"Director, Liu is a good doctor. My husband even praised him, saying he isn't like other doctors who always have a stern face, telling us to do this and that. Why won't you let Dr. Liu draw the fluid then?" asked Liu Liyou's wife, who had been listening for a while without a clear understanding of the situation.
First impressions are very important, she thought. Dr. Liu seems very responsible and gets along well with Liyou; I trust him. If I praise him a bit, maybe he'll be even more attentive when treating my husband later.
But after she finished speaking, the atmosphere on site became even more peculiar. This was because they had just been discussing the serious issue of overtreatment. According to that line of reasoning, shouldn't this patient with cirrhosis and ascites have undergone several instrumental examinations? Yet, Liu Banxia hadn't ordered any.
Zhou Shuwen glanced at Qin Hai. This is getting interesting, he thought. Actually, I was thinking the same thing just now—that Liu Banxia was only doing it for the commission.
Qin Hai's face flushed crimson. He hadn't expected a patient's family member to actually defend Liu Banxia. What on earth is happening? He felt incredibly embarrassed.
"In a hospital, there's no room for carelessness," Qin Hai finally managed after about thirty seconds of silence, then looked at Liu Liyou's wife.
"Rest assured, Doctor Qi Wentai is a master's graduate from Binhai Medical College and is the most technically proficient among our current resident doctors."
Liu Liyou's wife frowned, sensing the situation here was somewhat complex. However, since a director from such a large hospital had spoken, she could only nod.
Qi Wentai felt somewhat uneasy. I just wanted to secretly report Liu Banxia and teach him a small lesson, he thought. I didn't expect things to turn out like this. Scheming behind the scenes is one thing, but this is blatant robbery!
However, since things had developed this way, he couldn't let his uncle be put on the spot. He had no choice but to follow Zhou Li upstairs.
"Doctor Liu, Doctor Liu, quickly, come and give her stitches! You do it so well!"
Just then, a shout from nearby drew everyone's attention.
Liu Banxia was taken aback for a moment; he recognized her. It was Wang Xiaoyan, the patient from his first cosmetic suture case of the day. She was now hurrying over with another girl of similar age, who was clutching her hand.
"Are you two taking turns getting injured?" Liu Banxia commented casually.
"It's all because Qiaoqiao insisted on making soup for me. The clumsy thing ended up cutting her own hand instead," Wang Xiaoyan said helplessly.
"Doctor, it's a really long cut, and it bled so much! Yanzi said you're great at stitches, that they don't leave scars or hurt, and that you're very handsome. Look, can you stitch this for me?" Qiaoqiao said, removing the handkerchief to reveal her injured left index finger.
Nearby, Zhou Shuwen found this rather amusing. This current generation of patients isn't easy to handle, he mused. Are they even choosing doctors based on looks now? Could it be that this Liu Banxia has been swindling so many patients purely with his appearance?
Her nail art was quite pretty, though now it had a scratch across it. On the pad of her finger was a "horrifying" wound, about 0.5 centimeters long and 0.4 centimeters deep.
"It hurts... it's gaping open," Qiaoqiao added pitifully as Liu Banxia was still examining it.
"Miss, this wound isn't really suitable for stitching," Liu Banxia said with some reluctance.
"You stitched such a long wound on Yanzi's forehead, why can't mine be stitched?" Qiaoqiao exclaimed, startled.
"Because it simply doesn't need stitching," Liu Banxia said with a wry smile. "Look, is it still bleeding? All that blood on the handkerchief really scared me. We just need to clean the wound, bandage it up, and you should get a tetanus shot, just in case."
"Really? No stitches? No scar?" Qiaoqiao asked hesitantly.
"Well then, Doctor Liu, please take care of it for her. Now I'm the one who has to look after her," Wang Xiaoyan said.
"You silly girl, what nonsense are you spouting!" Qiaoqiao playfully slapped Wang Xiaoyan, forgetting she was using her injured hand. The moment she did, she winced and gritted her teeth in pain.
Qin Hai was now in an extremely awkward position. If it had just been Liu Liyou's wife causing a minor embarrassment earlier, that could have been smoothed over. This, however, was much harder to handle.
