Rebirth of a Doctor Without Regrets

The VIP consultation room in the plastic surgery department was filled with a faint aromatherapy scent, mixed with the perfume worn by Mrs. Li, a wealthy woman, which was almost cloyingly sweet.

Administrative Director Xing Liqun, dressed in a neatly pressed white coat, held a marker in his hand and looked at Mrs. Li's outstretched hand with a slight frown.

The wound wasn't deep, but it was strikingly long, exceeding five centimeters in length, like a red thread stretching across fair and delicate skin.

"Mrs. Li, was your wound caused by a rose?" Xing Liqun asked respectfully.

Mrs. Li's well-maintained face was full of criticism. She withdrew her hand and examined the scratch carefully in the light. She said with dissatisfaction, "Oh dear, Director Xing, when I was pruning roses in my greenhouse garden, those damn servants wet the floor and made me slip and fall. My hand is all cut."

Those thorns look insignificant, but they're so sharp when they scratch. You'd better give me the best solution; I don't want a scar on the back of my hand that will prevent me from wearing bracelets.

Xing Liqun nodded quickly: "Don't worry, our plastic surgery department has the best cosmetic suturing techniques in the hospital, and we use the highest quality consumables to ensure that the scars are not obvious after the operation."

"High-quality? Director Xing, I've been a patron of your business quite a bit. You know I only want the best." Mrs. Li scoffed.

"Mrs. Li, what do you mean by this?"

Mrs. Li took out her phone from her crocodile-skin handbag and showed a photo. "I heard from my sister yesterday that there's a doctor in your hospital's emergency department who uses real, high-end imported materials, even better than what you have here. The wounds he stitches up look almost like they weren't cut at all."

"Oh? The emergency department?" Xing Liqun was taken aback.

Are cosmetic sutures done better in the emergency department than in the plastic surgery department?

How is that possible?

He was puzzled, but didn't show it aloud: "Mrs. Li, you must have misheard. The emergency department focuses on resuscitation. Even if cosmetic suturing is done, it's only an auxiliary procedure. How could our supplies compare to the expertise of our plastic surgery department?"

Mrs. Li sneered, "I'll go to the emergency room first before making a decision."

Xing Liqun looked somewhat embarrassed, but dared not offend this generous regular customer.

He pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered that his wife, Deng Chanjuan, had recently returned from her rotation in the emergency department. He quickly took out his phone and made a call.

Within two minutes, Deng Chanjuan rushed over and asked as soon as she entered, "Old Xing, what's wrong? I just finished surgery."

"Chanjuan, do you know someone in the emergency department named Wang Xiao? I heard he uses imported high-end consumables for cosmetic suturing?"

"Ah..." Deng Chanjuan suddenly blushed. "I've met Wang Xiao a few times, but we're not close. The emergency department has set up a special service for him, and I've heard his skills are pretty good."

"No, I have to go take a look." Xing Liqun put on a trench coat, covering the white lab coat underneath.

Walk through the hospital corridor and head straight for the emergency room.

Upon arriving at the emergency room entrance, I smelled a faint disinfectant scent, quite different from the aromatherapy smell in the plastic surgery department.

A sign for cosmetic suturing hangs in one corner of the treatment room, and the conditions are very basic, consisting of only a treatment bed and an instrument cabinet.

Wang Xiao had just finished suturing a patient with minor abrasions from a car accident and was now putting away her instruments.

On the table was a row of shiny medical instruments, and several consumable packages with foreign language labels.

When it was Mrs. Li's turn in line, Xing Liqun subconsciously tugged at the collar of his overcoat, gave Mrs. Li a wink, and pretended to be a family member accompanying her.

Mrs. Li covered her mouth and chuckled, naturally understanding the implication. She then held out the back of her hand to Wang Xiao: "Doctor, my hand was scratched by roses in the greenhouse, and I don't want a scar. I heard you have the best imported materials here?"

Wang Xiao nodded, picked up a sterile cotton swab, gently parted the edges of the wound, and carefully examined it.

"Your wound is a thin, superficial laceration, about 5.2 centimeters long, with neat edges, suitable for intradermal cosmetic suturing."

I have two options here. The standard package uses domestically produced PGA absorbable sutures, along with standard precision instruments, and the postoperative scar will fade to the point of being barely noticeable.

The deluxe package uses the latest 2014 German-imported PLGA barbed sutures and antibacterial sutures, paired with microscopic suturing instruments, reducing the possibility of infection, resulting in shallower scars and faster recovery.

"Doctor, can I see the German-imported materials you're using?" Xing Liqun took a half step forward, pretending to be a family member who was particularly concerned about the consumables.

Wang Xiao, oblivious to the danger, readily nodded: "Of course, you see."

He took out two sealed consumable boxes from the instrument cabinet, and then picked up the disassembled samples on the table, placing them one by one on the sterile tray.

Sunlight streamed in through the small windows of the treatment room, falling on the tiny instruments and fine wires, giving them a cool metallic sheen and a soft, silky luster.

"This is PLGA barbed suture imported from Germany. It just entered clinical use in China in 2014 and is a cutting-edge material in the field of cosmetic suturing this year."

Wang Xiao picked up a thread as thin as a hair and gently pinched it between her fingertips to show it to the two of them.

