Chapter 496: Against the Clock: The Battle to Save Xiao Bao

Thanks to his diagnostic experience, he could tell at a glance that the baby was choking on a foreign object.

The child’s breathing was terrifying—each inhale sounded like a loud, desperate gasp.

And with each breath, the little chest collapsed inward.

“Dr. Zhou, this child’s airway is blocked by a peanut. The family already tried back slaps and giving water at home, but nothing worked. I just performed the Heimlich maneuver, but it didn’t help. Do you have any better ideas?”

Dr. Zhuang quickly gave Zhou Can a rundown of the case.

When kids choke, many elders default to outdated methods like back slaps or feeding water—wrong every time.

What they don’t realize is most choking cases involve the object lodging deep in the airway.

The human throat is a tricky design: food normally passes into the esophagus to reach the stomach, while air travels through the trachea.

The esophagus is pretty resilient—anything that gets through the throat will usually go down without trouble.

That’s why it’s rare to truly get food stuck in the esophagus.

But the trachea is a different story. It’s made of fifteen to twenty C-shaped cartilage rings, all connected by soft tissue and smooth muscle, with hardly any tension at all.

If food slips into the trachea, your body reacts immediately—a hacking cough to try to expel the object.

Most of the time, that cough will eject whatever got stuck.

But if something large wedges itself tightly in the windpipe, the pressure from the lungs isn’t enough to clear it. That’s when things get really dangerous.

If you don’t act fast, the patient could suffocate in minutes.

Giving water to someone choking on a foreign object not only does no good, it makes things worse.

If water gets into the airways, it’ll cause the peanut to swell and become even more tightly jammed.

There’s also a risk that any remaining breathing space gets blocked off completely.

In that case, you’re not just failing to save the patient—you’re actually pushing them closer to death.

The baby was now breathing through an open mouth, which gave Zhou Can a rare chance to check the child’s throat.

He shone a small flashlight inside, but saw no sign of the peanut.

That meant the blockage was lodged very deep.

Pediatricians usually keep a little flashlight in their desk drawer just for this—to check infants’ throats, mouths, and noses, or even test pupil response when needed.

“Have you run any tests?”

“We did a chest CT. It’s serious.”

Dr. Zhuang handed the scan to Zhou Can.

“Not only is it lodged deep, but after all this time the peanut’s probably swollen and slick. The only solution is to use a laryngoscope to extract it immediately. But to be honest, this will be a tough one.”

After checking the case, Zhou Can shook his head again and again.

Most blockages can be dealt with, somehow. This one was a nightmare, especially with such a tiny patient. He couldn’t shoulder the risk.

Hearing Zhou Can’s assessment, Dr. Zhuang turned to the family. “You’d better take the child to the Provincial Children’s Hospital right away! They’ve got more experience handling airway obstructions like this.”

Who says senior experts are always frank and fearless?

Faced with a high-risk patient, even Dr. Zhuang couldn’t help but try to shift responsibility.

At the end of the day, everyone puts themselves first.

Altruism exists, but self-preservation always comes first.

Doctors are no exception to this rule.

The baby’s grandmother was in the middle of berating her daughter-in-law, blaming her for being careless, glued to her phone instead of watching the child.

Meanwhile, the mother’s eyes were red from crying.

When the family heard two doctors say it would be difficult to treat, she grew even more fearful.

As she and her husband discussed whether to rush to the Provincial Children’s Hospital, the baby suddenly began convulsing. His eyes rolled upward and a harsh, raspy sound poured from his throat.

Seeing this, Zhou Can and Dr. Zhuang immediately tensed up.

The nurse near them turned pale, nervously watching the child.

“Doctor, please! I’m begging you, save my son! Please!”

The mother was frantic now—her bond with her child letting her feel his life slipping away moment by moment.

She dropped to her knees, pleading with Dr. Zhuang and Zhou Can.

The father followed suit, desperately asking the doctors for help.

In the face of illness and death, ordinary people are helpless. All you can do is put your faith in the doctors.

“Dr. Zhuang, should we send him to the endoscopy room for an urgent laryngoscopic removal?”

Even now, Zhou Can kept his cool.

The more urgent the crisis, the steadier you need to be.

“Let’s do it!”

Dr. Zhuang didn’t hesitate—in a life-or-death moment, all medical staff focus on saving the patient.

“Laryngoscopic removal is risky, as you can see. We’ll do our best, but there are no guarantees. If you agree, sign the consent form and pay the fee so we can get started right away.”

