The Surgeon’s Studio

Chapter 31: Know His Limitations

The chief of the medical administration division glared at Zheng Ren fiercely.

It did not matter to the chief which department—general surgery or emergency —would take over all appendicitis cases in the future, because the patients would be under Sea City General Hospital’s care anyway.

What surprised him the most was Zheng Ren’s boast about performing an appendectomy without the need to make an incision.

A surgery without incisions… The chief of the medical administration division fought the urge to grab Zheng Ren’s collar and interrogate him. How was he going to resect the inflamed appendix without making an incision? Even if the appendix was resected, how was he going to take it out? Magic?

Did he think he could generate electricity with love and resect an appendix with a sharp gaze?

Zheng Ren ignored the peculiar gazes of everyone on the scene and continued after pausing for a few moments. “That’s number one. Number two, everyone in the general surgery department cannot criticise or order around the emergency department no matter what kind of surgery is performed in the future.”

F*ck… He was trying to plunder resources from the general surgery department without restraint. Did that mean all acute intestinal obstructions, acute cholecystitis and so on belonged to the emergency department in the future?

Who the hell did he think he was?!

Not only were Chief Surgeon Liu from the first general surgery department and Chief Surgeon Sun from the second general surgery department angered, even the chief of the medical administration division, who remained unbiased thus far, was getting riled up as well.

Outrageous! He dared to stand there and boast that he could perform an appendectomy without using a scalpel, and even listed out terms number one, two, and three! Who the hell did he think he was?!

“Little Zheng…” Old Chief Physician Pan felt awkward in this situation.

It was indeed his wish to expand the emergency department’s territory and make it better, but who could have expected that the new chief resident would be so assertive and impulsive?

If Zheng Ren had said that he wanted to perform a pancreaticoduodenectomy or an organ—liver or kidney—transplant, Old Chief Physician Pan would definitely give him his unconditional support.

Instead, he mentioned performing an appendectomy without making an incision. That was absolute nonsense!

Therefore, Old Chief Physician Pan felt awkward because Zheng Ren had basically ruined his good hand entirely.

Old Chief Physician Pan started to smooth things over. “Relax. I know you’re exhausted after performing surgeries throughout the day and night. Why don’t you get some rest and I’ll deal with them in the meantime? Don’t worry, I won’t allow the emergency department to suffer any losses. I, Old Pan, will not sign the treaty of treachery while my soldiers are fighting on the frontline.”

Old Chief Physician Pan beat his chest reassuringly while making the promise.

Unfortunately, everyone in the room was a sly fox who had been working in the clinical field for years, especially Chief Surgeon Liu, who was a master of schemes with a calculating mind.

How could he give up on such a good opportunity for a counter-attack?

“Little Zheng is right,” Chief Surgeon Liu interrupted Old Chief Physician Pan and concluded, “We agree to your terms. If you can complete an appendectomy successfully without making any incision, the general surgery department won’t handle any acute appendicitis case thereafter, and the emergency department can take over any general surgical cases they wish.”

Then, he turned around and gave a surly stare to Chief Surgeon Sun from the second general surgery department. “Chief Surgeon Sun, you’ve got the same thing in mind too, right?”

Chief Surgeon Sun felt helpless in this situation. He preferred not to stand up for the general surgery department but it was better not to offend Chief Surgeon Liu when their victory in this gamble was almost guaranteed.

Thus, he nodded his head and replied, “Okay.”

A smile finally formed on Chief Surgeon Liu’s face after receiving Chief Surgeon Sun’s support.

The negative emotions—disheartenment, fatigue, and so on—he had accumulated after a day and night disappeared into thin air at that instant. “Little Zheng, I’ve got a patient with me, so come and take a look. Be sure to widen our horizons too.”

Old Chief Physician Pan let out an agonizing scream deep in his heart. It was an obvious conspiracy and Chief Surgeon Liu had dug a pit to bury Zheng Ren alive.

The idiotic Zheng Ren had jumped into the pit without knowing its depth.

Old Chief Physician Pan had experienced the era of achieving surgical effects without the use of a scalpel in treating diseases decades ago. Qigong, common and favored among society at the time, traditional Chinese medicine, and acupuncture were all used to treat illnesses, but they remained popular only for a short period due to limited outcome.

