The Surgeon's Studio

by Stayrr

“Primum non nocere.” First, do no harm. – Hippocrates Zheng Ren—an ordinary general surgeon in a cruel medical world whose efforts went unnoticed. His struggles are real…until he is blessed with a system and gifted with skills that exceeded even the best surgeons in the world. Alone in the world with no one to depend on, Zheng Ren uses his exceptional gift to challenge the skeptici

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The Surgeon's Studio #Chapter 161: Zheng Ren, Help! - Read The Surgeon's Studio Chapter 161: Zheng Ren, Help! Online - All Page - Novel Next

Chapter 161: Zheng Ren, Help!

Zheng Ren had no idea how much treatment would cost.

The implementation of the new rural cooperative medical system had provided more opportunities for farmers to receive treatment and improve their quality of life.

However, based on Zheng Ren's experience, once medical charges exceeded ten thousand yuan, the chances of them giving up treatment were very high.

"I'll try to minimize the surgery cost between five to eight thousand yuan," replied Zheng Ren after a long pause to run the numbers. If he used the surgical supplies provided by Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery, the cost would be easier to control.

Moreover, part of the medical expenses would be reimbursed later, so the patient would have fewer financial issues.

Even so, the men's expression remained gloomy.

Just as Zheng Ren was about to comfort them, he suddenly thought of something else.

"By the way, do you know anything about avascular necrosis of the femoral head?" he asked.

"No, this is the first time I've heard about it." The short man was still overwhelmed by the incredible cost, his heart shattered to pieces.

"This disease can't be completely cured by just surgery and stopping the white pills," Zheng Ren said sincerely, "Surgery can only restore blood supply for a certain period of time. If you're involved in heavy labor or other similar things, your condition is likely to recur, but if you don't receive any treatment and allow your disease to progress from stage one to three, you'll need a hip replacement surgery, which will cost you around a hundred thousand yuan."

Five to eight thousand yuan was a huge amount, but a hundred thousand yuan was simply astronomical.

The men's expressions sank immediately.

"Give me your phone number, and you can return home to discuss the matter with your family. If you've saved up some money, I advise you to receive treatment when there isn't much farm work to attend to. You'll recover quicker that way."

The men nodded vigorously.

"By the way, if you decide to come, ask for reimbursement from your local medical insurance company first. Best you complete any necessary procedures in advance before spending any money here. Otherwise, you might not be able to receive any reimbursement.

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"Although the reimbursement rate isn't that good, it's better to save cost whenever possible, right? I'll also try to minimize your surgery fee as much as possible."

"Doctor Zheng, thank you." The tall man bowed deeply and expressed his heartfelt gratitude.

"No worries." Zheng Ren waved his hand. "Go back and speak to your family. Give me a call if you plan on receiving treatment."

He then took a piece of A4 paper from the printer and wrote the department phone number on it.

As for his personal phone number... Unless absolutely necessary, he would never give it to strangers.

The tachycardic feeling that came whenever his phone rang was too agonizing.

Zheng Ren had recently even considered metoprolol tablets or any medication that could reduce his heart rate.

The men thanked Zheng Ren again and left the office. He stretched lazily and hoped the emergency department would not be busy today as his novel was still waiting for him.

He had to study the prostate after his novel session was over...

The thought of the prostate slightly annoyed Zheng Ren. How was interventional radiology going to work with no major arterial supply? However, since Old Chief Physician Pan had placed a high value on this matter, he would still do his best.

In Zheng Yunxia's medical records, Zheng Ren began writing intraoperative procedures.

Chang Yue's existence had drastically reduced Zheng Ren's workload.

A detailed medical history upon admission, disease progression, laboratory test results, preoperative discussions, resuscitation records, multidisciplinary consultations, transferral records and discharge summary...

This series of trivial and frustrating work was overwhelming. Zheng Ren was glad that Chang Yue was in charge of it now, which invigorated him a lot.

He made a phone call after the paperwork was complete. Old Chief Physician Pan was in his office.

After notifying Chang Yue, he went downstairs and headed there.

He knocked on the door, entered the room and went straight to the point.

"Chief Physician Pan, I have just received a patient with stage one avascular necrosis of the femoral head," said Zheng Ren.

"Dexamethasone-induced again?" Old Chief Physician Pan figured it out without inquiring further.

He was not a prophet, but he had seen and consulted many similar cases in the past.

"Yes," replied Zheng Ren.

"What's your plan?" Old Chief Physician Pan asked, suddenly raising his head as if recalling something important.

"Interventional radiology. Not only can it be used to embolize an artery, it also can unclog a blocked blood vessel."

"Interventional radiology, angiology subspecialty. Are you sure you can do it?"

"It's not a problematic issue," Zheng Ren replied, "Interventional radiological treatment for avascular necrosis of the femoral head is the simplest of its kind."

"Okay." Old Chief Physician Pan was immersed in thought.

Zheng Ren remained silent as he believed Old Chief Physician Pan already knew what was coming next.

"I'll visit the province in my free time," Old Chief Physician Pan said, "I've come to understand the qualification issue. Our hospital is certified, but I have to acquire a permit from the provincial health department to transfer ownership of interventional radiology to the emergency department."

"You're going to handle it personally?"

"Of course. If we wait for hospital management to handle this issue, it'll be settled in a few years, and you would probably be in the south then." Old Chief Physician Pan was not mocking him, merely stating a fact.

"..."

Zheng Ren was speechless when it came to this issue.

He had no plans to go to the south now. He had to at least become a deputy senior consultant before doing so.

However, if he was promoted in the future, would he even leave Sea City General Hospital?

The multiple-choice question was gut-wrenching.

Zheng Ren had seen an online recruitment notice from a newly-constructed government hospital in Xiamen with a phrase written on it—earn a living with dignity and honesty.

Various historical reasons had reduced payloads for all medical practitioners. This was beyond reproach.

How could one choose between monthly incomes of four thousand and forty thousand yuan? The answer was clear.

Old Chief Physician had recently brought up this issue repeatedly, obviously unwilling to hinder Zheng Ren's future and financial prospects.

The old man's kindness and generosity warmed Zheng Ren's heart.

"I'm still undecided. What if, in the future, our hospital can provide a higher salary just like the ones in the south?" Zheng Ren smiled.

"I won't witness that in my lifetime. It might still be possible for you when you reach my age." Old Chief Physician Pan shook his head, judging the situation based on his social experience. "That's why I want to get as many benefits as possible before your resignation."

He then laughed at his less-than-funny joke.

Zheng Ren left the office in a complicated mood.

Old Chief Physician Pan would personally handle any issue with surgery qualifications. Since he had nothing else to do today, he quickly returned to the office to finish his novel so that he could study the anatomy of the prostate. Once everything was settled, he wanted to visit the System and search for any equipment that might come in handy in Imperial Capital.

The System had not yet assigned any mission to him. The mysterious world had become more vivid, and the little fox statue had become increasingly realistic as well. Perhaps the System was taking a break after the crisis had passed.

'What a lazy System,' Zheng Ren thought.

Fortunately, he was now considered a "wealthy" man. He still had two skill books that could instantly upgrade one random skill to the Graduate rank, and had accumulated lots of skill points in his inventory as well. There were more than enough for him to handle any emergency coming his way.

He thought about it while walking to the emergency ward.

Suddenly, his phone rang right before he entered.

His heart rate instantly shot up to 103 beats per minute, causing him to feel slightly uncomfortable.

When he took out his phone and noticed that the call was from Xie Yiren, he calmed down a little.

As soon as he accepted the call, Xie Yiren cried out from the other end. "Zheng Ren, help!"

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Chapter 162: Indestructible Trust

Zheng Ren instantly panicked upon hearing Xie Yiren's despairing wail. His heart rate skyrocketed to 145 beats per minute, and his systolic pressure shot up to nearly ten centimeters above his height.

"Calm down, what's wrong? Speak slowly." He forcibly suppressed his discomfort and consoled Xie Yiren.

"Zheng Ren, Miao Xiaohua is dying. Please come quickly!" said Xie Yiren, her speech disorganized and her logical thought process in disarray as she continued to wail regardless of whether Zheng Ren could understand her.

He was aware that Miao Xiaohua was Xie Yiren's best friend who had previously been hospitalized in the Sea City General Hospital gastroenterology department due to acute pancreatitis secondary to binge-eating.

If he was not mistaken, the extravagant group had coincidentally met with Miao Xiaohua when they had gone for a barbeque a few days ago.

Had she not been discharged from the hospital? Why was she on the brink of death now?

However, judging from Xie Yiren's simple explanation, Zheng Ren presumed that Miao Xiaohua had most likely gotten sick rather than fallen victim to kidnapping or other bizarre accidents.

If an emergency case was sent to the hospital and treated in time, its mortality risk would decrease drastically.

Medical facilities and various advanced equipment such as ventilators had gradually become standard in the current medical world. Even terminal patients could survive for another three days when connected to a ventilator.

"Slow down, where are you? I'm coming over now!" Even though his nerves were slightly soothed, he still cut to the heart of the matter immediately.

"The gastroenterology..." Xie Yiren's mental state was presumably in tatters as she immediately burst into tears after managing to squeeze the address out of her throat.

Zheng Ren quickly ran out of the emergency ward. When he passed the doctor's office, he instructed Yang Lei to keep an eye on the house and call him in case of an emergency.

Not caring if Yang Lei had clearly heard his instructions, Zheng Ren tried his best to console Xie Yiren through the phone as he sprinted straight to the gastroenterology department in the second admission building.

Was it an acute exacerbation of pancreatitis or another disease? Numerous thoughts whizzed through his mind as he tried to figure out the situation.

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A few minutes later, Zheng Ren reached the gastroenterology department, out of breath.

Patients with hematemesis were often admitted to the gastroenterology department, which was why a resuscitation room was built specifically for them. At this moment, Xie Yiren was kneeling beside the bed, weeping silently while holding Miao Xiaohua's hand firmly.

The font on the System panel on the upper right corner of Zheng Ren's vision was painted red as if fresh blood would splatter onto the floor then and there.

A ruptured pancreatic pseudocyst complicated with hemorrhagic shock.

Uh... It was a pancreatic pseudocyst!

This uncommon disease momentarily stunned Zheng Ren.

Clinical manifestations of a pancreatic pseudocyst were mainly based on the stages of acute or chronic pancreatitis.

Pseudocyst secondary to acute pancreatitis was characterized by pyrexia, upper abdominal pain and tenderness, abdominal mass and distention, gastrointestinal dysfunction and so on; various compilations could occur in severe cases.

Recurrent chronic pancreatitis-induced pseudocysts were usually smaller, and their main clinical features paralleled the manifestations of chronic pancreatitis such as upper abdominal and lower back pain, lipid metabolism disorder, hyperglycemia and many more. Splenomegaly and upper gastrointestinal bleeding were pathognomonic of this disease.

However, there was another special complication—intracystic hemorrhage!

That was what caused Miao Xiaohua's ruptured pancreatic pseudocyst.

An enlarged pancreatic pseudocyst could incorporate adjacent blood vessels—around the pancreas and upper abdomen—into its wall.

This included the splenic arteries and veins, along with the left and right gastric arteries and veins.

Activated pancreatic enzymes and infection could erode blood vessel walls and cause a sudden rupture and hemorrhage. Patients could develop severe persistent abdominal pain, increasing abdominal mass, signs of inflammation and also clinical manifestations of internal bleeding that would soon escalate to a state of shock.

This was a fatal condition! A series of thoughts flashed past Zheng Ren's mind, his body automatically secreting a large amount of hormones, breaking down ATPs and releasing stored chemical energies within high-energy phosphate bonds, normalizing his heart rate at the same time.

His mind was now prepared to perform emergency resuscitation.

The nurses in the gastroenterology department had completed venous cannulation and blood sample collection in a short period of time, proving their professionalism.

Miao Xiaohua's coat had been cut open as no one cared about its brand. No matter how expensive clothes were, were they more valuable than a life?

Her blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate and blood oxygen saturation displayed on the ECG monitor had dropped to a critical level.

"Central venous line kit," said Zheng Ren in a deep voice.

The nurse from the gastroenterology department was stunned for a brief moment and then immediately reacted.

It was difficult to locate a vein using a needle with a larger diameter in a patient with hemorrhagic shock, which was why they had managed to use a smaller bore needle to establish a venous channel, barely keeping her alive.

That was the best they could do. After all, if blood was transfused through a cannula with a small internal diameter, the patient would be dead before the blood bag was fully used up.

Zheng Ren's voice shocked Xie Yiren. With misty eyes, she turned around to make sure that she was not hallucinating and dived into his embrace, crying out loud at the same time.

She had just witnessed her bestie suddenly collapse before her.

From a lively, carefree, youthful, beautiful girl...

To an ashen-faced, critically ill patient at the end of her life.

Xie Yiren had witnessed the whole process in less than ten minutes and had now completely collapsed as well.

This was different from resuscitating patients. Regardless of how one treated the patients like family, the most they could feel was empathy. One's reaction would vary hugely when relatives or friends were involved.

Fortunately, there was still a large difference. If all medical personnel mentally collapsed like Xie Yiren in rescue operations, how many people would perish?

Xie Yiren found some closure in her unfaltering trust in Zheng Ren, and his broad chest provided her an infinite sense of security.

"Ding-dong!"

The System's mission alert rang out unexpectedly in Zheng Ren's mind after its long hibernation.

[Continuous Mission: Indestructible Trust.

[Task: Fulfill Xie Yiren's wish.

[Reward:

[1. Passive ability—unlimited Charm. Each successful surgery grants a chance to gain others' admiration that can be used to increase Charm. Charm is related to Toughness and Reliability.

[2. 100 skill points, 1000 experience points and a gold chest.

[Time: 2 hours.]

Zheng Ren ignored the System. In fact, he did not even hear the mission alert as his mind was currently focused on how to pull Miao Xiaohua from the brink of death in this urgent rescue operation.

Moreover, there was a delicate softness in his embrace...

Patting Xie Yiren's soft, furry head in silence, Zheng Ren brought her to the side and asked her to quietly stay put. After that, he quickly turned around, took a pack of sterile gloves from a nurse's hands, tore it open and proficiently put the gloves on.

"Open the central venous line kit," Zheng Ren instructed as he approached Miao Xiaohua.

During resuscitation, anyone who gave medical instructions would be the backbone of the rescue operation, but it was a risky task due to the tremendous stress one had to endure.

A happy ending would follow a successful resuscitation, but the backbone would have to take the fall if the operation ended up in failure.

Once the sterile kit was opened, Zheng Ren first disinfected the area of the skin over the planned insertion site before holding the hollow needle in his right hand while searching for a vein with his left finger.

Zheng Ren had demonstrated his impressive capability during the nitrite poisoning rescue operation. Focusing his entire attention in the moment, he pierced the needle through the skin and immediately noticed a flashback of blood.

"LMW Dextran at full speed!" Zheng Ren barked, attaching the infusion drip.

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Chapter 163: Hybrid Surgery

Unlike a dextrose solution, low molecular weight dextran and amino acid solution—abbreviated to LMH Dextran—was a colloid and a necessity in fluid resuscitation.

Many disliked the usage of LMH Dextran due to the rare possibility of an allergic reaction.

However, under current circumstances where plasma and red blood cells had not been delivered, it was the correct decision to administer dextrose solution and LMH Dextran at the same time.

As for the allergic reaction...

Rather than worrying about such small risks, it was better to treat the hemorrhagic shock first.

"Speed up the blood delivery, and send a doctor to wait at the blood transfusion department!" Zheng Ren continued to give orders without considering himself an outsider.

The doctors in the blood transfusion department had no idea whether the patient was in a critical state, dying or just having a normal disease. If blood retrieval was handled according to the waiting list, the patient would be dead before the blood bags were delivered.

Moreover, nurses carried no weight with the blood retrieval process as it was basically one of their jobs.

If a doctor was sent to explain the situation to the blood transfusion department, every procedure would be performed urgently, and blood could be transfused before Miao Xiaohui departed this life.

There was not much time left for Zheng Ren. This was the only way.

More importantly, there were plenty of staff working in the day.

Removing the pair of sterile gloves, Zheng Ren took out his phone, dialed a number and said in a croaky voice, "Gastroenterology, resuscitation, come immediately."

He hung up immediately after.

A nurse standing beside the infusion stand used a pressure bag to increase the infusion rate of LMH Dextran.

Zheng Ren began to examine Miao Xiaohua. She had lost consciousness and her abdomen was distended, presumably due to blood accumulation. There was no way he could locate the source of the bleeding under such circumstances.

'F*ck you, System!' he grumbled internally.

He had been complacent when he first acquired the power of the System because it was simply an awesome hack, but he once again felt powerless after consecutively encountering numerous critically ill, dying patients.

'Why don't you tell me where the source of the bleeding is?! A diagnosis of ruptured pancreatic pseudocyst complicated with hemorrhagic shock isn't enough!'

He also had to have a rough idea of potential bleeding spots before proceeding with exploratory laparotomy. If he had to search for everything under a surgical lighthead, Miao Xiaohua would most likely be dead by then.

A few minutes later, Su Yun arrived at the resuscitation room in the gastroenterology department.

He immediately understood the situation after a quick scan and approached Zheng Ren, asking softly, "What's the diagnosis?"

"Ruptured pancreatic pseudocyst complicated with hemorrhagic shock," said Zheng Ren.

"..." Su Yun was dumbfounded.

The rarer the disease, the more difficult it was to manage due to lack of clinical experience.

The chances of survival in an acute exacerbation of a rare disease was almost zero.

"Do you know which blood vessel has ruptured?" asked Su Yun, understanding the primary focus of the matter.

"I don't know." Zheng Ren shook his head and immediately made up his mind. "Perform an angiography in the interventional radiology suite and proceed with laparotomy afterward."

"..."

This was the second time Su Yun felt speechless today.

Even though he was a postgraduate student from a well-reputed medical institution with powerful innate talent, he had never seen a hybrid surgery before.

The international radiology suite was actually a hybrid operating theater, but no one had performed any open surgery there, nor was anyone experienced in this domain.

"Are you sure?"

"There is no other way."

"Okay." Su Yun, the perfect surgical assistant, did not question Zheng Ren's decision.

After glancing at the data on the ECG monitor beside Miao Xiaohua, Su Yun and the medical staff of the gastroenterology department started performing their duties.

The transferral from the gastroenterology department resuscitation room to the interventional radiology suite in the emergency department carried a huge risk—the possibility of Miao Xiaohua going into cardiac arrest during the journey was over thirty percent.

Thirty percent seemed small but was an unbearable possibility to everyone involved.

Chu Yanzhi, who had been informed of the situation, rushed over with a tracheal intubation kit.

In less than ten minutes, 10U fresh frozen red blood cells, thawed by the doctor and nurse of the gastroenterology department along the way, were delivered to the emergency building; the patient was already intubated with a self-inflating bag.

Fortunately, the hospital bed elevator was unoccupied and the journey went on smoothly.

Apart from a quick halt to change a blood bag, they wasted no time along the entire way.

Miao Xiaohua's blood pressure was already undetectable when she was transferred to the operating table in the interventional radiology suite.

Chu Yanran, who had performed all necessary anesthesia preparations, immediately administered the necessary drugs for surgery.

Old Chief Physician Pan, who had also arrived at the scene, began to perform every legal procedure from the hospital's perspective. Even though Miao Xiaohua was a nurse in the hospital, he remained cautious and summoned staff from the medical administration division, adhering to standard medical protocol when informed consent was unobtainable.

Xie Yiren followed the stretcher trolley to the emergency building, and as usual, changed her attire and performed a surgical scrub.

However, as soon as she stood before the instrument table, tears started to stream down her cheeks.

Fortunately, the concept of asepsis had embedded itself into the deepest part of Xie Yiren's soul, so she subconsciously moved away from the instrument table, preventing its contamination that would necessitate a new sterile surgical kit being opened.

It was not because of the cost of a surgical kit, but the waste of precious time.

This hybrid surgery was unprecedented in Sea City General Hospital, or in fact, Sea City itself.

Despite the lack of communication, everyone coordinated with each other smoothly.

Old Chief Physician Pan handled every procedure outside the suite and sorted out every detail in an orderly manner.

The matron of the operating theater immediately put on a lead apron and entered the suite to prepare the necessary surgical instruments for laparotomy for Zheng Ren's interventional surgery later.

Even though Miao Xiaohua did not have cardiac arrest, the ECG monitor reported that she was currently having atrial fibrillation. Since medication had to be administered to prevent deterioration, Chu Yanran and another nurse also put on lead aprons and entered the operating theater to stand by for further instructions.

This operation was completely different from any they had had in the past. No one was trained for this, and there was no response plan, either.

However, thanks to all involved personnel's combined effort, all preoperative preparations were complete within twenty minutes.

As Su Yun put on his lead apron and scrubbed up, Zheng Ren began to disinfect and drape the surgical site before inserting the needle.

The surgery was once again broadcast live in Xinglin Garden.

[It's boring to watch surgery all the time; can the god sing for us?]

[You don't have to stick to this channel. There are many beautiful girls in other livestreams.]

[That's right. You have a severe disease, best if you can get yourself checked.]

A few comments flew across the screen as soon as the livestream started.

Since all surgery recordings had been deleted, everyone who had subscribed to this channel knew that they had to read the case first and gain information before the surgery began. That way, it would be more rewarding when the host surgeon performed a complicated, uncommon operation.

The comments were surprisingly few today. Most viewers had turned off the comment section, refusing to communicate as they wanted to concentrate on watching the livestream.

However, dead silence dominated the live broadcast room after they read the case.

A hybrid surgery. The host surgeon was broadcasting a hybrid surgery today!

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Chapter 164: Race Against Time Part I

Disappointment bubbled in the audience when they found out the surgery livestream was no longer recorded. Regardless of the outcome, the surgeries broadcast on this site were worth a thousand replays.

[Hybrid procedures... I've only heard of them.]

[At least you've heard of them. I had to search on Baidu to find out what they were.]

[I think only Class Three Grade A Hospitals in major cities have hybrid operating suites and most of them are newly-built. Union, Fuwai and West China[1] only had their hybrid operating rooms after the expansion.]

A pair of steady hands appeared onscreen—they crossed over occasionally to manipulate their instruments. The right hand was coaxing the guide wire into the patient's blood vessel at an impressive speed. Within a minute, the livestream changed to the display on the surgeon's screen.

The guide wire was in place and the guide catheter followed its path. Moments later, imaging began.

There was no arterial superselection. Based on the livestream, contrast agent was administered at the main branch of the artery.

Was this an error in judgment? Or was there a reason?

The pressure injector delivered a dose of contrast agent into the artery. Zheng Ren paid close attention to the forming image.

This was the only method to identify the hemorrhage site.

It was the most viable option. He would rather spend a bit more time at the start of the surgery to identify the exact location than botch the surgery.

10 seconds passed...

20 seconds passed...

The X-ray imaging system hummed to life. As time trickled by, the contrast agent in the patient's body bloomed on the imaging display.

There!

Zheng Ren spotted the source of hemorrhage.

It was the left gastric artery.

Zheng Ren and Su Yun quickly put away the scatter drapes used in interventional radiology and started to reapply the sterile surgical drapes over the patient's body in preparation for the laparotomy.

Xinglin Garden was full of confused doctors.

[Pancreatic pseudocyst? It's a pretty rare disease. What was the surgeon looking at just now?]

[No idea.]

[The surgeon was searching for the site of hemorrhage. Judging from the drape placement, it should be the left gastric artery. The patient's low blood pressure resulted in a blurry contrast image, which means that the surgeon must have ample experience detecting hemorrhaging under X-ray.]

[Man... The experience one needs to perform such surgeries. The patient's blood pressure is almost undetectable and the heart rate is at 160 beats per minute with signs of atrial fibrillation. The heart might be giving up. The thought of such emergency surgeries makes my head hurt.]

[Why doesn't the surgeon just embolize the bleed?]

[Brother, this is the left gastric artery. Embolizing it will cause a good part of the stomach to necrotize. If the embolic agent travels to the superior mesenteric artery, blood flow to the colon would be affected. It would basically kill the patient.]

[They're starting a laparotomy? What are they attempting? In my hospital, we would go for a laparotomy to search for the bleed... It's down to luck whether we get to it in time.]

[That's not too bad. I spent half a year in imperial Capital and saw a few hybrid surgeries but none were as pressing as this.]

Comments were popping up frantically in the livestream. The patient's rising heart rate and falling blood pressure were a source of suspense for every viewer.

Every doctor in the audience had personal experience in the chaos and magnitude of emergency rescue. They watched the livestream with rapt attention, their hearts beating in sync with the patient's as their palms began to sweat.

The nervousness made people want to chat more.

The tension in the operating room would be too stifling otherwise.

It was a habit cultivated by many surgeons over the years.

...

In Sea City General Hospital, the hybrid surgery was in progress.

Zheng Ren tore off his sterile scrubs to remove his lead vest. He ordered an incision at the left lateral edge of the rectus abdominis and proceeded to scrub his hands.

Zheng Ren had only been briefly exposed to pancreatic surgery in the System. He had not undergone any intensive training on this front.

The discovery of the tetradecapeptide, somatostatin, had ensured near-total recovery from acute and chronic pancreatitis.

Medicinal treatment was found to be more efficacious than surgery. Who would be willing to risk their lives on the operating table when there was a better alternative?

Therefore, Zheng Ren had neglected learning pancreatic surgery in the System.

Luckily, he had been hoarding all his skill and experience points like a squirrel caching for winter.

Although the System had been tight-fisted with new missions, Zheng Ren had enough experience points saved up for a rainy day.

While washing his hands, Zheng Ren entered the System to return the special lead vest and check on his stores.

In the past few weeks, he had accomplished surgeries that contributed to the progress of the main mission. His general surgery skill level was at 3246 points. He had another 2025 skill points at his disposal.

Without hesitation, Zheng Ren allocated 1742 points into the general surgery skill tree.

A gentle breeze blew through the area and Zheng Ren felt a lightness in his body. Familiar images flashed through his mind. His fingers had a dexterity that was previously absent.

Was this the general surgery Master rank? It was not as earth-shattering as Zheng Ren had hoped.

The remaining 271 skill points caught his eye and he had to force himself to look away. He selected the option to purchase training time.

After accumulating them, he had more than 250000 experience points.

It would be sufficient.

Especially since his general surgery was at Master rank.

He traded 200000 experience points for 55.5 hours of intensive training time.

The System's operating room rose from the ground. The simulation mannequins lay ready for him.

Each mannequin had a pancreas-related disease, so logically, Zheng Ren began with the ones with pancreatic pseudocysts.

Pancreatic surgery was much more difficult than hepatic surgery.

