DJPWNK 88

Not sure if it was Shen Fangyu’s sincere request for leave that moved President Cao, or if he simply couldn’t stand him anymore and decided to seek outside help, a few days later, an unexpected guest arrived at Jiang Xu’s house.

The man was dressed very plainly, and at first glance, he didn’t have a particularly memorable appearance.

He sat in Jiang Xu’s living room, accepted the tea cup Shen Fangyu handed him, politely thanked them, and slowly introduced himself to the two of them: “My name is Zheng Qi, and I am a staff member of the Confidentiality Bureau.”

Although Shen Fangyu had previously mentioned that someone from higher up would soon come to find them, he and Jiang Xu still subconsciously glanced at each other when they heard this introduction.

Zheng Qi caught this detail and his eyes flickered as he thought of something.

Although Shen Fangyu could guess that Zheng Qi’s name was probably not real, he still addressed him cautiously: “Mr. Zheng, do you have something to tell us?”

Zheng Qi produced some identification and confidential documents and handed them to the two to look at. One side was to prove his identity, and the other side explained his purpose, “I came over the matter of the surgery for male pregnancy.”

“The director of Jihua Hospital provided us with information that Dr. Jiang Xu and Dr. Shen Fangyu will be mainly responsible for this surgery. I apologize for visiting you so late but we had to conduct background checks on the two doctors and their families.”

He went straight to the point: “I have seen pictures of the two doctors many times. If I am not mistaken, you should be Dr. Jiang and Dr. Shen. There is no problem with your review, but in order to cooperate with our work, I still hope that the two of you can take out your documents and let me further verify your identity.”

Jiang Xu tried to get up when he heard this but Shen Fangyu pressed his shoulder and walked to the study to retrieve their documents, which he then handed to Zheng Qi.

“Thank you.”

Zheng Qi took the documents and carefully examined them for a long time. He looked up and returned the documents to Shen Fangyu.

“I originally came here to see the patient,” Zheng Qi said, glancing at Jiang Xu’s abdomen, which was clearly different from that of an ordinary person, and spoke frankly: “But now, I think I have to confirm… the relationship between you two first.”

Seeing that the two kept silent, Zheng Qi placed his hands on his overlapping knees and continued, “I hope you are honest enough and won’t conceal anything. Only then can we provide better help to you and cooperate for a win-win situation.”

After he finished speaking, both Jiang Xu and Shen Fangyu remained silent. The room was very quiet, as if even the sound of the wind outside could be heard.

After a while, Zheng Qi laughed, “Dr. Jiang, Dr. Shen, despite the current pressure of public opinion, you still had the courage to decide to perform this surgery so I think you also believe in the country. You don’t have to have any ideological scruples. Protecting you is my job.”

Shen Fangyu glanced at Jiang Xu, hesitated for a moment, and pursed his lips.

After a moment, Jiang Xu looked up with a serious expression and said, “We are lovers.”

Zheng Qi nodded without looking surprised and asked, “What about the patient?”

Zheng Qi’s calm attitude appeased Zheng Qi to some extent. He lowered his head and looked at his obviously protruding belly and said to Zheng Qi, “I am the patient.”

“Understood,” Zheng Qi said, “but I still need your examination report to corroborate the information you provided.”

Shen Fangyu took out the khaki paper bag and handed all the documents to Zheng Qi. After reading them, Zheng Qi said to Jiang Xu, “In the next month, we will have someone escort you to undergo an examination to further confirm the situation. At the same time, I will take the two of you to the operating room in advance to check the equipment. If you have any needs, you can raise them at any time.”

“Dr. Shen,” he said, “there will also be staff coming to test your professional abilities and psychological condition in the near future to confirm that you can perform the surgery as the lead surgeon. There may be some disturbances, and I hope you can understand.”

He wrote down a phone number and pushed it in front of the two, saying, “In the future, there is no need to contact President Cao for any needs. You can directly contact me for anything.”

“Also,” he leaned back and moved his gaze between the two for a moment before speaking, “I want to ask you both about the authorship of the paper…”

“Give him both the publications and first authorship,” Shen Fangyu said.

Jiang Xu held Shen Fangyu’s hand and shook his head.

“Then let’s share it,” Shen Fangyu compromised.

“Don’t mention me,” Jiang Xu said, “not even a word about me in the paper. This is the best protection for me and Xiaoxiao.”

“But-“

“Shen Fangyu, you’re the lead surgeon. If the operation is successful, you deserve the credit,” Jiang Xu looked at him. “I don’t care about this paper. Don’t look down on me.”

He took a sip of warm water and his eyes were still as confident as ever. “Even without this paper, I guarantee that I can still become the chief physician before you. Instead of arguing about authorship, you should worry about losing to me someday.”

“Jiang Xu…”

“You don’t have to say anything more,” Jiang Xu interrupted Shen Fangyu’s rebuttal. “I’ll make the decision for this matter.”

