Love Lock

Chapter 205 Iron Plate Driven into Bone
Han Lei suddenly realized what was going on. She gently grasped Li Sao's rough hand and said softly, "Li Sao, is it because of Xiao Le's leg?"

"Your Highness, please forgive me. I know you are busy, but I really hope that Xiao Le can..." Aunt Li's tone was full of apology.

Han Lei patted the back of her hand, feeling a pang of guilt.

She promised to treat Li's son's leg ailment, but due to various matters, she kept delaying it. Three or four months had passed in the blink of an eye, so it was no wonder that Li was anxiously waiting.

Looking at Li Sao's haggard face, she could imagine how this mother had spent these days.

"I'm sorry, Aunt Li, it was indeed my oversight." Despite her exhaustion, Han Lei decided to work overtime: "I'll perform the surgery on Xiao Le tonight."

"Really?" Upon hearing this, Aunt Li was so excited that she was about to kneel down, but Han Lei helped her up.

"Don't do this, I already agreed. But..." Han Lei looked around, her brows furrowing slightly, "The surgery requires an assistant, and there's no one to help right now."

For her son's sake, Aunt Li immediately volunteered: "Your Highness, I can do it! I've learned everything from assisting you last time!"

Han Lei shook her head. "Sister Li, this time is different. Xiao Le is your son. During the surgery, his leg bone needs to be broken and rejoined. As a mother, it's hard for you to stay calm. Emotional fluctuations will affect the surgery."

Zhao Ling'er, who was standing to the side, stepped forward and said, "Sister-in-law, let me give it a try. Sister-in-law Li was able to do it last time, so I should be able to too."

Han Lei turned to Zhao Ling'er, thought for a moment, and then shook her head.

“Ling’er, last time we rescued assassins, which allowed for a higher margin of error. But this time I need an experienced assistant. After all, Xiao Le is one of our own, and still just a child. A slight mistake could leave him with a lifelong disability.”

Upon hearing this, Aunt Li couldn't help but burst into tears. She knew how precious it was that Han Lei, amidst her busy schedule, had managed to find time to help Xiao Le with the surgery.

Unexpectedly, Han Lei agreed, but then faced a dilemma because she didn't have an assistant.

The surgery Han Lei described was something they had never heard of or seen before; only she had glimpsed a few parts of it last time. Besides her, there was truly no one else in the house who could help.

Just as Li Sao was feeling helpless, the sound of horses' hooves came from afar. Everyone turned around and saw Hua Tianyou riding back on a chestnut horse.

He reined in his horse at the gate, deftly dismounted, his forehead still covered in sweat and dirt.

"Brother Tianyou!" Zhao Ling'er exclaimed joyfully.

Hua Tianyou walked over and looked at the solemn expressions on everyone's faces. "Why are you all standing here? What happened?"

A glint immediately flashed in Aunt Li's eyes. "Young Master Hua, you've come at the perfect time. The Princess needs treatment for my little Le's leg, and you're the only one here who has ever assisted her. I'd like to ask if you could help her?"

Upon hearing that it was for Xiao Le's treatment, Hua Tianyou readily agreed without hesitation: "Sure! I'll be your assistant. What do you need me to do?"

Han Lei carefully examined Hua Tianyou. Although he looked somewhat tired, his eyes were still clear and bright. As things stand, Hua Tianyou was indeed the most suitable candidate.

"Tianyou, this surgery will take about two hours. Are you sure you can handle it? You're already very tired today," Han Lei asked with concern.

Hua Tianyou smiled, revealing a row of white teeth.

"Don't worry, this little bit of tiredness is nothing. Xiao Le is a well-behaved, lively, and adorable child. We can't let him be lame for the rest of his life."

Upon hearing this, Sister Li could no longer control her emotions. She knelt down on the ground with a thud and kowtowed repeatedly.

"Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Young Master Hua! I could never repay your kindness, even if I were to serve you like a slave for the rest of my life!"

Han Lei quickly helped her up: "Sister Li, please don't be like this. Since Tianyou is willing to help, then it's settled. Tianyou will be the first assistant, and Sister Li, if you can, you can be the second assistant."

She turned to Li Sao with a serious expression, "But you must promise me that no matter what you see, you must remain calm and not interfere with the surgery."

Aunt Li nodded vigorously, wiping away her tears with her sleeve: "I swear, I will listen to the Princess and will never cause any trouble during the surgery!"

Zhao Ling'er hesitated before raising her hand: "Sister-in-law, I also want to help you."

Han Lei thought about it. She couldn't count on Zhao Ling'er for help, but she could observe and learn from her. Maybe she would be able to come in handy in the future, just like she was now.

She nodded slightly: "Alright, you can just watch from the side. Maybe you'll learn something. Don't make any noise or move around."

"Okay, don't worry, sister-in-law."

