CHAPTER 328: 328 DISHARMONIOUS INTERLUDE

Liu Banxia was operating at full capacity, completing four surgeries in less than eight hours, one of which was a particularly complicated partial liver resection due to severe adhesions.

This impressive feat not only stunned the staff at Jinshui District Hospital but also allowed him to truly experience his own growth in skill.

According to his own estimates, he had initially thought it would take until eight or nine o’clock in the evening to finish all the surgeries. He was pleasantly surprised to be done so quickly.

In the teppanyaki restaurant, Liu Banxia ordered a bottle of beer for himself to celebrate.

"Kid, you’re really something. It hasn’t been long since we last met, and your skills have already become so terrifyingly good," Xu Chengjun exclaimed.

"You’re giving me too much credit. It’s mainly because the surgeries today weren’t particularly difficult," Liu Banxia replied with a smile.

"The appendix wasn’t even suppurating, so it was relatively simple to deal with. Actually, I think even if these surgeries were performed at your hospital, there wouldn’t have been any major issues. It’s merely that the patients themselves lack trust."

"An appendectomy is a relatively simple procedure, but we really wouldn’t dare to handle the liver resection surgery ourselves," Xu Chengjun added after a moment’s thought.

"It’s not that we wouldn’t dare attempt it. If the patient’s family’s financial situation was truly dire, we would have to do it. However, because we don’t perform enough of these surgeries each year, we’re all quite rusty and not as clean or efficient as you are."

"This is a common situation nowadays, I suppose. Our local hospitals can’t afford to retain good doctors, nor can we afford to hold them back. As for ordinary doctors? We can only cultivate them slowly."

"Today, our hospital also sent two resident doctors to your Second Hospital for internships in general surgery and cardiology, though they’re only assigned to the outpatient clinics."

"That’s fine. If anything comes up, just have them find me at the emergency center," Liu Banxia replied with a nod and a smile.

One has to read between the lines. For Xu Chengjun to mention this specifically, his meaning was clear. Getting into a district hospital wasn’t that easy, after all.

Xu Chengjun didn’t bother with further pleasantries; he simply refilled Liu Banxia’s half-empty beer glass. Actions speak louder than words.

Liu Banxia was famished. Drinking beer and eating teppanyaki, he made short work of his meal. If Xu Chengjun hadn’t dined with him several times before, he would certainly be suspicious now.

Just as Xu Chengjun was thoroughly enjoying his meal, he received a call. His expression immediately darkened. "Alright, refund them. We’ll need to be more careful in the future."

"Chief Director Xu, what’s wrong?" Liu Banxia asked curiously.

"Dr. Liu, our cooperation might have to be postponed for a bit," Xu Chengjun said, hesitating slightly.

"The patient from the second appendectomy today expressed incomprehension about the high surgical fees and then approached our admitting physician."

"I’ve already arranged to refund them the overcharged amount. However, I don’t know if this is an isolated incident or something premeditated, so we all need to be cautious."

Upon hearing this, Liu Banxia frowned, took out his phone, and refunded Xu Chengjun for that surgery’s fee.

"Dr. Liu, what are you doing? If you refund the money to me, that would be incredibly embarrassing for me," Xu Chengjun said with a bitter smile.

"Let’s just act as if that surgery didn’t happen; otherwise, you’d have to pay out of your own pocket. Besides, now that the patient has complained, it’s not just about refunding the extra charges, is it? Will they also be given a discount on their hospitalization fees?" Liu Banxia asked with a smile.

Xu Chengjun nodded. "I really can’t understand what goes through these people’s minds. This is the first time I’ve encountered such a situation. For every patient and their family for whom we invite an external surgeon, we always communicate thoroughly and clarify the fee situation."

"Well, let’s not dwell on it for now. Whether it’s an isolated incident or premeditated, we just need to be more careful in the future," Liu Banxia said.

Despite saying that, he knew that the practice of inviting visiting surgeons at Jinshui District Hospital would have to be suspended for at least a few months. Ultimately, this was due to imperfections in the system regarding visiting surgeons.

The national policy encourages doctors to practice at multiple sites, facilitating a certain degree of skill transfer to lower-level hospitals. However, there are no clear regulations regarding the associated fees; how this money should be collected is determined by the local hospitals themselves.

Actually, this is also unavoidable. For instance, can the fees for inviting a doctor from Binhai City be the same as inviting one from major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, or Shenzhen?

However, they must adhere to local billing standards for official charges, and the difference can only be supplemented with cash. Otherwise, if you overcharge officially, it can’t be properly recorded in the accounts, making matters even more troublesome.

And the family of this patient who just demanded a refund, claiming they were overcharged, most likely didn’t just come up with this now. They probably regretted it shortly after the surgery was completed.

It’s just that the admitting physician and ward doctors failed to resolve the issue, ultimately requiring Xu Chengjun’s intervention.

Once something happens, it’s bound to happen again. Now that there’s been a demand for a refund, word will surely spread. In the future, will other patients operated on by visiting surgeons also demand refunds, or will other patients emulate this patient’s actions?

