Chapter 282: An Ambitious Promise in the Meeting Room

A girl as proud and self-reliant as her would never have put aside her pride to ask Zhou Can for advice if she hadn’t been impressed by his medical skill.

After hearing Zhou Can’s explanation, Yang Chan nodded.

“So that’s how it is! Do you think that woman’s tumor is malignant?” She looked genuinely troubled, unwilling to believe someone so young could be struck with a terminal illness.

“As much as I want her tumor to be benign, all signs point to it being malignant. What’s worse, she’s probably already lost the chance for surgery.”

Until the test results were out, Zhou Can would never say anything like that to the patient or her family.

When doctors talk among themselves though, there’s no need to be so guarded.

“Oh… is it really that serious? What a shame.” Yang Chan’s face clouded with sadness, eyes downcast. After a moment, she looked up at Zhou Can. “You’re really talented in medicine. Have you ever thought about trying to defeat cancer—the cruelest killer of all?”

Zhou Can paused, then gave a wry smile. “There are plenty of doctors with more talent than me, but none of them have cured cancer. To this day, cancer is still synonymous with an incurable disease. Honestly, Class Monitor, you think way too highly of me.”

He never talked big.

Countless doctors have tried to beat cancer. Not one has succeeded yet.

“I think if you set your mind to it, you could do it.”

Yang Chan stared at him with an odd, unwavering look.

For the first time, she held his gaze for more than a moment.

“Class Monitor, if I call you naïve, you’ll probably curse me out! These days, conquering a disease this major isn’t a solo quest by some ancient traditional healer. It takes a whole team—even several top teams working together—to even have a shot. Besides, I’m really not as gifted as you think!”

Zhou Can sounded completely serious.

The idea of Yang Chan expecting him to defeat cancer was as fantastical as a little girl’s daydream.

Foreign countries have thrown tons of money and countless research teams at curing cancer for years, yet not a single hospital dares claim they’ve found a cure.

“If you’re willing to try, I’ll follow you unconditionally.”

She looked straight at Zhou Can, eyes determined, lips set with resolve.

Judging by her face, she wasn’t joking.

Zhou Can couldn’t help but worry. “Class Monitor, are you alright?” He started wondering if she’d been rattled or lost her senses.

There was something odd about her vibe right now.

Usually, she was precise, measured, and sharp when speaking in public.

Even when Du Leng tried to make moves on her, she fended him off without breaking a sweat. That just showed how clever she was.

“I mean it. I didn’t suddenly decide to support you, nor was I stirred up by that lymphoma patient. I’ve thought this all through. Since my internship at Tuyu Hospital, I’ve seen so many lives taken by cancer—especially uterine and breast cancer. Here in Obstetrics, we see those cases every day.”

“Do you have any idea how much it hurts to see kids lose their moms? Some of them aren’t even a year old when breast cancer takes their mothers. Or husbands, watching their wives die by inches from late-stage uterine cancer, powerless to do anything. Every time I see those scenes I think—if only somebody could cure cancer, these tragedies wouldn’t have to happen.”

Her voice filled with sorrow as she recalled painful memories.

“Why did we become doctors? Isn’t it to ease our patients’ suffering? I know I can’t do it myself, but your talent has given me hope. If you make curing cancer your life’s goal, I’ll follow you, be your right-hand woman.”

She blushed a little when she said “right-hand woman.”

Zhou Can had once pursued her.

They were about the same age.

Maybe her offer meant she’d be a good partner at work—and potentially at home, too.

At the very least, if Zhou Can asked her out now, she’d probably agree to be his girlfriend.

“That’s a huge goal. Let’s talk about it in the future. Still, I really admire your passion and ambition.”

Zhou Can politely turned her down.

They were still just trainees. There was so much left to learn.

Forget curing cancer—for now, even dealing with complex surgeries or rare illnesses was beyond them.

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In this respect, men tend to be more rational.

Women, meanwhile, tend to be more emotional.

