Chapter 518: Want to try an older woman–younger man romance?

"Director Shen, you've become a bit biased." Lin Yuan stepped forward and said.

He spoke calmly, "Traditional Chinese medicine has been passed down for a thousand years and continues to this day... it's certainly not fraud; its theoretical system simply differs from Western medicine, so its value cannot be measured by Western standards."

"Many chronic diseases that Western medicine cannot solve, traditional Chinese medicine can find a cure for; that is its effect."

"Effect?" Shen Nan Zhi gave a cold laugh and took off her gold-rimmed glasses.

She rubbed her forehead with her fingertips, revealing a pair of brighter, beautiful eyes.

"I've heard that traditional Chinese medicine can diagnose illness just by observation, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking; since you, Mr. Lin, advocate TCM so highly, why not give me a diagnosis? If you can accurately analyze my physical condition, I'll agree to let you join the research team and fully cooperate with you; otherwise, I advise you to leave soon, don't waste everyone's time in the lab."

"Sure." Lin Yuan had no hesitation and nodded in agreement.

His gaze fell on Shen Nan Zhi's face...

Lin Yuan examined her complexion, the dark circles under her eyes, and her slightly tense shoulders and neck for a long time.

Only then did Lin Yuan speak slowly: "Director Shen, you've long suffered from insomnia and frequent dreams; even when you barely sleep, you sweat at night, and when you wake up your back is always damp and cold, right?"

Huh?

Shen Nan Zhi's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly, and the fingers holding the lab report instinctively tightened.

Her insomnia problem had troubled her for five years; besides her private doctor, she had never mentioned it to anyone.

This Lin Yuan actually got it right in one sentence?

Shen Nan Zhi suppressed the shock in her heart, her face still icy: "It's just a coincidence; many people doing high-intensity work have insomnia."

"Whether it's a coincidence will be known after pulse diagnosis." Lin Yuan reached out, palm up, "TCM diagnosis emphasizes the four examinations combined; observation is only a preliminary judgment, pulse-taking is needed for confirmation."

Shen Nan Zhi looked at his calm gaze and hesitated for two seconds.

In the end, she still extended her jade hand.

Her fingers were long and slender, her fingertips carried a chill, her skin delicate and slightly cool.

Lin Yuan gently held her wrist, placing his fingertips on her pulse, feeling the slightly irregular beat.

Su Monong stood to the side, watching this scene with interest, without speaking.

The lab was quiet, with only the faint sound of equipment operating.

Around, the lab staff also gathered curiously to watch this scene.

Shen Nan Zhi's heartbeat, however, grew faster and faster.

It wasn't due to ambiguity, but because of Lin Yuan's focused gaze... that made her inexplicably a bit nervous.

After a moment, Lin Yuan's brows slightly furrowed, his eyes hinting at suspicion.

Immediately, Lin Yuan released her hand.

Lin Yuan slowly said, "Director Shen, your hormonal metabolism is disordered; specifically, you have sexual apathy, with no interest in sexual matters, and may even subconsciously reject them, right?"

"You!" Shen Nan Zhi's pretty face instantly flushed red, as if someone had publicly ripped open her most hidden wound!

The onlooking lab staff around also changed expression upon hearing this; some couldn't believe it.

Good heavens, this Director Lin really dares to say that!

The lab staff were all dumbfounded.

Shen Nan Zhi, both ashamed and angry, jerked her hand back, shouting, "Nonsense!"

But her rebuttal seemed somewhat lacking in confidence...

Because, everything Lin Yuan said was correct.

She is thirty-eight this year, not lacking suitors, but whenever someone approaches, she feels a sense of resistance.

Because, she discovered that she truly feels nothing toward the opposite sex?

Over time, she became known among others as a "picky-eyed" single career woman.

But this secret, Shen Nan Zhi has never spoken of it to anyone.

Even her private doctor, she only vaguely diagnosed it as "psychological factors." She dare not tell others that she has sexual apathy.

But at this moment, that bastard Lin Yuan actually said it out loud in public?

Shen Nan Zhi was very angry.

She glanced around at the onlooking lab staff with her beautiful eyes.

"Why are you all just standing there stupidly? Get back to work!" Shen Nan Zhi scolded.

The staff coughed embarrassedly one after another, then turned and went back to work.

Nobody dared to linger.

Shen Nan Zhi is indeed a notorious tigress leader.

Everyone was afraid of being targeted.

After everyone had dispersed.

