Chapter 73: Birthday Anticipation
Whether Old Liu could truly resolve Jiang Rong’s heat cycles was, for now, still only Doctor Liu’s claim.
Jiang Rong had Old Liu on WeChat. He was a fashionable old man who was very adept with smartphones, and he always replied to Jiang Rong’s messages instantly.
Jiang Rong arranged to meet Old Liu at the university on Monday to talk things over.
Hospitals approached the matter from the perspective of Western medicine and scientific analysis, while Old Liu handled it from the angle of traditional Chinese medicine, focusing on regulation and conditioning.
What Old Liu excelled at most was his almost miraculous acupuncture technique.
He had also reviewed Jiang Rong’s anatomical diagrams and knew the pathways of the meridians within his body.
Jiang Rong had an extra gland closely related to his heat cycles compared to ordinary people, which naturally meant additional meridians as well. Consequently, acupuncture placement would be different.
In fact, in Jiang Rong’s original world, there was also traditional Chinese medicine, but its development lagged behind that of this world. Perhaps due to different historical progress, very few doctors there used acupuncture. At most, they prescribed herbal formulas, remaining at a shallow, surface level.
When Jiang Rong went to see Old Liu, He Siming went with him.
Jiang Rong reassuringly squeezed He Siming’s slightly cool hand. “Why are you more nervous than I am?”
He Siming replied, “Yeah. Very nervous.”
How could he not be?
On one hand, he truly didn’t want Jiang Rong to be trapped by heat cycles. On the other hand, he also…
Forget it. Jiang Rong’s health came first. It was better not to mention his own unspeakable little preferences.
Old Liu specifically arranged time for them. The old man wasn’t particular about appearances—he even ate lunch from the university cafeteria, very down-to-earth. Who would guess that he was a highly respected veteran TCM doctor in the country, whom younger generations treated with great reverence?
Old Liu didn’t start acupuncture on Jiang Rong right away. Instead, he first took his pulse and asked about issues related to his heat cycles.
Old Liu said, “I haven’t asked in detail before—what do you feel like before your heat cycle arrives?”
Jiang Rong replied, “I’ve only experienced one heat cycle. Before that, I didn’t know I would have them—the gland hadn’t matured. In the two weeks before the heat cycle, the gland felt sore and swollen, and my body felt quite fatigued.”
Old Liu recorded the symptoms in his notebook.
Old Liu asked, “When will your next heat cycle be?”
Jiang Rong said, “I don’t know either. The last time my pheromone concentration was checked was after the baby was born, and it had decreased.”
Old Liu said, “So none of your pheromone tests were taken under normal conditions.”
Jiang Rong nodded. “Yes.”
Old Liu said, “I’ve taken your pulse. Your body is very healthy. Since you’ve only experienced one heat cycle, many of the symptoms aren’t conclusive. This requires long-term observation. Tell me—your second heat cycle hasn’t arrived yet, right?”
Jiang Rong replied, “N-no, not yet.”
Old Liu said, “Then for now, we won’t consider acupuncture. First, observe what symptoms appear before your second heat cycle arrives. Then go to your doctor and check your values before and after the heat cycle. This is congenital—you can’t realistically eliminate heat cycles entirely. The gland is firmly located at the back of your neck unless you remove it. But your body’s meridians are connected to the gland; removing it would definitely cause aftereffects. At best, this can only be suppressed or controlled.”
Jiang Rong agreed completely.
In their world, unless it was absolutely unavoidable, no one would casually remove glands.
For Alphas and Omegas, glands were extremely important “sexual” organs. Removing them was equivalent to castration. Therefore, they followed natural rules while using suppressants to meet Alpha and Omega needs. After hundreds of years of research, science there was already highly advanced.
He Siming asked, “So that means it can only be suppressed, not completely eradicated?”
Old Liu replied, “Of course not. That would be like cutting off a man’s manhood—could you bear it?”
He Siming let out a breath of relief.
Jiang Rong said, “I only hoped that if I encountered a heat cycle while outside, there would be medicine or agents to control it. I never thought about cutting it off.”
He looked at He Siming and added, “At home, with He Siming helping me, I don’t have to worry.”
Hearing this affirmation from Jiang Rong, the bit of worry in He Siming’s heart dissipated. So it wasn’t that heat cycles would be completely gone.
