316: Chapter 316 She's Different

Han Qing is different.

Han Qing is a completely different person in the Medical Room compared to on the Third Floor.

In the Medical Room, she is the calm, professional, and stern Dr. Han, with her white coat buttoned up tightly, her hair tied in a low ponytail, and her tone of voice as steady as a flatline on an ECG.

Once she goes up to the Third Floor, she turns into a woman Qin Lin barely recognizes.

"Close the door."

The first time she said this to Qin Lin, her tone was like she was issuing a medical order.

Qin Lin closed the door.

"Lock it."

Qin Lin locked it.

Han Qing sat on the edge of the bed, watching him, the light from the desk lamp reflecting two tiny spots of light in her pupils.

The corners of her mouth were slightly upturned—not a smile, but a sense of relief, the feeling of "finally waiting for this day."

Qin Lin walked over and sat down beside her.

Han Qing reached out to hook her arms around his neck, pulling him close, close enough to see every tiny bit of fuzz on her face.

Qin Lin looked at her; her gaze did not waver, nor was there any shyness—only a frank, straightforward, and unadorned desire.

Qin Lin reached out and pulled her into his arms.

Han Qing pressed her face against his chest, closed her eyes, and let out a long breath, as if exhaling all the tension, repression, and uncertainty of the past few years.

Han Qing didn't speak, but Qin Lin felt her hand clutching his clothes tighten a little more.

In the days that followed, Han Qing became the person who appeared most frequently in Qin Lin's room.

It wasn't because Qin Lin was playing favorites, but because Han Qing was too proactive.

She would go to the Bridge while Qin Lin was working, carrying a cup of tea, set it on his control console, and then sit on the chair nearby to read a medical journal.

She wouldn't speak or disturb him; she would just sit there.

Sometimes, when Qin Lin got busy and lost track of time, he would look up to find she had already left. The tea in the cup would be cold, but under the cup would be a note with her handwriting on it: "Remember to drink water, don't stay up too late. — Dr. Han."

Qin Lin smiled.

She would go take a shower before he returned to the room and change into that tight-fitting outfit.

It wasn't the one she had worn back in the Ecological Plantation; that one was old. She had bought a new one—the style was similar, but the fabric was more form-fitting and the color was darker.

When Qin Lin pushed the door open, Han Qing was standing by the window, her back to him.

The moonlight spilled down from the projection System, and her silhouette looked like a sculpture in the darkness.

"Aunt Qing, you're not asleep yet?"

Han Qing turned around to look at him. She didn't answer his question but walked over, took his hand, and led him toward the bed.

"The medical System said my conception window has reached its optimal value today."

Her tone was very calm, as if she were reporting a test result.

Qin Lin looked at her; the tips of her ears were red.

She didn't urge him, nor did she look at him with that aggrieved expression. She just stood there, holding his hand, quietly and frankly, as if she were talking about something perfectly natural.

Qin Lin lowered his head and kissed her.

Han Qing closed her eyes and responded, her hand moving from his hand to his waist.

Qin Lin thought about how, when Su Yuran gave birth to Qin An, Han Qing had stood in the Medical Room for nearly four hours, never leaving her side.

When Lin Wanwan gave birth to Qin Yuan, she hadn't even rested after delivering the baby before she went to check on the newborn.

When Han Yurou gave birth to Qin Yue, she had been so nervous her fingers turned white, yet her voice remained steady.

For every child born, she was there. For every mother giving birth, she was there.

Now, it was her turn.

Qin Lin held her even tighter.

Han Qing felt it, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

The The Ark continued to fly through the starry sky, and Qin Lin went to the Medical Room to find Han Qing every day, regardless of whether he had an excuse or not.

Sometimes it was "my shoulder is a bit sore," sometimes it was "I want to check my blood pressure," and sometimes he wouldn't say anything at all, just sitting on a chair in the Medical Room watching Han Qing organize medical instruments.

At first, Han Qing would chide him: "Aren't you going to fly the ship?" "Aren't you going to spend time with the children?" "Do you have nothing to do?"

But later on, she stopped saying it, because Qin Lin always had the same answer: "The The Ark is on autopilot, the children have people with them, and I have nothing to do."

