Surgery Godfather-Chapter 2016 - 1360: He’s the Brother-in-Law! (Part 2)

Chapter 2016: Chapter 1360: He’s the Brother-in-Law! (Part 2)

"Did the doctor say that?"

"The baby’s position isn’t quite right," Lin Lan said. "A few days ago, during a prenatal check-up, the doctor said there’s little hope of it turning around."

"Then just go for surgery!" Mrs. Su jumped in, "Safety first."

Lin Lan nodded and continued eating.

After the meal, Mrs. Su went to wash the dishes. Lin Lan picked up that journal again.

Su Nanchen walked over and gently took it away.

"Rest for a while."

Lin Lan looked at him, feeling a bit helpless.

"There’s still a problem I can’t figure out."

"Think about it tomorrow."

Lin Lan opened her mouth but didn’t say anything in the end. She leaned back on the sofa and closed her eyes.

Su Nanchen sat beside her, holding her hand: "Starting today, take good care of yourself, okay?"

Lin Lan nodded. After a while, he softly asked, "Who do you think the baby will resemble when they’re born?"

Su Nanchen thought for a moment.

"Probably you, smart."

Lin Lan laughed.

"Resembling you isn’t dumb either."

The two chatted and laughed, a rare moment of relaxation. Usually, he was in the operating room, or she was in the laboratory, so sitting together like this and chatting was really not often.

Mrs. Su finished her work in the kitchen, tactfully retreating to her room to rest, leaving time for the two young people.

...

The next morning at ten, the doorbell rang.

Su Nanchen went to open the door. Xiao Su stood outside, carrying a big bag, with Yang Ping and a child behind her. The little one was staring wide-eyed at Su Nanchen.

"Bro!" Xiao Su called out with a smile.

Su Nanchen accepted the bag and looked inside, finding several glass jars.

"What’s this?"

"Pickled vegetables, I made them myself. Lin Lan likes sour things, so let her try them."

Su Nanchen laughed.

"Come in quickly."

Xiao Su entered and changed her shoes, shouting inside as she did, "Sister Lan!"

Lin Lan came out of the bedroom, supporting her waist and walking slowly. Seeing her belly, Xiao Su’s eyes lit up and she quickly walked over.

"Wow, it’s so big!"

Lin Lan looked down at her bulging belly.

"It’s okay, much smaller than when you were pregnant."

Xiao Su carefully reached out and gently touched her belly.

"Is he moving?"

"He was moving earlier, maybe he’s sleeping now."

The sister-in-law stood there, one touching the belly, the other having her belly touched, chatting enthusiastically.

Yang Ping came in, holding the child, standing beside Su Nanchen.

Su Nanchen looked at his nephew, who was also staring at him with big round eyes, looking just like Yang Ping.

"Call uncle," Su Nanchen tried to coax him.

The little one looked at him for a while, then suddenly buried his head in Yang Ping’s shoulder, ignoring him.

Yang Ping gently patted the child’s back.

"That’s your uncle."

Su Nanchen waved his hand with a smile.

"Come, sit down."

They sat on the sofa. Xiao Su and Lin Lan sat on the other side, still chatting away about prenatal check-ups, fetal movements, and preparing the maternity bag, engrossed in their conversation.

Yang Ping looked at Su Nanchen.

"Tell me about your Outstanding Young Talent project."

Su Nanchen took out the approval notice and handed it to Yang Ping.

Yang Ping took it and examined it for a while.

"Research direction?"

"The repair mechanism of intervertebral disc degeneration. We’re trying to use a polycaprolactone and β-tricalcium phosphate composite material, loaded with growth factors, to see if we can induce nucleus pulposus cell regeneration while repairing the annulus fibrosus..."

Yang Ping nodded.

"How many animal experiments have you done?"

"Over two hundred, with sixty-seven failures."

"Reasons for failure?"

Su Nanchen thought for a moment.

"Mainly, it’s the mismatch between the degradation rate and the regeneration rate of the nucleus pulposus. Some degrade too quickly and don’t provide enough support; others degrade too slowly and affect regeneration. We later adjusted the ratio and found a balance point."

Yang Ping nodded again.

"Next step?"

"Applying for clinical trials, already preparing the materials."

Yang Ping looked at him.

"If you need anything, just say it."

Su Nanchen nodded.

"Okay."

On the other side, Xiao Su and Lin Lan finished their conversation. Xiao Su got up and walked over to Yang Ping, taking the child from him.

