Chief Kong was left puzzled. The surgery today had been perfect, vastly different from the one the day before. Su Yun had had a firsthand view of that change, while the chief's years of clinical and surgical experience also handily picked out that massive leap in skill.
Zheng Ren was taken aback by Chief Kong's expression. Did the chief not sleep well yesterday? Why was he acting weirdly?
"You did a great job earlier. In fact, you have improved by a few orders of magnitude from yesterday," Chief Kong said.
"Yeah," Zheng Ren replied as if it was nothing. "It was a simple procedure. I did four rounds of the same surgery yesterday, and after that, I went back over them and had some new ideas. That's why it went much smoother today. You flatter me, Chief Kong; it was not that big of an improvement."
Unwilling to create new excuses, he decided to just quote Su Yun directly.
It did seem quite solid a reason, after all. He would probably have use for it again in the near future.
Chief Kong closed his eyes, his own exhaustion kicking in.
The youth of today were amazing, incredible!
"Prepare yourself for the livestream of the prostate interventional embolization tomorrow. I've staked my entire reputation on you, so don't you fail on me." The author repeated mention of the removal of the sterile surgical gown, possibly because they simply forgot they had mentioned it earlier.
Chapter 245 - Pretending to Know (Part 4 of 5)
"Sure," Zheng Ren answered nonchalantly, displaying zero anxiety or tension.
Chief Kong felt a surge of confidence after seeing Zheng Ren's honest expression.
Qin Liren had been transferred to the stretcher trolley by a staff member of the interventional radiology department, but in honor of the man's ties with Bu Ruotian, Zheng Ren decided to deliver him back to the ward personally.
Zheng Ren also selected and printed a few representative snapshots from Qin Liren's surgery.
He placed the films on the stretcher trolley and chewed the fat with Qin Liren, hands in his own pockets. After a while, Su Yun finished changing and followed Zheng Ren with his head lowered.
After Qin Liren's bizarre trip down memory lane, he had slowly regained control of his emotions.
The longer he got to know Zheng Ren, the more he found the doctor calm and collected. The strength and confidence exuded by Zheng Ren during the surgery was so palpable that Qin Liren was able to sense it.
He knew he had made the right choice, despite still being a little shaken by the whole thing.
Thank goodness his wife had stopped him from going home…
When the stretcher trolley was pushed out the operating theater, Qin Liren's wife, Bu Ruotian, and Bu Li were all waiting by the door.
To Zheng Ren's surprise, there were a few others waiting outside that looked like news reporters in full gear. Leading them was a familiar woman in her thirties; who could it be…
Zheng Ren had trouble recognizing her but pretended to do so regardless, nodding his head to signal that he was busy.
Su Yun shot her a distasteful glance.
Meanwhile, Zheng Ren approached Qin Liren's wife and smiled at Bu Ruotian. "The surgery went well."
"That's great, that's great." Qin Liren's wife thanked him repeatedly with her hand on her heart.
Zheng Ren laughed. "It was no big deal. It's all thanks to Uncle Bu."
At those words, the corner of Bu Ruotian's mouth curled upwards. He gave a slight nod, followed behind the stretcher trolley and walked back to the ward leisurely like an old man on a stroll.
"Mr. Bu, the surgery…" Zheng Ren slowed his gait to match Bu Ruotian's, but before he could continue, Bu Ruotian interrupted him mid-sentence.
"Didn't you just call me Uncle Bu?"
"Um…" Zheng Ren was caught off guard but recovered almost instantly. "Uncle Bu, the surgery was a success."
"You did well." Bu Ruotian complimented him with both hands behind his back as if praising one of his nephews.
Zheng Ren remained silent throughout the walk back to the ward.
When they reached their destination, Zheng Ren helped transfer Qin Liren to the bed before taking the films and inviting Qin Liren's wife outside for a discussion.
They did not go to the doctor's office. Instead, Zheng Ren stopped in a sunny corner of a corridor to explain the outline of interventional embolization to Qin Liren's wife and Bu Ruotian.