Zhao Ling'er was very happy. Since Han Lei appeared, she had indeed learned a lot from Han Lei, such as counting, accounting, and bookkeeping using Arabic numerals.

Han Lei nodded and began to make detailed arrangements, "Sister Li, go back now and let Xiao Le take a hot bath. She can't get wet for at least seven days after the surgery. Also, from now on, Xiao Le can't eat anything and should drink as little water as possible. This is to prevent any accidents during anesthesia."

Aunt Li carefully took notes, afraid of missing a single word: "Yes, Your Highness, I will go back and prepare right away."

Han Lei added, "We'll go back to wash up and have a meal, then rest for a while before starting the surgery. Tell Xiao Le to relax and not be afraid."

"Yes, yes, I remember," Aunt Li replied repeatedly, her worried expression finally easing a little.

Hua Tianyou patted Li Sao on the shoulder and comforted her, "Don't worry, with the Princess here, Xiao Le's leg will definitely get better."

As dusk deepened, lanterns were lit in front of the Zhao family mansion. Han Lei watched Li Sao's hurried departure and took a deep breath.

“Let’s go,” she said to Hua Tianyou and Zhao Ling’er, “we need to hurry up and prepare.”

Hua Tianyou nodded solemnly. He knew that tonight he was shouldering not only the responsibility of an assistant, but also the hope for a child's future.

When the old lady and the servants heard that Xiao Le was going to have leg correction surgery, the dining hall suddenly became lively.

The cook, Aunt Zhang, forgot to put down her soup ladle and rushed over to ask, "Your Highness, is there any danger in this surgery?"

The maids who were clearing away the dishes stopped what they were doing, and a dozen pairs of eyes turned to look at Han Lei.

Han Lei swallowed the last mouthful of congee and tapped the porcelain spoon lightly on the rim of the bowl twice: "I'm 100% confident about this surgery."

She looked around at everyone, her gaze particularly firm under the solar lights.

"It just takes time for bones to regrow, about three to six months for a full recovery."

After dinner, Han Lei directed people to assemble the eight-immortal table into an operating table, and Zhao Ling'er carefully sprayed disinfectant in every corner.

The pungent smell of the medicine mixed with the lingering aroma of food, filling the canteen.

The simple shadowless lamp left over from the last surgery was suspended on a horizontal rope; Han Lei simply replaced it with a few solar-powered lamps that were fully charged.

An hour later, Han Lei, having washed her hands again, stood before the makeshift operating table. Hua Tianyou was placing the last instrument on the tray, the stainless steel instruments clanging together.

When he looked up, he saw Sister Li leading her child into the dining hall.

Four-year-old Xiao Le was wearing coarse cloth clothes that had been altered to be too small. When he jumped, his right leg was clearly weak. His originally sallow and thin face was now rosy.

That rosy little face was filled with curiosity, seemingly completely unaware of what the surgery about to take was.

Han Lei crouched down to look him in the eye. The crooked stitches on the child's collar were Li Sao's work. "Xiao Le, we're going to perform surgery on your leg soon." Han Lei gently touched his injured leg and said softly, "After it's healed, you can run and jump like before. Are you scared?"

"Your Highness, Xiao Le is not afraid."

Xiao Le bowed like an adult, showing great manners, which shows that Aunt Li had taught him a lot.

The warmth from Han Lei's palm made him grin, a smile that was innocent and naive.

Han Lei first examined his photo. The portable X-ray machine hummed when it was turned on, and Xiao Le stared wide-eyed at the glowing "iron box".

When the image showed the twisted shinbone, Mrs. Li gasped.

Hua Tianyou's fingertip hovered three inches above the image, lightly touching the abnormally healed fracture.

"These bones grew together at an angle?"

“An old fracture.” Han Lei tapped the image lightly with her fingernails. “So it needs to be re-cut here.”

She drew a straight line with her fingertip, "and then used a steel plate to straighten and fix it."

Han Lei explained the tasks and precautions to them again before starting her work.

As the anesthetic was slowly injected into the vein, Xiao Le counted the buttons on Han Lei's white coat. By the third count, her eyelids began to droop.

Hua Tianyou noticed that the frequency of the child's eyelashes gradually slowed down, and finally stopped completely like the wings of a butterfly.

"This...this is the anesthesia you were talking about?" Hua Tianyou's mouth dropped open in disbelief.

Han Lei hummed in agreement and said nothing more.

As the sterile surgical drapes were laid out and the scalpel made its way through the skin, Li Sao stood behind Hua Tianyou, her fingernails digging deep into her palms.

The dull thud of the bone saw's teeth snapping into the bone made her turn around abruptly, her shoulder slamming into the equipment rack.

Han Lei didn't even look up: "Sister Li, go change the saline solution." This simple instruction was like a lifeline, giving the trembling woman a foothold.

