Healing Doctor

Chapter 775 A Clear Conscience

Ji Xiang was about to help Deng Chaohong when Director Liu stopped him.

"Don't go, it's pointless." Director Liu pulled Ji Xiang away.

"A long time ago, when I was still working in the emergency room, I had just eaten two dumplings at 5:30 p.m.

Director Liu was talking about eating dumplings when Ji Xiang interrupted him.

Ji Xiang was somewhat surprised. "Director, you eat dumplings when you're on emergency call?"

"Simple and worry-free, you kid, why are you so gossipy?" Director Liu glanced at Ji Xiang. "I never noticed before, but it's understandable, young people like to hear things."

Ji Xiang felt ashamed.

Wasn't it all because Lang Ge led them astray?

"Director, I'm sorry, please continue."

"A recent college graduate was working at a state-owned factory. Back then, there was a shuttle bus. After get off work, she got off the bus and was hit by a car."

"..."

"She was already dead when she arrived. After she was brought in, I performed resuscitation for half an hour according to procedure. When I went out to tell her parents, they both broke down in tears." Director Liu sighed.

"It's like the bones were removed, just like you just saw."

"Great sorrow and great joy, that's just how it is. You get used to it after seeing it a lot. Don't worry about it. Besides, Professor Deng is over there."

"Okay." Ji Xiang nodded, recalling the middle-aged woman's "bones being removed" and the extreme highs and lows described by Director Liu.

"Go back to work," Director Liu said.

"Director, I've been thinking about the ghost bed you mentioned for two days now, and something just doesn't feel right."

"I was just saying it offhand. If it really doesn't work, I'll give it a try. It's just disinfection anyway," Director Liu laughed. "Since you're so curious, let me tell you an urban legend."

Ji Xiang himself didn't even realize that his ears perked up the moment he heard the words "urban legend".

"There was an 89-year-old man who had suffered a brain hemorrhage and was hospitalized in our neurosurgery department. He was a patient of Director Bai... Director Bai."

"After the CT scan, it was found that the bleeding volume was 40ml."

"Normally, we would advise patients of similar age to give up treatment. After all, they are old enough, physically weak, and have many age-related diseases. It's hard to say whether they can even survive the surgery."

"If there's any ambiguity in the family, the family must give up. Otherwise, money will be spent, people will be lost, and conflicts will be more likely to arise."

Ji Xiang listened quietly to the gossip that Director Liu was telling.

"But the family strongly insisted on surgery, their desire was very strong, and they told Director Bai that even if the surgery went wrong, or even if they didn't survive the operation, they would accept it."

"The patient's grandson was my classmate. We used to play at home a lot when we were kids, and the old man would take us fishing. We knew each other very well. So Director Bai performed emergency surgery on him, and he was transferred to the neurosurgical intensive care unit after the operation."

"The day after the surgery, I saw the old man strolling around the outpatient hall with a cane."

"!!!" Ji Xiang looked carefully at Director Liu's expression, trying to figure out if he was telling the truth.

One second Director Liu was saying he didn't believe in supernatural things, but the next second he was talking nonsense.

Saying no, but the body says no.

"When I saw him wearing a head covering, the kind of net that's used after neurosurgery, I thought to myself, 'Wow, this old man is amazing. He had a 40ml brain hemorrhage at his age, and he was able to walk around the next day after the surgery.'"

"At the time, I was afraid I had mistaken him for someone else, so I went up and chatted with the old man for a bit. He didn't say anything else, just that he couldn't find his way back. I offered to take him back, but he wouldn't answer anything I said on the way. At that time, I thought he hadn't recovered yet."

"I have some reservations about the neurosurgical intensive care unit. How can they let a patient who has just undergone brain hemorrhage surgery slip out? If he gets lost, how are you going to explain it to the patient's family?"

"Moreover, the patient's family was extremely careless; there wasn't even a person at the door, yet such a huge mistake occurred."

"Yeah, how did the old man sneak out?!" Ji Xiang was just as puzzled.

"He didn't say anything, but I couldn't stay silent, so I told him the way back, rambling on and on. When I got off the elevator, the old man had vanished without a trace."

