Healing Doctor

Chapter 748 Boy, you're too naive.

"Mom, I've asked my best friend to come keep me company, don't worry."

"Mom, I can't sleep. My phone keeps getting video calls from that person, and they keep asking me why I don't come see them."

"How about I try video calling next time? Mom, I'm so scared, come quick!"

About an hour after the time marked above, the girl sent her mother another long message.

"Mom, I don't think I can hold on much longer. My best friend just passed out, and a rope somehow appeared around her neck. I feel... she's going to be strangled."

No, I can't leave her here. I'll go out for a walk and find a crowded place to wait for you.

"Huh? A rope? Really?" Shen Lang asked in confusion.

"That's what the deceased said, and it does look quite frightening," Professor Zhou said slowly. "Shen Lang, if you encountered this situation, for example, if we were sleeping in the duty room and came to the emergency room in the middle of the night, and you couldn't wake me up no matter how you pushed me, and then you saw that I had a rope around my neck."

"What would you think if you encountered this situation?"

Ji Xiang put himself in Meng Qingfei's shoes. Suddenly, a rope appeared around Meng Qingfei's neck, and no matter how he tried to wake Meng Qingfei, he couldn't. His heart pounded.

But Shen Lang said nonchalantly, "You guys must be trying to prank me. Pranking me is a small matter, but don't delay the rescue."

"Hehe, that's what I think too now," Professor Zhou said. "Just wait and see, something's probably going to happen after dark."

Why after dark?

"If it's a prank, late at night is more suitable," Professor Zhou said. "Hopefully there are no emergencies today. If there are, Shen Lang, you won't be able to witness it firsthand."

Zhou Congwen's words accurately hit Shen Lang's weak spot.

Seeing Shen Lang's constipated expression, Ji Xiang chuckled to himself.

Holding the deceased's phone, Professor Zhou first visited the deceased's parents at the funeral home, stuffing a large bag into their hands as a token of his condolences, before returning to the hospital with Shen Lang and Ji Xiang.

In the director's office, Professor Zhou was focused on writing about the Batista technique on his computer.

Ji Xiang stood behind him and looked at the content. It was very novel. Ji Xiang knew that this must be a benefit given to him by the system.

Just like in the last incident where Old Wang sucked people's lifespan, he learned cardiothoracic surgery and cardiac interventional surgery. Now he can learn the surgical treatment for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy—the Batista procedure.

Shen Lang sat to one side, holding his phone, occasionally grinning foolishly.

The phone suddenly lit up.

It's the deceased's cell phone!

Shen Lang jumped up, but he didn't touch the phone. Professor Zhou picked it up and squinted at it.

"It's a video call, should I answer?"

"Of course I'll take it! If you chicken out, I'll take it," Shen Lang said impatiently.

Professor Zhou completely ignored Shen Lang's words about being a coward, placed his phone in front of him, propped it up with his computer screen, and calmly clicked to answer the call.

A pale tongue appeared on the screen.

Upon seeing this scene, Ji Xiang couldn't help but tremble.

Damn it!

Could it really be true?!

No, it can't be! Ji Xiang immediately reassured himself.

But that tongue looked too frightening, so he looked away and focused his gaze on Zhou Congwen and Shen Lang.

Professor Zhou remained calm, showing no surprise, and exuded elegance and composure.

Shen Lang stuck his tongue out a little, as if he wanted to imitate the person making a video call sticking out their tongue, but he couldn't stick it out that far at all. Ji Xiang even suspected that Shen Lang would reach out and pull his tongue out the next second.

"You're the one who pursued my sister and then threatened to hang yourself?" Professor Zhou Congwen asked slowly.

The man didn't speak; his face was purplish-blue, clearly indicating he had been strangled.

If there were any doubts before, Ji Xiang's first feeling at this moment was that this must be a supernatural phenomenon.

"You're not putting on a convincing act. Let me tell you where you went wrong," Professor Zhou said slowly.

"In forensic medicine, hanging is called strangulation. In layman's terms, it is death caused by using the body's gravity to compress the arteries and veins in the neck and the airway with a rope. Most deaths by hanging occur with the feet off the ground and the neck hanging."

