"Mom, I've started cooking the rice and already cut the meat, which I've put in the fridge. You can fry it yourself when you come back..."

"I'll message you after picking up Nanshu to let you know if I'll come back to eat." Lu Cheng texted Tian Hui as he drove off to Zhang City.

"I'll cook myself when I'm back, just rest well, okay?" Tian Hui replied with a hint of complaint, knowing Lu Cheng had a night shift yesterday.

"The ER wasn't busy yesterday, I just dozed off in the consultation room. And I bought you a box of soda water, remember to drink it."

"There's almost no room left at home." Lu Cheng sent the message and started the engine to head off.

Tian Hui's voice message came back: "You haven't finished the ones you bought earlier, why did you get more? The water you mentioned doesn't taste good, it's a bit sweet."

"Sweet or not, the doctor said during your last check-up that you have chronic gastritis, you need to take medicine slow and nourish it gradually."

"Drinking slightly alkaline water is good. Remember to have breakfast in the morning, can't let your health go downhill, I'll be relying on you to babysit for me someday..."

"When will that be?" Tian Hui perked up at the mention.

Lu Cheng didn't reply, partly because he was already on the road, and partly because he wasn't sure about it himself.

...

At four in the afternoon, Lu Cheng joined the highway again near Lotus Airport in Zhang City.

Mu Nanshu glanced at Lu Cheng: "Didn't bring you any bread, planning to stay hungry, huh?"

Lu Cheng replied with a smile: "There are three hotpots in Zhang City that I was planning to take you to try."

"How was your trip to Yu Province this time?"

Lu Cheng had only heard of Cosmic First Hospital, never seen it.

"Just so-so, the weather there is very dry. Not very adaptable, didn't bring any local specialties back."

"Do you have any plans later? My dad said if you don't have plans, he could call you directly to Ji City."

Lu Cheng paused after hearing this: "Professor Tong Yuan'an called me this morning, asked me to visit him in the afternoon."

"But it can wait."

Lu Cheng wasn't playing any tricks with Mu Nanshu, mainly unsure if Uncle Mu Leng's call had urgent matters.

The ER night shifts are very irregular, so there's always a day off after a night shift.

"Then let's find another time, my dad and the others will be back around the 20th."

Mu Nanshu adjusted the seatbelt: "I tried contacting Zhang Xibei last night, he's hesitant after hearing about our situation, mainly thinks our team is too weak."

Lu Cheng glanced at Mu Nanshu: "Professor Tong Yuan'an from Xiangya Hospital leading, and that's weak?"

"Professor Tong isn't well-known in the research field; the team Zhang Xibei was part of before was much larger than Tong's."

"Even compared to Professor Tan's research team at Xiangya Hospital, it's about the same."

After explaining, Mu Nanshu continued: "But he didn't explicitly refuse, the climate in Ning Province is even worse, Dr. Zhang seems to want to develop in the south."

"If there's a chance, we could visit him, he's currently a general surgery doctor and you might have some common language."

Lu Cheng jokingly said: "You invite me to Ning Province, are you sure it's just to visit, not to bring back local specialties?"

"What local specialties?" Mu Nanshu didn't catch on immediately.

Lu Cheng replied: "Goji berries."

Unexpectedly, Mu Nanshu didn't blush, instead, after a moment of silence, she generously said: "If you have a personal issue, I can go with you to see."

Lu Cheng was instantly defeated; he was certain that this Mu Nanshu, compared to the past, had matured too much.

She not only specialized in the research field but also held her ground while interacting with people like Professor Chen Song, having developed her own distinctive style.

...

At an open-air barbecue stall near Youshui River in Long County, the autumn wind breezing gently. Lights warm and bright.

Lu Cheng and Tong Yuan'an each had four bottles of beer placed in front of them! Lu Cheng used a bottle opener to open the beer.

Mu Nanshu took a bottle of soda water, sipping slowly, then said: "Professor Tong, what do you think of my proposal just now?"

"A surgical technique is only considered a technique if it can be promoted, otherwise it's just personal operation and talent."

"If Lu Cheng were to personally perform surgery, the published data would be unreproducible by others."

"But when a beginner performs at a moderate skill level, it can be replicated by other peers, making it more convincing."

Tong Yuan'an's chubby face was tightly furrowed, his gaze flicking across Mu Nanshu, demeanor subtle, without response.

Mu Nanshu continued: "Of course, Professor Tong, if it's inconvenient for you to call someone, I can arrange someone to come, which wouldn't affect the overall progress of the experiment."

"Actually, if it's about learning the operation, people could be called from Xiangzhou People's Hospital as well. Just a little bit more time-consuming."

Mu Nanshu's voice wasn't loud, but her tone carried a somewhat compelling spirit.

She wasn't just asking Tong Yuan'an to bring some postgraduates from Xiangya Hospital to assist, but also to arrange funding.

She's also offering a way out, suggesting that if he lacks money or manpower, she could organize it all. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

The implied message is that he might not need to do anything, Mu Nanshu can plan the entire project meticulously.

However, to ensure the project is more convincing, initial data shouldn't be set too high, to avoid the possibility of others failing to replicate the data presented in the paper when repeating the project.