"Uh..." Ji Xiang had already guessed the ending of the story.

"I was startled and looked around before rushing to the neurosurgical intensive care unit. When I saw the old man lying peacefully on the bed, and we were about to wake him up, I broke out in a cold sweat."

"Director, how come you encountered so many things when you were young?"

"Many doctors have encountered this, but they don't talk about it, or they simply haven't noticed it," Director Liu replied calmly. "I haven't even told Lao Bai about this, and he wouldn't believe me anyway."

"And then? Did the old man wake up?"

"Old... Director Bai's skills are truly exceptional; it's a pity he's not involved in professional work." Director Liu sighed. "The old man woke up that very day, though he suffered a few minor health issues, and lived to be 102 years old. Later, I asked him if he remembered me after the surgery."

"!!!" Ji Xiang's ears perked up completely.

"He said he dreamed about me, that he was lost and couldn't remember where he was. After seeing me, we chatted for a bit, and I was the one who gave him directions."

"Director, you..."

"I don't understand either, so I'm too lazy to explain." Director Liu turned around and gave Ji Xiang a deep look. "If I said there are gods watching over us, would you believe it?"

Ji Xiang neither nodded nor shook his head.

"So, ever since then, I've been very dedicated to treating and saving lives. As long as I don't go against my conscience, nothing else matters."

Ji Xiang carefully considered the four words Director Liu had said: "He has a clear conscience."

Back in the department, the work was still repetitive and monotonous. Ji Xiang had some doubts in his heart, but he felt that he had been led astray by Shen Lang, which was why he was always agonizing over these things.

After get off work, since it wasn't Meng Qingfei's night shift, Ji Xiang didn't go to the emergency department and rode his bicycle home instead.

Despite it being the dead of winter, Ji Xiang didn't feel cold at all.

Young people have enough energy to withstand the biting winter wind. Especially Ji Xiang, who is in good health, after all, he runs a half marathon every day, so this wind is no problem for him at all.

"You're back." Yoshiaki Yoshiaki was sitting at the coffee table in the living room, making tea.

"You're back." Ji Xiang reached out and stroked the silly roe deer that had run over. "Was the roe deer obedient?"

"If you take it out for a run every morning, it'll be more obedient. I'm thinking of buying a motorcycle with a trailer."

Ji Xiang knew that the old man was going to take the silly roe deer out for a ride on that old-fashioned trailer motorcycle to expend too much energy.

The old man is in good health, but there's absolutely no way he could wear down all of the silly roe deer's excess energy just by running like I have.

The father and son exchanged a few words and then went about their own business.

Ji Xiang still had doubts, so he took the elevator upstairs, changed into his pajamas, and came right back down.

He poured himself a glass of water.

Ji Xiang doesn't want to drink tea at this time of day. If he can't sleep, he won't have the energy to perform the surgery tomorrow, which will be very difficult.

"Dad, I have a question for you. I haven't been able to figure it out for the past few days."

"Oh? What is it?"

Ji Xiang told his father about the "ghost bed" and the strange and supernatural stories that Director Liu had told him.

Ji Yongchang smiled slightly and brewed tea according to the steps and procedures, his every move exuding the elegance of ink painting.

"No. 10, Right Alley of Ji'an, East Jingshan Street. You used to play there when you were a child, do you remember?" Ji Yongchang asked.

"I remember!" Ji Xiang replied immediately.

But what does what I said have to do with No. 10, Right Alley of Ji'an, East Street, Jingshan?

"Judging from the name, Ji'an Suo, it means auspiciousness and peace, which is quite nice, isn't it?"

"Yes." Ji Xiang nodded.

"But before liberation, that place was a place specifically for storing the dead."

"!!!"

What his father told him was even harder for Ji Xiang to accept than the "ghost story" that Director Liu told.

"After liberation, Marshal Nie served as the first mayor of the capital city. When choosing his residence, he chose No. 10, Right Alley of Ji'an Suo, East Street, Jingshan District."

"!!!"

