"What!"
Xu Qiushuang's eyebrows shot up, a faint layer of anger spreading across her beautiful face.
Clearly, she seemed to have misunderstood something, even thinking that Fang Zhiyan was teasing her. But would Fang Zhiyan do such a thing? He was a doctor with medical ethics.
Shen Qingyue, standing nearby, also frowned at the misunderstanding.
Fang Zhiyan sighed lightly and pointed to the X-ray in front of him. "See? The serrated edges of the bottle cap are pressing tightly against the mucosa at the top of the esophagus. It would be very difficult to remove it with just standard endoscopic forceps."
"And it's easy to damage the esophagus this way. However, if we use a condom to cover the bottle cap…" He continued to explain, "Then, by using the endoscopic forceps to pull on it, wouldn't it be much easier to get the cap out?"
To make his point clear to Xu Qiushuang, Fang Zhiyan explained it as thoroughly as possible.
Upon hearing this, Xu Qiushuang's face turned bright red. She realized she had misunderstood Fang Zhiyan's intentions.
"I… I'm sorry, Doctor Fang. I thought…"
Embarrassment washed over Xu Qiushuang, leaving her feeling mortified.
Fang Zhiyan sighed again, looking at the blushing Xu Qiushuang with a hint of helplessness. He waved his hand slightly. "No need to apologize. What we need right now is a condom. Could you see if you can go buy one?"
Xu Qiushuang nodded repeatedly and hurriedly ran out.
But just a moment later, she suddenly stopped, turning back to Fang Zhiyan with a helpless expression. "But, where do I buy this? I've never bought one before…"
Her face was so red it looked like it might ignite. She practically wished she could bury her head in her chest.
Fang Zhiyan couldn't help but smile slightly at her reaction. It seemed she really was a naive girl. He scratched his head and glanced at Shen Qingyue. "How about you take her to buy one?"
Shen Qingyue shot him a look. "Do you think I know where to buy that? I've never bought one!"
"Cough." Fang Zhiyan cleared his throat, momentarily unsure of how to deal with the situation.
Was it really that difficult? Just as he was pondering how to direct Xu Qiushuang to buy it, the attending physician from the endoscopy room spoke up.
"If it's a condom, why didn't you say so earlier? I have one." He pulled one out of his pocket.
"Don't get the wrong idea; this is for a friend. I'm not using it," he added quickly.
Fang Zhiyan nodded, his expression filled with admiration. "I understand, good friend."
"Cough!" The attending physician cleared his throat and, with a stern face, led the patient inside.
In the early twenty-first century, endoscopic technology was still relatively new. Even at a traditional medicine hospital, while they had the equipment, their proficiency was quite basic, even exploratory.
Fang Zhiyan carefully explained the surgical details to Xu Qiushuang, getting her to sign the consent forms, stating that if the procedure was unsuccessful, they might need to transfer the patient. After all, this was a challenging surgery.
The serrated bottom of the cap could easily injure the esophageal lining. Given the unique nature of the esophagus, healing from such injuries was difficult. If it were to tear, surgery akin to that required for esophageal cancer might be necessary.
In this case, they would need to perform three incisions, suturing in the neck area, with the unpleasant smell corresponding to such surgeries permeating the hospital corridors daily.
Fang Zhiyan shook his head slightly, ensuring he would be as careful as possible. However, the attending physician had no intention of letting Fang Zhiyan take control of the procedure. He took the lead, carefully maneuvering the endoscopic forceps toward the cap against the bright red background.
The serrated edges pressed against the esophageal lining, showing signs of ischemia. But despite the physician's efforts, the condom wouldn't fit over the cap, and it seemed to push downward, causing additional harm to the patient's esophagus.
The attending physician's brow furrowed instantly. He paused for a moment before continuing, but after a few breaths, he gave up. "This isn't working; I can't succeed."
"Your little idea seems unreliable," he remarked, seemingly wanting to shift the blame onto Fang Zhiyan.
Fang Zhiyan touched his nose and suggested, "How about I give it a try?"
"You?" The attending physician became anxious. "No way! You're an intern; do you really have the skills for this?"
Fang Zhiyan blinked and decided to leverage his status. "This method was my idea, and besides, Director He from the emergency department specially brought me in. I have sufficient capability; trust me."
The attending physician hesitated, examining Fang Zhiyan closely, but he still wasn't convinced.
Fang Zhiyan chuckled, "If you'd rather handle it, I can assist. How about that?"
"Alright."
This time, the attending physician didn't refuse.
They worked together, and with Fang Zhiyan's help, the endoscopic forceps re-entered while adjusting the condom's edge to fit snugly around the bottle cap.
In the next moment, as the condom successfully extracted the entire cap, the attending physician was left dumbfounded.
Was it really that simple? Why hadn't he succeeded earlier? This kid was an intern, right? What kind of intern was this?
His face mirrored disbelief as he watched Fang Zhiyan effortlessly extract the cap.
"What?"
"Impressive!" The attending physician gave a thumbs up, his expression one of amazement.
He had truly learned something new today; who would have thought a condom could solve such a tricky problem? Now he had an excuse for carrying one around!
Fang Zhiyan smiled modestly and replied, "No, it's still Dr. Cui who's amazing. I only had a hypothesis, and you validated it."
The attending physician paused for a moment, then coughed lightly. "Haha, you're too modest."
"You're a pretty good young man, with bold and reliable ideas. Next time you need an endoscope, come find me."
"Sure thing." Fang Zhiyan replied cheerfully as he walked out, holding the bottle cap contained in the condom.
Outside, Xu Qiushuang was anxiously waiting.
Fang Zhiyan's pre-operative details had made her extremely nervous. If the traditional medicine hospital couldn't resolve this, it meant transferring to another facility, which would likely lead to a chest operation—truly a hassle.
How had her brother gotten so unlucky that even drinking soda would result in trouble?
Just as she was pacing in a frenzy, the endoscopy room door opened, and Fang Zhiyan stepped out with a smile.
"Take a look; is this the cap?"
Xu Qiushuang's eyes widened as she exclaimed in delight, "Ah! Doctor Fang, you're amazing!"
"You actually got it out!"
"How's my brother? What's his condition?"
"It's all good now; he's out of danger." Fang Zhiyan replied with a smile.
And Shen Qingyue, standing nearby, was also impressed. "Doctor Fang, who would have thought you had this kind of skill?"
Fang Zhiyan chuckled silently.
Meanwhile, in the corridor outside the endoscopy room, footsteps echoed urgently.
"Unbelievable, Fang Zhiyan really sent a patient to the endoscopy room? What is he trying to do?"
"He's an intern; has he lost his mind?"