Director Zhang was seeing patients up front, but clearly heard their conversation.

She didn’t say anything though.

Before long, the woman who’d had a dilation and curettage and then developed excessive thirst, limb weakness and impaired consciousness came back from her pituitary MRI.

Timing couldn’t have been better.

They were just about to clock out when she returned from the scan.

“Professor Zhang, we’ve done all the tests you ordered. Please check my wife again.”

The patient’s husband placed the results on Zhang Bihua’s desk.

“Just a moment, let me finish writing this prescription for another patient.” With that, Zhang Bihua lowered her head and focused on the prescription.

It was closing time and there were hardly any patients left in the outpatient hall.

Once she finished, Director Zhang told that patient to pay at the pharmacy and follow the instructions for medication.

Only one big problem remained—an especially tough case.

“Can the other directors come over to help review this case? Let’s see if we can get to the bottom of it,” Zhang Bihua called to the other doctors.

All the attending physicians were at least associate chief physicians, except Du Leng.

There were eight of them in total. Seven directors and deputy directors crowded around Zhang Bihua’s desk.

Du Leng stayed at his station, unable to save face after his argument with the patient’s husband.

This kind of gynecological issue wasn’t Zhou Can’s forte, and with all the senior doctors doing a joint consult, he didn’t squeeze into the group—just listened to their diagnoses from the sidelines.

After a thorough discussion, given how serious the symptoms were, Director Zhang decided to admit the patient for inpatient care just in case.

They started with IV fluids and insulin to stabilize her.

First priority: get her vital signs stable, then investigate further and hopefully pin down the root cause soon.

Seeing his wife finally admitted and getting the right treatment, the patient’s husband was much less upset.

“Alright, everyone’s worked hard today. Let’s call it a day on clinic duty. Since so much happened today, I think we should hold a brief meeting to discuss areas for improvement.”

Director Zhang Bihua’s sharp gaze swept the room.

Then she turned to the liaison for the Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital.

“Section Chief Tang, could you arrange a conference room for us? We’ll only need about half an hour.”

“No problem! There’s a medium-sized conference room on the second floor. I’ll take you up.”

Section Chief Tang was responsible for coordinating with the Tuyu experts. If anything went wrong, she was the first to step in.

If she couldn’t handle it, Director Tian would have to get involved.

Her main goal was to make sure the Tuyu Hospital experts and staff were looked after and the specialist consultation activity went smoothly.

Everyone followed Section Chief Tang up to the conference room.

Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital had some impressive hardware.

The conference room was well-furnished, simple yet elegant, with all the necessary meeting equipment.

“Director Zhang, you go ahead and run your meeting. I’ll slip to the restroom. I’ll come fetch everyone for dinner in the cafeteria in about half an hour.” Just like that, Section Chief Tang found an excuse to leave.

The two biggest mishaps today were the sick child who nearly died and Du Leng’s public argument with the family.

No one on the medical team could be blamed for the boy with bronchitis almost dying.

He was dangerously ill to begin with. The doctors could only do their best—no one can promise every patient will survive.

At most, this just needed a reminder: safety above all else.

Du Leng’s argument with the family was more serious.

If he didn’t have such a special status, Director Zhang would’ve already sent him packing back to Tuyu Hospital.

“Take your seats, everyone. Behind closed doors, we’re all one team. This assignment here at Xinxiang stands for Tuyu Hospital—we rise and fall together.”

Zhang Bihua motioned them all to sit. The group settled in, every eye on her.

“Overall, we did well today. For example, that child with severe bronchitis stopped breathing during the exam—Doctor Zhou Can, Director Dai and I worked together to save his life. Or that extremely obese woman: we finally discovered the real cause of her sleep apnea. These cases show our hospital’s impressive skill. I’m sure Tuyu Hospital’s leadership will be delighted when they hear the news.”

“Director Tian from Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital is also thrilled and planning a big publicity push for us.”

As their successes came up, smiles spread across everyone’s faces.

There was real pride and happiness in the room.