"As to the specifics, it's been a long time, and I've heard several versions of the legend, so I won't go into details." Yoshinobu picked up his teacup, smelled the aroma of the tea, and closed his eyes slightly.

Ji Xiang didn't dare to urge him, but he wondered why Marshal Nie was acting this way.

After a long while, Yoshihide Yoshimi continued his sermon.

"It's not just a morgue; it's said to be extremely haunted, a truly haunted place."

"During the internal strife within the Qing Dynasty palace, some palace maids were sent to the Ji'an garrison while still alive, where they died unjustly. In popular parlance, it could be described as a night of a hundred ghosts, with countless wronged souls seeking revenge."

"But why?" Ji Xiang was still pondering.

"What I'm going to tell you isn't why, but this matter itself." Yoshinobu's thoughts were clear, and the topic was brought back before it even went astray.

"Later, Marshal Nie took charge of the development of nuclear weapons and satellites, and your uncle visited Marshal Nie's former residence many times."

"I believe in ghosts and gods, but I believe even more in the righteous spirit." Ji Yongchang drank his tea in one gulp instead of wine, and smiled at Ji Xiang. "Doctors, if you save lives and heal the wounded, you have a clear conscience and naturally have nothing to fear."

Ji Xiang suddenly remembered that during the time when Old Wang, who sucked people's lifespan, had a similar experience, Shen Lang had told him to always remember to wear white clothes.

It seems to have something in common with what my father said.

Then I remembered what Director Liu had said about having a clear conscience.

"I traveled around a lot when I was young," Yoshihide Yoshimi continued casually.

"Dad, are you talking about street urchins?" Ji Xiang asked with a smile.

"Haha, how could that be?" Ji Yongchang wasn't angry and said with a smile, "Among the people I met later, there was an old friend who was much older than me. He joined the army in the 1930s. He didn't have a first-class merit, but his chest was covered with second-class and third-class merit medals."

"One year I thought I'd go out for drinks with my older brother, but when I finally got there after traveling over mountains and valleys, he was busy."

"Back then, we had to reclaim wasteland to ensure food security. The best piece of land in the village used to be a mass grave, and it's said that no one dared to walk there after dark."

Ji Xiang listened intently as his grandfather told him a story.

In the past, Ji Xiang would have thought that the old man had made this up, but now Ji Xiang would not think that way.

"No one dared to touch that mass grave, but my brother, being the village chief and militia company commander, gathered the villagers together in front of the mass grave."

"He didn't try to persuade the villagers. He drank a mouthful of old wine in front of the mass grave, poured the rest on the ground, and fired three shots into the air."

"Gentlemen, I apologize for disturbing you today."

"We will use this land to farm and feed more future generations. If you are our ancestors, please forgive us! This is a major event for our Chinese nation, and I think you can rest in peace with a smile."

"If you're just a passerby, you'll become one of the people of Lijia Village from now on, and you'll receive a share in the festival ancestral worship."

"If those Japanese devils are still haunting me, I'll stay here tonight. Come at me if you have any trouble."

"Then, we fired nine more shots into the air."

Ji Xiang shivered.

An image flashed in his mind of an old man with white hair and beard, standing straight, and his own young and impetuous father firing shots into the sky.

The last sentence, in particular, gave Ji Xiang goosebumps.

"That night, my brother and I set up a tent in the cemetery and drank all night. The will-o'-the-wisps that usually appear disappeared, as if the wandering ghosts in the cemetery understood my brother's words. That day, my brother told me a lot of old stories, and drinking with those stories was indeed refreshing. It was the most enjoyable drinking session I've ever had."

"And then?"

"The abandoned graveyard was leveled and land was planted. That's what they said, but nobody in the village was willing to farm it, so my brother divided it up between his own family and the family of the deputy company commander of the militia."

"Later, it was said that the land was very fertile. In the days when chemical fertilizers were scarce, there was no need to fertilize. You could grow anything, and the harvest would be 20% more than in other places."

"!!!"

"A man of upright character, this is no joke, even ghosts and gods fear him," Yoshinobu said leisurely. "As a doctor, there's no point in thinking about these things all day. Just do good deeds and don't worry about the future."