Sweat beaded on Hua Tianyou's forehead.

When he saw Han Lei precisely adjusting the angle of the broken bone with bone forceps, he suddenly recalled the jade craftsmen he had seen in his childhood carving jade pendants, with the same focused and almost pious expression.

His pupils contracted sharply as the first titanium alloy plate was applied to the bone. The metal gleamed blue under the operating lights, and the sound of the screws being turned in was unusually piercing.

"This is... nailing a piece of iron into the bone?" Aunt Li's trembling voice was as faint as a wisp of smoke.

As she watched the gleaming screws pierce her son's bone cortex, her legs suddenly went weak and she couldn't stand up.

Han Lei's hands didn't stop moving at all: "This is an alloy that's even stronger than bone. Once it heals, it will become part of the child's body."

When the last screw was tightened, Han Lei's eyelashes finally trembled.

Hua Tianyou carefully looked at the new images presented on the X-ray machine. The originally twisted bone segments were now as straight as a ruler, and the steel plate fit the bone perfectly.

His Adam's apple bobbed, but he couldn't speak. He finally understood where Han Lei's absolute certainty came from.

As the sutures moved across the skin, Li's tears finally fell onto the blue brick floor.

This time it wasn't out of fear, but rather as I looked at the gradually closing incision on my son's leg, it was as if I could see him running in the future.

Outside the window, the night watchman struck the third watch gong, and Han Lei cut the last suture. The sound of the instruments falling into the tray seemed to bring the surgery to a close.

Xiao Le's pale face looked particularly fragile under the solar light. He lay quietly on the octagonal table, the effects of the anesthetic not yet completely worn off, his eyelashes casting faint shadows on his eyelids.

Han Lei gently placed her hand on his pulse, feeling a faint but steady beat beneath her fingertips.

"Your Highness, please go and rest. I'll stay here." Aunt Li rubbed her rough hands together, her voice full of guilt.

Han Lei shook her head and took out the pain pump from her spatial storage to check the scale: "The pain medication needs to be adjusted regularly. You are not familiar with this device, and you don't know how to take care of it, so I have to stay here and watch over it."

As she spoke, she yawned, and a few tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.

Suddenly, Aunt Li knelt down, her knees slamming onto the bluestone floor with a dull thud: "Your Highness, you saved Xiao Le's life, our Li family..."

"Get up quickly!" Han Lei hurriedly helped him up, his shawl slipping to the ground. "It's just a doctor's duty."

Footsteps faded into the distance outside the gate. Hua Tianyou and Zhao Ling'er stepped out of the courtyard, the night breeze carrying the fragrance of flowers brushing against their faces. Hua Tianyou suddenly stopped, looking up at the moon, which was half-hidden by clouds.

"I never imagined that you could fix bones with nails." He gestured as he set the bone, "It's like repairing a table or chair, all that hammering and banging, it's really an eye-opener."

Zhao Ling'er suddenly couldn't help but gag, pulling a handkerchief from her sleeve and pressing it to her lips: "Brother Tianyou... could you please not be so specific..."

"Oh, you actually held back?" Hua Tianyou raised an eyebrow. "Last time when I handed Han Lei the tools, I saw her reach in and grab something..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Ling'er rushed to the corner and started vomiting.

When she returned, panting, Hua Tianyou chuckled and handed her the water pouch: "Hehe, it's my fault for being nosy. But you did well today, you even noticed the way the equipment was passed around."

Zhao Ling'er rinsed her mouth and smiled weakly: "I want to learn more so that I can help my sister-in-law next time she needs surgery."

"Well, you're something else!" Hua Tianyou pretended to knock her on the head. "So you were secretly learning from her."

The two chatted and laughed as they walked through the corridor, each returning to their respective quarters to rest.

Inside the canteen, Xiao Le groaned in his sleep, and Han Lei immediately woke up to check on him.

Aunt Li brought over a cup of hot tea and said, "Please put this on." She then draped her own cotton-padded coat over Han Lei's shoulders.

Seeing that Xiao Le had woken up, Aunt Li breathed a sigh of relief and asked him if he was in pain. Xiao Le shook his head.

Looking at her son's leg, which was wrapped in a splint and bandaged tightly, Li Sao asked, "Your Highness, what will happen to these iron nails later..."

“It can be removed once the bone has healed,” Han Lei explained softly. “It’s like building a trellis for crops; once they’re mature, they’re no longer needed.”

This analogy eased some of the worry in the eyes of Li Sao, who came from a peasant background.

The night was darker.

Seeing that Xiao Le was alright, Han Lei took out a fleece cloak from her spatial storage, folded it into a pillow, and lay down peacefully by the table to fall asleep...

After a two-day rest, I'm full of energy again! Seeing everyone's urging for more updates, thank you all for reading! Love you all!