Chapter 792: Just Do Good Deeds, Don't Ask About the Future

"Brother Zhao, are you looking for me?" Ji Xiang sat on the steps of the Fire Exit, looking at Zhao Zhe and smiling.

"Phew, I suddenly wanted to find you for a smoke, but you disappeared in the blink of an eye." Zhao Zhe sat down beside Ji Xiang with a smile, "What are you thinking about, Xiao Ji?"

"I'm thinking about the few things I said to Zhao Yuanzhang during the surgery today."

"Don't take it to heart." Zhao Zhe knew Ji Xiang was thinking about this; he sat on the step below Ji Xiang and said leisurely, "I have a classmate."

"Oh? The 'I have a friend' cliché?" Ji Xiang said with a smile.

Seeing that Ji Xiang's expression was natural, Zhao Zhe felt relieved and began to gossip.

"Not at all, it really was a classmate, a high school classmate. He was quite successful and went to a 985 university after graduation. He was doing experiments at the university with a large centrifuge," Zhao Zhe said. "They said it wasn't balanced, and as a result, the rotor flew out, smashed through several walls, and shot onto the playground like a damn bullet."

"I don't know what 'balanced' or 'rotor' means either, but it sounds like a huge mess. The lucky thing was that there was no one on the playground at the time. If there had been, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"Ha! That's intense!!" Ji Xiang praised.

"People always have times when they cause trouble, but there's no need to be afraid. If you offend Zhao Yuanzhang, at worst we just won't work here anymore. The world is vast, and he, Zhao Jixiang, isn't the biggest thing in it," Zhao Zhe comforted him.

Only then did Ji Xiang realize that Zhao Zhe was afraid he was scared and had come to comfort him.

"Brother Zhao, it's fine," Ji Xiang smiled. "Zhao Yuanzhang isn't an unreasonable person, don't you think?"

Zhao Zhe didn't agree with this statement from Ji Xiang at all, but he didn't refute him.

"Don't worry, Brother Zhao," Ji Xiang patted Zhao Zhe on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Having published so many SCI Theses and with our level of surgery, can we not find work? You tell me, right?"

"Heh heh. I was just worried you were scared. Actually, a lot of the time you don't have to indulge them," Zhao Zhe said seriously. "Just like me back then, it looked like I was lying flat, but that was my form of resistance."

That such an honest and simple old Attending Physician could say something like this, Ji Xiang expressed that he really didn't understand.

If Zhao Zhe had that kind of ability, he wouldn't be suffering grievances in Yuanliao.

Seeing Ji Xiang "making fun" of him, Zhao Zhe didn't get angry either; he laughed, "Xiao Ji, your Brother Zhao was also a hot-blooded youth back then. Do you know why I ended up like I was before?"

"It was because your Department Head didn't like the look of you, right?"

"Partly, but mainly... let me tell you, just take it as a bit of fun."

Ji Xiang knew that Zhao Zhe was even willing to reveal his shameful secrets just to cheer him up, and he was slightly moved.

"Back then I was still young and full of spirit, and our Department Head was actually pretty good to me at the time."

"Later, one day, a patient with carbon monoxide poisoning came in. A young girl, from the countryside, working in Yuanliao at a hair salon. She ate and lived at the salon. I reckon her dream was to open her own shop one day and have a home and a career."

"The hair salon I'm talking about was a proper one."

Zhao Zhe added.

"I didn't misunderstand, Brother Zhao, please continue." Ji Xiang smiled, not joking with Zhao Zhe.

"At that time our hospital was still very small. There was one ward for Surgery and one for Internal Medicine; they hadn't divided into departments yet. There was very little central heating back then. In winter, everyone used coal stoves for heat. If you weren't careful, it was carbon monoxide poisoning. Central heating is very common now; you probably don't even know about that."

Zhao Zhe was rambling, but Ji Xiang didn't mind and just listened quietly.

"One morning the boss went to the shop and found the girl had carbon monoxide poisoning. By the time she was carried out, she was already gone. She wasn't sent to the hospital; the boss called the Department Head to take a look, probably because he didn't want to spend the money. The Department Head called me along; I was considered his trusted aide."

