Chapter 1426: Must It Be Saved?

Because Zhang San brought a lot of new equipment, the basement Xia Qing built couldn't meet the installation requirements for these devices, so Old Wolf's tooth regeneration surgery was still performed in the same laboratory where Ergua had received his syndactyly separation surgery.

When lead surgeon veterinarian Zhang San entered the operating room and opened the second large case he had brought, not only Xia Qing and the Broken-Waist Wolf, but even dentist Zhang Shi was deeply shocked.

Mechanical arms, high-frequency piezoelectric ceramic bone scalpels, double-headed minimally invasive tissue aspirators, electronically controlled polypeptide millimeter injection guns...

As these pieces of equipment were laid out one by one, Zhang Shi intuitively felt the difference between frontline dental treatment instruments and those used by the nation's top medical research teams.

So the advances in medical technology described in academic journals were all real. These high-value precision instruments could actually be manufactured and put into use during the year of natural disasters.

More importantly, the big shot was actually going to use these instruments to perform surgery on an evolved wolf. From this, one could see that this wolf was important not only to Xia Qing, but also to the big shot.

After installing and debugging the surgical instruments, Zhang San gave the order, "Little Four, lie down on the operating table."

The operating room was filled with the mingled smell of ozone and disinfectant, and those unfamiliar metal instruments all gleamed with a cold light, looking extremely sharp. The battle-hardened, world-weary Old Wolf was very nervous and instinctively looked toward the human companion he trusted most.

Xia Qing immediately comforted him in a soft, gentle voice, "Don't be afraid, Old Four. One shot of anesthetic and you'll fall asleep, and by the time you wake up, the treatment will be over. Broken-Waist and I will protect you the whole time and won't let you get hurt."

The Broken-Waist Wolf beside them also opened his mouth to comfort him, "Aowuu aowu."

The meticulous Zhang Shi immediately corrected her, "Sister Qing, Brother Duan, it's not one shot, it's two."

"Right, I remembered wrong, it takes two shots. Don't be afraid, Old Four. Getting the anesthetic shot doesn't even hurt as much as being bitten by an evolved mosquito. Old Four isn't afraid of evolved mosquitoes, right?" Xia Qing picked up Old Four and placed him steadily on the operating table.

The well-prepared Broken-Waist Wolf immediately pressed Old Wolf's left foreleg with one paw and, imitating Xia Qing's tone, went "aowu aowu."

Little Wolf Brother, who always tried to measure up to his dad, was about to rush over and grab Old Wolf's other foreleg when he was stopped by Zhang San, "Xia Qing, Little Duan, Little Wolf, you three stand at the back. Zhang Shi, sterilize, prepare to inject the anesthetic."

"Roger."

The innocent bystander Xia Qing retreated with the two wolves, first picking up Little Wolf and placing him on a chair, then patting the Broken-Waist Wolf's neck to comfort him.

"Relax, Fourth Brother. I'm going to inject the medication now."

When Zhang Shi finished speaking and approached with the syringe, Old Wolf turned toward Xia Qing again and let out a helpless, low howl, "Aow..."

Xia Qing's heart immediately clenched, and she stepped forward, "Third Brother, would it be too much trouble if I squat beside Old Four?"

Zhang San gave her a look, pointed to an empty space opposite the operating table, and said, "You stand over there. Don't touch any of the instruments or equipment. Little Duan and Little Wolf stay where they are."

"Okay, thank you, Third Brother."

Xia Qing told the Broken-Waist Wolf and Little Wolf Brother not to move, then quickly walked to Old Four's side, firmly gripping his tense left foreleg, and softly coaxed him, "Don't be afraid, Old Four. Third Brother and Tenth Sister won't hurt you. I'll stay right here and protect you..."

It was visible to the naked eye: the bristling fur on Old Four's neck gradually relaxed. Zhang Shi seized the opportunity to inject the medication into Old Wolf. After confirming Old Wolf had lost consciousness, she immediately clipped a finger-type pulse oximeter onto his paw, then inserted an endotracheal tube into his airway, and used the anesthesia machine to continuously deliver a mixture of inhaled anesthetic gas and oxygen into Old Wolf's lungs.

