The Surgeon's Studio

The snow outside was not too heavy, but the ground was frozen solid. It was too hazardous for riders to be delivering meals. It was going to be a hungry day for all homebodies.

Xie Yiren let out a whine from the operating room. Her mood instantly worsened as her hopes for good food were dashed.

Zheng Ren chuckled. Luckily, he was not a food connoisseur. He was not hungry and planned to swing by the cafeteria for a simple dinner when he had the time.

He left the operating room and headed to the emergency department ward on the second floor. As he entered the office, he saw Chang Yue standing before the window, watching the snow fall.

He had wanted her to follow him on his rounds but she appeared to be occupied. Zheng Ren decided that he could spare a few minutes.

Women had more appreciation for romance and Chang Yue was not an exception.

He went to his table and was about to sit when he noticed Chang Yue’s face.

The corner of her eye seemed a bit damp.

“Chang Yue, what’s wrong?” Zheng Ren asked.

“Nothing.” She turned around to face him and the dampness was gone. Chang Yue had the usual expression that he was familiar with.

“If there’s something wrong, you can talk about it. Help might come from where you least expect it,” Zheng Ren said casually. He was already seated at his table with the medical book, Sciences of Hepatopancreatobilliary, open.

It was an informal inquiry. It would be awkward to not converse when they were face-to-face.

Chang Yue’s resolve wavered, and she sat across Zheng Ren with a grave expression.

Hmm… Was she going to complain about Su Yun? From what he knew, Chang Yue was the one who made Su Yun pass out drunk, not the other way around.

Zheng Ren wondered.

“Let me tell you something, Chief Zheng. See if you can solve it,” Chang Yue said.

Zheng Ren tasted a mild bitterness in his throat. This was not going to be a happy thing.

“The patient with gangrenous appendicitis; I’ve gone through his medical records. He never said much about his past but I deduced that he was once in the army,” Chang Yue said.

Zheng Ren’s eyes left the pages of his book. He listened attentively.

“He doesn’t have much money. He was working as a laborer in the construction industry, moving ceramic tiles and all that. The site elevator was not working and he had to lug those tiles up 16 floors. When it came to payment, the owner claimed some of the tiles were broken and wanted him to pay for it. A few rounds of back-and-forth later, the owner suddenly fell to the ground and claimed that he hit him,” Chang Yue said in a quiet voice that trembled.

The world was a cruel place. From the man’s build, his army background was more than likely. Before sickness took him, he had to have been a fearsome one. Zheng Ren let out a sigh.

If the man wanted to, Zheng Ren believed he could have seriously injured the owner with a single punch.

“In the end, he did not get paid and had to compensate the owner,” Chang Yue continued, “He spent some time homeless and that was when he felt the pain in his abdomen. He fainted and was brought to the hospital by Yanzhi.”

‘So that was the story,’ Zheng Ren thought.

The man had a remarkable body. They had noted his speedy recovery during postsurgical monitoring and his body did not show the usual signs of heating up.

The latter cases usually indicated that the patient had a very weak immune system or extremely fast recovery.

“Right, has he passed gas and started eating?” Zheng Ren asked.

He had been so caught up with emergency surgeries that he had left Chang Yue with all postoperative follow-ups.

“The patient passed gas four hours after the surgery completion. We gave him 1000ml of Dextrose 10. At noon, I ordered him a bowl of porridge with pickled vegetables.”

Zheng Ren smiled at that. Truly, the kind-hearted ones were tender.

“What did you want to ask me?”

Chang Yue was embarrassed as she said, “He seems like a good guy. I don’t know many people, so I wondered if Chief Zheng could help get him a job?”

Chang Yue was a saint.

In the medical field, one was used to witnessing life and death. A soft heart would not survive.

This was the responsibility of the Welfare Department, not the hospital. The hospital already subsidized fees for the poor. It was also common to feed patients who could not afford to buy themselves a meal.

However, Zheng Ren did not find Chang Yue’s request unreasonable.

The guy was undoubtedly strong and hardy.

Faced with such an injustice, even Zheng Ren could understand the man’s anger.

However, the man had not lashed out at the owner, but was rather punished for the whole ordeal.

The financial loss had resulted in a delay in his diagnosis, causing the illness to worsen and developing into gangrenous appendicitis.

He was a good man.

Zheng Ren tapped his fingers on the table and thought about who he should approach for such a favor.

A person popped into his mind and he pulled out his phone.

“Brother Six, it’s me, Zheng Ren.

“Yes, yes. There’s this guy that I think would be of use to you. He’s quite strong. You think you can get him a job?

“Nothing much. Solid pay, food, and shelter. Just temporary.

“Thank you. If he gives you any trouble, you can just fire him. Pay no mind to me.”

The conversation ended and Zheng Ren put down his phone. He said with a smile, “Done.”

Chang Yue was surprised.

The problem that had seemed insurmountable to Chang Yue was solved with a phone call by Zheng Ren.

She had little respect for leadership… However, now, she might make an exception for Chief Zheng.

He seemed all right.

“What’s the job?”

“Should be security, I’m not too clear. We’ll still need the patient’s agreement,” Zheng Ren replied.

Chang Yue’s mood immediately brightened and a smile appeared. The sun rays reflected off her black-rimmed glasses.

“I’ll connect with the patient. Thank you, Chief Zheng,” Chang Yue stood up and thanked him sincerely.

“It’s alright. Go on and pass the news to the patient.” Zheng Ren suddenly remembered that he had a long list of things to do, from writing up the report for the pelvic fracture case, surgery journaling, and so on. A headache was developing.

Paperwork was the bane of his existence.

He was truly grateful to have Chang Yue. If he had to do all of the paperwork for the patients he saw, he would probably not have been able to have helped as many people as he had.

Watching Chang Yue walk away with a spring to her step, Zheng Ren smiled and switched on his computer.

His phone rang with a notification from the WeChat group. It was Xie Yiren asking about lunch.

There were limited choices in the hospital cafeteria and Xie Yiren avoided them at all costs.

She was adamant that the food served in the cafeteria was slop.

Zheng Ren disagreed with her. Although the cafeteria was not outstanding, the portions could fill a grown man and it cost one yuan per meal for hospital employees.

He scrolled through the chat history. Xie Yiren and the Chu sisters’ messages filled his screen even though he was sure they were in the same room.

What had technology done to humans? Zheng Ren sighed and shook his head.