Chapter 607: A Child in the Balance: Hope at Tuyu Hospital

Diseases that local hospitals can’t cure are usually pretty tough cases.

Even he can’t heal every illness.

Sometimes, strange and rare conditions leave him at a loss too. But for the most part, if a patient comes to him—even if he can’t treat them—he’ll seek out another doctor who can help.

Tuyu Hospital is no slouch either. Apart from a few fields where their expertise falls short, they’re top-tier in most areas of medicine.

“Alright, let me go take a look first.”

Zhou Can really understood how much patients and their families go through. They traveled all this way just to see him, pinning all their hopes on his abilities.

And their journey was definitely no walk in the park.

Getting a patient here is a lot harder than traveling alone.

“Dingdong, I’m leaving this patient’s access cavity to you. Yang Zhi, make sure to assist him.”

With that, Zhou Can walked straight out of the operating room.

Normally, surgeons hate leaving the OR, since it means using up more sterile supplies.

Not to mention, if you swap out your scrub suit too many times, the cleaning staff can’t help but grumble.

Head covers and gloves are all single-use anyway, and going through too many invites needless checks and hassle.

Zhou Can followed a nurse to the resuscitation room.

Out in the hallway, on a rolling gurney, lay a little boy around two or three. His eyes were open, but his arms and legs sprawled limply at his sides. From years of experience, Zhou Can could tell at a glance that this kid was already suffering from a high-level spinal paralysis.

“This is Dr. Zhou Can, the one you asked for. As soon as he heard your situation, he put his work on hold in the operating room and came straight here to see your child. If you have any questions, ask Dr. Zhou while you can.”

The nurse said this to the family standing nearby.

There were five people in all.

Honestly, having this many family members around makes any doctor extra cautious.

Too many relatives in a case often signals trouble if something goes wrong. There’s power in numbers, and doctors end up on the back foot.

Plus, the more people involved, the easier it is for disputes to erupt.

“Dr. Zhou, we came all the way from the capital after hearing about you from a friend. Please, can you see if there’s any hope for this child?”

The first to speak was a heavyset middle-aged man in black dress pants, a purple shirt, and a gold tie. His shoes were already coated in dust, but he didn’t seem to notice.

Compared to the others, neither he nor the stylish young woman at his side looked especially grief-stricken. They just appeared tense and anxious.

Given all his experience, Zhou Can guessed these two probably weren’t family.

“Why don’t you give me a rundown? How did the boy get hurt, what symptoms followed, and have you done any tests?”

Zhou Can looked over at the five people.

“Please, Dr. Zhou, you have to save my son! It’s all my fault—I never should have taken him to their amusement park.” The young woman sobbed, shooting an accusing look at the overweight man and the fashionable woman. “There were a bunch of kids playing inside the bouncy castle they own. My son climbed to the very top, but some other kids were blocking the way. He tried climbing over the fence and… he fell. I think his head hit the ground first. He bounced a few times before lying there, completely still.”

“After he fell, my son didn’t cry or even make a sound—he just lay there, not moving at all…”

Talking about it, the boy’s mother was crushed with guilt and grief.

“Our inflatable castle meets strict safety standards. The mat underneath is over half a meter thick. He fell from about three meters up. Normally, there wouldn’t be any issues. Who could’ve thought one fall would paralyze him like this!”

The heavyset man clearly owned the castle.

He sounded more aggrieved than defensive.

Sometimes life is just unfair—even a sip of water can get stuck in your teeth.

“Young man, our family’s only son—he’s our only grandson. His father’s stationed at the border, serving his country. We haven’t dared tell him what’s happened. Please, do whatever you can. Save my grandson.”

An elderly man with white eyebrows shuffled over, pleading with Zhou Can.

“My son’s a senior officer. If you can pull my grandson through, you’ll be well rewarded!”

The old woman spoke with utter authority, bordering on arrogance.

