixteen thousand yuan was made to your bank account, noted as August's salary. I checked, and it turns out it was from the First Military Medical University Affiliated Hospital. Did you know about this?"

At this, Lin Jie remembered something and nodded, "I was not only awarded the rank of senior colonel, but I was also given an honorary position as deputy director at the First Military Medical University Affiliated Hospital, and I didn't expect there to be a salary."

With a laugh, he said, "This extra income can cover the cost of Chinese medicine for me and Miaomiao every month, as well as car expenses."

"One shouldn't be beholden when taking from others in any form!"

Zhang Xiaoxiao expressed concern, "A-Jie, by accepting this salary, if they ask you to perform some surgeries, wouldn't it be difficult to refuse? Shouldn't you return it?"

Lin Jie waved his hand, "No need to return it!"

"Even without this income, my military identity alone makes it hard to refuse when patients seek my help, even if there's no concrete excuse."

"So, there's no reason not to take it."

Zhang Xiaoxiao softly said, "Speaking of Chinese medicine, you and Miaomiao spend more than ten thousand a month. Only someone with your income can afford it."

She sighed, "Jian'an Hall's tonics might be famous but they're too expensive, not something the average person can afford."

"By the way, hasn't the Zhou Family agreed to collaborate with Anlin Hospital? Can't they offer you a discount as a favor?"

After several discussions, Anlin Hospital and the Zhou Family's Jian'an Hall have finalized their cooperation method.

The hospital will allocate a dedicated area on the second floor of the comprehensive building for Jian'an Hall to set up a traditional-style Chinese medicine clinic, retaining the "Jian'an Hall" name externally.

The consulting doctors and all staff are arranged by the Zhou Family, and the hospital does not participate.

However, the costs for patients' consultations and medicine will go through Anlin Hospital's unified financial settlements.

According to An Kexin, there were not many disputes about the financial division between the two sides, and they quickly reached an agreement by making concessions.

Lin Jie understood An Kexin's thoughts.

She mainly valued the influence and appeal of Jian'an Hall, a traditional Chinese medicine brand, in the hearts of Binhai City residents.

The main goals of the cooperation were to elevate Anlin Hospital's prestige and reputation, and to draw people intrigued by Jian'an Hall.

Lin Jie explained, "Xiaoxiao, the hospital and the Zhou Family are working together for mutual benefits, so they don't need to curry favor with me."

"And whether their Chinese medicine costs are high or not, it's still worth it."

"Not to mention me, even Miaomiao used to catch colds and fevers several times a year, but up till now, we haven't really gotten sick..."

"Pfft... pfft... don't jinx it by saying that."

Zhang Xiaoxiao urgently stopped Lin Jie's words and angrily warned, "Don't you know how superstitious Chinese sayings are? Good words don't come true, but bad ones do, so you mustn't say such things carelessly."

Though Lin Jie didn't believe it, he understood it came from her concern, which warmed his heart.

Recalling An Kemeng's request before arriving, he thought for a moment and said, "Xiaoxiao, the relationship between Kemeng and Miaomiao is still tense. Kemeng is planning to invite Miaomiao out tomorrow to have fun, find a chance to apologize, and resolve the conflict."

"But she's worried that Miaomiao might stubbornly refuse, wasting the plans for tomorrow."

"Kemeng hoped to invite you out for some refreshment under the guise that Miaomiao coming along would just be incidental, making it harder for her to refuse."

"Kemeng asked me to tell you and hopes you'll help out with this."

Zhang Xiaoxiao chuckled and said, "These two little ones are quite interesting. But I really haven't seen Miaomiao hold such a big grudge and stay angry for so long."

"Perhaps, she really saw the sister in the novel as herself and felt that Kemeng's portrayal hurt the sibling bond you two share?"

Casually, Zhang Xiaoxiao replied, "I'll agree to this since I have no plans tomorrow. Watching these two little ones quarrel all the time is indeed a bit awkward..."

Lin Jie walked into the study, opened the computer, checked his email, clicked on the one forwarded by An Kexin, and started reviewing the attached medical case file.

The pregnant woman was thirty-nine years old, carrying her first child, and suffering from moderate pregnancy-induced hypertension.

Upon seeing this, Lin Jie frowned slightly; this was a high-risk pregnancy.

He continued reading to see the fetal conditions, especially after viewing several three-dimensional images from the four-dimensional ultrasound, thus understanding the size and exact location of the parasitic twin.

This parasitic twin had a diameter exceeding five centimeters and was located within the fetal thoracic cavity.

This location not only affected the development of the ribs but more seriously impaired the development of the heart and left lung.

Lin Jie then meticulously examined the fetal heartbeat ultrasound scan, the X-rays, and the fetal sound diagnosis, already confirming that the fetal heart development was significantly affected, resulting in deformities.

The left ventricle was clearly much smaller than the theoretical size, and there was also an atrial septal defect present.

According to the long-term monitoring data from this case file, the parasitic twin was growing rapidly, and if it continued growing, the heart's compression might lead to the possibility of fetal cardiac arrest.

Lin Jie pondered possible surgical plans.

Due to the large size of the parasitic twin and the heart repair issue, this surgery required an open chest procedure; Lin Jie couldn't perform the operation directly on the fetus inside the womb using minimally invasive surgery.

He needed to remove the fetus from the mother's womb first, perform the surgery, and place it back afterwards.

Generally, a twenty-two-week-old baby hasn't grown to the size of an adult's hand; the skin, organs, and ears haven't fully developed.

If such a developed baby was accidentally born premature, the survival rate would be low, but with careful medical attention, survival is still possible.

However, this fetus was even more underdeveloped due to the parasitic twin's influence.

Even more critical, this fetus still needed to undergo a major surgical trauma, making its survival prospect extremely slim, almost to the point of having no hope at all.

Only by returning this surgically treated fetus back into the mother's womb to recover and further develop could offer a greater chance of survival.

A key factor here was minimizing the physical trauma the surgery could inflict on the fetus, and also ensuring the mother could physically handle one abdominal surgery's stress.

After carefully reviewing the mother's and fetus's examination data again, Lin Jie closed his eyes and began mentally simulating possible scenarios during the surgery...

After a long time, Lin Jie picked up his phone and dialed An Kexin's number.

"Kexin, I can take on this surgery."

"However, you need to clearly inform them that the chances of the fetus surviving are less than thirty percent."

"What's more..."

"During the entire surgery and the fetus's post-operative recovery stage, as an elderly pregnant woman, there will be an unpredictable risk of death due to inflammation, thrombosis, pregnancy-induced hypertension, and other unexpected complications."

In conclusion, Lin Jie said, "My recommendation is to terminate the pregnancy as the best choice. If they insist on keeping the child, they will need to confront the risk of losing both mother and child."

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