Chapter 500: The Stakes of Success: A Live-Streamed Operation

“Director Xue, Zhou Can, it’s precisely because this is such a crucial opportunity for our hospital’s cardiothoracic surgery department that I hope both of you give it everything you’ve got. When performing the intervention, don’t stress yourselves out. Just do your best. The most important thing is to approach it with a calm and steady mind.”

Deputy Director Ye’s meaning couldn’t be any clearer.

This surgery has to go ahead. Giving up is not an option.

“I’m good! The key is Zhou Can, after all, he’s the one holding the scalpel.”

Director Xueyan replied without hesitation.

“I always give my best in every surgery, but let’s keep expectations reasonable, Director Ye. Two of the top hospitals in cardiothoracic surgery have already failed with this case. It’s better not to set the bar too high.”

For Zhou Can, taking the lead on this operation wasn’t a big deal.

Failure never scared him.

But it’d be unrealistic to guarantee definite success.

“If you can pull off this operation, the hospital will throw its full support behind you and pour resources into your development. You’ll immediately be on track to become a renowned doctor.”

Deputy Director Ye paused after speaking.

“This decision was made after I discussed it with several hospital leaders before coming here. Tuyu Hospital desperately needs capable young doctors and nurses to carry more weight, and clinical doctors are the true core of the team. This time, we’re preparing to invest heavily in ten up-and-coming medical talents, each one handpicked. Your performance in surgery, diagnosis and medical ethics has been top-notch, and your personal CMI score is excellent—right at the threshold for a renowned doctor. The only slight shortcoming is your achievements in academics, research, and education—they need improvement.”

Becoming a renowned doctor takes comprehensive strength from all angles.

Having surgical skill alone just doesn’t cut it.

From what Deputy Director Ye was saying, as long as Zhou Can pulled off this operation, Tuyu would be willing to back him all the way.

They were already helping him improve his qualifications.

That would take time—and he’d still need to put in the effort himself.

Academic and research achievements require projects, massive amounts of experimental data, and even one or more research teams working together.

Right now, all of that was far beyond Zhou Can’s reach.

But if the hospital invested big in him, the outcome would be totally different.

It would still require huge personal effort, but in many areas, he’d be able to overtake others by taking shortcuts—almost like having a cheat code.

At least when it came to reaching ordinary achievements in academia and research, it could be thirty percent effort and seventy percent support.

But achieving national-level academic or research honors would be exponentially harder. That arena leaves little room for shortcuts. To win top awards like the Distinguished Young Scholar title or Yangtze River Scholar, or to become an academician, there are too many eyes watching. You need real, overwhelming ability.

“Thank you, Director Ye, and all the hospital leadership for cultivating me. I’ll give everything I’ve got and do my absolute best with this surgery.”

Zhou Can immediately gave the answer everyone expected.

Such a golden opportunity—of course he’d take it. He’d be crazy not to.

Deputy Director Ye paused, suddenly wondering if the rewards he promised were a bit too generous.

This kid was even sharper than he’d imagined!

Once everything was settled, he had the hospital photographer enter the interventional suite to record the operation.

If the patient wanted a livestream, so be it.

Inside the interventional operating room, Zhou Can stood in the main position. Director Xueyan and two assisting nurses were in place as well.

“Doctor, can I livestream the surgery?”

The patient had come for treatment with a mission in mind.

Not only were all medical expenses covered by the Third Hospital, but once it was done, there was a handsome ‘service fee’ waiting.

The promotional video he posted ahead of time, driven by his huge fanbase and heavy paid promotion from the Third Hospital, climbed up the trending charts with ease.

That pinned video had already received over 100,000 likes, more than seven thousand comments, and over four thousand shares.

And those numbers were still going up fast.

Open the video and you could see new comments popping up every second.

“The surgery was supposed to start at 7 PM and it’s already 8 PM. What’s the holdup?”

“Did Brother Wang have his phone confiscated or something?”

“Tuyu Hospital must be afraid of messing up, otherwise why not let Brother Wang livestream?”

