CHAPTER 338: 338 WAS TAKEN BY THE FAMILY.

(Thanks to my friend Night Fragrance for the rewards and encouragement, and thanks to my friend Northwest Flying Wolf for the monthly pass encouragement)

Maintenance worker Zhang was just a minor incident. Liu Banxia had witnessed many different situations. However, to Uncle Jiang’s family and Grandpa Cao, this event served as a good story to tell over drinks.

Moreover, the fish Uncle Jiang’s son-in-law cooked was really good. Not only did Liu Banxia enjoy it, but even Qiaoqiao ate quite a bit.

"Wang Chao, how do you feel after two days? Have you had many consultations?" asked Liu Banxia after they had been eating and drinking for a while.

"It’s alright. For now, we’re mainly focused on public education. Primarily, we inform people that diseases like hypertension and diabetes can’t be cured, only controlled with medication. We also provide information about coronary heart disease, hoping it can be of some help," Wang Chao answered.

"Speaking of effectiveness, I think there has been some. Didn’t that lady who came yesterday say so? We need to spread the word more about these things," Xu Yino said.

"In actuality, it’s not always that us older folks don’t understand what’s going on," Grandpa Cao took over the conversation.

"Take me, for example. At first, I joined in for the excitement and then started to participate in their activities. I knew even then that these things were mostly scams," he continued.

"But then, after a while, I started to think, What if it works? Might I live a few more years? Driven by greed, I made a fool of myself."

"Grandpa Cao, that’s not greed; it’s just human nature," Liu Banxia said with a smile.

"And those who sell fake health supplements succeed precisely because they prey on this mindset. Vitamins, for example, can be beneficial. But the idea that health supplements can cure illnesses is nonsense."

"If something can cure diseases, it’s a medicine and must have an approval number. Why would it be passed off as a health supplement? Supplements are for improving general health and fitness. Basically, those places like ’Physiotherapy Centers’ or ’Lifestyle Centers’ that mainly sell health supplements are just trying to fool people."

"Well, now I know, don’t I? Fortunately, I realized it before it was too late to save my old life," Grandpa Cao said with a laugh.

"Grandpa Cao, I believe that as long as you maintain this mindset, it’s more effective than any health supplement. A person’s mindset is crucial. A good mindset promotes good circulation," Liu Banxia commented.

"Even young people like us might not have your positive outlook. We tend to get anxious when things go wrong. That’s not good; it can easily lead to what Traditional Chinese Medicine calls ’liver qi stagnation.’ Although it’s a TCM term, the underlying principle is also recognized in Western medicine."

Hearing his words, everyone laughed. Outside of consultations, Liu Banxia was often quite casual and liked to joke around.

Actually, this was also why the interns liked being around him. He often blurred the lines between attending doctor and intern.

Another reason was Liu Banxia’s youth. Compared to the other attending doctors in the Emergency Center, Liu Banxia was indeed very young.

Wang Chao and Qi Wentai were also young, but their medical skills and positions were somewhat inferior to Liu Banxia’s.

Even though Wang Chao and his companions had come to freeload, no one in Uncle Jiang’s family minded. They were Liu Banxia’s friends, and they were currently doing public science awareness activities on the street, which was considered a good deed.

They were eating happily when Liu Banxia’s phone rang.

"Boss, has the person I recommended arrived?" Liu Banxia asked as soon as the call connected.

"He’s here, but the situation isn’t looking good. Do you have time to come over? His condition is a bit complicated," Shi Lei said.

"Uh... Boss, is it appropriate for me to go now?" Liu Banxia hesitated a bit.

"You don’t have to see the patient yourself. We just need your brain," Shi Lei replied.

Liu Banxia opened his mouth, looking a bit helpless. "Alright, I’ll head over with Qiaoqiao. It isn’t too urgent, though, right? I’m almost done eating here."

"It’s not too urgent, but we’re a bit stumped right now," Shi Lei said.

"Alright, then I’ll finish eating quickly." Liu Banxia then hung up the phone.

"President Liu, what happened?" Wang Chao asked curiously.

"The situation with Zhang seems a bit complicated. Shi Lei and the others probably haven’t found the cause of his illness yet. They want me to go over and take a look, to see if they’ve missed anything," Liu Banxia explained.

"Does this mean Zhang’s finger can’t be saved?" asked Uncle Jiang with some concern.

"That’s still hard to say. We’ll have to assess him directly. It depends on how severe the necrosis is and whether we can get his condition under control," Liu Banxia replied.

"Alright, I’ve eaten enough. You guys continue eating; I’ll go ahead with Qiaoqiao. I had some drinks; otherwise, I would have driven there myself."

"Are you full? Look at all this fried food. If there’s anything you like, I’ll pack some for you. You’ve only been eating for a short while and only had a little to drink," Uncle Jiang hurriedly said.

"I’ve actually eaten quite a bit. Basically, I’ve been multitasking, eating and chatting," Liu Banxia said with a laugh.

Qiaoqiao didn’t mind at all. Recently, her relationship with Liu Banxia was rapidly deepening. Following him around wherever he went was fine by her, as long as they were together and having fun.

"Why are you grinning so happily?" Liu Banxia asked as they got into the car.

