The Surgeon's Studio

Zheng Ren was at a loss. Although he knew that boarding the same plane he had taken here was a possibility, he had no recollection of the person in front of him. Her identity, whether she had spoken to him previously, or even the things she had done were lost to him.

Still, he pretended to recognize her and offered a polite, elegant smile.

“Dr. Zheng, right? I remember you!” the flight attendant said cheerfully.

Since first-class passengers were allowed to board in advance, and they were both the only one of those on this flight to Sea City, the flight attendant did not hold back her excitement and squealed like a young girl meeting her favourite celebrity.

“Dr. Zheng? The one who called for the helicopter ambulance?”

“Let me have a look.”

“It’s definitely him, I’ll inform the captain.”

Within moments, there were six to seven flight attendants circling them. Su Yun was befuddled by Zheng Ren’s sudden stardom.

“Dr. Zheng, have you finished your research in Imperial Capital? Please follow me.” Another graceful flight attendant led them into first class.

Since their luggage was checked in, they only had their phones with them and did not need much assistance from the attendant.

A few minutes later, the upright and honest-looking[1] Captain Lin appeared before Zheng Ren and offered his hand. “Hello, Dr. Zheng.”

Finally, someone Zheng Ren recognized.

When Zheng Ren had entered the cockpit to radio the airport traffic control tower, the captain had treated him like a criminal, fearing that something dangerous was about to be done.

However, the captain was responsible enough that he agreed to it upon finding out a passenger needed emergency treatment.

At that moment in time, Zheng Ren had not thought through the weight of his request, but with the benefit of hindsight, he was truly grateful to the captain.

He hurriedly stood and shook Captain Lin’s hand.

“Captain Lin, right? I must thank you for what you did last time,” Zheng Ren said sincerely.

“Why are you thanking me?” Captain Lin pretended to be surprised before bursting into laughter. “You’re a doctor. It’s your duty to treat and save people in danger. That man was also my passenger, and I always strive to ensure all my passengers reach their destination safely.”

Zheng Ren nodded in agreement.

“Dr. Zheng, let’s exchange contact information.” With the rest of the passengers about to board as well, Captain Lin skipped the formalities. It would not be presentable for the flight crew to all be crowding in one spot.

After they both exchanged numbers and WeChat IDs, Captain Lin waved and took his leave.

The flight attendants whispered to each other for a while before returning to their own posts to welcome the other passengers.

“Didn’t expect you to leave an impression,” Su Yun said softly from beside Zheng Ren.

Zheng Ren laughed. Could the passive ability mission reward be more than ornamental?

If that was the case, could he make a living out of his appearance from now onwards? At the very least, he would not need to envy Chang Yue for her skill at communicating with patients.

As he remembered Chang Yue, he also thought of Chu Yanran, Chu Yanzhi, Old Chief Physician Pan, and his favourite beautiful lady. It made him want to be home right this instant.

As for Yang Lei… he had a mysterious presence which made him easily forgettable. Although he was a good friend of Zheng Ren’s, he did not come to mind during the nostalgia trip.

It began to get rowdy when more passengers came aboard. Su Yun requested a sleep mask from the flight attendant and prepared to doze off. Zheng Ren stared out of the window into the blue sky and started daydreaming.

Upon returning, they would be busy with unexpected emergencies every single day.

Even though Zheng Ren had not even left Sea City for half a month, it felt like a century had passed. He was finally getting back on track to his usual adrenaline-filled life, where one’s heart rate could shoot above 120 beats per minute with one phone call.

Straits Hospital seemed like a good choice.

However, as Zheng Ren had told Su Yun, he was mainly choosing to stay in Sea City for Old Chief Physician Pan.

Even though Zheng Ren had the System and did not require Old Chief Physician Pan’s guidance, he would never forget how the man had entrusted him with hope and confidence.

Being an orphan, he remembered every bit of warmth and care ever afforded to him.

As it were, he was still young. He could still leave in a few years’ time.

When he thought of Old Chief Physician Pan, Zheng Ren was reminded of Little Yiren’s parents who spent most of the year traveling.

He then remembered Xie Yiren rejecting his hug before he had boarded his flight. This transformed Zheng Ren from a decisive professional surgeon into a simple, nervous little boy with no dating experience.

The plane started accelerating on the runway before taking off smoothly.

“Hi, Dr. Zheng,” a sweet voice called out to Zheng Ren.

Zheng Ren turned around, seeing the flight attendant who led the way earlier; he smiled in return.

“I’m Sun Jia and I’ll be serving you throughout this flight. Would you like something to drink?” Her tone was mellifluous and pleasant.

This was Zheng Ren’s first time flying first class. Did it always come with personalized service? He had heard someone talk about similar things, but it seemed to only be a thing on international airlines.

Nevertheless, there ought not be any potential problems, even for someone as low-EQ as him.

“Coffee, thanks.” The smile on Zheng Ren’s face was as warm as a summer breeze.

Sun Jia nodded before leaving to make his drink.

“This is weird.” Su Yun was still awake despite having his sleep mask on. After the attendant left, he took it off and asked, “Are there flowers blooming on your face?”

“Flowers?” Zheng Ren was confused.

“When I’m around, the female gaze would usually never land on anybody else but me. but something strange is going on now.” Su Yun examined Zheng Ren’s features carefully. There was not much of a difference; his normal eyebrows, eyes, nose… everything looked normal, a far cry from himself, and exuded no charm in the slightest.

However, he had felt completely ignored after boarding the plane!

This was unacceptable!

“You’re already charming, is that not good enough for you?” Zheng Ren brushed him off. “Do you want anything to drink?”

“I’m going to sleep. You haven’t had much to do recently, but I haven’t slept in days. Also, keep an eye on your inbox. There’ll be a response from the editorial team within one or two months.” With that, Su Yun put his mask back on and continued “sleeping”.

Zheng Ren was delighted. The fact that he had transcended Su Yun in surgery meant nothing to him in comparison to being able to steal the attention of the flight attendants. The psychological scarring achieved was incalculable.

The System could be quite reliable when it wanted to be. Zheng Ren took a sip of his coffee, smiling.

Occasionally, flight attendants approached Zheng Ren to ask for his WeChat ID.

He was slowly getting used to being accosted by girls now.

The flight to Sea City was smooth, and soon after, the plane circled the city before landing.

“I’m really looking forward to Xie Yiren’s reaction when she sees you.” Su Yun had already woken from his nap. “If I were her and you had bought me a few soft toys, you’d be dead meat!”

[1] Here, the author directly compared the captain’s face to the Chinese character for honest, truthful or genuine, 实 (shí), which is a monogram of the character for ‘head’ (头) and a cap, implying the man had an appearance that inspired trust.