"Please note that the suture has tiny barbs, so there's no need to tie knots during suturing. It directly fixes the skin tissue, reducing irritation from knots and preventing scarring. This ensures the best possible post-operative appearance for your wife's delicate skin."

Wang Xiao then picked up another suture, which was slightly darker in color: "This is an antibacterial suture. The surface of the suture is coated with a triclosan antibacterial coating, which can inhibit the growth of bacteria around the wound and reduce the risk of postoperative infection."

Xing Liqun was greatly shocked. He had worked in the plastic surgery department for nearly 20 years and considered himself to be very knowledgeable about cosmetic suture materials at home and abroad, but he knew very little about these two latest suture materials.

It's surprising that a young doctor in the emergency department could have such a precise understanding of the technical details of these cutting-edge consumables.

"These materials and equipment seem to be even better than the private plastic surgery clinics we consulted before." Xing Liqun pretended to suddenly realize something and turned to wink at Mrs. Li.

Mrs. Li covered her mouth and chuckled, nodding in agreement: "Then let's choose the deluxe package. Doctor, you must promise that there won't be any scars."

Wang Xiao smiled and replied, "Don't worry, I will do my best."

After saying that, he immediately began preparing for the disinfection work.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from the door of the treatment room, and Chang Wei rushed in.

He arrived at Chunda Second Hospital even earlier than Xing Liqun, and they recognized him at a glance.

He had originally come to see other resident doctors, but when he saw Xing Liqun dressed in regular clothes and standing beside him like a patient's family member, he guessed something.

Presumably, Wang Xiao stole business from the plastic surgery department, and Director Xing came to cause him trouble.

So this day has finally come!

So Chang Wei also joined in to watch.

Wang Xiao glanced at him, but didn't seem to care.

Lidocaine.

Xue Jia handed the syringe to Wang Xiao.

Xing Liqun kept a close eye on Wang Xiao's injection technique. For a wound of this length, not only must edema be avoided during injection, but the injection must also be even. Otherwise, it will change the tension distribution of the wound, leading to subsequent suturing under inconsistent tension.

Because the wound was quite long, Wang Xiao chose to inject the anesthetic in segments along the wound multiple times. After each injection of 0.1 ml of lidocaine, she paused for half a second to ensure that the anesthetic was evenly diffused. At the same time, she gently pressed the injection site with her fingertips to feel the changes in skin tension.

Xing Liqun stood to the side, his eyes growing brighter as he watched.

Hmph, no matter how good the anesthesia is, there's no way the sutures won't have problems.

Chang Wei was still calculating that if Wang Xiao made a mistake in the stitching, Director Xing would definitely lash out.

Wang Xiao opened the microsurgical suturing instrument kit and took out the titanium alloy needle holder, fine tissue forceps, and ophthalmic scissors in sequence.

He picked up the needle holder with the PLGA barbed sutures, lowered his wrist slightly, and precisely inserted the needle tip into the skin edge at a 30-degree angle at one end of the wound, reaching just the middle layer of the dermis.

This is the optimal needle insertion depth for tension-free sutures, ensuring secure fixation without damaging subcutaneous blood vessels.

Xing Liqun subconsciously gasped softly in amazement.

Wang Xiao's use of barbed thread opened the eyes of Xing Liqun, who was new to this type of thread. Each of his pulls replaced the traditional knotting, and his technique was swift and skillful.

The sewing was basically completed in less than ten minutes, which is one of the advantages of not needing to tie knots.

Chang Wei's smile gradually froze on his face; this wasn't the first time he had felt this way about Wang Xiao.

This young man is not normal.

"Your skills have completely exceeded my expectations." Xing Liqun said sincerely, unbuttoning his trench coat to reveal his employee badge.

"Plastic Surgery Department...Administrative Director?" Wang Xiao was taken aback.

Director Xing's eyes were full of admiration. "Our plastic surgery department is currently lacking someone like you who understands both cutting-edge medical supplies and has solid surgical skills. Would you consider coming to our plastic surgery department?"

Wang Xiao gently shook her head: "Thank you for your recognition, Director Xing. But I came here from the Department of Cardiac Surgery to provide support, and I will return to Cardiac Surgery in the future."

Xing Liqun was not discouraged. After pondering for a moment, he said, "I won't force you. However, our plastic surgery department is short-staffed recently. Many patients who need cosmetic suturing have to wait several days to have their surgery scheduled, which has resulted in the loss of many patients."

If I come across a suitable patient later, I'll recommend them to you, is that alright?

Wang Xiao quickly replied, "That's great, Director Xing, thank you for being willing to share the patient with the emergency department."

Chang Wei, standing to the side, had turned from flushed to ashen-faced.

He turned and rushed towards the door, his steps hurried and heavy, and he bumped into the trash can by the door.

The trash can tipped over with a bang, scattering medical waste all over the floor. The nurses rushed over to clean it up.

Xing Liqun acted as if he couldn't see Chang Wei, and took out a small silver device from his pocket and placed it on the table.

"This is a skin tension meter, which can accurately measure the tension value of skin in different areas. If you can master this little gadget, your skills can reach a higher level."

Wang Xiao stood up to thank him, but Xing Liqun had already walked away quickly, waving to signal him to continue with his work.