Chapter 290: Critical Rescue: The Battle for a Pregnant Woman’s Life

After the critically ill pregnant woman was brought in, Du Leng noticed the media was interviewing others. Thinking it was a chance to get his face out there, he moved in to join the consultation.

Plus, with no patients lined up at his desk, he figured he might as well get involved.

At first, there wasn’t anything wrong with that.

But after jumping in, he quickly realized—just like Gao Jian—he couldn’t get a word in.

Forget offering any constructive advice. That was out of the question.

It wasn’t just him. Even a seasoned veteran like Deputy Director Shi had to squeeze in a few comments.

If you don’t have real clinical experience, all the theory you’ve learned doesn’t do much good.

Learning alone isn’t enough. You have to be able to apply what you know for it to matter.

Looking through history, how many bookworms have actually thrived?

Du Leng wasn’t exactly a bookworm himself. His pride just ran a bit high—always dreaming big, aiming for the skies. That attitude is exactly what landed him in this awkward spot. If you put it simply, his ambition is bigger than his actual skills.

In street terms, it’s like: he can’t make serious money, doesn’t care about the small stuff, is always dissatisfied, and in the end, he’s just average.

He participated in the pregnant woman’s consultation because he wanted to shine in front of the cameras. Getting some recognition at Tuyu Hospital would look good. It’d even help his career.

With his background, if he genuinely had the skill, Tuyu Hospital would love to put him on a pedestal as a star doctor.

Du Leng understood this very well.

But right now, the one Tuyu Hospital is supporting is Zhou Can. Zhou Can is getting better treatment by the day. Du Leng doesn’t say anything, but he’s crystal clear on what’s happening.

To say he doesn’t feel urgency would be a lie.

Watching Zhou Can pull off another big win, Du Leng felt a blend of jealousy and anxiety. Rattled, he made a clumsy move—publicly questioning Director Zhang’s medical decisions in front of everyone.

Maybe he thought he was doubting Zhou Can’s diagnosis, but in reality, grilling Director Zhang’s judgment in front of the reporters, family, patients, and two hospitals’ staff was reckless.

That was just asking for trouble.

Director Zhang Bihua isn’t just anybody—she’s head of Obstetrics at Tuyu Main Hospital, both department chief and top expert. She’s an authority in her field.

Forget Du Leng—even Director Zhu has to be respectful when talking to Director Zhang.

No exaggeration—when you’re the head of a major department, you carry real weight.

Just look at how powerful Director Xie of Surgery is.

He’s confronted Zhou Can several times—how did that work out for him?

The hospital execs might warn Director Xie, tell him to knock it off, but they’ve never actually punished him or said anything harsh.

Now Du Leng, a newcomer, swaggering with his overseas PhD, dares to question Director Zhang Bihua’s diagnosis in public.

If that’s not self-destructive, what is?

Usually, Director Zhang talks to Du Leng with a faint smile. But now, she smiled as always, except her eyes had turned icy cold, her brows carrying a sharp, intimidating pressure.

“Dr. Du, you think my diagnosis—and Dr. Zhou Can’s—was too hasty? Then let me ask you: can you give a clear diagnosis for this pregnant woman’s condition?”

“I… I need time! I need to run more tests! I’m sure if we do all the necessary examinations, our diagnosis would be much more accurate.”

Sweat collecting on his brow, Du Leng struggled to answer Director Zhang’s questioning.

“Saying you need time is fine. But have you considered that this patient is critically ill? Every second counts. If you go through stacks of unnecessary or unimportant tests, you might miss the best window to save her—or even face the tragedy we all fear.”

Director Zhang Bihua certainly knew how to handle things.

Even though she was angry, she didn’t explode at Du Leng or use stark terms like ‘death’ when discussing possible outcomes.

“Dr. Du, you have a doctorate from a top university abroad. I don’t need to teach you the basics. But let me give you some advice—medicine isn’t about writing papers. Save the fancy things for where they’re needed. When it’s about saving a life, every second matters. Avoid dogma and formalities. Don’t risk your patient’s life for the sake of appearances. Right now this pregnant woman is in critical danger. Use the quickest, simplest tests to find the cause and act fast with the right treatment. That’s the proper way to rescue someone.”

“From what I see, you still haven’t learned your lesson from yesterday. I’ll leave it at that. I hope you really take it to heart—always respect life and put patients first.”

Experience really does come with age.

Director Zhang’s pointed lesson left Du Leng feeling thoroughly exposed.

At the same time, she won a round of praise from everyone nearby.

While she was criticizing Du Leng, the patient had already been taken to the resuscitation room to have a catheter inserted and urine samples collected for testing.

If he thought he could challenge Director Zhang’s position and authority, he was just dreaming.

No one paid any attention to his doubts.

Du Leng’s face went from red to white, then tinged green.

Yesterday, maybe it was the family that made him look bad. But screwing up in public today was all on him.

Sometimes, even the smartest people make dumb moves.

That’s a classic example of being too clever for your own good.