Zhou Can addressed the family firmly.

Dr. Zhuang was already contacting the endoscopy room.

“We agree! Please, just save my son!”

The mother nodded through her tears.

“Agree? What gives you the right to agree? Even the doctors said it’s risky—what if something happens to my grandson?”

The baby’s grandmother was every daughter-in-law’s nightmare.

Controlling, domineering, and impossible to reason with.

“Mom, look at Xiao Bao. If you keep refusing, it’ll be too late. If you want to yell at me, wait until the child’s out of danger, okay?”

“You jinx, you evil woman, can’t even watch a child! My son marrying you was eight lifetimes of bad luck…”

The grandmother cursed her daughter-in-law with the authority of an empress.

“If you can’t guarantee the child’s safety, I won’t consent to surgery. Don’t you have older doctors here?”

She eyed Zhou Can with total distrust.

Bringing Zhou Can in for consultation had only made her lump Dr. Zhuang in with him as another so-called ‘quack.’

“Ma’am, the child’s face is already purple. Wait another three minutes, and we might lose any chance of saving him. We’re doing everything we can, but if the family doesn’t trust us or won’t cooperate, we really are powerless.”

No matter how frustrated Zhou Can felt, he still treated her with politeness.

Cursing out family members was not something he dared to do.

“You… are you threatening us? I’ll report you right now, you know! My cousin’s husband is in government—one call and you’re out of a job!”

The grandmother was like an angry hornet, pointing her finger as she let loose a tirade.

She unleashed a stream of curses at Zhou Can.

The baby’s father stayed silent, apparently respectful—and a little afraid—of his mother.

“Xiao Bao, Xiao Bao…”

Suddenly, the mother cried out, her voice gut-wrenching.

Zhou Can noticed the baby’s hands and feet stiffening, another sign death was near.

Suffocating to death is far more agonizing than most people can imagine.

The baby’s face and skin were turning deep purple—

A clear sign of dangerously low oxygen.

The nurse had already filled out the consent form and handed it to Zhou Can.

“Here’s the consent. My advice? Sign it and pay, fast. Every second lost multiplies the risk of death.”

Dealing with a venomous grandmother left Zhou Can at his wits’ end.

“I’m the mother. Can I sign?”

“Of course. A child’s parents are their first guardians, it’s your right to decide.”

Zhou Can nodded.

Wiping her tears, the mother quickly signed and handed the form to the nurse.

“Doctor, nurse, please—we’re counting on you. If something happens, I’ll take responsibility. I won’t blame you for anything.”

The mother seemed like a different person.

She was no longer pleading or appeasing her mother-in-law but radiated newfound strength and resolve.

At that moment, Zhou Can felt a surge of admiration for her courage—the sort that’s born when a mother faces life and death for her child.

A woman may seem gentle, but for her child’s sake, she becomes strong.

With her son on the brink, and her mother-in-law still making a scene, the mother snapped.

She’d reached her breaking point—and refused to hold back any longer.

Zhou Can and the nurse immediately raced with the child to the endoscopy room, Dr. Zhuang following close behind.

“You can’t take my grandson! I won’t allow it! Nobody’s taking him!”

The grandmother jumped to block the doorway, her eyes fierce.

“You jinx! Evil woman! You have no right to decide for my grandson…” she shrieked again.

But her seemingly frail daughter-in-law rushed over, grabbed her hair, and yanked her aside.

“Doctor, nurse, save my son! If this old witch tries to stop you, I’ll risk everything!”

Hearing that, Zhou Can felt a deep sense of relief—finally, this poor woman stood up for herself.

It was long overdue.

…

Inside the endoscopy room, as the baby was hooked up to monitoring equipment, Zhou Can readied the laryngoscope and began extracting the blockage.

Dr. Zhuang stood by, lending a hand where he could.

Mostly he helped with coordination, ensuring preparations went smoothly.

Things like contacting the endoscopy room, setting everything up in advance.

Zhou Can focused all his attention, carefully feeding the laryngoscope deeper into the baby’s mouth.

“What’s the oxygen saturation?”

“Seventy-six!”

“Increase nasal oxygen flow!”

While operating the laryngoscope, Zhou Can continued issuing orders.

He’d developed this ability to oversee the entire procedure back in Cardiothoracic Surgery.

In big chest surgeries, the chaos made this look tame by comparison.

You needed to coordinate everything—rescue, surgery, medication, transfusions.