"Hey, Dad, I didn't think much of it. I was just curious because it was gossip." Ji Xiang downed the water in front of him in one gulp.

Although it was just a glass of water, Ji Xiang actually tasted the flavor of strong liquor.

"I heard you're going to Shanghai for surgery?" Yoshiaki suddenly asked.

"???" Ji Xiang was taken aback; he didn't even know about this.

"Your mother told me it wasn't a dream," Yoshiaki Yoshihide made a clumsy joke.

Ji Xiang didn't press for details about the "dream visitation" story. He scratched his head and said, "I don't know myself. Teacher Deng mentioned it to me yesterday, but we haven't discussed it yet today."

"Oh, it's almost Chinese New Year, hurry back!"

Ji Yongchang gave instructions.

"Dad, how's it going on your end?" Ji Xiang asked.

"You don't understand, what are you asking, you're just a kid."

Ji Yongchang always acted in an ordinary manner; you couldn't tell what he was doing or whether he was successful or not from his words and actions.

"How did you assess the post-operative results of Neymar's surgery?" Yoshinaga asked casually.

"It's been very successful. More than ten papers have been published. Although my mother laid a lot of groundwork for it, if the quality wasn't good enough, we wouldn't have published so many." Ji Xiang gave an affirmative answer.

After saying that, Ji Xiang suddenly paused for a moment, "Dad, you don't mean to think about buying lottery tickets, do you?"

"Do you think I'm out of my mind?" Yoshiaki said dismissively. "By the way, I had someone set up a codebase these past few days. I overheard the programmers complaining that people who don't understand code always think that as long as the programmers are serious and attentive, they can write code without bugs."

"Hahaha," Ji Xiang laughed, "As long as a doctor has a sense of responsibility, he can bring patients back to life. This is a misunderstanding that patients and their families have about doctors."

Ji Xiang understood immediately, and Ji Yongchang didn't say much, just continued drinking his tea.

"By the way, I recently bought a farm."

"farm?"

"If you're going to be away for extended periods, I'll move to the farm."

Ji Xiang sighed and looked down at the obedient and docile roe deer. His grandfather had really gone to great lengths to raise this little guy.

Farms have their advantages; you can let the silly roe deer roam freely and play with them as long as you want.

"Okay." Ji Xiang had no objection to this.

The nature of my job means I don't have much time at home. Even in the provincial capital, there are night shifts and emergency surgeries.

……

……

Lin Jiu stood by the window, silently gazing at the night sky over the provincial capital.

To outsiders, Lin Jiuze appears to be young and successful, enjoying unparalleled glory, but only he knows the hardships he has endured.

Temporarily giving up the offer from Massachusetts General Hospital and staying in China was an extremely difficult choice.

The decision on this matter has been made, and there's no going back. What's holding Lin Jiu's attention is something else entirely.

A few minutes ago, the email that the teacher sent him gave Lin Jiuze some different thoughts.

Because they didn't go back, their former competitors began to stir.

People are the same everywhere.

"That damn guy," Lin Jiu thought viciously, clenching his fist.

Lin Jiu answered the video call when his phone rang.

"teacher."

Tang Chenghua appeared in the video, and Lin Jiu greeted him respectfully.

"TIRR Hermann Memorial Hospital has just admitted a patient from China."

Lin Jiu shrugged.

"Nine, why didn't you stay to have the surgery, but instead flew all the way to TIRR Hermann Memorial Hospital?" Tang Chenghua asked.

"Dr. Ji Xiang is too young, and people in China don't believe in his skill level."

"It's ridiculous. So many papers have been published, and nobody knows about it?" Tang Chenghua sighed and said with emotion, "Neymar just scored three goals in the game. When I watch Neymar play now, I feel like I've traveled back to many years ago."

"That's the truth, coach. Neymar's recovery has surprised me; it's truly unbelievable."

"I have some bad news for you. You've read the email, haven't you?"

"I saw it. Dr. Merz is at TIRR Hermann Memorial Hospital, and he started attacking me for that."

"Damn Americans!" Tang Chenghua cursed.

"I have no way to fight back."