Shen Nan Zhi's beautiful eyes were icy, and she only then slightly relaxed her breath.

Lin Yuan paid no attention to her lapse and continued, "You're like this because you've been single for a long time and constantly immersed in high-intensity R&D work; your body has adapted to a 'work-only' rhythm, which causes a severe deficiency in female hormone secretion."

Shen Nan Zhi angrily retorted, "Are you still spouting nonsense?!"

Lin Yuan earnestly locked eyes with her beautiful eyes and said, "Director Shen, as a medical professional, you shouldn't deceive yourself, right? Besides, I'm doing this to help you."

Shen Nan Zhi bit her lip and looked at Lin Yuan for a long while.

Only then did she finally let out a long sigh.

"What do you want to clarify?" Shen Nan Zhi countered.

By saying that, she was effectively admitting she had sexual apathy.

At that moment, even Su Monong, who had been standing aside, was somewhat astonished and shocked.

This, Lin Yuan actually guessed this accurately?

This Shen Nan Zhi lass, no wonder she's remained single.

You're already 38 and still not looking for a boyfriend?

Turns out, it's because she's frigid.

Lin Yuan said seriously, "Director Shen, actually, your frigidity isn't a psychological problem but an imbalance in the self-regulation of physiological functions."

Shen Nan Zhi looked at him suspiciously with her beautiful eyes?? Somewhat half-believing, half-doubting??

Lin Yuan paused, then added: "Moreover, every time you menstruate, your bleeding far exceeds the normal range, accompanied by severe abdominal pain, making your face turn pale and break out in cold sweat, even needing painkillers to barely work, right?"

This sentence completely shattered Shen Nan Zhi's psychological defense.

Her pretty face went from flushed to pale, her red lips trembling slightly.

The severe pain during menstruation…… is her biggest trouble.

She saw many Western medicine specialists, who prescribed her countless drugs to regulate hormones.

But those medicines only provide temporary relief; next time they will still relapse.

"You've seen many Western doctors but still couldn't cure it." Lin Yuan's tone carried a hint of realization, "It's not that Western medicine is incapable, but that it only treats symptoms, not the root cause. They only think of supplementing hormones with drugs, without finding the root of insufficient hormone secretion."

"What is the root cause?" Shen Nan Zhi asked subconsciously.

By now she had shed her coldness, her voice gaining a sense of urgency.

"The root…… is your long-term single status, lacking the nourishment of intimate relations." Lin Yuan spoke bluntly.

Whoosh~ Upon hearing this, Shen Nan Zhi's pretty face froze?? Then instantly turned crimson.

"You're talking nonsense!" she retorted, but although she objected verbally, inside she was already shocked.

Her beautiful eyes gazed at Lin Yuan, filled with curiosity and disbelief.

Lin Yuan said seriously, "I'm not talking nonsense. Chinese medicine emphasizes yin-yang balance; women belong to yin and need the balance of masculine yang energy. Long-term lack of emotional reliance and intimate contact makes the body default to 'no need for reproduction,' thus actively reducing female hormone secretion."

"Director Shen, you're already 38; if you continue being single like this, your body's estrogen will keep decreasing. Over time, there will be aftereffects."

"What aftereffects?" Shen Nan Zhi's voice sounded tense, she faintly had a bad premonition.

Lin Yuan looked at her eyes, tone solemn: "The most direct consequence is that by the time you're in your forties, you may very well completely lose fertility. Your ovarian function will accelerate decline due to hormone deficiency; by then, wanting to get pregnant will be nearly impossible."

"Impossible!" Shen Nan Zhi directly retorted, "My ovarian function tests have always been normal!"

"Being normal now doesn't mean it will stay normal in the future." Lin Yuan took out his phone, pulled up a Chinese medicine journal article and handed it to her.

Lin Yuan said, "This is a study from last year's《Chinese Medicine Journal》: women with long-term insufficient estrogen secretion have three times the normal risk of premature ovarian failure. Your current situation is your body's warning signal."

Shen Nan Zhi took the phone, her fingers trembling as she swiped the screen.

The cases in the article were strikingly similar to her situation……

The terms 'premature ovarian failure' and 'infertility' pierced her heart like needles.

Shen Nan Zhi always thought she didn't care about marriage or having children, but when the possibility of 'being unable to bear children' was placed before her, she realized she wasn't truly indifferent.

The laboratory fell into silence.

