Chapter 574: Can’t Last Three Seconds, I Haven’t Even Made My Move

Ma Xiaolan’s sharp words cut like a blade, sparking anger in anyone who heard them. But Jiang Wei’s attacks were even deadlier, striking right at the heart of her opponent’s weaknesses.

High education doesn’t always mean high ability.

Yet the more educated someone is, the more refined their speech often becomes. They zero in on the crux of the matter without resorting to crude insults.

Their words carry no profanity, yet they wound deeper than any curse.

Dr. Fu Chachun’s relationships in the department weren’t bad. He shouldn’t have been this isolated. But now, no doctor dared to speak up for him.

First off, Dr. Fu had crossed Zhou Can, one of the biggest names at Tuyu Hospital.

From the Director and Vice-Director down to department heads and several Chief Physicians, everyone held Zhou Can in high regard.

Stepping up to defend Dr. Fu now would mean making an enemy of Zhou Can.

Even Dr. Fu’s own apprentice wouldn’t dare take that risk.

Adults weigh the pros and cons before making such careful decisions.

Secondly, Dr. Fu had lost his temper earlier and spoken out of turn, belittling the nurses with an air of superiority. That put him at odds with every nurse in the room, stirring up a storm of resentment.

The few doctors who might have wanted to help Dr. Fu now kept their mouths shut.

“What more do you want from me?”

Dr. Fu, a man in his fifties with years of experience, harbored a deep-seated belief that doctors ranked above nurses. Bowing his head was already a huge concession in his mind. Yet these people wouldn’t let up. Did they want to push him over the edge?

“It’s fine. You’re a lofty doctor after all. No need to apologize to us again. We’ll just let the hospital sort this out.”

Jiang Wei’s confidence was unshakable.

With real talent, as long as you don’t court disaster, life can be incredibly satisfying.

In any workplace, you can stand tall.

Especially in a hospital, where top talent directly impacts massive profits. Let alone a minor figure like Dr. Fu—even someone as high up as the Director sometimes has to bend.

Tuyu Hospital isn’t any one person’s private fiefdom. It’s a collective of shared interests.

If Dr. Fu truly drove away top talents like Jiang Wei or Zhou Can, the hospital would never stand for it.

“Dr. Xu, look at them… they’re all so arrogant! Aren’t you going to do something about this?”

Unable to rein in the nurses himself, Dr. Fu turned to Dr. Xu for help.

Truth be told, nurses weren’t under his direct control anyway. They answered to the Nursing Department. Nurses and doctors operated in separate systems.

But the dynamics were complicated.

Doctors with authority could oversee nurses. Departments could manage them too. And of course, the Nursing Department had the final say.

Under normal circumstances, if he sought Dr. Xu’s help, she might have stepped in as a peacemaker. After all, they were both doctors in the Operating Room, colleagues on the same team.

But now, Dr. Fu had dug his own grave by opposing Zhou Can’s promotion to deputy team leader.

Did he even stop to think who stood behind Zhou Can?

Dr. Xu might not say it aloud, but deep down, she probably wanted to slap some sense into the clueless Dr. Fu.

“I really can’t intervene in this. Dr. Fu, there’s one thing you need to understand. Nurses and doctors aren’t in a subordinate relationship. We’re colleagues—close comrades even. We should respect each other instead of arrogantly assuming doctors are above nurses. That mindset is just wrong.”

Who was Dr. Xu, after all?

She used to be one of Tuyu’s top surgical chiefs and had even led an entire department.

After a past incident, she’d been lying low, learning from her mistakes.

Whenever something came up in the Emergency Department, Director Lou always consulted Dr. Xu first. That alone spoke volumes about her wisdom in handling people and situations.

Dr. Fu trying to use Dr. Xu as a pawn? Not a chance.

Not only did he fail to get her help, but he also got a lecture instead, leaving him even more humiliated.

A man in his fifties, and still, he had to endure this kind of societal beating.

Right now, Ma Xiaolan, Jiang Wei, and the others refused to back down. On one hand, they were backing their boss to establish his authority, letting everyone in the Operating Room and even the entire Emergency Department know that Zhou Can wasn’t someone to mess with. On the other, they aimed to solidify Zhou Can’s position as deputy team leader once and for all.

Dr. Fu had dared to bring up Zhou Can’s education, experience, and title to challenge him. Who knew what nastier tricks others with ambitions might pull?

This incident also showed just how fiercely Zhou Can’s team of nurses protected him.