"Come here, let mommy hold you, daddy is tired."

The little one squirmed in her arms and quickly settled down.

Xiao Su looked at Lin Lan.

"When’s your due date?"

"Around the twentieth of next month."

"It’s soon," Xiao Su said, "I’ll come over to accompany you then."

Lin Lan nodded, "Okay, thank you."

Xiao Su waved her hand.

"No need for thanks, we’re family."

Lunch was made by Mrs. Su. She cooked a few home-cooked dishes, and the pickled vegetables Xiao Su brought were also served—a spread of sour cucumbers, sour beans, and sour radishes.

Lin Lan picked up a piece of sour cucumber, took a bite, and nodded.

"Delicious."

Mrs. Su said to Xiao Su, "Not bad, you learned my skills."

"I just knew my sister-in-law would love it," Xiao Su grinned, "I made several jars, enough for you to have for a while."

Yang Ping quietly ate his meal on the side. He was naturally quiet, even more so during meals. Su Nanchen was used to it and didn’t find it awkward.

After the meal, Xiao Su went to the kitchen to help with the dishes. Lin Lan rested on the sofa.

Yang Ping held the child, continuing to chat with Su Nanchen.

"I have something to ask you."

"Go ahead."

"Lin Lan has been researching the genetic mechanism of intervertebral disc degeneration recently," Su Nanchen said. "She found several gene sites that might be related and wants you to look at the data."

Yang Ping turned to him.

"When did she start?"

"From the day I first told her I wanted to work on disc repair."

Yang Ping was silent for a moment.

"Where’s the data?"

Su Nanchen opened his laptop and pulled up the data.

Yang Ping stared at the screen. The genetic sequencing results, hundreds of samples, tens of thousands of data points. Lin Lan got up and came over, pointing at the screen, explaining each point.

"See this site, rs number 2289482, located on the COL9A2 gene. This gene encodes type IX collagen, an important component of the intervertebral disc. In our sequenced samples, people with a mutation at this site have a 3.7 times higher risk of disc degeneration than normal."

Yang Ping looked at the data.

"Sample size?"

"452 cases. 226 in the case group, 226 in the control group."

Yang Ping nodded.

"P-value?"

"0.003."

Yang Ping looked for a while longer.

"Is there more?"

Lin Lan flipped to the next page.

"This one, rs1074536, located on the GDF5 gene. It encodes growth differentiation factor 5, a key factor in disc development. People with a mutation at this site have a 2.8 times higher risk."

Yang Ping studied the data, silent for a long time.

Then he asked, "Do these two sites interact?"

Lin Lan was taken aback for a moment.

"We haven’t analyzed that yet."

Yang Ping said, "You should analyze it. Sometimes a single site’s influence isn’t significant, but in combination, the effect can be amplified."

Lin Lan nodded, and Su Nanchen noted it down beside her.

Yang Ping looked at the data a bit more.

"You’ve done well," he said. "Keep going, you’ll find something. But... take care of yourself. The data can wait. After the baby is born, there’s plenty of time to do research."

In the evening, Xiao Su insisted on showcasing her cooking, preparing a meal with six dishes and a soup.

Lin Lan sat at the table, watching her busy back and forth, feeling a bit guilty.

"You’re a guest, how can we ask you to cook?"

Xiao Su placed the last dish on the table, sat down, and earnestly said, "What guest? I’m your sister-in-law, we’re family, no need to be formal."

Lin Lan smiled. She and this sister-in-law truly got along better than real sisters.

After the meal, Yang Ping held the child and stood on the balcony with Su Nanchen, still discussing the project.

In the living room, Xiao Su, Lin Lan, and Mrs. Su sat together, looking at photos on their phones. Photos of Xiao Su’s child, from birth until now, hundreds of them, were flipped through one by one. Lin Lan looked carefully, occasionally asking: How many months is this? Could he walk then?

After going through the photos, Xiao Su put away the phone and looked at Lin Lan.

"Are you nervous?"

Lin Lan thought for a moment.

"A little."

"It’s normal," Xiao Su said. "I was nervous before I gave birth too. After giving birth, there’s no time to be nervous—I’m planning to have a second child, I love kids."

"Yes, more children, more blessings," Mrs. Su chimed in.

Xiao Su took Lin Lan’s hand.

"No worries, I’ll be with you the whole time."

Lin Lan looked into her eyes and nodded. That little bit of tension she felt seemed to really fade away.