Su Monong spoke up timely: "Nan Zhi, I've witnessed Lin Yuan's Chinese medicine skills; he wouldn't joke about this. Now, do you believe he has the ability to advance the X Vaccine R&D?"

Shen Nan Zhi stared at the article on the phone screen, her fingers unconsciously curling.

After a moment, Shen Nan Zhi took a deep breath, lifted her head and looked toward Lin Yuan……

In Shen Nan Zhi's amber eyes…… the previous coldness and disdain faded, replaced by a sense of urgency; she first asked: "Then how can I avoid infertility? What advice would your Chinese medicine give?"

As soon as this question was posed, even Su Monong couldn't help but raise her eyebrows.

It was still the first time she had seen the usually aloof Shen Nan Zhi display such an attitude.

Lin Yuan replied calmly: "The fundamental solution is to enter a romance and fully experience the joy of being a woman within that relationship. The emotional nourishment from intimacy stimulates the body to secrete dopamine and estrogen, something no drug can replace. Only then can your estrogen levels return to normal."

Upon hearing this, the pharmaceutical director Shen Nan Zhi's pretty face instantly flushed crimson.

Lin Yuan hesitated a moment, then added: "Director Shen, you've been single for too long. Physiologically speaking, a woman's body needs the harmony of male-female love. If long deprived of this nourishment, like a flower lacking water, it will gradually wither. This is no joke, it's a scientific law."

Shen Nan Zhi's pretty face instantly flushed crimson, as if someone had poked her most hidden corner.

Shen Nan Zhi hastily turned her face away, brushed her bangs, and muttered under her breath, "Nonsense……"

But her voice lacked its previous confidence.

Su Monong saw the situation and timely spoke up, breaking the awkwardness.

"Nan Zhi, can Lin Yuan now join the X Vaccine project? I believe his addition would be a great benefit to our company's medical R&D." Su Monong proposed.

Shen Nan Zhi remained silent for a few seconds, then gently nodded.

Shen Nan Zhi's voice was barely audible: "He can reluctantly join…… but if he joins the vaccine R&D team, he must follow all my arrangements; I am the project's overall leader, he can only do auxiliary work."

"That's natural." Su Monong immediately responded, laughing as she patted Lin Yuan's shoulder, "Lin Yuan was originally here to assist you in R&D; specific work arrangements, all follow your lead."

Lin Yuan also nodded in agreement, "I understand, Director Shen's professional expertise in pharmaceutical R&D is evident; I will fully cooperate with your work, and please advise me on anything I don't understand."

Shen Nan Zhi lifted her eyes and glanced at him……

Seeing his humble attitude, with no trace of arrogance.

Shen Nan Zhi's tense lips relaxed slightly.

She walked to the console, picked up a set of experimental data, and handed it to Lin Yuan.

"This is the remaining partial data of the X Vaccine; go back and study it, come to the meeting tomorrow morning at nine, and we'll discuss the specific R&D direction."

Lin Yuan nodded, took the materials.

……

Over the next few days, Lin Yuan, the Risk Control Director, was temporarily reassigned to the pharmaceutical R&D department.

He began working full-time as an assistant, developing the X Vaccine project.

When the news came out, the office buzzed with discussion.

Everyone was a bit confused??

Lin Yuan, a manager of risk control, how did he suddenly get involved in medical research??

Many in the company felt…… Su Monong's decision was too risky.

Even Sun Licheng strongly objected.

But these objections were all suppressed by Su Monong.

Because the group's pharmaceutical R&D director, Shen Nan Zhi personally wrote a recommendation letter to the board:

Shen Nan Zhi said, Lin Yuan possesses his professional TCM knowledge, so she applied to obtain his assistance.

Since the pharmaceutical director said so, the board could only agree.

Over the next few days, Lin Yuan was assigned to the R&D department, beginning temporary R&D assistance work.

When Lin Yuan reported to the R&D department, he truly felt the project's predicament.

When Qian Renhao poached the core team, he almost cleared all key technical data and experimental records.

What was left for them was… only a pile of scattered medicinal herb samples and a few pages of incomplete experimental data.

In the following days, Lin Yuan completely immersed himself in the laboratory.

He and Shen Nan Zhi almost daily soaked in the herb piles, often doing experiments all night.

The TCM compatibility theory proposed by Lin Yuan initially made Shen Nan Zhi hard to accept.

In her view, drug development… must rely on precise molecular formulas and data support.

And these theoretical concepts of herbal medicine are too abstract.