In business, a returning customer at least proves that your product has won their trust. As a doctor, having a returning patient proves that your medical skills, in some aspect, have also earned their trust.
Even if this patient was being a bit dramatic, her rushing over like this demonstrated her trust in Liu Banxia's suturing skills.
But I just suspended Liu Banxia from admitting new patients in the emergency department, Qin Hai thought. What am I supposed to do now?
Aha! There's a solution!
Just as Qin Hai was growing anxious, he spotted what he thought was his savior.
Wang Mingxing's father, Wang Lishan, was walking over from the radiology department, his expression grim. It seems my 'little chat' with radiology paid off, Qin Hai thought. He must have the results and is here to make trouble.
Following Qin Hai's gaze, Liu Banxia also saw Wang Lishan. His heart lurched. Don't tell me I actually got it wrong? This is going to be bad!
"Doctor Liu, I've behaved terribly! I owe you a profound apology!" Wang Lishan blurted out as he rushed up to Liu Banxia, tears streaming down his face.
Qin Hai was dumbfounded. What is this now?
"Brother Wang, what's wrong? What were the results?" Liu Banxia asked, also quite confused.
"The CT showed that Mingxing's pancreatic head is enlarged and has invaded the duodenum. I'm afraid it's a serious illness," Wang Lishan said, wiping his tears.
"Here, let me see the films," Zhou Shuwen spoke up.
Wang Lishan hurriedly handed the films to Zhou Shuwen, then wiped away more tears. "They all said that if Doctor Liu hadn't insisted on this CT scan, my boy might have been gone in a few months."
"The mass is quite large and has indeed invaded the duodenum," Zhou Shuwen said after examining the films. "However, try not to worry too much for now. Liu, please explain the situation to the patient's father."
Ding! Patient Wang Mingxing diagnosed. Reward: 1,000 experience points, 500 diagnostic skill proficiency points.
Congratulations to the host for leveling up to Level 10 (8,375/8,800). Reward: 1 attribute point, 5 Glory Points.
Reached Level 10. Gemstone enhancement and embedding system unlocked. Gemstones available for purchase in the system store.
"Brother Wang, please, don't panic as soon as you hear the word 'cancer'," Liu Banxia said, puffing out his chest slightly as he looked at the system prompts. Alright, things are stable now, he thought with relief.
"Pancreatic cancer is known as the 'king of cancers' precisely because it's so difficult to diagnose and treat. Very few cases are discovered in the early stages. Today, I stumbled upon it by sheer luck. That's the first piece of good news for your son."
"Director Zhou is one of the top surgeons in our hospital, and his surgical schedule is always packed. But today, we must get Director Zhou to schedule surgery for your son, no matter what. That's the second piece of good news."
"With an early-stage diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, and with Director Zhou performing the surgery, the postoperative survival rate is actually quite high. That's the third piece of good news. So, don't overthink things. The most important thing now is to focus on getting your son treated."
"Liu has presented me with a challenge," Zhou Shuwen remarked. "Alright, Shi Lei, check my surgical schedule later and arrange for a preoperative evaluation. We'll schedule this surgery for tomorrow or the day after. When something like this is discovered, it needs to be treated early. Delays are not an option. Director Qin, what are your thoughts?"
Qin Hai felt his old face flush hotly, and the veins in his temples throbbed. He knew his blood pressure must be soaring from sheer mortification.
"Director Qin, I almost forgot to thank you," Wang Lishan suddenly remembered, bowing sincerely to Qin Hai. "If you hadn't helped arrange things, we still wouldn't have these scans by now."
His wife had passed away, and because of it, his relationship with his son had become strained. But no matter how strained, the boy was his own flesh and blood, the apple of his eye. Now that his son was diagnosed with cancer, a particularly aggressive one at that, it felt as if a part of his own life was being carved out.
This sincere gratitude, however, felt like another vicious slap across Qin Hai's face. How could he possibly endure this humiliation?
"Just focus on getting him treated," Qin Hai mumbled. "I... I have some documents to review." With that, he turned and walked away, his retreating figure looking flustered and desolate.
However, Liu Banxia felt no sympathy for Qin Hai whatsoever. His own future had nearly been ruined at the hands of this old fox. Sympathy? What sympathy? All he felt now was the sweet satisfaction of turning the tables.