“I’ll take your advice to heart, reflect deeply, and strive to do better next time.”

Du Leng finished with a polite cliché and trudged back to his desk, defeated.

Right now, he felt like he could die from embarrassment.

With everyone staring and reporters snapping photos, he felt ashamed, humiliated, and angry all at once.

It wasn’t long before bad news came from the resuscitation room.

“Section Chief Tang, things aren’t good. That pregnant woman’s blood pressure dropped suddenly, she’s having trouble breathing, and now she’s unconscious.”

Hearing this, Section Chief Tang nearly collapsed.

It was exactly what he feared.

Now the entire process was being documented by the media, with plenty of family members taking photos, too.

If something really happened, what would they do?

Organizing this expert consultation was a double-edged sword—either you succeed, or you go down with it.

Yesterday, it was almost a tragedy; now, another crisis was unfolding.

Section Chief Tang felt the pressure of being in charge of publicity and outreach.

“Director Zhang, you’re the expert here. Please, take your team and see what you can do.”

All Section Chief Tang could do was turn to Director Zhang Bihua for help.

To be fair, Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital wasn’t weak. They had their own chief physician on duty in the resuscitation room. They wouldn’t have called Section Chief Tang unless they were truly desperate.

“Crisis Response Team, follow me to the resuscitation room!”

Director Zhang had no choice but to step up herself.

No plan ever keeps up with reality.

Yesterday, she’d hoped the crisis response team and Xinxiang’s medical staff could handle any emergencies together.

But now, with her being the admitting doctor and the patient being pregnant, she couldn’t refuse.

“Push the lab for the test results. Without knowing the cause of illness, it’s impossible to rescue the patient effectively.”

Director Zhang Bihua knew just how dire things were.

Only by finding the cause could they act decisively.

Just then, Section Chief Tang’s phone rang again.

“This is Tang Jiuyin. Go ahead!”

Section Chief Tang, frazzled and exhausted, couldn’t even feign patience.

But news turned around in a flash. “Great, thank you so much! That’s perfect timing for the test results.” After hanging up, Section Chief Tang called out to Director Zhang, “Director Zhang, we have the results—the blood has positive free fat droplets. The urine has positive fat droplets, too!”

Getting these critical lab results right now was a massive boost for Director Zhang, Zhou Can, and everyone else.

“The likelihood of fat embolism is extremely high. It’s a dangerous condition with a high mortality rate. Let’s hope we’re not too late.” Director Zhang and Zhou Can rushed to the resuscitation room and began multiple rescue procedures.

Because it’s hard to pinpoint where the embolism was, there isn’t a specific treatment for this.

Basically, it’s managed in three main ways—respiratory support, usually starting with noninvasive ventilators. For severe or unique cases, invasive ventilators may be needed.

Next is brain function protection and monitoring, including intracranial pressure monitoring and preventing brain swelling.

Finally, circulatory support—mainly by monitoring central venous pressure and using a pulmonary artery catheter for hemodynamics. Thanks to the timely diagnosis, this patient was still in the early stages. Zhou Can and Director Zhang worked together, provided fluid resuscitation and vasoactive drugs, and helped her through a critical life-or-death moment.

…

After more than three hours, following a series of rescue efforts, the pregnant woman’s vital signs finally stabilized.

“Director Shi, Zhou Can, I’ll leave things here in your hands.”

Director Zhang looked exhausted as she spoke to the two team leads.

The whole rescue had been incredibly risky. Other nurses and doctors were merely busy, but Director Zhang, Deputy Director Shi, and Zhou Can bore the real pressure.

Luckily Zhou Can was skilled at emergency care. Whether it was intubating, putting the patient on a ventilator, or getting central venous pressure monitoring going—it was all Zhou Can’s doing.

He also played a big part in planning other critical interventions.

Meanwhile, Deputy Director Shi, though nominally head of the crisis team, mostly watched from the sidelines.

“Don’t worry, we’ll watch her closely. If anything comes up that we can’t handle, we’ll call you right away.” Deputy Director Shi assured her.

After Director Zhang publicly reprimanded Du Leng, her authority had grown immensely—enough to leave even Deputy Director Shi wary.

It was easy to see Deputy Director Shi now regarded Director Zhang with deep respect.

But Zhou Can? He didn’t care much about that change.

Maybe it was because he was already close to Director Zhang.

In his eyes, Du Leng asked for his scolding.

You really couldn’t blame Director Zhang for being strict.

“The patient’s stable now. Go get something to eat. We’re all human—doctors and nurses aren’t made of steel, so take care of yourselves too.”

Tough as she was, Director Zhang still cared about her team’s wellbeing.

“I’ve already had the cafeteria prepare hot meals. I’ll arrange for someone to bring it over. Honestly, you all did incredible work today. If it weren’t for everyone’s efforts, this pregnant woman might not have made it.”

Section Chief Tang was visibly relieved to see her pull through.