"I rushed over immediately and saw that the girl had already stopped breathing."

"It was truly a pity. I was young then, and seeing that scene made me feel very uncomfortable."

"The Department Head brought a death certificate with him. He felt the girl's pulse and immediately issued the death certificate."

"Right at that moment, I saw her finger move, as if it had twitched."

"!!!" Ji Xiang was startled.

"Books say that patients with severe carbon monoxide poisoning are in a deep coma, all reflexes disappear, there is incontinence, blood pressure drops, breathing is rapid, the fatality rate is high, and if the coma lasts too long, the results after treatment are not good."

"But her finger moved. It was different from the 'all reflexes disappear' mentioned in the books. I immediately told the Department Head happily, and without waiting for his consent, I went up to prepare to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation on the patient."

"What if, you know, Xiao Ji? What if she could be saved? A girl not even 20 years old, in the prime of her life, it would be such a pity for her to just go like that."

"Yeah, you did the right thing!" Ji Xiang gave Zhao Zhe an affirmative answer.

"But as soon as I went up, I was kicked down by a Family Member of the patient, who said I was acting like a hooligan, not even sparing a dead person."

"!!!" Ji Xiang was stunned by this bizarre ending and didn't know how to describe it for a moment.

"I said the patient might not be dead, but the Family Member wouldn't listen no matter what. The Department Head was very angry and said a few things to me, but I was hot-headed; I didn't hear a word the Department Head said and insisted on performing emergency rescue on the spot."

"And then?"

"Later, I got beaten up. After I went back, rumors quickly spread through the hospital that I had been driven by lust, that I wouldn't even spare a dead person, and that I had mental problems."

"..." Ji Xiang was speechless.

"Many years later, by chance, I found out that the girl's family had come to collect the body, and on the spot, someone talked them into selling the corpse."

"???"

"They called it a Ghost Marriage. These girls of seventeen or eighteen who haven't married or had children are quite valuable." Zhao Zhe shook his head. "On the scene, I was the only one who wanted to save her. Even her parents had given up. You tell me, what was wrong with my brain?"

"Matching a Ghost Marriage locally or something, it counts as having a home, that's roughly the meaning. I don't understand the specifics, but ever since that incident, the Department Head looked down on me."

"I also know I ruined a lot of people's 'good' business. Even if that girl had been saved, she would likely have been Brain Death, but I just wasn't reconciled. I was young back then; once I got hot-headed, I didn't care about the consequences."

Zhao Zhe finished his rambling story without any sadness, disappointment, or other negative emotions. He tilted his head and smiled at Ji Xiang, "Xiao Ji, if you had been there at the time, what would you have done?"

Ji Xiang shook his head, indicating he didn't know either.

"I'm a bit idealistic. After that, I thought that if it happened again, I would probably still become the target of public criticism, even if my career prospects were cut off after that... I don't need to think about that for now, I just have to do something."

"Hmm, just do good deeds, don't ask about the future," Ji Xiang summarized.

"It has to be you, Xiao Ji," Zhao Zhe said. "Just do good deeds, don't ask about the future, that's about it. Our looks might not be up to par, but our values must be, don't you think? No, wait, I meant my looks aren't enough, hahaha."

"Are you sure your values are upright?" Ji Xiang teased.

"I have a clear conscience, that's my point of view," Zhao Zhe replied.

Ji Xiang gave a thumbs up.

"So, I think what you did today was right," Zhao Zhe said very seriously. "As for what others say, screw them!"

"Hahaha, yes."

"Those laymen are all talking nonsense."

"Speaking of laymen, my family used to have a housekeeper who specialized in cooking. She would take two days off every month, and during those two days, my dad and I would have to order takeout," Ji Xiang said.

Zhao Zhe scratched his head.

Having a housekeeper to cook at home was a lifestyle Zhao Zhe had never experienced.

"At first, when I ordered takeout, I liked to eat vegetables for nutritional balance. Later, I discovered that no matter what, my dad would never order takeout that included leafy greens. I felt like my dad was deliberately targeting me."

"That's possible," Zhao Zhe joked. "Your dad pretending to be a girl to have an online relationship with you—that's the most unreliable parent I've ever seen."

