CHAPTER 203: 203 MUST STAND UP FOR OURSELVES

(Thanks to book friend 121004015336419 for the encouragement with the monthly ticket)

"Very good. I truly didn’t expect you could make it through this surgery. Five hours and 27 minutes—it’s really amazing," Zhou Shuwen said with a smile while waiting for the patient to wake up.

"Director, I also didn’t think I could make it. I’m completely drenched in sweat now," Liu Banxia said with a wry smile.

If it weren’t for the fact that the patient still wasn’t awake, he really would have wanted to lie down on the ground right then. He had been too focused on this surgery; he had ignored everything else, with only the surgery occupying his mind and vision.

Otherwise, he could have taken a bottle of Peiyuan compound to replenish his strength and avoided making such a mess of himself.

However, the effectiveness of his physical enhancement was truly put to the test during this surgery. If he hadn’t been enhanced beforehand, he really wouldn’t have been able to endure such an intense and prolonged operation.

This wasn’t just about standing there for five hours; one’s mind needed to be highly focused. Especially when dissecting blood vessels, the slightest bit of excessive force could rupture a vessel.

The tactile feedback from using instruments laparoscopically was vastly different from manual operation, and the mental strain also exacerbated physical exhaustion.

Zhou Shuwen patted his shoulder, the smile on his face never fading. For someone who was usually so stern, he was exceptionally "unusual" today.

Those who hadn’t left yet outside watched the interaction between Liu Banxia and Zhou Shuwen, their eyes filled with envy.

Now everyone knew that there was a resident doctor in the emergency department named Liu Banxia. His skills were superb, and he was clearly favored by the hospital’s higher-ups.

Jealous? They truly couldn’t bring themselves to be. They knew that if it were them, they wouldn’t be able to reach Liu Banxia’s current level. Even with Zhou Shuwen guiding the surgery, it would have been a long shot.

By the time Liu Banxia and his team emerged from the operating room, it was nearly three o’clock in the afternoon. While waiting for the patient to awaken, he had actually become more energetic.

"Hey, Boss, what are you doing here too?" Liu Banxia exclaimed in surprise upon seeing Shi Lei.

Shi Lei punched him playfully on the chest. "How could I not come to witness such a momentous occasion? Congratulations."

"Heh heh, just don’t get jealous," Liu Banxia said with a grin.

"Jealous my ass! As if I haven’t performed one before," Shi Lei glared at him.

He had to hand it to this kid; he dared to be so casual and outspoken even in front of the director, saying whatever came to mind.

Zhou Shuwen didn’t mind. These two were his prize protégés at the Second Hospital, both very promising talents.

Shi Lei had been personally mentored by him, and he could confidently entrust any situation or task to Shi Lei because he was steady. Although Liu Banxia was somewhat unconventional and hot-tempered, he was a fast learner. With proper guidance, he too could become exceptional.

Today’s bold attempt was a prime example. Would he have dared to entrust such a crucial operation to anyone else? If anything had gone wrong, he would have been the one primarily responsible.

The patient, of course, was being attended to by others. The three of them went straight to the cafeteria and enjoyed a hearty meal. Liu Banxia naturally paid the bill; on this point, Zhou Shuwen and Shi Lei were in complete agreement—it had to be him.

"The standardized training residents will report for duty tomorrow, and the remaining personnel, aside from those involved in equipment inspections, will also be partially in place," Zhou Shuwen said after the meal.

"Actually, it’s not much different from the current situation; it’s just that the previous rotating positions have become fixed ones. Only when we move to the new building will the staff truly be fully assigned."

"Director, will our resuscitation rooms be equipped with X-ray machines then? That’s standard configuration, isn’t it?" Liu Banxia asked.

Zhou Shuwen chuckled and nodded. "All three resuscitation rooms will be equipped, and many emergency departments with high utilization rates will also be located on the first floor."

"The Chief Director has ambitious plans. Although we’re still in a trial phase, the setup is designed to meet the standards of a trauma emergency center. There will also be an integrated electronic records system. CT scans, MRIs, and even ultrasound images will be transmitted instantly."

"However, you also need to focus on matters like the emergency care training for internal medicine doctors; you must handle that well. They are all very experienced, so be mindful of your approach and methods."

Liu Banxia nodded. "Director, rest assured, I understand."

"Alright, you can head back first. I still have a proximal gastrectomy to perform," Zhou Shuwen said.

Liu Banxia didn’t press his luck by asking to observe another operation. One should be content. With such an excellent mentor as Zhou Shuwen, he would surely witness all sorts of surgeries in the future.

Having eaten his fill, he strolled back to the emergency department.

His return was met with warm congratulations from everyone. After all, successfully completing such a major operation was, in itself, a huge achievement.

"You’re truly audacious. Honestly, I couldn’t have done it," Chen Jianxin said.

"To be honest, it was mainly because Director Zhou guided me so well. If it weren’t for him, today might have had a very different outcome," Liu Banxia said thoughtfully.

"That’s still incredibly bold of you, and you’re so young, aren’t you? There will be plenty of opportunities in the future," Chen Jianxin said.

"Just keep up the hard work, young man, and take good care of us old folks in the future. We have to admit we’re getting old; the young ones these days are so capable. Years ago, back when we were interns, who would have dared to even imagine something like this?"

