Chapter 109 - A Drunk Rogue
Emergency response was a daily routine in the emergency department, and Zheng Yunxia was merely an interlude, an unplanned issue that had to be dealt with.
Two patients with serious abdominal issues—acute appendicitis and acute cholecystitis respectively—arrived during the day. Due to inadequate preoperative fasting in the former patient, Zheng Ren had decided to perform cholecystectomy first and proceed with appendectomy later.
Three surgeries in one day was normal in his day-to-day life.
There was no major surgery, such as those involving hemorrhagic shock, which greatly satisfied Zheng Ren. As for the surgical treatment and follow-up for the patient in the urology surgery department? That was the urological surgeon's problem and none of his concern.
The day went on peacefully. Instead of getting off work, Chang Yue waited until half-past seven and brought Zheng Yunxia to the CT room along with Xie Yiren and the Chu sisters.
Of course, the most important person—Su Yun—tagged along as well.
The waiting list for scanning was very long, and so controversy was inevitable if medical personnel helped friends or family members skip the queue. Therefore, the hospital had implemented firm regulations to prohibit this practice.
However, medical personnel could use personal connections to request a scan only after working hours and if the radiologist was willing to work overtime.
And Su Yun was the kind of person capable of convincing others to work themselves to death.
Zheng Ren also followed them to the CT room as he had nothing to do in the emergency ward. It was also a short distance away, allowing him to return quickly if he was needed urgently.
It was still crowded in the CT room despite it being night.
There were patients with minor injuries who had been involved in traffic collisions or fistfights.
A woman in her forties was making a phone call when the group reached the CT room.
Upon their arrival, she made a hand gesture, signaling them to bring Zheng Yunxia to the CT unit.
Xie Yiren had already inserted a cannula into Zheng Yunxia for contrast agent administration. Soon, the other woman finished her phone call and began installing a pressure injector.
"Su Yun, you're so snobbish. Is it really necessary to hide from me for a year and a half?" the woman nagged during the process.
Su Yun put on a smile and said, "How could you say that? I'm really busy, Sister Zhao."
"How many times have I asked you out for a meal? I've repeatedly invited you over since my lover's intracranial hemorrhage was treated and he was discharged from the ICU, but you turned down my offer every single time." Despite the nagging, there was a hint of enthusiasm in Sister Zhao's chatter.
After listening to the story, Zheng Ren felt slightly ashamed at his initial speculations. From their conversation, it seemed like Su Yun had successfully rescued Sister Zhao's lover in the ICU, allowing him to be discharged afterward.
'This guy has some skill,' he thought.
"I'm now working in the emergency department, which is even busier, but… Don't worry, Sister Zhao, I'll definitely invite you for a meal in a few days. How is your lover right now?"
"Thanks to you, he is doing fine, and the rehabilitation is almost complete. He just has some slight numbness in his left hand, but that isn't really an issue."
After the contrast agent was placed into the pressure injector, Xie Yiren connected it proficiently to Zheng Yunxia and left the CT unit with the others.
The machine began to run, emitting a high-frequency humming which did not cause any actual damage to the body, but was loud enough to induce slight discomfort in Zheng Ren.
He took a deep breath upon exiting the unit and felt better instantly.
A loud voice echoed from across the hall.
Quarrels were common and considered trivial in a hospital. Arguments between patients and their family members, disagreements between two parties, wars of words between family members and medical personnel… What had Zheng Ren not encountered in his practice?
Therefore, the argument failed to pique his curiosity.
However, even Zheng Ren could vaguely make out the terms "beating" and "police officer" in the increasingly loud din.
Since he had nothing to do at the moment, he decided to take a look at the commotion.
The strong smell of alcohol lingered in the hall over hundreds of square meters, and a man with rosy cheeks was rolling across the floor, shouting that the police officer had hit him.
An innocent-looking, young traffic officer stood nearby, helpless and frozen in place.
The traffic officer's timidity fuelled the brazenness of the drunkard, who yelled loudly, "That police officer hit me!"
Zheng Ren shook his head, having already guessed the truth.
The drunkard had probably been arrested for drunk driving and was required to draw blood samples as evidence, but why would he here for a CT scan? Presumably, he had also claimed dizziness due to being struck, leading to the farce before Zheng Ren.
"He looks fine," Zheng Ren said to himself, walking over.
It was not loud, unlike that of a negotiator trying to be heard in order to break up a fight.
However, his words were clearly audible to both the officer and the man on the floor.
"Doctor, look…" The young traffic officer, caught in a difficult situation, immediately reached out like a drowning man clutching at straws upon seeing Zheng Ren approach in a white coat.
"Those who are capable of stirring up a ruckus are usually fine, so don't worry about him," Zheng Ren said softly, "The moment they go quiet, that's when it starts to become concerning."
"He can be tested for evidence of health issues, right?" asked the anxious traffic officer.
"Not necessarily. There is a chance that he might have delayed traumatic intracerebral hemorrhage," answered Zheng Ren.
"But… I didn't even touch him." The traffic officer was almost in tears.
