This doctor is already middle-aged, and he's only just started practicing medicine.

Chapter 211 He really did it!

"Little Mu Mu, aren't you being a little too calm?" Xie Yuan'an had just gone out to play after the competition, she hadn't disappeared. She was sharing with Mu Nanshu while shopping.

"The current match result is very similar to Lu Cheng's prediction."

Xie Yuan'an knew that Lu Cheng's original idea was just to win two first prizes in the vascular and nerve tracks, but now he had exceeded expectations.

Mu Nanshu only had time to reply when he took a break from the lab: "Since it was expected, there's not much of a surprise."

"He didn't even participate in the competition himself. Only a few people know the fun behind it. Most people only care about whether the results are real or not."

Xie Yuan'an: "Anyway, I came out right after the competition. The doctor from our hospital sent me updates on the other two competitions, and they were kind of funny."

"I estimate that even now, not many people know the truth."

Mu Nanshu sent a smiley face: "Lu Cheng told me that quite a few people have been calling him."

"Who exactly are they? Tell us quickly." Xie Yuan'an's gossip-loving nature was activated.

Mu Nanshu: "Lu Cheng didn't tell me either, but he did mention that a professor from Huashan Hospital called him and they talked for a long time."

Xie Yuan'an waited for seven or eight minutes, but Mu Nanshu didn't continue: "??? You left it at that 'but'? Are you trying to drive me crazy?"

Mu Nanshu said, "Lu Cheng only told me this much. I'm almost finished with my experiment, and I'll talk to him when I get back. He's on duty today, so I don't know if he had any surgeries."

“You.” Xie Yuan’an sent a head-knocking emoji.

"Couldn't you wait until you've finished asking the questions before you finish explaining?"

Mu Nanshu said, "Sister Xie, it was you who asked, so of course I will tell you the truth. In fact, you already know the general direction of the outcome."

Xie Yuan'an: "Is the result important? It's the process. I want to know the specific process."

"The more detailed the better!~"

"I'll let you in on a secret, actually, my dad is quite curious too..." Xie Yuan'an began to intimidate.

Mu Nanshu thought about it carefully before saying, "It really depends on whether Lu Cheng can reply."

Xie Yuan'an had no answer after asking around: "Alright, I'll wander around a bit more before heading back. It's getting late, and my dad's meeting is over. He wants me to meet his 'senior' again!"

"Then hurry up and go. We'll contact each other again tonight," Mu Nanshu said.

Xie Yuan'an: "We'll definitely keep in touch, mwah!"

"Little Mumu, I bought you three gifts, and I'll also bring you lots of hot pot base."

Mu Nanshu: "Why are there three pieces?"

Xie Yuan'an: "Two of them are gifts for the teacher, and the third one is a gift for a friend!"

"I don't think it's a good idea to just buy a gift for Lu Cheng. He might not even want it back, so why give it to you directly?"

Mu Nanshu did not reply.

Half an hour later, Xie Yuan'an was almost at Xie Xiao's place, but her phone remained silent.

"Little Mu Mu, have you misunderstood something? Let me tell you, Lu Cheng and I really have no contact or relationship. We only communicate through you." This time, Xie Yuan'an didn't say anything explicitly stating her innocence.

Mu Nanshu: "I know, Sister Xie, why are you explaining so much?"

"I just got back to eat. I was on my way earlier. Thank you so much, Sister Xie."

Xie Yuan'an: "..."

……

Zhang Tiesheng, Du Daihua, and Lu Cheng were on duty together, and they also ate together in the emergency surgery clinic.

It was already 8:30 p.m., and the normal dinner time had been delayed by an emergency surgery. We had ordered grilled meat rice instead.

Du Daihua was still hesitating: "Brother Lu, Brother Zhang, was it really okay to call Professor Tong over for that limb amputation surgery but not invite him to dinner?"

Zhang Tiesheng rolled his eyes at Du Daihua: "Didn't you understand? Professor Tong was planning to eat out. Why are you inviting him to eat in the department at this time?"

"Are you stupid?"

Tong Yuan'an was originally going to attend the National Microsurgery Conference, but he was delayed by some matters. Now, Tong Yuan'an is working with two doctors from Xiangya Hospital in the "operation room" in Longxian County to perform repairs.

Neither Zhang Tiesheng nor Du Daihua knew about these things.