Frankly, no doctor likes dealing with this kind of attitude from relatives.

Some families, just because they’re wealthy or powerful, try to wave money or status around. “Just cure him, no matter the cost—we can afford it.”

Or they say: “Hurry up and treat him; someone in our family’s a major official.”

Doctors won’t argue back, but that doesn’t mean they like it.

Medicine is a noble profession, meant to save lives and heal the suffering. It deserves respect.

It shouldn’t get trampled under money and power.

Still, no matter how skilled a doctor is, they’re often forced to serve at the beck and call of the rich and influential.

“Alright, enough from you. The doctor’s here to save lives. To him, everyone’s the same—nobody’s more important than anyone else.”

The old man sternly reproached the grandmother for showing off her connections.

“You’re right, sir. The code we follow as doctors goes like this: ‘Whoever seeks help, regardless of wealth, status, age, beauty, friend or foe, native or foreign, wise or foolish—we treat them all as family.’ No matter who they are, once they’re here, they’re just a patient.”

Zhou Can felt a bit better after that.

He used the moment to educate the grandmother on the basics of respect and ethics.

Not every doctor is afraid to stand up to money or authority. Most have backbone and pride, holding onto a sense of what’s right.

If one day doctors are forced to bow to power, then society itself is in trouble.

Because that means medical resources will never be distributed fairly.

It’s absolutely essential to protect doctors’ dignity and interests.

“Forgive her, doctor. She just doesn’t know how to talk. Don’t take offense.”

The old man hurried to apologize on her behalf.

“It’s fine, really. As long as we’re clear. By the way, did you have any tests done? The capital’s medical standards are the best in the country. What made you bring your son all this way to Tuyu Hospital?”

Zhou Can started digging into their reasoning.

A doctor has to know how to protect themself, not just cure diseases.

With patients from out-of-town, it’s important to get the full story.

“Let me handle that.”

The bouncy castle boss took the lead again.

“As soon as the boy fell, we rushed him to the nearest big hospital for treatment. The initial diagnosis was cervical nerve injury—high-level paralysis. The doctors there suggested we transfer him to Imperial Capital Renhe Hospital.”

The spine is packed with blood vessels and especially nerves. Once those nerves leave the brain, the spinal cord becomes the body’s main neural highway.

Evolution over millions of years means this nerve trunk is snugly protected inside the spinal canal.

Normally, it’s hard to injure it.

But a major fall like this is a different story.

The neck’s vertebrae are particularly fragile.

“What did the doctors at Renhe Hospital say?”

Hearing this boy had already passed through two leading hospitals, Zhou Can’s expression grew even grimmer.

Renhe Hospital has dedicated departments for spine and neurology, and its neurosurgery division is especially advanced. In the whole country, they’re considered top in neuro research.

If even they couldn’t heal him, what chance did Zhou Can have with a case this difficult?

Saving this boy was looking less and less likely.

“The doctors there could only shake their heads. They brought in experts from several departments for a joint consultation and tried conservative treatment for a week, but nothing worked. Then, a friend recommended a young doctor at Tuyu Hospital named Zhou Can, saying there might still be hope. We discussed it as a family, and in the end decided to bring the boy here to try our luck.”

The boss’s face was clouded with bitterness as he spoke.

There were six of them, flying in from the capital to Tuyu Hospital. With travel, lodging, and food, the expenses piled up fast.

Running a bouncy castle for a year probably wouldn’t cover the medical bills.

“First, I have to say this: Renhe Hospital is among the very best in the country when it comes to nerves. If they say there’s little chance, odds aren’t in our favor either. But since you’re here, we’ll do all we can. The boy’s father is defending the nation, and his child’s paralyzed now. As doctors, we owe it to him to give our best—to try for a miracle so that a hero can stay focused on his duties.”

That was Zhou Can’s way of showing his commitment.

He wanted to set realistic expectations, too.

Doctors often paint the situation as grim and outcomes as uncertain to lower the family’s expectations.

