CHAPTER 214: TEACHER LIU 214

At lunchtime, Liu Banxia led a large troop, marching splendidly toward the canteen. He had to take good care of the eight newbies, plus Su Xiaolin and Qing Kewa. The scene was quite spectacular.

The canteen was especially crowded today. The new interns would all report for duty in the next few days, so it was packed for group meals, creating a really lively atmosphere.

"It’s good to have newbies. I look forward to them every year. At least my business here will boom for three months," Zhou Qiang said with a smile as Liu Banxia was getting his meal.

"I’d say if you lowered your prices a bit, your business would definitely be better for a few more months," Liu Banxia joked.

"Dr. Liu, you can’t say that. Never mind anything else, just think how often I have to change the oil! This is hard-earned money. After deducting all expenses for the year, I only clear about a hundred thousand or so," Zhou Qiang said.

"I depend on small profits and quick turnover. Take these chicken legs, for instance. I sell them individually and always buy the bigger ones. Have you ever seen me raise prices? Chicken leg prices can be unstable."

"Alright, I’ll support your business. Ten chicken legs. Happy now? I just have a big mouth. Why do I even bother chatting with you?" Liu Banxia said with a wry smile.

"Haha, brother, I’m looking out for you. Today’s chicken legs are really nice," Zhou Qiang said with a smile.

It was just their usual banter. The chicken legs were paid for, but Zhou Qiang also gave him a Four-Joy Meatball for free.

Back at the dining table, Liu Banxia said, "If you encounter any discomfort at work, or any difficulties, just let me know. I’ll try to coordinate things for you as much as I can. For things that can’t be coordinated, you’ll just have to bear with it."

"It’s like I always say: coming to the Emergency Department means you have to be prepared to endure hardships. After lunch, I’ll assign you to supervising doctors. Two of the surgeons aren’t here, and neither is Dr. Wang Huan from Internal Medicine."

"Teacher Liu, can I intern with you?" a girl with long hair asked.

"If I remember correctly, your name is Xu Yino, right? That’s probably not possible for now. I’m currently supervising Qing Kewa. I’ve never supervised interns before, so if I took on too many, I’d probably lead you all astray," Liu Banxia said with a smile.

He was feeling quite pleased. He could consider himself a proper teacher now.

"But in the Emergency Department, you don’t need to worry too much about which specific doctor is instructing you. That’s secondary. The key is what you can learn while attending to patients." He felt a surge of satisfaction. Liu Banxia continued, "During my residency, I learned many useful things from surgeons like Doctor Shi Lei, Doctor Zhang Yun, Doctor Chen Jianxin, and Doctor Wei Yuan."

"Also, in our Emergency Department, we implement a rotation system, and we’ll try to accommodate your needs. It’s very normal to switch mentors frequently."

"Also, I want to emphasize something about accessories: the fewer, the better. We can’t forbid you from wearing them. But if you get a chance to observe in the OR, being too slow because of them will leave a very bad impression."

"Another thing is about using your mobile phones. If you’re really tired, scrolling through news or watching short videos to de-stress is acceptable. But if you spend a lot of time on your phone every day, my final evaluation will reflect that."

Hearing his words, the interns felt somewhat embarrassed. It could be said that Liu Banxia had pointed out all their bad habits.

This was especially true for Xu Yino, the one who had just spoken. She wore quite a few small accessories and was also often fidgeting with her phone. Actually, fiddling with phones is a common problem these days; otherwise, why would there be so many people constantly looking down at their phones?

"Alright, keep eating. I’m thinking about whether I can organize a small welcome party for you. But I’ll have to ask Director Zhou for permission; I don’t have the guts to take you out on my own without approval," Liu Banxia continued.

"Thank you, Teacher Liu!"

The new interns were delighted and responded enthusiastically, attracting curious glances from others around them.

This lunch was very satisfying, especially with the added chicken legs. While eating, the interns occasionally glanced toward Liang Xiaolin; they had personally witnessed the "add a chicken leg" inside joke before.

But the current Liang Xiaolin had genuinely matured and adapted to such glances. Anyway, she was already used to it. If they want to look, let them look. So what if I’m eating chicken legs?

After rumbling into the cafeteria for lunch, Liu Banxia then led the large group rumbling back.

After returning, the interns were very expectant. After all, they were about to be assigned their supervising physicians, a decision that would influence their entire next year.

Even though Liu Banxia had said it didn’t matter whom they learned from, did it really not matter? Opportunities to go into the OR were limited; it all seemed to depend on fate.

Liu Banxia’s assignment method was very simple: drawing lots. As for Zhou Shangkai and Cao Peng from Internal Medicine, there was no need to assign them for now; they would simply rotate between Xu Hui and Wang Huan.

The lottery results were quickly announced: Shi Lei would supervise Xu Yino and Huang Bo; Wei Yuan would supervise Liu Yiqing and Miao Rui; Wang Chao would supervise Su Wenhao; and Qi Wentai would supervise Li Hao.