“Dr. Jiang is right,” Zheng Qi said on the side. “Adding Dr. Jiang’s name to the paper but not including him in the list of surgery participants will definitely invite speculation and possibly negative media attention. However, I assure you both in the name of our country that even if the media reports on this matter after the surgery is successful, your romantic relationship, your child’s privacy, and your personal lives will not be exposed to the public. You can trust the power of our country.”

He continued, “Also, considering your relationship, I will apply to provide you both with a suitable and secluded place to live in the suburbs of A City. Our personnel will also protect you until the rumors have died down.”

“But Dr. Shen, as the lead surgeon, if the surgery is successful, we will inform the world, especially the Western media, about this matter. At that time, we will not allow the media to over hype it, but the country will need you to make appropriate public appearances and communicate with the outside world. I hope you can accept and understand this.”

Shen Fangyu rubbed his forehead. “I am mentally prepared.”

“Furthermore, in the unlikely event of a surgical failure,” Zheng Qi looked at Jiang Xu, “this matter must be kept completely confidential. No one else can know besides us.”

Perhaps concerned that his implication was not clear enough, he paused for a moment and added:

“If Dr. Jiang unfortunately encounters an accident during the operation, we will do everything in our power, utilize all resources to rescue him. But if we cannot save him,” he paused, “to prevent any leakage of information, we may notify your family and choose immediate cremation. Apart from your family, no one will know the true cause of your death. Can you accept that?”

Jiang Xu took a deep breath and said, “Yes.”

“Good,” Zheng Qi’s gaze lingered on his face for a long time before continuing, “Since Dr. Jiang does not plan to participate in the publicity, I promise you that we will protect your identity information and create a complete portfolio detailing your experience in the border area, covering the time gap of your pregnancy and childbirth to avoid any suspicion from the hospital regarding your departure. After you are discharged, you can go to the clinic for a period of time to further solidify the story.”

“Dr. Shen can also prepare to take a vacation after. I will negotiate with the superiors of Jihua Hospital regarding your vacation,” Zheng Qi said, “In addition to regularly performing some difficult surgeries at Jihua to maintain your surgical skills, the country hopes you can devote yourself wholeheartedly to the preparation for this surgery. This is important for us.”

“Everything I just said will be documented and signed by the two of you. In addition, if you have any questions before or after the surgery, you can come to me.”

He finished speaking and stood up, extending his hand to the two of them. “Believe in the country, and the country will protect you.”

“You are very brave,” Zheng Qi’s expression was solemn. “I wish you good luck.”

——————

About a month before Jiang Xu’s due date, Shen Fangyu finally handed over all his other work at the hospital and prepared to devote himself wholeheartedly to the preparation for the surgery.

That day, he was planning to go straight home but just as he walked to the parking lot, he received a call from Jiang Xu.

“I’m on my way back,” he inserted the key into the car with one hand and held his phone with the other, tilting his head slightly. “Do you want anything to eat? I can pick it up on my way back from work.”

Jiang Xu was wearing a mask and a hat, and was still wrapped in a thick down jacket in A City, where spring had already appeared. Although it looked a bit bulky, it could at least block the excessively large pregnant belly.

“I’m waiting for you at the notary office,” he looked at the nearby sign and said to the person on the phone, “I brought your ID card and household registration book for you. Just come over.”

“The notary office?”

When Shen Fangyu rushed over, still somewhat surprised, he asked, “Didn’t we say there was no need to notarize our property? Besides, the news about buying a house hasn’t been released yet.”

“Just notarize something else,” he held a thick folder and looked at Shen Fangyu, dropping two words, “Voluntary Guardianship.”

Voluntary Guardianship refers to a written agreement and notarization by an adult with full capacity for civil conduct where they designate a guardian to themselves.

This relationship takes legal precedence over legal guardianship, such as parents and other relatives.

Originally, this law was introduced to address the issue of an aging population.

However, many same-sex couples soon found that while the scope of this law was not as extensive as a marriage certificate, it was currently the most effective legal provision for covering spousal rights and obligations, so they began to use it one after another.

As a result, the notarized will of guardianship also became another form of “marriage certificate” for same-sex couples.

The designated guardian would have responsibilities and obligations over the protected person, such as medical care, property management, and litigation rights and obligations, after the protected person loses their legal capacity.

In simpler terms, once this notarization is completed, Shen Fangyu could sign his name on Jiang Xu’s surgical consent form as his family.

Of course, he could also sign the “Informed Consent Form for Voluntary Withdrawal of Treatment”.

Jiang Xu had given his chief surgeon, Dr. Shen, the power to stop treatment and resuscitation if he was beyond salvation.

Shen Fangyu’s hand trembled lightly and Jiang Xu gently squeezed his fore arm, touching his hand intermittently. “Don’t be nervous. It’s not just for that operation.”