Old Liu said, “This will be a long-term control process. There’s no precedent for this in our country, so we’ll have to take it step by step. If Director Xu’s side can develop a medication targeting your pheromone imbalance, that would be even better—a two-pronged approach.”
This was already much better than Jiang Rong had initially expected. Regardless of whether a suitable control method or medication could be developed, he wasn’t worried. His final fallback was He Siming.
He Siming’s feelings were mixed—so it wasn’t as simple as he’d thought.
Heat cycles really were a fascinating physiological trait.
Jiang Rong had long had a premonition, and his mindset was surprisingly good. Everything had two sides. Because of heat cycles, he now had this family, met He Siming who loved him so deeply, and had the only blood-related treasure in this world—his baby. As long as he controlled things properly and calculated timing, it wouldn’t be a problem in the future.
From the day at the bar when He Siming had taken the initiative to support him, they had been destined to be bound together.
After Old Liu told Jiang Rong to continue observing changes in his body, He Siming became even more anxious than Jiang Rong himself.
During confinement, the peach scent on Jiang Rong had become lighter. Recently, it was growing stronger again, though not as intense as during pregnancy.
To be honest, He Siming could feel Jiang Rong’s physical condition too.
Over the past two days, he’d only noticed that Jiang Rong’s peach scent had grown a bit richer.
The morning after returning from Old Liu’s place, as soon as he opened his eyes, he began questioning Jiang Rong.
He wanted to record Jiang Rong’s data. Although heat cycles were a perk to him, he couldn’t let that come at the cost of Jiang Rong losing his freedom for decades.
With the rigor of conducting an experiment, He Siming opened his phone’s notes app and recorded the time. “Do you feel any discomfort today? Any special reactions?”
Jiang Rong had fed He Shenglin earlier that morning. He was so sleepy that tears welled at the corners of his eyes. He shook his head. “No. I’m fine.”
He Siming said, “Didn’t you say the heat cycle might be coming soon?”
Jiang Rong replied, “Not sure. My body’s just recovered.”
He Siming’s emotions had been fluctuating wildly these past two days. He was more worried than Jiang Rong himself. What if Jiang Rong’s heat cycle came when he wasn’t by his side?
Concern colored his expression. “Your pheromone scent is stronger than when we lived over there.”
Jiang Rong blinked helplessly. “It is a bit, but I’m a rookie Omega—I’ve never been one before.”
Previously, he’d maintained some social distance from Omegas and hadn’t had Omega friends, so he had no reference point.
He Siming: “…” For the first time, he realized that Jiang Rong really didn’t pay much attention to himself. That meant he had to worry more.
As a result, He Siming asked about Jiang Rong’s condition morning, noon, and night.
In the morning, upon waking:
He Siming: “How is it today? Is the gland sore or swollen?”
Jiang Rong: “No.”
At noon, Jiang Rong was teasing He Shenglin with a small toy.
He Siming: “Any abnormalities with the gland now?”
Jiang Rong: “No.”
At night.
Jiang Rong had just lain down, about to burrow into He Siming’s arms to rest, when he saw him open his notes app again.
He Siming: “Any changes in your body right now?”
Jiang Rong: “…No.”
He had wanted to kiss him, but his little spark of passion was instantly extinguished. He Siming was anxious again.
Why was this man so prone to anxiety?
On the second day, He Siming continued recording, and Jiang Rong patiently cooperated.
At noon on the third day, just as He Siming was about to speak, Jiang Rong noticed the calendar on his phone.
He suddenly exclaimed, “Ah!”
Already tense from days of anxiety, He Siming immediately stood up, mentally preparing to spend three days with Jiang Rong through his heat cycle.
“What’s wrong? Is the heat cycle coming?” he asked.
Jiang Rong hurriedly pressed him back onto the sofa. “No, no, don’t be nervous. I just remembered—it’s my birthday the day after tomorrow.”
He Siming: “…Your birthday?”
He remembered that the date on Jiang Rong’s ID wasn’t this one.
Jiang Rong nodded. “Mm.”
He Siming sat back down and pulled Jiang Rong onto his lap. “Your twenty-first birthday?”
With so much going on lately, he’d forgotten to ask Jiang Rong about his birthday. Luckily Jiang Rong mentioned it himself, or he would’ve missed it.