Clearly, Zhou Can hadn’t been kind to them for nothing all this time.

“I want to see what kind of storm you can whip up over a careless remark. Go ahead, complain to whoever you want.” Dr. Fu couldn’t back down now. His face had turned ashen with rage.

His teeth ground together with a grating sound.

That fierce expression made him look like a desperate thug pushed to the brink, teetering on the edge of madness.

“Let’s go. We’re taking this to Chief Niu for judgment!”

Ma Xiaolan never shied away from a fight. When she got riled up, she was downright terrifying.

This time, all thirteen nurses in the Operating Room were unusually united.

Fuming, they stormed out of the conference room together.

Less than ten minutes later, while Dr. Xu was still giving a pep talk to the Operating Room doctors, Head Nurse Niu Lan arrived with two less experienced head nurses in tow. They’d even brought Director Lou along.

With cold expressions, they marched into the conference room.

“I hear Dr. Fu criticized our nurses during the meeting, saying they don’t even deserve to speak. How noble of you, Dr. Fu.”

Head Nurse Niu Lan was no mere young nurse. She was a Chief Nurse, the head of the Emergency Department Nurse Station, and also the overall Head Nurse. She wielded significant influence not just in the Emergency Department but throughout Tuyu Hospital. She was no pushover.

Zhou Can didn’t know exactly who backed her.

But even a fool could guess that Head Nurse Niu Lan’s unshakable position—never replaced by younger, prettier nurses—meant she had serious support.

“Dr. Fu, you’re a veteran. How can you still speak so carelessly? Nurses and doctors are equal employees of this hospital. Don’t you understand such a basic principle?”

Director Lou, upon arriving, still hoped to play the peacemaker.

As the department head, he had to find ways to maintain unity within the team.

Dr. Fu, after all, was a senior attending physician. His surgical skills were average, and his diagnostic abilities weren’t exceptional, but among attending physicians, he was far from the bottom.

No hospital, not even a powerhouse like Imperial Capital Renhe Hospital, could be filled with only top-tier doctors.

Most were of average skill. As long as they met the baseline, they were usable.

Dr. Fu had been roasting over this fire for so long that he was beyond exhausted. When Chief Niu barged in to confront him, he didn’t even dare let out a peep.

In front of ordinary young nurses, he could still throw his weight around.

But facing Head Nurse Niu Lan, even with triple the courage, he wouldn’t dare stand up to her. Many assume doctors hold such lofty status, but that depends on the situation.

Most are just regular doctors with no extraordinary standing.

When a head nurse got angry, she could scold a doctor like a misbehaving child.

Right now, Director Lou was clearly trying to smooth things over. Dr. Fu could hear the goodwill in his tone.

In that moment, he latched onto it like a drowning man grasping a lifeline.

“You’re right to criticize me. I was too angry earlier and spoke without thinking. I’m willing to sincerely apologize to them.”

Not long ago, Dr. Fu had been full of defiance.

Now, he didn’t dare keep up the tough act. He quickly adjusted his attitude and admitted his mistake.

He stood there with the humble posture of someone ready to take their punishment.

In those ten minutes after the thirteen nurses stormed out of the conference room, Dr. Fu must have thought long and hard. His head had cooled considerably.

“Chief Niu, he seems to show remorse now. Can we give him a chance?”

After publicly reprimanding Dr. Fu, Director Lou turned to Head Nurse Niu Lan.

“Since you’ve spoken up, out of respect if nothing else, our Nurse Station is willing to make some concessions. However, discriminating against nurses is utterly despicable and has deeply hurt our feelings. He must write a self-reflection, have it posted publicly in the department, have his monthly bonus deducted, and be disqualified from annual evaluations. Only then can we ensure such discriminatory behavior doesn’t happen again.”

These penalties were quite severe.

Writing a self-reflection wasn’t uncommon. Especially for new medical staff, making a mistake and writing one showed a willingness to repent. It was about attitude.

But having it posted publicly in the department? That stung the pride.

Beyond the damage to his image and dignity, losing a month’s bonus meant losing real money.

Disqualifying him from annual evaluations was even harsher. It essentially meant this year was a wash.

For someone of Dr. Fu’s age, every year counted more than the last.

After today’s fiasco, any hope of a promotion would face massive resistance. So from that angle, losing this year’s evaluation eligibility wasn’t the worst blow.

“Chief Niu, I was wrong to say things that hurt the nurses. I’m willing to write the self-reflection. But could you show me some leniency just this once? I’m prepared to use my entire month’s salary to compensate all the nurses in the Emergency Department Nurse Station.”