“Just recently, that Japanese heart surgeon at the Third Hospital failed twice on-air. The results were ugly. Of course Tuyu’s doctors learned their lesson!”

……

Almost every refresh, it was the same—comments blasting Tuyu Hospital for blocking the livestream.

With help from paid commenters, the rhythm of the comment section kept coming in waves.

It’s just human nature—nobody likes to see others do better than themselves.

Sometimes even your own parents feel a twinge when they see you outdoing them—a little disappointment, even some jealousy.

All that talk about wanting your kids to succeed is really just about them hoping you’ll help grow the family’s influence.

The Third Hospital’s last attempt to treat this patient was a disaster. Their highly-paid Japanese surgeon nearly ruined their reputation.

It was almost painful to watch.

And lately, with the Third Hospital and Tuyu Hospital battling for dominance—after poaching over twenty core staff from Tuyu’s department—they still failed to topple Tuyu’s cardiothoracic surgery team. Instead, Tuyu rose even higher.

These days, things weren’t looking good for the Third Hospital.

All those poached experts and chief nurses—did anyone think it was free to keep them on payroll?

The monthly salaries alone were a staggering amount.

But their outpatient and emergency numbers kept falling. With that many extra mouths to feed, and construction expanding the hospital, all that glitz and glamour was just a front for deep trouble.

A thousand-mile dike can collapse from just one ant hole.

One or two more setbacks, and the Third Hospital could go under.

That Japanese heart surgeon’s failed livestreamed surgery last time was a heavy blow.

Who knows what the Third Hospital’s executives are thinking?

Just look at them now, hiring a streamer to trash Tuyu’s department. Clearly, it’s about dragging others down to lift themselves up. There are only so many patients for heart surgery in the province. If Tuyu’s reputation tanks, their patient numbers will drop.

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Some of those patients Tuyu loses will inevitably shift over to the Third Hospital.

The Third Hospital pounced the moment Tuyu Hospital’s Director Hu Kan passed away and their department weakened. They brought in a Japanese heart surgeon and the latest Japanese surgical equipment to rise quickly.

In this industry, that’s the definition of a nouveau riche.

That’s not an insult.

A department built by poaching a whole team of Japanese heart specialists and buying up top-shelf equipment—like a tree that grew too fast. The roots aren’t deep.

Tuyu Hospital reached today’s level through generations of steady effort and accumulation.

That kind of legacy can’t be matched by the Third Hospital’s sudden upstart power.

Of course, if Tuyu’s department hadn’t hung on through early rounds of competition, things would’ve turned out very differently.

A flood of lost patients would’ve instantly reduced Tuyu’s department to a third-rate unit.

Whole teams of doctors and nurses would’ve started scouting new jobs.

The Third Hospital, riding high on victory and booming business, would be ready to absorb everyone Tuyu lost—completing the process of the snake swallowing the elephant.

But man proposes, fate disposes.

Because of Zhou Can’s tireless support, Tuyu’s cardiothoracic department struggled through endless challenges and made it out the other side.

When two rivals battle, if one survives, the other is sure to suffer a major defeat.

Right now, the Third Hospital was the one on the losing end.

They were desperate for a win.

A mistake by Tuyu during this livestreamed surgery was exactly the victory they were craving.

“We’ve reached an agreement with hospital leadership—you can livestream, but there’s one condition. Our hospital will also record video, which may be used later for promotion. If we promote it, we’ll blur your face for privacy. If you agree, please sign this agreement.”

The person who came in to talk with the patient was one of Deputy Director Ye’s staffers.

The agreement was probably drafted just minutes earlier.

They brought it right into the operating room so the patient could sign off.

All to avoid future disputes.

Betting the patient wouldn’t say no.

Both sides were exchanging benefits—nobody would say it out loud, but both knew the unspoken terms.

After reviewing the agreement and finding nothing wrong, the patient signed.

Without it, there’d be no livestream.

It was a straightforward exchange.

With the signature down, the patient eagerly opened his phone and started broadcasting.

