Chapter 41: A Surgeon’s Verdict

The diagnosis was simple: this head CT combined with slight changes in the blood test data. When I studied abroad, my doctoral advisor taught us to correlate blood test results with imaging to detect vascular tumors—much like how an elevated troponin immediately signals a heart attack. The calculations involved were complex, so I won’t delve into the details.

Du Leng continued confidently, his diagnostic approach clearly out of the ordinary.

“To quickly pinpoint the location, size, and severity of the vascular tumor, I believe it’s essential to perform a head ultrasound,” he advised.

Ultrasounds can capture blood flow changes, allowing us to diagnose arteriosclerosis, cerebral vasospasm, vascular stenosis, and variations in blood flow speed.

This suggestion was immediately endorsed by all the directors.

Before anyone realized it, amidst a panel of directors and attending physicians, the lead was unexpectedly taken by Du Leng—a mere trainee.

The two directors from the Surgical Department were genuinely pleased.

Meanwhile, the other department heads looked on with mixed emotions—envy intermingled with a sense of obsolescence.

Zhou Can steadily observed the pregnant woman at the resuscitation bed.

Visual inspection, unlike pulse diagnosis, is a method recognized by both Western and Chinese medicine.

No matter which doctor you see, the first step is always to observe.

Now that the patient was being sent for a head ultrasound, Zhou Can, though still wanting more, reluctantly stepped aside.

With the cause nearly determined, the tension on the directors’ faces eased considerably.

Director Xie then shifted his gaze back to Zhou Can.

A slight, self-satisfied smile played on his lips.

“Director Lou, I heard that the doctor you selected—Zhou Can—scored a major breakthrough in the Emergency Department just yesterday. Is that true?”

“That’s right,” came the reply.

Director Lou nodded, his face betraying a hint of nervousness as he instinctively stepped in front of Zhou Can, worried that Director Xie might snatch away the promising talent in the Emergency Department.

It was clear Director Xie had his ears to the ground.

He was indeed keeping a close eye on Zhou Can.

After all, everyone harbors a dash of competitiveness.

He had chosen Du Leng—the one with the highest academic credentials—over Zhou Can, who had topped the overall score, and he didn’t want to risk a miscalculation.

Yet Du Leng’s impressive performance had delighted Director Xie.

It confirmed that his choice wasn’t mistaken.

“Ha, rest assured. With Du Leng, an overseas-returned PhD, on board, there’s no way we’ll settle for an undergraduate! You needn’t worry,” Director Xie declared.

Those words, however, bruised Zhou Can’s pride.

Perhaps Director Xie’s bluntness and overconfidence had made him overlook Zhou Can’s feelings.

Noticing Zhou Can’s crestfallen expression, it was clear he felt slighted.

Dr. Xu then fixed his gaze on Director Xie and said,

“Academic qualifications don’t represent everything. I don’t agree with your notion that an undergraduate is far inferior to a PhD.”

Dr. Xu was as stubborn as they come—even when facing the head of a major department, he dared to speak his mind.

Zhou Can was just a junior trainee, so feeling a bit aggrieved was natural. He could have kept quiet, but he chose to stand up for Zhou Can—an act that revealed his character.

For if he didn’t, no one else would dare to incur the wrath of a top department director on Zhou Can’s behalf.

Many fail to grasp just how formidable a major department director is.

Their authority nearly matches that of the hospital’s executive leaders.

Commanding significant departments and boasting stellar achievements in academics and medicine, they are essentially the ‘regional overlords.’

Director Xie shot Dr. Xu a surprised glance.

He hadn’t expected Dr. Xu to so vehemently defend Zhou Can.

With a heavy sigh and a complex expression, he said, “Old Xu, the era when medical skill reigned supreme is long gone. Your decline back then was both accidental and inevitable. With today’s rapid advancements in medical technology, academic prowess has overtaken raw skill. Wake up!”

What sounded like heartfelt advice ended up feeling quite uncomfortable.

Zhou Can noted the desolation in Dr. Xu’s expression—a poignant hint of heartbreak.

The fall of a hero is always a heavy burden.

Those who experience it must endure a steep drop in status, the loss of prestige and glory, and the dual blows of public ridicule.

Dr. Xu took the criticism to protect Zhou Can from humiliation.

At that moment, Zhou Can felt deeply grateful and determined to repay the most admirable person in his eyes with even the smallest gesture.