Jiang Rong nodded. “Mm.”
He Siming’s twenty-first birthday last year had been unforgettable. He wanted to give Jiang Rong an unforgettable birthday too.
He kissed Jiang Rong’s fair, rosy cheek. “How does baby want to celebrate?” This was skin he’d nurtured himself—soft and pale, filling him with a sense of accomplishment.
Jiang Rong actually liked lively occasions, though his personality wasn’t boisterous.
“How about celebrating with everyone? Just a simple meal is fine. The day after tomorrow is Thursday.” Truly a busy time.
“No, that’s too simple,” He Siming said firmly. This was the first birthday he’d celebrate for Jiang Rong—it had to be special. “I’ll arrange it.”
“Then don’t make it too grand.”
As a child, Jiang Rong had once looked forward to birthdays—receiving gifts, inviting classmates to eat cake. But his parents always told him not to play with those commoner classmates. He was going to be an Omega, and those classmates wouldn’t benefit him. His birthdays were always simple. Because of his parents’ mindset, he often ate others’ cake, but classmates never received cake from him. Friendship was mutual. Eventually, he stopped daring to make friends, and he truly had very few.
After coming here, he’d actually made friends—unexpectedly. It turned out he could make friends too.
So he wanted a lively birthday with friends, just like He Siming’s birthday. It was a fantasy he’d once had, now realized by his friends.
Seeing Jiang Rong’s expectant yet cautious look made He Siming feel both heartbroken and charmed. How could his baby be so starved for love, eyes full of longing?
“Leave it to me, okay?”
Unable to resist that pitiful look, he pulled Jiang Rong into a kiss.
“Okay.” Jiang Rong was kissed until he felt dizzy, but his heart brimmed with anticipation for his first birthday in this new world.
He wondered what kind of birthday gift He Siming would give him.
Once He Siming openly busied himself with planning the birthday, he stopped fixating on Jiang Rong’s heat cycle.
Jiang Rong was truly looking forward to it.
On Monday, Jiang Rong thought He Siming would inform Yao Shule and the others about his birthday in advance. But he spent the entire day in class without mentioning it once. Bringing it up himself felt like asking for gifts, which made him conflicted—especially since he didn’t know if He Siming had special plans.
He trusted He Siming completely and didn’t ask. Even if He Siming wanted to celebrate alone with him, that was fine. He could always make it up later by treating everyone to a meal.
After two classes, Jiang Rong slumped over his desk.
The baby had caught a bit of a chill from the weather change and had diarrhea. He hadn’t slept well the night before.
Yao Shule asked, “Why do you look so out of it today?”
Jiang Rong whispered, “Linlin caught a bit of a chill.”
Yao Shule said, “What should you do? Have you seen a doctor?”
He was completely clueless about babies under three months getting sick—this was his blind spot.
Jiang Rong said, “It’s fine. He was much better when I left this morning. I’ll go check on him at noon.”
Babies were too young and had weak immunity. Aside from the nannies, they didn’t let him come into contact with other people.
After moving back near the school, He Zhixian and Xu Mingqin had visited twice. They understood scientific parenting and didn’t have habits like kissing the baby.
He Siming had also been caring for He Shenglin all night, but at noon he was called to a meeting by a professor from the lab. Jiang Rong went home by himself.
At home, seeing that He Shenglin’s appetite had returned—gulping down his milk and falling asleep again—his mood improved greatly.
Over the past year, Jiang Rong had developed a habit of taking naps at noon. But today, despite being someone who napped unfailingly, he couldn’t fall asleep.
He hadn’t seen He Siming preparing anything for his birthday—only that he’d been busy coding and working overtime. Last night, he’d worked until after midnight.
On Tuesday, the baby’s symptoms completely cleared up. Still, Jiang Rong and He Siming didn’t dare let down their guard. At night, they took turns waking to check if the baby had kicked off his blanket. He didn’t sleep peacefully—his strong little legs kicked around wildly, and that was how he’d gotten chilled.
Jiang Rong also reflected on himself—he hadn’t been careful enough.
That night, after finishing his homework, Jiang Rong read for a bit and prepared to sleep, only to see He Siming still busy at the computer. All day long, there’d been no mention of birthday plans.
