The surgery had been successful. However, there was still some risk to the patient remaining. But, since the surgery had been done so excellently, the risk would be greatly reduced.

Ouyang Hong had left the emergency operating room already to report to the leaders. Meanwhile, Guo Shubin was still unwilling to let a talent like Zhang Fan go. A head nurse was currently helping Zhang Fan to wipe away all of his sweat. Guo Shubin remarked, “The conditions here are so lacking. For a difficult surgery like this, my Shuitanzi Hospital is capable of having three teams of doctors taking turns with each other on the surgery. Not only that, we have such difficult surgeries almost on a monthly basis.” Guo Shubin was actually exaggerating! But, he knew quite well that only the most difficult surgeries and most talented companions would attract such a talented doctor.

However, Zhang Fan wasn’t tempted by Guo Shubin’s offer to come to Shuitanzi Hospital at all. Zhang Fan had already planned his future path quite clearly. “Director Guo, is it possible to finish both graduate and doctorate medical studies in just two years?”

“I doubt it!” Guo Shubin was rather surprised at this question. What was going on? ‘If Zhang Fan is in a hurry to graduate, there could only be one reason. He must lack money!’ Guo Shubin thought to himself.

“Even if our Shuitanzi Hospital doesn’t offer the highest salaries in all of China, we surely rank in the top three. If you become my personal graduate student, I can even give you financial assistance,” Guo Shubin continued in his efforts to persuade Zhang Fan to come with him.

“Actually, you’re already skilled enough at orthopedic surgery to be fully independent. There’s no need for you to study orthopedic surgery any further. Even if you continue your studies in this field, there won’t be much room for improvement left for you. The ceiling for orthopedic surgery is quite low, but things are different in neurovascular surgery. Right now, you’re just a beginner at neurovascular surgery. There will be tremendous challenges for you in the future. How about it? If you dare, come follow me. I will guarantee that you’ll have an exciting life from now on, with every day being different.” Director Liang suddenly made his offer as well. He could tell by now that perhaps Zhang Fan’s teacher was only a genius citizen who didn’t have high standing. Otherwise, Zhang Fan would never have asked a question indicating that he had trouble with securing a master’s and doctorate degree.

“How come you’re everywhere that I am, Old Liang! Just how much could Zhang Fan possibly know about neurovascular surgery? He’ll have to start learning from the basics! But since he already has such a good foundation in orthopedic surgery, he should improve even further by coming with me! Besides, Old Liang, even you yourself don’t understand all neurovascular surgeries completely yet! You claim that every day will be different? Don’t you mean that every patient’s problem is different!?”

Even now, humans had only managed to crack a small percentage of the mysteries and complexities of the brain. There was still a long, long path to go until the brain was fully understood.

“That’s why it’s a challenge. Isn’t it boring to study something that’s already been fully figured out? Doctor Zhang, how old are you? You look quite young. How many years have you been in orthopedic surgery?”

“I’m 24 years old. I’m still just a rotation doctor!”

Guo Shubin still wanted to say something, but it was now time to wheel the patient out of the operating room! He needed to go inform the patient’s sister of the patient’s condition, so he stopped saying anything else for the time being as he and Director Liang left the operating room together.

Director Liang stopped in the door to the operating room as he said to Zhang Fan, “Remember my words! You must broaden your horizons, and not just limit yourself to a field that’s already been fully developed. Only by developing the unknown will you have the most exciting life.”

“Let’s get going already. Why are you so talkative today? Zhang Fan is an orthopedic surgeon, not a neurovascular surgeon like you.” But if it weren’t for the fact that Guo Shubin needed to go inform the patient’s sister of her brother’s condition, he definitely would have debated Director Liang nonstop right here.

Ouyang Hong had already reported to the leaders during the spine fixation portion of the surgery. “Leaders, the surgery has been successful. As long as the patient makes it past tonight, the rest will only be the postoperative care recovery period.”

