Chapter 313: A Surgeon’s Dilemma and the Weight of Expectations

This was happening on Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital’s turf, so referring a patient over to Tuyu Hospital wasn’t guaranteed to work. They might just refuse.

Just looking at that female lung cancer patient’s surgery made it clear where Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital stood when it came to certain interests.

“As long as we can handle it here at Xinxiang, we prioritize doing it ourselves. For a major surgery like this, it’s best to discuss after hours. If the patient lives in town, she can go home and wait for further notice.”

Director Zhang Bihua laid out the guidance.

“Alright, I’ll let the family take the child home for now.”

After Zhou Can checked in with his superiors, he sent the family and child home. It worked out since they needed time to gather the medical fees anyway, and they agreed readily.

With that taken care of, Zhou Can moved on to the next patient.

During his lunch break, he sent the X-rays of the boy with deformed hands to Chief Resident Shen from the Orthopedics Department at Tuyu Hospital.

Getting to know the chief physicians from important departments really had its perks.

With a tough surgery like this, Zhou Can could always reach out to Orthopedics experts for advice.

Chief Resident Shen looked at the scans, asked detailed questions about the patient, and finally explained to Zhou Can that since the surgery involved joints and bones while his own specialty was bone trauma, he’d need to discuss with other chief physicians in the department before giving a firm answer.

What looked like a simple hand deformity correction actually crossed into several medical specialties.

Skin, fascia, joints, ligaments—there were even blood vessels and nerves involved. This kind of surgery was hardly something just anyone could pull off.

Naturally, if possible, Zhou Can was eager to be the lead surgeon.

The benefits for him would be huge.

Leading a complicated corrective surgery like this on his own would deepen his understanding of the skin, fascia, joints, ligaments, and more. His all-around surgical skills would take a big leap.

……

That afternoon, Zhou Can kept up with the outpatient appointments like always.

Thanks to the TV news giving him an unexpected boost, patients showed up in a steady stream.

Nearly all of them were kids, though—mostly with bumps, bruises, or twisted limbs. It would’ve made Zhou Can laugh if it weren’t so absurd, since he’d never even rotated through Pediatrics as an intern or resident.

Yet here he was, the newly minted ‘Pediatrics expert.’ Life really does love a good twist.

It was like majoring in science at college and then landing a humanities job afterward. Not at all what you trained for, but you grit your teeth, learn fast, and adapt, just to survive.

The patients came with their beloved sons, daughters, or grandkids to see Zhou Can. So he welcomed them with warmth—he didn’t really have a choice.

Luckily, he’d spent over a year cramming medical knowledge, and with his rich surgical experience he managed to muddle through most cases.

If a diagnosis really stumped him, he didn’t pretend to know it all.

When something needed expert advice, he reached out without hesitation.

He kept at it all the way until the evening shift ended, his voice going hoarse. Apart from grabbing a quick bite at lunch, he’d spent nearly the whole day seeing patients nonstop.

Just with manual reduction and bone alignment alone, he’d treated half a dozen cases.

“Dr. Zhou, do you know how many patients you saw in total today?”

Ji You beamed at him, clearly impressed.

“How many?”

Honestly, Zhou Can had no idea.

He’d been too busy, with all his attention fixed on diagnosing and treating every patient.

He barely had time for anything unrelated.

“It was thirty-one! You resolved twenty-seven on the spot. Two cases you couldn’t diagnose went to Director Dai. One preliminarily diagnosed as acute leukemia—the family broke down and left with the child. There’s one more that needs a consult, and I’ll call the family once we’ve discussed it.”

That was a pretty stunning performance.

On his fifth day seeing patients, Zhou Can had turned in an answer sheet anyone would be proud of.

He’d also shown off that enviable strength of his for everyone to see.

A few days ago, Du Leng had been miles ahead of Zhou Can in terms of patient volume, but today Zhou Can left him in the dust.

Du Leng managed only seventeen patients, while Zhou Can’s total almost doubled his.

That’s the thing about life—tomorrow’s always full of surprises.

With numbers like these, Zhou Can’s reputation rose fast. Grateful patients would spread the word for free and become his fans.

The way he displayed both diagnostic and treatment skills meant that ‘expert’ seat in the consulting room was his to lose.

Every consult brought new experience and pushed his abilities up another notch.

Now, having gotten the ball rolling, he was stuck in a positive feedback loop.

After dinner, everyone gathered for a case review of the tough and unusual patients.

Zhou Can took the opportunity to bring up the boy with the hand deformities. How would they handle his surgery?

The Orthopedics team at Tuyu Hospital had already given a clear answer—they could do the surgery, but it’d have to happen at Tuyu.

Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital did have a Pediatric Orthopedics department, so Section Chief Tang invited their chief physician to join the discussion.