“You said… the law can’t protect us, but you will protect me.” Jiang Xu said, “Then my reply is that if one law cannot protect us, I will use other laws to protect you.”

“You proposed to me, and now it’s my turn to propose to you,” Jiang Xu’s eyes reflected the blooming trees of March and his lover with peach blossom eyes. “Mr. Shen, will you say yes?”

Shen Fangyu’s proposal cost a yacht, fireworks, a song, and a pair of rings.

Jiang Xu’s proposal cost two notarization fees of three thousand yuan.

The staff at the notary office were quite strict, repeatedly confirming their relationship status and emphasizing the seriousness of the matter before finally agreeing to handle it for them.

The solemn attitude, the black and white lettered treaties and big red stamp were considered proof.

After leaving the notary office, Shen Fangyu looked at the paper in his hand as if he had never been married before, and excitedly stuffed it into the inner pocket of his coat – the closest place to his heart.

“We spent much more than we would on a marriage certificate, so you can’t just leave me for the sake of money.” He teased Jiang Xu while holding his arm.

Jiang Xu put his hands in his pockets, lifted the corners of his mouth, and responded, “If you want to leave, then give me back the notarization fee.”

“I can’t pay it back even if I wanted to.” Shen Fangyu reached into Jiang Xu’s pocket to hold his hand. “So I won’t leave you even if I die.”

The warm spring sunshine fell on them, making Jiang Xu, who was wearing a down jacket, sweat all over. He patted away Shen Fangyu’s hand and said, “It’s hot.”

“Take off your down jacket,” Shen Fangyu helped him unzip it before getting into the driver’s seat and after Jiang Xu got into the passenger seat, he helped buckle his seat belt before going to the driver’s seat.

As soon as he put down the car window, a gust of wind blew in from outside, and cherry blossom petals fell from the treetops, drifting into the car with the spring breeze.

Shen Fangyu’s gaze followed the falling petals, then he saw a soft petal lightly fall onto Jiang Xu’s collar, covering a small mole on his collarbone.

He couldn’t help but curl his lips and gently brushed away the petal from Jiang Xu’s neck with his hand, then put his arm around his neck and leaned in to kiss his forehead.

“Spring has come,” he said, “Happy wedding, my love.”

Jiang Xu blushed imperceptibly, and he turned his face away, pushing Shen Fangyu away with his hand and whispering, “Why are you so sticky?”

However, the spring breeze brushed past his heart, and the fragrance of camphor trees slipped into his heart. He seemed to have belatedly accepted this nickname that was enough to make people sickly sweet.

His heart was still a little hot.

Shen Fangyu smiled, “If I’m not sticky with you, who will I be sticky with?”

On their way home, they happened to pass by the Civil Affairs Bureau of A City. Couples walked out of the door one after another, holding red books and holding hands. The peach blossoms at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau were in full bloom, reflecting the faces of the happy lovers.

Before falling in love with Shen Fangyu, Jiang Xu had also thought that he would get married at the Civil Affairs Bureau one day.

Unexpectedly, the red thread of fate was particularly elusive. In the end, he would actually get married at the notary office.

Jiang Xu withdrew his gaze, suddenly lowered his head, and inexplicably looked at the folder in his hand.

What Shen Fangyu didn’t know was that before he arrived, he had made another notarization.

In a clean and bright room, Jiang Xu sat in front of the staff with a calm and natural expression:

“…If my life comes to an end, I hope that my designated guardian will sell the property in the Yuefeng community for cash, and also get all my savings as pre-marital property for inheritance.”

“If my designated guardian has children, then half of these assets shall be inherited by them(Shen Fangyu and children), and the other half shall be inherited by my parents. If he does not have children, then one-fifth shall be inherited by him, and the rest shall be inherited by my parents.”

“In addition, from the date of this notarization, if I acquire any new fixed assets under my name, please consider them as post-marital property and divide them equally, with half given to my designated guardian. If my parents have already passed away, then all of it shall be inherited by my designated guardian.”

Finally, the man in the black down jacket tightened his collar and added, “Round off the calculation to the nearest unit.”

This was a will notarization.

It was also Jiang Xu’s calm, reserved love that he had never expressed openly.

What the law cannot guarantee, he used other legal means to protect Shen Fangyu.

Author’s Note:

Voluntary guardianship is a clause that is relatively suitable for the LGBT community nowadays. After discovering that some same sex couples were using this clause, the country did not modify the law to increase restrictions, and the notary staff also did not refuse to handle designated guardianship for same-sex couples. If you want to do it, just tell them that you are a same-sex couple. Generally, they will also confirm the emotional status and marital relationship of the two people, and refuse to handle it for individuals with an unstable emotional status or those who are already married according to records.

The Information related to the designated guardianship in this chapter is sourced from online articles and Baidu encyclopedia.