"Ye Qiu, you just wait! I'll make you regret this someday!"
Zhang Lili stamped her foot in fury and screamed at his retreating back.
She was absolutely livid.
She'd come to find out where Guo Shaocong was, only to be humiliated by Ye Qiu instead.
"Loser's always a loser. So I dumped him — he's acting like I killed his mother. This is so annoying!"
Suddenly, she remembered why she'd chased after Ye Qiu in the first place.
"Oh no… I still didn't ask where Shaocong is. What am I gonna do?"
...
Ye Qiu returned to the surgery department, planning to update Bai Bing. Just as he reached the door to the director's office, he heard voices coming from inside:
"Director Bai, the patient in Bed 5 is in critical condition."
"The few of us held a joint consultation, but we still can't figure out a treatment."
"On top of that, the patient went into shock twice today and was moved to the ICU. If we can't find a way to save them soon, I'm afraid…"
Ye Qiu peeked inside and saw three senior specialists talking to Bai Bing.
"Director Bai, we have to find a treatment immediately. The patient won't last much longer like this."
"If the patient dies in our department, the consequences will be severe."
"Director Bai, I suggest we inform the family and have them transfer the patient to another hospital."
Bai Bing frowned.
"Our hospital is the best in Jiangzhou. If we transfer them now, where to?"
One senior specialist chuckled.
"There are plenty of top hospitals in the country. They could send the patient to Peking Union Medical College Hospital, or the Affiliated Hospital of Minghai Jiaotong University."
"I agree," another specialist chimed in. "Peking Union especially is a leading hospital for intracranial hematomas. They have the top experts in the nation — maybe they can save the patient. Either way, as long as the patient doesn't die on our watch, we're in the clear."
Bai Bing fell silent for a long time.
The patient in Bed 5 had developed an intracranial hematoma from trauma — a fairly common condition. They'd been stable after surgery, but today sudden complications struck, leading to two shocks and now critical condition.
The worst part was that even a joint consultation of three specialists had failed to identify the cause.
One of the seniors spoke again:
"Director Bai, time is short. We should notify the family to start the transfer process."
"The patient's condition is too unstable to delay."
"Make a decision quickly."
Bai Bing looked up.
"If we arrange the transfer right now, can the patient survive the trip to the capital?"
"Hard to say," one specialist replied.
"'Hard to say'? What does that mean?" Bai Bing pressed. "I need a number — what are the odds the patient reaches Beijing alive?"
The three specialists exchanged glances. None spoke.
"I need an exact answer," Bai Bing said.
Thirty long seconds passed.
A bespectacled senior pushed his glasses up his nose and said:
"I'm afraid less than one in a thousand."
"Then transferring them is pointless," Bai Bing stated.
"Director Bai, that's not fair. Transferring does serve a purpose," one specialist argued. "As long as the patient doesn't die in our department, we all walk away clean. If we keep them here and they pass, who takes the blame?"
Bai Bing's expression darkened slightly. She swept her gaze over each of them and said:
"Your points aren't unreasonable, but let me ask you this — what was your original purpose for studying medicine?"
"To heal the sick and rescue the dying, of course."
"Then let me ask again: the patient is dying. Why are you giving up on them?"
"Director Bai, it's not that we won't treat them — we simply have no solution. Suggesting a transfer is our last resort."
"But you just admitted even a transfer gives them less than a one-in-a-thousand chance. Sending them away now is basically sending them to their deaths."
The three specialists fell silent.
Bai Bing continued:
"I know what you're worried about. If the patient dies here, it will tarnish your reputations.
You're all senior specialists, highly experienced, and close to retirement. A death like this at this stage would hurt your legacies.
But you yourselves said the point of medicine is to save lives. The patient needs you now, yet instead of trying everything to find a cure, you're here telling me to transfer them. Do you really call that healing the sick?"
One specialist said with a grimace:
"Director Bai, we truly have no options left."
"And if the patient dies in the department, who will take responsibility?
We've practiced medicine for decades, dedicated our lives to this. We don't want a stain on our careers right before retirement."
"Please understand, Director Bai."
Bai Bing looked deeply disappointed.
"I thought you three would be role models for the surgery department, examples for everyone to follow. Instead, you're running scared from responsibility.
Every doctor knows this: we are human, not gods. There are many illnesses we cannot cure. The best we can do is try our absolute hardest for every patient.
If we do everything we can and still fail, we have nothing to be ashamed of. I believe the patient and their family will understand.
If you give it your all and still can't save them, their death is not your fault.
If the family refuses to accept that and insists on holding someone accountable… they can come after me.
I will take full responsibility."
"But right now, you three have let me down badly."
"If you're too afraid to take responsibility, then I'll treat the patient myself."
With that, Bai Bing hurried out of the office and headed straight for the ICU.
Inside the office, the three specialists muttered among themselves:
"Director Bai is going to treat the patient herself. What now?"
"Let her. If the patient dies, it has nothing to do with us."
"Director Bai is young and reckless. She hasn't faced setbacks yet — she has no idea how tense doctor-patient relations are these days. She'll learn once the patient dies."
Ye Qiu listened from outside and felt a surge of contempt. People always said older doctors had better skills, but they never mentioned the older they got, the smaller their courage became.
He rushed to the ICU. When he arrived, he saw Bai Bing and a specialist doctor examining the patient.
"Strange. Vital signs are normal — why did they go into shock twice?" Bai Bing knitted her brows in confusion.
The specialist said: "In ten years of practicing medicine, I've never seen anything like this."
"Have other hospital specialists reviewed the case?" Bai Bing asked.
"They have. None could figure it out either."
Bai Bing made a quick decision.
"Connect a video call with the experts at Peking Union right away. See if they have any ideas."
"I already contacted them before you arrived. They said they've never encountered this either and suggested we… wait and see."
Bai Bing's heart sank. "Wait and see" was just another way of saying let the patient die.
At that moment, the heart monitor let out a shrill, piercing alarm.
The specialist glanced over and paled:
"No! The patient's heart rate is dropping fast! 90… 80… 60… 40… They're coding!"