Chapter 388: Passing the Torch in the Department

“Chief Hu’s final words are crucial. I think we need to call his son right now and verify things. This will settle the debate and help us finalize the new director for Cardiothoracic Surgery.”

Deputy Director Bai really deserves his reputation for handling administration.

He quickly grabbed the opportunity and hammered home the key point—ending this leadership struggle in the department as fast as possible.

Leadership all knew the score: right now Cardiothoracic Surgery was completely headless, morale was broken, and the department was adrift. This couldn’t be good for the future.

On top of that, several major hospitals around the province were stepping up their own cardiothoracic teams. Between internal chaos and external competition, the situation was truly dire.

So, locking in a new department director quickly and restoring business as usual was the clear top priority. Anything less, and trouble would keep brewing.

But you can’t just force a department head appointment.

Especially when it comes to these senior, heavyweight figures—if there’s real disagreement, not even a vice director can throw their weight around and force a decision. Push too hard, and resentment would explode.

A truly smart leader would never crush people with authority, especially in a public meeting with so many involved. It’s about managing your image as much as your power.

Power is like a nuclear weapon—it builds authority and deters chaos, but you only use it when you absolutely have to.

Unleash it for decisive moments, but otherwise, keep it holstered. Winning people over with integrity is always the best approach.

Most top leaders value public virtue above all.

No matter how dirty or corrupt someone might be in private, on the surface, you have to look righteous and upright.

“Who’s got Chief Hu’s son’s number? Call him now!”

Deputy Director Ye voiced his agreement.

With both vice directors in sync, it looked like this issue was about to be resolved quickly.

If this was a normal day, people might still squabble over interests and support their closest allies for the position. But now, with Cardiothoracic Surgery in crisis at Tuyu Hospital and Director Zhu watching from above, things changed.

If any vice director started fighting over petty gains and ignored the bigger picture, Director Zhu wouldn’t just sit back and watch.

It’d ruin their standing with Director Zhu for good.

This was the kind of reckless move none of them would make.

“I have it! Last time when Chief Hu got sick and we had to reach his family, I happened to save his contact info.”

The head nurse of Cardiothoracic quickly raised her hand, then pulled out her phone.

“Everyone stay quiet. Put him on speaker, and record the call,” Deputy Director Bai ordered sternly.

“Understood!”

The head nurse was in her forties, her voice crisp as she replied.

Getting a chance to show up in front of a vice director—she was definitely thrilled inside.

Everyone knew there was a Vice Director of Nursing post.

Head nurses dreamed of getting that senior administrative role someday.

In the hospital, the head nurse who landed the position had basically reached the peak. Beyond that, she’d have to leave to hold a higher office elsewhere.

At least, that was how administrative promotions typically went.

Academic and research advancement was a whole different path…

Generally, if a head nurse excelled in both academics and research, administrative promotions would follow naturally.

The three—administration, academia, and research—went hand in hand. Each was valuable alone, but close ties made for real power.

In top hospitals, some chief physicians carried even more weight than the directors themselves. These experts often wore many hats, brought home major honors, and wielded social influence that surpassed the hospital’s own.

The nurse, surnamed He, began dialing.

The conference room turned silent—so quiet, you could hear a pin drop.

Soon, the call connected.

“Hello, Head Nurse He!”

On the other end, a slightly hoarse male voice came through, sounding a bit delicate.

It was Chief Hu’s son.

“Hello, Mr. Hu. I’m so sorry to disturb you during this difficult time as you mourn your father.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine! Please, go ahead.”

“It’s like this—before Chief Hu passed, he apparently spoke about who should take over as department director. I heard it was the night of his accident. Do you recall anything about that?”

“Yes, I was just in the car at the time. Dr. Zhou Can and Dr. Xueyan from your department helped my dad into the car. While he was inside, he gave them some instructions. But I’m afraid I can’t share the details publicly.”

Chief Hu’s son was being careful—he wouldn’t give out details lightly.

He was worried it might cause problems.