The images he had taken were the exact visual representation of every key point in the surgery. Zheng Ren explained them in layperson's terms, and although Qin Liren's wife had no medical background, she was able to understand the entire process without any difficulty.
The simplicity of his language brought with it a sense of reliability.
When Zheng Ren ended his debriefing, she nodded and thanked him repeatedly.
After she returned to the ward, Bu Ruotian said, "Little Zheng, I owe you for this. Let's have dinner tonight."
"I'll sit this one out. Would it be alright if Su Yun went in my stead?" His refusal came without hesitation.
Bu Ruotian's expression shifted slightly.
"I have a high-profile surgery tomorrow that's going to be livestreamed. I need all the rest I can get," Zheng Ren explained with a smile.
Bu Ruotian was aware of the surgery, having asked around about Zheng Ren after their first meeting in Imperial Capital, but had not known that it was due tomorrow. Zheng Ren declining his offer was understandable. "I wish you all the best, then."
"Thank you."
"Little Su, accompany me for dinner tonight," Bu Ruotian said to Su Yun.
Su Yun met Bu Ruotian's eyes and nodded.
Bu Ruotian left them with both hands behind his back as Bu Li said blithely, "Dr. Zheng, I bet you only realized your endless potential after coming to Imperial Capital."
Before Zheng Ren had the chance to answer her, she skipped to catch up with Bu Ruotian and they left together.
How strange. He had the impression that Bu Li was a smart, capable and m.a.t.u.r.e person, and it was surprising to see her prance around.
As Bu Li vanished, the familiar-looking woman took her place alongside her team, surrounding him. "Dr. Zheng, I've finally found you."
Su Yun knew how Zheng Ren struggled with facial recognition and stepped up to him, whispering into his ear, "Tang Xiu from Sea City Metropolis Daily."
Oh, oh, oh…
Zheng Ren finally remembered her; he had led the emergency rescue for her father's hepatic hemangioma rupture. After that incident, the lead editor of Sea City Metropolis Daily had visited them several times but had been intercepted and driven off by Su Yun's acerbic tongue.
Why had she come all the way here to Imperial Capital?
"Nice to meet you, Editor Tang." Zheng Ren extended his hand, finally being able to drop his pretenses.
Tang Xiu's grip was cold but strong. Zheng Ren expected a brief shake, followed by an immediate release.
However, she grabbed his right hand with both of hers and shook it excitedly. She was very sincere, or rather… passionate.
"Dr. Zheng, we came across Dr. Fang's assault on Weibo a few days ago. It filled us with indignation. We asked around and found out that you were at the scene and even joined in the rescue of Dr. Fang," Tang Xiu explained.
Why was she talking about this? Hadn't it happened a while ago?
From what he could recall, Fang Lin had been transferred out of the ICU two days ago. He had planned to visit the man after the prostate surgery, but now it had all been dragged to the forefront by Tang Xiu from Sea City Metropolis Daily.
"Oh, it happened by chance," Zheng Ren said calmly, gently extracting his hand from hers.
Her grip was vice-like and it took several attempts to free himself.
Nonetheless, his movement made her aware of her gaffe. She blushed and laughed embarrassedly before saying, "My apologies, Dr. Zheng. I'm just too excited."
"You guys flew all the way from Sea City for this?" Zheng Ren ask
ed.
"Yes." Tang Xiu quickly regained her composure. "Dr. Zheng, the assailant's behavior triggered a wave of criticism from the public. Since you're from Sea City and participated in the rescue of Dr. Fang…"
Back in her stride, she began to rattle off like a professional reporter.
Zheng Ren stared at her, baffled, trying to convey with his facial expression the fact that he was extremely busy and that she ought to leave if there was nothing important.
Standing behind Zheng Ren, Su Yun snorted loudly to interrupt Tang Xiu's speech.
It startled her and she paused for a few seconds before continuing, "Dr. Zheng, I still feel responsible for the whole issue with my father and Wei Feng. I'm not trying to be self-serving here; I just want to bring some positivity to the general public."
"Haha." Zheng Ren smiled and said, "You're doing well."