Dr. Fu showed some cunning and strategy.

After weighing his options, he offered a month’s salary to compensate all the nurses, hoping to earn their forgiveness.

After all, he wasn’t at retirement age yet. After this mess, it was certain the nurses would give him the cold shoulder at work.

“This isn’t about money. No nurse would trade their dignity for cash. If you agree to the conditions I laid out today and formally apologize to Ma Xiaolan in person, this matter can end here. If not, then this won’t be resolved quietly within our department.”

Head Nurse Niu Lan put pressure on Dr. Fu.

Settling this within the department was one thing. Escalating it hospital-wide was another.

Worse still would be taking it outside, involving the courts or the Health Administration Department. The consequences then would be even graver.

“I agree! I completely accept your conditions and will take responsibility for my wrong words.”

Sweat beaded on Dr. Fu’s forehead.

Just having the department head and nursing chief step in was already more than he could handle. If this escalated to the hospital’s administrative departments, even just the Medical Department, it would be enough to make him suffer for a long time.

Right now, all his pride and confidence had been ruthlessly crushed. All that remained was fear and regret.

After this harsh lesson from society, he’d surely learn to watch his words.

“Xiaolan, come over here!”

Ma Xiaolan still wore a look of barely contained anger.

“If it weren’t for Chief Niu’s sake, I wouldn’t let this slide so easily today.”

Her frustration hadn’t faded.

“Teacher Ma Xiaolan, I was wrong before. I shouldn’t have said anything discriminatory against nurses. Please forgive me. I’m sorry!”

“Wouldn’t it have been over sooner if you’d done this from the start? Why did we have to drag Director Lou and Chief Niu into this before you’d sincerely apologize? Fine, fine. Just follow Chief Niu’s conditions, and I forgive you.”

Ma Xiaolan knew when to stop pushing.

With a magnanimous wave of her hand, she signaled she wouldn’t hold a grudge.

Dr. Fu let out a long sigh of relief, as if he’d been granted a reprieve.

Only after everyone left did Dr. Fu slump into a chair in the conference room, utterly spent.

He began replaying the entire ordeal in his mind.

It hadn’t started as a big deal. He’d simply opposed the department’s decision to promote Zhou Can to deputy team leader of the Operating Room instead of choosing him, a veteran.

But because of one wrong word, he nearly lost his livelihood.

Looking back, beyond the anger, he felt a deep sense of dread.

“Damn it, Zhou Can is a monster you can’t afford to cross. Just the three nurses by his side almost cost me my job. And now, after all this mess, I’m not only humiliated, I’ve lost my evaluation eligibility, this month’s bonus, and pretty much any future prospects. Those nurses are terrifying. They’ve completely cut off my chance to compete with Zhou Can for deputy team leader. Even more brilliant, they’ve made an example out of me to warn others against openly opposing Zhou Can.”

Snapping back to reality, Dr. Fu couldn’t help but curse under his breath.

He should actually feel lucky.

Because Zhou Can himself hadn’t even stepped in. If he had, Dr. Fu’s fate might have been far worse.

People, after all, fear nothing more than failing to recognize their own place.

No one should think too highly of themselves, nor should they underestimate others.

The next day, Dr. Fu’s overnight-written self-reflection, over five hundred words long, was posted publicly within the Emergency Department.

Some of the sharper minds saw the deeper implications and grew even more wary of Zhou Can.

Even a few old-timers like Dr. Fu, who hadn’t taken Zhou Can seriously before, now adjusted their attitudes.

Zhou Can, for his part, didn’t dwell on this minor incident. He went about his work as usual.

In his mind, medical skill was always the core of his strength.

Yet as he moved through the Emergency Department, he keenly noticed something odd. Some senior colleagues who rarely greeted him before now went out of their way to smile or nod in acknowledgment.

This sudden warmth caught him off guard.

Dr. Fu took a day off, likely to hide out at home and recover. After all, the self-reflection was to be displayed for just one day. This was a small favor Director Lou had managed to secure for him.

It could be seen as a form of protection.

A day passed quickly, and Zhou Can’s position as deputy team leader was all but secured.

He grew noticeably more attentive and fond of the three nurses under him.

At noon, he ordered takeout on his dime—dishes like frog meat, shrimp, and pan-fried eggs, the kind of treats they rarely got to enjoy.

Though he didn’t say why he’d splurged on such a good meal, the nurses knew full well.

They laughed and joked as they dug in, their spirits high.