The anatomical and physiological make-up of the pancreas was unique.

Within 55.5 hours of training, Zheng Ren only managed fewer than 100 pancreatic surgeries without needing to stitch up the bodies in the System.

...

When Zheng Ren left to wash his hands, Su Yun immediately started disinfection despite still wearing the lead apron.

The matron opened up an abdominal surgery set while a scrub nurse checked the various tools.

Taking stock of surgical items was one of the scrub nurse's duties. The scrub nurse had to keep track of all surgical tools, instruments and materials before and after the surgery. This was to prevent any unwanted items from winding up inside the patient's body... which would be a lawsuit in the making.

Su Yun finished disinfecting the surgical site and applied the first layer of surgical drapes. Then, he left to remove his scrubs and lead apron for a second round of washing. At this point, Zheng Ren had already put on a new set of sterile scrubs and began laying the second layer of surgical drapes to cover all areas. The two surgeons worked in perfect tandem.

"Scalpel." Once the drapes were in place, Zheng Ren started the surgery.

Zheng Ren was a few steps ahead of the matron and the new scrub nurse. His sudden request interrupted their counting.

"Give him a curved forceps, a scalpel and some gauze. We'll count from there," the matron ordered as she understood the urgency of the situation. Still, she could not help but glare at Zheng Ren.

"I'll also need an aspirator with the tip."

The work dynamic faltered without Xie Yiren.

At this moment, the said woman was sobbing in a corner of the control room. She was in no state to assist in the surgery.

Zheng Ren disinfected the skin one more time. Then, he held the scalpel in a pencil grip and made a 15cm-long incision along the left flank of Miao Xiaohua's body.

[1] Referring to three other hospitals in the country.

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Chapter 165: Race Against Time Part II

There was no time for blunt dissection. Zheng Ren's scalpel cut through skin, subcutaneous tissues and adipose layers.

Then, he parted the muscles with blunt instruments. A moment later, the peritoneum was visible.

[The surgeon's brutal knife work reminds me of 'surgeries' 200 years ago...]

[You remember the case where three people died?]

[That was such a long time ago. The surgeon most likely evaluated the severity of the bleed and decided to open up the abdomen. From the looks of it, they might have to perform CPR soon.]

The doctors on Xinglin Garden understood the urgency behind Zheng Ren's cruel incision but it did not stop their hearts from jumping up to their throats.

In the early days of surgery, speed was of utmost importance as there was no anesthesia. There had been an amputation in which the surgeon sawed off a patient's leg and in the process, injured himself and his assistant.

The surgeon, patient and the assistant soon passed away due to infection from the wound.

The fatality rate of this surgery was 300%, the highest ever recorded in the history of surgery.

With modern technology, minimally-invasive procedures were becoming the gold standard for surgery and incidents like those were few and far between.

The audience of the livestream was simply taken aback by the unexpected barbarism in this new age.

Zheng Ren placed the scalpel on the surgical drape that covered the patient's leg and took the curved forceps. He gripped the aspirator in another hand.

The metal forceps pierced the peritoneum. The aspirator was immediately inserted into the cavity.

Warm, dark blood flowed out of the body through the drainage tube.

Within a few seconds, Zheng Ren completed the necessary procedures to safeguard the peritoneum. He did not wait for the pool of blood to be drained before accessing the peritoneal cavity.

Stomach... Colon... Posterior...

The bleeding site was correctly identified and without any hesitation, Zheng Ren used his fingers to locate the left gastric artery and plugged the leak.

Su Yun had just put on new scrubs and was about to take his position as the assistant surgeon.

He figured the surgery was still at its opening stages but when he came back into the operating room, Zheng Ren already had his hand inside the patient.

'That was quick!' Su Yun was shocked.

Zheng Ren's surgical skill was beyond Su Yun's initial estimates.

How long had he been gone? Ten seconds? Twenty seconds? How was Zheng Ren already plugging the leak?

What was this man's upper limit? Su Yun eyed Zhen Ren suspiciously as the man worked with fervor.

Zheng Ren noticed Su Yun was standing idle and demanded, "You. Press here."

His tone brooked no dissent.

It was a direct order from a senior doctor.

Su Yun was snapped out of his daze.

This was an emergency surgery. A misstep could lead to the death of the patient.

Su Yun immediately took up his duty as an assistant surgeon and helped Zheng Ren with the bleed.

His hands free, Zheng Ren took the scalpel and made a 6cm incision on the anterior wall of the stomach.

He got down to business once the leak on the left gastric artery was controlled.

His hands were quick, accurate and steady as if he had done the procedure a thousand times.

Su Yun's eyes were locked onto the unwavering movements of Zheng Ren's hands.

Su Yun knew Zheng Ren was incredibly skilled in surgery but firmly believed he could surpass the man.

As a savant who could perform any surgery after witnessing it only once, he was truly surprised to find someone that he could not outdo here, in Sea City.

The past-him would have laughed at the thought. A person who outskilled him? In their dreams!

Impossible!

And yet.

This man and this surgery was happening right before his eyes.

Incredulity filled Su Yun.

Oblivious to Su Yun's inner thoughts, Zheng Ren was fully focused on the surgery at hand.

In one fell swoop, he sliced open the serous membrane and muscle layer. He proceeded to use a 1-0 surgical suture to ligate the branching arteries beneath the mucosa layer.

As the surgery progressed, Su Yun came back to reality.

He decided to do what a perfect assistant surgeon would do. With a hand on the leak, his other hand worked together with Zheng Ren to speed up the process.

This was an emergency procedure, so the patient did not fast before the surgery. There was still a significant amount of stomach content even though gastrointestinal decompression had been conducted.

Zheng Ren moved the drainage tube into the stomach and ordered, "Get me another drainage tube."

The matron opened a new kit and moved another aspirator machine to the operating table. Most of the stomach contents were removed after the second drainage tube was set up.

Then, Zheng Ren made an incision at the posterior wall of the stomach and the anterior wall of the pancreatic pseudocyst. Using the aspirator, he drained the pseudocyst before widening the stoma. A 3cm x 2cm opening would ensure a good connection between the stomach and the pseudocyst.

The bleeding was stopped by ligating the arteries on the pancreatic pseudocyst that branched off from the left gastric artery. Everyone let out a sigh of relief.

Zheng Ren took a look at the patient's vital signs. The patient was receiving 7 to 8 units of blood as the surgery went on. Miao Xiaohua's blood pressure was stabilizing and the signs of atrial fibrillation disappeared.

[This godlike speed...]

[Preparation is key. If they hadn't used radiological methods to detect the bleed and went with the traditional method, the patient would already be dead.]

[This surgeon is hasty! But I guess that is the essence of an emergency surgery. How I admire the teamwork and sharing policy among the departments in this hospital. In my hospital, you would have to go through protocol and request a consultation.]

[How about you try it without consulting the specialists? As if you would know what to do.]

Once the bleed was stopped, the Xinglin Garden livestream came alive with comments.

At this point, there was a chance the patient would get through this.

There was heavy blood loss which had led to hemorrhagic shock. The patient's survival would likely depend on post-surgery treatment.

The surgeon's decision to use interventional radiology to locate the bleed was ironclad.

Many of the doctors who were watching the livestream knew that had they been in the surgeon's position, the patient would already be dead.

The majority of their time would be wasted searching for the source of the bleed through traditional surgical methods.

The few doctors who had criticized the surgeon's method were silent now. They watched the livestream with mixed feelings.

In the end, their suspicion of the godlike surgeon was a joke to all.

When the pancreatic pseudocyst was located, Zheng Ren's hands slowed down.

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Chapter 166: Race Against Time Part III

Zheng Ren probed the pseudocyst to assess the situation. He wanted to know if there were multiple cysts or signs of malignancy.

It was standard procedure to rule out the possibility of ripping a vessel on the tumor.

There were no signs of malignancy or bleeding, so Zheng Ren started to connect the pseudocyst to the stomach.

He used the size 0 catgut suture to stitch the pseudocyst to the posterior wall of the stomach.

Then, using a 1-0 suture, he performed an interrupted inverted suture to close the incision on the anterior wall of the stomach. The same technique was used to stitch back the muscle and serosa layer.

The whole procedure from incision to suture took eight minutes.

The matron was caught off guard when she found Zheng Ren suturing the layers. She had just been cleaning some surgical tools with the scrub nurse and the next thing she knew, the surgery was over?

"Saline," Zheng Ren said softly.

"Oh..." The matron was aghast. She spoke with a bit of fear in her tone, "The saline is not ready yet."

If the lead surgeon had been a department chief, a haranguing would have been unavoidable.

Without a hint of anger in his tone, Zheng Ren told the matron, "Go get it ready."

He did not blame others for not being able to keep up with the pace of the surgery.

He was the one at fault for being too fast.

The general surgery Master rank was no joke. Even Zheng Ren found it difficult to adapt to his newfound abilities.

The "genius" across him was wearing a mask that shielded his expression but Zheng Ren believed that he was equally stunned by the speed of the surgery.

Su Yun could only watch in envy.

Chu Yanzhi went to assist the matron with saline preparation while Chu Yanran monitored the ventilator, occasionally making notes with a pen.

While waiting for the saline solution, Zheng Ren checked to see if he had missed any bleeding spots.

He found no signs of bleeding at the stomach, intestine, pancreas and spleen.

A few minutes later, the saline solution was ready.

The surgical site was rinsed and drained repeatedly. He made a final survey to ensure there was no active bleeding before closing the abdomen.

Zheng Ren exhaled a long-held breath.

With his Master-level general surgery skill and nearly 100 practice surgeries under his belt, Zheng Ren had been able to complete the emergency surgery in less than 20 minutes, giving Miao Xiaohua a chance at survival.

Whatever came next was minor compared to the emergency hemostasis procedure.

Zheng Ren had done what he could. He had spent a month's worth of points for this.

It was worth it.

He started to stitch back the abdomen.

The mood of the operating room was more relaxed now.

Sutures were applied to the layers and layers of tissue. The catgut suture was used to sew together the skin layer to minimize the scarring.

Every girl was conscious of their appearance. It would be costly to get cosmetic treatments.

At the last stitch, the System chimed to signal the completion of its mission.

[Continuous Mission: Unbreakable Support Part I completed. Xie Yiren's wish was achieved. Host shall be rewarded.

[1. Passive ability: Limitless Charm. For every completed surgery, the host will gain the respect of others and increase their charm. Charm is dependent on the host's reliability and will power.

[2. 100 skill points, 1000 experience points and 1 gold chest.

[Additional time on the clock is converted into 4450 experience points.]

This was the first time the System had granted a passive ability.

In the chaos before, the System had given him two missions that rewarded him with 4 luck points in total.

To this date, Zheng Ren had no idea how the luck points worked.

Now, accomplishing Xie Yiren's mission had given him a passive charm skill.

He was somewhat put off by the System. He would prefer to have something surgery-related to boost his other skills to Master rank or unlock his skill trees rather than this charm skill.

What was the use of Limitless Charm?

His thoughts stopped there as Miao Xiaohua's motionless body called him back to reality.

"How much blood did we give her?" Zheng Ren asked.

"6 units so far. We're transfusing 200ml of plasma now," Chu Yanran replied.

"Good. Prepare for transport to the ICU. Su Yun, you take the lead."

Su Yun nodded, still reeling from what he had just witnessed.

The breathing tube remained affixed to the patient's throat as they moved her to the ICU. It was best to keep her on the ventilator for 12 to 24 hours to reduce the strain on her cardiopulmonary system.

Although the bleeding had stopped, Miao Xiaohua's blood pressure was still on the low side. There were still risks of her developing complications.

The critical period was not over yet.

This was the first time Zheng Ren needed Su Yun to stay in the ICU to monitor a patient's status.

He had given his all. It was up to fate now.

Zheng Ren placed his hands into the front pocket of his scrubs and found a stool to sit on.

"Tired?" Chu Yanzhi bounced over and asked.

"I'm alright."

"Watching you operate scared me." Chu Yanzhi motioned to express the shock she had experienced. "You were so quick. Weren't you worried about causing damage?"

"No. I knew what I was doing." Zheng Ren leaned back against the wall and let out a breath.

The jump in his general surgery skill was all thanks to the System. However, Zheng Ren was drained from handling this high-mortality case.

His ascent to Master in general surgery was a very different experience compared to that of interventional surgery.

What was the meaning behind it? Zheng Ren did not know. All he knew was that he was bone-tired and needed rest.

Chu Yanzhi was still buoyed by the surgery's success. She glanced at the matron and whispered conspiratorially into Zheng Ren's ear, "I think you frightened the matron."

"Really?"

"They were still counting the tools when you started opening the abdomen. I don't think the matron can keep up with your pace. Little Yiren is still your best partner," Chu Yanzhi said with a cheeky smile.

"How is Yiren?" Zheng Ren slowed down his breathing and felt much better.

"She's still in the control room. I'll go check on her."

"I'll come too." Zheng Ren stood from his seat. He checked with the matron and scrub nurse to ascertain that all surgical tools and materials were accounted for before following Chu Yanzhi out of the operating room.

Xie Yiren was curled up in the corner of the room. She lifted her head at the sound of approaching footsteps.

She was in a calmer state of mind. Zheng Ren smiled at her.

"Was the surgery a success?" Xie Yiren said softly, a hint of fear in her tone.

"It was successful," Zheng Ren said confidently and patted her head.

Hearing his confirmation, the energy went out of Xie Yiren's body. She collapsed on the floor and sobbed.

It was a cry of relief.

Zheng Ren understood the need to vent one's emotions.

He gave Chu Yanzhi a knowing look—a silent request to look after Xie Yiren—before going back into the operating room.

Chu Yanzhi was initially confused, but eventually understood the meaning behind his look.

She smiled at him.

Zheng Ren was the real deal. His focus was wholly fixed on honing his surgical skill. Nothing could distract him, not even his bachelor status.

This was a rare opportunity for him to ride in like a knight in shining armor and yet, he was passing the baton to her.

He was a simple and honest man.

Before, Chu Yanzhi had regarded Zheng Ren as a man of low EQ. No one would sympathize if he spent his whole life as a bachelor. However, she changed her mind after witnessing his actions today.

Having a boyfriend like him would have some advantages, one of which was not needing to worry about him cheating.

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Chapter 167: Brother

Miao Xiaohua did not wake from anesthesia. When the effects of the muscle relaxant faded, Chu Yanran administered a dose of sedative to stabilize the patient before transporting her to the ICU.

Miao Xiaohua's family had yet to arrive at the hospital as there were some delays in contacting the family. The surgery was prioritized as it was critical to the patient's survival.

Chu Yanzhi was on the stretcher trolley operating the ventilation bag while Zheng Ren and Su Yun pushed. Chu Yanran escorted the party and ensured the right buttons were pressed at the elevators.

They reached the ICU at record speed and quickly hooked the patient up to the ventilator and monitors. Once everything was set up, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Miao Xiaohua's vital signs remained outside the healthy range but the numbers were gradually improving. The electrocardiogram showed a steady rhythm. Things were looking good for her.

Su Yun's arrival in the ICU was like a homecoming. The surrounding nurses all greeted him with cheer. He moved a folding chair to Miao Xiaohua's bedside and started noting down her vitals on a piece of A4 paper.

Zheng Ren had nothing to say against Su Yun's experience in intensive care.

He felt better with Su Yun in charge of the post-surgery monitoring. Although the nancy boy was a pain in the neck, he had demonstrated his proficiency in patient aftercare.

Their attention was on the patient's vital signs. After a few minutes, Zheng Ren decided the patient was stable after transport and said to Su Yun, "All yours"

Su Yun nodded. He was to record the infusion and excretion volumes every five minutes. He also arranged for a medical test to determine the appropriate course of action.

Zheng Ren turned to leave the ICU. The department was a cacophony of beeps from all sorts of medical equipment.

It was the melody of life.

As Zheng Ren walked out of the ICU, he replayed the surgery in his mind.

The System scored the surgery 92%. Under such dire circumstances, the score was undoubtedly stellar but was not perfect.

There was a niggling doubt in Zheng Ren's heart. He surmised that his first incision might have been overly hasty and the electrocautery used to stop the bleed might have damaged the blood vessel. These factors likely led to a lower score.

'Is it possible to improve the surgery?' Zheng Ren thought.

In that scenario, the main objective was to stop the internal bleeding. Minor damages to the skin and muscle layers were not important.

He could not value perfection over the life of the patient.

The Master level general surgery skill was impressive but was still a long way from Prime.

As he had had a brief experience of being at the peak, Zheng Ren was not overjoyed with his skills. Instead, he focused on the gap between the present and the future.

He called Xie Yiren as he walked through the hospital.

He had some time on his hands and thought to chat with her, hoping to distract her from her sadness.

It was Chu Yanzhi who answered the call. She told him Xie Yiren was taking a shower. They planned to go out and eat away their sorrow.

Zheng Ren smiled and ended the call.

If she could eat, she had to be feeling better.

He was back in the emergency department when he saw a young girl with pigtails bouncing around the corridor.

The girl was familiar but he could not recall who she was.

"Brother. Hi again." The pigtailed girl ran to Zheng Ren's side and smiled adorably at him.

"Liu..." Zheng Ren vaguely remembered her last name. It was the young patient who had acute appendicitis. She looked older now; Zheng Ren figured she was about 18 years old[1].

"It's Liu Xinyu!" The pigtailed girl pouted in faux anger.

"Ah. Why are you here? Are you unwell?" The name jogged his memory.

Liu Xinyu did not answer his question. Instead, she took the pen in Zheng Ren's white coat and wrote a Chinese character on his palm.

"It's this 'yu' character. Don't forget it," Liu Xinyu said.

Zheng Ren looked at the neat handwriting and chuckled.

He would not be forgetting anytime soon.

"I'm taking the night train to Jinmen."

"Oh. I remembered you were going to attend a training camp," Zheng Ren said.

Liu Xinyu was a music scholar who played the cello. She was on course to apply to the Jinmen Academy of Music but before that, she had to improve her cello skill.

"Exactly. I dropped by to bid you farewell." Liu Xinyu's eyes brightened at the mention of her future in Jinmen.

"Study hard and good luck," Zheng Ren encouraged.

"I definitely will." Liu Xinyu gave him a playful smile and said, "When I get into Jinmen Academy of Music, you have to treat me to a meal."

"Sure."

"Hand me your phone. Let's exchange contacts so you won't ghost me." Liu Xinyu unlocked his phone and opened the WeChat app. She swiped to the 2D barcode page.

During this whole exchange, Zheng Ren was in a muddled state of mind. All his energy had been consumed by the emergency surgery and his 140-IQ brain was not functioning at its best.

With their contacts swapped, Liu Xinyu bade him a final goodbye before skipping away.

The bouncing pigtails reminded Zheng Ren of his last day of high school, when he parted ways with his deskmate.

Zheng Ren smiled at the independent girl.

When he got back to the emergency wards, Zheng Ren saw a middle-aged couple in the office. The woman was rubbing tears from her eyes while the man paced around.

"You are..." Zheng Ren had an inkling of who they were but it was best to confirm.

"They are Miao Xiaohua's parents. They arrived five minutes ago and I told them to wait here," Chang Yue introduced.

"Nice to meet you." Zheng Ren extended his hand for a shake.

Throughout the exchange, Zheng Ren felt the coldness of their hands.

"Let's get to the point: Miao Xiaohua's rescue surgery was successful. She is currently resting in the ICU, monitored by the best intensive care doctor we have." Zheng Ren delivered the good news in one breath without keeping the parents in suspense.

Hearing this, an expression of relief and respect broke out on the couple's faces.

"Have a seat, I'll explain the incident." Zheng Ren gestured to the chairs and explained the whole situation to the parents.

He told them everything — the gastroenterology procedure, the interventional radiology procedure and the abdominal surgery. They listened in shock.

Their reaction was understandable as the gory details Zheng Ren went through had happened to their daughter.

A few minutes too late and she would have died.

Had Xie Yiren not been by her side...

If Zheng Ren had not rushed to the gastroenterology department to perform the emergency rescue...

If interventional radiology had not been an available option...

If the search for the left gastric artery rupture had been too slow...

There were many turning points in the story that could have led to their daughter's death.

Fortunately, fate had taken the right turn at every juncture.

[1] I guess the author really meant the patient was 15-16 years old back in chapter 132.

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Chapter 168: I'm A Vegan. Can We Use Antibiotics That Don't Kill Germs

Zheng Ren described the whole emergency process to Miao Xiaohua's parents, then comforted them with words of reassurance. Finally, he led them to the entrance of the ICU.

Once they knew that their daughter was in stable condition and the necessary care was being provided, they felt the weight lift from their shoulders.

Zheng Ren went back to the emergency department and was greeted by Chang Yue, "Chief Zheng, it seems your communication skills have improved."

"Really?" Zheng Ren was befuddled by her comment.

Chang Yue was not the type of employee who would curry favor. However, his communication skills... were never a thing worth pointing out. He was above average at best.

Seeing the confusion on Zheng Ren's face, Chang Yue laughed. She explained, "The parents were incredibly worried but when you entered the room, I could tell they calmed down even before you started explaining the situation."

"Really?"

"Just a gut feeling. I couldn't show you any evidence." Chang Yue turned around and continued busying herself with patient records and surgery reports.

Although the patient had been admitted into the ICU, the paperwork had to be done by the emergency department.

With her back facing Zheng Ren, she started to question him about the incident while making notes on the patient's history.

Zheng Ren was tired. The surgical emergency had been a critical one and Xie Yiren's cries of anguish had leadened his body and soul.

He managed to complete the surgical journal before leaving for the on-call room to get some well-deserved rest.

However, his plans were foiled. The adrenaline from the surgery and his ascension to the general surgery Master rank made him restless.

Right: he recalled the gold chest given to him by the System. He ought to have a look inside.

He still had three silver chests that were unopened.

Since he could not fall asleep, he might as well entertain himself.

In the System, Zheng Ren saw a golden treasure chest floating off the ground. Below it were three silver chests.

'Open,' Zheng Ren ordered in his mind.

There was no fanfare or ritual of luck.

Zheng Ren was dull like that.

A skill book appeared before him. His skill points and experience points jumped up by several figures.

His eyes skimmed through the skill book and found that it was worth the experience of 3000 prostate anatomical dissections.

Zheng Ren swore under his breath.

3000 cases!

The best the System had given him was only worth the experience of 300 cardiac surgeries. Although an anatomical dissection was a far cry from an actual surgery, the amount of experience awarded was significant.

It would have been better if it was related to gastroenterology.

Zheng Ren was a tad disappointed but the System must have had a reason. He suspected it had to do with the new procedure in Imperial Capital.

He tapped on the skill book and he was blessed with the experience of having performed 3000 prostate anatomical dissections.

His mind was filled with medical knowledge regarding the prostate. He was sure his experience and knowledge surpassed that of the urology department chief in Sea City General Hospital.

After all, the department chief was unlikely to receive a prostate case every day.

It was not as useful as Zheng Ren had initially thought. He lamented the System's choice of reward.

He then had a look at his skill trees and saw that his skill points had increased from 271 to 455 points. His experience was now at 113200 points.

Impressive.

As Zheng Ren sat down in hopes to rest his tired body, his phone in the real world rang.

Such was a chief resident's life. Zheng Ren gathered his strength and exited the System.

The number was from the emergency department.

He answered the call. There was a patient with acute appendicitis waiting to be admitted.

Patient's admissions into the hospital were automatic, but there were times where his evaluation was needed.

The on-call doctor's experience was paramount when it came to filtering hospital admissions.

While some doctors were experienced, they habitually got the specialists to make the final call.

Zheng Ren got up from his bed and put on his white coat, heading to the emergency department to have a look.

The patient was a slightly overweight fifty-year-old woman. Zheng Ren did not foresee many complications.

From the patient's history, Zheng Ren came to a conclusion that the patient suffered from classical acute appendicitis.

If she began fasting, the surgery could proceed in the afternoon.

A thorough check later, Zheng Ren brought the woman to the emergency wards. A thirty-year-old man who Zheng Ren guessed was her son accompanied her.

A hospital bed was arranged for the patient. An admission ticket was issued and Zheng Ren passed follow-up duties to Chang Yue.

He was immensely grateful to have such a reliable and hardworking resident doctor on his team.

Zheng Ren managed to get three hours of rest. Before his next surgery began, he made his way to the ICU.

Miao Xiaohua's condition had stabilized. Her urine output was improving, indicating the severe blood loss had not impacted kidney function.

Su Yun sat absent-mindedly on the folding chair. There were six pieces of A4 papers in his hand, all filled with numbers.

He was rearranging the order of the fluids that sat on the trolley cart beside him.

Miao Xiaohua's vital signs were stable. She slept peacefully under the lull of the sedative. Zheng Ren walked away with a lighter heart.

He informed Miao Xiaohua's parents of her condition, then contacted Yang Lei to transport the middle-aged patient to the operating room for her appendectomy.

Zheng Ren changed into the appropriate clothing as anesthesia was in progress.

The middle-aged woman lay on her side on the operating table. Chu Yanran was having a chat with her.

Seeing Zheng Ren enter the operating room, the middle-aged woman recognized him as the lead surgeon. She gave him a warm greeting.

"Dr. Zheng, I'm going to be okay, right?" The woman was jittery still.

"Don't worry. It's a minor issue," Zheng Ren replied.

"Will I recover? I have a friend who had an appendectomy wound that would not heal, and she's skinnier than me. They did the redressing for a whole month," the woman anxiously.

"That is due to fat liquefaction. We want to avoid that at all costs but if there's too much adipose tissue in the abdomen, there's no choice," Zheng Ren said calmly.

"Please do your best then, doctor." The woman asked, "How many appendectomies have you done?"

Zheng Ren thought for a moment. The woman was probably worried that this was his first appendectomy. He smiled and said reassuringly, "A few hundred. I am an experienced surgeon, don't worry. We just need your cooperation with the procedure."

The woman appeared to be deep in thought.

The anesthesia was almost complete when the patient lay back down. Zheng Ren stood up and went to wash his hands.

"Dr. Zheng," the patient called out after a moment of hesitation.

"Yes? What's the problem?" Zheng Ren was curious.

"I... I'm a vegan. Is it possible to use antibiotics that don't kill germs?"

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Chapter 169: The Beginning of Love

Yang Lei, wearing a surgical gown, was asking the scrub nurse for a pair of Rampley sponge forceps and a kidney dish containing gauze and iodophor for surgical site disinfection.

On the operating table, the woman's words stunned both of them.

"Okay, auntie." Without any hesitation, Zheng Ren turned around to perform a surgical scrub and said, "I'll just use ordinary cephalosporin, is that alright?"

"Sure," replied the woman, obviously satisfied.