Tang Xiu was stunned. She had interviewed lots of people throughout her years as a reporter.
None of them had been like Zheng Ren!
He had killed the conversation with a single laugh.
Chapter 246 - Interview (Part 5 of 5)
Zheng Ren refused Tang Xiu's offer politely. "I have a live surgery tomorrow. Please excuse me, Editor Tang, but I need to rest."
Tang Xiu was still stunned as she watched Zheng Ren leave.
One of the photojournalists carrying a camera fumed, "Who does he think he's trying to fool? Livestreaming a surgery? He's just a nobody from Sea City. Did he think he'd become a bigshot after coming over to Imperial Capital?"
Tang Xiu frowned and raised her hand to silence him.
A surgery livestream? Here, in Imperial Capital? With a doctor from Sea City invited over to perform it? It had all the makings of a great story!
She would have hit the jackpot if all of these were true.
Tang Xiu immediately asked, "Do any of you know the doctors here?"
One of the reporters raised his hand. "My high school classmate is working as a doctor in the internal medicine department."
"Contact him right now. We'll meet him right away," Tang Xiu ordered without hesitation, unbothered by Zheng Ren's rejection.
However, the reporter was still smarting from Zheng Ren's attitude. "What for, Editor Tang?"
"Dumb*ss!" Tang Xiu smacked them both on the back of their heads. "I'm well aware of Dr. Zheng's medical skill. My father's blood pressure was undetectable during the ambulance trip to the hospital, but after Dr. Zheng's emergency surgery, he was transferred out of the ICU on the second day post-surgery."
"I know, Editor Tang, and we've already expressed our gratitude, but it was he who snobbishly dismissed us," the photojournalist complained.
"That's not the point." Tang Xiu thought for a while before continuing, "I meant that there may be a possibility that he was invited over to Imperial Capital to perform a surgery."
"Editor Tang, I mean no offense, but you're being illogical right now. He's from Sea City. Do you really think such a thing is possible?"
"It wouldn't hurt to ask around. Otherwise, it would reflect poorly on us to return empty-handed after coming all the way here." The professional that she was, Tang Xiu easily convinced her two temporary subordinates to lend her their support.
After contacting the reporter's classmate, the three of them hurried over to the respiratory ward three blocks away.
It was the middle of the day and the doctors in the internal medicine department were at their busiest. Knowing that it was not a convenient time to bother him, the three of them waited patiently in the corridor.
Tang Xiu took this time to trace Zheng Ren's footsteps over the last few days from her contacts in the Imperial Capital.
It was rather difficult to collect the information she needed as most of her contacts were not from the medical field.
Tang Xiu quickly reached a dead-end. She had no leads at all. The photojournalist was also frustrated but since Tang Xiu was his superior, he had no choice but to endure the chilly winds of Imperial Capital while chain-smoking.
Only after the end of day shift did the doctor from Sea City walk out with an exhausted and apologetic expression.
Barely pulling himself together, he joked, "Old friend, did you guys come to Imperial Capital for an interview? Would you even think of me if you were not on a business trip?"
"We heard that there was a Sea City doctor who participated in the rescue of the assault victim, and came over trying to find a few leads. As you know, such positive messages get better reception from the public," the doctor's classmate explained heartily.
"Oh, give me a minute. Let's talk this over dinner. My treat."
They had found the right guy.
It was obvious that this doctor was very interested in Tang Xiu's story. He hurried off to change into his casual wear.
The sky was already dark outside. They went to a nearby restaurant, asked for a private room, and discussed the matter over their meal.
"I was also very curious; since when had Sea City gained such talent?" the doctor said after sitting down, "That morning, I was accompanying my boss to the outpatient department and was met with the most shocking and grisly scene."
Tang Xiu and the others looked at each other in confusion. Grisly? What could be so grisly for a doctor?
"I had put on my lab coat before heading to the outpatient department. On the way there, I heard someone clearing the way for a stretcher trolley."
The doctor's words flowed without pause as if a switch had been turned on. "With one look, I knew it was an emergency, but you get used to seeing such things after a while in the hospital."