"Of course I’m happy! Even Dr. Shi is asking for your help," Qiaoqiao replied.

"Haha, it’s not necessarily that he’s asking for my help. He’s probably just afraid I’m bored staying at home, or maybe he can’t stand seeing me idle, so he’s just giving me something to do," Liu Banxia said with a laugh.

"Say, should we start thinking about the whole ’meeting the parents’ thing? You’ve met my parents before, but I haven’t officially told them about us yet. If I just brought you home directly, wouldn’t that have a better impact?"

Upon hearing this, Qiaoqiao’s playful expression vanished, replaced by the focused look of a serious driver. She scanned left, right, and straight ahead—anywhere but at him.

"Getting cold feet? You seemed pretty confident last time you met my parents," Liu Banxia teased.

"How can that be the same? I didn’t feel any pressure back then. It’s different now. I’m worried I won’t make a good enough impression," Qiaoqiao said.

"Oh, right, Yanzi and Jiaojiao are coming back tomorrow. You’d better be on your best behavior. Don’t let them make fun of me, or you’ll have me to answer to."

"How should I behave?" Liu Banxia asked.

Qiaoqiao was taken aback. She hadn’t really thought about that. How *should* he behave? Ask him to wait on her, give her a back rub, and massage her legs? Sigh... I’ll figure it out when the time comes.

Perhaps it was fate. In any case, after spending the past few days together, their relationship had been very harmonious.

There weren’t many cars on the road at this time. Once they arrived at the Second Hospital, Qiaoqiao was able to confidently stroll in with him.

Before Liu Banxia’s suspension, Qiaoqiao wouldn’t have been so bold. This was a small breakthrough for her in recent days.

Walking into the Emergency Center, even with the smell of disinfectant in the air, Liu Banxia felt a comforting sense of familiarity.

"This patient’s family member, please come over here for a moment," Zhou Li said seriously as she approached, her hands behind her back.

"Hello, nurse. I’m suffering from backaches and leg cramps; which department should I visit?" Liu Banxia cheerfully asked.

Zhou Li glanced at him. "You’ll be fine as long as you and Qiaoqiao behave yourselves and get some proper sleep tonight."

Qiaoqiao, who had been enjoying the banter, was suddenly dumbfounded. How did I get dragged into this?

Liu Banxia gave a thumbs up. "Sister Li, you live up to your reputation! That one comment completely floored both me and Qiaoqiao. Where’s Shi Lei? How’s that patient?"

"The patient is still under observation, and Shi Lei is in the treatment room. Go find him yourself; I’m going to chat with Qiaoqiao," Zhou Li said.

Looking earnestly at Qiaoqiao, Liu Banxia said, "Qiaoqiao, you have to hang in there!" Then he hurried off.

Even though Qiaoqiao was a bold and unrestrained person, when facing Zhou Li’s interrogation, she was no match for her.

"Hey, patient’s family member, don’t run off! Come over here first." Before Liu Banxia could reach the treatment room, Xu Hui beckoned to him.

The interns standing nearby struggled to stifle their amusement. Their esteemed Teacher Liu was being treated like a patient’s family member today.

"Looks like all the diagnostic reports are with you, Brother Xu. So, what exactly is the situation?" Liu Banxia asked as he approached.

"The situation is very complicated." Xu Hui’s expression also turned serious.

"Blood tests, urine tests, X-rays—everything’s normal. But his little finger has turned even darker now, and it might become necrotic very soon."

"Through our inquiries, we learned he had a fall yesterday. We considered if he might have injured his ulnar nerve when bracing himself, leading to his current condition. We had neurologists examine him carefully, but they found no issues."

"Also, because he’s a car mechanic, his hands often get bumped and scraped. We meticulously examined his entire hand but found no open wounds, ruling out necrosis caused by an infection."

"The X-ray also showed the patient’s arm is normal, which rules out disseminated intravascular coagulation potentially caused by bleeding from a fracture or bone fissure."

"Currently, besides the worsening symptoms in his finger, the patient is also showing signs of elevated body temperature and respiratory distress. To be safe, we’ve already sent him for a chest CT scan."

Liu Banxia nodded. "It does seem quite tricky. Could it be caused by pneumonia or a blood clot?"

"We’re still unsure if it’s pneumonia, but it’s likely not a blood clot. His circulation seems fine; otherwise, his entire finger would have definitely become necrotic by now," Xu Hui said.

"The consensus from our consultation is that it’s likely some kind of bacterial infection. However, this is just our current speculation. That’s why we called you, his ’family member,’ over. It would be great if you could help us buy some more time."

Liu Banxia grimaced. "If you all can’t figure it out, how could I?"

"You have to, whether you think you can or not. You’ve got a quick mind. As long as you don’t get involved in any hands-on procedures and just give us your opinion, it’s not against the rules for us to issue the medical orders based on that," Xu Hui said.

Liu Banxia nodded and picked up the recent diagnostic reports, examining them carefully.

Normally, if he were called back in the middle of a meal, Liu Banxia would definitely be somewhat annoyed. But now, even though he wasn’t wearing his white coat, he felt exceptionally cheerful.

Perhaps, deep down, I genuinely love this profession. Before, it was truly about making money to live a good life, but that motivation is becoming less and less significant now.