But when Lin Yuan combined hawthorn, aged tangerine peel, and salvia in a specific proportion… and extracted the components.

Lin Yuan used these herbal extracts in an in vitro experiment… and unexpectedly boosted the lipid-lowering effect by 30%?!

Moreover, there were no gastrointestinal side effects at all!

At that moment, Shen Nan Zhi was completely shocked.

As it turns out, herbal medicine really does have an effect on lowering blood lipids!

Moreover, it has far fewer side effects than Western medicine!

In the laboratory at eleven p. m. at night, Lin Yuan wore a white coat and was using a microscope to observe the molecular structure of the herbal extract.

"Traditional Western medicine only focuses on the 'lipid-lowering' result, yet neglects the drug's effect on the viscera."

"Look at this astragalus; Western medicine detects its astragaloside, which can boost immunity, but fails to notice that when paired with goji berry, it activates the liver's lipid metabolism enzyme. This is the marvel of TCM 'synergy'."

Shen Nan Zhi stood beside him, holding a record board, the pen tip hovering over the paper yet she forgot to record.

She gazed at Lin Yuan's focused profile…

The light outlined his clear jawline…

This man, when he occasionally frowns in thought, his bangs fall forward, revealing a youthful vigor utterly different from his usual composure.

Sometime ago, whenever Lin Yuan approached…

Shen Nan Zhi's heartbeat would inexplicably quicken…

Before, no matter how many outstanding suitors she faced, her heart remained still.

But now, facing this man who is ten years younger than her, Shen Nan Zhi's long-dormant heart stirred with ripples.

Inspired by Lin Yuan, Shen Nan Zhi gradually opened the door to a new world.

She began actively browsing TCM classics…

She attempted to use modern pharmaceutical technology to analyze the active components of herbal medicine.

When the novel extract jointly developed by the two… showed a significant boost in lipid-lowering effect in animal experiments!

Shen Nan Zhi gripped the experimental report and, for the first time, showed a genuine smile toward Lin Yuan.

Shen Nan Zhi's beautiful eyes complex, she softly said, "Lin Yuan, you are right; TCM indeed has value that Western medicine cannot replace."

As the project progressed, Shen Nan Zhi's admiration for Lin Yuan grew deeper…

Her fondness for this young man Lin Yuan also became increasingly clear.

Shen Nan Zhi recalled Lin Yuan's earlier diagnosis: "Long-term singleness leads to estrogen deficiency."

She also thought of her own accelerating physical decline…

These past few days, Shen Nan Zhi lay in bed each night, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

Especially seeing Lin Yuan, in order to keep up with experimental progress, busy to the point of forgetting to eat…

She would subconsciously prepare a nutritious meal in advance;

Seeing Lin Yuan's dark circles after staying up late, she would silently brew a calming goji berry tea…

These actions, even unbeknownst to herself, had already revealed her feelings.

That night, the two again pulled an all-nighter in the laboratory.

Until 4 a. m., the two finally completed an extraction experiment on a batch of key medicinal herbs.

When Shen Nan Zhi took off her white coat, the outside sky already showed a pale dawn.

Shen Nan Zhi watched Lin Yuan wearily rubbing his shoulders.

She suddenly mustered all her courage and called out to him as Lin Yuan turned to leave.

"Lin Yuan, wait a moment."

Lin Yuan turned his head, looking at her quizzically: "Director Shen, is there anything else?"

The laboratory's soft light fell upon Shen Nan Zhi's delicately carved pretty face.

At this moment, she appeared very beautiful, beautiful to the point of being breath-taking.

Shen Nan Zhi took a deep breath, her jade-like fingers tensely clenched.

Her usual eloquent speech became halting now: "Lin Yuan, I… I just want to ask, you… do you have a girlfriend?"

Lin Yuan, upon hearing this, froze for a moment??

He never expected Shen Nan Zhi would suddenly ask this question??

Lin Yuan candidly shook his head: "No, I've always been busy with work; in recent years, I haven't had the energy to consider these."

Hearing that answer, Shen Nan Zhi's beautiful eyes lit up.

Shen Nan Zhi bit her lower lip, as if she had made a huge decision.

She suddenly lifted her head, her beautiful eyes staring directly into Lin Yuan's eyes...

In Shen Nan Zhi's amber eyes, there was sincerity and anticipation; she softly asked, "Then... do you want to try an older‑sister‑younger‑brother romance?"