"..." Yang Lei froze for a brief moment. The scrub nurse, who had her back to the patient and was counting the surgical instruments, nearly burst into laughter and contaminated the sterile instrument table.

The surgery ended successfully. Even though there was no deliberate pursuit of speed, the whole procedure had been done dexterously to the point that the newly-allocated scrub nurse had to recount the surgical instruments without taking a break.

She felt like she had been counting the instruments throughout the entire surgery...

After stepping away from the operating table, Zheng Ren informed Chang Yue about the patient's bizarre request.

Chang Yue understood him and immediately located the patient's family for counseling and to explain the patient's situation and the intraoperative conditions.

The family member in the counseling session was the patient's son, who had no idea how to react upon hearing Chang Yue's words.

He truly had no clue where the elderly woman had heard such theories about "health".

It was good to know that she had no special conditions. After communicating with the family member and acquiring his signature, Chang Yue provided a few medical orders and prescribed antibiotics for the patient.

According to the severity of the disease, the patient would receive postoperative antibiotics for three to seven days after their appendectomy. Despite the absolute confidence in his own surgery, Zheng Ren did not dare allow self-recovery and strictly adhered to protocol—antibiotic injectiond for at least three days.

This was the safest method.

The thought of the weeping beauty—Xie Yiren—was constantly torturing Zheng Ren's heart, making him uncomfortable.

"Yang Lei, keep an eye on the wards. I'll go to the ICU first before heading out. Call me if anything happens." Zheng Ren soon made up his mind; he wanted to comfort Xie Yiren.

"Okay, don't worry." Although Yang Lei was invisible to patients, he was truly a reliable man.

Zheng Ren arrived at the ICU and saw Su Yun keeping an eye on the patient with around ten pieces of paper in his hands.

The details on the System panel were more optimistic now as the surgery had been completed in time and the patient had received appropriate postoperative management. Although she had not gotten out of danger from hemorrhagic shock yet, she was at least not in a critical state now.

"Are you busy at home?" asked Su Yun softly, staring at the numbers on the paper.

Some doctors were used to addressing their department as 'home'. Zheng Ren was actually surprised that Su Yun, who had wanted to establish a pet medical center, had acquired this habit as well.

"I just performed an appendectomy, and the patient's condition has stabilized. Everything is fine at the moment."

"Everything here looks good, too." Black bangs danced in front of Su Yun's forehead. "All signs and symptoms of hemorrhagic shock have been alleviated, so I think she can be extubated in one to two days."

"That's good." Zheng Ren nodded.

Even though the fickle-minded System was much more reliable than Su Yun, who did not want to hear good news?

"Apply for leave and visit Xie Yiren," said Su Yun all of a sudden.

A chill instantly went down Zheng Ren's spine. How had Su Yun known about his intention to check on Little Yiren?

Like a thief who had been caught red-handed, Zheng Ren panicked.

"Bring her out for a meal and that foodie should be fine." Su Yun raised his head and added seriously, "She is your scrub nurse, so you should take a day off for her."

'I must have misunderstood him. That sharp-tongued nancy boy is just casually advising me,' Zheng Ren repeated to himself internally, clutching at straws.

"Okay, I'll check on her," said Zheng Ren lightly.

He scanned through Miao Xiaohua's investigation reports again to get a basic grasp of her current recovery status before leaving the ICU.

Su Yun stared at Zheng Ren's back and curled his lips into a smile.

"Little Hua, get well soon," Su Yun whispered to Miao Xiaohua lying on the hospital bed in a stable condition, "Chief Zheng, the doctor who has saved you, is a dumb*ss. If possible, lend him a hand in the future."

...

...

After leaving the ICU, Zheng Ren explained the situation to Miao Xiaohua's parents before he quickly returned to the emergency ward and changed his clothes.

Seeing that he was alone in the on-call room, he took out his phone, hesitated for a few seconds and finally called Chu Yanzhi.

"Chief Zheng, is there a major rescue operation?" asked Chu Yanzhi quickly, surprised to receive Zheng Ren's phone call.

"No," Zheng Ren immediately said, "Are you with Yiren?"

"She's asleep, and I'm on my phone. Why?" Chu Yanzhi suddenly giggled. "Are you feeling uneasy performing surgery without your scrub nurse?"

"..." Zheng Ren was instantly drenched in sweat. He had never been teased in this way before and was momentarily stunned, unable to come up with an appropriate response.

The silence continued for a few seconds before a chuckle was heard from the other end of the phone.

Embarrassed, Zheng Ren quickly explained his intention and immediately hung up after acquiring Xie Yiren's home address.

'It really is difficult to chat with women.' Embarrassment started gnawing at his heart.

Zheng Ren shook his head, astonished to find that everyone seemingly knew his plan before he even did anything. In terms of surgery and saving lives, he was undoubtedly an expert, but when it came to getting along well with women, he had to summon all his courage just to take the first step.

He put on his coat and hurried out of the emergency building.

The weather was still warm when he had been transferred to the emergency department as a chief resident.

Surgery and ward rounds had been his daily routine in the wards since then.

Although Zheng Ren did not consider his life boring and dull, he felt that his attire was clearly too thin as soon as he stepped out of the inpatient department.

'Damn, it's cold.' Zheng Ren looked up at the sky, the light of day slowly draining away even though it was only four o'clock in the evening. The night rolled over, bringing with it the threat of a blizzard with the icy cold breeze whipping him like a knife scratching his face.

It was indeed a freezing night.

Wrapping his clothes tightly around himself, he looked in the direction of the address provided by Chu Yanzhi and walked against the wind to Xie Yiren's house.

Xie Yiren had once claimed that her house was five minutes on foot to the hospital, which was now proven true and based on a woman's walking speed as well.

Behind Sea City General Hospital was some greenery with several ponds, and next to it was the most expensive residential area within the city center.

There were a few small villas visible near the pond upon entering the community area. Glancing at their unit numbers, Zheng Ren located Xie Yiren's house.

It was a three-story detached villa with two garages, and the lawn in front of the house was green despite the harsh winter.

'What type of grass is this?' Zheng Ren thought. It was extremely rare to see a touch of green amidst a world of white.

He rang the doorbell, and Chu Yanzhi's voice soon came from the intercom.

The door opened to an entryway dozens of square meters wide. Chu Yanzhi poked her head out of the second floor and said, "Change your shoes and come up. We'll go for dinner at six."

Zheng Ren, who had completely lost his sense of superiority in the operating theater, carefully removed his shoes out of fear that he could accidentally stain the soft, thick carpet.

"Chief Zheng has applied for leave to visit you.

"Hey, the sun has risen!

"Yiren, emergency surgery!"

A loud thump came as if something heavy had been dropped onto the floor.

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Chapter 170: Hug

Zheng Ren hurried upstairs and saw Xie Yiren in the master bedroom on the second floor, sitting on the ground and holding her head in confusion.

The loud thump had startled Chu Yanzhi, but after noticing that Xie Yiren was alright, she immediately burst into laughter.

"It's true!" said Chu Yanzhi.

"Huh?"

Zheng Ren and Xie Yiren were puzzled.

"There was once a joke about a medical practitioner who had become comatose for a long time, and when there was a resuscitation going on, the staff shouted "prepare for resuscitation" and they immediately opened their eyes," said Chu Yanzhi while laughing out loud.

Zheng Ren had heard of that story, but did not find it funny at all.

His heart rate had gone up to 100 beats per minute when Chu Yanzhi shouted about an emergency surgery.

Even though he knew it was just a joke, his knee-jerk response to emergency resuscitation and surgery had been deeply rooted in his soul.

Vocational habits were considered a type of disease that had to be treated as well.

"Huh? Chief Zheng, why are you here?" Xie Yiren asked, still slightly disoriented and massaging her head after waking up and seeing Zheng Ren running up the stairs.

"I... I'm here to check on you," replied Zheng Ren.

"How is Little Hua?" Xie Yiren's worry for her best friend soon brushed the remainders of her fatigue away as she sat on the floor.

As if reporting a case to Old Chief Physician Pan, Zheng Ren seriously explained everything about Miao Xiaohua's condition in the ICU to her treatment plan to Xie Yiren.

Chu Yanzhi laughed like a blooming flower.

Xie Yiren sighed in relief after knowing that Miao Xiaohua would most likely be safe. She climbed up from the floor onto the bed, hugged a pillow with a cartoon print on it and asked for the details again.

"Hey, you haven't eaten for a day. What do you want for dinner?" Chu Yanzhi asked, interrupting the 'case discussion'.

"I..." Xie Yiren seemed afraid and, after some hesitation, asked, "Nothing will happen, right?"

"What could happen?" Chu Yanzhi was bewildered.

"Just like Little Hua..." Xie Yiren was obviously traumatized.

Zheng Ren smiled bitterly and explained the situation to Xie Yiren.

Once a foodie who loved to enjoy life and delicious food was mentally traumatized, it would impact her future significantly and negatively.

Xie Yiren was aware of the truth, but words coming from others' mouths were usually more convincing.

Especially Zheng Ren, who was an omnipotent man in Xie Yiren's heart. After listening to his explanation, she instantly felt much better.

Of course, his omnipotence was limited only to the medical field.

His incisive mind and calm demeanor, especially in the operating theater, was reassuring.

"Xiao Jun Gan Hotpot has just recently opened, why don't we give it a try?" Chu Yanzhi suggested.

Xie Yiren, whose mind was a blur, agreed to Chu Yanzhi's proposal. As long as Xie Yiren was happy, Zheng Ren had no objection as well since he was uninterested in food.

Chu Yanzhi planted herself in the driver's seat of Xie Yiren's red Volvo XC60 without letting her take the wheel.

"Ha!" shouted Chu Yanzhi childishly, diluting Xie Yiren's dejection with her cheerful mood.

A good car engine had a greater backward force. Zheng Ren clung onto the grab handle as the vehicle accelerated and thought, 'Chu Yanzhi's driving technique is scary!'

Zheng Ren wanted her to slow down, but fought the urge to do so after noticing her great pleasure.

They were not in an operating theater, so the probability of Chu Yanzhi listening to his advice was less than ten percent. More importantly, his words would most likely fuel her rebellious attitude, and she would probably slam on the accelerator even further.

However, he had failed to anticipate that Chu Yanzhi was actually an experienced driver.

Despite her fast acceleration, the car did not exceed the speed limit, and there was no emergency braking along the way. Around ten minutes later, they arrived at the restaurant.

Even though it was already dinner time, there were only three to five occupied tables in the restaurant.

Xiao Jun Gan Hotpot, a popular restaurant in Sichuan, was somehow unappealing in the northeast. This had something to do with the smaller population, especially youngsters, in the south.

In addition, elderly people usually cared about health and seldom consumed such spicy food.

Zheng Ren was busy assisting Chu Yanzhi with orders. Seeing the mountain of food skewers on the table, he was caught in a trance. Could the three of them finish all these?

A hint of sadness still tinged Xie Yiren's expression. Even delicious food could not overcome her dejection.

Even so, indulging in food could still alleviate it to some extent.

The atmosphere gradually became more lively following the conversion of the food mountain into a stack of bamboo skewer sticks.

Chu Yanzhi regaled Zheng Ren and Xie Yiren about the drinking competition where the contestants—Chang Yue and Su Yun—had drunk eleven boxes of Snow respectively.

Zheng Ren had once imagined the situation, but after Chu Yanzhi shed more light on the incident, described onlookers' surprise and told them the owner of the crayfish restaurant had even given them a VIP card, something money could not buy, he finally realized that that night had become legend.

However, Zheng Ren did not envy becoming a legend through binge-drinking.

He had been worrying about his phone ringing throughout dinner, but fortunately, it seemed exceptionally peaceful tonight as Yang Lei did not call him to return for emergency surgery.

It was almost nine o'clock when the women finally had their fill. In the presence of delicious food and Zheng Ren's constant, professional consolation, Xie Yiren's mood was obviously improved.

The cold breeze and snow mercilessly slammed into his face as soon as he stepped out of the restaurant.

It was painful.

Zheng Ren subconsciously wrapped his clothes more tightly around himself to keep warm.

"Huh? Chief Zheng, why are you still wearing a thin coat?" Chu Yanzhi was surprised.

"I haven't returned home ever since I've been promoted to chief resident, so I don't have a change of clothes yet. Besides, there isn't enough time for me to return home since I only have a few hours," said Zheng Ren.

"Tut-tut, you live a tough life. There isn't anything else that piques your interest apart from surgery, is there?"

"Who said so? I read novels in my free time, too." Zheng Ren tried to defend himself, but his words were so unconvincing that they seemed to blow away with the cold wind.

"Don't tell me you're going to wear this type of outfit when you visit Imperial Capital in a few days. Let me tell you this: you don't need a suit with leather shoes, but you have to be nicely dressed as a sign of respect to the professors," Chu Yanzhi nagged as she started the car.

'Looks like I've to buy a new set of clothes in my free time,' Zheng Ren thought.

Before the women returned home, they first dropped Zheng Ren off at Sea City General Hospital.

Zheng Ren suddenly developed a lack of motivation to work as the emergency building got closer.

Although the food just now tasted almost the same, his mood during the meal was calm and comfortable.

When the vehicle stopped at the entrance of the emergency building, Zheng Ren got out of the car and waved goodbye.

He developed an inexplicable reluctance to leave when the Volvo XC60 started up again.

The car suddenly came to a halt, and Xie Yiren in a red down jacket got down and ran toward him, giving him a big hug before he could react.

Her soft, thin hair danced with the wind and gently caressed Zheng Ren's cheek. It itched a little.

"Thank you, Chief Zheng," Xie Yiren whispered into his ear.

Hers was a soul-stirring voice.

Zheng Ren was rooted to the spot. He tried to come up with a response, but his thoughts were seemingly frozen by the cold weather as he savored the light fragrance lingering in his nostrils.

After an eternity, or perhaps only a brief moment had passed, Xie Yiren turned around and darted back to her car, waving goodbye with her arm high in the air.

Even as the Volvo XC60's beautifully curved, streamlined body slowly vanished from Zheng Ren's vision, he still stood petrified in front of the emergency building, unable to move.

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Chapter 171: In Serious Trouble

After a long while, Zheng Ren regained his composure and brought his hands to his mouth, trying to warm himself by exhaling onto them.

He returned to the emergency ward and instructed Yang Lei to return home before going for a ward round. When he ensured the patients' conditions were stable and warmth was finally returning to his body, he changed his clothes and went to bed.

Three uneventful days passed in the blink of an eye.

Xie Yiren bought a new suit for Zheng Ren. He had no idea what brand it was, but it suited him perfectly.

The plain-looking Zheng Ren actually appeared somewhat stylish when he put on the new suit; as the saying went, "Clothes make the man."

Miao Xiaohua, whose condition had stabilized, was extubated on day two post-op and transferred out of the ICU to the emergency ward on day three.

During this period, Zheng Ren performed around a dozen operations—appendectomies and cholecystectomies. Fortunately, major resuscitation operations that induced hypertension in the staff did not occur.

Manager Feng had provided flight tickets as well. At Su Yun's insistence, Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery had also booked a flight ticket for him as it was normal for two medical practitioners to attend academic conferences and perform research together.

In the early morning on the day of their departure, Xie Yiren personally drove Zheng Ren and Su Yun to the airport.

To Zheng Ren's slight disappointment, Xie Yiren did not give him a warm hug this time. She even smiled and dodged when he extended his arms for a farewell hug.

She must have felt embarrassed to do so in Su Yun's presence.

Zheng Ren redirected his resentment to the sharp-tongued nancy boy.

After their flight tickets were verified, they went through the security check and waited for the airplane.

Sea City Airport was relatively small with all flights scheduled to depart for Imperial Capital and Sorcery Capital. If one wished to visit another city, they would have to transfer to a flight from either of those cities.

"Doctor Zheng, are you going on a trip?" a man greeted enthusiastically as they waited.

Zheng Ren raised his gaze and felt a sense of familiarity, but could not identify the man.

Even so, he was polite enough to stand up, extend his hand and fake a smile.

"I'm going for a meeting in Imperial Capital."

The man, an experienced socializer, was able to discern the truth from Zheng Ren's slightly embarrassed expression. Without feeling awkward, he smiled and explained, "Doctor Zheng, you diagnosed my mother's headache."

"Headache?"

"Dentures..."

Oh! Zheng Ren immediately recognized him after remembering the medical condition. He was the family member whose mother had had an unexplainable headache when Zheng Ren first obtained the System.

Subsequently, Zheng Ren's attitude toward the man softened significantly.

"My name is Cui Heming. I'd highly appreciate your kind guidance in the future," the man said.

They continued chatting for a while. Cui Heming was not disgusted by Zheng Ren's poor communication skill and exchanged phone numbers and WeChat IDs with him.

Just as he was about to leave, Zheng Ren said, "Mr. Cui, have you been stressed out recently?"

Cui Heming was momentarily stunned. Zheng Ren was a doctor, not a fortune teller, right? What did he mean by that?

Was Zheng Ren going to change his destiny next?

"Your blood pressure is high. You should keep it under control." Zheng Ren smiled.

Cui Heming smiled bitterly.

That had been the case recently. The advent of economic winter had tightened liquidity and brought all financial supply chains to the verge of collapse.

Cui Heming had implemented retrenchment to manage his company in Imperial Capital. It was indeed an exhausting and arduous task.

However, he remained optimistic about the current situation. Since winter had arrived, could spring be far behind?

As long as he could pull through, with the experience accumulated and his social network expanded, his company would certainly welcome explosive growth in the coming spring.

However, his body had truly been in suboptimal health due to recent overwhelming work stress.

He acknowledged Zheng Ren's kind advice and thanked him with a nod and a smile.

"How do you know he had hypertension?" asked Su Yun when Cui Heming walked away.

"I felt it during the handshake," answered Zheng Ren perfunctorily.

"Cheh[1, you must have guessed it." Su Yun concluded, ending the short conversation.

Zheng Ren stared at the slowly vanishing Cui Heming. The font on the System panel at the upper right corner of his vision was painted in light red.

It was not serious, but still required treatment.

According to the System, Cui Heming had a stage three essential hypertension with his blood pressure currently at 170/110mmHg.

Cui Heming's elevated blood pressure was presumably caused by chronic overwork. He had never paid any attention to it, nor had he consulted a doctor for check-up and treatment.

The most Zheng Ren could do was to, hopefully, provide a reminder for him to focus on his health.

However, Zheng Ren could not make his advice sound too serious. After all, hypertension was a common disease and the risk of major complications could be minimized as long as it was carefully monitored and controlled.

Twenty minutes before boarding, a couple in their thirties pushed a wheelchair to the boarding gate with a first-aid kit in the man's hand.

Zheng Ren stole a glance at them, and the System panel showed that the old man had an advanced stage of lung cancer with multiorgan metastases.

The couple must have decided to take the old man for a vacation around the globe while ambulation was still possible. Zheng Ren had seen many similar cases throughout his life.

Elderly people had experienced poverty, and the concept of frugality was deeply rooted in their minds. If their children did not strongly insist on bringing them for vacation, barely any of them would be willing to spend more than ten thousand yuan on luxurious entertainment.

However, their mindset had changed following the continuous improvement of the economy.

After conversing with airport staff for a while, the couple presented their documents and boarded the airplane at the business class boarding gate.

Bringing medicine and a first aid kit aboard an airplane required formalities, and as for the documents required, Zheng Ren had no idea what they entailed since he had never done it before.

He finally got to enjoy his leisure time without needing to worry about emergency resuscitation or patients' recoveries. He even excitedly read his novels when waiting to board.

Su Yun, who was also not in a hurry, absent-mindedly stared at the blue sky outside the window with his black bangs flowing elegantly across his forehead.

Finally, both of them took their suitcases and leisurely boarded the plane to Imperial Capital.

There were not many passengers on the plane. The stewardesses were very beautiful, and Zheng Ren was at ease.

He would not receive any emergency calls, and he did not have to worry about exhausting major rescue operations. He had plenty of idle time right now.

When the airplane was about to take off, Zheng Ren powered off his phone, picked up a pictorial from the seat before him and started reading it.

Meanwhile, Su Yun put on his earphones and asked for a blanket, preparing for a nap.

As the plane rose steadily into the air, Zheng Ren opened his mouth to ease the discomfort in his eardrums.

A few minutes later, a suppressed groan was heard.

The stewardess heard the sound and immediately unfastened her seatbelt without caring about the incline and turbulence caused by takeoff.

Zheng Ren's heart sank as the groan did not sound pretentious. What had happened?

He turned around and saw the ashen-faced Cui Heming clutching his chest in his seat.

At that moment, the details on the System panel at the upper right corner of his vision had turned from stage three essential hypertension, highlighted in light red, to a dark shade of red, like a glass of wine with a bloody metallic scent.

F*ck... He was in serious trouble!

[1] Originating from a Chinese expression, this displays scorn, realization, or a mocking behavior, etc. -Urban Dictionary

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Chapter 172: I Want To Contact The Control Tower

The diagnosis was highlighted in bloody red on the System panel at the upper right corner of Zheng Ren's vision—type I aortic dissection.

An aortic dissection was defined as a tear in the intimal layer of the aorta that resulted in the propagation of dissection, either proximally or distally, secondary to blood entering the intima-media space.

It was an acute, life-threatening condition with its chance of occurrence ranging between one-one-hundred-thousandth and one-two-hundred-thousandth, commonly seen in patients suffering from hypertension or arteriosclerosis.

Despite its extremely low probability, it was actually not uncommon in a hospital.

Millions of people lived in the city, and dozens would suffer this disease each year, a dreadful condition for all clinicians.

In Sea City, this disease was... incurable.

Even if type I aortic dissection was surgically treated in the provincial capital, the chance of survival remained low as well.

Apart from cardiac transplantation, this was one of the most dangerous surgeries in the cardiothoracic surgery department. In fact, transplanting a heart was not as complicated as surgically treating a case of type I aortic dissection.

Zheng Ren's heart rate instantly skyrocketed to 122 beats per minute. He quickly stood and used the seats to support himself as he moved to Cui Heming's side.

The anxious Cui Heming was sweating profusely, his face chalk-white as he struggled to breathe like a beached fish.

"Quiet, everyone must be quiet," Zheng Ren said in a deep voice, "Calm down, I'm here."

Cui Heming reached out and grabbed Zheng Ren firmly like a drowning man clutching at straws.

"Miss flight attendant, I'm a doctor. Is there a place wide enough for him to lie down?" asked Zheng Ren.

The stewardess became frightened as soon as she saw Cui Heming's condition.

Her mind went blank as she had never seen anyone with such a horrible appearance. Upon hearing Zheng Ren's question, she subconsciously pointed at the first-class cabin in the front and said, "The seats over there can be reclined."

"Can you please prepare an empty chair for him? I'm going to calm him down before transferring him there."

Zheng Ren knew that any sudden movement could aggravate the symptoms of type I aortic dissection.

Any sudden changes in blood pressure could completely rupture the aorta.

Once the aorta ruptured... the patient would die immediately!

"Cui Heming, do you know who I am?" Zheng Ren stared into Cui Heming's eyes and asked seriously.

"You're Doctor Zheng." Cui Heming's lips trembled as beads of sweat trickled down his forehead and temples.

"You don't have to speak. My medical skill is very good, so I need you to trust me, alright?" said Zheng Ren.

This was a psychological suggestion, but anyone who said it was considered to have a sense of responsibility.

Despite his intense discomfort, Zheng Ren's hand seemed to give Cui Heming a sense of security amidst his disorientation.

The helplessness of that night, the compliments the old professor in Imperial Capital had given, the silk banner in his hands, the patients' sincere gratitude outside the emergency building... These were the cornerstones of his sense of security.

He tried his best to nod.

"Please relax, don't be nervous. I'll carry you to the front so that you can lie down." Zheng Ren clenched Cui Heming's hand firmly to reassure him. Then, he said, "Miss flight attendant, may I ask for a stretcher?"

"Yes," the stewardess answered quickly.

There were stretchers on the airplane, but most people had never seen them before.

Nobody hoped to see it, either.

"Su Yun, lend me a hand!" said Zheng Ren, his voice was not loud but determined and commanding.

Su Yun finally removed his earphones and looked to the back.

Puzzled, he still had no clue what was going on, but the authority in Zheng Ren's voice was obvious and the aura of a superior was on full display.

Su Yun immediately assisted the flight attendants in carrying the stretcher to Cui Heming's side without wasting any time asking questions.

"Relax, relax. Breathe normally, and don't take deep breaths," said Zheng Ren softly like a psychologist hypnotizing a patient.

Zheng Ren had self-learned some basics of psychology, which he was subconsciously using.

He just wished that Cui Heming's blood pressure would not elevate from anxiety.

Once the aorta ruptured...

He would be doomed!

Cui Heming's respiratory rate gradually normalized and his contorted face softened slightly, presumably due to Zheng Ren's successful hypnotism or the unlimited Charm he had obtained as the System reward.

The intermittent severe pain was still gnawing continuously at him.

A minute later, Zheng Ren judged that Cui Heming's condition had stabilized and carefully transferred him onto the stretcher.

In the first-class cabin, the flight attendants had already reclined an empty seat.

"What happened?" asked a passenger in the first-class cabin.

Zheng Ren glanced at the passenger. He was the middle-aged man who had wheeled the elderly man with advanced lung cancer to the airplane just now.

"High blood pressure with some minor issues. He's fine," replied Zheng Ren.

That man immediately came to assist after noticing Cui Heming's condition.

One's blood pressure in a supine position was more stable than if one was in a sitting position, which was why Zheng Ren had to move him despite the huge risk.

However, Zheng Ren could only try to make Cui Heming as comfortable as possible due to limited resources on the plane.

"Do you have a sphygmomanometer?" asked Zheng Ren.

The middle-aged woman took out a portable sphygmomanometer from the first-aid kit, which Su Yun immediately took and used to measure Cui Heming's blood pressure.

After transferring Cui Heming to the flattened empty seat, the middle-aged man pulled Zheng Ren aside and asked softly, "He doesn't seem fine. What's your diagnosis?"

"Type I aortic dissection." The words squeezed through Zheng Ren's slightly parted lips.

The middle-aged man immediately put on a stern expression.

"And you are?" asked Zheng Ren, staring at the first-aid kit.

"I'm Xia Hua, a cardiothoracic surgeon from Harbin Medical University Affiliated Second Hospital." Xia Hua extended his hand.

Zheng Ren shook his hand and said, "I'm Zheng Ren from Sea City General Hospital. Do you have medicine?"

"Oral hypertensive drugs only. I don't have an infusion pump or any drugs for intravenous injection." Xia Hua looked helpless.

"That's good enough. Double the dosage for beta-blockers and vasodilators. Do you have any analgesics?" Zheng Ren assumed command of the resuscitation without the slightest hesitation.

