Chapter 291: 0285 Cause (1/4)

Professor Rudolf Wagner's words fell on Zheng Ren's ears as if unheard; he merely showed his habitual pretended smile of recognition.

Then, there was no afterwards.

The professor was stunned; this didn't match his understanding of the world at all.

In scientific research, Professor Rudolf Wagner believed Heidelberg University wasn't much stronger than Stanford, Cambridge, etc., but at least it was of the same order of magnitude.

Having refused Heidelberg's invitation, what else did he want to do?

Did he really think that having the "Hand of God" made him God?

In a moment of distraction, Zheng Ren had already begun refining the patient admission process with Director Kong.

The patient volume in Di Du was like the sea—almost inexhaustible and endless.

Not to mention twenty small-nodule liver cancer patients a month; even twenty a day was no trouble for Director Kong.

But if Zheng Ren only went there one or two days a month, the 64-slice CT retrograde 3D reconstruction would become a major problem.

The time spent on reconstruction was not shorter than the surgery time.

What Zheng Ren and Director Kong discussed was mainly this problem.

Or perhaps go back and talk with Director Chu about training one or two people from the medical technology and clinical departments to learn retrograde 3D reconstruction, which would be better.

If Zheng Ren… Director Kong felt some regret, but he didn't repeatedly invite Zheng Ren to Di Du again and again.

Everyone has their own aspirations; one cannot force them.

Those who can reach this level technically basically have IQs over 150. Although Zheng Ren's emotional intelligence seems a bit low, that's also due to his focus on technical research.

Well, Director Kong thought Zheng Ren was fine in every way; without Zheng Ren explaining, he just found various excuses for him.

"Dear Zheng, would you consider my proposal just now?" Seeing Zheng Ren ignore him and not respond, Professor Rudolf Wagner asked bluntly.

"I won't consider it for now." Zheng Ren liked the professor's temperament, so he replied in the same direct manner.

Professor Rudolf Wagner shrugged, his artistic long hair falling; each golden strand seemed to carry an indescribable regret and bewilderment.

"Zheng, please forgive my frankness." Professor Rudolf Wagner said: "Your hospital's overall hardware can only be described as insignificant. I think this is a huge obstacle to your research."

Zheng Ren nodded, thinking the professor was right.

"Under the Excellence Plan, I can mobilize 35 million euros annually. If you think that's not enough, I can go find donors. You know, every year the people from those charity departments who want to donate to me are like fish in the Danube—just a phone call and there will be some."

Director Kong was speechless.

He silently cursed.

He had almost exhausted himself trying to win Zheng Ren over, but aside from intangible social status, what he could offer paled in comparison to a world‑top professor—truly off by countless times.

If it were me… perhaps now would be a good time to discuss cooperation with Professor Rudolf Wagner.

Zheng Ren smiled and said, "Respected Professor Rudolf, I appreciate your goodwill."

"Huh?" The professor didn't understand.

Although he had a rough grasp of Chinese, the subtle cadence of the language could convey countless meanings with just a sentence's tone—something he still couldn't fully comprehend.

"This is my home; I have no plan to leave for now." Zheng Ren once again refused the professor's invitation, unequivocally.

Director Xiao held a cup of wine, intending to make some polite remarks to ease the atmosphere, but as soon as he stood up he heard Professor Rudolf Wagner mention the annual research funding amount, and that if it wasn't enough there were many donors.

Mountains of gold and silver rose in his mind.

Although he had no relation to Director Xiao, he still felt a momentary daze.

He stood up, raised his wine cup, but said nothing, feeling somewhat awkward.

The office director noticed this and kicked Xiao under the table.

"Uh..." Director Xiao immediately recovered, smiled, and said, "Friends come from afar..."

"Respected Director, could you give me a few more minutes? I'm trying to persuade Zheng." Professor Rudolf Wagner, noticing his words were interrupted and disturbed, grew unhappy and spoke directly.

In Professor Rudolf Wagner's mind, Director Xiao wasn't even a speck of dust; if he left any impression, it was merely a bad one.

Being rejected by Zheng Ren was already disheartening; the professor felt the Nobel Prize in Medicine was slipping further away. And now he dared to disturb him—truly a demon from hell!

How awkward……

The atmosphere at the table became strangely tense.

But who was Director Xiao? A veteran officer who had weathered many battles; anyone who could reach this level of real authority wasn't there for nothing.

He didn't sit down awkwardly; if he had, the person who lost face could never recover it.

Director Xiao's mind shifted, his quick wit sparked, and he immediately came up with an explanation.

"Respected professor, I should be able to give you a satisfactory answer to your doubts." Having said that, he glanced at the office director, who understood and immediately hurried away.

"Really?" Professor Rudolf Wagner seemed not to believe it.

"The world changes day by day." Director Xiao finally managed to steer the conversation back to his familiar track: "The great rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation is unstoppable."

Director Kong blinked, not understanding why Director Xiao was starting to give a meeting report at the dinner table.

"Here, our city TV station and a news media outlet recently co‑produced a documentary about City First Hospital; perhaps watching it will give you the answer."

He spoke slowly but firmly.

The office director had already opened the small kitchen cafeteria as a setting for a large projector, and the documentary that Zheng Ren had hastily watched upon his return reappeared before their eyes.

The high‑end projection equipment delivered vivid visuals and excellent sound, giving everyone an immersive feeling.

Professor Rudolf Wagner tilted his head slightly, curious to see what reason this doctor of limitless promise, who possessed the Hand of God, had for refusing him.

After a brief prelude, the piercing wail of the 120 emergency ambulance spread the tense atmosphere throughout the restaurant.

The scene of rescuing a massive food‑poisoning incident appeared before everyone.

Director Kong gasped in shock—nitrite poisoning, such a rare case, had actually been encountered by Zheng Ren?

Professor Rudolf Wagner simply turned his chair to face the screen and stared fixedly at the projection.

Director Xiao exhaled, giving the office director an approving look.

In fact, Director Xiao didn't even know what the documentary's content was; he had brought it up on the spur of the moment just to give himself a way out.

But when he saw the documentary footage, he also froze.