Once he’d seen the scans and heard the case, the Pediatric Orthopedics chief fell silent.

That didn’t surprise Zhou Can one bit.

Surgery to correct the deformity wouldn’t be easy; it pulled in skills from several surgical specialties.

It’d seriously test the lead surgeon’s all-around abilities.

Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital’s surgical team had always ranked behind; they probably couldn’t handle a surgery like this.

Just look at the way they had to call in doctors from Tuyu for the lung cancer operation—their surgical strength clearly wasn’t up to par.

To be fair, there were some objective reasons for that.

First, that lung cancer patient they’d discussed yesterday needed an endoscopic procedure, which was way tougher than a traditional surgery.

Also, several chief physicians from Xinxiang were overseas for training, so a lot of departments were short on top-notch talent.

Add it all up, and it was no wonder Xinxiang wasn’t equipped to pull off a high-difficulty surgery like this.

When Section Chief Tang saw the Pediatric Orthopedics chief staying quiet, he got anxious.

“Dr. Zhang, can you do the surgery for this patient’s correction or not? Say something!”

Zhou Can was upfront—he’d already asked Tuyu Hospital’s Orthopedics team, and they said yes.

If Xinxiang couldn’t do it, they’d have no choice but to hand the case over.

“The child’s almost six; correction will be very difficult.” Dr. Zhang was a short, balding man in his fifties, with a big golden-framed pair of glasses perched on his nose and a sharp nose that gave him an oddly cheerful look.

He adjusted his glasses and gave a diplomatic answer.

Which basically meant: we can’t do it.

“It’s tough cases like these that attract attention! Our Pediatric Orthopedics department needs a few standout cases to build its reputation. Dr. Zhang, your team’s always been excellent. Think you could take on this tough one?”

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Chief Tang’s stature in the hospital had risen noticeably after bringing in the Tuyu Hospital expert team.

Judging by the confidence in his tone, it sounded like he’d become Director Tian’s spokesman in many situations.

If Director Tian hadn’t trusted him, Tang wouldn’t have been the one trying to recruit Zhou Can that night.

His role juggling experts during these consulting events, effortlessly summoning different department heads and resources, made it clear he’d used this opportunity as a springboard.

“Mm…we can give it a try!”

Dr. Zhang was already muttering to himself, but agreed—though it was clear his confidence was shot.

“Alright, it’s settled then.”

That’s what Tang had been waiting for. Whether it was a forced yes or a willing one, as long as there was a yes, the “hard bone” was locked in.

If he’d refused, Zhou Can would definitely push to send the patient to Tuyu Hospital.

“Dr. Zhou, just hand the follow-up care over to Dr. Zhang and his team. From now on, for challenging pediatric orthopedic cases, go straight to Dr. Zhang for discussion. At Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital, we’ll do all we can to back up our expert guests from Tuyu Hospital.”

Chief Tang wrapped up coordination with those words, and made the message even stronger.

He was putting the entire weight of the case on Dr. Zhang’s shoulders.

Dr. Zhang looked completely miserable, his face stiff with discomfort.

Zhou Can almost felt like he could see Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital’s overall strategy. After realizing they were losing patients, top management had handpicked a few promising doctors and sent them overseas to hone their skills, hoping they’d return even better. The plan was to let these star doctors lift the whole hospital back into the spotlight.

Once those star doctors came back stronger, their prestige would draw patients back in and help revive the hospital’s reputation.

Right now, they were making use of the Tuyu Hospital consulting project to save face and raise their own visibility.

You had to admit, from a strategic perspective, it was pretty smart.

But the upper management didn’t seem to realize there were huge management issues. The staff was lax, lacking the sense of responsibility needed. That was a major flaw.

Even famous doctors couldn’t change how things turned out.

Of course, maybe leadership had noticed the problems and was fixing them, step by step.

If they moved too quickly, though, the hospital’s already shaky position could provoke backlash from staff.

Then the director might end up ousted.

……

Once the case discussions wrapped up, everyone went their own way.

Zhou Can handed off the boy’s case to Dr. Zhang, but he was far from reassured.

He’d been the one to see the patient first, and the family had come just for his reputation.

If Dr. Zhang messed this up, Zhou Can’s own name was on the line.

Besides, the family was already barely holding it together. He really hated to see them suffer any more.

“Dr. Zhang, do you know when you’ll be able to do the surgery for this patient?”

“Hmm…at the earliest, in two days! I’ve got a pile of urgent cases waiting for surgery right now.” Dr. Zhang avoided eye contact as he spoke.

But Zhou Can wasn’t one to be fooled—he’d grown up learning to read people from all walks of life.

It was nearly impossible to get a lie past him.