Many people glanced toward Zhou Can—they all knew he’d played a big part in Tuyu Hospital’s biggest wins today.

And those weren’t just minor contributions, either.

No question—after today’s outside consult, Zhou Can had shot up like a rising star.

“But for all we did right, there were some shortcomings. For example, before examining that child, the risks weren’t fully assessed. We can’t control how Xinxiang’s doctors work, but we must keep our own standards high. If Zhou Can hadn’t removed that scab from the child’s airway at the critical moment, the outcome doesn’t bear thinking about.”

Successes finished, now it was time for self-reflection.

Zhang Bihua’s face and voice were deadly serious.

None of the medical staff dared make a sound.

Director Dai felt the heat most—the child had been her patient, and she’d ordered the test without a proper risk check. That was her slipup.

“We’ve got six more days of specialist consultations. I want everyone to be on their absolute best behavior. Don’t just be bold in making diagnoses—every moment, remember that safety comes before all else.”

After a bit of tough love, Zhang Bihua shifted gears.

“There’s something else that casts a very bad light on us. Doctor Du had a public argument with a family member. That absolutely cannot happen again. We have to empathize with patients and families and take their concerns seriously. We can’t act high and mighty or ignore their lives. Brushing off patients or their families is even worse.”

Zhang Bihua publicly called out Du Leng by name. The fallout was that bad.

To put it bluntly, it embarrassed Tuyu Hospital.

“But what if the family says truly awful things? Are we doctors not allowed to defend ourselves at all?” Du Leng protested, angry.

“Some families really do have bad tempers. Their insults sting, and it’s easy for the staff to feel wronged. But just because they’re rude doesn’t mean we stoop to their level. Plus, honestly, you mishandled things a bit. If the diagnosis was beyond you, you could’ve gently suggested another doctor—or asked a specialist to step in.”

“But instead, you kept ordering this test and that test, giving long-winded explanations to the patient and her family, but never offering any clear diagnosis or treatment plan. If you were in their shoes, would you be happy?”

With that, Zhang Bihua posed a question straight to Du Leng’s conscience.

“I… I just wanted the patient and family to really understand the condition,” Du Leng said, his face flushing.

“Giving patients some medical education isn’t wrong. But going off on unrelated tangents is really unnecessary. A lot of patients and families may not have the background to understand medical stuff anyway.”

Zhang Bihua was actually being pretty tactful.

“Doctor Du, your vast medical knowledge should be focused on diagnosing and treating illness, not lecturing patients and their families. They aren’t here for a science seminar—they want to get better.”

With things spelled out this clearly, if Du Leng still wouldn’t listen, there was nothing else to say.

For adults, it’s changing that’s hardest of all.

Don’t expect people to change their habits and ideas just because you meant well. It usually backfires.

“Beyond the issues I already mentioned, there’s another area we should improve. When I left my station temporarily, all appointments at my desk halted. That really affects patients’ experience. My suggestion: form a rapid-response team that can jump in when anything urgent happens, so regular consults aren’t interrupted.”

The moment Zhang Bihua suggested this, the other specialists supported her wholeheartedly.

“Such a crisis team would have to be top-notch at emergency care. Not many doctors have that level of skill—even among our directors there’s only a handful.”

Director Jiang spoke up.

“Actually, with a strong team leader and two or three excellent nurses and doctors, we could handle most emergencies just fine,” Zhang Bihua replied. She’d clearly already thought it through.

“Finding that sort of leader is tough! To be frank, other than you, I can’t think of anyone else. Most of us are experts in only one field, but emergencies can come from anywhere. If I were asked to take charge of a severe postpartum hemorrhage, I’d probably lose more patients than I’d save.”

That got a good laugh from everyone.

A tense atmosphere finally eased up.

“Ahem… Director Jiang is right. Still, the person I’m about to recommend as team leader has experience handling emergencies across multiple specialties. I truly believe he’ll do the job well.”

Zhang Bihua left a little suspense as she finished.