The aloof military doctor arrives at the unit, and the tough guy can't sit still.

After Xia Qiuran got up, Lu Zhenghan stretched his limbs briefly, a hint of unease flashing in his eyes, before speaking.

You slept very soundly last night, so I didn't wake you.

Xia Qiuran gave a nervous laugh, momentarily at a loss for words.

"Commander, I'm so sorry, your legs must be numb from all the pressure. Shall I massage them for you?"

But after saying that, he quickly realized something was wrong and hurriedly waved his hand.

"That's not what I meant. I just feel really sorry and want to make it up to you."

Lu Zhenghan looked up and stared straight ahead, his dark eyes revealing no emotion whatsoever.

"It's okay, I'll take you to work now."

Xia Qiuran silently lowered her head, tacitly agreeing, not daring to say anything more, for fear of saying something wrong again.

They arrived at the hospital quickly. Xia Qiuran went back to her dormitory, washed up briefly, and then hurried to the office.

But as soon as he entered the door, he was startled by Bai Xia, who was about to come out from inside.

How come you have grown several stubbles on your face after just one night?

"Xia Qiuran, don't be so smug. We'll see how things go."

Seeing Xia Qiuran staring at her face, Bai Xia quickly took out a mask from her pocket, put it on, uttered a harsh remark, and then quickly walked out.

Xia Qiuran then realized that what he saw was not a beard at all, but rather scratches made by fingernails.

Wu Xue is really ruthless. They say you shouldn't hit someone in the face, but she always hits people in the face. Director Bai is already scratched into a big mess by her.

Xia Qiuran couldn't help but laugh. She turned around and was about to go inside when she bumped into someone again.

"Sorry, did I hurt you?"

Xia Qiuran quickly apologized and looked up to see that the person she had hit had his head wrapped in bandages.

This startled Xia Qiuran. Had she bumped into a seriously ill patient?

"I'm so sorry, are you feeling unwell anywhere? I'll take you to get checked out."

Xia Qiuran helped the patient to the opposite side of her.

"Wu Xue?!"

I only recognized her when I saw her face clearly – isn't that Wu Xue?!

"What happened to your head? Who hit you?"

"Stop pretending to be compassionate. Don't you know who hit you?!"

Wu Xue glared at him fiercely, then turned and walked out.

It seems I spoke too soon; experience truly matters.

Scratching your face is at most a superficial injury, but a blow to the head could cause internal injuries.

Look at that head wrapped in bandages, it looks like a mummy. What kind of grudge could that person hold?

"Dr. Xia, the hospital director wants you to come over now."

Xia Qiuran had just sat down in the office when a nurse at the door greeted her.

"Okay, sure."

Xia Qiuran responded and then walked out.

Upon arriving at Gao Yingting's office, Bai Xia and Wu Xue were already standing there.

"Dean Gao, you wanted to see me?"

"Yes, please come in first, Xia."

Gao Yingting ushered Xia Qiuran in, then coldly glanced at the two people standing in front of him.

With a livid face, Zhou Shen's aura was as low as a dark cloud, as if a storm was about to break out at any moment.

He snorted coldly before speaking.

"Since our hospital was established, there have been fights between patients because of long queues for treatment, and fights between patients who thought the doctors were not skilled enough. Of course, there have also been occasional arguments between doctors. But like yesterday, where two doctors, especially female doctors, fought so badly that they were bleeding from the head, this is truly the first time in my life I have ever seen anything like it."

After saying that, he took a deep breath, then slammed the document in his hand onto the table, his eyes fixed on Bai Xia.

"Director Bai, I shouldn't be criticizing you in front of your subordinates, but isn't what you did a bit too far?"

"What grudge could possibly drive you to beat someone up like that?"

Bai Xia is also over 40 years old. She felt that she had been treated unfairly, and her eyes were full of resentment and grievance.

"The hospital director said I can't have children. Shouldn't I hit her?"

"That's because you bullied me first, called me stupid, and made me take the blame for you, that's why I said that," Wu Xue quickly defended herself.

"Aren't you stupid? You've already done the job assigned to you properly."

"It's true that you can't have children, and what I said isn't wrong either."

The two were about to start arguing again, each saying something to the other.

Gao Yingting rubbed the throbbing veins on his forehead and immediately shouted a reprimand.

"That's enough."

"I don't want to hear any more of your grudges. What you're doing now is mutual fighting, and you should be suspended enough."

Suspension from duty means no salary and no receipts.

Unlike in the countryside, where there's a communal dining system, in the city, if you're really suspended from your job, it's basically the same as being without food.

Wu Xue immediately became anxious. "No, Dean, if I'm suspended, what will my whole family eat and drink?"

Gao Yingting gave the two of them a cold look.

"Hmph, why didn't you think of that earlier?"

"I'll be lenient this time since it's your first offense, but you can forget about your performance-based pay for the next two months."

Wu Xue gripped her sleeves tightly, unable to utter a single word of "no" despite her reluctance.

She was clear about her choices: whether to permanently lose her job or to starve for two months.

Bai Xia had some savings, so she wasn't too bothered by the two months' salary.

Gao Yingting saw through it and said it without any politeness.

"As for your personal bets, I won't get involved. But Director Bai, your behavior in this fight was extremely egregious. If I hear any more bad things about you, I'll have to hand over your position as director to another colleague ahead of time."

Bai Xia's reputation and career have always been the things she cares about most. In all these years, no doctor in the entire hospital has ever been demoted for losing a bet and then refusing to admit it.

If this gets out, she'll never be able to hold her head high again.

It goes without saying what he should do; he can't escape this bet that requires a public apology no matter what.

Bai Xia gritted her teeth and said, "Understood, Dean."

After Gao Yingting finished speaking about the two people, he breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Xia Qiuran.

"Xia, the patient with the lung disease had another blood test done yesterday by a different doctor. Here is her report. I took a look, and it seems there's nothing seriously wrong. You can give her some further treatment."

"Yes, Dean," Xia Qiuran replied after taking the report.

"Alright, you can all go about your business now." Gao Yingting waved his hand, indicating that the three of them could leave.

Once outside, Bai Xia glanced sideways at Xia Qiuran.

"Xia Qiuran, don't be too smug. The dean's words just now were deliberately meant for you to hear. He just wants to use you to create more value for the hospital."

After putting away the report, Xia Qiuran looked up and saw Bai Xia with a slight smile on her lips, her tone calm.

"Director Bai, regardless of who the dean was talking to, the part about accepting the consequences of a bet was definitely directed at you."

"you…"

Bai Xia was so angry that her hands were trembling, and her eyes were filled with a fierce light.

Xia Qiuran smiled calmly. Although she said that, she knew very well that Gao Yingting had called her to his office and made her listen to him scold the two of them, which was actually a way to appease her.

He wanted to show her in this way that he, as her leader, was fair and just, and wouldn't favor Bai Xia just because she was the director.

From treating the patient to making the bet, Gao Yingting was actually very clear about everything. The reason he didn't step in to stop her was because he was certain that she wouldn't cure the patient.

In the end, Lu Zhenghan will definitely step forward to plead for her. At that time, Gao Yingting can both give Lu Zhenghan face and do her a favor. Wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?

Of course, her ideas may be too utilitarian, but someone who has been a leader for so many years is definitely not a simple-minded person.

There's no point in overthinking. She should just focus on doing her job well, and let the rest take its course.

"Director Bai, Director Bai."

Just then, Li Zhou's wife and son ran over, and Bai Xia had no choice but to temporarily hide her ferocious expression.

"What's wrong? Why are you in such a panic?"

"Director Bai, please go and check on my husband, he's having another seizure."