Chapter 2571: 2577.2478 Documentary (Part 1)

2577.2478 Documentary (Part 1)

The next day, seeing Zheng Ren gradually improve, Xie Yiren's face also began to show a slight smile.

"Zheng Ren, Tangxiu wants to come see you, but I stopped her." Xie Yiren sat at the bedside peeling an apple for Zheng Ren.

"Mm, don't have so many people come; just seeing them makes me feel exhausted." Zheng Ren said, lying on his side on the bed.

"There are still ten minutes; Tangxiu said Hua Shi TV's news channel will broadcast the documentary they made about you. There are many episodes; today is the first one."

"A documentary?" Zheng Ren was a little puzzled; he hadn't accepted any interviews, so where did the documentary come from.

"You'll see once you watch." Xie Yiren handed the apple to Zheng Ren, smiling, and said: "Eat slowly."

Zheng Ren happily ate the apple, seeing Yi Ren take out a tablet, start connecting to a hotspot, and find Hua Shi TV's news channel.

Soon, the advertisement ended, and the documentary began.

Zheng Ren curiously watched the scene change, wondering what kind of documentary this was.

"Tangxiu said she interviewed people around you; at the time she said she wanted to interview me, but I refused." Xie Yiren said.

"Mm, who did they look for?" Zheng Ren asked.

"Many people, and it's said there were even patients from a surgery live broadcast." Xie Yiren helped Zheng Ren sit up, let him lean against her embrace, and reached out to touch his forehead.

"I'm no longer feverish." Zheng Ren said.

"Then you still need to be careful." Xie Yiren pulled over an outer garment, covered Zheng Ren's front, fearing he'd catch a chill.

Zheng Ren felt being taken care of like a child; although it felt a bit strange, this feeling was still nice.

Leaning in Yi Ren's embrace, Zheng Ren shifted to a more comfortable position. Such a life has meaning; being ill sometimes isn't entirely bad.

"Zheng Ren, the news channel has been all about you these two days; I've downloaded it." Xie Yiren said: "Keep it safe."

"There will be more later; you'll need to buy a big hard drive." Zheng Ren said with a laugh.

"Hmm, when we're old, it'll be like watching a black-and-white film to see you now on TV."

"Old..." That word left Zheng Ren feeling a bit dazed.

In his daze, the documentary had already started playing.

A female voice began to narrate slowly.

【Among medical staff called "white-clad angels," there is such a somewhat special group—the lead-clad people.】

The opening background is black and white, not the festive gong-and-drum sounds Zheng Ren imagined, like New Year celebrations.

This is made by Sun Zeli and Tangxiu? Just this one picture aroused Zheng Ren's interest.

【They are not only Intervention Department doctors; in the hospital they are also distributed in the cardiology, vascular, neurology, and orthopedics departments.】

【Because of the special nature of their work, they must wear lead clothing weighing dozens of kilograms every day while working in the catheter room where the angiography machine emits X-rays.】

【They hold guidewires and catheters, carefully relieving patients' ailments, while they themselves suffer radiation erosion, thus being vividly called lead-clad people.】 (Note 1)

In the picture, a doctor's backstage went from blurry to clear. After the surgery ended, he tore off his sterile gown, threw it into the medical waste bin, and wore thick blue lead clothing, like armor.

That doctor didn't turn back, but walked toward the other side of the interventional surgery room.

He took off the lead clothing and hung it on a specially made rack on the metal frame.

The simple iron rack made of rebar as thick as a finger swayed slightly when the lead clothing was hung; the picture gradually blurred, only the swaying of the heavy lead clothing and lead skirt remained clear.

【An Italian study published in a Circulation sub-journal indicates that skin damage, neck and back ailments, knee problems, and cataracts occur more frequently; moreover, the longer one stays in the catheter room, the worse their health becomes.】

The background sound came again; the colors of the lead clothing and lead skirt faded, and the picture turned black and white once more.

【Doctor Zheng Ren's Nobel Prize–winning project—the improved TIPS surgery—is a type of interventional surgery. In sum, to improve this procedure that benefits millions of late-stage cirrhosis patients, he must wear lead clothing weighing dozens of pounds, like armor, every day while performing surgery.】

The black-and-white picture powerfully outlines the dozens-of-pounds lead clothing in an abstract way, heavy and weighing on people's hearts.