These things are unpredictable but very possible.

Then the problem arises: there’s a cost issue involved. The visiting surgeons can’t work for nothing, can they? Travel expenses, surgical fees—they’ve put in the effort and incurred costs, so the hospital has to pay them.

This creates a deficit. How should this part be handled? The only way is for the Chief Director, as the one in charge, to cover the shortfall first. It’s a form of personal compensation; the hospital’s funds can’t be used for a few thousand yuan just because of this.

Moreover, this issue isn’t one-sided; it involves both the hospital and the visiting surgeons. What was originally a simple matter can instantly become very complicated.

Take Liu Banxia, for example. His personal relationship with Xu Chengjun is very good. So this time, he straightforwardly refunded the money, even returning the surgical consultation fee the hospital had given him.

But even if their personal relationship is excellent, they can’t just issue a refund every time a patient disagrees, can they? Even if Liu Banxia were to offer a refund again in the future, Xu Chengjun couldn’t accept it; that’s not how things are done.

The previously lively atmosphere turned somewhat discordant because of this incident. It was impossible to maintain harmony; faced with such a thing, it was a testament to Xu Chengjun’s self-control that he wasn’t already fuming.

If this were like certain private hospitals that make you pay by card mid-surgery, you could complain all you want. But this situation was clearly explained, everyone agreed at the time, and only then was the surgery performed.

Then, after it’s done, they go back on their word and dispute the fees. Isn’t that feigning ignorance despite knowing the truth? Regardless of whether someone put them up to it, their intentions were clearly dishonest from the start.

"Chief Director Xu, don’t dwell on this too much. It takes all kinds to make a world," Liu Banxia consoled him.

Xu Chengjun gave a bitter smile and nodded, downing the rest of the baijiu in his cup in one gulp.

This matter can only be handled this way. Just consider it a silent loss; what else can be done? The patient regretted their decision, and you’re left with no recourse.

He’d have to consult on this later and see if it’s possible to have an agreement signed for such operations in the future. Verbal assurances are unreliable; having it in black and white makes it easier to argue one’s case.

This discordant little episode also slightly affected Liu Banxia’s mood. Money is a good thing; who would want to take it out once it’s in their pocket?

He ordered some more teppanyaki dishes, the ones he had promised to bring back for everyone.

Just after boarding the train, he received another transfer message on his phone. Xu Chengjun had transferred the five thousand yuan back to him, with a simple note: "Thank you."

Liu Banxia could now accept the money with a clear conscience. Five thousand yuan wasn’t a trivial amount, nor was it particularly large. Constantly transferring it back and forth with Xu Chengjun would be such a hassle, wouldn’t it?

He still felt somewhat disheartened; at least in the near future, the opportunity to earn extra cash was gone. Unless it was for a true friend of Xu Chengjun’s, he probably wouldn’t dare to take on such freelance work anymore.

After mulling over this little episode for a while, he shifted his thoughts to Qiaoqiao.

This was why Xu Chengjun had asked him if something was on his mind the moment they met. And indeed, there was. He always felt things were progressing too quickly. Had he been too impulsive? Last night, they had ended up sleeping in the same bed by a twist of fate, and nothing substantial had even happened. If he truly couldn’t make it work with Qiaoqiao, they wouldn’t even be able to remain friends. Broadly speaking, Qiaoqiao was faultless. However, when two people live together, all sorts of situations are bound to arise. It’s not like matching machine parts; you can’t just assemble them if the models fit. Moreover, a point he was currently concerned about was Qiaoqiao’s family’s financial standing. This was something that had to be considered. His own family was far worse off than Qiaoqiao’s; that gap wasn’t easily bridged.

After a period of restless thoughts, the high-speed train pulled to a steady stop at Binhai Station. Carrying a stack of food containers, he stepped out and saw Qiaoqiao waiting for him at the arrival gate, her expression serious.

He was troubled, and Qiaoqiao was too. To suddenly have a boyfriend? Wasn’t that a bit absurd?

She had come to pick up Liu Banxia because he had messaged her saying he was bringing her Teppanyaki Squid and Teppanyaki Pork Belly.

But as a girlfriend, how should she greet her boyfriend? Should she run over, jump on him, spin around a few times, and kiss him passionately for ages, like in the movies?

She agonized over this for a while before Liu Banxia emerged. She hadn’t figured out what to do, and his appearance left her even more flustered. She could only maintain a stern expression to conceal her inner panic.

Seeing Qiaoqiao’s tense expression and her serious yet somewhat furtive gaze, Liu Banxia was amused. "Let’s go to the hospital first, deliver the food to them, and then I’ll visit Brother Qiu’s home."

"Oh," Qiaoqiao responded, unsure of what to say next.

Liu Banxia reached out, ruffled her hair, and then headed towards the parking lot.

Qiaoqiao was thoroughly exasperated. What’s he doing, rubbing my head? Is he trying to take liberties or something?

She threw a few mock punches in his direction and then had no choice but to scurry after him; otherwise, Liu Banxia wouldn’t be able to get into her car.