“Thank you for all your hard work. What resources do you need from us?” Only now did the patient’s older sister have a slightly friendlier expression. Although her attitude was now also friendlier, she still acted with an aura of her being high up above others. But now that the surgery had been successful, Ouyang Hong was no longer afraid of anything. She felt like she was Superwoman!

“As we are the best hospital in all of Chasu City, of course we will do our very best to save the life of every patient even if our conditions here are difficult, with only simple medical equipment and not even a standalone building for our emergency department. However, our doctors are the very best doctors, so no worries! Everything will be alright!”

Resources? The patient’s sister wanted to offer resources? Then Ouyang Hong would definitely ask for plenty of resources as the price for making her worry so much in the middle of the night, and also since the woman was taking such a high and mighty attitude by offering them!

If the woman had been one of Superintendent Ouyang’s direct bosses, Ouyang Hong instead would have acted completely subservient. However, even the city leader was acting respectful around this woman, so Ouyang Hong figured that the woman wasn’t the type to care about her attitude or anything about her. Ouyang Hong knew that it was unlikely for her to be able to obtain any personal benefits, but it would be great even if she could just obtain something for Chasu City Hospital!

The city leader and the middle-aged military leader also heaved sighs of relief. The military man was especially relieved because he wouldn’t have known what to do if he had let his boss’s son ¹ die here on a mission.

At this moment, Director Guo and Director Liang exited the operating room, while the guest doctor anesthesiology director watched over and brought the patient to the intensive care unit.

Superintendent Ouyang’s words could only let the patient’s sister heave a sigh of relief, but she wasn’t actually truly reassured. Guo Shubin didn’t even wait for the woman to speak as he first said, “The surgery was a success. After the patient gets through this day, he’ll be completely out of danger by tomorrow. The doctors here are incredibly skilled. They managed to independently complete the surgery without our assistance. I’m truly impressed!” Guo Shubin wasn’t the type to steal others’ credit, as he looked down upon such behavior.

The city leader had a pleased expression, while Superintendent Ouyang became really excited. Just earlier, Ouyang Hong had thought that this incident would become a great disaster for her, but now it had become a great accomplishment. This was quite a roller coaster of emotions for her.

The middle-aged military leader still had much work to attend to, so he whispered something to the patient’s sister, and then left, leaving only a few soldiers behind. Since the invited top-level doctors had also confirmed that the surgery had been successful, the woman now felt reassured.

“Thank you all for your hard work. I will have to trouble you three guest doctors for one more day. I would also like to take my younger brother back with me to Beijing tomorrow. Would that be possible?”

Superintendent Ouyang wanted to say something, but the city leader stopped her with a gesture.

“It depends on how well the patient recovers by tomorrow, but it’s likely that he can be moved,” Director Liang said after some consideration.

The woman finally smiled upon hearing this news. She told the city leader, “Sorry for all the trouble, Mr. Zhao. Please come visit my family when you have some free time. My father really misses his comrades who are in the border province.”

“Okay, sure! We also really miss our leader.”

Zhang Fan and his original surgical assistants were all completely out of energy now that the surgery had concluded. The surgery had been incredibly difficult, after all. With the patient safely brought over to the intensive care unit, Zhang Fan and his three surgical assistants all collapsed against the wall of the operating room.

“My hands are so numb. I’m completely drenched in sweat! I was so nervous for the surgery. My legs were going soft on me when you were removing the bullet. If it weren’t for me forcefully telling myself to withstand it, I really wouldn’t have been able to keep standing. I’m getting old!” Chen Qi raised his head as he spoke towards the astral lamp which had already been turned off.

“Haha! Doctor Zhang, I studied previously at Zhongyong Hospital. Allow me to say something selfish. I’m so jealous of you, I really am! Director Liang is someone who rarely acts so close with others,” said neurosurgery director Yu Bin.

“Director Gao Shijun will be so heartbroken, haha!” Li Hongtu also felt that Zhang Fan would leave now. Having a choice between going to one of the two best hospitals in all of China was unimaginable for a place like the border province.

