Chapter 46: Lin Rui, Be My Assistant

Wang Chuan walked into the Emergency Department surgery room and saw a German Imported Surgical Microscope, about the same height as himself.

The patient lay supine on the operating table, under Brachial Plexus Nerve Block Anesthesia, right arm resting flat on a support board.

Attending Physician Sun and Lin Rui sat facing each other, like frozen statues, their bodies leaning forward, eyes glued to the microscope eyepieces, hands moving with orderly precision.

Attending Physician Sun, facing the door, looked up and said, "Nurse Chang Min, who let him in?"

Nurse Chang Min had personally witnessed Wang Chuan's skill; though Wang Chuan had been driven out by Attending Physician Sun yesterday morning and she couldn't help, today Wang Chuan was assigned by Attending Physician Zhang Yang.

She immediately replied, "Attending Physician Zhang Yang asked Doctor Wang to observe."

In front of patients, Nurse Chang Min usually called interns "Doctor." She feared some patients, like landmines, would order interns to leave—or explode if they didn't.

Attending Physician Sun said nothing more and continued operating through the microscope.

"This Wang Chuan is restless—driven out yesterday, yet tonight he still gets to operate and save the Health Bureau Director's daughter, and along the way helps Respiratory Medicine Section Chief Tao Tao. Today he's charmed Zhang Yang so well, on his first day of training, he's already sent to observe."

Attending Physician Sun had average medical talent; he worked hard until thirty to become an attending. He deeply resented talented young people—how could you reach my level so fast when I spent years to get here?

If it were Zhang Yang, he'd say nothing—twenty-six and already an attending, a famous microsurgery star at Mingzhou Sixth Hospital. He himself had learned microsurgery basics from Zhang Yang.

Wang Chuan, what's so great about suturing superficial skin wounds? What's so great about performing cricothyroid puncture?

Don't I know how to do it?!

Lin Rui, as assistant, faced away from Wang Chuan and didn't greet him.

Wang Chuan walked to the diagonal left-rear position, where a Monocular Teaching Observation Tube stood, and pressed his eye close to observe.

He found debridement already completed, auxiliary incision exposing the surgical field done, bone shortening fixation secure—Sun was now performing flexor and extensor tendon repair.

At this moment, Dean Wei Xing and Executive Vice Dean Yang Guohua, accompanied by the Medical Affairs Section Chief and Department Directors, were inspecting every department in the hospital to enforce municipal government directives and check for safety hazards.

"Tao Tao, where's that intern who saved you? I want to meet him," asked Dean Wei Xing, his hair streaked gray.

During the daytime meeting, Dean Wei had asked experts from other hospitals to re-examine Tao Tao's medical record treating the elderly mother of the San Yang Village Village Head, questioned staff about the treatment process—the preliminary conclusion: this was not a Medical Malpractice.

The elderly mother, 79, with decades of heavy smoking, chronic cough and phlegm, died of acute exacerbation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, triggering Respiratory Failure combined with Refractory Heart Failure.

After her death, the San Yang Village Village Head refused autopsy and insisted it was due to Respiratory Medicine Tao Tao's improper treatment.

Dean Wei will retire next year; he came from Respiratory Medicine, and Tao Tao is his student—he must defend him, and has already recommended Tao Tao for Vice Dean.

"I heard he's in Emergency," Tao Tao quickly replied. "His name is Wang Chuan, from Jiangcheng University School of Medicine."

Tao Tao added: "He's also the one who saved Director Pei's daughter."

Upon hearing this, Dean Wei's first thought: Wang Chuan went to save the Director's daughter, saving Tao Tao was incidental. Wang Chuan and the Director's daughter attended the same school—perhaps they were dating.

Beside him, Yang Guohua thought: "This Wang Chuan's emergence is extremely unfavorable to Yang Fang—he's drawing too much attention. Director Pei even invited him to ride back together. Perfect—I'll find fault with him in Emergency soon."

The group changed direction and headed toward Emergency.

In the Emergency surgery room, through the Monocular Teaching Observation Tube's view, flexor and extensor tendons were already repaired. Wang Chuan mentally simulated how he would operate.

The next step was artery anastomosis—suddenly, Sun's voice rang out: "Nurse Chang Min, wipe my forehead."

Wang Chuan pulled his eye from the observation tube and saw Sun looked unwell—sweat had dripped into his eyes.

Nurse Chang Min wiped the sweat. Five minutes passed, and Sun still hadn't returned his eyes to the eyepieces.

"Doctor Sun, what's wrong?" Lin Rui asked anxiously.

Replantation of Amputated Finger is a race against time—the surgery must proceed continuously, as tissue cells are dying.

Sun internally regretted deeply: yesterday's night shift had seen a surge in Emergency patients—if Wang Chuan hadn't been driven out, his suturing skill could've shared some burden.

This evening, Lin Rui called him to say there was a Replantation of Amputated Finger case in Emergency; after his morning shift, Sun had helped Vice Dean Yang with personal matters and hadn't slept well during the day.

Even so, Sun desperately wanted to perform this Replantation of Amputated Finger—such surgeries were rare at Mingzhou First Hospital; the entire hospital had no hand surgery department.

The only other doctor in the hospital capable of microsurgery was Yang Fang, who had trained at a hospital in Shanghai—its hand surgery department was nationally renowned.

Zhang Yang had planned to call Yang Fang to perform it, but Sun rushed back to Emergency and demanded to do it himself.

Previously, Sun needed six to eight hours to complete such a surgery from start to finish.

Now, he was exhausted, eyelids heavy, his Needle Holder trembling slightly.

"Nurse Chang Min, go ask Attending Physician Zhang Yang if he's finished—I need him to come take a look."

Soon, Nurse Chang Min returned and said: "Doctor Sun, Attending Physician Zhang hasn't finished yet. He asked if you're having difficulties."

Wang Chuan saw time slipping away—the longer it took, the greater the Postoperative Risk, even if the surgery was completed.

He whispered: "Doctor Sun, let me take over. You can observe my operation through the Teaching Eyepiece."

Sun glanced at Wang Chuan. "Wang Chuan, stop boasting! Have you ever studied microsurgery?"

He sneered again: "All you know is suturing skin!"

Nearby, Lin Rui said: "Wang Chuan, microsurgery isn't simple suturing. Have you studied it? Without half a year of rigorous practice, you can't even sit in my assistant seat."

Wang Chuan said: "I have!"

He added: "I studied this morning before rounds and this afternoon. Nurse Chang Min, sterilize me—time is urgent!"

"Damn it, Wang Chuan, you're mocking me, aren't you?!" Sun, enraged by "this morning and afternoon," stood up, walked to Lin Rui, and ordered: "Lin Rui, switch places with me. Don't be afraid—I'll assist you."

"Huh?!" Lin Rui's face paled. "Boss, I'm not qualified to be chief surgeon! At best I'm an assistant—these vessels are too fine, I'm not skilled enough!"

"Little Lin, you're just timid. This intern has more guts than you. You've trained for at least a month."

Suddenly, a female patient's drowsy voice came: "Doctor, is the surgery over?"

After sterilizing, Wang Chuan sat down squarely in Sun's chief surgeon seat and told the patient: "The surgery just started—you can sleep a bit longer."

"Lin Rui, be my Assistant!" Wang Chuan's tone left no room for argument.