"I knew Dr. Liu was truly amazing! Dr. Liu, would you like to have a delicious dinner tonight?" Qing Kewa asked cheerfully.

"That sounds great! Dinner’s on me," Liu Banxia replied readily.

"Oh, by the way, the lawyer President Qiu’s family found has arrived. He should be in President Qiu’s ward now. Do you want to go see him?" Liang Xiaolin asked.

"Oh dear, I completely forgot about that! Brother Chen, can you hold the fort for a bit longer? I was told I need to sign a power of attorney, and then they need my fingerprint," Liu Banxia said quickly.

"Go ahead. It’s pretty quiet today. We’ve already handled the few trauma patients that came in," Chen Jianxin said, nodding with a smile.

This wasn’t a big deal; their relationship was already very good.

Liu Banxia jogged all the way to Qiu Huaili’s ward. He could also conveniently change Qiu’s dressing while he was there.

"Brother, let me introduce you. This is Lawyer Gao, a partner at the Dafang Law Firm. He’s been a great help to me," Qiu Huaili said warmly, seeing Liu Banxia enter.

"Lawyer Gao, hello. I really appreciate you taking on this trouble for me," Liu Banxia said quickly.

"Dr. Liu, you’re too polite. President Qiu has already briefed me on the basic situation. Here is a power of attorney. Once you sign it, you can leave the rest to me," Lawyer Gao said with a smile.

"That’s wonderful. It feels like I’m practically chained to the hospital these days," Liu Banxia said.

"If everyone had free time, what would be the need for us lawyers? Dr. Liu, what is your bottom line regarding this matter?" Lawyer Gao asked.

"Compensation of one hundred yuan per person and a public apology in the newspaper will suffice," Liu Banxia stated.

"You’re not considering asking for more?" Lawyer Gao asked, somewhat curious.

"That’s enough. It just covers the normal examination and dressing fees, and there’ll even be some left over since no X-rays are needed. If I asked for fifty each, it wouldn’t look good," Liu Banxia said.

"See? Now do you believe me? He just wants to make a point," Qiu Huaili said with a smile.

"I was furious when I heard about it yesterday. My brother is absolutely right: we can understand their feelings, but we cannot condone them resorting to violence."

"To be honest, before I met him, I never realized how exhausting a doctor’s work is. Especially in their emergency department—working twenty-four-hour shifts is completely normal for them."

"Actually, once you get used to it, it’s not so bad. If there aren’t many patients, we can still sneak off to the break room for a nap," Liu Banxia said with a laugh.

"I just came back from the emergency department and asked around. Ming Yuan did very well. He took three fracture patients for X-rays and got blood work and urine tests done for six other patients."

Qiu Huaili was delighted. "Good for him! He even ate an extra half-bowl of rice at lunch today. He’s not letting me down, that’s great."

"He’ll definitely be exhausted tonight. We’ve been on break these past few days, and today seems to be the busiest; we’ve hardly had any time to play basketball," Wang Jingxian said with a smile.

Just then, Doudou, who had been sleeping on the bed, woke up. He sat up by himself, bleary-eyed, looked around, and then crawled straight towards Liu Banxia.

He really had a special affinity for Liu Banxia; whenever he saw him, he wanted to get close to this big "toy."

"President Qiu, Dr. Liu, I’ll take my leave for now. I’ll contact you if anything else comes up." Seeing Liu Banxia playing with Doudou, Lawyer Gao stood up.

"Lawyer Gao, please handle my brother’s matter as if it were your own. And my brother is a truly skilled doctor. If you ever have a headache or a fever, just come straight here." Qiu Huaili also "struggled" up from the bed.

"President Qiu, please don’t get up. Now that I’ve met Dr. Liu, I’ll certainly be troubling him in the future," Lawyer Gao said hastily.

If it had only been Liu Banxia’s case, a minor matter like this, he wouldn’t have spent so much time waiting. But with Qiu Huaiyuan involved, it was different; this matter had to be taken seriously.

Moreover, he could see that Qiu Huaiyuan’s involvement was more than just an ordinary favor. Before Liu Banxia had even arrived, Qiu Huaiyuan had stressed multiple times that this matter must be handled thoroughly.

Actually, after hearing the details of what happened, he found that family rather amusing. The facts were so clear; a few words of apology should have sufficed. But now that they had escalated the situation, it wouldn’t be so easy for them to resolve.

"Alright, time for your dressing change. You haven’t taken any painkillers, have you?" Liu Banxia asked.

Qiu Huaili nodded. "Are you sure I don’t need one? I heard the commotion from other patients getting their dressings changed earlier; it sounded pretty intense."

"Let’s try without them first. If you can bear it, it’s better not to take any. Taking too many isn’t good for you," Liu Banxia said.

Qiu Huaili gritted his teeth; his trust in Liu Banxia was exceedingly high.

This was Qiu Huaili’s second dressing change. Although Liu Banxia’s technique was quick and gentle, it hurt more than it had that morning. However, the pain was still within his tolerance; at worst, he merely broke out in a cold sweat on his forehead.

This dressing change only earned Liu Banxia 10 experience points and 20 skill proficiency points for his Dressing Change technique.