“Mr. Hu, here’s the situation: we’re in the process of selecting the next department head. Right now there’s some disagreement, so if Chief Hu left any last wishes, we really want to respect those. Please, be honest with us.”

Head Nurse He briefly explained.

“I… honestly, of course I want my father’s wishes to be respected and fulfilled, but I’m not part of your hospital. I’m not really comfortable interfering with who you choose as department chief.”

Chief Hu’s family upbringing really showed.

You could see his father’s kind spirit in the way his son handled things.

“Mr. Hu, hello. I’m Director Xie of Surgery. Feel free to be candid. Both vice directors and I wish to hear Chief Hu’s last wishes. He devoted his life to Cardiothoracic Surgery and we’re deeply thankful and respectful. We believe he must have put great thought into his choice of successor—it would only benefit the department if we honored it. Please, tell us what you can. Thank you.”

Director Xie had a way with words.

Sure, he had a bit of a temper and really cared about personal interest, but no one doubted his competence.

At the very least, Surgery thrived under his leadership.

“Alright then. That night, my dad said Dr. Xueyan should take over as department head. Dr. Xueyan didn’t want to accept at first and my dad actually got angry. He insisted she was the best fit for Cardiothoracic Surgery, so he pushed her to take responsibility. He also told Dr. Zhou Can to support the department whenever needed, and Dr. Zhou agreed right away. That’s basically what happened.”

“I’m only repeating what my father told me before he passed. You all decide as you see fit…”

After listening to Chief Hu’s son, the whole room stayed silent.

A dying man’s last words weighed on everyone.

Chief Hu truly lived up to the phrase ‘devoted to his work until the very end.’

“Thank you. Please let us know when the memorial is set—we’ll all come to pay our respects and say a final goodbye.”

After the call, Associate Director He, who had fought hardest for the position, looked crestfallen, head bowed in silence.

Even Director Le and others looked shaken.

It was just like the old imperial exams: before the results were out, every competent candidate believed they’d passed.

Then, when the list came out, they had to face the reality of failure.

That emotional crash was real—feeling upset and disappointed was only natural.

“Alright, with Chief Hu’s last words confirmed and matching what Zhou Can said, here’s my recommendation. Director Xueyan has always been warm, fair, and hardworking. She’s accomplished both academically and medically. By every metric—experience, character, skills, knowledge—she’s more than qualified to become our next Cardiothoracic Surgery director. I strongly recommend her to both vice directors for the position.”

Director Xie had held back before, likely to respect the feelings of the other chief physicians.

Now that they had Chief Hu’s dying wish, no one could object.

Such an old fox!

Zhou Can complained inwardly. Chief Hu had laid all this out with the hospital leadership the night of his accident.

As head of Surgery, Director Xie had to be the first to know.

Yet he’d never once mentioned those early talks.

Instead, he waited for just the right moment before voicing clear support for Director Xueyan, upholding Chief Hu’s wishes. Classic old fox behavior.

Still, Zhou Can figured there was a lot to learn from how these leaders handled things.

He was growing fast himself and would likely move up to senior posts in the future, maybe even outside the hospital. Worth studying the big bosses’ methods.

“Chief Hu was always steady and upright. I trust whoever he chose must be outstanding. Plus, both Xueyan and Zhou Can are his true apprentices—they inherited everything he taught. Xueyan is the right choice for department head.”

With those words, Deputy Director Bai put the matter to rest then and there.

“I agree.”

Deputy Director Ye followed up right away.

With all three senior leaders on the same page and Chief Hu’s final wishes made clear, there was no more opposition.

“Director Xueyan is brilliant and down-to-earth. I’m lucky to work under such a great new leader, and I believe Cardiothoracic Surgery will make it through this crisis and reach new heights.”

The head nurse, surprisingly, was the first to publicly support the choice.

Normally, nurses didn’t speak in meetings like this—at most, they’d vote quietly.

She was so enthusiastic because clinging to the new director could be good for her, and she also wanted to stay in the vice directors’ good graces.

