227 The Tree of Life Part 1 of 5

"Sister Lin, please keep your eyes closed. Don't rush to open them," Zheng Ren muttered in the operating theater.

Lin Jiaojiao was a senior nurse in the Interventional Radiology Department and knew how interventional surgeries worked. The moment she saw the blank region on the radiograph of her eye, she knew her fate was sealed.

However, this young doctor had carried on with the usual protocol. He was determined even when she had given up hope.

After hearing what Zheng Ren said, Lin Jiaojiao asked, her voice trembling and her eyes closed, "Doctor, is there still a chance for me?"

"The outcome is promising. If everything goes according to plan, we've already resolved the issue." Zheng Ren smiled, but it was hidden under his face mask. "We can give you a definite answer after obtaining the results from radiography."

Lin Jiaojiao had always complied with medical advice. Even when faced with the possibility of losing her vision, she still instinctively obeyed doctor's orders.

She did not question her doctor's decisions despite the fact that interventional surgery seemed unrelated to whether or not her vision recovered, or that her surgeon was a young doctor that she had never heard of.

When the young physician told her that she had a chance of regaining her eyesight, Li Jiaojiao's eyelids fluttered non-stop while her eyes remained shut, visibly fighting to contain her emotional turmoil.

"The radiograph," Zheng Ren said quietly.

Su Yun immediately pressed the button on the pressure injector. A black image appeared on the screen, the silhouette of the contrast agent resembling a giant tree.

Zheng Ren and Su Yun held their breath and stared at the screen unblinkingly.

In the operating console room, Department Chief Kong, Chief Ma, Dr. Shen, the operator, and the nurse had their eyes stuck to the screen as well.

Whether the procedure had succeeded or not...

It all boiled down to this moment.

The contrast agent spread across the blood vessels rapidly, from the internal carotid artery to the ophthalmic artery…

The branches gradually grew finer until the agent finally reached the region that was previously blank.

The dark contrast agent weaved through the region unimpeded. It instantly branched out into countless capillaries like innumerable masses of rootlets that stemmed from underground roots.

It indicated life!

Life and victory!

Department Chief Kong rose to his feet in one swift motion and looked at Zheng Ren through the transparent lead glass.

Zheng Ren let out a long sigh as he confirmed that the blockage in the ophthalmic artery had been cleared. He looked out of the room and gave a thumbs-up with his right hand.

From the outside, Department Chief Kong mirrored the action with his own.

It was a success!

He tore off his sterile surgical gown and entered the operating console room.

"Little Zheng, well done!" Department Chief Kong did not hold back his acclaim. Words could not express his sincere and deep exhilaration.

"You flatter me," Zheng Ren said, grinning, "The amount of urokinase administered was higher than usual, so we should keep an eye on her post-surgery."

Department Chief Kong waved his hand dismissively. If Zheng Ren had to worry about these things, he, as chief of the department, would be obligated to dash himself against the walls of the operating console room.

Chief Ma of the ophthalmology department had made a 180-degree turn in her attitude towards Zheng Ren. Laughing, she said, "Little Zheng, your medical skills are exceptional."

"You're exaggerating," Zheng Ren said courteously.

"That was an understatement." Department Chief Kong rolled his eyes and continued, "You need to learn to accept credit when you've done something incredible. Don't ever belittle yourself. Your humility is like a slap to my face."

Dr. Shen was hiding in one of the corners, his face covered in tears. He was the one who had embodied the slap on Department Chief Kong's face, not Mr. Zheng.

After recollecting the whole procedure, he had come to the conclusion that he could have performed the entire surgery himself. Even though he might have taken a longer time than Mr. Zheng, he had the skill to execute it without fail.

However, although he could retroactively understand the procedure, few people had the guts to attempt a new surgical technique during an emergency, especially with such a rare case.

Who would take the risk to go through with a procedure beyond their grasp? Those who did had a certain level of confidence that it would work. Based on this alone, the difference between them both was crystal clear.

Department Chief Kong sighed internally when he saw Su Yun applying pressure to stop the bleeding. "Little Shen, set up the compression device."

This was someone capable of a heart transplant at postgraduate level, now reduced to stopping bleeding via manual compression under Zheng Ren. What a waste of talent.

Furthermore, no one performed manual compression in Imperial Capital anymore. Here, they used compression devices to achieve hemostasis.

Even though the device cost over a thousand dollars, out of reach of poorer patients, it had its advantages, such as allowing for recovery as soon as four hours post-surgery. Many people… most people did not mind paying the extra cost.

For a moment, Dr. Shen was relieved that Department Chief Kong had not censured him, but in the next, he ran into the operating theater like a stray dog let loose[1] to stand in for Su Yun.

Department Chief Kong chuckled and said, "Little Su, is everything fine?" 

Su Yun had drunk the most when they were in Tang Song Restaurant—a catty of Maotai.

Under normal circumstances, it was prohibited to perform surgery after drinking. However, he had just filled an assistant role and appeared perfectly fine with no sign of discomfort, which was why he had been allowed to enter the operating theater at Zheng Ren's request.

Department Chief Kong was concerned for these youngsters.

"Yes." Su Yun removed his sterile surgical gown and passed it to the operating theater nurse.

The nurse received it with a smile and helped him dispose of it in a large red medical waste bin.

"Is a catty a lot?" Su Yun said stoically.

"..." Zheng Ren glanced at Su Yun and saw that the man's fringe had stuck to his forehead in the shape of his surgical cap. This was some top-tier pretense being put on, he mused.

Since two of the chiefs were present, Zheng Ren could not make a jab at Su Yun about the incident involving crayfish and Snow, and thus let him go on with his act.

"Youngsters; such vibrant energy," Department Chief Kong said whimsically.

"Do you need me for anything else?" Zheng Ren asked after checking the time on his watch. It was already an hour past midnight and he wanted to leave.

"It's done. You guys can retire for the night," Chief Kong answered, "You still have enough stamina for tomorrow's surgery, right?"

"Absolutely," Zheng Ren said.

"Okay, I'll hand over at 8 a.m., and you guys can arrive at the operating theater at 8.30," Chief Kong said.

"Sure, I'll be here at 8.30 sharp," Zheng Ren confirmed. After bidding farewell to both chiefs, the operator, and the nurse, he left as quickly as he could.

"So handsome," the nurse mumbled to herself as she stared at their departing backs.

"Stop dreaming." Department Chief Kong was in an exceptional mood, basking in the success of the surgery. He said with a laugh, "Don't waste your time on the both of them."

"Why do you say that?" The nurse looked upset.

"That assistant already had a fan base two to three years ago when he was in Union Medical College Hospital. Now that he's back in Imperial Capital, you probably wouldn't be able to join the fan club in the first place," said Chief Kong. Gossip was inevitable in the operating theater on such a momentous occasion.

'So iconic! He even has his own fan club!' thought the nurse.

"Back to the surgeon: what do you think he's like if he had the ability to make Su Yun his assistant?"

This time, Chief Ma interjected and asked, "About that, Old Kong; who's the guy who operated today?"

"You wouldn't know who he is even if I described him. I'll tell you this much—Old Chu from the CT department, Zheng Ren and I met today and discussed new differential diagnoses and surgical techniques. We perfected it based on his conjecture."

"..."

…

…

[1] This is a description used in "史上第一混乱", written by Zhang Xiaohua. I really liked it and used it a couple of times.