Deng Jing suddenly pulled her hand away from his, covering her mouth with sobs.
"It's useless to even think about it. With your current condition, you'll need at least a few years to recover."
Lin Zhilan didn't write this time—she wasn't saying it for Su Jue's ears.
Someone whispered something into Su Jue's leader's ear.
He nodded and turned to Lin Zhilan. "Doctor Lin, could I have a word alone?"
Lin Zhilan patted Deng Jing on the shoulder and walked out first.
"Doctor Lin, I understand how you and your family must feel, but Su Jue's work... I can't explain it in detail to you. All I can say is that his work is highly important—extremely important."
It involved confidentiality and danger, yet Su Jue wasn't in the military fighting battles. Lin Zhilan could roughly guess what Su Jue's work was related to.
She understood how much these people—including Su Jue—valued their work. But as a doctor, she could not accept a patient abusing his own body like this.
"Leader, I think neither of us can convince the other. But let's set aside our differences for now. I believe we both want my Second Brother to recover as soon as possible. Let me ask you this: is he irreplaceable in this job? Can the work not proceed without him? If he's absent, how much of an impact will it really have? As a doctor, I can tell you clearly that given his current condition, there is no way he can continue working. This isn't a matter of whether the family agrees or not—it's not even his own decision to make."
Su Jue's leader fell into a brief silence. "I hope you don't mind, but we've already investigated your background. You have a strong reputation down south. If we leave Su Jue in your care, when could he return to work?"
Lin Zhilan sighed helplessly. "My Second Brother's condition was truly critical this time. If it happens again, he will certainly lose his life..."
Su Jue's leader interrupted her. "You have my word—we will not send Comrade Su Jue to the front line again. However, he will still need to keep up with the paperwork and written aspects of the project."
Su Jue was involved in the development of the country's nuclear submarine—top-secret, classified beyond measure.
The project was already in its later stages.
The incident this time was caused by pulmonary edema resulting from extended exposure to pure oxygen in a sealed hyperbaric chamber during an experiment.
He had been serving as a power-dynamics engineer, diving with the submarine on a deep-sea mission to collect real-time data inside the sealed pressure chamber.
Though not the chief engineer, Su Jue was responsible for the power experiment segment.
His absence would drastically slow the submarine's testing and underwater operations.
Two years ago, following the conflict at Zhenbao Island, China and the Soviet Union were in full-scale confrontation.
The Soviet Pacific Fleet possessed enormous conventional submarines, strategic missile nuclear submarines, and cruisers. Their nuclear submarines routinely patrolled in near-shore waters.
But at the time, China had only conventional submarines—lacking underwater nuclear retaliatory capabilities or long-range anti-submarine warfare means.
That was the core reason the country was pushing relentlessly for the development of a nuclear submarine.
Su Jue and his colleagues were national assets. The state cherished them, but the development work was urgent—time would not wait.
Lin Zhilan frowned, thinking for a moment. "Leader, I have my own duties as a doctor—I can't simply watch over my Second Brother full-time. I propose that he be transferred to our military hospital on the island. I'll do everything in my power to help him recover as quickly as possible."
Su Jue's leader pondered for a long moment. "Very well. I'll handle the transfer. I'll be entrusting him to your care."
Su Jue woke up, and Lin Zhilan thought Deng Jing would stay to accompany him in the hospital.
But when she left in the afternoon, Deng Jing ignored Su Jue's pleading gaze and went home with Lin Zhilan.
"Second Sister-in-law..."
Deng Jing pressed her lips together, quietly waiting for Lin Zhilan to speak, expecting her to urge her not to hold a grudge against Su Jue.
Lin Zhilan took her arm. "You need to be good to yourself."
Deng Jing looked at her in surprise. "You're not going to persuade me?"
Lin Zhilan leaned her head on her shoulder. "It's not me who hasn't seen her husband for years. It's not me who raised the children alone. It's not me who worried herself sick over Second Brother. What right do I have to persuade you?"
The moment Lin Zhilan finished speaking, Deng Jing broke down sobbing.
Lin Zhilan let her cry. When she was exhausted, she coaxed her to go wash her face.
Only then did she tell Deng Jing about Su Jue being transferred to the military hospital.
Deng Jing looked up. "That's for the best. Zhilan, I need to thank you."
No matter how resentful Deng Jing was toward Su Jue, she didn't want to see him actually die.
After a night, Su Jue's unit finally approved his transfer to the military hospital.
They also decided not to have him undergo the eardrum repair surgery in the capital.
The military hospital was more specialized and confident in performing this surgery, since every year a large number of soldiers suffered eardrum perforations from gunfire blasts and explosions.
Moreover, the island hospital, as a combat medical unit, was given priority in equipping imported microsurgical equipment, which was more advanced than many hospitals in the capital.
Before leaving, Cheng Qingshan called Lin Zhilan into his office and also talked about Su Jue's case, hoping she would do her utmost to treat him and that she could call him for anything she needed.
Lin Zhilan once again deeply realized how important Su Jue was.
After discussing this matter, Cheng Qingshan chatted with her for a while about the pharmaceutical factory and the children before letting her go.
With arrangements made, Lin Zhilan didn't have to worry about anything.
Superiors assigned bodyguards to accompany Su Jue up close, so Lin Zhilan only needed to focus on his medical condition.
Deng Jing didn't come along.
She felt anger, resentment, and worry toward Su Jue.
But with two children at home and unable to keep taking leave from work, she had no choice but to harden her heart and not follow.
Su Jue didn't say much either, knowing he had let down his wife and daughter.
Lin Zhilan called Su Lang in advance.
As soon as she got off the train, Su Lang spotted her and squeezed through the crowd.
"Zhilan."
"Su Lang," Lin Zhilan took his hand and looked behind him. "Second Brother is in the back."
Su Jue was carried out on someone's back.
Su Lang immediately noticed the white hair on his second brother's head.
The entire sideburn area had turned white.
In two years, Su Jue looked like he had aged ten years.
"Second Brother..." Su Lang walked over, not knowing what to say.
"Don't look, it's ugly." Su Jue lay on the bodyguard's back, his whole body skinny. Seeing Su Lang, he forced a self-deprecating smile.
Lin Zhilan interrupted the brothers' eye contact. "Save the talk for later. Let's get Second Brother to the hospital first."
Su Lang snapped back to reality and reached out to take Su Jue. "Let me carry him."
The bodyguard immediately sidestepped. "Comrade Su's safety is my responsibility. Just lead the way."
Su Lang could tell at a glance that the man was trained. He glanced at Su Jue and didn't insist.
After sending Su Jue to the hospital and greeting Director Liu, Lin Zhilan went home with Su Lang, updating him on Su Jue's current physical condition.
"We can't keep Second Brother's situation hidden for much longer. We need to figure out how to break it to Mom and Dad."
Even Su Lang felt a pang of sorrow and heartache at the sight of Su Jue's current state, let alone Xu Yueyun and Su Bingcheng, the two elderly parents.
