Chapter 73: High Stakes in the Emergency Room

So, being a doctor is definitely a high-risk profession—far from the glamorous image outsiders have.

Sure, vice-chiefs and higher earn a decent salary, but residents and interns really don’t make much.

Even attendings aren’t raking in huge sums.

However, since doctors hold the power to prescribe, attendings can pocket a bit of extra income.

Also, once you hit attending level, you sometimes pick up side gigs at small hospitals. At Tuyu Hospital, attendings often work at rural clinics as experts to earn extra cash.

Even at some county-level tertiary hospitals, they’re called in as renowned specialists.

That said, a doctor’s title at Tuyu carries a lot of weight.

Of course, their medical skills far surpass those in smaller hospitals.

Dr. Fu’s gaze swept over the key contributor to this challenging surgery, a broad smile lighting up his face.

Dr. Fu grinned, “Dr. Zhou, be honest—how many skills do you still have? Suturing, injections, pathology diagnosis, all standard. But to be proficient in something as advanced as the grasping technique? Your surprises today just keep coming!”

Dr. Fu was truly amazed.

He never imagined a resident could be so exceptional.

This kid is like a modern-day Monkey King—able to stir up heaven and ruffle the underworld.

From now on, the emergency OR has gained a valuable new asset.

“Honestly, I only know these few techniques,” Zhou Can replied with a modest smile.

You have to keep some tricks in reserve.

He promised he’d continue to impress Dr. Fu.

“Is that really all? I was even thinking of talking to Dr. Xu about letting you join me in surgeries from now on.”

Who wouldn’t want such a capable doctor on their team?

Having Zhou Can assist not only eases the surgical workload but also helps with diagnoses, cutting down on mistakes.

“As long as you don’t mind a little extra help, I can easily work overtime to learn from you.”

Although Zhou Can knew Dr. Fu was joking, he worried that Dr. Fu might actually mention him to Dr. Xu.

Working with Dr. Xu would certainly offer a brighter future.

When it came to mentorship, the only master Zhou Can truly respected was Dr. Xu.

Dr. Fu, clearly delighted, declared, “As long as I’m on duty, you can always help out in the OR.”

He made it clear then and there, giving Zhou Can complete freedom.

He could join surgeries and leave whenever he wished.

Dr. Lu, standing nearby, couldn’t hide his sour expression.

He had long known that Zhou Can, once he started performing, would immediately win high praise from senior doctors.

Now that things were set in stone, there was nothing he could do to slow Zhou Can down.

All he could do was grumble from the sidelines.

Before long, the next surgical patient was wheeled into the OR.

After earning Dr. Fu’s trust and recognition, Zhou Can found new opportunities coming his way.

He soon secured a chance to practice debridement and suturing.

He even got the opportunity to perform a vascular anastomosis on a tiny blood vessel.

Dr. Fu’s cautious approach stemmed from underestimating his true abilities.

Under Dr. Xu’s guidance, Zhou Can had already linked several blood vessels.

He’d even managed to join nerves successfully.

Finally, having earned the hard-fought opportunity for vascular anastomosis, Zhou Can dared not make a single mistake.

With all his effort, the vascular anastomosis was a resounding success.

Dr. Fu nodded approvingly, clearly impressed.

He now saw Zhou Can’s surgical skills in a whole new light. In the future, routine vascular anastomoses would likely be entrusted to him.

……

They worked steadily until around 10 PM, and by then few patients required surgery.

Night shifts involve far fewer operations than day shifts.

However, it’s said that night shifts tend to get critically ill emergency cases,

like car accident victims or those injured in brawls.

Overall, tonight was unusually calm; no such urgent cases arrived in the ER.

“Dr. Fu, I have an early shift tomorrow and there are no more surgeries tonight. May I clock out?”

“Alright, head home and be safe on the way!”

Dr. Fu agreed readily.

Zhou Can was already working overtime out of a desire to learn.

He could leave whenever he wished.

After exiting the OR, he passed the nurses’ station when a young, short-haired nurse called out to him.

“Hey, Dr. Zhou, wait up!”

Behind the station, two night-shift nurses sat together.

“Are you telling me to insert a catheter for a patient at this hour?”

Zhou Can leaned over the counter with a laugh as he asked.

One nurse chuckled, “Dr. Zhou, you’re so eager. Next time we need someone to insert a catheter, we’ll definitely call on you. Ms. Su asked us to pass this along to you.”

With that, the nurse retrieved a finely crafted carrying bag from under the table and handed it to him.

A message from a Ms. Su?

Zhou Can quickly ran through his mind—he couldn’t recall any female friend with the surname Su.

These days, scams were everywhere.

Fraud tactics were constantly evolving.

He grew cautious and examined the contents of the bag.

To his surprise, it was a beautifully packaged record.

It even bore a signature.

Su Qianqian.

“So it’s from her!”

Only then did Zhou Can fully understand.

She was truly thoughtful, sending him a box of records.

“Wow, did my girlfriend send this?”

The two nurses gossiped excitedly.

“I’d love to have such an amazing girlfriend, but apparently she isn’t interested!” Zhou Can joked as he added, “I’m off, goodbye!”

With the bag in hand, Zhou Can quickly left.

Back at the dorm, Jin Mingxi was busy practicing his knot-tying technique.

He was tying knots in a block of tofu.

A basin nearby held several pieces of crumbled tofu.

The piece he was working on was already riddled with holes.

“You’re back!”

Jin Mingxi looked up at him.

“Yeah!”

Zhou Can joined him and inspected the knot in the tofu with a smile, “Tying knots in tofu so it stays intact—that’s said to be a vice-chief-level skill.”

Jin Mingxi grimaced, “You bet! After hours of practice, I’ve ruined a whole basin of tofu and my knot-tying hasn’t improved at all! Sigh—I’d be thrilled just to reach attending level!”

Despite his grumbles, it was clear that Jin Mingxi’s knot-tying skills were already impressive.

He was at least an average resident, maybe even an excellent one.

“Aren’t you on the verge of being promoted to deputy senior at the county hospital? Your knot-tying should at least be at attending level by now!”

“Ah, you know how it is—the promotion standards at local hospitals are pretty watered down. In our small county, a chief physician’s level might not even match an attending at Tuyu Hospital.”

That was a harsh truth.

At a county hospital, residents who worked four years could take the attending exam and be automatically promoted upon passing.

But at a provincial tertiary hospital like Tuyu, the competition was fierce.

Even if a resident passed the exam, they’d still have to wait for an opportunity.

Because each department only had a limited number of attending positions, those with superior skills were prioritized.

For those in between, they either waited in line or were transferred to lower-tier hospitals.

Yet, hardly any doctor willingly left Tuyu Hospital.

They’d rather wait in line for a chance.

Because once you leave, getting back in is nearly impossible.

When it came to career growth, staying at Tuyu Hospital offered far more prospects.

After a short chat, Zhou Can left Jin Mingxi to his knot-tying practice.

After a shower, he lay in bed planning to finish his surgical notes, then read a bit before sleeping.

After a full day of surgeries, balancing work and rest was crucial.

His eyes wandered to the record box from Su Qianqian.

Tang Ling had mentioned that Su Qianqian’s songs were incredibly soothing.

Curiosity got the better of him, so he decided to give it a listen.

After all, it was a record personally sent by a celebrity.

Not to mention, her autograph alone was worth quite a bit.

When he opened the record case, a slip of paper fell out.

The elegant handwriting was graceful and neat—a true delight to behold.