Xia Hua was taken aback. Zheng Ren's tone... he sounded like a chief consultant of his department.

However, Zheng Ren looked like he was only in his twenties. Where did he acquire such confidence?

He was unsure if this patient could be rescued even in the cardiothoracic surgery department at Harbin Medical University Affiliated Second Hospital, let alone on an airplane with limited medical resources.

This confidence... was baffling.

Even so, Xia Hua remained silent and took the medicine—metoprolol, nitroglycerin and an analgesic—out of the first-aid kit. Then, he asked for a bottle of water from the stewardess before giving them to Cui Heming.

Su Yun finished measuring the man's blood pressure, he approached Zheng Ren and softly reported the result: "Blood pressure at 195/125mmHg,"

No one made a noise out of worry that the sudden racket could aggravate Cui Heming's condition and elevate his blood pressure.

A chill seeped into Zheng Ren's heart.

That was an extremely high blood pressure. Without any antihypertensive drug injection, Cui Heming could die in the very next second.

Zheng Ren grabbed the arm of the stewardess, who was about to report the situation to the captain, and said in a calm but demanding voice. "Miss flight attendant, I want to contact the control tower."

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Chapter 173: I'm Zheng Ren, Requesting Assistance

Zheng Ren's words shocked Su Yun.

"You're crazy!" Su Yun growled softly.

It was one thing to save a life on public transportation such as airplanes and trains.

Zheng Ren actually wanted to contact the control tower, and everyone knew what that meant.

"He needs surgery that Sea City can't provide, and it'll be quicker to seek treatment in Imperial Capital than heading to the provincial capital. More importantly, I don't know anyone in the provincial capital," Zheng Ren explained before whispering to the stewardess, "The patient could have a sudden cardiac death at any moment, so I need to speak with the doctors in Imperial Capital."

The stewardess, who had not expected the situation to be so serious, immediately nodded and reported it to the captain.

Zheng Ren glanced at Cui Heming before he quickly returned to his seat and took his medical license and invitation letter for scientific research in Imperial Capital out of his luggage.

Every doctor had to have a medical license before they could attend scientific research and become a fly-in, fly-out surgeon.

Of course, only a copy of his medical license was required to work as a fly-in, fly-out surgeon, which would be kept on record by the medical administration division of the hospital where the patient stayed.

Zheng Ren had to bring his original medical license to attend scientific research in Imperial Capital, a prerequisite that had been agreed to in advance.

The medical license seemed to be the only thing Zheng Ren could use to persuade the captain.

This was a competition.

Against time!

Against luck!

Against fate!

In less than a minute, a square-faced captain in uniform came out of the cockpit, and at the same time, Zheng Ren ran back to the scene.

"Captain, my comrade," Zheng Ren said seriously, "This is an emergency and the patient could go into sudden cardiac death at any moment. I request you contact the control tower in Imperial Capital regarding his special condition."

Zheng Ren handed his medical license and scientific research invitation letter to the captain.

His tone sounded serious, and he even addressed the captain as "comrade", a term rarely used nowadays.

The captain attentively read through the medical license and eyed Zheng Ren, comparing him to his photo before shifting his gaze to Cui Heming, who was ashen-faced and drenched in sweat.

"Follow me." The captain was also a responsible man. Although what Zheng Ren mentioned was alien to him, Cui Heming's condition made him believe the claim.

A life was at stake, so the captain decided to take risks.

After emergency protocol verification, Zheng Ren entered the cockpit.

The captain had already adjusted the frequency and began to contact the control tower in Imperial Capital.

"Imperial Capital International Control Tower, this is flight N2992. Good morning."

"N2992, please speak."

"There is a patient with a life-threatening condition on my plane, and a doctor amongst my passengers wants to speak with the air traffic controller."

There was a startled silence on the other end of the phone. Evidently, the staff on duty had never encountered such an unconventional operation in his life.

The captain glanced at Zheng Ren and handed the intercom to him.

"Imperial Capital International Control Tower, hello. I'm a doctor onboard flight N2992." Zheng Ren's voice was deep and resonant with a sense of an indescribable authority. "A passenger is in critical condition, preliminarily diagnosed with type I aortic dissection. Please contact the medical staff in Imperial Capital and request an air ambulance."

The captain was stunned. It was more than enough if the control tower sent an ambulance to stand by at the airport, but an air ambulance? This young doctor must be out of his mind.

Even in Imperial Capital, only a few large hospitals had access to an air ambulance, which would be deployed only in an emergency.

Moreover, he was asking air traffic control to develop a separate route specifically for a helicopter in busy airspace above Imperial Capital International Airport. Did he seriously think this was a simple task?!

The staff on duty in the control tower remained silent. They were unable to comprehend and comply with Zheng Ren's request.

Zheng Ren blurted out a series of numbers. "This phone number belongs to Professor Pei Yingjie of the hepatobiliary hospital in Sorcery Capital. Please contact Professor Pei."

He hesitated for a brief moment and said firmly, "Please inform Professor Pei Yingjie that I'm Zheng Ren and the diagnosis is confirmed. Ask him to request an air ambulance and inform Anzhen Hospital and Fuwai Hospital to prepare for emergency surgery!"

Anzhen Hospital and Fuwai Hospital offered the best cardiovascular treatment within the country. Zheng Ren had no idea which professor was proficient in performing an "elephant trunk" procedure, also known as aortic arch replacement, which was why he brought up both hospitals.

"Copy... Alright." The staff of the control tower was flabbergasted. The caller had directly name-dropped and demanded a hospital in Imperial Capital send an air ambulance? How influential this professor must be! Perhaps he was a leading authority in the medical world between seventy to eighty years old.

The control tower terminated the conversation without going through regular protocol.

Puzzled, the captain's muscles contracted as if entering a combative state, as he considered Zheng Ren a desperado hijacking his aircraft.

Zheng Ren detected the captain's clear hostility and quickly returned the intercom, making an innocent face to indicate that he meant no harm.

"Are you sure Imperial Capital will dispatch an air ambulance?" The captain noticed Zheng Ren's attitude and recalled the medical license he had seen previously. Deep down, he was awed by the angels in white, but remained doubtful about Zheng Ren's behavior.

"Who knows." Zheng Ren shook his head. "I'm just trying my luck. The rest will depend on fate."

Zheng Ren then left the cockpit and returned to Cui Heming's side.

The high dosage of antihypertensive drugs and a double dosage of analgesic reduced and stabilized Cui Heming's blood pressure. He was currently lying on the flattened seat in the first-class cabin; his eyes were closed and he was trying his best to remain as calm as possible.

"How is his blood pressure?" Zheng Ren asked.

"180/110mmHg," answered Su Yun immediately.

Enduring the agonizing pain in his chest, Cui Heming managed to open his eyes and asked, "Doctor Zheng, am I alright?"

"I'm here, so you'll be fine," replied Zheng Ren confidently.

Cui Heming slowly extended his sweaty hand, which Zheng Ren grasped while consoling him. "You know that I'm very good."

"I trust you, Doctor Zheng." Cui Heming gradually closed his eyes again and mumbled repeatedly, "Don't be nervous, don't be nervous. Doctor Zheng is here, Doctor Zheng is here..."

Xia Hua was astonished. Were there any well-reputed doctors at all in Sea City, a prefectural-level municipality this doctor named Zheng Ren came from? However, as an experienced doctor, he could detect an absolute sense of authority and security Zheng Ren radiated to the patient.

Where did this power come from?

Su Yun was stunned as well. Even though he was Zheng Ren's "flawless" assistant, in terms of sense of authority... he had seriously considered himself much superior to Zheng Ren.

If he had another two years to practice, he would surely steamroll Zheng Ren without difficulty.

That had been his thought in the past, but the more he got along with Zheng Ren, the more uncertain he was about his beliefs.

Could he really surpass Zheng Ren?

Probably.

The fact that an unfamiliar patient had absolute trust in Zheng Ren further confused Su Yun.

How long had it been since he last received this sort of trust?

Apart from Zheng Ren's superb medical skills, there was something else that the highly intelligent Su Yun failed to grasp.

A deadly silence dominated the cabin with the only sound being Cui Heming's heavy, regular breathing.

More than ten minutes later, the captain opened the door and walked out of the cockpit.

"I just received news from the control tower stating that an air ambulance is en route to Imperial Capital International Airport." The captain himself could not believe the words that just came out of his mouth.

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Chapter 174: Air Ambulance

The captain deliberately lowered his voice to ensure the patient remained undisturbed.

Even so, both Su Yun and Xia Hua heard the good news clearly.

The muscles on Su Yun's beautiful face spasmed involuntarily. He then lowered his head and allowed his black bangs to dance in the air.

The captain's words repeatedly swirled through Xia Hua's mind, stunning him for a few seconds.

He could not believe it.

The Second Affiliated Hospital of Provincial Capital Medical University was the largest hospital with the highest annual income and the total number of patients treated—ordinary and difficult cases included—in the province.

However...

Xia Hua had never encountered the use of an air ambulance to transport emergency patients. In fact, apart from movies and TV dramas, he had never seen an air ambulance despite having worked in the medical field for almost twenty years.

The astronomical cost of deploying a helicopter aside, the hospital's helipad alone required a great deal of land.

It would be faster to directly send the patient to the hospital via regular ambulance than to convert a parking lot to a temporary helipad.

Xia Hua believed that few Class Three Grade A Hospitals in Imperial Capital had air ambulances.

However, where did this guy order its deployment?

Requesting one alone was a huge favor.

What the f*ck!

"That's good." Zheng Ren smiled at the captain and went to monitor the patient's condition, still whispering, "Thank you."

The captain did not disturb Zheng Ren, who remained beside the patient to keep a close eye on him.

Suppressing the doubts in his mind, the captain returned to the cockpit.

It was a completely different world once the cockpit door closed.

The first officer asked curiously, "Brother Lin, who is that young man?"

The captain shook his head. "I have no idea."

"That young man has really wide social connections. This is the first time I've seen a request for an air ambulance; perhaps I've not had enough time in civil aviation."

"I've worked in commercial aviation for eleven years and flown over a thousand flights, but this is a first for me as well." The captain recalled the plain-looking man's dignified and determined demeanor and said, "Doctor Zheng said that the patient's blood pressure has to remain stable, so we need to be slower and more careful during landing and touchdown. Hopefully, he will survive until he reaches the hospital."

...

...

Flight N2992 arrived at Imperial Capital International Airport in less than an hour as it was only a few hundred kilometers between Sea City and Imperial Capital.

In order to prevent a death, the captain tried his very best to land the plane in the most stable manner possible.

The flight attendants repeatedly advised the passengers to remain calm and allow the critically ill patient to get off the plane first.

A few of them grumbled, but everyone tried to be understanding and tolerant under such circumstances.

Instead of taxiing to the terminal, the plane landed on a wide, open area at one corner of Imperial Capital International Airport as instructed by air traffic control.

A helicopter was standing by,

Like a soldier awaiting orders.

Quiet, alert and fearless.

The cabin door opened as soon as the plane taxied to a halt, allowing two paramedics and two stretcher-bearers in dark green uniforms aboard the plane.

Even though the flight attendants had been informed of the situation, they had not expected an air ambulance standing by at Imperial Capital International Airport. Staring at the helicopter with its blades whirring through the air and the medical personnel rushing aboard to transfer the patient, they were surprised and excited at the same time.

Despite their intense desire to gossip, they prioritized resuscitation and helped the stretcher-bearers to transport the patient steadily.

"Do you have a pump?" Zheng Ren's expression had relaxed slightly after the smooth landing.

"Yes." A paramedic took an infusion pump and antihypertensive drugs out of the first-aid kit.

Since Zheng Ren had informed Professor Pei about the patient's condition and diagnosis, the necessary resuscitation materials had been brought onto the air ambulance before its departure.

The infusion pump was activated and a small ECG monitor attached to the patient. After a few minutes, the drugs took effect and his blood pressure dropped to 150/90mmHg. Zheng Ren then nodded and assisted the Imperial Capital medical personnel in transferring the patient into the helicopter.

The slowly vanishing helicopter somewhat soothed Zheng Ren's nerves.

As for the surgery's success... That would depend on fate.

Type I aortic dissection was surgically treated with an aortic arch replacement, a complicated and dangerous surgery.

The mortality rate could be as high as ten percent.

However, there was at least hope for recovery. Zheng Ren, a mere general surgeon, had no desire to assist in a surgery as advanced as aortic arch replacement.

One had to know their limitations.

He had done his best by safely escorting the patient from the airplane to the air ambulance. There was nothing else he could possibly do.

"Little Zheng, you're good." Xia Hua watched the helicopter disappear before returning to the airplane with Zheng Ren. As soon as the cabin door closed, the plane began to taxi to the terminal.

"It was fortunate that you were here," Zheng Ren said honestly, "The patient was really lucky; it's usually difficult to find analgesics on a plane."

It was a fact, not a show of courtesy.

There was a chance that someone would bring antihypertensive drugs on board a plane, but analgesics? That was all luck.

Reducing one's blood pressure was simply inadequate in Cui Heming's case as the severe tearing pain would give him a sense of impending doom.

His blood pressure could not have been lowered as smoothly had his pain not been well-controlled.

"That's true," Xia Hua agreed. They were both experienced doctors, so there was no need for formalities.

Naturally, Xia Hua knew that it was extremely difficult to diagnose an emergency case on a plane.

He was a deputy senior consultant of the cardiothoracic surgery department, but would he be confident enough to diagnose such an emergency case alone?

The answer was no. That was beyond question.

Xia Hua shook his head and added, "Little Zheng, you're skilled in making diagnoses."

"I've seen it, so I know the signs," replied Zheng Ren politely.

"Where did you even find an air ambulance? There is no way an ordinary person could get ahold of such high-end goods." This was what piqued Xia Hua's interest the most.

In all honesty, even if he had diagnosed the condition correctly and provided appropriate first-aid measures, medical resources on the airplane were still limited. In addition, the most the control tower could do was to mobilize an emergency vehicle on duty to stand by as they could not demand the deployment of an air ambulance.

Their type of emergency vehicle could only handle minor emergency issues, as well as having to face traffic congestion in Imperial Capital. Thus, it would take at least one to two hours for the patient to be admitted to a hospital.

Every second counted in an emergency situation.

An air ambulance was indeed a rare mode of transportation.

"I'm attending a research project in Imperial Capital and happened to know a professor there. I don't know the specifics, but I think the professor was the one who did it."

Ten thousand alpacas broke into a furious gallop in Xia Hua's heart. 'What the f*ck... Are you even thirty years old? Attending a research project in Imperial Capital? And you even know a professor who can mobilize an air ambulance?'

All his years in the medical field had been wasted...

He suddenly felt deeply hurt.

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Chapter 175: Superb Domain-Independent Skills

The plane soon reached the terminal and allowed the passengers to disembark in an orderly manner.

After the aircraft was empty, the flight attendants surrounded the captain and bombarded him with questions.

"Captain, what happened?"

"Brother Lin, what is going on?"

"That was my first time seeing an air ambulance."

Captain Lin looked relaxed as well. He had done everything within his power to maximize the patient's chance of survival, did he not deserve to be proud of it?

"I heard Doctor Zheng say that the patient had a serious condition; something called type I aortic dissection that could lead to sudden cardiac death at any moment," said Captain Lin.

Surprised, a stewardess covered her mouth. "Ah, aortic dissection? My classmate's father had this disease."

"Is it serious?" asked the others.

"I don't know."

"Cheh..."

"A doctor in my hometown was unable to treat the condition and said that only hospitals in the provincial capital or Imperial Capital could deal with such a case. My classmate's family agreed to the transfer, but as soon as his father sat up on the hospital bed, he collapsed and passed away," recalled the stewardess from memory. She had not foreseen encountering the same case on a plane one day.

In addition,

Most importantly,

The man had been safely transferred onto the helicopter.

"That's bad!"

"He collapsed and died right after sitting up?"

"Oh my God, that's so scary!"

The thought of a perfectly healthy man getting up and immediately going into sudden cardiac death shocked every flight attendant.

Captain Lin also looked astonished as he had underestimated the severity of the patient's condition.

"Fortunately, the patient has safely boarded the helicopter and should be in the hospital now." The stewardess put her palms together as if praying for the patient's safety.

"I think so. It would take too long for an ambulance to go downtown before reaching the hospital, and accidents are bound to happen along the way."

"I've never seen an air ambulance. If it hadn't been for the fact that there was a red cross on the helicopter, I would have thought it belonged to a special task force deployed to arrest criminals."

After chatting for a while, the stewardess, who had been the first to notice Cui Heming's discomfort and assisted Zheng Ren in carrying the patient to the first-class cabin, suddenly said, "Brother Lin, you're awesome!"

Captain Lin froze for a moment, unable to comprehend her words.

"Your familiarity with the ground crew gave you the power to request an air ambulance," the stewardess said, expressing her admiration.

The startled Captain Lin immediately laughed.

"I ain't that powerful." Captain Lin could not take all the credit. "It was that young doctor who contacted the control tower and asked the ground crew to call a professor surnamed Pei."

"Huh?"

"What happened after that?"

"Impossible. Even if the ground crew was willing to contact that professor, how could one phone call mobilize an air ambulance?"

The flight attendants were in disbelief.

"I remember Doctor Zheng telling me to inform Professor Pei that he had diagnosed an aortic dissection in-flight and needed an air ambulance." The captain was still flabbergasted as he recalled it. "After that, I received a response from air traffic control stating that a helicopter was en route. I contacted the control tower again before landing and taxied the plane to the designated location."

"..."

Name-dropping...

Many of them, including the flight attendants, had encountered similar incidents in the past.

However, most of them were drunken boasts.

No one could have foreseen that on the plane,

That unremarkable, young doctor,

Could demand an air ambulance by simply name-dropping.

Was that even possible?

"He's influential. Any idea what his background is?"

"I saw an invitation letter for scientific research when he was retrieving his medical license."

"Wow, I'll be sure to get his contact information when I see him next time."

"You just want the contact information of the assistant beside Doctor Zheng, right?"

The flight attendants chatted happily.

...

...

Zheng Ren disembarked and bid goodbye to Xia Hua after they exchanged contact information.

Su Yun trailed behind Zheng Ren silently. When there were only two of them, he said calmly, "You're bold."

"How so?"

"You diagnosed a type I aortic dissection from a glance at the patient?" asked Su Yun, raising his head with a visible gleam in his eyes.

The fickle-minded System had given the diagnosis, but Zheng Ren casually made up a response anyway. "Yes, the symptoms and his pulse gave it away."

Cui Heming's medical history and symptoms were consistent with the disease as well.

The types—I, II or III—merely signified the severity of the disease. In any case, it was safer to perform emergency surgery in Imperial Capital than to return to Sea City.

Su Yun did not argue with Zheng Ren like a contrarian.

The man's confidence brought him to a halt before he silently followed after Zheng Ren.

It was amazing. However, a general surgeon would brag about their skills in the operating theater, right? Why did he even develop this "feeling" outside the operating theater?

...

...

Feng Xuhui was holding up a large sign, waiting for Zheng Ren and Su Yun at the arrival hall.

Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery had placed a high value on this scientific research, and Manager Feng had also been lucky enough to meet Zheng Ren on his first sales pitch.

Thus, he had meticulously prepared Zheng Ren's accommodation in Imperial Capital and arrived at the airport an hour early to welcome him.

When he saw Zheng Ren walking out of the arrival gate from afar, he shook the sign in his hand, trying to get Zheng Ren's attention.

However... The truth was always unexpected.

Zheng Ren went directly from the arrival gate into the crowd without a look at the waving sign.

Meanwhile, his extraordinarily beautiful assistant followed him with a lowered head as if contemplating life.

Feng Xuhui was left speechless.

What just happened? Why was Chief Zheng ignoring him?

Oh yeah! He must have thought that no one would welcome his arrival as he was merely a junior doctor.

"Chief Zheng, Chief Zheng!" Feng Xuhui called out as he caught up with them, smiling.

Zheng Ren turned around and looked slightly... confused.

"Manager Feng from Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery," whispered the beautiful assistant... male assistant beside Zheng Ren.

'You broke my heart, Chief Zheng!'

The smile on Feng Xuhui's face froze a little.

Zheng Ren extended his hand and greeted him warmly, "Hello, Manager Feng."

"Don't mind him, he has late-stage face blindness cancer," Su Yun explained.

Feng Xuhui smiled awkwardly. "Chief Zheng, I've arranged transportation to send you to the hotel."

"Oh, there's no need for that," replied Zheng Ren as he released his grip and smiled.

"Don't be so polite. You're in Imperial Capital, and as a friend, how could I not welcome your arrival? Please forgive my poor hospitality," said Feng Xu Hui enthusiastically and courteously, unbothered by Zheng Ren's face blindness cancer.

"Professor Pei has said that he is waiting for me in the parking lot." Zheng Ren waved his phone.

"Professor... Pei?" Feng Xuhui was dumbfounded.

"Yes, there was a problem on the plane just now, but fortunately, Professor Pei provided his assistance. I'm actually surprised that he had personally come to the airport as well," said Zheng Ren while confirming the location of the parking lot.

"..." Feng Xuhui was almost in tears. Why was flattery so difficult nowadays?

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Chapter 176: Stay In The Guest House

No matter how unexpected the circumstances were, Feng Xuhui still fulfilled his duty as a professional manager.

Under his guidance, Zheng Ren and Su Yun successfully located Professor Pei's car.

It was an inconspicuous Hongqi designed between ten to twenty years ago.

Upon spotting Zheng Ren from afar, Professor Pei got out of the car and greeted him, "Little Zheng, over here."

"Professor Pei, that's too polite of you." Zheng Ren quickened his pace, a sign of respect for his elderly comrade.

"You really gave me a troublesome issue to deal with." Professor Pei smiled in mock outrage.

Zheng Ren responded with an embarrassed smile.

He had met Professor Pei by chance through nothing but professional ties. When he had asked the control tower to contact the professor in a desperate gambit, he was betting on the benevolence of a senior doctor with decades of medical experience.

Sure enough, he had won.

It had been thanks to Professor Pei's kindness and his... the System's accurate diagnosis.

"Doctors encounter all kinds of accidents all the time, and we should remain unaffected by common practices in current society and help those in need." Professor Pei tapped Zheng Ren's shoulder and smiled earnestly. "How absurd is it that patients can't be treated outside one's place of practice?!

"Little Zheng, I'm very satisfied with you."

Professor Pei was referring to a case from a few years ago where an obstetrician had conducted a delivery on a train, but had been prosecuted by the family after its success, the reason being that a medical practitioner's place of practice did not include a train or the whereabouts of the train at that time.

In the end, the issue ended in compensation and the revocation of the doctor's medical license.

From that moment on, most doctors and nurses turned a deaf ear when there was a broadcast on the train looking for medical personnel.

That was how far social behavior had degraded.

Obviously, Professor Pei was unsupportive of this approach.

How could a doctor leave a patient unattended?

This was how he validated Zheng Ren's good deed.

"It's my job," replied Zheng Ren with a smile.

"Professor Pei, do you think Chief Zheng should go to the hotel or the hospital first?" Feng Xuhui said. He had been waiting quietly the whole time. "I've booked a hotel room for him."

"He'll stay in the hospital guest house." Professor Pei waved his hand and entered the car, signaling for Zheng Ren to sit in the back. Meanwhile, Su Yun helped the chauffeur load their luggage into the trunk before getting into the passenger seat.

Feng Xuhui was nearly in tears.

In order to make the young doctor with great potential feel at home, he had even paid the booking fee for a room in a five-star hotel.

However, he had failed to expect...

A guest house...

It was a term so historic that those born after the year 2000 had never heard it before, and the name itself carried a distinctive rustic weight that could take one back thirty years.

Poor Chief Zheng. He had to stay in a guest house instead of a five-star hotel.

However, there was no way he would visibly express that thought.

Feng Xuhui put on a professional smile and watched as the black Hongqi left the area before getting into his car and following it.

In the Hongqi, Zheng Ren sat upright and chatted with Professor Pei.

"Little Zheng, I hadn't expected your diagnosing skill to be so good," Professor Pei said with a smile, "Not everyone can diagnose an aortic dissection, let alone the specific severity."

"I've seen two similar cases and read literature about it," replied Zheng Ren politely.

"How sure are you?" asked Professor Pei, curious.

"Eighty percent?" replied Zheng Ren after a few moments of hesitation. There was no way he would express his absolute confidence even though the diagnosis provided by the System had to be correct.

If Zheng Ren put himself in another's shoes, he would never have believed that anyone could accurately diagnose type I aortic dissection based solely on their own experience, on a plane, and without any diagnostic equipment.

"You're confident." Professor Pei gently tapped on his knees, as if deep in thought. After a while, he said, "The reason I believed your judgment was because I've seen your skill at surgery."

Su Yun's ears twitched, obviously focused on the conversation between Professor Pei and Zheng Ren even though he was on his phone in the passenger's seat.

Zheng Ren nodded.

"It's good that you're confident. You know, I asked for a huge favor by deploying the air ambulance. If the diagnosis was wrong, those old men are going to laugh at me."

In a sense, medical practitioners were almost the same as tech nerds with one notable difference—a tech nerd only had to face a computer, but medical staff had to deal with all sorts of people.

Even so, they showed reverence for anyone with greater skill.

Those who could provide an accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment plan were undoubtedly worthy of worship by countless people.

On the other hand, idiots who were full of themselves but could not properly diagnose a condition would be denigrated.

As for those who did not value skill... They went to hospital management.

Professor Pei had expressed his thoughts very clearly. Zheng Ren thought about it and asked, "How's the patient now?"

"His blood pressure is well-controlled, and he is undergoing a 64-slice CT scan now," replied Professor Pei.

...

...

At the same time, in a CT room of a random hospital,

A white-haired, senior professor was attentively observing the image on the screen and ignoring the subtle noise of the machine in front of him.

A doctor in his thirties hung up his phone, entered the room and said softly, "Master, the patient has safely arrived at the ward."

"Begin preoperative preparations," the old professor said calmly, still staring at the screen.

"The diagnosis is confirmed?" The young doctor was astonished. Only the ordinary spiral CT films were displayed on the screen as 3D reconstruction of the 64-slice CT scan was still running in the system software.

"It should be type I aortic dissection. The tear has been effectively controlled, thanks to its timely diagnosis and treatment," the old professor said. He then pointed at a section of the film, adding, "You can see some subtle changes here."

The young doctor frowned as the old professor's words went against his knowledge of medicine.

"When will your senior finish surgery?" asked the old professor.

"There are three elective cases today. He's on the second surgery as we speak."

"Tell him to postpone the elective cases," the old professor said, "Finish this emergency case first, and I'll guide the operation when preoperative preparations are complete."