That way, there’s less risk of disputes down the line.

“Thank you, Dr. Zhou! Don’t worry about the costs—just tell me how much and I’ll find a way, no matter what. Our bouncy castle’s insured, so the company will compensate as well.”

The boss was doing his best to make amends.

At least his attitude put some of the family at ease.

The fashionable young woman hadn’t spoken a word the whole time, just stood quietly behind the boss—whether she was his wife or secretary, nobody knew.

Zhou Can began a physical exam for the boy.

The child’s arms and legs were weak and limp. When Zhou touched them, they felt a bit cold.

That was a sign of poor circulation at the extremities.

Nerve damage often leads to poor blood flow.

And if the nerves don’t recover soon, an even scarier issue appears—muscles all over the body start wasting away. In the end, he could end up like someone with ALS, with no chance of bouncing back.

That’s why it’s so important to step in early, massage the muscles, and keep them active. You want to slow muscle loss as much as you can.

“When exactly did he get hurt?”

“On the third of this month.”

“So he’s been injured for about eight days, right?”

“That’s right!”

While checking the boy, Zhou Can kept asking questions.

There was no trauma on the neck. On the right, his neck muscles were stiff, but the left side was soft.

That was an odd combination.

Normally, neck stiffness affects both sides equally.

If Zhou Can could spot this, the experts at Renhe Hospital surely didn’t miss it.

It wasn’t much use to just speculate blindly about what caused it.

He decided to study the test results from Renhe Hospital first.

For example, the electromyography exam.

That’s a classic test of nerve pathways.

By checking the strength of a muscle’s electrical signals, you can tell whether there’s a nerve issue.

“Did you bring the test results from the other hospitals?”

“They’re all in these two folders. These are from Chaoyang Hospital, and these are from Renhe Hospital.”

The boy’s mother handed over the folders.

Zhou Can took them and studied every detail.

The first hospital ran a full blood test, a cervical CT, and an EMG.

The blood results were basically normal, though hemoglobin was slightly low.

That could just be mild anemia.

Nowadays, lots of kids are picky eaters and treat snacks like real meals.

That leaves their bodies stuck in subpar health.

The cervical CT showed no issues except for a small local hematoma. After eight days of treatment, the swelling had already faded.

So you could rule out nerve compression from the hematoma causing paralysis.

If it had been, his symptoms would’ve faded as the swelling went down.

Renhe Hospital did an enhanced CT scan of his head, in case there was brain damage.

No luck—nothing turned up.

Zhou Can pored over the test results again and again, hoping to catch something everyone else missed.

But if so many experts had already combed through everything, there probably wasn’t a clue to find.

After more than twenty minutes, he was still coming up empty.

No external injuries. No anomalies in the brain or neck. Not even a tiny crack in any of the neck bones.

So, what exactly was the cause?

Faced with such a tough case, Zhou Can couldn’t help but feel powerless.

Yes, he was a highly skilled doctor—but no one can fix everything.

Right now, the only real suspicion was that the spine suffered severe trauma during the fall, blocking all nerve signals past the neck.

“Alright, help me sit the boy up at the edge of the bed. Let his legs dangle naturally.”

Zhou Can directed the family to help prop the child up.

You could see that the boy’s head drooped forward, as if his neck couldn’t support it anymore.

Curious relatives and staff had all gathered to see how Dr. Zhou would approach this puzzle.

“Has anybody got a reflex hammer I can borrow?”

He called out to the other medical staff.

“I’ve got one, Dr. Zhou. Will this work?”

Dr. Xie hurried forward and offered his reflex hammer.

Opportunities to impress Dr. Zhou don’t come along every day.

“Perfect.”

Zhou Can took it and tapped the boy’s knee.

Knee-jerk reflex testing isn’t all that common in clinical medicine, but Zhou Can liked to go off-book. This time, he was giving the boy a reflex test.