“Congratulations, Director Xueyan, on your new position. If you need anything, just say the word.”

Director Le had always got along well with Director Xueyan.

He was the first to congratulate her, bowing his head in respect. That was more than just politeness—it was setting the tone.

The room buzzed with excitement.

Many came forward to congratulate Director Xueyan and pledged their full support.

At last, Cardiothoracic Surgery regained its stability.

Associate Director He looked downcast, but he’d bounce back in a few days.

Everyone here was an adult—and at his age, past fifty, there weren’t any real surprises.

Most things could be taken in stride.

What’s meant to be will be, what’s not meant to be, don’t force it.

Any sensible adult comes to understand this eventually: some things just aren’t up to you.

Beautiful women on the street, stacks of cash in the bank, top-level jobs… There’s so much we chase in life. Try as we might, who can guarantee we’ll actually get it all?

Zhou Can had done a lot to help Director Xueyan land the top spot, but he quietly faded into the background. There were plenty of others happy to flatter the new boss.

As for the three senior leaders, they left right after things were settled.

Back in the emergency operating room, Dr. Xu paused in his work and asked, “Did you resolve things?”

“It went as Chief Hu wanted—Xueyan’s taken over as department head.”

Zhou Can kept it short and to the point.

“That’s great. Let’s get back to work.”

Dr. Xu nodded, unreadable as ever.

But Zhou Can still caught a trace of relief flicker deep in his eyes.

Dr. Xu and Chief Hu had been close friends. Now, seeing Chief Hu’s last wishes fulfilled, Dr. Xu must have felt comforted.

Zhou Can headed into another operating room to continue surgery—enough said.

…

After getting off work that evening, he looked up Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital online. Wow—they were advertising for all kinds of highly paid medical specialists. It wasn’t just Cardiothoracic Surgery, either, but all of the surgical fields, with a special push for experts in oncology.

【By the way, I really recommend the Kuai Source Book app—check it out if you want to keep up with the story.】

He also came across some big news about Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital.

They’d spent a fortune luring away entire teams and experts from two top-ranking specialty hospitals. Now, they were raising the bar for hiring doctors and nurses.

The minimum requirement was a master’s degree or higher, with priority for relevant specialties and academic achievements.

What were they trying to pull?

Were they aiming for explosive growth?

They started as a women and children’s hospital, but now they’d poached the entire orthopedics and dermatology teams from others. And now, they were recruiting entire teams from Cardiothoracic and Oncology Medicine too.

This wasn’t just hiring individual people—they were snatching up entire teams.

Zhou Can could sense just how deep their pockets were.

He also saw an announcement: Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital had acquired land for expansion and changed its name.

They dropped ‘Maternity and Child’ from the middle and were now just ‘Xinxiang Hospital.’

It might sound like a small change, but it held a whole new meaning…

They were clearly aiming to become a full-service hospital.

Zhou Can couldn’t help but think back to a late-night chat a year ago with Director Tian. Back then, Director Tian had spoken confidently about Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital’s big future. He’d thought she was just bluffing.

Turned out, she’d been planning it all along.

Never underestimate anyone.

But with all this high-priced talent poaching and massive construction, where was Xinxiang Hospital getting the money?

Borrowing from banks probably wouldn’t be enough.

And anyway, the costs of bank financing were sky-high.

Director Tian was no fool. She’d never take on that kind of burden.

After reading up on Xinxiang Hospital, Zhou Can dropped it. He was just satisfying his curiosity—it didn’t really concern him.

There were plenty of major hospitals in the provincial capital. Competition was only going to get fiercer.

For Zhou Can, the prospect was exciting.

He’d never been afraid of competition.

Now that he had his own surgical team, he was confident he could keep building up, bit by bit. Someday, his team would be Tuyu Hospital’s ace—in the province, or even across the country.

After reading the news, he was just about to head home when a message pinged on his phone.

It was from Director Xueyan.

“Thank you for your help today!”

She knew Zhou Can’s support had been essential in her getting the position.