CHAPTER 168: BABY WITH A FAVOURED 168 HEAD

Qiaoqiao’s house was in Building 19, some distance from Qiu Mingyuan’s house in Building 6. Walking with Qiu Mingyuan through the residential community, Liu Banxia was filled with envy.

He wondered when he could become a truly wealthy person and afford a villa here. He would then have his parents come over; that would epitomize success.

However, he knew it was merely a dream he would wake up from in a few minutes. Even if he were to earn twice his current income, he still wouldn’t be able to afford this lifestyle.

The Qiu Family took Liu Banxia’s visit very seriously. Not only was Qiu Huaili waiting in the living room, but his wife, Wang Jingxian, was also there, holding a baby girl about a year old.

Looking at their age, Liu Banxia thought they couldn’t be much older than himself. But that was their business.

Qiu Mingyuan was extremely fond of his baby sister. He immediately took her into his arms and started playing with the little one.

"You’re making such a big deal out of my visit. I’m feeling a bit embarrassed," Liu Banxia said.

"No need for formalities. If it weren’t for your reminder, Ming Yuan would have suffered a lot in the future, wouldn’t he? My own condition is more serious. Who knows, I might just pass away and leave them behind one day," Qiu Huaili said with a laugh.

"Old Qiu, why are you talking about such things?" his wife, Wang Jingxian, gave him a disapproving look.

"Haha, Xian, you don’t understand. Brother Banxia is worldly and wise; he sees these things more clearly than we do," Qiu Huaili laughed.

"To be honest, brother, I’m only scared now, thinking back. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but the more I thought about it after getting home, the more frightened I became. Having lived this long, it’s not that I’m reluctant to part with money, but I can’t bear to leave these two children."

"Brother Qiu, you just need to be a bit more careful in your daily life. It’s not as terrifying as it sounds. I really admire Ming Yuan’s self-control; that’s something even I respect," Liu Banxia said.

"The family will depend on him in the future. Doudou is still so young, and your sister-in-law has no interest in business matters at all," Qiu Huaili said.

"Why should I worry about those things? It’s not like I understand them anyway. Worrying would just be meddling and causing more trouble," Wang Jingxian interjected.

"Ming Yuan, tell Auntie, how are things going with that classmate of yours? Didn’t you have dinner together today? If things aren’t working out, have Dr. Liu give you some advice."

"Auntie, can you please stop torturing me? Most parents worry about their kids dating too young, but why are you guys like this? You’re actually encouraging it!" Qiu Mingyuan said helplessly.

"So what? If you don’t make a move now, it’ll be too late later. Anyway, I’ve seen that girl. She’s very nice, very demure," Wang Jingxian said.

"She’s the daughter of our hospital’s chief of neurosurgery. I think she has a pretty good impression of Ming Yuan too. Otherwise, why would she go out for skewers with a bunch of us? Last time Ming Yuan had kidney stones, she was incredibly worried," Liu Banxia said with a laugh.

"Hehe, actually, I think I’m alright too. It’s just my grades that are a bit lacking. It’s not that I don’t work hard; I just really can’t get the hang of math," Qiu Mingyuan said with a laugh.

Liu Banxia found this family’s way of interacting quite interesting.

"Ming Yuan, let me hold the baby for a bit, okay?" Liu Banxia said after a while, smiling.

"Brother, tell me honestly, is there something wrong with my Doudou? I noticed you kept looking over at Doudou while we were talking just now," Qiu Huaili’s face turned serious.

DING! Task Issued: The Baby with a Tilted Head

Open Task: The Host has observed that Qiu Huaili’s baby exhibits an unconscious head tilt, suspecting an underlying medical condition that requires further examination. Task rewards will be issued based on the examination results.

"You have to let me take a look first. I’ve noticed Doudou’s head habitually tilts to the right," Liu Banxia said with a wry smile.

He hadn’t expected Qiu Huaili to be so observant. He had indeed sensed something was off with the little one. Although she was very active now, that unconscious head tilt was quite conspicuous in his eyes.

Upon hearing him say this, both Wang Jingxian and Qiu Mingyuan became tense. Even though this was Liu Banxia’s first visit as a guest, Qiu Mingyuan had already done a fair bit of "promoting" his legendary deeds at home.

Liu Banxia took the little girl into his arms, first gently palpating her skull and cervical vertebrae. Thankfully, he didn’t feel anything particularly out of place, which indicated there were no skeletal problems with the baby.

Then Liu Banxia placed the little girl on the sofa and tested the strength of her limbs by grasping her small hands and feet.

In the little girl’s world, this was just a game, and she gurgled happily. Her small hands and feet were quite strong, gripping Liu Banxia’s fingers tightly and not letting go.

Especially when the little girl started babbling in her "baby language"; Liu Banxia, for one, couldn’t understand a single word.

By this point in the examination, Liu Banxia was beginning to doubt his own judgment. The little girl was robust and full of energy; she really didn’t seem like a sick baby.