"In principle, a force of 20 kilograms can completely compress all the blood vessels and trachea in the neck, so don't think it's impossible to encounter people who die while kneeling or hanging themselves while lying down; that's a very common situation."

Furthermore, people who die by hanging lack the ability to save themselves. For example, if they regret their actions and no longer want to die, unfortunately, they cannot get down on their own.

In the video, the pale tongue seemed to move slightly, and Ji Xiang felt that the tongue might stick out of the screen at any moment and "lick" his face.

Neither Professor Zhou nor Shen Lang were afraid; Shen Lang even snorted coldly.

What did they discover? Ji Xiang wondered.

"The position of the neck's point of force can be divided into anterior, posterior, and lateral positions."

The mechanisms of death from hanging are nothing more than the following: first, airway obstruction; second, blood vessel obstruction; third, nerve compression leading to cardiac arrest; and fourth, spinal cord injury.

"You think that people who hang themselves always have their tongues sticking out and their eyes wide open, just like in movies and TV shows."

Young man, you are too naive.

For people who have died by hanging, observe whether the rope is above or below the Adam's apple. If it's above the Adam's apple, the tongue will generally rest against the roof of the mouth without protruding; if it's below the Adam's apple, the tip of the tongue will generally protrude 1-2 centimeters between the teeth, meaning only the tip of the tongue will stick out.

"Buying a whole cow tongue and putting it in your mouth to scare people, isn't that disgusting?!"

After Professor Zhou finished speaking, the tongue on the other end of the video call twitched.

"Playing tricks? Did you even get another girl to help you with this? Putting a rope around your own neck in the middle of the night, you two seem to be having a lot of fun!"

"Zhou Li is dead. Your video and her best friend's behavior... just wait for the police to come knocking."

"!!!"

Ji Xiang was stunned.

What was originally a frightening scene turned out to be full of flaws after Professor Zhou's explanation.

"Idiot! Can't you even be a little more discreet with your jokes? This is just assuming you're joking; I'd say it's more likely you two conspired to murder someone!"

Just as Professor Zhou finished speaking, a trembling hand emerged from behind his tongue and turned off the video.

There was little further communication throughout the entire process; all that was discussed was Professor Zhou's disdain for the other party's act of pretending to be a hanged ghost, from a medical and forensic perspective.

The hand that ultimately closed the video indicates that it was all just a "prank".

"Idiots, what a bunch of idiots! Is this how you scare people?!" Shen Lang cursed.

"Shen Lang, go call the police." Professor Zhou sighed, handed the phone to Shen Lang, and then leaned back in his chair, slowly closing his eyes.

Shen Lang took out his phone and started calling the police. He probably didn't dial 110 directly, but rather called someone he knew.

"Director, you studied forensic medicine? You sound very proficient," Ji Xiang asked.

Professor Zhou shook his head.

"That……"

"This is the first time I've encountered a similar situation. After seeing the deceased's appearance, I consulted a friend in the forensic field," Professor Zhou replied.

"Your memory is really good." Ji Xiang didn't know what else to say, so he could only offer a dry compliment.

"Sigh." Professor Zhou sighed, showing no joy or excitement at solving the difficult problem, but instead feeling depressed.

"Director, don't be sad. There's nothing you can do about people like that."

Professor Zhou shook his head, ignoring Ji Xiang's words of comfort, and closed his eyes to rest with a pale face.

Ji Xiang recalled that if it were him, he would definitely panic if he answered the video and saw a large cow tongue waving in front of him.

But both Professor Zhou and Shen Lang seemed to have anticipated this.

Especially Shen Lang, who stayed with him the whole time. He maintained his previous style—talking about supernatural phenomena while secretly knowing there was a trap.

"Something happened when I was in school."

Suddenly, Professor Zhou spoke slowly.

"Our school beauty has excellent grades and is rumored to be getting a guaranteed spot in graduate school. Some female classmates were jealous, so a few of them plotted a farce."

