Chapter 368: Capable in Literature and Martial Arts

A few days later.

"Director Ling, I have an article here that seems to be the one you mentioned."

Ling Tian received the call, and the person on the other end didn't stand on ceremony, getting straight to the point.

The Urology Department Expert he had sought out for the previous surgical competition had "defected," and Ling Tian had done some deep self-reflection afterward.

Ji Xiang's level was indeed high, very high, as high as several stories of a building.

And it wasn't just Interventional Surgery; even his endoscopic surgery was so strong that it convinced the Directors in the Imperial Capital and Gu Lao. Although it was mind-boggling, it was a fact that had to be admitted, otherwise, he would never be able to deal with that kid for the rest of his life.

In his heart, Ling Tian had already come to regard Ji Xiang as an equal opponent, and he even subconsciously placed himself in the position of the "underdog."

He seemed to have forcibly forgotten the memory of Ji Xiang slamming the A4 paper into his face at the society meeting, but the gloom and scars left in Ling Tian's heart were secretly gnawing at him, every moment of every day.

Since a frontal battle wouldn't work, Ling Tian would take a side path.

Any Doctor who wants to get promoted needs academic papers; this is true even in low-level hospitals.

For those in the top five hospitals in the country, promoting from Attending Physician to Deputy Chief Physician requires a National Natural Science Foundation project.

It can be said that papers and natural science foundations are the ladder for a Doctor to climb upward.

Ling Tian had long since used various connections to contact reviewers at several national-level journals; to them, blocking an article was the smallest of small matters.

As for the lobbying of a Director from Bai Medical University, who would care about that?

Now, hearing the reviewer call him to say that Ji Xiang's paper had been sent over, Ling Tian's long-dormant heart finally began to thump.

He didn't feel excited; the feeling of settling a score wasn't strong. On the contrary, Ling Tian was extremely worried and nervous.

Ji Xiang was always full of surprises; the little ant he originally thought he could crush with a finger could turn the world upside down, and Ling Tian didn't even know if a similar situation would happen this time.

"Director Dou, how is his paper written?" Ling Tian asked.

The person on the other side hesitated for at least 3 seconds, the silence making those 3 seconds feel like 3 days, and even the air was filled with awkwardness.

"Director Dou, please feel free to speak," Ling Tian pressed.

"Director Ling, it's not that I'm trying to curry favor, but this article is indeed written well," Director Dou said. "The data is detailed, the format is regular; it doesn't look like it was written by an ordinary Doctor, but rather like it came from the hand of a master paper-mill expert."

"Ahem, let's not talk about that, the content is also very solid. Although it is only a Gegan baodao, there is too much that can be extrapolated from this paper."

"A Gegan baodao? National-level journals generally don't publish such papers," Ling Tian said, feigning ease.

"That's not it. I suspect that there is an expert guiding the person you are tracking behind the scenes," Director Dou said cautiously. "Taking a project from shallow to deep and splitting it into several or a dozen papers is the right way. Many inexperienced young people just dump everything into one paper at once, but the person you are paying attention to is not like that."

Ling Tian pursed his lips; they were very thin, sharp as a blade.

He hadn't expected Ji Xiang to be capable in both literature and martial arts—in martial arts, he could handle both Surgery and Interventional Surgery; in literature, he could write a paper that received high recognition from an Expert.

"But don't worry, ever since you told me, I applied for primary paper review authority and have already PASSED on this paper; other reviewers won't see it."

Hearing Director Dou say this, Ling Tian let out a light breath.

"Thanks, Director Dou."

"You're welcome. It's just a Standardized Training Student, and he's only the second author. I see the first author is an Attending Physician; even if you hadn't said anything, this kind of paper would likely not have passed the review anyway."

A sense of gratitude rose in Ling Tian's heart; Director Dou was someone worth befriending.

He had helped him and even given him a way to save face; he was truly decent.

"Director Ling, there is something I don't know if I should say or not."

"Director Dou, just say whatever is on your mind."

"The paper... let's put it this way... don't worry, I've handled things perfectly on my end," Director Dou said, uttering a very strange sentence.

Ling Tian also knew what Director Dou wanted to say to him, but in the end, he had concerns and didn't say it out loud.

After hanging up the phone, Director Dou let out a long breath, his expression uncertain.

"Boss, a small matter," Director Dou's student said with a smile. He didn't understand why his boss would be so hesitant about this matter.

In his view, how to choose between a long-famous Expert from Shanghai and a Standardized Training Doctor... was there even a need to choose!

"You don't understand," Director Dou shook his head.

"Boss, where is the problem? Why didn't I notice it?" Director Dou's student played along.

"Print this article out and study it well."

"Ah?" Director Dou's student was stunned.

"I can give face to Director Ling Tian, but we can't be ignorant of what is actually going on," Director Dou said thoughtfully. "This paper can be used as a model essay; your future papers should be written according to this format. As for anything more, you wouldn't understand even if I told you."

As he spoke, Director Dou sighed, "Splitting one project into a dozen small projects, and doing it so logically—impressive."

Director Dou's student hadn't expected his boss to give such a high evaluation.

"That young man has a big backer behind him," Director Dou said. "Ling Tian... can you suppress him for a moment, can you suppress him for a lifetime?"

"Boss, a big backer, that shouldn't be the case," Director Dou's student laughed.

"How many papers have you published?"

"11!" Director Dou's student answered proudly.

"But your current level of writing papers is one... no, two orders of magnitude worse than this young man's."

"!!!"

"I'm not exaggerating at all," Director Dou said. "If I hadn't promised Ling Tian in advance, this paper would definitely have been published, and I estimate that I would most likely have written an email to the other party asking when the next paper would be mailed over."

"That can't be, Boss."

"It is," Director Dou said. "Having said that, whether this person wrote it himself or found a big paper-mill expert to help write it, being able to get the paper to a point where I can't pick out any flaws at all—both in writing style and data—is perfect, and can be called seasoned."

Director Dou's student was speechless; he never expected his boss to give that Standardized Training Doctor such a high evaluation.

Seasoned—could such an adjective be used for a Standardized Training Doctor?

"The power behind the young man is not low," Director Dou said. "You helped me review the article; I don't know about this matter, got it?"

"..." Director Dou's student was a bit shocked, but he paused for less than a second and immediately said, "Yes, Boss. If there is a problem, it is because of my youth and ignorance."

Director Dou nodded slightly and smiled.

Finding one's own student to take the blame was also a last resort; it was already a method with no other options.

Moreover, Dou Zhuren wanted to see how the situation developed before saying anything, assuming that their guess was correct...

(End of chapter)