"With brothers taking care of Teacher Tong, we don't need to worry about anything!" Lu Cheng said with a smile.

"Du Daihua, could you make some more of that fermented bean curd?"

Du Daihua quickly handed the fermented bean curd in front of her to Lu Cheng, and then said what she was thinking: "It's Professor Tong's business to have someone make arrangements for him, but our invitation is ours."

"Brother Zhang, isn't this what you've always taught me?"

Zhang Tiesheng choked for a moment: "That depends on the situation. You can't just keep chasing after things all the time, that would be annoying. You have to be just right."

"You still need to watch carefully and learn well. Brother Lu, right?"

Lu Cheng smirked, "Brother Zhang, if you keep going like this, I'm going to start too."

"No, Lu Cheng, stop with the underhanded tactics. A big brother should act like one. Please just naturally let go of your humility, okay?"

"Have you seen Master Zhou's movie 'Flirting Scholar'? If you're too polite, I'm going to lose my temper!" Zhang Tiesheng's expression was stern.

Du Daihua's eyes darted back and forth between Lu Cheng and Zhang Tiesheng, his big eyes widening even more, making his nose seem even smaller, his face full of bewilderment, completely unaware of what these two older brothers were up to.

……

After finishing his meal, Lu Cheng was about to go and finish his surgical records when he discovered that a colleague from the personnel department had come to the emergency department and was asking around at the nurses' station.

Turning around and seeing Lu Cheng, she smiled and walked towards him, pretending to be casual: "Dr. Lu, good evening. Is it your shift today?"

Lu Cheng said, "Hello, leader. What brings you to our emergency department today?"

Lu Cheng knew the person who came because Xiao Minzhi and Lu Cheng joined the company in the same year, and the new employees had a team building activity together.

"Dr. Lu, are you so wary of me too?"

"The leaders are the leaders, and we're all just lowly subordinates." Xiao Minzhi works in administration, and clinical staff often harbor 'hostility' towards administration!
But administration is the decision-making of leaders, and clerks like her are only responsible for the 'decisions' and orders issued by leaders.

Xiao Minzhi works in the personnel department. She has a good appearance, a tall figure, and wears light makeup. She looks very intellectual, mature, and generous: "And the reason I came here today is actually to see you, Dr. Lu, in private."

"Xiao Minzhi, please sit in the office. Would you like some tea or water? Or perhaps a drink? I need to complete some surgical records, and we can talk slowly." Xiao Minzhi is younger than Lu Cheng.

"No need to be so polite, Dr. Lu Cheng. I'll just sit for a while and then leave."

"I was also temporarily assigned to work overtime. We're all just ordinary folks, there's nothing we can do about it." Xiao Minzhi didn't bring any documents and went into the doctor's office empty-handed with Lu Cheng.

Du Daihua was on the night shift in the ward. After dinner, she had nothing to do and went to lie down in the rest room.

Previously, Du Daihua wrote the patient records for the surgeries, but he didn't know how to perform limb replantation surgery and wasn't very familiar with the surgical procedure, so the surgical records were just templates and had to be filled in by Lu Cheng.

Lu Cheng poured Xiao Minzhi a glass of water: "Xiao Minzhi, what brings you here today?"

"It's Saturday today, is your HR department still working overtime?"

Xiao Minzhi put her phone and cup on the table: "Lu Cheng, just kidding, it's all your fault that I have to come here to work overtime right now."

“Our Director Tao called me an hour ago and asked me to come to the emergency department to talk to you.”

“Lu Cheng, you’ve been here for quite a while now, and you’re almost promoted to associate professor. But actually, the leadership knows that you don’t get along with Du Qiang, the director of the emergency department.”

"Director Du Qiang has approached Director Tao of our personnel department many times, saying he wants to replace you because you're restless..."

"After discussing it with the leaders of the medical affairs department, Director Tao's idea is to ask you to transfer back to the orthopedics department?"

“You yourself come from an orthopedic background, and you are indeed an important talent in our hospital,” Xiao Minzhi said cryptically.

After listening, Lu Cheng felt relieved. He had almost thought that the personnel department of Longxian People's Hospital was incredibly powerful and influential, able to find out the inside story of the microsurgical skills competition even though no one was participating, and had come to chat with him on short notice.

"Director Xiao, you don't know, I wasn't very comfortable in the orthopedics department before, which is why I came to the emergency department."

