Chapter 1120: line with translation of chapter title

Soon, the heads of all relevant departments in the hospital rushed over.

There were a few too many people; a dozen or so stood in the operating room, whispering softly, and Zheng Ren also found it a bit noisy.

He was impatient, especially that lingering trace of blood in his heart that he could not wipe away.

"Boss, go have a smoke; there's nothing for us to do here." Su Yun said softly. He saw that many department heads and agency personnel were standing, while the boss sat there with eyes closed, resting, which seemed improper. To let Zheng Ren avoid drawing more resentment, he wanted to pull him out.

Zheng Ren nodded, opened his eyes, and walked out with Su Yun.

Director Xu of the Anesthesiology Department had already taken over anesthesia, and Lao He was free. His attention had always been on Zheng Ren; seeing him leave, he immediately told his assistant—if the director comes looking, say I went to the restroom—and then left as well.

"Zheng Lao Ban, tired?" Lao He asked from behind.

"Not bad."

Even the usually talkative Lao He didn't say much more; today's matter left everyone speechless. Everyone felt as if a heavy stone weighed on their hearts, making breathing especially difficult.

Arriving in the Zhibanshi, Lao He took out a cigarette; with a flick of his wrist, a cigarette popped out of the pack, practiced and smooth.

Zheng Ren picked up the cigarette, his hand trembling slightly.

His hands, previously steady as a rock during surgery, now seemed like someone else's.

Lao He saw this, felt uneasy, took out a lighter, lit Zheng Ren's cigarette, gave Su Yun one, and casually opened the window.

"Zheng Lao Ban, when did you get back?" Lao He asked.

"Just got off the plane." Zheng Ren said.

"You're probably here to attend the awards ceremony," Lao He said, trying to smile with a grin, but it looked worse than crying.

"Hmm." Zheng Ren was deeply gloomy, especially so; the hand holding his cigarette trembled unevenly.

A surgeon's hands are rock‑steady. Just now Lao He personally saw Zheng Lao Ban operating with both hands, his skill almost divine. Yet after stepping down, his hands shook like this.

"Lao He, what's going on?" Su Yun asked directly.

"Ah, don't mention it." Lao He sighed, "These past few days I've noticed far fewer urology surgeries. Coincidentally, Director Yu came this morning to assist with a kidney cancer case, so I asked him. He said that recently, the patient's family has been acting just as before—either going to the ward director's office or to the outpatient clinic."

"..." Zheng Ren and Su Yun remained silent; they could already picture the scene.

"They meet, say nothing, kneel on the ground and start crying."

"Just dry‑heaving? I've seen plenty." Su Yun sneered.

"No, it's the kind of grief that borders on despair. Director Yu… sigh, this situation is truly helpless." Lao He said, his eyes looking out the window.

It was afternoon, and the sky was a deep blue with a few clouds drifting like cotton candy, making the sky look especially beautiful.

But the hearts of the few people speaking were full of dark clouds, with occasional thunder and lightning, like a raging storm.

Actually, the matter is quite simple; Lao He doesn't know much either, he just heard Director Yu say a couple of things.

"Zheng Lao Ban, can the person survive?" Lao He asked, feeling a bit uneasy.

Zheng Ren thought for a moment, then said in a low voice, "If there's no severe intracranial hemorrhage, adjusting things in the ICU should take care of it; there shouldn't be a big problem."

Upon hearing that conclusion, both Lao He and Su Yun let out a sigh of relief.

"What the hell is this!" Su Yun exploded in anger, "In Rochester, Wu Hui couldn't even perform an appendectomy, yet there was no fuss. Director Miao had said beforehand that the success rate was low, and yet this happened."

"Wu Hui? What happened?" Lao He, loving gossip, perked up at hearing it was a celebrity and quickly changed the subject.

Regarding Director Miao's matter, even though they didn't get a clear answer, Zheng Ren and Su Yun were still unwilling to let it go. But once they actually started talking about it, none of the three wanted to bring it up.

In this state of tangled feelings, chatting about other gossip could at least help relax the atmosphere a bit.

Su Yun told Lao He about Wu Hui's medical experience in Rochester and what happened. Lao He also felt somewhat moved, thinking that things like intestinal cleansing were just nonsense. They were all old‑school Chinese medicine practitioners, and it wasn't a complicated illness; hearing a few key words, you could roughly guess the truth.

"Even the medical technology in the United States is just average," Lao He remarked.

"That was a community hospital; actually, the Mayo Clinic's technology is quite high," Zheng Ren said frankly.

"Good doctors are still rare, Zheng Lao Ban—I heard you were appointed as a visiting professor at the Mayo Clinic?" Lao He asked.

If it weren't for Director Miao's matter, Lao He would have already been gossiping about this.

"Right, right?" Zheng Ren began to be vague, then looked at Su Yun and asked.

"Yes, I've taken care of it. When we were in Heidelberg, Dr. Smith confirmed this and even sent a letter to the hospital. Didn't I tell you?" Su Yun said disparagingly.

"I forgot; those few days I was jet‑lagged and had lots of surgeries—who remembers such things when there's nothing pressing?" Zheng Ren said indifferently.

After a bit of small talk, Zheng Ren felt better.

Lao He stared, speechless.

"Being a visiting professor at the Mayo Clinic—here with Zheng Lao Ban it's turned into a trivial matter? This pretentiousness is going too far."

"Besides surgery, I really doubt you'd survive if you went to Rochester on your own—you'd starve on the streets."

"You're always antagonizing people, proving you're mentally unhealthy." Zheng Ren took a puff of his cigarette and said lightly, "Online, you're just a troll. Actually, this is the same as American hippie culture. Essentially, it's an anti‑tradition, anti‑authority mindset."

It demands deconstructing everything, breaking all ordinary moral standards. At the same time, against a backdrop of human alienation, one unemployed or low‑income youth after another, feeling powerless over their fate, directs their anger at society and rebellious impulses onto the internet.

Zheng Ren felt deeply troubled, his mind filled with a bloody red haze. Feeling uneasy, his thoughts incoherent, when he antagonizes people he is also quite sharp.

Lao He quickly tried to stop their bickering, squeezing out a faint smile with all his strength, saying, "Hey, hey, wait a minute."

"What is it?" Zheng Ren and Su Yun asked in unison.

"..." Lao He also had nothing to say; he just didn't want to hear them argue. Talk about hippies, cultural differences, how insignificant individuals struggle, strive, and fight in society's sea only to go with the flow and vent their dissatisfaction online— to Lao He it all sounded like bullshit.

Even someone as honest as Zheng Lao Ban would say such things.

"Want to grab dinner together tonight?" Lao He, at a loss for words, could only find one then.

"We've made plans." Su Yun said, "Just picked you up from the airport—Director Kong has an acquaintance with a dinner gathering. Zhou Chun Yong from Di Du hepatobiliary also said he wants to eat soon. Let me tell you, first come first served; if you want to treat us to a meal, bring it up again in a week."

Lao He spread his hands; Zheng Lao Ban is very busy.