Part Two: The Doctor’s Tears
“Doctors spend their lives learning how to save others.
Sometimes, they forget how to save themselves.”
Yu Mingyue slowly released her embrace.
She looked up at Gu Mingzhe.
His expression had already returned to its usual calm.
Only the faint redness around his eyes remained.
She smiled.
“…See?”
“I told you.”
“This time…”
“You’d get a perfect score.”
Gu Mingzhe looked at the report in silence.
Then nodded once.
“…Mm.”
His voice was steady.
Almost too steady.
Yu Mingyue didn’t notice.
She simply picked up the stack of reports.
“…Can I keep one?”
“Why?”
“I want to frame it.”
“…”
“…Frame it?”
Yu Mingyue nodded enthusiastically.
“My first healthy medical report.”
“I think it’s worth celebrating.”
A tiny smile appeared on Gu Mingzhe’s lips.
“…You have an unusual hobby.”
“I’ve had unusual hobbies since I was little.”
“That is true.”
Yu Mingyue carefully tucked one copy beneath her arm.
Then stretched lazily.
“…I’m starving again.”
Xiao Bai immediately floated upward.
“Host.”
“What?”
“You ate less than three hours ago.”
“I exercised.”
“You walked.”
“I ran.”
“You celebrated aggressively.”
Yu Mingyue looked offended.
“…Stop using that phrase.”
“I rather like it.”
She puffed out her cheeks.
Then turned back toward Gu Mingzhe.
“…Brother Mingzhe.”
“…Hm?”
“Can I leave now?”
He glanced once more at the monitor.
Every value remained perfect.
“…Yes.”
“But no intense exercise today.”
“…”
“…How intense?”
“No running.”
“…”
“…You wound me.”
“You’ll survive.”
“…Cold.”
Yu Mingyue sighed dramatically.
“Doctors really have no sense of romance.”
Without waiting for his response…
She happily skipped toward the door.
Then suddenly stopped.
She turned around.
Walked back.
Reached up.
And lightly straightened Gu Mingzhe’s collar again.
“There.”
Gu Mingzhe blinked.
“…Again?”
“It moved.”
“It did not.”
“It looked lonely.”
“…”
“…You’re impossible.”
Yu Mingyue laughed brightly.
“I learned from the best.”
“…I don’t remember teaching you this.”
“You taught me everything.”
For a brief second…
Neither of them spoke.
Then Yu Mingyue smiled.
“…I’ll go find Mengmeng.”
She waved.
“See you later, Brother Mingzhe.”
The door closed gently behind her.
…
Silence.
The medical room became quiet once again.
Only the soft hum of the equipment remained.
Xiao Bai’s invisible barrier vanished as Yu Mingyue left the room.
Now…
Gu Mingzhe was alone.
He looked down at the report.
Heart.
Normal.
Blood.
Normal.
Lungs.
Normal.
Everything.
Normal.
He reached for another report.
Exactly the same.
Another.
Exactly the same.
His fingers slowly tightened around the paper.
“…Healthy…”
The word escaped almost soundlessly.
He had dreamed of seeing this word for eight years.
During countless sleepless nights.
After every failed operation.
After every medical conference.
After reading thousands upon thousands of research papers.
He had searched the entire world…
For something that no longer needed to be found.
A quiet laugh escaped him.
Soft.
Almost broken.
“…So…”
“…There really was nothing wrong.”
His shoulders trembled.
Just once.
He removed his glasses.
Covered his eyes.
The tears he had been holding back finally slipped through his fingers.
No sobbing.
No cries.
Only silent tears falling onto the pristine medical reports.
After a long while…
A gentle knock sounded on the door.
“Brother?”
Gu Mengmeng’s voice.
“…Can I come in?”
Gu Mingzhe quickly wiped his face.
His breathing steadied.
“…Come in.”
The door opened.
Gu Mengmeng poked her head inside.
“…”
She immediately froze.
She had known her brother for twenty-six years.
She recognized those slightly red eyes instantly.
“…Brother…”
Gu Mingzhe calmly put his glasses back on.
“What is it?”
She quietly looked at the reports scattered across the desk.
“…Are they…”
“…Good?”
He lowered his eyes.
His fingertips gently rested on the first page.
Then…
For the first time…
He smiled without restraint.
Not politely.
Not faintly.
Not out of habit.
A genuine smile.
The kind Yu Mingyue hadn’t seen since she was a child.
“…Perfect.”
One word.
Nothing more.
Gu Mengmeng stared.
Then her own eyes became red.
She hurried into the room.
Looked down at the report.
Normal.
Normal.
Normal.
Every line she had feared for years…
Had disappeared.
She suddenly laughed through her tears.
“…Xiao Yue’er is going to become so proud.”
Gu Mingzhe let out a quiet chuckle.
“…She already is.”
The two siblings stood silently beside one another.
Looking at the report.
Not because it contained extraordinary numbers.
But because…
For the first time in eight years…
It contained an ordinary future.
Outside the window…
The afternoon breeze gently rustled the trees.
Sunlight filtered softly through the leaves.