He refused to remain silent.

After all, what does a head of the Surgical Department matter?

Within ten years, Zhou Can was confident he’d have Director Xie eating out of his hand. Whether Director Xie could still cling to his position remained to be seen.

“Director Xie, while I agree with modernizing our approach, there’s no need to favor foreign methods so blatantly! Chinese medical heritage spans over five thousand years, with both our medical skills and remedies celebrated as our best weapons against disease. How is it that in your words, these skills are so undervalued? Don’t forget—the Surgical Department survives on its skill with the scalpel. Without that, they’re nothing.”

Zhou Can’s words were nothing short of brilliant.

Had it not been the wrong moment, everyone would have applauded him.

Director Xie, whose livelihood depended on the scalpel, now found himself upstaged by a returned PhD who seemingly had forgotten his roots.

“Y-you…”

Director Xie’s notorious temper erupted. Stung by Zhou Can’s retort, he turned red, his face and neck flushed with anger.

“Alright, alright, young Zhou speaks his mind—no offense meant. Director Xie, you really need not take it so personally,” Director Lou interjected with a conciliatory smile, trying to play peacemaker.

Seeing the usually dominant Director Xie be put in his place was particularly satisfying.

However, given their status, they all had to save face.

So Director Lou quickly stepped in to offer Director Xie a graceful exit.

He was determined not to let this incident sour their relations.

Although things might have ended there, Du Leng, noticing Director Xie’s inability to counter Zhou Can, seemed eager to restore the Surgical Department’s prestige.

He stepped forward once more.

“If we equate academic credentials with clinical skill, I must disagree. Look at the diagnosis of that pregnant woman—wasn’t the Emergency Department completely at a loss?”

Du Leng, with his razor-sharp wit and high education, was especially cutting in his remarks.

He hit the nail on the head, exposing the Emergency Department’s shortcomings.

And it struck exactly where it hurt.

Doctors in the Emergency Department were left red-faced and ashamed.

“Dr. Du, that comment is a bit over the top! Our Emergency Department wasn’t helpless—we simply tread carefully when lives are at stake, unwilling to jump to conclusions,”

Deputy Director Han, fuming, quickly defended the Emergency Department.

Although his explanation was a tad forced, the honor of the department was on the line; no junior could be allowed to completely undermine it.

Even a makeshift cover-up was better than a total loss of face.

At least their reputation remained partly intact.

“Ha, Deputy Director Han, it seems you misunderstand the idea of caution. When it comes to treating and saving lives, precision is vital—but not at the cost of time. If delays lead to patients dying, then we’d simply be labeled quacks!”

Du Leng’s words completely tore down Deputy Director Han’s flimsy defenses.

Yet, as professionals, they refrained from openly insulting one another.

A few well-aimed jabs and subtle mockeries were par for the course in the hospital.

Every doctor in the Emergency Department felt utterly exposed, their pride in tatters.

Labeled as quacks with no way to retort.

You can imagine the mix of frustration and resignation in the room.

It was a situation filled with both exasperation and helplessness.

Zhou Can couldn’t understand why he found Du Leng so disagreeable.

He wasn’t jealous of his academic credentials at all.

Instead, he despised Du Leng’s smug, self-important air.

“Dr. Du, your remark smacks of a rookie who hasn’t experienced the perils of emergency medicine. In crises, mistakes are common. Our Emergency Department’s cautious approach, forged from harsh lessons, is invaluable—you should take note.”

Zhou Can’s criticism was sharply delivered without resorting to profanity.

He lambasted Du Leng for his lack of real-world experience, leaving him thoroughly subdued.

It was as if Du Leng had been pinned down with no chance to recover.

“What exactly do you mean by that, Dr. Zhou?” Du Leng’s face flushed a deep shade of blue.

Yet, he maintained his composure, stifling the anger welling up inside.

“Nothing more—just that there’s a vast difference between theory and practice. One merely talks, while the other requires real, decisive action,”

Zhou Can replied in a calm, matter-of-fact tone.

Ha ha!

Several doctors and nurses couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Especially those in the Emergency Department, who felt a surge of relief from head to toe.

Zhou Can managed to articulate everything they’d been dying to say but couldn’t quite phrase.

This Du Leng, who thought that a few years abroad made him extraordinary,

even dared to lecture the entire Emergency Department.

Zhou Can’s retort, dismissing his talk as empty rhetoric, was exceptionally incisive!