Although he wanted a simple celebration, he also wanted to see the other person busying himself for his birthday.
He stood beside He Siming for quite a while before the latter looked up, his expression rather cool.
Seeing Jiang Rong hesitate, He Siming asked, “What’s wrong? If you’re sleepy, go to bed first. I still have some work to do.”
Jiang Rong said, “Mm, I’m sleepy.”
Actually, besides his studies, Professor Wen had also entrusted him with writing a paper, making him the first author.
Jiang Rong was flattered but never one to back down from challenges. He accepted outright and treasured the opportunity to learn from Professor Wen.
He was just late to start—not incapable. During summer break, he’d read many books. With He Siming by his side, he absorbed new knowledge like a sponge. Coupled with experience from another world and exposure to more advanced information, he could naturally keep up with Professor Wen’s pace.
Professor Wen’s gaze toward him gradually turned appreciative. One day, out of the blue, he remarked, “Your son having an IQ of 140 seems quite normal.”
Jiang Rong: “…”
After the semester started, doing assignments with Yao Shule and Li Yizhou felt like elementary school homework.
Professor Wen’s words seemed to awaken something in him. He learned pretty fast, didn’t he?
So his son inherited genes from both him and He Siming—not just He Siming’s genius genes?
No wonder He Siming always earnestly told him not to belittle himself.
He Siming said, “Then you go to sleep first? I still have a bit left.”
Jiang Rong said, “Alright. But don’t work too late tonight—dark circles are already showing.”
He Siming gave him a goodnight kiss. “Just busy for these two days. Besides, your husband looks handsome even with dark circles.”
Jiang Rong smiled and returned to the bedroom.
There, he found that the little one—who should have been asleep—was exercising his legs, kicking the blanket into a mess.
The weather wasn’t cold or hot, but he feared the baby might catch a chill again.
Thinking that He Siming would be working until late tonight and might overlook the baby if he got absorbed, Jiang Rong decided it would be better to bring the baby to bed. Lying down, he could soothe the baby and wouldn’t have to keep getting up to cover him.
He’d take it easy tonight.
“Linlin, want to sleep with Daddy tonight?” Jiang Rong said softly. “Daddy’s too tired to keep getting up. Sorry, you can’t sleep in your own bed tonight.”
He Shenglin replied, “Mm~”
“Linlin is so good,” Jiang Rong said. “You even answer Daddy. I’ll take that as your agreement, okay?”
He Shenglin was much bigger than babies his age. He felt wonderful to hold—a soft, fragrant little treasure.
“Daddy loves you so much, Linlin.”
“Mm~”
Jiang Rong gently patted the little one’s bottom. “Then sleep now. Daddy’s sleepy too.”
“Mm~”
Such a good son—responding to every word.
Jiang Rong stopped talking; if he kept responding, the baby wouldn’t fall asleep.
As he patted him, the baby fell asleep. Half-closing his eyes, Jiang Rong tucked the blanket around him again and drifted into deep sleep himself.
At 12:30 a.m., He Siming finally shut down his computer and prepared to sleep.
Out of habit, he went to check the crib to see if He Shenglin was properly covered—but the crib was empty!
Looking again at the bed he shared with his wife, there was an extra little lump under the covers.
Wait—how did He Shenglin end up in their bed?!
He Siming prepared to carry the baby back to the crib, but as soon as he lifted He Shenglin, the baby let out dissatisfied whimpers.
Hearing the sound, Jiang Rong woke up reflexively.
Barely opening his eyes, he asked, “Is Linlin hungry?”
“It’s fine, I’ve got it. You sleep,” He Siming said.
Jiang Rong tilted his head and fell asleep again. Caring for a child was exhausting—he’d mastered the skill of falling asleep instantly.
He Siming tried again to put He Shenglin back, but the baby still wasn’t happy.
In the end, he could only let the child sleep in their bed, continuing to lie beside Jiang Rong.
He Siming pulled Jiang Rong into his arms, sniffed the scent at his neck, and fell asleep.
Just as he was about to drift off, He Siming suddenly opened his eyes, gazing thoughtfully at He Shenglin on the other side of Jiang Rong.
He Shenglin didn’t want to return to the crib—could it be that he also liked Daddy’s pheromone scent?
