Earlier.
After Lin Feifei was taken to the hospital by Jia Fuhai, he also brought three boxes of cakes.
"Little Jia is here to bring Little Lin again." The receptionist, Yuan Yuan, greeted them as soon as she saw them come in.
Yuan Yuan was quite familiar with the two of them since recently Jia Fuhai had been frequently bringing Lin Feifei to the hospital, and Lin Feifei was a disciple of Dr. Li Lianyi, who was well-known at the hospital.
"Here, Yuan Yuan, this is for you. I made these myself." Jia Fuhai quickly handed over some cakes.
"Oh, Little Jia, you know how to bake?" Yuan Yuan asked, accepting the cakes without hesitation.
"Try it; you'll know. Brother Hai's cakes are really delicious!" Lin Feifei said, unable to stop herself from swallowing a little saliva.
Although she had already eaten breakfast, she still couldn't resist the temptation.
Cakes were her weakness—something she could never get tired of!
Seeing Lin Feifei gulp, Yuan Yuan was puzzled. "Aren't you going to eat any?"
Yuan Yuan unwrapped the transparent packaging and took a bite.
"Mmm~ This tastes amazing!"
As soon as the cake touched her tongue, her eyes lit up, and she stuffed the whole piece into her mouth.
"How is it? Delicious, right?" Lin Feifei asked with a mischievous smile.
"Big brother, big sister, I'm still hungry." After eating five cakes in a row, Yuan Yuan dropped her age, practically begging for more like a little girl.
"Here you go, take some more," Jia Fuhai handed over another batch.
"Oh my gosh, you two are such a sweet couple," Yuan Yuan exclaimed, melting into the deliciousness of the cake as she continued eating.
"Just help spread the word for us. We've got to go now."
As the two prepared to leave, Yuan Yuan could only chew on her cakes reluctantly, still feeling unsatisfied.
Watching them walk away, Yuan Yuan sighed in disappointment. She had to stay at the front desk and couldn't leave.
Who would have thought Lin Feifei's husband would be such a good baker?
She rested her chin on her hand, daydreaming about finding a boyfriend who could cook someday.
What a sweet life that would be—eating delicious food whenever she wanted!
She shook her head and sighed again. Unfortunately, Little Jia already had Lin Feifei.
As Jia Fuhai and Lin Feifei walked through the hospital, they handed out cakes to all of Lin Feifei's colleagues along the way.
Since it was still early in the morning, there weren't too many people around; most of the doctors were doing morning rounds with patients.
It was fortunate, really. Otherwise, they might have run out of cakes before reaching their destination.
When they finally arrived.
Lin Feifei knocked on the door first.
Since Lin Feifei was apprenticed under Dr. Li Lianyi and wasn't officially on the hospital staff, she spent most of her time in her mentor's office area.
Although with Dr. Li's seniority at the hospital, she could easily arrange for her disciple to have a private resting space, neither of them had ever intended to do so.
Lin Feifei didn't come from a family of doctors and didn't grow up in an environment immersed in medical knowledge. She had to put in extra effort to learn.
"Dr. Li isn't here yet." Jia Fuhai looked around but didn't see anyone.
"Maybe she's with a patient?" Lin Feifei wasn't sure either.
"Well, I have to head out. I still need to deliver more cakes in the neighborhood this morning," Jia Fuhai said, realizing he couldn't stay much longer.
"Okay, Brother Hai, drive carefully," Lin Feifei nodded.
"Got it. And remember to give the cake to your mentor. Don't sneak any for yourself!" Jia Fuhai teased with a mischievous grin.
"..." Lin Feifei was speechless. She loved cakes, sure, but giving one to her mentor was a whole different matter.
Just as Jia Fuhai was about to open the door and leave—
"Hey, Little Jia, you're here! Come on in!" Dr. Li Lianyi appeared at the door and hurriedly pulled him back inside.
For this man who seemed to always be handling three things at once, Dr. Li had quite the admiration.
Her disciple had been introduced to him by his first wife, Zhen Linqi. That was a situation Dr. Li had never seen before.
The way the older wife helped the younger—it had opened her eyes to a whole new dynamic.
Later on, she had finally understood why!
Dr. Li enthusiastically pulled the departing Jia Fuhai into the room.