"Is it an elephant trunk surgery?" The young doctor was excited; he was very interested in the largest operation in cardiothoracic surgery.

"Yes."

At that moment, the 3D image of the CT scan finished being constructed and its films began displaying on the screen.

There was a tear on the aorta five centimeters away from the heart.

The tear was approximately three to four centimeters long, which was not a serious condition and still within a controllable range.

"Old Pei really guessed it correctly," the old professor mumbled.

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Chapter 177: Boss Zheng?

The Hongqi dived into a sea of cars in Imperial Capital and headed slowly to its destination.

Around an hour later, they arrived at a hospital located between West Fourth Ring Road and West Fifth Ring Road.

Instead of using the front entrance, the car drove directly to a row of old buildings in the northwest corner through the back door.

Although it was early winter, the vines still grew strong and added a tinge of greenish-yellow amongst a vast blanket of white.

"You'll stay here. It's not far from the institute, so it'll be more convenient for you," Professor Pei kindly said after the Hongqi parked in front of a small building.

Feng Xuhui followed the Hongqi to the front of the building. When he entered through the back door, he instantly became excited.

This was not a guest house. It was a realm where all legends with amazing hidden talents stayed. Countless memories started flowing into his mind.

One year, someone had treated a disease here. In another, a doctor enrolled in a healthcare department had lived here as well.

Although it was not as luxurious as a five-star hotel, Feng Xuhui would have still chosen this place without the slightest hesitation.

As Feng Xuhui followed the Hongqi closer to the inconspicuous building, his eyes became increasingly brighter, and his grip on the steering wheel tightened as well.

He indeed had the aura of a protagonist to have actually met a rising star in Sea City, a god-forsaken place, on his first sale.

No one else had the luck as he did!

'I must seize this opportunity,' Feng Xuhui decided.

The check-in at the guest house not only required an identity card, but also a letter of introduction, which was an antiquated item.

Fortunately, Professor Pei had prepared such a letter for Zheng Ren. Once the tedious check-in procedures were complete, Professor Pei bid goodbye and said that he would wait for Zheng Ren at the institute the next morning.

It was no secret that the hospital had a national-level base for experiments, also known as a research institute. Zheng Ren expected that the research project would be conducted there.

After Professor Pei left, Feng Xuhui took Zheng Ren and Su Yun's luggage and went upstairs, unwilling to release his grip.

Zheng Ren was helpless. Why would he even need help when he was a perfectly healthy man?

"Get used to it," Su Yun said with his head lowered, seemingly reading Zheng Ren's thoughts, "Your ability gave you the right to stay here, and that alone was enough for Manager Feng to realize your value."

"Okay." Zheng Ren did not care what Manager Feng thought of him, nor was he curious about the uniqueness of this place. He casually acknowledged and followed Feng Xuhui up the stairs.

The architecture of the two-story building was sturdy and simple, and the design of the former Soviet Union was easily recognizable at first glance.

Despite its great antiquity, it was very clean and refreshing.

After sending both gentlemen upstairs, Feng Xuhui invited them to dinner but was politely rejected by Zheng Ren. Left with no choice, he repeatedly told Zheng Ren to call him if something happened.

Zheng Ren, who was used to living in peace and quiet, found it difficult to adapt to Manager Feng's enthusiasm, but he acknowledged the kind offer regardless and saw the man off.

He unpacked his luggage and went for a shower before unpacking an anatomy book of the urinary system for revision.

Then, a voice came out of the next room when he was only a few pages in.

Had Su Yun courted the young girl at the front desk when they had first arrived at Imperial Capital?

If something went wrong under his watch, he would have to suffer the shame of troubling Professor Pei. Thus, with no envy in his heart, he opened the door to investigate.

His speculation was wrong. A few men in their thirties stood at the doorstep, and one of them was in a white coat with a red stethoscope hanging around his neck.

Su Yun merely stood at the door and spoke to them without inviting them into the house.

What was going on?

Upon noticing Zheng Ren, Su Yun pointed at him and said, "He is my new boss. Talk to him if you need anything, and don't bother me."

"Hey, Su Yun, I haven't seen you in years, and you're still acting like a dog with rapid mood swings." The doctor with the stethoscope looked annoyed. "You said you wanted to return to practice medicine or establish a pet medical center if you were unhappy, and yet in less than two years, here you are. Who are you trying to impress now?"

"Let's go out for dinner. I haven't seen you in a long time; you b*stard, you still haven't changed a bit," said another man in a hoodie.

"You arrogant brat, you found a new boss in Sea City? Many professors in Imperial Capital wanted to recruit you, but you turned all of them down. Pooh! Come on, let's go out together."

Su Yun remained quiet. His black bangs flowed across his forehead.

Zheng Ren assumed that they were Su Yun's friends. He was unsure of how they had caught wind of Su Yun's trip to Imperial Capital and visited him so soon.

That was strange. The sharp-tongued nancy boy actually had friends.

Zheng Ren was still unaware of his own limitations as he simultaneously failed to observe that a blockhead like him had also gained new friends, and perhaps... maybe... a girlfriend, soon.

"Boss, are you going?" asked Su Yun.

The moment Su Yun spoke, Zheng Ren seemed to notice a sneer at the corners of his lips.

That was a strange expression, and Zheng Ren was unable to comprehend its meaning. Besides, why had the nancy boy addressed him as "boss"?

Normally, medical postgraduate students referred to their lecturers as "boss", but of course, teachers or masters were acceptable titles as well, depending on the lecturers' preferences.

However, Su Yun's so-called "boss" appeared younger than himself, perhaps only in his twenties.

The b*stard's nonsense was getting outrageous.

"Hey, can you just come with us? If you keep rejecting us any further, I'll show you no mercy with my Pegasus Meteor Fist." Red Stethoscope playfully punched Su Yun's chest.

Zheng Ren shook his head, but before he could return to his revision, Su Yun darted toward him and grabbed his arm.

"Let's go for dinner," said Su Yun.

"You guys go ahead, I'm going to read my book." Zheng Ren declined.

However, he was soon overwhelmed by the group's enthusiastic invitation. They were also curious as to why Su Yun lacked the humility and courtesy toward the young man whom he claimed to be his boss.

Zheng Ren had no choice but to accept.

Fortunately, the System had given him memories of three thousand prostate anatomical dissections, so he was not worried about the QA session in the laboratory tomorrow.

He presumed that it would involve a process similar to that of a graduation thesis. Anyone who passed the test would be able to stay for the research project.

As for its details, Zheng Ren had no idea what they were.

Since it was still early, he presumed that the group would find a place to sit down for chit-chat.

Just as they were about to leave in excitement, someone's phone suddenly rang.

Red Stethoscope took out his phone and accepted the call. After a brief conversation, he said apologetically, "A patient from my hometown was scheduled for morning consultation, but arrived only this evening. I'm going to make arrangements and change my attire in the meantime. Wait for me."

"Let's go together. It has been a long time since I was last here." Su Yun, who seemed unbothered, grabbed Zheng Ren and followed the group to the outpatient building.

...

...

It was crowded in the Imperial Capital hospital.

Zheng Ren had once heard that a registration number for specialist consultation sold by the ticket scalper cost between three to five thousand yuan.

However, with the development of transport systems such as high-speed rail and commercial aviation in today's world, more people had started swarming into Imperial Capital to seek treatment, unfazed by its sky-high medical charges.

They weaved through the crowd and arrived at the outpatient department on the fourth floor. Red Stethoscope then made a phone call to locate the patient from his hometown.

She was an emaciated girl in her early twenties. Her skeletal appearance was a depressing sight.

Zheng Ren was puzzled when he read through the patient's details on the upper right corner of his vision.

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Chapter 178: Advanced Cancer? I Don't Think So

Red Stethoscope read the films and brought the girl from the outpatient department to the inpatient department.

Worried, the girl's family brought their thick stack of films with them.

The girl attracted a lot of attention, presumably due to her severe emaciation, which was a rare sight.

"Probably an advanced cancer of the gastrointestinal system," said a young doctor beside Su Yun sympathetically.

"Her malignant tumor is so aggressive at such a young age. I don't think there is much chance of recovery now."

"I would suggest she receive traditional Chinese treatment in China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences Guang'anmen Hospital; she could probably live for another year or so."

Su Yun kept quiet and stole a peek at Zheng Ren.

Zheng Ren failed to notice his gaze as he was deeply immersed in his own train of thought about the emaciated girl.

Half an hour later, Red Stethoscope had changed into casual attire and returned briskly.

"Let's go," he said.

"What's wrong with that patient from your hometown?" someone else asked.

"Advanced esophageal cancer with multiorgan metastases." Red Stethoscope sighed and said, "It's too late for surgery or even targeted drug therapy. I'm actually sneaking out while Boss Gu is reading the films."

"..." Everyone remained silent.

"I don't think so," said Zheng Ren after a few moments of hesitation.

"Huh?" Red Stethoscope stared at Zheng Ren in disbelief. He had been quiet throughout the journey and his first sentence was to question the diagnosis?

Who the hell did he think he was?

Su Yun merely stood aside with his arms crossed.

"Brother Yun, how good is your young boss?" another young doctor asked softly as he approached Su Yun.

"Very good." Su Yun's answer was plain and simple.

"Is he really your boss? Is he a professor with a baby face?"

"No, he is a few months younger than me, but his surgery skills are much superior to mine," replied Su Yun truthfully.

"..." The young doctor was flabbergasted, and his expression even more exaggerated than when he had laid eyes on the emaciated girl.

"What? He guides you in surgery? Are you kidding us?" Pretentious shock was written all over another man's face. "Brother Yun, your words are getting more unbelievable."

"I'm telling the truth. Your intelligence worries me greatly," Su Yun said coldly, "I think you should all pack your stuff and return home. Your presence here will just get in the way of patients' recoveries."

All of them, including Zheng Ren, had gotten used to his harsh words, so nobody took him seriously.

"Er..." Red Stethoscope hesitated for a while. "Boss, what did you just say?"

Boss... Zheng Ren was unaccustomed to this title.

"My name is Zheng Ren," he said, "The patient doesn't seem to have advanced esophageal cancer; I recommend doing an esophagoscopy with a tissue biopsy."

"I don't think that's necessary. The patient's investigation reports, including a PET-CT scan, indicate that she indeed has advanced esophageal cancer with multiorgan metastases," replied Red Stethoscope coldly as he understood Zheng Ren's meaning.

"How dare you speak to my boss in such a derogatory tone." Su Yun's lips curled into a sneer, an otherwise extremely punchable sight.

"Brother Yun, what do you mean?"

"Just perform a tissue biopsy. It won't take long, anyway." Su Yun said, waving his hand, "Since it's still early to be having dinner, perhaps you'll be surprised by the results."

Red Stethoscope could ignore Zheng Ren's opinion, but when Su Yun gave his, he started to hesitate.

"Brother Yun, are you being serious?" Red Stethoscope asked doubtfully, "She already has advanced cancer, it's inhumane to torture her any further."

Su Yun glanced at Zheng Ren, who had a confident expression, and said, "Give it a try. If it isn't advanced cancer, dinner is on you, and vice versa. You can choose anywhere you want and order anything you like."

"I want to eat foie gras at Da Dong until you go bankrupt," joked another man, who pushed Red Stethoscope toward the inpatient department.

"Then I'll go back and have a look," replied Red Stethoscope, firmly believing that it was unnecessary. After all, the PET-CT results had clearly stated the diagnosis, and the patient's family merely wanted to try their luck in Imperial Capital.

Was it really necessary to torture the young girl by performing esophagoscopy with tissue biopsy?

The tumor cells could seed through the biopsy tract and worsen her condition.

However, he decided to do it due to Su Yun's persistence.

Su Yun shook his head and smiled. "Boss, how sure are you?"

"One hundred percent," said Zheng Ren confidently, not recognizing the mockery in his tone.

Zheng Ren's attitude toward Su Yun and Professor Pei varied hugely.

The rest of the group found it interesting that Su Yun's "boss" was convinced that it was a misdiagnosis when the investigation results clearly stated otherwise.

What a joke.

"Oh, what do you think she has?" asked Su Yun.

"Active phase of gastrointestinal tuberculosis with extrapulmonary manifestations. Once the diagnosis is confirmed via tissue biopsy, she can undergo an antituberculosis regimen," replied Zheng Ren.

"..."

Everyone was dumbfounded.

Even Su Yun was unable to accept it.

What the heck was this?

Gastrointestinal tuberculosis was a rare disease.

It was no longer a terminal illness after the development of antituberculosis regimens.

Tuberculosis had been an "incurable disease" just like cancer a century ago.

Moreover, intestinal tuberculosis was more commonly seen in gastrointestinal tuberculosis; as for esophageal tuberculosis... It was too rare. Even the doctors in Class Three Grade A Hospitals in Imperial Capital had only seen a few cases in their careers.

How uncommon was esophageal tuberculosis?

Disregarding the number of cases, the mechanisms of primary and secondary tuberculosis remained clinically ambiguous. Some suspected that primary esophageal tuberculosis simply did not exist, and all esophageal tuberculosis happened due to secondary infection by bacterial infiltration from the mediastinal lymph nodes and the tissues surrounding the esophagus directly into the esophageal wall.

Dead silence reigned around Zheng Ren.

"I really have no idea what your confidence is based on," Su Yun mumbled and sighed while tapping on his phone.

It looked like he could not prevent his WeChat Wallet from bleeding money this time. Hematemesis directly from a phone seemed like it would be a gruesome sight.

A doctor patted Su Yun's shoulder in consolation.

After hearing Zheng Ren's diagnosis, everyone seemed to lose interest in Su Yun's "boss" and merely considered it all a joke by Su Yun.

They casually sat and began engaging themselves in their phones.

Nearly an hour later, Red Stethoscope returned with long strides. His walking was so quick that his hood fluttered with every movement.

"Let's go for dinner." A man put down his phone, rubbed his eyes and said lazily, "Brother Yun, I've actually made reservations in Da Dong."

Su Yun waved his hand casually to indicate that he did not mind at all.

"We're having dinner in Da Dong?" Red Stethoscope's complexion instantly became pale.

"Why not? Dinner is on Brother Yun today, so let's not have dinner somewhere else. I want to eat foie gras at Da Dong."

"..." Red Stethoscope's expression looked like he was constipated. He scratched his head and said, "Let's have dinner elsewhere."

"Huh? That's strange, why are you helping Brother Yun save money?"

"Visual inspection during tissue biopsy suggested that it wasn't a tumor..." said Red Stethoscope, embarrassed.

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Chapter 179: Misdiagnosis? Impossible

"What?"

"It's not esophageal cancer?"

"F*ck! That's impossible!"

All of them were astonished. How could the diagnosis have been wrong when everything had pointed toward esophageal carcinoma?

"Anyway, the tissue sample has been sent for histopathology, so it can't be considered a loss yet." Red Stethoscope was shameless. "Let's go to Gui Street for Chinese-style spicy crawfish."

The mention of that food made Su Yun's expression sink immediately.

Zheng Ren was exhilarated and slightly regretful at the same time. Had it not been for the misunderstanding in the emergency department, he would have surely returned to the restaurant to see Su Yun being demolished by Chang Yue. How glorious a sight that must have been.

From Su Yun's expression, Zheng Ren knew how much damage he had received that day.

Critical hit 10086.

A taxi they had hailed online arrived after a brief chat.

As for the destination... It was still Da Dong.

It was the evening rush hour now, so it took nearly two hours for them to travel from Fourth Ring to Dongsi Shitiao Station.

Zheng Ren began to regret his decision as well. If these guys had not insisted on his participation, he would surely have gained one skill point from reading his book.

Upon reaching South Fujikura, the lobby manager, who seemed to be familiar with these people, enthusiastically welcomed their arrival.

In the private dining room, Su Yun unrestrainedly ordered lots of food, including three plates of foie gras. Red Stethoscope's complexion...

Became darker...

And darker...

Everyone was seated after Su Yun was done ordering. Then, he started introducing them one by one.

Red Stethoscope's real name was Fang Lin, a doctoral student just like the others, and all of them had known Su Yun since their postgraduate days.

Zheng Ren seemed to remember that Su Yun had been in the postgraduate program at Union Medical College Hospital, so how would he have known all these people?

He knew Su Yun all too well, so he decided to keep these questions to himself despite his doubts. Otherwise, he would only receive harsh, mean answers.

"I'd like to propose a toast to Boss Zheng," Fang Lin said politely after requesting two bottles of Laphroaig.

Zheng Ren refused the offer. "That's too kind of you, but I can't drink."

"Forget about him. He can't drink, so I'll drink with you." Su Yun knew his role and smoothed things over. "He'll be in big trouble if he can't attend the conference at the institute tomorrow morning."

"Oh!" Fang Lin slapped his thigh and said, "Brother Yun, I heard Little Sun of the urology department saying that he has been studying prostate artery embolization recently, and saw your name on that list. That's why I said Sea City wasn't a suitable place for a talented man like you."

Su Yun smiled and brushed the black bangs framing his forehead aside, saying, "In terms of beauty, the snow will melt and the frost will thaw were I in Siberia."

"..." Everyone was flabbergasted despite their familiarity.

"But I'm actually tagging along with my boss for this research project," said Su Yun while stealing a look at Zheng Ren.

"Huh? Who invited Boss Zheng?" Fang Lin was unconvinced.

"Professor Pei Yingjie from a hepatobiliary hospital in Sorcery Capital."

Fang Lin and the rest stared at each other in disbelief.

Professor Pei Yingjie was a popular candidate for a research fellow and a famous professor in the medical world!

Zheng Ren's age, while not completely childlike, did not seem close to that of an expert who would be invited to attend research. However, not only would questioning him be particularly impolite, they were also unfamiliar with the young man. Thus, they remained silent.

Zheng Ren did not mind them either. He was actually staring at the empty table and recalling the anatomy of the prostate using the bottle of Laphroaig. It seemed like he was the only one with such extraordinary imagination.

He had a feeling that he could skillfully dissect a prostate like a butcher dismembering an ox after the System had poured three thousand prostate anatomical dissections into his mind.

Fang Lin broke the awkward silence. "Boss Zheng's diagnostic ability is amazing. When I returned just now, Boss Gu was actually preparing to perform esophagoscopy with a tissue biopsy."

"Your boss is very good," answered Zheng Ren naturally.

The atmosphere once again became lifeless.

His boss was very good? Was Zheng Ren actually praising himself? It was good enough that others complimented him, but what the hell was this self-aggrandizing?

Fortunately, the roast duck and other dishes arrived. Su Yun then began indulging in food and drink with Fang Lin and his gang, throwing the boring Boss Zheng aside.

The group had plenty of gossip on everything that had happened over the last two years. Despite Su Yun's sharp tongue, Zheng Ren noticed that they were actually unwilling to see Su Yun leave and were constantly persuading him to return.

Su Yun merely downed his drink without any response.

The Laphroaig, smelling like iodine, was consumed one glass after another. Fang Lin and the rest were lightweights and could not compete with Su Yun.

Su Yun remained unsatisfied even after finishing a whole bottle by himself.

"I wish Chang Yue was here," said Zheng Ren after noticing his dissatisfaction.

Su Yun's facial muscles twitched uncontrollably as he glared at Zheng Ren.

"Brother Zhao has been yearning for a reunion drink with you. We are no match for you in that." Fang Lin and the rest had quickly surrendered when they started to feel tipsy. It seemed like they had been repeatedly trounced in previous drinking contests.

It was rare that alcoholics knew their limitations. Zheng Ren presumed that Su Yun occupied the same spot in their minds as Chang Yue did in Su Yun's.

"Where is Old Zhao?"

"He was instructed to perform an elephant trunk surgery by my boss this afternoon," Fang Lin said, "He initially scheduled fewer surgeries today on purpose just to have a drink with you, but we hadn't expected an emergency case of aortic dissection. I think he's still in the operating theater now."

Su Yun glanced at Zheng Ren and asked, "Was the patient sent via an air ambulance?"

"Huh? How did you know?" Fang Lin was getting tipsy after two glasses of Laphroaig, but his thought process was still present.

"Let me tell you, I've seen air ambulances deployed less than five times, and one for a case of aortic dissection is even more extraordinary. That patient was really lucky to have survived until hospital admission, and I even heard that he was initially diagnosed on a plane," he said excitedly.

Every doctor's blood would course with excitement whenever such gossip was discussed over alcohol.

"That's right. There was a case of sudden cardiac death on Flight D last year. We later found out that he probably had had an aortic dissection which completely ruptured afterward. He wasn't as lucky as the patient we received today," another man said, "It's really unusual for an air ambulance to stand by at the airport and pick up the patient. This is the first time I've heard such a thing."

Zheng Ren took a cherry-shaped piece of foie gras and munched on it.

He was not interested in the roast duck and other dishes, but the foie gras was genuinely delicious. A layer of fruit jam was smeared on its outside which removed most of its greasy mouthfeel.

As for its texture, Zheng Ren was unable to decipher it and only knew that it tasted wonderful.

He also turned a deaf ear to the discussion.

"What's the matter with the girl today? Let's talk about her." Upon noticing Zhang Ren's lack of interest, Su Yun changed the topic from the aortic dissection to the girl they had seen earlier.

"When she began her weight loss program in June, she started experiencing chest pains aggravated by food consumption. They initially considered it a minor illness, probably gastroesophageal reflux disease, so they simply prescribed medication without a thorough investigation." Fang Lin's heart still fluttered with fear as he spoke about the girl's condition.

After all, the esophageal tuberculosis had been misdiagnosed as advanced esophageal cancer with multiorgan metastases... And although everyone on the scene was a doctor and they perfectly understood that the PET-CT scan did not have one-hundred-percent accuracy,

It was still a misdiagnosis. Apart from the family, a doctor was the next person sincerely hoping for the patient's recovery.

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Chapter 180: The Benefits of A Senior Professor

"About twenty days ago, the girl suddenly experienced excruciating pain during a meal and was admitted to a hospital in my hometown," Fang Lin said, "She has undergone various tests, but the results have been disappointing."

"Fortunately, Boss Zheng was here," said another man with a smile.

"No, Brother Fang's boss also wanted to perform a tissue biopsy, right?" replied Zheng Ren.

"Had I been the one to handle this case, I would certainly not perform a tissue biopsy due to its high risk." Fang Lin recalled the patient's imaging films and said truthfully, "First of all, the PET-CT result confirmed the diagnosis. Secondly, we might not be able to stop the hemorrhaging as the tumor has a rich vascular supply. Boss Zheng, how confident would you be that intraoperative accidents would not happen if you were the one performing the surgery?"

"I can't," Zheng Ren said frankly, "I'm just a general surgeon working as chief resident in the emergency department."

'And I don't have the extra skill points to learn cardiothoracic surgery, either,' he thought.

"..." Everyone except Su Yun looked at him, surprised.

Chief resident in the emergency department of a third-tier city? How low-level was that? Out of the millions of doctors in the county, he was merely at the first step of his career and many times inferior to the doctoral students in the top hospitals of Imperial and Sorcery Capital.

Those were not even the main problem. Most importantly, he was simply a general surgeon.

What the f*ck...

The huge difference in skill made the atmosphere gloomy again.

Zheng Ren had steamrolled everyone with his powerful abilities.

"Let's not talk about this any further." Su Yun helped himself to a glass of Laphroaig and savored the unique taste of iodine before asking with a smile, "Do any of you know the progression of the scientific research?"

Fang Lin and the rest were caught in a trance. After a while, a young doctoral student sitting near the door answered, "My boss was asked to formulate subsequent plans a few days ago, but there hasn't been a breakthrough. The current difficulties lie with the lack of major blood supplies, and the capillary network is too dense for complete embolization. Also, the materials used have to be strictly monitored due to the small diameters of the vessels, and the surgeon has to be skilled in this domain."

"The big bosses' imaginations have gone wild. I'm not optimistic about this research project." Fang Lin clinked glasses with Su Yun.

It was a bold and generous move, but Fang Lin merely took a sip instead of chugging it down.

"I heard that Biosensors International is developing thinner guidewires and catheters, and that they're doing research in Sorcery Capital now."

"Huh? Why?" Zheng Ren was puzzled.

Prostate artery embolization was bound to be unpopular, especially with the usage of newly developed micro-guidewires and microcatheters, as they also meant sky-high medical charges. Ordinary citizens were unable to bear such costs and it was thus difficult for developers to earn profit as well.

"There are too many reasons." Fang Lin smiled. "We normally remove the hyperplastic prostate instead of performing interventional radiology. The only patients who require such a tedious treatment are geriatrics with blood clotting disorders or heart disease. If they have cardiac arrest intraoperatively due to pain, we would be in serious trouble."

Zheng Ren understood immediately.

Even though Fang Lin did not provide a detailed explanation, Zheng Ren was still able to make sense of what he was trying to say.

"I heard that the institute has gathered many medical experts. It was originally unintentional, but it's too late for the big bosses to go back now."

Zheng Ren suddenly noticed that everyone had their eyes fixed on him.

Their gazes contained various complex emotions such as pity...

Did they think he was a scapegoat?

Zheng Ren did not think so. He was simply too inferior to take such massive blame.

Everyone chatted leisurely afterward—they went over every piece of gossip in the hospital, from which doctors had performed what operations, to a deputy chief consultant of a department who had resigned after being unable to obtain a promotion and gone on to work as a chief consultant in a competing hospital.

Zheng Ren continued devouring the cherry-shaped foie gras in silence with Xie Yiren fully occupying his mind. Would she try to move on after savoring such delicious food?

That foodie.

The thought of Xie Yiren put a warm smile on Zheng Ren's face.

"Hey, what's with the ambiguous smile? Who are you thinking about?" Su Yun stood with everyone, who was ready to leave after the drinking session was over. After all, some of them had to perform surgery tomorrow, and even if they had been scheduled to work in the outpatient department, they would still have to deal with over a hundred patients a day, a task as exhausting as performing surgery.

"Oh." Seeing that everyone was about to leave, Zheng Ren stood up and put on his coat.

Xie Yiren had purchased this soft and comfortable coat made of an unknown fabric for him. What should he buy as a souvenir for her before going back home?

Zheng Ren's mind once again wandered elsewhere.

Fang Lin was no longer stingy and distressed when it was time to pay the bill. He quickened his pace to the front desk and took out his phone to make payment.

"Sir, someone has paid for your meal," said the front desk manager politely.

"Huh?" Fang Lin was taken by surprise.

'Su Yun must have paid for everything.'

This very thought annoyed Fang Lin greatly.

"Hey, you, why are you considering yourself an outsider?" Fang Lin turned around, scolding Su Yun.