“Everyone, sorry for the wait—I was negotiating with Tuyu Hospital about the livestream. It took some effort, but we got official approval so you can watch the entire operation. I’ll be streaming live during my procedure. Please show your support for Brother Wang!”

Calling fans ‘family’ during these streams? That’s just part of the act.

If you really believe a streamer sees you as family, you’re way too naive.

What they want is sales, tips, all kinds of support.

“It’s starting! It’s starting!”

“Great! Finally going live. I thought we’d miss out today!”

“Let’s go!”

A few diehard fans instantly messaged all the group chats and shared the stream link around.

This patient had an incredibly dedicated fanbase—it took only moments for live viewers to pass a thousand, and the number was still climbing fast.

A livestreamed surgery is a novelty in itself.

People are naturally curious. Unless they’re swamped, most are happy to tune in for something this unusual.

That’s why viewer retention was so high.

At this rate, this stream could easily break records.

Getting over 100,000 viewers wouldn’t be surprising at all.

Inside an office at the Third Hospital, Vice Director Zhang was glued to the screen. He’d stayed late just to watch.

Responsible for the hospital’s operations, he couldn’t afford to see a single penny spent go to waste.

Otherwise, there’d be no way to justify things to the hospital.

Now, seeing ‘Brother Wang’ finally start streaming, Vice Director Zhang was almost giddy.

“Today is my time to shine! Tuyu Hospital’s reputation is about to implode right on air. Their entire department will be ruined.” The Third Hospital’s heart surgery department needed a win badly.

Vice Director Zhang quickly notified all the other key leaders to watch together.

Back in the interventional operating room, everything was ready. Zhou Can began by puncturing the patient’s femoral artery and threading in the ultra-thin guidewire.

For heart vascular surgeries, the femoral artery is usually the first-choice access point.

With Zhou Can’s wealth of experience, getting from the femoral artery to the aortic trunk was second nature.

The livestream camera focused tightly on him, as well as the monitor in front.

In just 37 seconds, Zhou Can expertly guided the wire straight to the blockage in the first coronary artery.

This particular vessel was crucial; opening it would immediately restore over seventy percent of blood flow to the patient’s heart.

Viewer numbers for the stream soared past fifty thousand and kept rising.

On platforms like Douyin, the most important factor for livestream recommendations is reducing drop-off—especially fans who have activated badges; their loyalty carries extra weight.

When the patient saw that viewership pass fifty thousand, he was grinning from ear to ear.

This was his best result since he started streaming.

Usually, he barely topped 10,000 live viewers; even on a great day, it might hit thirty thousand, but would drop off fast.

Skill shows itself even in streaming—results never lie.

“Wow, this young doctor’s incredible—it took just 37 seconds from puncture to the blocked spot. That’s definitely chief surgeon level.”

“Hah, your average chief surgeon couldn’t pull that off!”

“Seems like Tuyu’s reputation is deserved—plenty of real experts here!”

“Well, yeah, it’s one of the top hospitals in the province. Of course they’ve got the talent!”

“Don’t you guys get it? Since it’s live, they’d obviously pick their best interventional surgeon to perform.”

……

Comments on the stream were flying by in real time.

There were even some professional medical viewers—many tuned in to learn.

Seeing Zhou Can complete the puncture in under 40 seconds and the guidewire reach the blockage left them stunned.

Ever since Dr. Hu Kan passed away, insiders had written off Tuyu Hospital’s cardiothoracic department as lacking true experts.

But watching Zhou Can work, they realized they’d underestimated him before.

“It’s stuck! Look, it’s stuck! Hah, looks like they’re about to mess this up!”

“The vessel’s too calcified. Getting through is almost impossible!”

“Share! Share!”

“Just waiting for a mistake!”

The peanut gallery wasn’t afraid of chaos—they were eager to see Zhou Can slip up during the operation.

“No good, the calcification’s too severe. The guidewire can’t get through.”

Sweat beaded on Zhou Can’s forehead.

Still, starting from the femoral artery was just the standard approach. He’d already prepared a backup plan: a retrograde puncture.