"In the middle of the night, the school beauty got up to use the restroom and saw a light at the entrance. She mustered her courage and went over, and saw a woman with disheveled hair burning paper money."

"!!!"

"After that, it was mostly just legend, with all sorts of versions. Some say a scream came from the side, startling the school beauty; others say the person burning paper money was draped in a white sheet and turned around with a sinister smile."

"That's roughly the gist of it. As a result, the school beauty was so frightened that she lost control of her bladder, and someone took pictures of her, which circulated around the school. In the end, she lost control of her emotions and didn't go to graduate school. We haven't heard from her for many years."

"This kind of person is despicable!" Ji Xiang said angrily.

Professor Zhou's voice was very soft, but Ji Xiang could sense that his disgust had reached its peak.

"Director, how did you make that judgment this time?"

"Many people commit suicide. At least three to five nurses around me commit suicide every year, but the vast majority of them are lying. Does taking some estazolam mean it's suicide? Besides, all you see are empty bottles and empty trays. Who knows if they actually took it?"

"This is the most common method; hanging is extremely rare. People who can be that ruthless... are probably not very smart. For them, jumping off a building is simpler and more direct."

"And I felt something was wrong; I smelled a strange odor."

Ji Xiang suddenly remembered Zhao Tianjiao.

Professor Zhou's words seemed to be a subtle reminder that Zhao Tianjiao's situation was probably not right either.

"Director, but we are just doctors, and can only be doctors," Ji Xiang asked, voicing his confusion.

"What's wrong with doctors? If you see something amiss, and if you're capable, take a look and investigate it," Professor Zhou said slowly, his eyes closed. "Doctors are honest, you know that."

"Honest?" Ji Xiang didn't know what Professor Zhou meant.

"Scholars are all the same. If they feel wronged, they should speak out." Professor Zhou said simply, then fell silent.

Unlike system NPCs, he wasn't willing to preach, nor was he inclined to. Ji Xiang had a bellyful of questions he wanted to ask.

No matter what he asked, Professor Zhou stopped talking, as if he had fallen asleep.

"Congwen, I'll go follow them and see, do you want to come?"

"I'm not going. I'm going home to sleep."

"How boring."

Shen Lang said this as he quickly left.

Ji Xiang wanted to see Professor Zhou off, but was refused. Back in his dormitory, Ji Xiang carefully recalled the events of the day.

Without Professor Zhou and Shen Lang's explanation, he would have been terrified when he suddenly saw the deathly pale tongue appear in front of him.

As for Professor Zhou's logically sound statements, I simply cannot articulate them.

Looking at it this way, I realize I'm still too inexperienced.

As Ji Xiang pondered these thoughts, he drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, as soon as Ji Xiang arrived at the hospital, Shen Lang pulled him to the fire escape.

"Xiao Ji, guess what happened?"

Ji Xiang looked at Shen Lang with a smile, knowing that Shen Lang would tell the truth before he could even ask.

"I went over there yesterday, and the man was completely out of his mind at home, with a cow tongue in front of him. It really was a cow tongue! What an idiot! He'll make any joke he wants," Shen Lang cursed.

"And then?"

"After he got there, he abandoned everything before even going inside," Shen Lang said. "It was because the deceased kept rejecting his advances, so he sought advice from one of her best friends. Apparently, it was her friend who taught him all of this."

"!!!"

"I suspect that the rope that suddenly appeared around the deceased's best friend's neck in the middle of the night was also arranged in advance, just to scare people."

"You said that the deceased was still worried about not causing harm to others, but he never expected to be the one who was plotted against."

"Who wouldn't be scared? Don't you think so, Xiao Ji?"

"Brother Lang, you've been telling me this, so I was somewhat expecting it, but I was still terrified," Ji Xiang said. "If it were an ordinary girl, she would have been scared out of her wits."

"Is that so!"

"So what are we going to do about this? We're just doctors," Ji Xiang asked.

"Speaking of which, this is no longer our responsibility. We'll see what the public security, procuratorate, and courts do, and what the deceased's family does," Shen Lang said. "You're right, we're just doctors, we can't get involved."