"What's wrong?" Su Yun, who seemed fine despite having downed an entire bottle of Laphroaig, trailed Zheng Ren like a shadow

"When did you pay the bill? Why wasn't I informed?" Fang Lin said, "What's wrong with you, picking up the check when this dinner is meant to welcome you... and Boss Zheng?"

Su Yun shrugged and brushed his black bangs on his forehead aside without providing any explanation. However, Zheng Ren could feel the infinite contempt radiating from his eyes.

Then, a familiar figure appeared at the front desk, and it took Zheng Ren two seconds to recognize the man.

"Chief Zheng, I've paid for your meal." Feng Xuhui smiled professionally.

"You didn't have to do that," replied Zheng Ren.

This was the first time Zheng Ren had had his bill paid by someone else. More importantly, Feng Xuhui had been waiting at the front desk alone the whole time just to notify him of this at the end of their meal.

Su Yun smiled. "Thank you so much."

"This is..." asked Fang Lin. He could guess Feng Xuhui's occupation, but had no idea which company he was working for.

Generally, only moguls and VIPs could enjoy the benefits of having someone waiting outside the hall to pick up the tab.

Moreover, these were usually done at the direct behest of their own bosses. Otherwise, what salesperson would be willing to wait three to five hours and spend thousands of yuan just to ask for a favor?

However, from Zheng Ren and Su Yun's expressions, this salesperson must have come all the way here to pick up the check independently.

The doctoral students knew the meaning behind this: as the saying went, "there is no such thing as a free lunch", especially when a meal in Da Dong cost seven to eight thousand yuan.

A gift always came with a price.

Fang Lin stole a peek at Zheng Ren. If he gladly accepted the offer, it meant that the other party's request was too huge and this meal was simply inadequate to make up for the trouble caused.

Even as the group exchanged gazes in silence, Su Yun could still clearly read their thoughts.

He said impatiently, "Thank you, Manager Feng. Let's go back to sleep."

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Chapter 181: The Woes of Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery

Su Yun and Zheng Ren got into Manager Feng's car. It was the only logical arrangement as there were too many of them to fit in one.

The Mercedes-Benz S600 left the premises as silent as it had arrived. Fang Lin took his phone out to hire another vehicle.

"Hey Fang Lin, did that really just happen?"

"Yeah. That was quite a show." He ordered a car and locked his phone.

"Sea City is just a third-tier city. How did they get noticed by someone of this caliber?"

"Well, that's not the only factor. Brother Yun, for example; the man doesn't want to be a doctor, but if he did, he would be performing the elephant trunk surgery today. And between Brother Yun and Brother Zhao, I have more confidence in Brother Yun as the lead surgeon," Fang Lin said with a cackle.

No one could argue with Fang Lin's vote of confidence.

Who was this man that Su Yun called brother?

To make a company's sales manager wait at the counter as they wined and dined, just to pay the bill and drive them back to the hospital.

The man must have some leverage over the company.

"Though I still don't agree with the research center's focus."

"This problem couldn't be solved by even the big shots, it's unlikely he can do any better. However, it is a great opportunity to rub elbows with people."

"He's lucky to be from general surgery... Wait a minute, the current research topic has nothing to do with general surgery..."

At that point, the same question ran through everyone's minds. Why had an emergency chief resident doctor specializing in general surgery been invited to a prostatic artery embolization research conference?

What was his deal?

It was preposterous.

...

...

Feng Xuhui sent Zheng Ren and Su Yun back to the reception area.

They exchanged farewells before the two men made their way upstairs. Feng Xuhui exhaled as he watched the two retreating silhouettes.

It was early winter season. The temperature in Imperial Capital was not as low as that of Sea City, but it was still cold.

Feng Xuhui did not leave immediately. He pulled his coat tight and went out for a smoke.

As he took a drag, he recalled his day. Had there been any actions or words of his that could have left a negative impression on Chief Zheng?

He replayed all of their interactions in his mind. He only relaxed once he was certain his performance today had been perfect.

As he let his guard down, the chairman's deep voice boomed in his head. Words from a few hours ago echoed within Feng Xuhui's mind.

"Manager Feng, Biosensors International is breaking into China's market. Our company is at a turning point and a breakout in your field will play a critical role in ensuring our survival. The company will fully support you; let us know if you have any requests. Failure is not acceptable in this project!"

Out of the blue, Feng Xuhui had become an employee of interest in Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery.

Survival... full support... failure unacceptable...

These high expectations weighed heavy on Feng Xuhui's shoulders. After all, he was but a recent hire.

Feng Xuhui worried about the company's decision to place all their chips on a 30-year-old doctor. Were they drowning and clutching at straws?

He understood the chairman's worries.

Biosensors International was a multinational healthcare company based in Singapore. They were a huge corporation with annual sales ranking fourth globally.

The company's main focus was in Europe and America, but there were plans to expand into China.

Biosensors International had recently developed a new cardiovascular membrane stent that was to be their cash cow, but the same technology had also been pioneered by Boston Technologies.

The research and development of the stent technology had exhausted Biosensors International's financial reserves. Hence, they were looking to capitalize on the Chinese market due as it had less competition.

Feng Xuhui did not know why Biosensors International had neglected China previously, but as multinational corporations entered the local market, it never bade well for smaller companies.

It was no small feat that Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery stood where it did now.

Biosensors International debuting in the Chinese market would threaten their business.

Feng Xuhui understood the gravity of the situation. Facing a behemoth, the chairman's worries were fully justified. The company's survival was at stake.

It was not easy to manage a company that solely catered to the domestic market.

There had been limited advancement in their materials research and development which made them less competitive when it came to quality. They could only lower their profit margins in hopes to retain their clients.

However, in interventional-radiology assisted surgery, materials played an important role. There was no doubt a multinational healthcare company would have better products that offered premium user experiences.

A smoother user experience often meant shorter surgery times. Rates of success would naturally increase with a reduction in radiation exposure during the procedure.

This mission of his... It was more difficult than scaling the steps to Heaven.

In his previous job with Great China Company, he was in charge of sales of electronic switching systems. The commission for a successful sale was high and there was also an ongoing maintenance contract with the company, which meant that it was easier to achieve a high volume of sales.

Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery lacked the in-depth knowledge and expertise to attract more clients. These doctors were sacrificing their lives to perform surgeries.

What a headache... Feng Xuhui finished his second cigarette. He put it out and let out a foggy breath into the winter air.

The only way was forward.

Planning was man's due, the outcome was God's.

Materials... Materials... The word echoed in his heart.

Feng Xuhui stood, throwing the butt into a nearby bin, dusting his pants and driving away.

He should get some rest. He had to get breakfast for his guests tomorrow morning.

'What does Chief Zheng like to eat? Dumplings or soy milk with fried bread sticks?'

The soy milk in Imperial Capital could be too different for Chief Zheng's taste.

...

In the headquarters of Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery in Shenzhen City, bright lights illuminated the building proper.

The chairman was still in a meeting despite the descending darkness outside.

The bittersweet smell of coffee permeated the meeting room. The expressions of the meeting participants were dull and weary; they looked nothing like the commonly-accepted exuberant, high-flying and white-collar image of workers in big cities.

"Finance can allocate some resources to Imperial Capital but I don't think Manager Feng from the northeast district would make a huge difference," an overweight middle-aged man said. "In my opinion, we have to invite Wu Haishi for a joint research venture to see results."

"Materials RD?" the chairman asked from the end of the table with folded arms.

"There has yet to be a breakthrough, sir." The head of the materials research department was the most awkward person in all these meetings.

The research into new materials had been unfruitful to date. This not only limited the growth of Changfeng Microinvasive Surgery, it also placed them at risk of bankruptcy.

"Speed it up." A deep frown marred the chairman's forehead. "Any news on Biosensors International?"

"Yes," a sharp-looking woman said. She waved for her assistant to bring over a freshly-printed document.

"We just got news that Biosensors are running a similar trial procedure in Sorcery Capital. They are ramping up production of the new model of guide wires and catheters. I give them another week before they hit a milestone."

Bad news was coming, one after another.

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Chapter 182: Scalper

At 7:00 am the next day, Feng Xuhui delivered breakfast to his two guests.

Zheng Ren was not used to such hospitality, but Su Yun shamelessly wolfed down the food.

"Mr. Zheng, Professor Gu requested to meet you," Su Yun said with his mouth full.

"Professor Gu?" Zheng Ren had no idea who the man was. Had he overlooked some names yesterday?

"Oh, he was the one that performed the biopsy on the esophageal tuberculosis patient," Su Yun explained. "When Fang Lin returned, he saw Professor Gu performing the biopsy and told him about your diagnosis."

Zheng Ren was glad that the professor had come to the same conclusion. The patient was a young woman and a diagnosis of late-stage esophageal cancer would be incredibly cruel.

"Professor Pei had eyes on you as well, hence the meeting," Su Yun said as he gulped down soy milk.

Anxiety gripped Zheng Ren and killed his appetite.

He was worried Professor Pei would ask too many questions. It would be absurd to say that the System had provided him with the correct diagnosis.

Zheng Ren had to be more cautious when diagnosing patients. He did not know what to do in the current situation.

"Come on, eat your breakfast. Professor Gu has a consultation session today. If we're late, you won't be able to meet him," Su Yun urged Zheng Ren as he shoveled food into his mouth.

Was this the big stage that Old Chief Physician Pan talked about?

Feng Xuhui, who was standing aside, overheard Su Yun and Zheng Ren's conversation.

Chief Zheng's capabilities were truly exceptional. A few days in Imperial Capital and he already had the attention of one of the professors.

The man was a golden goose and Feng Xuhui had no intention of letting him go.

A few bites of food later, Zheng Ren was dragged by Su Yun to the outpatient clinic.

It was still early, but there was already a long queue.

There were a few people milling around the area, occasionally striking up conversations with those who were in distress and in an obvious hurry.

"Those people are scalpers. They can profit 5000 yuan from a ticket to meet the specialist," Su Yun said.

Zheng Ren bit his tongue.

"5000 yuan is the friendly price. If the patient seems desperate, they can charge up to 10000 yuan." Su Yun laughed. "Back when I was contemplating leaving Union Medical, I considered being a scalper. But the profiteering was a bit much, I figured I would rather open a vet hospital."

"You keep talking about that vet hospital, yet I don't see you doing anything about it." It was the umpteenth time Zheng Ren had heard Su Yun mention his imaginary veterinary hospital.

"My family is against my dream to open one. My grandmother threatened to off herself." Su Yun brushed the mop of hair that covered his forehead, frustration evident on his face.

They both fell into an awkward silence. Zheng Ren continued studying the CT scan from last night, trying to come up with a solution. On the other hand, Su Yun was scrolling through his phone, his heart heavy with unspoken truths.

Half an hour later, Fang Lin walked into the corridor, a red stethoscope at his neck. A kind-faced old man accompanied him.

"Professor Gu, nice to meet you," Su Yun greeted as he tugged at Zheng Ren's sleeve to get his attention.

Fang Lin opened the consultation room and let them in.

The corridor they were previously in was dimly lit, and a man in sunglasses followed them into the room.

When Professor Gu saw the uninvited guest, he shouted, "Get out! Get out!" The professor shooed the man away like he would a fly.

The man in sunglasses hesitated but Professor Gu's incessant shouts prompted Fang Lin to push him out of the room. His hateful expression was on full display.

Spitting on the ground, he left without turning back.

A confused expression crossed Zheng Ren's face. The man was certainly shady but Professor Gu's treatment of him seemed excessive.

"The guy is a scalper," Su Yun whispered.

Professor Gu grumbled, "Little Fang, do not let these people enter the consultation room next time."

Fang Lin nodded and looked out into the corridor. Once he confirmed that the man was gone, he shut the door.

The incident had broadened Zheng Ren's horizons.

Scalpers were uncommon in Zheng Ren's everyday life, so he had no opinions on the issue.

However, from the long queue they saw outside, Zheng Ren was put off by the scalper's greed. The sunglasses hiding his shifty eyes also raised suspicion. Zheng Ren respected Professor Gu for having to deal with such situations.

"Have a seat." With the door closed, Professor Gu's expression softened.

"Nice to meet you, Professor Gu. I'm Zheng Ren from Sea City General Hospital." Zheng Ren introduced himself and bowed in respect.

"Sit, sit." The anger from before had faded and Professor Gu asked in a cheery tone, "Do you still remember the esophageal tuberculosis case?"

"Yes, I do." Zheng Ren nodded.

"I heard from Little Fang that you managed to give the correct diagnosis. Tell me how you came to that conclusion."

"Esophageal cancer does not have a high fatality rate and during its early stage, the patient will encounter ingestion issues. Very few people would delay treatment." Zheng Ren had prepared his answer on the way to the clinic.

"Yes, carry on." Professor Gu agreed.

"As esophageal cancer spreads, the primary targets are the liver, lungs and brain. It is rare to see metastases in the bones, but if it happens, the long bones would be the focus. There is a low probability of metastasis in the ribs. Dr. Fang showed me the PET-CT scan and I saw multiple spots at the ribcage which pointed to tuberculosis."

Zheng Ren's explanation was sensible. It was a bit forced but no one could refute his logic.

Professor Gu gave him a smile and started to explain the patient's history, even bringing out the PET-CT and NMR scans.

Su Yun's face was expressionless. He was sure the old man was slow on the uptake.

Fang Lin listened attentively to the professor's story.

The woman was his patient. At first glance, he had agreed with the older doctors with whom he consulted that it was a case of metastatic esophageal cancer.

However, Dr. Zheng from Sea City and his own professor had disagreed with the diagnosis. The biopsy had also proven it to be tuberculosis, not cancer. It was an error in diagnosis on Fang Lin's part and he gladly listened to the two men discuss the case.

Doctors had to learn and grow from their own mistakes.

Even the wise Qiu Fazu had botched one of his appendectomies which led to his patient's death. The guilt had motivated him to be a better doctor.

They had to practice carefully with minimal mistakes. Every error had to be examined from all angles to prevent recurrence.

It was a doctor's responsibility.

Half an hour passed quickly.

Within that short period, Zheng Ren gained a significant amount of knowledge.

At the start of their discussion, Zheng Ren had been able to interject and say his piece, but five minutes later, it had become a full blown lecture by Professor Gu.

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Chapter 183: The Attack

Professor Gu went on about the biology and pathology of the case. He detailed his thought process during case assessment and the reflections he made after.

The sight of the old professor's snow-white hair filled Zheng Ren with emotions.

Professor Gu had surpassed Master rank without the help of the System. He had relied on years of experience and hard work to get to where he was now, which was somewhere between Grandmaster and Legend.

The System had given Zheng Ren a boost, but he decided he ought to double down on his efforts.

Fang Lin noticed the time: it was five minutes to 8:00 am. He shuffled closer to Professor Gu and, in a whisper, reminded the old man of the clinic's opening hours.

"Alright, Little Zheng, I think our time is up. Leave me your contact details. Drop by my office whenever you're in town," Professor Gu said in the end.

Birds of a feather flock together. Zheng Ren's correct diagnosis had impressed Professor Gu.

Zheng Ren bowed with humility.

His skills were largely dependent on the System. When would he be able to work independently?

Fang Lin opened the door to lead them out. Zheng Ren and Su Yun said their goodbyes to the professor.

As they were exiting the room, a short man appeared at the door holding a black umbrella.

The black umbrella stood out in Zheng Ren's mind as it was early winter. There was hardly any need for it in this season.

Fang Lin's attention perked up at the unusual character. He blocked the door and asked, "Where is your number?"

There was a flash as the black umbrella fell away.

A knife spanning half a meter was revealed.

The murderous glint of the weapon was unquestionable.

It was shocking.

The knife sliced through the air with ease.

Zheng Ren, who was standing nearest to Fang Lin, pushed the doctor away.

The knife came down on Zheng Ren's shoulder. Blood splattered across the floor.

The blood stunned the attacker for a while. His hateful, beady eyes turned to look at Professor Gu and he retrieved his knife, advancing toward the professor.

Su Yun frowned and, reacting quickly, flung a white stool meant for patients at the attacker's head.

At this point, Fang Lin had regained his senses and realized the attacker was heading for Professor Gu. He rushed forward and restrained the attacker's arms.

The attacker was a man of average build. The stool hit his head with an audible thud.

A flash of anger crossed the attacker's face as he realized Fang Lin was hindering his progress.

The man switched targets. The knife plunged into Fang Lin's body.

Zheng Ren's injured shoulder throbbed as blood flowed freely. He could only see the attacker's back but not the weapon.

Adrenaline rushed to his head.

Zheng Ren had nothing that could act as a makeshift weapon and the attacker's body was protected by layers of winter clothing. He decided to headbutt the attacker.

Another loud thud.

Stars danced across Zheng Ren's vision. Between those stars, he caught a glimpse of the attacker falling to the ground. Fang Lin collapsed along with him.

Ding dong! The system chimed the arrival of a mission.

The chime went unnoticed by the hot-blooded Zheng Ren. His vision went red as blood dripped from his forehead; his or the attacker's, he did not know.

[Emergency Mission: Together We Stand.

[Mission Details: Rescue Fang Lin.

[Mission Reward: A Master-rank ancillary skill book, choices available: X-ray radiography, B-scan ultrasonography or magnetic resonance imaging.

[Mission Duration: One day.]

Zheng Ren was nauseous. He felt someone tug his body aside.

Su Yun came up to the attacker and kicked at his neck. It was not hard, but it was accurate.

His target was the carotid sinus.

The carotid sinus was where the aorta branched out into the carotid arteries. Its vascular walls were thinner, making the vessels in the carotid sinus more distended. There were nerve endings deep within that acted as pressure sensors while chemoreceptors there detected changes in blood composition.

Blunt force to the carotid sinus would cause nausea and vomiting.

Su Yun did not place much force into his kick but all that mattered was the target. The attacker passed out immediately.

Everything seemed under control until Professor Gu clutched at his chest and sank to the ground.

F*ck!

Zheng Ren cursed the whole situation.

They had their reckless hero, Fang Lin, on the ground. On the other hand, Professor Gu was having a heart attack.

They were short on time. Zheng Ren made a quick call.

As Su Yun had previously been stationed in the ICU in Sea City General Hospital, Zheng Ren was sure the man was better at handling a heart attack than he was.

"Su Yun, check on Professor Gu." Zheng Ren pushed Su Yun toward the professor, then knelt beside Fang Lin.

The 50cm-long knife had stabbed into Fang Lin's body and pulled out. Blood was pooling around them and its metallic smell filled the room.

Zheng Ren glanced at the weapon. Based on the bloodstains, the wounds were approximately 20 to 25cm deep.

The display at the top right corner of Zheng Ren's vision listed the diagnosis: ruptured liver, torn diaphragm, ruptured lung, tension pneumothorax, hemorrhagic shock.

Although the stab wounds had been inflicted less than a minute ago, Fang Lin had already fainted from excessive bleeding.

There were multiple wounds that affected vital organs.

"Help! Nurse!" Zheng Ren shouted at the top of his lungs. He shifted Fang Lin's body and started tearing his blood-soaked clothes off.

The earlier commotion had attracted several people's attention, but it was Zheng Ren's shout for help that made doctors rush through the door.

"50ml syringe, iodophor, incision kit. Quick!" Zheng Ren called out for the things he needed.

A young doctor recovered from his shock and quickly left to retrieve the supplies.

The young doctor had received proper training in Imperial General. He returned with the materials and a crash cart.

Zheng Ren took the 50ml syringe and uncapped its large-bore needle, which went into the second intercostal space on Fang Lin's right rib.

The sound of pressure being released immediately wheezed from it.

Realization dawned on the surrounding doctors. It was a tension pneumothorax!

The condition developed when there was damage to the lung or bronchus that allowed air to collect in the pleural space, leading to the formation of a one-way valve.

It would deteriorate when the patient tried to breathe.

Therefore, Zheng Ren had to deal with it even as Fang Lin was bleeding out. Short of an aortic rupture, a tension pneumothorax was first priority in emergency situations.

"Prep the OR[1]!" Zheng Ren screamed, agitated. His voice was harsh from shouting.

[1] Operating room.

Chapter 184: Critical Damage

Doctors of all ages came to assist.

Zheng Ren paid them no heed and tore open the incision kit, dousing the knife wounds on Fang Lin's body with iodophor.

The dark solution gushed from the bottle and ran out in seconds.

Zheng Ren threw the bottle aside and put on his surgical gloves. He took a scalpel from the kit; without any preamble, he cut into Fang Lin's flesh.

He moved in a flurry. Any comments from bystanders died down after witnessing the first incision.

'Was he going to stop the bleed with his hands?' The old doctors were shocked.

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They had not witnessed this outdated method of hemostasis in a long time. How was this civilian outperforming most doctors?

Zheng Ren and Su Yun were, after all, dressed in civilian clothing.

A middle-aged doctor made to stop Zheng Ren, but before the words could leave his mouth, the scalpel drew a 10 cm incision from the stab wound to the right side of Fang Lin's rectus abdominis.

Dark red blood burst out from the incision.

With the aid of his general surgery and interventional surgery Master ranks, combined with the experience of 300 liver dissections, Zheng Ren was able to locate the hepatic artery with his bare hands.

"We need blood and a stretcher! Get him to the OR!" Zheng Ren's eyes were bloodshot as he shouted.

A doctor went to grab the stretcher trolley. As they were in the clinic, it took a few minutes. Another doctor was on the phone contacting the relevant departments about getting an operating room.

Zheng Ren's right hand pressed at the hilar area, stopping the leak. He thanked his lucky stars.

They were in Imperial Capital's Class Three Grade A Hospital.

If they had been elsewhere, Fang Lin might already be dead.

The stretcher trolley arrived. Zheng Ren moved awkwardly but carefully as Fang Lin was lifted onto the vehicle with the help of others.

He did not want to tear open Fang Lin's hepatic vein by accident. The consequences could be fatal.

He knelt on the stretcher trolley as a few doctors pushed them toward the operating room.

One of the doctors was an old man who could not keep up physically. He stopped and called the operating room, wheezing as he informed them of the injured doctor's arrival.

Everyone was playing their part in the rescue operation. It was a life on the line, coworker or friend notwithstanding.

The young doctor was at the helm, pulling and steering the stretcher trolley. He also acted as an ambulance siren to get patients and bystanders out of the way.

The sight of a white coat on the stretcher trolley made passing doctors and nurses abandon their current duties.

No one knew the details of the incident but they all wanted to help.

Some assisted with pushing the stretcher trolley while others cleared the road ahead. Some helped summon the elevator to avoid wasting precious time.

Someone asked to take over Zheng Ren's duty but he adamantly refused. He trusted no one but himself to keep Fang Lin's bleed under control.

The journey from the clinic to the operating took five long minutes.

The anesthesiologist received a call to be on standby. Several other doctors and nurses arrived at the operating room.

The elevator door opened and the stretcher trolley was pushed out, leaving a trail of fresh blood in its wake.

The anesthesiologist, dressed in a blue isolation suit, took over the stretcher trolley from the doctors and nurses. Without a word, he pushed Zheng Ren and Fang Lin into the operating room.

Thus began the emergency rescue!

The sight of Zheng Ren kneeling on the stretcher trolley with one hand in the patient's abdomen shocked many despite their being medical professionals.

Internal hemostatic control with one's bare hands was something read about in books but hardly witnessed in person.

"Which vessel?" the anesthesiologist asked.

Zheng Ren forced out an answer. "Hepatic. I can't let go."

The anesthesiologist understood what Zheng Ren was doing.

An intravenous line and vital signs monitor were set up. Fang Lin's blood pressure was so low that it was undetectable. A blood sample was sent to the hematology lab for blood typing.

A number of emergency drugs were pumped into Fang Lin's veins through the intravenous line.

Zheng Ren was now kneeling on top of the operating table with the surgical light shining down on him. Disinfection was tricky, to say the least.

However, he could not move from his position.

Not even a muscle twitch.

The general surgery department chief rushed over and asked about the situation.

Once he was up to date, he scrubbed in and prepared to operate.

The thoracic chief surgeon was also present. Together, they set up a closed chest drainage system. Air bubbled in the water seal chamber when the drainage tube was inserted.

At the same time, the anesthesiologist attached a ventilator and started total anesthesia.

In the event of a tension pneumothorax, the ventilator would not be connected until a closed chest drainage system was set up.

Pumping air into a chest cavity that was not able to ventilate could cause lung collapse while the increased pressure would prevent oxygen uptake in the lungs.

It would kill the patient.

As total anesthesia was taking effect, the general surgeon laid out the surgical drapes and accessed the abdominal cavity through the incision Zheng Ren had made.

Fang Lin was on death's door. Hence, the emergency rescue had to be carried out at the same time as anesthesia.

The damage was shocking.

The knife had sliced through part of the liver and diaphragm.

The surgeon shot a look at Zheng Ren. He knew that had it not been for Zheng Ren's decisive actions controlling the bleed from the hepatic artery, Fang Lin would not have made it to the operating table.

"Young man, come on down. Let me handle this," the surgeon said in a low voice.

Zheng Ren's rational mind told him there was nothing more he could do, but his heart wanted to scrub in and fix the problem himself.

Logic won out in the end.

A gloved hand entered his field of vision and rested by his own.

The surgeon and him exchanged a glance. Zheng Ren nodded and removed his hand from the liver. The surgeon took over his duty.

Zheng Ren had to remind himself that this was Imperial Capital, not Sea City General Hospital.

As he climbed off the operation table, Zheng Ren's vision darked.

The brightness of the surgical light had temporarily blinded him.

He shut his eyes and tried to relax.

However, as soon as his eyes were closed, the scene in the consultation room appeared in his mind.

It was the violence and cruelty of humanity on display.

Zheng Ren swayed slightly on his feet. He lacked the energy to walk out of the operating room.

He leaned on the wall of the operating room and slid down onto the floor.

One of the nurses noticed Zheng Ren's odd behavior and gave him an opened bottle of glucose solution. With a gauze dipped in saline solution, she helped to wipe away the bloodstains on his body.

A deadly silence filled the operating room.

Deathly.

"Ah!" A cry broke the silence. "Get our ortho and hand surgeons!"

Eyes turned to look at Zheng Ren. There was an open wound bleeding out on his left shoulder.

Attempts to contain the bleed were futile as the blood simply seeped through layers of gauze.

This...

Had he been performing hemostatic control while injured?

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Chapter 185: Thoracic-Abdominal Surgery

A doctor came over with a mercury sphygmomanometer. "Young man, are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Zheng Ren opened his eyes. They were clear and focused.

The doctor relaxed, as Zheng Ren could still speak coherently, but he measured his blood pressure anyways.

It was slightly below average.

"Come, we'll go to the other operating room. The orthopedic surgeon and hand surgeon will have a look at the wound," a young nurse said. "Lean on me so you don't fall."