After all, babies are the worst at faking illness. If they’re uncomfortable anywhere, they’ll let you know without the slightest bit of concealment.

Just then, the little girl’s right hand loosened its grip, and she randomly patted the right side of her own head before reaching out to grab Liu Banxia’s finger again, eager to continue playing.

"Brother Qiu, could you make the lights brighter? It’s a bit dim now," Liu Banxia said.

Hearing him, Qiu Mingyuan immediately ran over and switched on all the lights in the living room. It became much brighter, so much so that the baby squinted a little.

Liu Banxia first carefully examined the scalp on the right side of her head, looking for any tiny insects or similar things attached to it. Although the chances were slim, it was still a possibility.

He examined her so thoroughly that his forehead beaded with sweat, but he still couldn’t find anything amiss.

This result, however, made the Qiu family even more anxious. They knew Liu Banxia wasn’t the type to be deliberately mysterious. If he hadn’t found the problem with Doudou yet, it might very well be a major issue.

This little girl was the apple of their eye. No matter how busy Qiu Huaili was, he made sure to see her every day.

At this moment, Liu Banxia frowned, took out his phone, turned on the flashlight, and shone it into the baby’s right ear canal. After examining the right ear canal, he then shone it into the left ear canal.

"Ming Yuan, hand me some clean cotton swabs," Liu Banxia instructed.

"Brother, have you figured it out?" Qiu Huaili asked anxiously.

"Not yet, I need to take another look," Liu Banxia replied.

Just then, Qiu Mingyuan brought the cotton swabs. Liu Banxia very gently and carefully cleaned the little girl’s ear canals. He used three cotton swabs for each side.

"Brother Qiu, don’t be nervous," Liu Banxia said after another careful look.

"The little one has a congenital preauricular fistula, and it’s already a bit inflamed. It will require surgical intervention. However, it’s considered a minor surgery, and the inflammation isn’t too bad right now. Look closely at this small dot in her ear canal, the one with the discharge."

DING! ’The Baby with a Tilted Head’ task completed.

Gained 300 experience points, 400 skill proficiency in Diagnostics.

Congratulations, Host! Level increased to 33 (56,037/58,953). Gained 1 attribute point and 5 Glory Points.

Task Rating: Perfect. Awarded an additional 500 experience points, 500 skill proficiency in Diagnostics, and 5 Glory Points.

Qiu Huaili leaned in to look closely and, sure enough, he saw that the area was slightly moist.

"The little one also knows something is uncomfortable with her body, but she can’t accurately determine what it is yet, so she can only resort to randomly touching the area with her hand," Liu Banxia continued.

"Normally, the opening of a congenital preauricular fistula is located in front of the ear, like the small pit some people have there. That’s a preauricular fistula."

"The little one’s fistula opening is in a rather hidden spot, on the edge of the ear canal, which is why it’s often missed during newborn checkups."

"Look at the cotton swabs I just used. The ones from the left ear canal are dry, while those from the right ear canal feel somewhat damp. Normally, they should both be the same."

"Brother, just tell me, is it serious? Does she absolutely have to have surgery?" Qiu Huaili patted his wife’s hand and looked at Liu Banxia.

"Brother Qiu, whether it’s serious or not needs to be determined with medical instruments. I can’t make a judgment on that right now," Liu Banxia said after some thought.

"As for the fistula tract, we need to see if it’s simple or complex. However, based on her current presentation, it’s more likely to be simple. But considering there’s already discharge from the baby’s fistula tract, I personally recommend a detailed examination."

"If surgical intervention is feasible, that would actually be the most ideal outcome. A fistula tract won’t heal on its own; it will only get progressively worse. However, I’m not familiar with the surgical procedures for this condition, so I don’t know if it’s appropriate for a baby this young or if it’s better to wait a few years."

"You all shouldn’t worry too much for now. Just like with Ming Yuan, early detection means there are always ways to manage it, or even resolve it completely."

Although he had tried his best to describe the condition in the mildest terms, the Qiu family was still terrified. The thought of such a young baby needing surgery was truly horrifying.

Actually, preauricular fistulas are quite common in daily life. For some people, this fistula never causes any problems throughout their lives. But for others, it can disrupt their lives and even become life-threatening.

The key is the location of the fistula’s internal opening. The head’s structure is very complex, and if the internal opening is at the base of the skull, it’s extremely dangerous.

Even a simple preauricular fistula, though typically in a relatively safe location, can frequently discharge pus if it gets infected. This not only creates an odor but can also lead to scarring near the external opening of the fistula.

This is the terror of disease; as its course progresses, it can lead to various consequences.

He also hadn’t expected to discover such a condition in the baby during a simple visit. Even he found it quite miraculous. No wonder the rewards given just now were so generous.

It could be considered a takeaway: the more difficult a condition is to diagnose, the more abundant the rewards. It’s not related to the severity of the illness, but rather to the process of diagnosis and treatment.