“But I still haven’t finished my rotations yet!”

That was the end of the conversation! The other three doctors all received massive critical hits! Some of China’s best doctors had just been impressed with Zhang Fan’s skills when they acted as his surgical assistants, and invited him to their hospitals. Yet, Zhang Fan’s only response was that he still wanted to finish his rotations. The others no longer had the energy to say anything else, as they were truly exhausted.

No patient family members would be allowed in the ICU, so the city leader and Superintendent Ouyang constantly accompanied the patient’s sister. Director Guo, Director Liang, and the guest doctor anesthesiology director had all been led by the city leader’s secretary to a prepared place for them to rest as they had all flown to Chasu City in the middle of the night.

“I would like to personally thank the doctors who performed surgery on my younger brother. Superintendent, please arrange this for me,” the woman told Superintendent Ouyang.

“Alright, I’ll arrange for it right now. It’s what we should have done for your brother regardless.”

A few minutes later in the superintendent’s office, the woman bowed to Zhang Fan and the three doctors who had been his surgical assistants. “Thank you all for your hard work!”

Zhang Fan, Li Hongtu, and the others weren’t really surprised by this, because they had been thanked by plenty of family members who bowed to them before.

However, the city leader and Superintendent Ouyang were so surprised that their mouths were hanging wide agape. Someone as prideful and high in status as this woman was actually bowing to regular doctors? They didn’t understand the despair that she’d felt when she heard the news that the only young man in her family was on the verge of death. So what if she was at the peak of Chinese society! Her young brother was considered the hope of her family, the one who carried on the dreams of the family’s ancestors! In the heavily patriarchal Chinese society, not having a male descendant would be the equivalent of having no hope, and thus having nothing!

“It’s what we should have done. There’s no need to behave so formally with us, and even if you want to give your thanks, you should thank Doctor Zhang. We were nothing more than his assistants,” Chen Qi spoke first as he was the most eloquent among the doctors.

“Vice Director Chen, it would have been impossible for me to accomplish this surgery alone!” Zhang Fan hurriedly stated.

“My younger brother owes his life to all of you.” After saying this, the patient’s older sister then glanced over at Chasu City’s city leader. “Mr. Zhao, what do you say?”

Since she wasn’t actually someone who had jurisdiction here in the border province, it would be inconvenient for her to do certain things as that would be considered too overbearing in regards to the local authority.

City Leader Zhao said, “All of you are excellent employees of Chasu City Hospital, fighting against disease every day. I’m quite grateful that you’re all working your hardest for the sake of the people. Superintendent Ouyang, since they’ve achieved something so great, they should be rewarded. Otherwise, your employees will lose morale!” He tossed the responsibility of rewarding the doctors onto Superintendent Ouyang because he didn’t know how the doctors should be rewarded.

Ouyang Hong was really delighted. Although there was still some risk remaining to the patient, even the invited top-level guest doctors had said that the patient’s condition would be good enough to be flown to Beijing tomorrow, so there was likely little danger left. This would be the best timing for her to make her own request!

“Although our doctors are all quite hardworking, this is still just a border province. I would like to send them out on study programs to other hospitals.”

“Alright, which hospitals? I can help contact them for you.” Superintendent Ouyang also knew quite clearly that although the woman was offering her thanks, she still needed to have limits with her requests. Otherwise, she would be acting shamelessly.

“You doctors should say where you would like to go study at!” Superintendent Ouyang smiled at Zhang Fan and the other doctors.

The other three doctors all simultaneously glanced at Zhang Fan. Currently, Zhang Fan’s foundational medical knowledge still wasn’t completely solid. Once his foundation was absolutely solid, that would be when he truly started soaring in his career. He felt no need to be in a hurry to go out on a study program. Although his System was strong, Zhang Fan still wanted to learn things on his own. Otherwise, he would be nothing more than a puppet to his System, not a doctor!