“I see the blockage—it’s right in the trachea!”

Time was slipping away. Zhou Can knew he had, at most, one or two minutes to save this child.

“Can you get it out?”

“I’m trying! Keep updating oxygen!”

“Seventy-four!”

Another drop—down two points.

Ordinarily, when oxygen levels fall below ninety-five percent, the body starts suffering.

He knew he was running out of time.

First attempt to pull out the peanut with the endoscope failed.

Second try—failed again.

Sweat broke out on Zhou Can’s forehead, but he dared not ask the nurse to wipe it. Every second counted for the baby’s life.

“Got it!”

After several failed attempts, he finally found the right angle and clamped the peanut securely.

[Grasping Technique experience +1. Completed high-difficulty grasp: +1000 EXP.]

Even with such a generous reward, he didn’t let himself get distracted.

He didn’t spare it a thought.

Holding his breath, his heart seemed to stand still as he worked.

He began to pull the peanut out—slow and steady.

“Snap!”

A small piece broke off.

He’d only extracted that tiny chunk.

Emergency procedures are always fraught with danger—anything can go wrong in a blink.

“What’s the oxygen now?”

“Sixty-eight!”

Zhou Can took a deep breath. At that moment, for him, there was only the peanut stuck in the trachea.

He took another shot at clamping the remaining piece.

Now with part of the peanut out, he had more options for gripping it.

His eyes stayed fixed on his target.

Because last time the peanut crumbled as he pulled, this time he chose a firmer point to grip.

[Life-saving Insight experience +1 +1…]

[Benevolent Heart experience +1.]

His medical skills were quietly leveling up.

Zhou Can ignored it all—every thought focused on that stubborn peanut, searching for the best spot to clamp.

When the baby’s oxygen plummeted to fifty-two, Zhou Can’s mind turned eerily calm.

Dr. Zhuang and the others watched nervously as he froze, the baby’s oxygen falling even more. They were almost frantic—but no one dared interrupt.

Everyone knew Zhou Can was fighting with everything he had.

Removing a peanut clamped tightly in the trachea by laryngoscope was always a risky endeavor.

They trusted Zhou Can wanted to save this child more than anyone.

Sweat kept pouring down his forehead.

Just as the baby’s oxygen crashed past fifty, under crushing pressure, Zhou Can finally spotted a grip point.

Without pause, he expertly maneuvered the endoscopic forceps into place.

[Grasping Technique experience +1. Bonus EXP+.]

[Congratulations! Your Grasping Technique is now Level 6. Current EXP: 1/.]

Normally, practice at home barely yielded 0.1 or 0.2 EXP per session, and chances to use it in surgery were rare.

That’s why leveling up was so slow.

Who would’ve thought, extracting a peanut today would net him so much experience.

He’d jumped straight to Level 6.

But this wasn’t the time to celebrate. Zhou Can had barely noticed—just felt extracting the peanut grew a bit easier.

He shifted his grasp, applying heavier force below and lighter above.

Then he pulled—so carefully, each millimeter seemed to take forever.

It was truly inch by inch, as slow as possible.

“It’s out! It’s out!”

Dr. Zhuang saw the peanut emerge from the baby’s throat and let out a celebratory cheer. The others joined in.

“Help me—get the peanut out of the mouth!”

Zhou Can called to the nurse.

The assisting nurse, in her early thirties, had steady hands and a calm demeanor throughout.

She plucked the peanut from the child’s mouth and dropped it in a tray.

“Oxygen is rising—fifty-two, fifty-four…”

Zhou Can let out a small breath of relief but didn’t dare let his guard down. He guided the scope again, checking for remaining fragments.

A quick scan showed a peanut fragment in the left bronchus—not large, but not to be ignored.

Left inside, it could easily trigger bronchitis or even pneumonia in a newborn.

He carefully tried to get a grip on the small piece.

This time, he clamped it on the first try—not too hard, not too light. Perfect.

[Grasping Technique experience +1.]

“Amazing work!”

Only then did Zhou Can realize how much his skill had improved. He had been too focused on saving the child to notice he’d reached Level 6.

“All right, the baby’s airway is clear. Oxygen?”

“Eighty-seven.”

“Let’s wait a bit—once he’s above ninety-five, we’ll call it safe. Ease off the oxygen.”

Zhou Can’s experience made all the difference.

Once the blockage is out, you can’t keep giving concentrated oxygen. The body forms dependencies too easily. Best to let the child breathe on his own for a real recovery.