"It's okay. Thank you." Zheng Ren shut his eyes and forced a smile.

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Zheng Ren knew he had to leave the sterile room as soon as possible. He had already violated standard operating procedure due to the emergency nature of the situation.

Once the surgery was done, Fang Lin would have to battle bouts of infection.

A bottle of iodophor was not equivalent to a sterile surgical setting.

After he left, the surgical team would have to perform another round of sterilization to prevent contamination.

It was vital for a successful emergency trauma surgery.

He had done all he could.

He would leave the rest to fate.

Leaning against the wall for support, Zheng Ren stood and felt a wave of nausea hit him. The rush during the emergency rescue had resulted in elevated hormone levels.

Once he was no longer required to be in a state of heightened awareness, the pain and soreness made themselves felt. His injured shoulder was especially bad. The slightest movement sent jolts of pain up his arm.

'Hopefully it's nothing major,' Zheng Ren thought.

At this point, he realized the System display at the upper right corner of his vision showed nothing about his status.

Zheng Ren's thoughts raced like a wild horse. Could this System not evaluate his own body?

His frustration lasted only a second before his body fell limp and he lost the strength to even stand.

He leaned hard against the operating door and breathed heavily.

The young nurse helped Zheng Ren out of the room.

"Over there." She guided Zheng Ren to the operating room next door. They went in and she switched on the surgical light.

The nurse helped him lay down on the operating table. A pained smile graced his face.

He had never imagined a day would come where he would be the one lying on the operating table under the surgical light.

"Which hospital are you from? Your emergency rescue techniques are amazing!" The young nurse gave him a thumbs up.

Most people would be frightened at the bloody scene but this was an operating room in one of the best Class Three Grade A Hospitals nationwide. Its employees were used to gore.

From the rate of blood flow and Zheng Ren's mental state, the young nurse determined that it was not a fatal injury.

Out of habit, she chatted to relieve the patient's tension.

She was incredibly impressed by the man's quick decision that saved Fang Lin.

"Sea City."

The nurse stared blankly at him, as if she had never heard of the city. "I saw the 50ml syringe. Did he have a tension pneumothorax?"

"Yes." Zheng Ren had to force his eyes shut as the surgical light was blinding. He said slowly, "Ruptured liver, penetration trauma. Ruptured diaphragm, trauma right lower lobe of the lung, ruptured bronchial artery, tension pneumothorax. He needs a large-volume transfusion. If possible, the thoracic surgery should go hand in hand."

Hearing the familiar instructions, the nurse stared at the stranger from an unknown city hospital.

"Tell them the closed chest drainage system is insufficient," Zheng Ren mumbled. "Now!"

His voice was low but demanding.

It was the voice of a department chief, the kind that did not like to repeat themselves. A lenient department chief would never say such things in an operating room[1].

Zheng Ren's tone reminded the nurse of old and virtuous professors. She nodded without hesitation and left the operating room.

Entering the operating room next door, she quickly repeated Zheng Ren's words verbatim, worried that any delay on her part might affect the surgery's success.

Zheng Ren laid still on the operating table. It was a bit chilly and the surgical light was truly a pain in his eyes.

He waited in silence, hoping for an update from next door.

A few minutes passed and the young nurse returned. "When I went in, the thoracic surgeon was laying down surgical drapes to start his operation. I've told them what you told me."

A soft mumble of affirmation left Zheng Ren's mouth as he closed his eyes. Finally, he could relax.

Not long after, two doctors entered his operating room and started to give him medical attention.

Silence filled the chamber. It seemed that was the norm here.

Zheng Ren did not like it.

He liked Xie Yiren's quirky eyebrows and the synchrony they had when working at the operating table.

He liked Chu Yanzhi's fiery spirit that cheered them on.

He liked Chu Yanran's quiet attentiveness at the head of the operating table, recording patients' vital signs and medication dosage.

He liked Chang Yue's genuine conversations with patients.

He liked... Even that sharp-tongued nancy boy, Su Yun, was more familiar than this.

They were a beacon of hope amidst a bloody battlefield.

"How's the surgery going?" Zheng Ren asked suddenly.

"No harm to the bone. Just some damage beneath the skin," answered one of the doctors who were treating him.

However, the doctor knew Zheng Ren was actually asking about the surgery next door.

Had it been any other patient, the doctor would have ignored the question. However, he knew Zheng Ren was the man who had performed the needle thoracostomy on Fang Lin.

"Hey! Someone from outside," the doctor called out.

"Yes?" one of the patrolling nurses replied.

"How's the situation next door?" the doctor asked.

"Thoracic and abdominal are ongoing. The bronchial artery has been sealed; they're now fixing the ruptured lung and diaphragm. The general surgeon is fixing the liver. Systolic blood pressure detectable at 50," the nurse replied from the door then left.

"They're doing good," the doctor said to Zheng Ren.

Zheng Ren nodded.

A detectable blood pressure was the best news they could hope for.

The bleeding was under control. Coupled with blood and fluid transfusion, Fang Lin stood a chance at surviving this ordeal.

Of course, it was just a chance. Postsurgical care was key to full recovery from such a grievous injury.

Zheng Ren trusted the capabilities of the hospital's personnel. After all, this was the country's top hospital. If one did not survive here, it was simply fate.

Ten minutes later, Zheng Ren's shoulder was stitched up.

As he had been dressed for the winter cold, the force behind the attacker's swing had been dampened by the thick fabric. The damage to his shoulder was mostly external.

With his wound bandaged, the doctor helped Zheng Ren up and brought him out to the hospital corridor.

"Let me take you to the admissions lounge," the doctor said.

"No. I'll stay here, by the operating room," Zheng Ren said curtly.

[1] I am unsure what the author is referring to here, whether it's giving orders to other surgeons on how to do their jobs or giving orders while being a patient.

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Chapter 186: Many A Little Makes A Mickle

In the operating theater, resuscitation was proceeding in an orderly manner.

Both the thoracic and general surgeons were busy performing the operation at the same time; the atmosphere was tense.

Generally, no doctors were willing to do such a thing.

The surgery could have a significant impact on Fang Lin or even exceed his physical capacity.

However,

There was no other way.

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Zheng Ren's insistence was merely one factor in proceeding with thoracoabdominal surgery. The bigger deciding factor was the 500mL of dark red blood that had been instantly drained into the drainage chamber.

The drainage chamber had filled in mere minutes, requiring replacement.

Continuous blood drainage indicated a serious condition—a few large arteries had been damaged. Otherwise, there would not have been so much blood accumulated in the cavity.

Performing thoracoabdominal surgery and stopping bleeding simultaneously would have a profound effect on Fang Lin's physical state.

If the procedures were done successively, massive blood loss would certainly kill Fang Lin.

Adults also had to answer multiple-choice questions when the time came.

When Zheng Ren had asked the nurse to convey the message, the thoracic surgeon was already prepared to operate, but the doctors were still hesitant.

Everyone hoped that the blood drained would peter out in the next moment.

Everyone hoped that blood pressure would elevate in the next moment.

However, their hopes were in vain.

Zheng Ren was the first witness and an experienced doctor, so his opinion was valuable and had to be taken into account.

Thus, after the nurse conveyed his message, no one hesitated further and the surgery was prepared with haste.

3 minutes and 33 seconds later, the deputy chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department took over the chief surgeon's position while the anesthesiologist switched to single-lung ventilation, collapsing the right lung for surgery.

Everyone gave their best. Whether the patient would survive now depended solely on fate.

At the 13th minute and 54th second, several medical personnel returned with fresh frozen plasma and red blood cells, thawed using their body temperature, and hung the bags on the infusion stand.

One after another, the blood bags were soon depleted via pressurized infusion and replaced with new ones. The empty bags were set aside neatly.

These bags would be checked and verified again after the surgery was over.

The cold and stifling atmosphere permeated every breath of air in the operating theater.

No one told funny stories or cracked dirty jokes.

At the 15th minute and 15th second, chief consultants of relevant departments rushed over for intraoperative consultation.

At the 18th minute and 23rd second, the chief of the medical administration division left his home with a gloomy face, as if a volcano was about to erupt from within him.

However, instead of losing control of his emotions, he started directing the resuscitation to ensure coordination between various departments.

Even though it was a weekend, the incident had spread like wildfire throughout the entire hospital. Everyone in each department went all out, no matter how insignificant their efforts could be, to save this young doctor with a bright future ahead of him.

It was like ten thousand tributaries feeding into a river[1].

It was a song that stirred the heart.

At the 43rd minute and 5th second, the ruptured bronchial artery and diaphragm, as well as the entry wound on the right lower lobe of the lung, were sutured. After confirming the absence of active bleeding spots, the surgeon began to close the thoracic cavity.

At the 57th minute and 27th second, the liver was sutured, the abdominal cavity irrigated and a surgical drain inserted.

The tense, dark atmosphere lifted slightly.

The patient's systolic pressure had returned to 70mmHg and blood oxygen saturation was maintained at 97% via pure oxygen ventilation. Several episodes of atrial fibrillation had been corrected by the anesthesiologist through medication, but now the patient was suffering sinus tachycardia of 147 beats per minute.

Fang Lin's condition remained unsatisfactory, but he had at least managed to survive despite severe trauma.

More than a dozen medical staff escorted Fang Lin out of the operating theater in an orderly manner. The thoracic surgeon and the chief consultant of the general surgery department went to their locker room and removed their surgical caps and masks, which were drenched in sweat.

Only then did they feel relief and their nerves calm.

"He survived," said the deputy chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department as he recalled the incident, still terrified.

This was especially because he had rushed over and seen a man in casual wear kneeling on the stretcher trolley until the patient's transferral to the operating table; the astonishment in his heart had persisted until now.

"Yes, first-aid measures were provided just in time without any delay in subsequent treatment. Fang Lin has really been pulled back from the brink of death." The chief consultant of the general surgery department lit a cigarette and passed it over.

Chronic smokers got along well with each other.

The spicy tobacco quickly neutralized their anxiety and fatigue from resuscitation, and they fell into silence after expressing their thoughts.

The deputy chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department felt better after the cigarette burned to its end, asking, "The young man who had performed an emergency laparotomy for hemostasis must be a doctor too. He reacted without the slightest hesitation; that's a good quality."

"I heard that he is a young doctor from Sea City in the northeast." The chief consultant of the general surgery department smiled and said, "Accurate diagnosis with appropriate first-aid measures. He is indeed a good man."

"Was he compressing the porta hepatis throughout the journey?"

"Yes."

"Was there any tissue necrosis or rupture?"

The hepatic hilum was an important but fragile structure. Compared to the use of hemostatic forceps to obstruct blood flow during surgery, it was at least ten times more difficult to achieve hemostasis using only one's bare hands.

In addition, care had to be taken not to cut off blood supply for too long to prevent hepatic necrosis under such dangerous circumstances.

Furthermore, it would have been difficult to maintain a fixed posture on a stretcher trolley being pushed at full speed. Had there been a laceration in the hepatic hilum, the patient would have been disabled forever.

Even though the surgery had been completed, the deputy chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department still subconsciously asked his question despite knowing the answer.

"It was well-protected," the chief consultant of the general surgery department said, "I think that young man had intermittently supplied blood to the liver with precise control. An excessive supply would have caused leakage through the wound into the cavity, and it would not have helped with blood loss. By the way, I noticed a needle thoracostomy when I arrived at the operating theater just now; did he have tension pneumothorax?"

"Yes," the deputy chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department said, still shaken, "Hemorrhaging was a small issue, but a tension pneumothorax could have cost him his life within ten minutes. Fang Lin is really lucky to be transferred to the ICU alive."

"In that case, I'm starting to develop an interest in that young man." The chief consultant of the general surgery department smiled and took out his phone to make a call.

"It's me. About the young doctor who has performed emergency hemostasis just now, let me know his location and try to get some information about his background.

"By the way, transfer him to a deluxe room.

"Inform the matron that it's my order."

After he hung up, the deputy chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department grumbled, obviously perplexed, "It was just a resuscitation, is this really necessary? Your doctoral students can't graduate this year, and besides, Fang Lin is under the thoracic surgery department."

"You say this as if you can demand a transferral to a deluxe room at will." The chief consultant of the general surgery department smiled. "I didn't mean to make him stay anyway. I'm just doing my part by providing a better environment so that he can recover soon."

They chatted for a while before changing their attire and returning to their respective clinics.

The terrible incident could not stop their clinics from operating as usual.

The chief consultant of the general surgery department's phone suddenly rang. He accepted the call.

"Yes, any news?

"...

"Okay, got it."

His expression was strange as he hung up.

The deputy chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department asked, confused, "What's wrong?"

"Did you know that the institute has been engaged in a research project recently?"

"There is scientific research every year, but I've never paid attention to them since it has nothing to do with the thoracic surgery department."

"That young man from Sea City had been invited to participate in scientific research..."

"Hiss..."

[1] A Chinese song 万涓成水,汇流成河, also can be understood as "many a little makes a mickle".

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Chapter 187:As Long As I'm Here, There Is Still Hope

After wound closure was complete, Zheng Ren declined a kind offer of an antibiotic infusion and quietly sat at the entrance of the operating theater.

He was waiting.

Waiting for the surgery to end.

Waiting to know whether Fang Lin had survived or passed away.

He had done his best, but...

It was still not enough.

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He waited patiently. His bloodshot eyes painted his world in red.

His mind was blank. There was no sorrow or depression. He was just waiting calmly for news.

Death or life.

He was unsure how long had passed when someone sat beside him and said, "Professor Gu was diagnosed with acute myocardial infarction and is receiving treatment right now. He'll be fine."

It was Su Yun.

Zheng Ren once hated his voice, but was gradually getting used to it following the improvement of their coordination in surgery.

Zheng Ren frowned and said, "Fang Lin is badly injured and they're trying to save him now."

"I know. You did your best." Su Yun stared unblinkingly at his phone. "The thoracic surgeon has located and sutured the ruptured bronchial artery, and the general surgeon is finishing hepatic wound repair now."

"Blood pressure?"

"Slightly low, but detectable."

"How much blood has been transfused?"

"12U of red blood cells and 1000mL plasma."

"Is the ICU fully prepared to take care of him?"

"Boss, this is Imperial Capital." Su Yun was not mocking Zheng Ren, which was a rare occasion, possibly due to Zheng Ren's injuries or the fact that the incident just now had shocked him greatly.

"That's good." Zheng Ren slowly shut his eyes.

He believed everything Su Yun said without question.

Even though the sharp-tongued nancy boy did not have entirely good news, he knew that Fang Lin's chance of survival had exceeded fifty percent.

"Are you badly injured?" asked Su Yun, stealing a peek at the dressing on Zheng Ren's left shoulder.

"No, it's just a mild injury."

"Let's go back and establish a pet medical center together. I'll buy a twenty-year-old nuclear magnetic resonance imaging machine, and coupled with various technical means, it'll be the most professional pet medical center in Sea City."

"No," replied Zheng Ren coldly.

"Do you still have hope?" The contempt at the corners of Su Yun's lips intensified.

"As long as I'm here, there is still hope," said Zheng Ren calmly.

Su Yun was startled.

Who the hell gave him such a strong confidence?

Before he could ridicule Zheng Ren, he suddenly recalled the scene in the outpatient department.

The needle thoracostomy and the urgent laparotomy for hemostasis had been performed without hesitation.

The varying severity of damage,

The decisions made regardless of cost,

The first-aid measures given just in time...

Without him, Fang Lin would have had no hope for survival. Even though Fang Lin was currently undergoing emergency surgery in the operating theater, he had at least provided medical staff a chance to save a precious life.

'Have I been burying my head in the sand?' Su Yun absent-mindedly recalled someone he respected, the same man who had become disabled in the end. In his mind, the man's feet glowed a bloody red, and then came Zheng Ren walking the border between hell and the human realm.

Su Yun shook his head. It was too artsy for his preference.

"The surgery has ended. His blood pressure has stabilized and they're transferring him to the ICU now," he said calmly after reading a message on his phone.

"Ding-dong!" At the same time, an alert rang out in Zheng Ren's mind, but he did not seem to hear it.

"Okay." Zheng Ren nodded. "Let's go."

"Where?"

"The emergency department, for tetanus toxoid."

"Hey, do you really know medicine? Clostridium tetani is an anaerobic organism, so it can't survive in your wound. Besides, you've treated a patient with tetanus before, so why are you even speaking such nonsense? You've been stabbed in your shoulder, but did you get a brain injury as well? That's right, I remember you smashed your head onto the rogue just now. I think you should undergo a cranial CT scan," Su Yun grumbled, as usual.

"I'll feel more assured after the injection." Zheng Ren smiled faintly. "There is a small risk of patients with external trauma having their wounds infected with Clostridium tetani, hence the usage of tetanus toxoids. Now that I'm injured, it's best for me to receive an injection as well."

"You really care about your own safety."

"That's exactly the case." Zheng Ren nodded in agreement.

Without waiting for Fang Lin to be wheeled out of the operating theater, they went downstairs via the fire escape.

It was pointless to worry further about his safety as they had already known case's details.

...

...

They did not visit the emergency department or accept the general surgery department's help. According to Su Yun, he was unfamiliar with the general surgeons.

Su Yun brought Zheng Ren to the thoracic surgery department instead. After establishing an intravenous infusion line, he ran off to search for tetanus toxoid.

The beds in the spacious on-call room were clean, but Zheng Ren did not use them and chose to receive the infusion sitting on a chair.

The shock of his adrenaline rush during resuscitation gradually faded as he stared out of the window.

'The injury won't affect my accuracy in future surgeries, right?' He was beginning to get worried.

Zheng Ren was able to move his left fingers nimbly, and apart from the slight pain in his left shoulder, his overall condition seemed to be satisfactory.

'Oh yeah!' He suddenly remembered hearing the System's notification earlier.

A mission? When had he received a mission?

The System panel at the upper right corner of his vision trumpeted, "Mission Accomplished".

Huh? Perhaps... The System had used its powers to determine that the resuscitation was successful? Zheng Ren began to ponder what the System was trying to imply without paying attention to its rewards.

If that was the case, it was actually good news.

His mental uneasiness instantly dissipated. A few minutes later, Zheng Ren noticed the rewards.

A multiple-choice question in which he had to choose one of three? Why could he not upgrade all of them at once?

Improving his ability to read X-ray films seemed like a good idea as he would be able to quickly recognize anatomical structures during surgery.

B-scan ultrasonography could be excluded due to its limited functionality at the moment.

Nuclear magnetic resonance imaging...

NMRI...

He recalled that Professor Pei had requested a double contrast-enhanced imaging scan—NMRI and a 64-slice CT scan with image reconstruction—before Zheng Yunxia's surgery.

This was the lesson learned by his predecessors after numerous failures. As long as conditions permitted, a preoperative double contrast-enhanced imaging had its own benefits.

Zheng Ren was caught in a dilemma between the ability to read X-ray films and nuclear magnetic resonance imaging. After hesitating for a few seconds, he decided to choose NMRI.

When it was selected, a warm current swirled through his body as countless images assaulted his consciousness almost instantaneously.

"..." Surprised, Zheng Ren quickly shut his eyes and focused on enduring the discomfort.

After a long while, a voice reached Zheng Ren's ears.

"You actually fell asleep sitting up? Damn..."

'Why haven't I experienced this before? Is the discomfort due to a complete lack of knowledge in this domain? Still...'

Zheng Ren gave up trying to figure it out.

He now understood all NMRI films he had seen previously.

"I just received a notice about a conference in the research institute this afternoon," Su Yun suddenly said, "You look awful. Stay here for the drug infusion, I'll attend the conference later."

"What conference?"

"..." Su Yun froze for a moment. Had this idiot forgotten his purpose of visiting Imperial Capital?

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Chapter 188: Put It Down, I'll Do It

"The infusion should be complete before noon, so we'll go together later," said Zheng Ren.

Su Yun looked at Zheng Ren as if he was a fool.

"Let's go."

"Where to?" Zheng Ren was puzzled.

"You need to undergo a cranial CT scan to rule out brain injury."

"..."

Access vi

"Can you please understand your current state?" Su Yun said angrily, "You're injured, so how are you going to perform surgery in a lead apron? Do you want to lie down on the operating table again? I'll attend the conference alone and you'll get some rest here."

"It ain't that serious." Zheng Ren shook his head. "I just want to gain knowledge from the conference."

"You're crazy," replied Su Yun coldly.

Zheng Ren remained persistent despite their argument, so Su Yun left the room with the tetanus toxoid. Even though he had no desire to do anything now, he still subconsciously fulfilled his duties as the flawless assistant.

Since Zheng Ren had decided to go, Su Yun had to prepare the necessary documents before attending the conference.

He also felt helpless.

"Give this to Boss Zheng later." Su Yun passed the tetanus toxoid to a trainee on duty in the thoracic surgery department.

Class Three Grade A Hospitals in Imperial Capital usually had fewer doctors as tedious tasks—on-calls, medical record documentation and surgery—were usually performed by trainees, postgraduate students and doctoral students.

The chief resident had gone to watch over Fang Lin today, leaving only a trainee to keep an eye on the house.

"Okay." The trainee on duty was a dark-skinned man in his late thirties who looked easy-going and steady.

After accepting the tetanus toxoid, he suddenly smiled and said, "Brother Yun, I've heard legends about you when I first came to the hospital. If I was half as good as you, I would have left the hospital in my hometown a long time ago."

"Which idiot with his big mouth..." Su Yun stayed indifferent and arrogant, as always.

"Yesterday, I even heard them say that you've found yourself a new boss, which makes me curious. Is there someone superior to you?" A bright smile formed on his honest face. "That person must really be awesome."

Su Yun, who was in a bad mood, pretended to hear nothing and strode out of the room.

The middle-aged man was not displeased at all. What could he possibly say about a wunderkind with superb talent, anyway?

"Old Han, why are you giggling?" asked a nurse on duty as she returned to the treatment room with a bottle in her hand.

Everyone's mood was gloomy due to Fang Lin's injury.

"Nothing." Old Han entered the room and obtained a 1mL syringe for a tetanus toxoid skin test.

The nurse was surprised. "Huh? What are you doing?"

"I'm going to perform a tetanus toxoid skin test on Boss Zheng," answered Old Han.

"Put it down, and allow me." The young nurse quickly discarded her infusion drip needle and snatched the 1mL syringe from Old Han's hand, squeezing him aside at the same time.

"..." Old Han was puzzled. He was just trying to help, but why did the nurse look like she had a blood feud with him?

"Just do your job well," said the young nurse, who then walked out of the room after putting iodophor, cotton swabs and the syringe into a kidney dish.

Upon reaching the on-call room, the nurse stood outside and took a few deep breaths before gently knocking on the door.

Knocking at the door of the on-call room, especially softly, felt so strange.

This decorum was never present when patients' conditions deteriorated during night shifts. Instead, they normally flung the door open and summoned frontliners harshly and rudely.

Zheng Ren's voice came from within. "Please, come in."

The nurse put on a smile and greeted him politely before putting the kidney dish down. "Chief Zheng, I'm here to perform a skin test on you."

"I'm sorry to trouble you," said Zheng Ren.

"That's too polite of you."

Zheng Ren's clothes had been shredded and thrown away, so he was currently wearing Su Yun's coat, which fit him oddly.

The nurse applied a tourniquet on Zheng Ren's arm and proficiently injected a small amount of tetanus toxoid subcutaneously with the 1mL syringe in her right hand.

"Let me know immediately if you feel unwell." After the procedure was complete, the young nurse smiled and said, "Chief Zheng, where is your phone?"

"Here." Zheng Ren took out his phone, somewhat perplexed.

He did not have a password lock as he considered the feature cumbersome and unnecessary.

"Allow me." After unlocking his phone, the nurse launched his WeChat, brought up a QR code and added him as a friend.

It was so quick that Zheng Ren could not react in any way.

"Text me via WeChat if you need anything," said the nurse before darting out of the room.

A few minutes later, Zheng Ren was still dumbfounded as this was the first time a woman had requested his contact information.

Perhaps not the first time; in Sea City, that girl with a ponytail called... Oh, Liu Xinyu! She had asked for his WeChat as well.

The nurse just now looked a little familiar. Where had he seen her before?

Zheng Ren could not identify her even after racking his brain for a while. Thus, he gave up and began revising the local anatomy of the prostate.

The nurse came out of the on-call room and instructed, "Old Han, keep an eye on him."

Old Han agreed with a smile. He never sought dominance as the nurses in the hospital were more skillful than trainees. It was also better to stay on good terms with medical staff while furthering his studies. That way, it would be easier to request assistance from professors in things such as surgery in the future.

Offending nurses under the assumption that they would not meet in the future would make it near impossible to ask a professor to perform surgery when the need arose.

The nurse returned to the treatment room for sharp item disposal. Along the way, she recalled the incident earlier in the morning where Zheng Ren had knelt on the stretcher trolley and performed an emergency laparotomy for hemostasis, radiating a sense of calm and security in the middle of a red pool of blood. The thought subconsciously made her smile.

"Let's not attend the conference this afternoon. We should have fun in Xiangshan Park or Miyun Reservoir instead," said Su Yun upon his return, not bothering to hide the sarcasm in his voice.

"Our purpose here in Imperial Capital is to gain knowledge. Besides, it's just a conference anyway, not a big deal at all," replied Zheng Ren slowly.

"Hey, did this slight injury not dim your fire in the slightest?" asked Su Yun, annoyed.

"I'm fine; it's just a skin trauma." Zheng Ren smiled. "Three days of antibiotics, one tetanus toxoid injection and the suture can be removed in seven days. Don't worry."

"I've informed the others in the group chat. They want to visit you," said Su Yun.

"..." Zheng Ren's hand stopped mid-air.

"Why can't you keep your mouth shut?" Zheng Ren became anxious, which was a rare sight.

"I've persuaded them not to do so." Su Yun stared at him and smirked. "Don't you check your phone at all?"

"I feel a little dizzy, that's why I didn't check." Zheng Ren was slightly relieved upon hearing the answer. He then took out his phone and checked his WeChat.

There were hundreds of messages in the department group chat. It would be a pain to read through them one by one.

Su Yun shook his head, completely out of words. He had absolutely no idea how to communicate with Zheng Ren.

Silence consumed the on-call room. Zheng Ren scanned through the text messages on his phone and put it away only when Old Han returned to report that the skin test had turned out negative.

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Chapter 189: Reporting One's Safety

There was a knock on the door as Zheng Ren scanned through the messages in his WeChat.

The door of the on-call room then opened, and a man said, "Doctor Zheng is receiving an infusion at the moment."

A cabinet blocked Su Yun's view of the entrance and he could not see who said it. He stole a peek at Zheng Ren, who was still reading his messages intently, unperturbed by the knocking.