The only two girls, Xu Yino and Liu Yiqing, were assigned to Shi Lei and Wei Yuan respectively. Liu Banxia was quite satisfied with this. Both Shi Lei and Wei Yuan were senior attending physicians and would likely be more meticulous.

Then Liu Banxia gave Liang Xiaolin and Qing Kewa a new task: to take the interns to meet the nurses. He, on the other hand, settled down to read a book quietly. After all, his work was done.

Zhou Shuwen, eating lunch with Chen Zhenxing in the office, watched Liu Banxia—who was now free of his duties—and felt a bit helpless.

"These first eight who arrived were handpicked by me. If you’re capable, try to keep them all," Chen Zhenxing said with a laugh.

"Isn’t that a bit risky? Entrusting them to Liu Banxia... I’m not entirely confident," Zhou Shuwen replied with a wry smile.

"What’s wrong with it? His popularity among the students is very high. Times have changed. Otherwise, do you think so many would have applied to our Emergency Department this time?" Chen Zhenxing retorted.

"Our teaching philosophy needs an update too. Each generation has its own way of thinking. While it might be somewhat risky, it’s also a bold experiment, isn’t it?"

"Young Liu’s recent performance has been excellent. Otherwise, would you be this relaxed? In the next few days, you still need to arrange two or three minimally invasive appendectomy teaching surgeries for him."

"From now on, ensure a frequency of no less than one per week. Also, regarding the training of these youngsters, you can afford to delegate a bit more."

Zhou Shuwen nodded. "His fundamentals are very good. I’m just worried that too much spotlight might make him lose his way. He’s doing well for now, but it’s hard to say about the future."

"On this point, my perspective differs from yours," Chen Zhenxing said.

"If he’s the right material, he’ll prove to be so. If his heart isn’t true, it will eventually show, whether now or in the future. It’s better to discover it early; that way, we can nip any potential problems in the bud."

"The city also called to commend the Jinshui District firefighting incident. Originally, today’s interview was supposed to be about that rescue. However, because of your emergency surgery last night, the topic was changed at the last minute."

"Alright, I’ll have Shi Lei keep a closer eye on him then," Zhou Shuwen said, nodding with a smile.

"But this kid is truly remarkable. Especially his skill of stopping bleeding with his bare hands—even I can’t do that. I reckon others would struggle too. It must require incredible dexterity."

"But I haven’t praised him for it, precisely because I’m afraid he’ll get a swollen head. Old Xiao was praising him when we chatted. He said Liu was very observant; otherwise, that patient might have faced paralysis."

"And this kid really knows how to win people over. That volunteer who’s always helping out in our department, she’s from the Qiu Family of Qiuhua Industries. President Qiu and his younger daughter also had their surgeries done at our hospital, thanks to him."

"However, I do have some concerns now. I’m afraid that if he learns too many things, he’ll end up biting off more than he can chew. His bone-setting techniques are also quite good. Last time, he even performed a cardiac suture under Chief Director Li’s guidance."

"This is something we need to discuss thoroughly. It’s not just about him; it actually concerns our entire medical field," Chen Zhenxing said, putting down his chopsticks and taking a sip of water.

"Old Xu from Orthopedics once mentioned to me that departments are becoming increasingly sub-specialized these days, and doctors’ career paths are leaning more toward becoming specialists."

"But for an Emergency Department, this often creates many limitations unless we significantly increase positions and manpower."

"Weren’t some guidelines issued a while ago? They allow doctors in primary healthcare institutions to add specialties and also recommend the training of general practitioners. I think this is also a future trend. The concern with allowing too much is the risk of becoming a jack of all trades, master of none."

"We can explore this area more. Anyway, I’m currently betting heavily on our Emergency Department. If you have any bold ideas in the future, feel free to propose them."

Zhou Shuwen nodded. "Alright, I’ll focus more on this aspect. The workload is immense, and I’m really stretched thin right now. I have two surgeries this afternoon that can’t be postponed."

"Just get through this period. Once the staffing is complete, you’ll be able to relax a bit more," Chen Zhenxing said.

"And you can make bold use of Liu Banxia. I think his ability to handle pressure is quite good. If he can remain so steady on the operating table, he should be fine with daily management tasks too."

"It seems you have high hopes for him indeed," Zhou Shuwen laughed.

"Once or twice can be luck, but three or four times? Beyond luck, one must have genuine skill. Alright, I have to go to the university this afternoon for a meeting." Chen Zhenxing stood up, grabbing a banana as he did.

Zhou Shuwen also quickly put down his chopsticks and saw Chen Zhenxing out of the office.

"Liu Banxia!"

Just as Chen Zhenxing stepped out, he called out.

Liu Banxia, engrossed in his book, looked up, startled by the sound. Before he could clearly see who it was, an object flew toward him. He instinctively reached out and caught it—a banana.

"Your reflexes are still as sharp as ever. Not bad," Chen Zhenxing remarked casually, strolling away with his hands behind his back.

Liu Banxia, however, was rather baffled, wondering what on earth the Chief Director was up to.

This scene left the interns who had just arrived today wide-eyed with admiration. Teacher Liu is clearly highly regarded by the Chief Director! Why else would he playfully tease him like that?