"I'm not a police officer, so I can't do anything about it." Zheng Ren added, "Admit him to the hospital if his condition is serious, but judging by his current situation, he should be alright."
Zheng Ren noticed that the stooge had gradually stopped rolling about after stealing a glance at him, finally quieting down.
This frightened the young traffic officer.
His career would be over if someone died under his watch.
Such a fate would have been justified had he actually assaulted the man, but… he was being falsely accused.
The System panel clearly stated that the man was merely suffering alcohol intoxication with no signs or symptoms of intracranial hemorrhaging.
"Lend me a hand. Let's proceed with a CT scan first and admit him to the ward later," said Zheng Ren seriously.
Dazed and confused, the young traffic officer subconsciously obeyed Zheng Ren's commands.
They carried the inebriated rogue to the bed in the CT unit for a cranial CT scan and left the room, closing the lead door behind them. Then, Zheng Ren said, "You must be frightened."
"Huh?" The young traffic officer was startled.
"Get used to it. You can call your superior to ask them to handle the situation for you," said Zheng Ren with a smile.
"I…" Red-faced, the young officer clenched his fists tightly, trying but failing to vent the resentment in his heart.
Police officers, a career just as miserable as that of doctors, were infinitely glorified but would still be dumbfounded when meeting unreasonable ruffians. Sighing heavily, Zheng Ren decided to help this young traffic officer.
"You don't have the courage to do so? In that case, find a senior police officer whom you're on good terms with to take it from here and leave the rest to me," said Zheng Ren with a smile.
"You are…"
"I'm Zheng Ren, a chief resident in the emergency department," Zheng Ren said before going to the operator console room. "I'm going to take a look at the scan
results."
The CT scan had been completed. After ensuring that there were no signs of intracranial hemorrhage noted in the films, he entered the CT unit and said, "The patient's condition is very serious. I'll request a stretcher trolley."
The young traffic officer was stunned… Which sentence was the truth?
Chapter 110 - A Means Between Light And Darkness
Zheng Ren took out his cell phone and called the emergency department.
Soon, a paramedic rushed over with a stretcher trolley, almost out of breath.
Zheng Ren leaned closer to the paramedic and said softly, "Everything is fine."
"A troublemaker?" guessed the paramedic, an experienced man, as he scanned the area.
"Yes." After the brief conversation, they quickly transferred the rogue to the stretcher trolley and hurried to the emergency department.
Upon arrival at the emergency department, Zheng Ren pushed the stretcher trolley directly into an empty treatment room instead of the observation unit, closed the door and said, "The patient has lost consciousness. It's a serious condition and we're in big trouble now."
The young traffic officer's face was chalk-white.
Due to a lack of experience, he could not grasp the meaning behind Zheng Ren's words.
"Prepare for resuscitation!" yelled Zheng Ren furiously while repeatedly blinking his eyes, trying to give the traffic officer a hint.
After that, he left the room, looked for the night shift nurse and gave her a few instructions in a low voice.
The nurse smiled with a gleam in her eyes. "Chief Zheng, you look so honest, how did you even come up with such an evil plan?"
"A troublemaker has been drunk driving, isn't that enough?" replied Zheng Ren with a grin.
Drunken driving and brawls were the most annoying issues ever encountered in hospitals.
Zheng Ren had no issue with alcohol, but when people started losing control of themselves after getting drunk, it could inadvertently lead to tragedy.
For example, a student due for a college entrance examination the next day had been struck by a drunk driver during a walk and was reduced to a vegetative state. In another case, a husband had taken his pregnant wife for a stroll, but a drunk driver had brought all of them to heaven…
Thus, Zheng Ren hated such people the most.
He was a good man, but not a doormat. He had his own judgment, and at certain breaking points, he would break the rules and furtively seek revenge.
Just like now.
After collecting the right medication, the nurse went to the treatment room and started injecting them into the drunk rogue's veins.
Then, she hung up a bottle of solution and maximized the infusion rate.
"He should be fine if he regains consciousness. Otherwise, we'll have to resuscitate him." It was pure nonsense, but Zheng Ren maintained his serious tone.
The young traffic officer was completely drenched in a cold sweat as if a war was raging within his mind. His imagination was going wild with the fear of getting suspended for this incident.
"He… He should be… be fine, right?" the officer stuttered in fright.
Zheng Ren patted his shoulder to signify that everything was fine.
However, the young traffic officer still could not understand Zheng Ren's actions. His mind had gone blank from the start.
"Doctor, please make sure he is alright," he said pitifully, "I didn't even touch him."
"It depends on the effects of the drug." Zheng Ren's expression remained at ease despite his solemn tone. "Drugs with special effects have been administered. If the patient wakes up, everything will be fine. Otherwise, I'll have to admit him to the hospital."
After that, Zheng Ren turned around and left without looking at the drunk ruffian, who was pretending to be unconscious.
Sitting on a hard, red plastic bench at the door, he explained his current situation in the group chat and inquired about the CT result.