【They exchange their own health for others' health, with no resentment or regret.】

The scene shifted; Zhou Chun Yong appeared on the screen, the colors returned to normal—it was a bright, sunny afternoon.

"I am Zhou Chun Yong, head of the Capital Hepatobiliary Intervention Department."

"I first met Zheng Lao Ban; let me think… oh, it was after I watched a surgery live broadcast about the improved TIPS surgery that I proactively went to find Zheng Lao Ban."

"What need is there to say that? You might think a procedure isn't much, but do you know how many hepatitis B patients there are? Worldwide 300 million, in our country 120 million. Hepatitis B, cirrhosis, portal hypertension, massive ascites with vomiting blood—annual deaths number in the hundreds of thousands."

"Of course there's no good solution; surgery has the Mesocaval shunt, but the risk is very high."

"What? You ask what TIPS surgery does? Let me put it this way: the earlier TIPS surgery, I started a few months after Professor Xu Ke, so I can say I was among the earliest nationwide to perform it. Before watching the surgery live broadcast, each TIPS surgery took me at least two hours to complete."

"It's definitely hard; otherwise why would many doctors still be researching ways to improve the TIPS procedure? The Mayo Clinic has research that can limit punctures to fewer than five times. But Zheng Lao Ban's surgery hardly ever fails; when I first saw it, I was dumbfounded."

Zhou Chun Yong's somewhat overbearing and domineering brow softened when he said the three words "Zheng Lao Ban"; his tone also grew much gentler, filled with respect and even admiration.

"A single successful puncture is just imagination; previously it was thought to be an extremely low probability. Before this, I had performed over a thousand TIPS procedures, and those succeeding in one attempt numbered no more than five."

"Sometimes you have to puncture many times, the liver ends up riddled with holes. Surgical failure isn't rare either; if you truly can't get in, what can you do?"

"After watching the surgery live broadcast, my first thought was whether this was real or fake; you know, academic fraud is quite common."

"Don't broadcast this part; it's not just domestically—internationally there's no fraud either? An alkaline physique makes cancer unlikely; do you know that?"

"Right, the acid‑base physique theory was ultimately judged nonexistent. Let's replay that segment we just skipped."

"Academia has its own rules; my first thought was whether this wasn't destroying academia's survival soil. Researching and improving a new technique—if the practitioner gains no benefit, who would still study? We might as well stay home and eat ready‑made food."

"India, why are there counterfeit drugs? People are willing to conduct human drug trials; how many have died remains a mystery. You get what you put in. I initially half‑believed, half‑doubted when I contacted Zheng Lao Ban, wanting to see what was really going on."

"Later, I invited Zheng Lao Ban to come and perform two surgeries; the hemostatic forceps hurt like hell when they clanged."

"What? A typhoon? Nonsense, don't listen to those people spouting nonsense. Don't broadcast this part either; in private, it's just sour‑grape talk from those who can't get grapes. I've been hit by Zheng Lao Ban—see what I'm saying!"

Zhou Chun Yong glanced sideways, his domineering aura fully displayed.

"That's teaching; you can't learn it in the shortest time without a couple of taps. In old private schools, teachers had rulers to slap palms; if you didn't learn, two smacks worked better than anything."

"Zheng Lao Ban is so busy that being able to hit him twice in surgery is a good thing. As for me, I don't get many chances to be hit, but my skill improves steadily. Now TIPS surgery has a 90% chance of being completed with a single needle."

"Compared to the old procedure, it's completely different. Zheng Lao Ban's surgical skill is just high; not accepting that is unacceptable."

"Huh? What do you mean by that? Other surgeries are surely impressive too—I heard that during earthquake relief, Zheng Lao Ban performed surgery in Pengxi Xiang; a pelvic fracture interventional embolization took only fifteen minutes."

"Hey, Sun reporter, cut those few slip-of-the-tongue remarks you just made; don't broadcast them."

Zhou Chun Yong laughed and said: "Zheng Lao Ban winning the Nobel Prize is only natural. Every year, at least hundreds of thousands of patients survive thanks to the new TIPS Surgery technique; if this technique doesn't deserve the Nobel Prize, I really don't know who would."

After he finished speaking, his figure gradually became blurred, the light and shadow shifted, and then gradually Clarity.

A thin, gaunt person appeared before the camera.

……

Note 1: Beijing Friendship Intervention Center publicity material.