During the rescue, the most stressed out weren’t Director Zhang or Zhou Can, but Section Chief Tang and Director Tian.

Director Tian didn’t show up in person, but he called every fifteen minutes for updates—that alone proved how anxious he was.

Now that the worst was over, everyone could finally breathe easy.

Every doctor and nurse involved was a hero.

They definitely deserved a good reward.

No sooner had Director Zhang stepped out than several reporters rushed over.

“Director Zhang, how’s the pregnant woman doing now?” They seemed even more invested than the family, which was hard not to find amusing.

You had to admit—they were seriously dedicated.

They probably had their photos and material ready, just waiting for the outcome to finish their stories.

“Thank you for your concern. Thanks to the combined efforts of Tuyu Hospital and Xinxiang Maternity and Child Hospital, the patient is out of danger for now. Director Zhang hasn’t even eaten yet—please give her some space.”

Section Chief Tang stepped in to intercept the press.

“Why haven’t the other medical staff come out yet?”

Mu Qing, the female reporter, was looking for Zhou Can.

With Zhou Can absent, she assumed there was still something happening inside.

Maybe the patient was still being resuscitated.

After all, as the publicity guy, Section Chief Tang’s words couldn’t be taken too seriously.

“Some of our staff are still inside, monitoring mother and child. Please don’t interfere with their work—they’ve gone above and beyond.”

But these journalists weren’t so easy to dismiss.

They stuck around the entrance, unwilling to leave.

Meanwhile, the woman’s family was ecstatic to hear she’d made it.

A little while later, the hospital cafeteria sent over food.

The staff inside the resuscitation room came out in shifts to eat.

Now that the woman’s vital signs were stable, after a while of observation, she could be moved to a regular ward if all went well.

Most patients with fat embolism syndrome recover well with proper treatment.

As long as her condition didn’t get worse, her life should be safe.

Chances were, after three or four days in the resuscitation room, she could come off the ventilator.

All things considered, fat embolism syndrome isn’t nearly as severe as amniotic fluid embolism.

But even now, there were challenges. She fractured her femoral head in the fall, and no doctor would risk surgery just yet.

If they waited until after she gave birth, the fracture would have already healed—possibly incorrectly or deformed.

Those were serious problems to tackle.

Zhou Can studied the woman’s femoral head X-ray with care.

The fracture was severe. Without surgery, their only option was external fixation to promote healing.

But the hip joint is one of the most complex in the body.

Even with surgery, sometimes you can’t fix it—you end up needing to replace the whole joint.

Trying to stabilize it externally, without surgery, is a true test of the doctor’s skill.

Right now, Zhou Can’s external fixation technique was level three—intermediate for a resident.

That was only because after finishing his training in Orthopedics, he’d gotten a few chances during surgeries to build up his experience.

Otherwise, he’d still be at junior resident level.

“Dr. Zhou, we’ve finished eating. You and Ji You should get your meal now!”

Deputy Director Shi and the rest of the medical staff returned from their break.

It was Zhou Can and nurse Ji You’s turn to eat.

Ji You had worked in the Critical Care Department before, so she was great with emergency support. She’d done an excellent job during today’s rescue—skilled, gentle, and never one to make excuses.

Competent and caring nurses like her were rare. Zhou Can was especially pleased with her.

Still, they’d only joined this newly formed Crisis Response Team yesterday, so they weren’t really close yet.

“Come on, Dr. Zhou! If you want to study the fracture case, you can do it after you eat. Working nonstop is bad for your health!”

Ji You grinned, calling out to Zhou Can.

“Alright, let’s get some food!”

Zhou Can actually enjoyed being cared for like this.

He set down the X-ray film.

“Director Shi, I’ll leave her in your care for now. Watch her central venous pressure and blood oxygen carefully. If anything happens, call me—don’t worry about my meal!”

Even as he left, Zhou Can couldn’t fully relax.

All types of vascular embolisms can change dramatically in a heartbeat.

Sometimes, everything shifts in an instant.

Just like on the battlefield: calm one day, a sudden battle the next—sometimes, the winning side can collapse in a moment.

This patient was out of immediate danger for now, but setbacks were still possible.

Deputy Director Shi really couldn’t compare with Zhou Can when it came to rescue skills.

He was well aware of it himself.

“Don’t worry, I’m watching her closely! Go eat!”

Deputy Director Shi hurried him along.

As Zhou Can and Ji You left the resuscitation room, the journalist Mu Qing, who’d been waiting at the door, headed straight for them.

Other people might not know how good Zhou Can was or how much authority he held, but Mu Qing understood perfectly.

If she wanted details about the patient’s condition, Director Zhang wouldn’t agree to an interview, and asking other staff wouldn’t be reliable. So while the other journalists had left, she stayed.

Zhou Can was her target.

And seeing that all the other staff had left except for Zhou Can confirmed her guess.

“Hey, Dr. Zhou! Can I ask you about the pregnant patient?”

Mu Qing waved and called out to Zhou Can, wearing a warm smile.