"Later, I asked my dad, and only then did I find out why."

"Hmm? There was a reason?" Zhao Zhe was taken aback.

"My dad said that the leafy greens in takeout are usually bok choy because they are uniform in size, rarely have yellow leaves, and rarely have strange wormholes. The most critical thing is that restaurants basically never wash the bok choy; they just chop off the roots with one knife and then toss them directly into the pot to blanch them, and that's it."

"!!!"

Zhao Zhe was shocked; he hadn't expected that the bok choy in takeout wasn't even washed.

"I discussed it with my dad for a long time. Later, my dad said a lot of things I didn't quite understand, about costs, operations, and the like. He said that having a clear conscience is truly very difficult. By the way, to have a clear conscience, one must primarily possess profound basic skills."

Ji Xiang's "ethereal" train of thought left Zhao Zhe a bit dazed.

But then, Ji Xiang told Zhao Zhe a story about a kidney resection, which scared Zhao Zhe into a cold sweat.

What was strange was that when such gossip came out of Ji Xiang's mouth, there was a sense of dissonance inconsistent with his age, yet Zhao Zhe had already silently accepted it. Zhao Zhe himself didn't even know when he had started accepting it.

"Alright, Zhao Ge," Ji Xiang stood up and patted the dust off his pants. "Let's go back to work. Don't worry, I'm fine. As for Zhao Yuanzhang's side, it should be fine too. If I can't handle it, there's still my mom and dad, though I don't really want to use their connections."

"I was just worrying for nothing," Zhao Zhe explained, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Although there was a disturbance, Ji Xiang had mostly experienced a moment of Empathy within a short period, coupled with Zhao Zhe's comfort.

His mood quickly returned to calm.

Would Zhao Yuanzhang come to make things difficult for him?

Ji Xiang thought it was possible, but that didn't matter.

As for Wembanyama's surgery, Ji Xiang was confident. Although this person hadn't chosen him to perform the surgery at first, there were no problems now.

With a good performance in the Playoffs during his Contract Year, Wembanyama should be able to get a huge contract.

Ji Xiang was working when his phone rang.

"Hello, Yuqing, why are you looking for me?"

Ji Xiang answered the phone; it was Feng Yuqing calling.

"At the hospital?" Feng Yuqing didn't beat around the bush and asked directly where Ji Xiang was.

"Yeah."

"Don't leave, I'm coming to find you now."

"So impatient, where's the..." Ji Xiang complained halfway, but Feng Yuqing had already hung up the phone on her end.

Half an hour later, Feng Yuqing rushed over.

"Ji Xiang, come here!" Feng Yuqing stood outside the office and waved.

"If you have something to say, just say it here."

"Look at how timid you are. You don't dare to ride a roller coaster, and you don't even dare to talk for a few minutes. It's not like I'm going to eat you!" Feng Yuqing rushed in and grabbed Ji Xiang's hand, pulling him outside.

Zhao Zhe revealed a knowing smile.

"Stop pulling and tugging, tell me, what do you want with me?" Ji Xiang asked.

"The Celtics are going to trade Wembanyama, did you know?" Feng Yuqing lowered her voice and said.

"Are they crazy? They won the first overall pick with less than a 2% probability back then, and they're selling him just like that?"

"It's because the effect of the first surgery wasn't ideal, and then he came to you for surgery," Feng Yuqing held Ji Xiang's hand tightly, as if she were looking to die for love with him.

"Let them sell him. If your family has confidence in me, then keep buying the dip. Take advantage of the fact that Wembanyama is at the absolute bottom of his career and hurry up to sign a lifetime big contract," Ji Xiang said with a smile. "If you don't have confidence in me, then forget it. No matter what I say, you won't believe it."

Everything Feng Yuqing wanted to say had been spoken by Ji Xiang in one breath; she stared at Ji Xiang with wide eyes.

"What kind of expression is that?"

Ji Xiang pried Feng Yuqing's hand off.

"You're really nervous. It's not good for you to touch my hand like this."

"This information is worth 30% of the equity," Feng Yuqing said very seriously. "If Wembanyama can fully recover... I'm not asking for him to be like that kid playing in the Bundesliga..."

