Sophia was preparing for the Traditional Medicine (TCM) competition. She searched online for related videos, but since the competition wasn’t very popular, there weren’t many recordings available—only some scattered clips that didn’t clearly show the competition format.
According to Professor Micheal, although the TCM competition wasn’t well-known, the participants were all skilled practitioners in the field and should not be underestimated.
Since Sophia’s school mainly consisted of students, they had never participated in the TCM competition before. If Sophia competed, she would be the first student to enter.
Professor Micheal had high hopes for her.
There wasn’t much for Sophia to prepare, so she simply familiarized herself with the competition process.
The tournament was set to begin next month.
Because of Sophia’s participation, Livinus decided to sponsor the competition, and the event would be streamed live for online viewers.
Sophia didn’t want to embarrass him. Since she was competing, she aimed for nothing less than victory.
Lately, Nancy had been visiting frequently to learn how to take care of Bright.
Sophia often found her contradictory—on one hand, she didn’t want a future with Bright, but on the other, she kept coming to learn how to care for him and seemed deeply concerned about his well-being.
Nancy picked up a bottle of multivitamins from the table and exclaimed in surprise:
“If I’m not mistaken, these are for pregnant women, right? Sophia, why are you taking these? Don’t tell me…”
Sophia smiled. “Yes.”
“No way! You’re really pregnant?” Nancy pulled her over and examined her from all angles.
“Yes.”
“Oh my god! Brother Scott sure doesn’t waste time. But your belly doesn’t show at all!”
Sophia chuckled. “Of course not. The fetus is still tiny at this stage, about the size of a grape—usually no more than 1.5 centimeters. How could you possibly see anything?”
“Really? But I’ve seen some pregnant women start showing as soon as they conceive.”
“That’s because they’re fat.”
“…” Nancy burst into laughter. “So when will it start showing?”
Sophia had strong abdominal muscles. Even though she had stopped core training recently, she still went for walks every morning. Women with abs and a well-defined waistline didn’t show pregnancy as easily.
“If all goes well, my belly will still be concealed by clothes until four or five months in. But later in the pregnancy, it’ll balloon out like an inflatable ball—it all depends on how well the baby absorbs nutrients.”
“Sophia, since you’re pregnant, why don’t you use this as leverage against the old master? If he finds out, he’ll definitely welcome you into the family right away.”
“Is that fun for you?” Sophia raised an eyebrow.
“Of course, it is! If there’s an easier way, why take the hard road? If it were me, I’d throw the test results in their faces!”
“Enough of that.” Sophia smiled. “Go take care of your Bright. He’s been looking quite drained lately.”
Before she could finish speaking, Nancy covered her mouth, her cheeks turning red. “Say one more word, and I’ll beat you up!”
“Alright, alright! I won’t say anything. But Nancy, take care of your waist too—I see signs of kidney deficiency. Maybe you should try some medicinal tonics.”
“…”
Nancy ran off without looking back.
During this time, the director of the TCM hospital, Director Jake, was dealing with a major headache.
The reason?
The provincial secretary had fallen ill. Normally, high-ranking officials had their own designated hospitals and wouldn’t come to his facility. But by chance, the secretary had fallen ill at home, and since his residence was only two streets away, the ambulance brought him here.
Director Jake knew that handling this case was a huge responsibility.
On one hand, this was an opportunity to build connections with a top leader. If they treated him successfully, it could bring great benefits.
But if they failed, the leader would remember it, and that would be a disaster.
If things went wrong, his career could be ruined.
The worst part was that, after four days of hospitalization, none of the doctors could diagnose the secretary’s exact condition. Every specialist had a different opinion.
If they couldn’t treat him soon, he would surely be transferred to another hospital.
As a hospital director, he couldn’t afford the embarrassment of failing to find a doctor who could help. If this hospital’s reputation took a hit, how could he expect support from higher-ups in the future?
“Director, we need a solution! If this doesn’t work, should we invite specialists from the city for a consultation?”
“We’ve already called in several batches of experts, and they’ve been useless!”
“Then what do we do? If we don’t fix this, the leadership will hold us accountable!”
“No kidding! Do I need you to tell me that?” Director Jake snapped, his face dark with frustration.
He was already at an age where he wasn’t looking for career advancement—he just wanted to maintain his current position until retirement.