Han Qing heard that answer many times, and one day she finally couldn't help but laugh, saying: "Is your mouth charmed?"

Days went by one after another.

The The Ark continued to sail through deep space, and the task of collecting Materials proceeded in an orderly manner.

The starry sky meteorite collection had long been over-fulfilled, the life essence had been collected, and twelve dimensional fragments had been gathered last time, two more than the required amount.

Qin Lin took a look at the progress of the upgrade Materials: all at one hundred percent.

[Lv9 upgrade Materials are complete]

[Confirm upgrade?]

He didn't click confirm.

It wasn't because he didn't want to, but because there was a line of small text in the System prompt: It is recommended to complete the upgrade before entering the otherworld passage to welcome the second stage in the optimal state.

Otherworld passage.

Qin Lin pulled up the long-term monitoring data of the Deep Space Scanning Array on the holographic screen.

Over the past month, an abnormal space-time fluctuation had been detected at a location about 1.5 light-years away from the The Ark.

It wasn't a naturally formed spatial rift, but a regular, intermittent pulse, like a heartbeat, like a signal.

After analyzing it a few times, the System provided a conclusion: suspected otherworld passage, leading to an unknown plane.

Qin Lin stared at that line of text for a long time.

Otherworld passage, leading to an unknown world.

The Immortal Realm, a magical world, or something else?

He didn't know, and the System didn't know either, because the The Ark hadn't been upgraded to Lv9 yet, and the cross-plane detection function hadn't been unlocked.

"Then I'll upgrade first."

Qin Lin made the decision in his heart, but he didn't click it immediately.

Because there was one more thing that hadn't been completed.

Han Qing was not yet pregnant.

Su Yuling and Li Ran weren't either, but Qin Lin knew they were not in a rush.

Han Qing was not in a rush, but she wanted it.

Qin Lin could see it in her eyes, from the anticipation and nervousness whenever she went up to the Third Floor, and from the way she would lean against his chest after every time they were together, her fingers gently drawing circles on his skin.

So he was waiting.

Waiting for the day when the System prompt would sound.

That day came later than expected.

The The Ark sailed through deep space for about another half a month.

Qin Lin checked Han Qing's physical data every day; the conception window was still at its optimal value, but the System was slow to provide a prompt.

Su Yuling asked him privately once: "Brother Lin, is there something wrong with Aunt Qing's body?"

Qin Lin shook his head: "The System has checked many times, everything is normal."

Su Yuling thought for a moment and said: "Then Aunt Qing must be too nervous. She says she isn't nervous, but in her heart, she is more nervous than anyone."

Qin Lin felt that what she said made sense, but he didn't know what to do to help Han Qing relax.

The answer was unexpectedly simple.

That night, Qin Lin went to Han Qing's room as usual.

Han Qing was sitting at the desk reading medical reports; she didn't turn around when she heard the knock, just said "Come in."

Qin Lin pushed the door open and went in. Instead of sitting next to her as usual, he walked behind her, hugged her from behind, and rested his chin on the top of her head.

"Aunt Qing."

"Hmm."

"No more reports today."

Han Qing's hand paused, then she put down her pen, leaned back in the chair, and looked up at him.

Qin Lin's face was upside down in her view, but he didn't look bad from this angle.

"What's wrong?"

Qin Lin said: "Nothing, I just feel like you're too tired. Rest for one night, don't do anything, just sleep."

Han Qing looked at him for a few seconds, then smiled: "When did you become so considerate?"

Qin Lin thought about it: "I've always been considerate, you just didn't notice."

Han Qing stood up, tidied up the reports on the table, and turned off the desk lamp.

Only the light leaking in from the corridor remained in the room; it was very dark.

Qin Lin took her hand and walked to the bed, letting her lie down first, then he lay down beside her and reached out to pull her into his arms.

Han Qing leaned against his chest; not heavily, but very lightly.

"Qin Lin."

"Hmm."

"Are you really not going to do anything today?"

"Hmm."

Han Qing was silent for a while, her voice very soft, with a hint of a smile: "Then why did you come to find me? Can't you sleep on your own?"

Qin Lin held her even tighter: "It's warmer sleeping with you."