"I just didn't expect that the emergency department would be so tough. I'm definitely not going back," Lu Cheng replied insincerely. Xiao Minzhi shook her head: "Lu Cheng, actually, we all know your abilities very well. You passed the state's selection exam, so your abilities are absolutely not a problem."

"Lu Cheng, you know that our hospital's overall strength is not strong to begin with, and recently we have encountered a lot of things, and many departments have suffered heavy blows."

"Including but not limited to your emergency department and orthopedics department, no matter how personnel changes, we all bear the responsibility for the health of the people of the entire county."

"Under such circumstances..."

Lu Cheng stopped typing, turned around and raised his hand to interrupt: "Xiao Minzhi, did you come here to recite your lessons for me?"

Xiao Minzhi then smiled wryly and said, "Well, let's skip the formalities. Our personnel department leader asked me to keep you here. This is a task he assigned me, otherwise my bonus will be deducted."

"What should I do, Dr. Lu? Our salaries aren't much to begin with." Xiao Minzhi's voice was somewhat pitiful.

Lu Cheng rolled his eyes: "You guys have an easy job and you get the hospital's average performance bonus. Isn't that enough? Our emergency department's overall performance bonus isn't even as good as yours."

What should we do?

Xiao Minzhi said, "Lu Cheng, so you're determined to leave?"

Lu Cheng nodded and replied insincerely, "To put it realistically, people always strive for better things. To put it bluntly, it's not easy for me to get by here either. I really have no choice."

Xiao Minzhi nodded gently: "Actually, Lu Cheng, I can understand you. I didn't want to come either, but as you know, we are all workers. We can't refuse the orders and tasks given by our superiors."

"So I still need to go through a procedure."

"As you probably know, Lu Cheng, a senior associate professor position has become vacant in the Orthopedics Ward 1, and it's a very capable one. Considering the overall capabilities of all our hospital staff, you're probably the only one who can barely fill the vacancy."

"Even if we need to recruit people, it's not easy to find skilled people at the director level."

"The hospital's message is that if you, Lu Cheng, are willing to return to the orthopedics department, you will definitely receive very, very special attention and training. The situation you encountered before will not happen again."

"The acting director of the orthopedics department, Director Xiang Kuihua, also expressed this sentiment to us!"

"In fact, the reason why our Director Tao gave me this order was because he asked the director to do so."

Peng Haibo is capable, and his absence will significantly weaken the orthopedics department; this is an indisputable fact.

If Peng Haibo had no ability, even with the opportunity to become director, he wouldn't be able to hold onto the position.

Secondly, Xiang Kuihua has a wide network of connections. He is currently the acting director of the first orthopedic ward, so he can naturally hear a lot of rumors.

After becoming a leader, his main concern was how to develop the department better. Under such circumstances, it is understandable that Xiang Kuihua wanted to recruit Lu Cheng back and cultivate him as his "backbone".

Lu Cheng didn't think Xiao Minzhi was wrong: "Thank you for your appreciation, Director Xiang, and thank you for your kindness, Director Tao. I have already made a choice about my current job."

Xiao Minzhi said, "Dr. Lu, as the saying goes, it's better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix."

"I think that Director Xiang of the Orthopedics Department is different from Director Peng before. Director Xiang is more capable and has better understanding."

"You can definitely develop the orthopedics department in our county better. If Dr. Lu goes to the orthopedics department, you will be more valued, and you may even truly support the hand surgery department in our county, just as Director Xiang said, and develop the Third Department of Orthopedics."

Xiang Kuihua's understanding was good, but it was no longer in Lu Cheng's plan: "Xiao Minzhi, we've known each other for a long time, so I'll tell you the truth."

“It’s not easy for people like us to get out into the world, so I certainly won’t miss this opportunity.”

"As for whether I'm the phoenix tail or not, I don't care. I've been the rooster tail for many years."

Lu Cheng's words sounded weak and ineffective.

Didn't you say that a chicken's head and a phoenix's tail are the best? Then wasn't it even more disgusting that I was a chicken's tail for so many years?

Is it more comfortable to be the tail of a phoenix than the tail of a rooster?

Xiao Minzhi was also helpless. She and Lu Cheng joined the company in the same year. In fact, they had some contact because Lu Cheng was handsome. However, after learning that Lu Cheng did not have much background or 'ability', the contact faded away.