"..."

Ji Xiang recalled Shen Lang's impatient look and thought to himself, "You old man, you still know that you're just a doctor."

"However, I checked the information and found that some people who hang themselves stick out their tongues, so it's not absolute. Congwen was lying to him yesterday."

"ah?!"

"It mainly depends on the location; if it's pressing on a muscle..."

Shen Lang's abilities are sometimes serious and sometimes unserious.

Before he knew it, he had steered the conversation back to medicine.

"Brother Lang, how should we treat similar situations?" Ji Xiang asked.

"Is that even a question!" Shen Lang raised his hand and patted Ji Xiang's head. "If he's still breathing when he comes to the hospital, he's basically not going to die. If artificial respiration can be done in time, and the hanging time isn't long, he'll basically be fine."

"Cervical spine injuries are most commonly seen in hanging. A weight of over 100 pounds pulls down, and the cervical spine snaps, right? Sending such patients to the hospital is useless. Cervical spine surgery, even Wendu has to use a microscope, and I doubt he's confident in his abilities."

Ji Xiang and Shen Lang discussed for a while, then Shen Lang received a phone call.

"The deceased's best friend fainted after finding out and was rushed to the hospital. She was probably terrified," Shen Lang said.

Ji Xiang sighed.

What is this?

Evil will be punished?

I don't think so. Actually, I don't even know what it means.

But no light appeared, and the system did not return to the operating room.

Ji Xiang knew this was a system benefit, allowing him to work and learn alongside Professor Zhou and Shen Lang again.

It's a benefit anyway, so I can't just turn it down.

Ji Xiang worked diligently in the department for more than a month and reaped considerable rewards.

One day, right after surgery, as he took off his lead apron to lift the patient, Shen Lang suddenly said, "Xiao Ji, guess what happened in the end about that matter?"

"What is it?"

Shen Lang looked at Ji Xiang as if he were a monster.

Ji Xiang sighed inwardly. It seemed the system's benefits were about to expire, and Shen Lang needed to wrap things up.

If given the opportunity, Ji Xiang sincerely wants to learn the technology well under Professor Zhou, and also hopes to have a colleague like Shen Lang who is not only technically proficient but also gossipy and interesting.

"The man was actually just being used; it was all the victim's best friend's doing."

"ah?!"

"They said they were in charge of different projects, and the deceased always did a better job than her best friend. And recently, they both fell for the same guy. See what I told you? They can't even be in a relationship."

"..."

"As a result of jealousy, coupled with the appearance of this sycophant, it all ended in tragedy."

"Were they convicted?"

"Of course, but it's still in the appeal process, and it will take a long time for everything to be approved."

"Oh, Lang-ge, you have to tell me when there are results!"

Ji Xiang wanted to use his "little tricks" to delay the system's benefits, but a flash of light appeared before his eyes, and when he opened them again, he was back in the system's operating room.

"You're back," the system NPC said.

"Teacher, I'm back." Ji Xiang scratched his head. "Teacher, lately all my empathy has been related to medical ethics. Is this really necessary?"

"Of course it's necessary." The system NPC looked up at Ji Xiang. "Do you know why I don't really like organ transplant surgery?"

Ji Xiang didn't say anything.

There are a lot of intricacies involved here.

"Go back if you have nothing else to do."

"Okay, teacher."

Ji Xiang returned to the emergency department, while Meng Qingfei was still standing to one side.

In reality, not a single second had passed, but Ji Xiang had experienced countless things.

"Teacher Meng, have you ever seen someone hang themselves?"

"No, I only saw it in movies and TV dramas. What's wrong with Zhao Tianjiao? Is he tired of having a smooth journey and has to cause some trouble?" Meng Qingfei said.

"Perhaps someone is jealous of his success."

"Oh?" Meng Qingfei glanced at Ji Xiang.

"It shouldn't be a big problem, don't worry. My teacher told me that getting to the hospital isn't the most important thing anymore; the main things are how long the injured person was hanging, whether their cervical spine was damaged, and how timely the rescue was."