Old Wolf quickly entered a state of deep sedation, emitting low, rumbling breaths.

Zhang Shi secured Old Wolf's head, used a mouth gag to pry open his lower jaw, revealing his yellowed teeth, loosened and decayed by age and battle.

At this point, even if Xia Qing stepped back, Old Wolf wouldn't feel it. But Xia Qing kept her promise, squatting in place and gripping his now-relaxed paw, not moving at all.

Zhang San glanced at her and instructed, "Don't make a sound, don't pull on Little Four's body. The navigation system I'm using has an accuracy of 0.5 millimeters. Any movement will prolong the surgery."

Xia Qing immediately nodded, "Understood!"

Zhang San activated the instruments and entered working mode.

"Ding!"

When Zhang San used the minimally invasive method to place the first extracted lower canine onto the tray, it made a faint clinking sound. Xia Qing, watching the surgery at close range, felt her admiration for her idol surge like towering waves, and dentist Zhang Shi was several times more excited than her.

Little Wolf Brother, wearing a mask, pressed his mouth tightly shut, not daring to look anymore. He jumped off the stool and burrowed under his dad's belly to seek a sense of security.

The Broken-Waist Wolf, who had been studying seriously, noticed his cub was scared. He stood up and howled "aowu" at Zhang San and Xia Qing.

Xia Qing nodded to show she understood, and gestured for the Broken-Waist Wolf to take Little Wolf out first. She needed to stay here to protect Old Wolf.

Two hours and thirty-five minutes later, the mechanical arm was finally retracted. Zhang San stepped back, turned off the optical magnifier, and said calmly, "First stage of surgery complete. Turn off the sevoflurane, set oxygen flow to 6 liters per minute, flush the breathing circuit."

"Yes." Surgical assistant Zhang Shi immediately began operating.

Zhang San continued his instructions, "The advanced evolved protein antibody has been injected. The next 72 hours are critical. You must follow the care guidelines I gave you strictly."

"Understood!"

After finishing his instructions, Zhang San looked at the patient's family member squatting beside Old Wolf, eyes shining, head full of nonsense, and briefed her on the surgical situation.

"The first stage of surgery was completed successfully. Within 72 hours, the dental pulp stem cells are expected to complete recruitment and differentiation, and the dentin and enamel will begin matrix-style self-assembly. Complete functional new teeth will erupt and finish mineralizing within four weeks. If Little Four recovers well, the second stage of surgery will be performed in half a month. What about that new wolf?"

Xia Qing, sitting on the floor beside the operating table, gripping Old Wolf's paw, felt her worship of her idol had reached a height beyond words, "It's on the building ruins south of my yard. It's Old Four's companion. We have to wait until Old Four wakes up before examining it, because I'm not familiar with it, and forcibly bringing it out might provoke fierce resistance. Third Brother, why don't you rest a while first, and examine that wolf after Old Four wakes up?"

While Zhang San, assisted by Zhang Shi, cleaned the medical instruments and packed them back into the case, Xia Qing finally dared to stand up and stretch her legs. She hadn't dared move at all just now, afraid she might damage the equipment and her idol would make her pay with points.

After Zhang San locked the case, he came over to check on Old Wolf's condition, then asked, "Do you have photos or video of that wolf?"

"Yes." Xia Qing first showed her idol photos of the wolf after it had been washed clean, then pulled up the surveillance footage from East District 1 and handed it to her idol.

Zhang San enlarged the screen, looked in silence for a few seconds at the third thin, old wolf that had appeared in Xia Qing's territory, and asked, "It absolutely must be saved?"

Xia Qing nodded, "It was Old Four who decided to save it. He used the supplies he got from this capture of the vagrants to pay for this wolf's medical fees. Look closely, Third Brother. This wolf is also a brain-domain evolver, and quite good-looking too."

"I can't tell at all!" No matter how carefully he looked, this was still a sick wolf infected with parasites, with a damaged digestive and immune system, requiring treatment with at least eleven precious medications.