The others laughed graciously; they were social veterans, well-versed in maintaining fine control over the pace of conversation and overall mood of a table.
"When I passed by the stretcher trolley, I was stunned. There was blood dripping down the trolley and leaving a crimson trail, but the truly astonishing thing was that there was a man kneeling on the stretcher and stopping the bleeding with his b.a.r.e hands!"
"What do you mean by that?" Tang Xiu asked.
"The knife had punctured Dr. Fang's diaphragm, lungs, and liver… let me put it this way; with an injury like that, a person would go into shock after one minute of heavy hemorrhaging and bleed out in five. Had it not been for Mr. Zheng's decisiveness, Dr. Fang would not have made it for sure."
Tang Xiu pictured Zheng Ren kneeling on the stretcher trolley, reminding her vividly of the day of her father's hepatic hemangioma rupture.
She shuddered at the thought.
Not out of fear, but excitement.
The doctor did not notice and continued, "I saw very clearly that blood was dripping down Mr. Zheng's shoulder. He was probably wounded, too. I approached to take his place but he kicked me in the c.h.e.s.t. It's still hurting, by the way."
"Such violent behavior?" the classmate exclaimed.
"Haih, it was not violence. I panicked when I saw a doctor lying on the stretcher trolley with a man in civilian clothing kneeling on top of him. My first instinct was to go up and help. Even though I'm a PhD graduate, I've only read about manual hemostasis in books; I don't know the exact position of the common hepatic artery, nor would I know how much strength to exert on the wound," the doctor said.
Tang Xiu probed further. "What happened afterward?"
"I heard that alongside severe blood loss, Dr. Fang also had tension pneumothorax. You guys can look that up online, I won't go into detail about it. They said that Senior Chief Zheng used a syringe needle in one hand to relieve the pleural cavity pressure while stopping the bleeding with the other. Only then did they manage to send Dr. Fang into the operating theater alive."
"That's amazing…" Despite not understanding most of what was just said, Tang Xiu's eyes were alight with anticipation.
"Speaking of which, we met Dr. Zheng earlier this afternoon and mentioned having a livestreamed surgery tomorrow? Do you know anything about that?" the doctor's classmate asked.
"I'm not re
ally sure. Our daily schedule is jam-packed, as you can expect, plus we still have to do our own research and maintain our KPI. Some of us don't even have time to look for a partner."
"Why?"
"We have no time to spare. Where did you guys meet Senior Chief Zheng?"
"The interventional radiology department."
"Let me call and ask them. Hold on for a minute." The doctor took out his phone and flipped through his contacts.
His own interest piqued from discussing this 'gossip', he invited his friend from the interventional department over for dinner as well.
Soon enough, Tang Xiu and her team were enraptured.
Chapter 247 - A Legend to be Told Over Drinks and Written in Books (Part 1 of 5)
Dr. Zheng had come to Imperial Capital and was involved in emergency rescue for the knife attack?
He had managed to restore the vision of someone who had been blinded by hyaluronic acid deposition?
He had outdone top interventional surgeons from all across the entire nation?
And tomorrow, he was going to attempt to surpass a surgery that a German professor had performed in Sorcery Capital?
In the minds of the news team, each soundbite transformed into another sharp, eye-catching headline.
Every story was newsworthy; relinquishing even one of them would be something they would regret for the rest of their lives.
The food was forgotten, left to be absent-mindedly picked at.
The two doctors were unaware of Tang Xiu's and her team's expressions as they continued to enthusiastically chat for almost two hours, mostly about gossip surrounding Zheng Ren after his arrival in Imperial Capital. Some of it was truth, some of it speculation.
Such stories would become legends to be brought up over drinks in a few years.
The more they spoke, the more excited Tang Xiu became. Suddenly, an absurd but bold idea popped into her mind.
She took out a pen and paper to make notes while the two doctors continued chatting.
To her, typing on a laptop lacked soul.
She wrote down her scattered thoughts on the blank paper, her pen flying across it.
The Surgeon's Studio c1-799 Page 120