Anyone who didn't know better might have thought she was abducting him.
Jia Fuhai could have pulled away easily, but he knew Dr. Li's temperament. She was a wise, easygoing elderly woman with years of experience as a Chinese medicine practitioner.
Despite her age, she looked incredibly well-maintained and not at all elderly.
"Little Jia, let me check your health while you're here; make sure you've been taking care of yourself." Dr. Li, still holding his arm, pulled Jia Fuhai over to her desk.
Lin Feifei sighed, rubbing her forehead. She knew this was going to happen.
"Very good, very good. You're in excellent health!" Dr. Li said, taking Jia Fuhai's pulse and noddingapprovingly.
She was fascinated by his physical condition.
Having examined people for decades, this was the first time she had seen such an exceptional body. If it weren't for the legal restrictions, she would have conducted more... research.
Don't misunderstand—she just wanted to study his condition.
Every time they met, Dr. Li would give Jia Fuhai a free check-up, which made him a bit anxious sometimes.
You only get one body, after all.
After a thorough inspection through traditional methods, Dr. Li couldn't stop nodding to herself.
"Excellent. Little Jia, you should come every day. I'll check you for free!" Dr. Li said while patting his arm.
"Feifei, give Dr. Li the cake," Jia Fuhai quickly said, gesturing toward Lin Feifei as he tried to avoid the conversation.
"Oh, right! Master, this is a cake made by Brother Hai." Lin Feifei hurriedly handed over the cake.
"Ah, great! I love cake." Dr. Li immediately let go of Jia Fuhai's arm and took the cake.
Jia Fuhai let out a sigh of relief.
"I didn't know you could bake, Little Jia." Dr. Li said as she began to unwrap the package.
A delightful fragrance wafted through the air.
Dr. Li sniffed, her nose twitching.
"Honey? No, it's floral."
???
Jia Fuhai was stunned. Could she tell just by smelling it?
"Not bad. This cake smells good enough to taste great." Dr. Li complimented him and started eating.
As soon as the cake touched her tongue, she froze, then closed her eyes, savoring every bite.
Jia Fuhai and Lin Feifei exchanged puzzled glances. What was going on?
"Excellent!" Dr. Li exclaimed after swallowing the bite. Then she added:
"This cake only contains jasmine honey, free-range eggs, and flour, right?"
Jia Fuhai was stunned.
Was she watching him bake in real-time?
He hadn't even added sugar. How could she tell?
"How did you know what I put in it?"
Seeing the astonished look on his face, Dr. Li smiled knowingly. She had been using the art of observation for decades. Just one look, and she could tell.
"What's my profession?" Dr. Li asked, pointing at herself.
"Chinese medicine?" Jia Fuhai replied reflexively.
"Exactly. Chinese medicine. Feifei, come here." Dr. Li called her disciple over.
"Master." Lin Feifei approached immediately.
"Feifei, you know about herbs, right?"
"Yes." Lin Feifei nodded.
"Nowadays, a lot of medicinal herbs don't meet quality standards. If we don't taste them ourselves, giving them to patients could be disastrous."
Lin Feifei nodded again, understanding.
"So in certain cases, if you can't rely on observation, you have to taste. Your organs won't lie to you."
"Tasting hundreds of herbs?" Jia Fuhai chipped in.
"Exactly. Which renowned Chinese medicine practitioner hasn't done that? The first lesson is to understand your own body." Dr. Li's tone grew serious.
She turned back to Lin Feifei.
"Even now, I could make mistakes when it comes to herbs, so I have no choice but to taste them myself. Your body won't deceive you."
"But don't worry. You don't need to do what I do. Chinese medicine has many methods. And you're pregnant right now, so be cautious."
After saying this, Dr. Li shook her head.
She didn't want to interfere too much in her disciple's personal life.
Turning back to Jia Fuhai, she continued:
"Now do you understand why I could taste it so accurately?"
"You're amazing, Dr. Li!" Jia Fuhai gave her a double thumbs-up.
Her self-sacrificing approach to tasting herbs had left him in awe.
"Well then, why not come every day? I'll check your health for free, you know." Dr. Li immediately grinned.
"..." Jia Fuhai's earlier admiration instantly disappeared.
Dr. Li was definitely still up to something...