He could tell instantly whether someone was telling the truth.

“A wait of two or three days is fine. But if it’s any longer, I don’t think the family will accept it. They’re in a tough spot—the seventy thousand yuan surgery fee was really hard for them to raise. If we delay too long, I worry they’ll lose trust in us and take the child somewhere else.”

No way was he going to be direct with Dr. Zhang.

This was a matter of tact.

Both of them worked at different hospitals, and Dr. Zhang’s rank was far higher.

No matter how you looked at it, Zhou Can had no right to tell Dr. Zhang how to treat his own patient.

The best approach was to make the point indirectly.

He wanted Dr. Zhang to know: if you keep dragging your feet, don’t blame me if the family gives up and goes elsewhere.

“I’ll make arrangements as soon as possible. Don’t worry!”

Dr. Zhang was placating him with words, nothing more.

The way Dr. Zhang brushed things off, it was obvious he hoped the family would give up and move the patient to another hospital.

After all, he’d only agreed to take on this high-risk surgery because there was really no other option.

Now that it had landed on his desk, he didn’t feel confident at all.

Ideally, he’d boot the case to another hospital, but he couldn’t do it openly or the leaders would get on his case.

Sitting nearby, Section Chief Tang caught the tone of Dr. Zhang’s answer and wasn’t happy at all.

He jumped in, stepping in for Dr. Zhang: “Dr. Zhang, you know this patient’s background—it’s heartbreaking. The family scraped everything they had together just to help their child, we can’t let them down. The surgery needs to be scheduled within the next two days, no delays.”

“Well…”

Dr. Zhang might’ve spun Zhou Can a story, but Tang wouldn’t be fooled.

After all, Section Chief Tang knew exactly what was going on in Pediatric Orthopedics.

He had a better grasp than Dr. Zhang himself on just how many urgent cases there really were.

“It’s settled. I’ll report this to Director Tian personally and ask the TV news crew to arrange a special feature and follow-up on the surgery. Yesterday’s interview aired and brought in forty percent more outpatients today!”

“I’m sure that with you at the helm, Pediatric Orthopedics will reach new heights.”

Section Chief Tang wasn’t just handing Dr. Zhang a challenge—he dropped it on him like a load of bricks.

He invoked Director Tian for backing and threatened to put the TV interview in motion, so Dr. Zhang couldn’t refuse.

If he tried, he’d come off as ungrateful. His days as department head would be numbered.

“Alright then! My team and I will do our best.”

Dr. Zhang choked out his agreement, practically on the verge of tears.

Zhou Can saw it all and still couldn’t quite trust Dr. Zhang.

“Section Chief Tang, Dr. Zhang, since I’m the primary physician on this case and under the hospital’s responsibility system ‘whoever admits the patient is responsible,’ would it be possible for me to take part in the whole process?”

He made sure to emphasize ‘the whole process.’

There’s a big difference between participating and full involvement.

Being there for the whole process meant designing the surgical plan and overseeing the case from start to finish.

“No problem!”

Section Chief Tang and Dr. Zhang agreed in unison.

“Dr. Zhou, you’re so responsible about your patients, it’s inspiring. You really get what it means to care for them—I’m impressed.”

Section Chief Tang still hadn’t given up on recruiting him, shooting him a thumbs-up and showering him with praise.

Zhou Can didn’t really play along—he offered up a couple humble platitudes and hurried off with Director Zhang and the others back to the hotel.

When he got back, his girlfriend Su Qianqian called.

She usually preferred texting, so when she called it meant something important.

Zhou Can had been on assignment at Xinxiang for five days already, and they’d only exchanged a few words on WeChat during that time.

He took his phone and stepped into the hallway at the end of the hotel corridor.

After all, he was sharing a room with Deputy Director Shi.

Private matters were better taken outside.

“Qianqian, where are you right now?”

“I’m at work, silly! How’s life on the road? You settling in alright?”

“Not really, but what can you do? At least there’s only two days left. Joining the expert consultations has really taught me a lot this time.”

“See? That’s great! I even saw you on TV—pretty impressive! And hey, if you ever need it, I’ve got a good fanbase. I can help get your name out there.”

She kept up with the news, no doubt about that.

She’d found out about his TV appearance almost instantly.

The news segment had aired only yesterday—unless there’d been a replay, the original was at 11:00 PM, when most people had already turned off their TVs and gone to bed.

Given how busy Su Qianqian was, it was impressive she found out so fast.

“No, no—don’t promote me right now. Not until I finish my Internal Medicine residency and make a mark back in Emergency. If my reputation outpaces my skills, it’s asking for trouble.”

When your fame grows faster than your abilities, the fall only hurts more.

And when you crash, it’ll be a total wipeout.