A thin figure appeared, followed by two police officers.

Su Yun was bewildered for a second, then realized that they were most likely here to interview and record the statements of everyone involved in the incident earlier.

He gently kicked Zheng Ren, who was deeply immersed in his phone.

"Hello, Doctor Zheng," a man in a casual outfit said grimly as he stood ramrod-straight three steps behind Zheng Ren.

"Huh?" The sudden voice pulled Zheng Ren back to reality and made him turn around.

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Bao Yunming, chief consultant of the thoracic surgery department." He bowed deeply to Zheng Ren. "On behalf of all my colleagues in my department, I would like to express our heartfelt gratitude for your assistance."

Zheng Ren quickly stood, trying but failing to come up with an appropriate response.

"Please, sit down. I brought police officers to record your statement here in order to prevent any delay in your treatment," said Chief Bao politely to Zheng Ren.

The police officers were also courteous enough to shake hands with Zheng Ren first before asking both Zheng Ren and Su Yun about their recollections of the event.

The entire process—including taking their statement and fingerprints—was plain and simple. After everything was complete, the officers bowed solemnly to Zheng Ren before leaving in silence.

Zheng Ren refused Chief Bao's kind offer to arrange a deluxe single room for him.

Was it really necessary for his minor injury? What a joke. Besides, Chief Bao was just being polite; he could not possibly take the man seriously.

"Doctor Zheng, rest well and let me know if you need anything," said Chief Bao before leaving the room.

Zheng Ren felt lucky to have Chief Bao alongside him for the police interview session, just as Old Chief Physician Pan had been there with him in Sea City last time.

This manner of interpersonal communication was not his strong suit. After courteously bidding goodbye to Chief Bao, he continued to receive his drug infusion.

After a long while, Su Yun said slowly, "Any emotionally intelligent person would have gone on to establish a friendship with him. You..."

Zheng Ren mentally filled in the blanks with sarcasm and mockery.

However, what else could he have done when he had absolutely no idea how to handle the situation?

Zheng Ren smiled. Upon seeing that the infusion was about to finish, he instructed Su Yun to call the nurse so that she could remove the equipment.

"Twice per day. Don't forget to come at night too," said the nurse.

"Uh..." Zheng Ren hesitated.

"You're so close to death, I can't catch up with you anymore," Su Yun said leisurely, "Pyrexia from wound infection and microorganisms will spread from the infected tissue to the apex of the lung, causing pneumonia, lung abscesses and empyema. The pericardium—"

"Stop!" Zheng Ren quickly interrupted him and smiled bitterly. "I'll come for the infusion at night, alright?"

"No one will stop you if death is what you wish for."

"..." Zheng Ren grumbled. 'It's just a minor injury, but he described it as if I will die without the drug infusion.'

Since his coat had been damaged, he put on a white coat that Su Yun had borrowed and would change to a sweater or something else when he returned home later. It was enough to keep him warm right now.

Upon leaving the thoracic surgery department, Zheng Ren saw Feng Xuhui running toward them, looking panicked.

"Manager Feng, what are you doing here?" asked Zheng Ren, puzzled.

"..." Feng Xuhui stood for a few moments, catching his breath. Then, he said guiltily, "I'm so sorry, Chief Zheng. I should have come with you to the clinic this morning. Who would have foreseen such an accident happening here?"

"Oh." Zheng Ren was not expecting the man's answer. He smiled and said, "It's not your problem either."

"Your problems are my problems." Feng Xuhui was upset.

After settling Zheng Ren and Su Yun's breakfast early in the morning, he had sent them to the clinic and left afterward.

Two hours later, breaking news overwhelmed his feeds.

The major incident had spread like wildfire across social media and Weibo like a deadly, contagious virus.

Feng Xuhui had begun to ask about the situation only after reading the news, and little did he know that it had something to do with Zheng Ren!

He had tried to text Zheng Ren on WeChat, not knowing how badly injured he was, but there had been no reply since then.

Feng Xuhui had been petrified.

How could he have known that Zheng Ren was simply too exhausted to check his phone? Even when the nurse had unlocked his phone that one time, the man had paid no attention to it and merely browsed the messages in the group chat without checking what Feng Xuhui had sent.

What if Chief Zheng had had a major accident and the scientific research came to an end...

What if Chief Zheng decided to direct his anger toward Feng Xuhui...

Feng Xuhui quickly used his social connections, no matter their strength, to search for Zheng Ren's whereabouts. After a few setbacks, he had finally found out that Zheng Ren was receiving an infusion in the thoracic surgery department.

He had run all the way to the department and, fortunately, met Zheng Ren at the entrance.

The fact that Zheng Ren did not mind at all slightly soothed his nerves.

'I mustn't make any more mistakes,' Feng Xuhui repeatedly reminded himself.

"Chief Zheng, where are you going?" he asked.

"Home, to rest," answered Su Yun.

"To the conference," replied Zheng Ren.

Their words had come out in unison, and they looked at each other.

"Still courting death?" said Su Yun coldly.

"We should attend the conference while we're here," replied Zheng Ren.

"Cheh."

Feng Xuhui was frozen to the spot. What should he do? As a newbie in the business field, resolving the dispute between Zheng Ren and Su Yun would be like nailing jelly to a wall.

"I'm fine. It's just a minor injury, anyway, I can't possibly laze around, right?" Zheng Ren tapped Su Yun's shoulder to indicate that he was fine.

Su Yun merely lowered his head and ignored him.

Zheng Ren did not pay him much heed, either, as it was best when Su Yun shut up. Otherwise, the sharp-tongued nancy boy would always come up with various ways to verbally assault him.

Su Yun wore a dark expression along the way. When his patience finally reached its limit, he said, "Boss Zheng, don't you want to call home and report your wellbeing?"

"Huh?" Zheng Ren was stunned.

Reporting one's safety to one's family... was an unfamiliar experience to an orphan.

However, on second thought, Zheng Ren realized his mistake.

He took out his phone and wrote, "I'm fine, don't worry" in the group chat. He then noticed Old Chief Physician Pan's text on WeChat and quickly called the old man.

He informed Old Chief Physician Pan that everything was alright and that his minor external trauma had been dealt with. The old man repeatedly advised him to return in case of any discomfort, as there was no place like home.

A warmth arose in Zheng Ren's heart.

After hanging up, Zheng Ren hesitated for a few seconds. His mind started to wander elsewhere.

"You have to make that call sooner or later, so why are you even hesitating?" Su Yun, like a parasite in Zheng Ren's stomach, keenly knew the reason behind his indecision.

'That's true.' Zheng Ren was instantly relieved.

He dialed a number, and listened for the ringtone.

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Chapter 190: A Gathering of Surgical Titans

"It's me." Zheng Ren's voice suddenly caught in his throat as soon as the call was accepted.

Su Yun smirked.

"Yes, I'm fine. It's just a minor injury.

"Alright, I'll pay more attention.

"Okay, I'll return at the earliest opportunity. Don't worry."

Zheng Ren hung up after the brief conversation.

Su Yun approached Zheng Ren and asked, "First time falling in love?"

"..." Zheng Ren was somewhat stupefied.

Was this falling in love? He had absolutely no idea; all he had felt was the confusion of a bumbling child the moment the call had gone through.

"Be brave and shameless. You have to pester a woman in order to win her heart," Su Yun advised him.

"Was that your experience?"

"No, I don't need it at all." Su Yun brushed the black bangs on his forehead aside, looking handsome as usual.

Zheng Ren ignored the brat and quickened his pace.

"We should head downstairs," said Su Yun.

Zheng Ren could feel the heat radiating from his ears. Even though the nancy boy was really annoying at times, his advice to steel oneself in a relationship had actually turned out to be right.

They had initially planned to fill their stomachs outside first, but Zheng Ren was shivering in the freezing cold as he merely had a white coat on, which was a strange sight.

Left with no choice, they returned to the guest house. Since Zheng Ren had only brought normal clothes and no extra sweaters to keep himself warm, Su Yun once again mocked him ruthlessly before lending one of his sweaters to the blockhead.

Manager Feng Xuhui was meticulous enough to have ordered food delivered to them. Zheng Ren gladly accepted the offer since he had to attend the conference in the afternoon.

It had been a long time since he had last attended an academic conference. How would they conduct such a meeting in Imperial Capital? Would they finish the entire session quickly in a straightforward manner, or would the professors constantly give lectures and end the seminar only after eight or nine o'clock?

"How is your shoulder?" asked Su Yun after Zheng Ren changed his clothes.

The words of concern somehow felt like a jibe as soon as it escaped the brat's mouth.

How did Su Yun even have so many friends in Imperial Capital? That was what piqued his interest the most.

"It's fine," answered Zheng Ren.

"Are you sure you want to attend the conference? It will be impossible for you to wear a lead apron and perform surgery in your current state. You know what, let me apply for leave with Professor Pei. Who would force you to perform surgery after what you've gone through just now?"

"I have no place to go, anyway, since it's freezing cold outside," Zheng Ren said seriously, "Besides, we've come all the way here. There's no harm in listening to the conference."

Su Yun stared at Zheng Ren like he would an idiot. However, the blockhead's gaze was crystal clear, failing to understand the unspoken implications. Sighing heavily, he clearly explained himself.

"Little Yiren bought you clothes before your departure, shouldn't you take a walk and buy something she may like before you return home?"

Zheng Ren was startled. This... This was something he had not experienced before in his life.

"I can't be bothered with you anymore." Su Yun blew the black bangs framing his forehead.

Zheng Ren thought about it and realized that Su Yun's words made sense.

In that case, he had to take some time to shop for souvenirs that Xie Yiren and the gang would like, but today was certainly not the day for that. There was a conference waiting for him.

Feng Xuhui, who had overheard their conversation, turned around and jotted down this important point in the memo of his cell phone.

'Chief Zheng is a talented idiot. He'll be easy to deal with,' Feng Xuhui encouraged himself.

Twenty minutes later, the food that he had ordered arrived.

He went downstairs to retrieve it and trotted back to the room.

Feng Xuhui then placed the food on the table. Just as he wondered whether to join them, Zheng Ren said, "Manager Feng, let's have lunch together."

"Okay." Feng Xuhui was already hungry after working all morning.

However, he did not expect the men to devour the food in less than five minutes; an astonishing speed.

It was one of the basic skills of a doctor, especially in a hectic department where one had to gobble up their food and fill their stomach as fast as possible. God only knew when a critically ill patient would arrive at the hospital, requiring a resuscitation of up to seven or eight hours at times.

Slow eaters would starve when that happened.

This was a human survival instinct.

After lunch, Su Yun brought Zheng Ren directly to the research institute.

The brightly lit and spacious centre was situated in a newly-constructed high-rise in the back lot.

This was obviously not only an institute for surgery, but for pharmacology, pathology and other avenues of research.

Su Yun was particularly familiar with this area, possibly due to experience or by asking ahead. Zheng Ren merely followed the man all the way to a medium-sized conference room on the third floor, unbothered by the questions in his mind as it was pointless to waste his brain cells on such a minor issue.

There were already seven to eight people sitting in the third floor conference room, waiting for the meeting to begin.

From the looks of it, someone would be speaking about the research's progress later so that the new surgical titans could understand the procedures of such a bizarre surgery.

The so-called surgical titans referred to young men specifically mentored by professors in surgery, in the footsteps of a well-reputed hand surgery professor who had raised a group of "surgical titans" after the development of microsurgical reattachment of amputated limbs around eighteen years ago.

It was more difficult for one who was over fifty years old to perform microsurgery than it was for those working in the general surgery department.

After all, one's vision would begin to blur at an advanced age, and they would have trouble reading newspapers, let alone performing microsurgery.

Previously, there had been many young men, some even unlicensed, involved in the field due to leniency of medical regulation.

However, such cases no longer existed in the modern world.

The professors of the institute could only get their own postgraduate or doctoral students to finalize the clinical work of the research project.

Zheng Ren rejected Su Yun's idea to sit in the front row and randomly selected an empty seat in a back corner. Then, he stared at the screen in the front while recalling the anatomy of the prostate.

"Are you really that solitary?" Su Yun smiled faintly and sat beside Zheng Ren. "These people are going to be demons in interventional radiology in the future. In fact, one of them will surely become the best interventional radiologist in the country."

"Okay, got it," said Zheng Ren plainly.

"You're putting Old Chief Physician Pan's kindness to waste. Don't tell me you're seriously thinking that you can personally perform this surgery." Su Yun's expression grew colder following Zheng Ren's indifference.

"I don't mind at all. It's good enough for me to observe the surgery."

"Tut-tut." Su Yun sneered and remained silent.

Around ten minutes later, seven to eight old professors entered the room and sat down. A wide-browed, middle-aged man then went onstage, turned on the computer and brought up a Powerpoint that had been prepared in advance.

"Greetings, everyone. I'm Li Haitao, the secretary of this project," he introduced himself after launching the slideshow. "The important work is done by professors and the powerful, talented young generation on the scene. I simply run errands around here."

The humility in his tone won the favor of much of the room.

"Now, let me go over the recent results of research gathered by the professors." Without further ado, Li Haitao began the presentation with the anatomy of the prostate.

Even though he had simply described himself as an errand secretary, he was likely a clinician as well. His explanation was detailed and accurate to the point that Zheng Ren, who had the memories of three thousand prostate anatomical dissections, could not find fault in his words.

'There really are many talented people in Imperial Capital,' Zheng Ren thought.

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Chapter 191: Two-Faced

Li Haotao first briefly explained the anatomical structure before proceeding to angiographic images of the prostate.

It was valuable information.

Barely anyone got to perform an angiography of an organ and save its images if the patient did not undergo that organ's specific surgery.

However, the research institute actually owned such records. Zheng Ren watched the slideshow attentively and assumed the information came from the private repositories of multiple professors.

They were actually angiographic images of bladder and renal tumors, but some of the contrast agent had entered the prostate or its surrounding tissue, so they had saved these images to provide a theoretical basis for this research project.

Li Haitao merely stated facts without the domineering tone of a lecturer, which eased the atmosphere.

He pointed at an angiographic image and smiled. "This is where the difficulty in our work lies. The prostate has a very thin blood supply network, and the surgeon has to be proficient at inserting an ordinary micro-guidewire into those vessels."

Dead silence reigned in the room.

The participants were either demons or rising stars in interventional radiology, and so understood what Li Haitao was trying to imply.

It took Li Haitao two full hours to finish presenting the research results.

"The next part is up to you now." Li Haitao smiled and said, "There is only one patient, currently in the urology department, volunteering for the experimental surgery. He is an elderly man with many comorbidities, so the risks of surgery are significantly higher. After counseling with his family members, they insisted on undergoing the experimental surgery.

"The case has been sent to everyone's mailbox. Please understand it in detail once you return."

Mailbox... Zheng Ren immediately opened the mailbox in his phone.

An email had been sent to him two hours ago containing a detailed medical record.

Zheng Ren smiled bitterly after scanning through the case.

The patient was geriatric with all manner of comorbidities; truly troublesome to deal with.

It was no surprise that he wanted to undergo interventional radiology as the risk of sudden cardiac death was high during surgical removal of the hyperplastic prostate.

Although interventional radiology was considered a minimally invasive surgery, it only minimized the risk of sudden cardiac death rather than completely preventing it.

'Damn, what a tricky case.' Zheng Ren frowned.

The patient's medical record had been sent to everyone's mailbox. After reading it, they suddenly realized something—who would perform the surgery when there was only one patient?

"Who will do it?" asked a middle-aged doctor as the question emerged in his mind.

"The purpose of this research project is to promote interventional radiology and demonstrate its potential and charm to the public." Li Haitao smiled without answering. "Today is Saturday. Since you have all just arrived, you get two days' rest. On Monday, you will demonstrate your surgical skill."

The crowd started murmuring immediately.

What the hell did that mean?

Was this a Player Kill[1] challenge? Although it was not explicitly stated, that was exactly what he meant.

Everyone here was considered an elite among elites, and only a few of them would stand out in the end and lead the future development of interventional radiology.

However, one or two surgeries were simply inadequate to assess a surgeon's skills; many were required to properly determine one's proficiency.

Li Haitao's words implied that the surgery demonstration would be a contest.

The professors' opinions and the importance they attached to the research project would determine who would perform the surgery in the end.

Only a few of them placed high value on the research, but they were all interested in the surgery demonstration that would be held like an ancient Chinese imperial examination.

Li Haitao seemed to have expected this reaction as he remained calm instead of calling for silence.

When the voices of the young and middle-aged doctors gradually faded after a few minutes, he smiled and said, "Interventional radiology is still at a rapid developmental stage. You're all elites in this field, so the future of interventional radiology depends on you. Now, I would like everyone to send me original copies of your medical license, practicing certificate and ID card, and I'll keep them for the record in the medical administration division.

"Also, the hospital management has located a few patients who have given their consent to undergo surgery demonstration.

"The conference ends here. If you have any questions, please send me a message on WeChat. If any of you want to see the patients preoperatively, the chief residents will escort you." Li Haitao opened the curtains and turned off the slideshow.

The winter sunshine was a little dazzling, but Su Yun's black hair was almost blinding.

"Hey, are you confident?" he asked.

"Huh?" Zheng Ren was startled.

"Be serious. This is a competition to be the future leader of interventional radiology." Su Yun's expression was grim, which was a rare sight. "Whether the surgery succeeds or fails doesn't matter, but as long as you win the contest, you can choose to work in the interventional radiology department in any Class Three Grade A Hospital in this country. You don't have to stay in Sea City anymore."

Su Yun seemed like a completely different man in the moment, as if the part of his soul that had been reluctant to attend the conference had been thrown into a different dimension.

He was now a man with immense fighting spirit burning within him, eager to compete with other surgical titans.

"Not interested," replied Zheng Ren.

"You'd have a tenfold, twentyfold or even a hundredfold increase in your monthly income. Are you interested now?" Su Yun's tone reeked of conceit that would have otherwise earned him ten thousand knuckle sandwiches.

"Not really. That's not what I have in mind for the time being. Besides, even if I miss this opportunity, I can still earn a good income in the future," replied Zheng Ren absent-mindedly as he repeatedly read through the patient's medical record from the scientific research team.

"You're really boring." Su Yun brushed his black bangs aside and leaned in closer, whispering, "Are you thinking about becoming a glorious live-in son-in-law of the Xie family?"

"Live-in son-in-law?" The term reminded Zheng Ren of a rotten banana.

"I can see that you've been flirting with Xie Yiren, but come on, don't be such a loser. Let me tell you..." In an unprecedented act, Su Yun decided to offer sincere advice to Zheng Ren.

However, just as he began to speak, the long-forgotten System alert rang out in Zheng Ren's ears. "Ding-dong!"

A mission!

[Mission: The First Stage of The Great Beginning.

[Task: Obtain the surgery qualification for interventional radiological treatment of the prostate.

[Reward: One Master-ranked skill book, 1000 skill points, 200000 experience points and one gold chest.

[Time: 7 days.]

Zheng Ren was flabbergasted upon receiving the mission, turning a deaf ear to Su Yun's nagging.

The Great Beginning; this mission alone had rewards exceeding that of everything he had received prior.

A skill book that directly upgraded a random skill to the Master rank... That, coupled with a truly humongous amount of points and long mission duration, left Zheng Ren drooling in anticipation.

The points were equivalent to surgery intensive training time in the System!

The flame instantly burned bright within Zheng Ren's heart, igniting his interest in this surgery.

He needed to complete it!

He had to complete it!

He must complete it!

Zheng Ren stood up abruptly in the midst of Su Yun's speech.

"What's wrong?"

"Let's go see the patients."

"Huh? What a two-faced b*stard." Su Yun smirked.

[1] The writer's original term, PK, most likely refers to a Player Kill challenge: MMORPG slang for a player-versus-player free-for-all in which player characters are killed. Given the writer's penchant for gaming terms, it's probably a fair assumption.

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Chapter 192: Hostility

They noticed Professor Pei sitting in the front row as they were about to leave the room. Zheng Ren gave it some thought and turned around to greet the man.

"Hello, Professor Pei," said Zheng Ren with a slight bow.

"Old Wu, this is Doctor Zheng, the one that I've been telling you about." Professor Pei introduced Zheng Ren to Professor Wu Haishi, who was sitting beside him.

"Oh? Is he the one who superselected seven to eight blood vessels and then completely embolized several tumor-feeding arteries?" asked Wu Haishi with a smile.

A doctor who was serious, responsible and proficient in their tasks could easily gain respect.

Even though Zheng Ren was unfamiliar with Wu Haishi, he bowed slightly and said, "Professor Wu, my name is Zheng Ren, but you can just call me Little Zheng."

The moment he raised his head, he detected a hostile gaze directed at him.

The feeling was faint but could not be ignored.

Zheng Ren looked at its source and saw a young man in his thirties sitting beside Professor Pei. The hostility disappeared as soon as their gazes met.

The man smiled.

It was a cordial smile, but there were at least no smoldering eyes or other acts of malevolence.

Strange.

Zheng Ren also responded with a polite smile.

"Anyone whom Old Pei was willing to transfer at the last minute must be good." Old Wu smiled. "Are you thinking about training another closed-door student when you already have Little Jin?"

"I'm still young. Let's talk about it after two years." Professor Pei Yingjie smiled. "I wanted Little Zheng to come because he is responsible and performs surgery well; a good man overall."

In a sense, Zheng Ren had greeted Old Wu Haishi. He did not have the habit of shamelessly latching onto the rich and powerful or licking his superiors' boots.

There was no basis for him to do so even if he wanted to.

He had never read the biographies of most professors present, nor had he clearly memorized those that he did. It would be embarrassing if he blurted out misinformation while flattering them.

"Chief Zheng from Sea City. My boss went to perform surgery in Sea City last time, and he has been praising you ever since his return." The younger man stood up abruptly and extended his hand.

He was in a somewhat awkward position as Professor Pei and Professor Wu were sitting between them.

"I've received undeserved kindness from Professor Pei." Zheng Ren shook the proffered hand.

"I'm Jin Yaowu." The young man's imperious attitude intensified. "I look forward to the surgery demonstration in two days."

"That's polite of you." Zheng Ren calmly maintained his smile and bid goodbye to both Pei Yingjie and Wu Haishi before leaving the conference room.

Su Yun walked alongside Zheng Ren and expressed his dissatisfaction with Jin Yaowu. "I feel like mocking that brat for acting like a rabid dog."

"He's just saying hello," replied Zheng Ren.

"He looks young but is actually thirty-five years old. The man sitting next to Old Wu is Mu Tao, who is about the same age as Jin Yaowu. Both of them are the rising stars in the new generation of interventional radiologists."

Su Yun, true assistant that he was, introduced them to Zheng Ren as they walked.

Zheng Ren was surprised, having no idea what Su Yun's brain was made of and how it could memorize these hotshots' details.

However, not only was he uninterested in getting to know them, it was impossible for him with his late-stage face blindness cancer to recognize these people regardless.

"How do you know so much?"

"There are less than ten professors in the pinnacle of their careers in each profession, so it isn't difficult to know these things," Su Yun said, "Jin Yaowu is as imperious as his name implies[1, so I don't really have faith in him."

"You say it as if your faith in him matters at all." Zheng Ren could not resist the urge to ridicule Su Yun, who was trying to put the world to rights.

"Cheh." Instead of criticizing Zheng Ren, Su Yun said, "I'm going to see the patients. By the way, are you going to perform a 3D reconstruction of a 64-slice CT scan?"

"Yes."

"I'll contact the CT room, then."

"Don't we have to apply for it?" Zheng Ren was taken aback.

"You'll have to provide an explanation if you go through standard protocol, so it'll be more convenient to perform the procedure directly." Su Yun was well aware of the rules in this domain. "This batch of patients is really lucky. Although the radiologists here are also skillful, they can't possibly compete with you, Jin Yaowu or Mu Tao. Regardless, anything that involves patients will be considered an important issue, so no matter what test you're going to perform, the medical administration division has the right to decide if it's justified or not."

Zheng Ren roughly understood Su Yun's words, but felt that it was somewhat inappropriate to perform a frank and righteous task furtively.

His phone rang while he was still deep in thought.

...

...

Feng Xuhui had been waiting downstairs after dropping off both Zheng Ren and Su Yun at the research institute.

He had mentally prepared himself to satisfy whatever needs Zheng Ren had during these few days.

After lighting a cigarette, Feng Xuhui stared at the clear blue winter sky and felt slightly dazed. How long had it been since Imperial Capital had such a blue-tinted white sky?

Then, his phone rang. He snapped out of his thoughts and saw that the call was from the Imperial Capital district manager.

"I'm Little Feng.

"Huh? But the company has given me authorization...

"Okay..."

The Imperial Capital district manager had called to inform him that the Mercedes-Benz S600 would be used for other purposes and that he would need to find transportation on his own.

Feng Xuhui had seen inconsistencies in the company's policies, but felt uncomfortable when this misfortune finally fell upon him.

More importantly, even if he was willing to spend his own money, time was not on his side.

On the phone, the Imperial Capital district manager curtly informed him of the decision rather than discuss it with him.

Sales in the remote northeast region was basically zero, so Feng Xuhui had no grounds to argue the matter with the manager and there was nothing he could do about it.

Before the cigarette burned to its end, a few people got off a car, led by a shrewd and competent office lady in her late twenties.

Her competent look was merely a disguise for her extraordinarily seductive and coquettish behavior.

"Whore!" Feng Xuhui cursed internally.

He recognized the woman—Hua Yingying, a deputy sales manager in Imperial Capital, code-named "Hottie" in the company. She had been the top salesperson in each quarter, and Feng Xuhui was simply inferior to her in every aspect.

"I'm so sorry, Little Feng. I came here in a hurry and didn't prepare much in advance." Hua Yingying gently gyrated her waist and hips as she walked. That, coupled with her light makeup, made her look elegant and soul-stirring.

Even though her actions could have had a devastating impact on Feng Xuhui's career, her apologetic and caring tone easily extinguished the hatred that burned within him.

"Uh... Then... I..." A fledgling sales manager incomparable to Hua Yingying, Feng Xuhui stuttered, unable to speak coherently.

Hua Yingying smiled, but deep down her heart was filled with contempt.

The company had to be crazy to devote so many resources to a fresh graduate. Foolish!

Hua Yingying approached Feng Xuhui and extended her fair hand, saying, "Give me the car key."

Feng Xuhui wanted to argue with her, but was aware that resistance was futile due to his lack of confidence and low status in the company, and attempted heroism would certainly be rewarded with humiliation.

Left with no choice, he sighed heavily and passed the Mercedes-Benz car key to Hua Yingying.

[1] Jin Yaowu's name (金耀武) literally translates to Glorious Martial (Prowess) with his surname meaning Gold; truly in-your-face.

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