What would happen in the end?

A cold feeling consumed Old Chief Physician Pan’s heart. Zheng Ren was the one who brought success to the emergency department, but he was also the one who would bring it down.

Why did this b*stard not know his limitations?

Chief Surgeon Liu made a gesture without waiting for Zheng Ren’s reply. Then, like a trained hound, Cen Meng took out a USB flash drive from his white coat, plugged it into the computer, clicked through numerous clinical cases at 300 actions per minute, and started explaining the surgical case.

“The patient is a young female model who is participating in the New Idea Model Contest in our city.” Cen Meng’s voice sounded deep and coherent as if he had rehearsed this case previously. “Since our city values the contest very much, Secretary-General Chen gave Chief Surgeon Liu a phone call and requested that she receive treatment in Sea City General Hospital.

“The patient had undergone three days of conservative treatment but the effect wasn’t obvious. Secretary-General Chen mentioned that she is the seeded player in this year’s contest. If surgery is required, the wound has to be very small and she needs to recover as soon as possible so that she can enter the final three days later.”

The patient’s brief summary of her condition and various investigative reports were projected on the screen at the same time.

Chief Surgeon Liu continued, “Provisional diagnosis is uncomplicated acute appendicitis. There shouldn’t be any mistakes about it. Everything is in line with Little Zheng’s terms—simple acute appendicitis but a woundless appendectomy. That’s the instruction from the city’s management team and I’ve been racking my brain thinking about how to handle it as well.”

Chief Surgeon Liu’s emotions had stabilized and his initial despair had disappeared into thin air after making that speech. Then, he redirected the focus on Zheng Ren’s joke.

“My initial plan was to let Little Zheng handle this case since he is highly skilled in this field, and judging by the patient’s condition, the conservative treatment has had a limited effect because there are signs of perforation.” A smile formed on Chief Surgeon Liu’s face. “It’s fortunate that Little Zheng knows how to perform the surgery without leaving any scars because that’s exactly what Secretary-General Chen wants.”

An eerie silence reigned in the surgical demonstration classroom.

The New Idea Model Contest was considered one of the distinguishing features of Sea City, and the city was very supportive of every event related to the contest.

Moreover, the patient was actually a seeded player who was going to wear a bikini for on-stage performances. If the surgical wound was big or even noticeable, it would be unsightly and may even cost her the contest which was precisely the reason behind Secretary-General Chen’s instructions.

A mere compliment may be given for a job well done, but failure to complete the designated task… Well, one had better be prepared to feel Secretary-General Chen’s wrath.

It was not just a simple dispute based on personal grudges. Instead, Chief Surgeon Liu wanted Zheng Ren to get caught in a dilemma and let him burn in a furnace.

“Chief Surgeon Liu, I don’t think it’s a good idea.” The chief of the medical administration division’s expression was cold and emotionless. “I don’t agree with your proposal.”

The chief of the medical administration division had contacted the patient previously and knew exactly how high Secretary-General Chen’s expectations were for her. It was better not to hope for great accomplishments but for no mistakes with this patient.

‘This Chief Surgeon Liu dared to include such an important patient in his dispute. It seems like I’ve to teach him a lesson some other time. Otherwise, he won’t know his place at all,’ the chief of the medical administration division thought.

“Well, he said he can perform it without making an incision, so what do you say, Little Zheng?” asked Chief Surgeon Liu with a smile.

He was not expecting Zheng Ren to be extremely stupid and accept this special acute appendicitis case, anyway.

It was nonsense and Zheng Ren had clearly been making a joke last time. He just happened to seize that opportunity and used it to make matters worse so that he could retaliate and earn himself a fighting chance.

This tactic was called fishing in troubled waters.

It would be easier to settle subsequent issues once Zheng Ren flinched and backed off.

Chief Surgeon Liu tried to pressure Zheng Ren further by staring intensely at him.

“A woundless appendectomy seems justified since the patient’s condition looks straightforward and uncomplicated, but I can make my decision only after I’ve seen the patient myself,” replied Zheng Ren confidently.

“…”

Everyone in the surgical demonstration classroom was flabbergasted.

Was he wishing for death?!