"What kid? His name is Zhao Dali. Pay attention, don't just play around every day."

"I'm not asking for him to be like Zhao Dali." Feng Yuqing didn't have time to talk nonsense with Ji Xiang. She said simply, "If he can recover to Wembanyama's state, that's feasible. If it's similar to Yao, retiring not long after the surgery would be the worst."

"The possibility of Yao cannot be ruled out either. After all, both he and Wembanyama only started putting on muscle after going to the NBA, and the joint load is heavy." Ji Xiang shrugged, finally managing to pull his hand out of Feng Yuqing's grip.

Feng Yuqing was truly serious, and Ji Xiang hadn't expected her to have such great energy.

"Ji Xiang, I've been good to you."

"I know, it's probably your dad's idea. Even if the deal doesn't go through, the goodwill remains. You know that it's impossible for us," Ji Xiang said calmly.

"I want a word from you."

"How could a Doctor give you a one-hundred-percent promise?"

"If it were you, would you invest?" Feng Yuqing changed her angle.

If the question was asked like this, it became simple.

"Of course I'd invest. This is buying the dip! If you're worried, you can pull my mom in to do it together. Do you need me to make a call?"

Feng Yuqing had no idea where Ji Xiang's confidence came from.

She scrutinized Ji Xiang's eyes.

In Ji Xiang's gaze, she could see a clarity that reached the bottom, like a pool of water without any impurities.

"Okay!"

A few seconds later, Feng Yuqing stomped her foot and made up her mind.

"Relax," Ji Xiang smiled, "Life always requires choices, and there is always a chance to take a gamble."

"I believe you."

"Believing me is expected, but whether the specific matter can succeed still depends on your luck."

"!!!"

"I'm telling the truth. You also know that if my mother invests, it counts as pocket money at most. But if it were you, it would probably count as losing your entire family fortune?"

Feng Yuqing felt a stifled breath trapped in her chest.

"Speaking the truth," Ji Xiang comforted Feng Yuqing, "The probability of the surgery succeeding is very high. Not to mention that Wembanyama will reach a new level in the future, at the very least, it won't be lower than his level before the injury."

"Really?"

"A 99% probability, so I need a bit of your luck. If you are unlucky enough to hit that 1%, there is nothing I can do."

Feng Yuqing detested the way the Doctor spoke.

Can't these people just say one hundred percent?! They only know how to be vague and say things offhandedly, leaving others to guess.

Damn it!

"Look at how nervous you are. Ask your family; if they don't mind, I'll have a word with my mother, it doesn't matter if you take a small stake."

The equity of the Feng Family's family business was very clear and also very exclusionary; Ji Xiang knew he was just saying it casually.

"I'll have a word with my dad."

"By the way, Wembanyama is going to be traded? Who did you hear that from?"

"Business secret. Wembanyama doesn't even know it himself, don't let it slip."

"I've never been one to talk too much," Ji Xiang laughed, "Which team is he going to?"

"I don't know either, but no matter where he goes, it's a gamble."

Seeing Ji Xiang looking like he was thinking about something, Feng Yuqing asked curiously, "You wouldn't be thinking of egging your mother on to acquire an NBA team, would you?"

"No interest. My mother is very repulsed by these kinds of things. However..."

"You don't have confidence?" Feng Yuqing was a bit uneasy.

"Are you kidding?" Ji Xiang said, "I still have work to do, I'll leave if there's nothing else. By the way, do you know about the matter with Zhao Dali?"

"Manchester City has already given Zhao Dali a Blank Check, he can fill in any amount. If it weren't for Zhao Dali and Neymar, they wouldn't be hesitating."

Ji Xiang didn't say much more to Feng Yuqing and turned to leave.

Feng Yuqing looked at Ji Xiang's back and suddenly called out, "Ji Xiang!"

"Hm?"

"Will it work or not!"

Ji Xiang didn't answer Feng Yuqing's question, but instead raised his right arm and waved it in the air.

Dr. Merz stood in front of Wembanyama's hospital bed, watching the doctors from the medical team giving Wembanyama a massage.

A massage therapist is very important.

After that female massage therapist for the Golden State Warriors left the team, the Warriors began to experience a wave of injuries, which eventually led to the near collapse of a dynasty.