Zheng Yunxia had finished a contrast-enhanced CT scan, and everyone was discussing where they would have dinner at the moment.
Zheng Ren was speechless; everyone always left him behind when going out for a meal. Even though he disliked eating out and hectic environments, he could not help but feel that the whole world had abandoned him.
It was deeply depressing.
Xie Yiren seemed to detect Zheng Ren's dejection from the other side of the phone and volunteered to bring food for him.
Chang Yue mentioned in the group chat that she had gone for another ward round and all patients were stable, and so he could take his time returning to the emergency department.
The group chat became silent afterward.
'They must have gone for dinner.' Zheng Ren helplessly turned off the phone.
'Well, they might as well go. Youngsters prefer a lively environment anyway,' he thought, reverting to an old-fashioned mindset for a moment.
Approximately five minutes later, the door of the treatment room was suddenly flung open and a man, smelling strongly of alcohol and stumbling unsteadily, ran out like a scalded cat.
In the background, the young traffic officer stared dumbfoundedly at the scene before him.
He was confused out of his mind. The ruffian had just revealed that he had been pretending to be dead the whole time, but had thrown off his guise without a care in the world. What the hell was going on?
Had the doctor administered a drug that could trigger the patient's conscience?
Instinctively, the traffic officer followed the man.
"The washroom is on the left!" shouted Zheng Ren as a reminder.
"..." The officer staggered.
A few minutes later, the rogue returned dejectedly, dropping all pretenses; there was no point in continuing the charade now that the cat was out of the bag.
An older traffic officer had arrived on the scene in the meantime. After inquiring about the situation, he scolded the drunken man for his idiocy before instructing the younger officer to deal with subsequent procedures such as blood sample collection. Justice was served in the end.
"Brother, thank you so much for everything," said the senior traffic officer. He spoke in a slightly imposing manner, but Zheng Ren liked it.
"Don't worry about it. It's my job anyway."
"Care for a smoke?"
"Let's go."
They were instantly greeted by an icy breeze upon stepping out of the building. Wrapping his white coat tightly around himself, Zheng Ren accepted a cigarette from the senior officer and took a deep drag.
It was not easy being a doctor or a police officer.
If either one of them started making complaints about the job, their list would be long enough to reach the end of the world.
They chatted casually and exchanged contact numbers. After realizing that Zheng Ren was dressed lightly, the senior traffic officer stubbed out his cigarette and threw it into an ashtray on the dustbin before bidding farewell to Zheng Ren.
Zheng Ren took this opportunity to take a walk around the emergency department. The weather was getting colder, and the general surgery division thus enjoyed this leisure time relatively free of drunken brawls in the middle of the night. However, the internal medicine division had its hands full due to the rapid rise in intracranial hemorrhages and myocardial infarctions.
Places as cold as alpine regions were certainly unsuitable for human habitation, but patients in the southern coastal regions would find their ailments easier to deal with.
Zheng Ren returned to the emergency ward after finishing his ward round.
He greeted the night shift nurses, the only ones left in the nurses' station, before returning to his office and continuing his book.
Half an hour later, he received a call from the senior traffic officer.
He thanked Zheng Ren again on the phone. Had Zheng Ren not risked his neck by violating several rules of the hospital, their issue would have been extremely troublesome to deal with.
Zheng Ren chatted politely
for a while before hanging up.
Earlier, he had ordered an intravenous injection of furosemide and a bottle of mannitol for the ruffian.
These drugs were standard treatment for intracranial hemorrhage, but when administered together, diuresis was further intensified which drastically increased urine output.
This resulted in an extremely full bladder.
However, Zheng Ren had also encountered a shameless b*stard who would rather hold his urine and risk incontinence.
After repeated examination to confirm that he was physically alright, urinary catheterization had been performed for the b*stard every one to two hours.
Few people could pretend to be comatose while enduring the agonizing pain of urinary retention just to save some money.
It was good that everything was settled. Zheng Ren shook his head and threw the incident to the back of his mind.
This interlude was merely a small part of his daily life in the emergency department, which ultimately became insignificant overall.
The real issues lay in various peculiar rescue operations that rapidly increased his adrenaline level and instantly broke the high-energy phosphate bonds in all his adenosine triphosphate.
It was a peaceful night. Two hours later, Zheng Ren went for another ward round before the patients went to sleep and made some necessary arrangements before finishing his Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery book.
Incidentally, Su Yun returned to the emergency ward at this time, having eaten his fill.
Chapter 111 - A Sorrowful Past
Su Yun, lunchbox in hand, smiled at Zheng Ren's diligence. "You were indeed born to be a chief resident."
"I've nothing to do at home, anyway. Besides, it's better to be ready for emergency cases and potential emergency surgery in the hospital." Zheng Ren stood, accepted the lunchbox and walked to the on-call room.
"What's your purpose in life?" Su Yun was obviously trying to mock him.
"Perform surgery, earn money, raise a family and make ends meet. Are there any other purposes in life?"
"That's so austere."
The Surgeon's Studio c1-799 Page 60