"Meltz said a lot, but there was one thing he couldn't explain—Wenbanyama is preparing to go back to the country for his next surgery."

"!!!" Lin Jiu was stunned.

"Wenbanyama was too tall. After entering the NBA, he started to build muscle, and his weight increased rapidly, causing his joints and ligaments to be unable to withstand the enormous pressure. Yao Ming suffered a series of injuries due to weight gain, and eventually had to retire."

"Teacher, what do you mean?"

"Aren't two cases enough? If a few people recover successfully and achieve results on the field, I'm prepared to persuade John Sr. to hold this year's global sports medicine conference in China."

"!!!"

Lin Jiu was well aware of what all this meant and how much of a price he would have to pay.

"Thank you, teacher."

Are you confident about your side?

"From what I've observed, Dr. Ji Xiang is highly skilled. Since I started participating in surgeries, he has completed 56 Achilles tendon surgeries of various types. I will send you the postoperative follow-up reports later."

"Although there wasn't enough time, the recovery looks quite good so far. Unfortunately, there are relatively few athletes, so there wasn't any high-intensity exercise during the postoperative recovery process, and therefore the evidence chain isn't very solid."

"Evidence-based medicine, we still need sufficient evidence."

"Vanbanyama's agent team will contact Dr. Ji Xiang soon; they simply cannot bear the results of the surgery. Especially seeing Neymar shining again on the pitch while Vanbanyama is stuck in a hospital bed."

"It's a real shame. If I were in your shoes, I would also feel stupid." Lin Jiuze smiled.

"Furthermore, it's already January, the NBA All-Star Game is coming up soon, and the season is already in its second half. If possible, do you think Wimbanja will be able to recover quickly enough after his surgery to participate in the playoffs?"

"It's hard to say. You know how difficult a second surgery is. As for the extent of recovery, I..."

"Nonsense!" Tang Chenghua retorted unhappily. "This isn't Neymar's first surgery. I suspect his management team wants him to recover quickly so he can be fit for the playoffs."

"This year is the contract year?!" Lin Jiu immediately guessed the problem.

If an athlete suffers a major injury in the year of their contract, it will lower their perceived value, and those lucrative contracts that are constantly being offered will be reduced to an extremely low level.

For example, the infamous 4-year, 4400 million yuan child labor contract.

It's normal to work hard for a contract year, no wonder Wenban Yama had to undergo surgery again just a few months after her first surgery.

"Ninthly, based on your understanding, what are the chances of Wenban Yama having a successful surgery in your area?"

"Big, very big." Lin Jiu then changed his tone and answered very seriously, "I roughly understand the basic principle of the surgery—tendons have very few blood vessels, and the goal is to restore blood supply to the tendons as much as possible during the surgery."

"I've tried it, the blood supply to the capillary network... it's really too hard to tell."

"I'm getting presbyopia from watching surgical videos so much," Lin Jiu sighed. "Teacher, what I'm most confused about right now isn't how Dr. Ji Xiang came up with the surgical technique, but what I don't understand is how good his eyesight is."

This is talent, Lin Jiu once thought.

But Ji Xiang's exceptional talent left Lin Jiu feeling somewhat lost, confused, and even powerless.

This is something he could never catch up to in his entire life, to the point that Lin Jiu sometimes doubted whether there was any point in staying in the country.

"Do a good job on Wenban Yama's surgery," Tang Chenghua said meaningfully.

Lin Jiu remained silent.

The teacher is old-fashioned; he usually makes a phone call at most, and sending emails is his preferred method.

And today he specially sent a video.

The implications of this were something Lin Jiu could not help but notice.

It seems the teacher is under a lot of pressure in MIT, which is why he has to confirm it again and again.

Working alongside Ji Xiang recently, Lin Jiu has forgotten about the backstabbing and intrigue, and happily performs surgeries every day. Her biggest worries are work habits and the inconsistent standards for writing medical records in China.

Another issue is that there are too many patients, so many that Lin Jiu feels his skills are worthless.

Everything else is fine.

But today, a video of his teacher, Tang Chenghua, brought him back to reality.

(End of this chapter)