Every detail is very important.

Dr. Merz did not have a trace of expression; his professional judgment was diametrically opposed to the hope deep in his heart.

Wembanyama was recovering extremely quickly, and looking at the situation, the cast could be removed in about three weeks to begin preliminary Restorative Training.

This was the surgical result Dr. Merz had dreamed of, but the regret was that the surgeon was not himself.

Even!

Dr. Merz didn't even understand how that young Great Demon King had performed the surgery.

The young Great Demon King seemed to have some kind of magic; simple Suturing, clearing the local connective tissue hyperplasia, and irrigation—the surgery ended just as simply as that.

Dr. Merz looked at Wembanyama expressionlessly, as if wearing a mask; he didn't know what kind of expectations he should have next.

"Victor!"

Wembanyama's personal Coach walked in quickly, holding a pad in his hand.

He was the personal Coach who had been with Wembanyama since he was in France, and his bond with Wembanyama was extremely deep.

"Aljier, what happened?" Wembanyama asked.

"Damn Celtics, they are seeking a trade!"

A trade?

A trade!

Wembanyama, half-lying on the hospital bed, was stunned for a moment.

"Trading me? Are they crazy?"

Hearing Wembanyama's muttering, Dr. Merz sneered in his heart.

A second surgery not only damages an athlete's body but also causes irreparable damage to the team's confidence.

The Celtics are a storied powerhouse, and equally cold and ruthless.

To them, everything is just business; they calmly and coldly judge a player's condition and injury status, and then make the optimal solution.

It is estimated that the Celtics' front office has already determined that Wembanyama's condition will plummet after consecutive surgeries.

Thinking of this, Dr. Merz felt a bit happier.

"Damn it!" Wembanyama's personal Coach cursed.

"I want to talk to the General Manager." Wembanyama still wanted to explain.

"It's useless, Victor," Wembanyama's personal Coach said dejectedly, "They have already been in contact with other teams behind our backs, and now they are infinitely close to reaching a trade."

"..."

Wembanyama was stunned.

"Which team are you going to?" Dr. Merz asked.

It would be best if it were a small team, the kind that tanks... no, it would be best to go to the Portland Trail Blazers and let Wembanyama experience the infamous Trail Blazers veterinarian.

"I don't know yet, it should be a big trade involving 4 teams," Wembanyama's personal Coach said dejectedly.

"There is no problem at all, no matter which team Victor goes to, he will be the best player and the core cornerstone," Dr. Merz complimented Wembanyama politely.

Is that true?

No one believed it.

"Why are they trading me!" Wembanyama roared in anger.

"Victor, this is very regrettable."

"No!" Wembanyama clenched his fists, "My athletic ability will definitely recover, Ji told me it definitely can!"

Dr. Merz looked at Wembanyama, who was already somewhat hysterical, and was overjoyed inside.

Although he performed one surgery, the Celtics' front office did not trade Wembanyama because of one surgery.

As for now, Dr. Merz had already begun to outline in his heart what kind of offensive he would launch against that young Great Demon King in the future.

That damn Great Demon King must be made to know what kind of counterattack he will suffer for stepping into someone else's territory.

But when Dr. Merz thought of Ji Xiang's calm face, and thought of how Lin Jiuze, who had always been a transparent person, had actually become acerbic, he felt a bit lost.

Can it really work?

"Which teams are involved in the trade?"

After a long time, Wembanyama stabilized his emotions and asked.

"Victor, what you need to do now is to recover well, and then use your actions to tell those sons of bitches that you are the best player in this league!"

"I want to play in the Playoffs, that is my only request," Wembanyama muttered.

"I will try my best to strive for it."

The hospital room then fell silent.

Wembanyama had been abandoned; no matter what his team said, in fact, no one was optimistic about him.

From Dr. Merz to the Celtics' front office, everyone thought so.

And the reason why a 4-team trade was necessary was also because no one believed that Wembanyama, for whom countless teams had tanked to compete for the number one draft pick, had already become a garbage contract.

Now, even if Wembanyama only wanted to join a Playoffs team, it had become an extravagant hope.

(End of this chapter)