Now that she is married, her attention to Lu Cheng has only recently been forced to return through missions.

"Lu Cheng, I just think this is a good opportunity, but since you have already made your decision, Dr. Lu, we can only wish you a better future and development."

"I just think it's a real pity! It's such a pity, Dr. Lu, you should understand what I mean." Xiao Minzhi said rather cryptically.

It's no secret that Xiang Kuihua has a very strong relationship with her.

Lu Cheng said, "Xiao Minzhi, there are countless opportunities in this world, and I have missed them all."

"But I have always believed that only the opportunities we can seize are real opportunities; those we can't seize are just fleeting."

Xiao Minzhi went even further, saying, "Director Xiang said that if the opportunity is right, he can even recommend you for a job in the province, and he can also help you improve your educational qualifications while working."

Lu Cheng did not deny that Xiang Kuihua had such abilities, but the perspectives of those inside and outside the circle were completely different.

Even though Xiang Kuihua has strong connections, he is not a true insider and cannot influence the most basic rules of medical practice. He mostly operates on the fringes of these rules.

What's the use of improving your academic qualifications if you don't improve your core competencies? It's just a flashy but impractical decoration.

Of course, academic qualifications are very useful, but their usefulness is not just about those two degree certificates. It is about everything you learn, see, encounter, and experience in the process of obtaining them, as well as the skills, connections, and so on that you acquire along with them.

To put it more simply, a master's degree is excellent not only because of its learning ability, but also because of the academic lineage, mentors, and other mentors associated with it.

Even if he makes a mistake by hiring someone like that, he can always find someone to come to his rescue.

Can an undergraduate student do this without having a certain network of contacts?

"Xiao Minzhi, thank you for telling me so much. I have my own considerations. Those abstract things don't belong to me, they're far away from me, so they can't be my support."

“If it’s not my bone, it will never support me to walk. I used to be an orthopedic doctor, so when it comes to walking independently, I only trust my own bones.” Lu Cheng gave a very vivid example.

While Xiang Kuihua's family connections are certainly stronger than those of Professor Tong Yuan'an and others, in the industry, they certainly cannot compare to the direct support of top professors like Tan Zhongyuan and Zhong Junyun.

No matter who provides evidence, it's useless. The hand surgery community only recognizes people within the community. Even the most influential connections will only walk on the periphery and will not easily get involved in the core.

……

Xiao Minzhi left.

Lu Cheng finished writing his surgical record, closed the surgical record and medical history, and then carefully checked Du Daihua's postoperative medical record and related postoperative medical orders again.

After reading it, Lu Cheng nodded slightly. Du Daihua had been working harder and making progress recently, and was no longer as superficial as before.

In the past, Du Daihua only thought about how to please Zhang Tiesheng and Zeng Huanqi, hoping to squeeze into the circle.

However, it was only recently, after he discovered that Han Xiaoping had a better relationship than he did with Zhang Tiesheng, that he gradually changed his mindset.

If you don't have solid connections to build a network, the only way to do so is to enhance your personal abilities.

All relationships are essentially 'equivalent exchanges' that are relatively fair or unfair!
……

Mu Nanshu sent a message with some photos that Xie Yuanan had sent her before: "You really did it. What are your thoughts?"

Mu Nanshu did not call out Lu Cheng's name.

Lu Cheng thought for a moment and asked, "Which version of the answer would you like to hear? The villainous version? The real version?"

"Why don't you tell us everything?" Mu Nanshu really liked Lu Cheng's authenticity and unpretentiousness.

"The villain's version of the answer is that it's not satisfying enough; it didn't manage to beat the person you really wanted to beat into a corner and make them tremble with fear."

"The real answer is, I've only just realized how insignificant all those things were before. There are just too many tables and too many circles in this world."

"If I'm still concerned about competing with them, then I'm just being short-sighted. They don't even deserve to be at the table right now."

"I dare not say anything grand about their teachers for the time being, but their senior brothers, even those who have been working for a long time, are the ones who deserve my real attention."

"Do you remember the person who made you cry in kindergarten?" Lu Cheng asked.

Mu Nan wrote: "Hong Zhifei".

Lu Cheng chuckled at Mu Nan's message: "Then you're truly genuine."

As they were talking, Lu Cheng's phone rang again...

Hometown: Shanghai.

(End of this chapter)