"If Dean Zhao had performed CPR immediately, I feel there wouldn't have been a big problem."

Meng Qingfei gave Ji Xiang a deep look with slight surprise, then went to prepare the emergency medication.

That's what they say, but if you need to be resuscitated, it's never good to be missing anything.

A few minutes later, the sound of an ambulance came from 120.

Meng Qingfei pushed the flatbed cart to the door.

Ji Xiang knew it wasn't because the injured person was Zhao Tianjiao, the son of Dean Zhao, but simply because Meng Qingfei had never seen a similar patient before, so he wanted to participate in the rescue from beginning to end.

This includes the moment the patient is lifted off the ambulance.

Ji Xiang understands this mentality all too well.

The car stopped, the back door opened, and Dean Zhao nimbly jumped out.

He seemed anxious; he was agile and didn't look like someone in their late forties or early fifties at all.

"Dean Zhao, how is it?"

"Is the ventilator ready?"

"Ready."

The person was carried off and slid onto a flatbed. Ji Xiang saw that Zhao Tianjiao's complexion was normal, his breathing was steady, and his eyes were open. He knew that nothing was wrong and breathed a sigh of relief.

Ji Xiang had absolutely no feelings for Zhao Tianjiao, and he didn't even realize that Zhao Tianjiao had once regarded him as his lifelong enemy.

The stretcher rumbled as the person was rushed to the emergency room and connected to a cardiac monitor.

His vital signs were stable, and the only thing that could tell what had happened was the red mark on Zhao Tianjiao's neck.

"Get a cervical spine CT scan to check the situation first. I've already mentioned the CT scan results."

"Okay." Zhao Jixiang nodded.

Although Zhao Tianjiao didn't have any problems during the physical examination, it's still better to be cautious.

"What's wrong?" Meng Qingfei asked.

Zhao Tianjiao pursed his lips, his expression somewhat fearful.

In their haste, neither Dean Zhao nor Meng Qingfei wanted to know why; they only wanted to know if there was anything wrong with their cervical spine and whether it would leave serious sequelae.

After the CT scan and MRI were completed, and it was confirmed that there was nothing wrong with the cervical spine, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, it was discovered early, and with Dean Zhao's expertise in emergency care, he was saved. If the opportunity had been delayed, or if he had been unlucky, Zhao Tianjiao might have become a vegetable.

After sending the person to the inpatient department for observation, Meng Qingfei finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Brother Meng, why would Dean Zhao's son commit suicide out of the blue?" the nurse asked.

Meng Qingfei shook his head.

"I have a classmate who encountered a similar situation a while ago," Ji Xiang suddenly said.

"Oh? What's going on?" The nurse was very interested, but Meng Qingfei was clearly not interested.

"That's right."

Ji Xiang briefly recounted his experiences, from jealousy to envy, to the two of them staging a charade together, and the constant video calls from the "dead man," describing it vividly.

He spoke vividly, and the nurse's face began to look worse and paler.

Although Ji Xiang wasn't telling a ghost story, no one said a word until he finished.

"Your classmate... has really had a lot of bad luck," Meng Qingfei said.

After Ji Xiang finished speaking, he didn't say much more, thinking that his guess would soon reach Dean Zhao's ears.

The gossip is a creature with legs; it can run on its own, and it's very fast. It can even find out before you get home.

Although Professor Zhou offered a different perspective while sharing his empathy, Ji Xiang still felt it was better to avoid trouble.

Anyway, it's Dean Zhao's family's trouble. As for who "pranked" Zhao Tianjiao, it has nothing to do with me.

After saying goodbye to Meng Qingfei, Ji Xiang rode his bicycle home.

As soon as we entered, the silly roe deer pounced on us.

If you don't own a dog, you won't know the joy of a dog running towards you.

Ji Xiang vigorously ruffled the roe deer's head, went upstairs to greet his father, washed up, and went to bed early.

I have to take the roe deer for a run early tomorrow morning, and then carry it back halfway through. This kind of work is very demanding, so I need to get enough sleep.

(End of this chapter)