I Am Diagnosed as a Medical Titan

But today, the entire hall was empty. A single glance revealed not a soul in sight, except for one table near the bar.

’Could it be because of the medical competition today? Is everyone busy with things, so no one’s out to eat?’

Jiang He didn’t dwell on it, because his gaze was drawn to the table by the bar.

Li Zijian was slumped over the table, his shoulders shaking as if he were crying.

Wang Bo sat across from him, patting his back comfortingly.

Jiang He walked over, pulled out a chair, and sat down. He looked at Li Zijian, then at Wang Bo, asking with his eyes what was going on.

Wang Bo shrugged but said nothing.

Jiang He thought for a moment and decided to first comfort his usually sensitive roommate.

Before speaking, he instinctively reviewed the advice Shen Yu had given him before.

First, listening is more important than talking.

Second, don’t invalidate the other person’s feelings.

Third, let him know he’s not alone.

Jiang He collected his thoughts, then reached out and patted Li Zijian’s shoulder. "Zijian, it’s okay, don’t cry. What happened? If you’re willing to talk, I’m here to listen."

The drama king, Li Zijian, lifted his head. His eyes were red as he sobbed, "Old Jiang... it’s about that rich lady. I got played again..."

Jiang He comforted him, "Yeah, it’s okay. Go on, we’re all here with you."

Li Zijian froze for a second.

’Why does that sound so familiar?’

He thought about it.

Then he remembered.

’Damn it, that’s exactly how Teacher Shen comforted me! Did they learn from the same person or something?!’

Li Zijian was inwardly speechless, but on the outside, he had to keep up his pitiful, wronged appearance.

’Because he needed to stall for time. It was still too early; the sun hadn’t set, and the mood wasn’t right yet...’

So, Zijian vented to Jiang He about all the same things he had complained about to Shen Yu.

Jiang He’s response was also very similar to Teacher Shen’s.

He forgot what came before and what came after, but somewhere in the middle was the line: "Don’t punish yourself for someone else’s mistake."

The moment he said that, both Chen Hao and Wang Bo were left speechless.

The three of them exchanged quick glances.

’They’re a couple. It’s confirmed.’

According to the script, Li Zijian now had to pretend it was the first time he’d heard these words and act as if he found them incredibly comforting.

"Th-thank you, Old Jiang. I feel much better."

Li Zijian forced out a few tears, his shoulders giving a couple of coordinated trembles.

Wang Bo quickly ducked his head, burying his face in the shadows to desperately stifle his laughter.

Chen Hao, meanwhile, turned to look out the window, repeatedly pinching his own thigh.

Jiang He frowned as he watched his three roommates’ bizarre reactions. "What’s wrong with you guys?"

"N-nothing," Wang Bo said. "It’s just, uh, seeing Zijian cry makes me feel bad too."

Jiang He’s brow furrowed.

’Maybe my comforting skills aren’t polished enough? Was it a little ridiculous?’

’Whatever. If this doesn’t work, I’ll just drag Zijian for a medical check-up.’

’Let the data do the talking. That’s my real strength.’

As they chatted idly (i.e., stalled for time), the minutes ticked by.

Outside the window, the sky finally darkened.

The lights inside grew warmer.

The music also switched to a few slow, relaxing songs.

The atmosphere was perfectly set.

But still, not a single other customer walked in.

Jiang He finally couldn’t help but ask, "What’s going on today? Is the owner not open for business? How come no one has come in to eat yet?"

Hearing this, Li Zijian, who had been pretending to be upset just a moment ago, suddenly chuckled. He wiped his face with his hand and sat up straight.

"Old Jiang, you haven’t forgotten something, have you??"

"What is it?" Jiang He asked.

Wang Bo chimed in, "Today isn’t just the day you won first place in the South China Region competition..."

Chen Hao finished, "...it’s also your birthday!!"

Jiang He was stunned.

His birthday... He remembered, of course, but he hadn’t planned on celebrating it.

But hearing his roommates say it, everything suddenly clicked.

No wonder the three of them had been acting so weird all day.

"So... you guys rented out this whole place? Just to celebrate my birthday?"

Chen Hao snapped his fingers. "Bingo!"

Jiang He looked at the three of them, sighed, and said bluntly, "You didn’t have to do this. How much did this cost? Guys, what’s with the big production?"

He was genuinely pained by the expense.

For university students in ’08, their monthly living allowance was only so much.

Renting out the Encounter Bar was definitely not a small sum.

He figured Chen Hao must have footed the bill again.

Jiang He said, "Honestly, with the money you spent renting this place, the four of us could have gone to the back-street malatang stall and chowed down on two huge bowls each. What’s the point of all this fancy stuff?"

The three of them looked at each other, smiling without a word.

"Alright, alright, that’s enough." Jiang He stood up, pretending he was about to leave. "I appreciate the thought. Hurry up and bring out the cake. We can split it, eat, and then call it a night. I still have to go back to school later and work on the data for my miRNA project. I need to make some progress tonight."

"Hey, don’t be in such a hurry~" Li Zijian pushed Jiang He back down into his chair.

"Yeah, what’s the rush," Wang Bo said. "Come on, close your eyes."

Jiang He was utterly confused.

"What are you guys doing all this for?" Jiang He was extremely uncomfortable with this kind of thing. "There’s no need for all this ceremony between brothers. It’s so sentimental. Grown men don’t just close their eyes like that."

"Just close your eyes!" Wang Bo urged. "Hurry up and close them! Quick, if you don’t, the three of us will dogpile you right now, you believe that?"

Chen Hao and Li Zijian immediately rolled up their sleeves in coordination.

Jiang He, completely out of patience, threw his hands up in surrender.