The Surgeon's Studio

Zheng Ren and Xie Yiren arrived at Sea City General Hospital early the next morning.

At 7:55 a.m, Professor Rudolf Wagner walked into the emergency wards like clockwork.

Zheng Ren greeted the professor and Old Chief Physician Pan before heading downstairs.

A black BMW X5 was parked in front of the emergency department entrance.

The idle engine hummed audibly. At the sight of Zheng Ren, Feng Xuhui immediately stood from his leaning position and moved to open the car door.

Zheng Ren was unaware of the trouble Feng Xuhui had to go through to obtain the materials.

As the Northeastern factory was new, they had limited stock on hand: less than five units per model. Changfeng Microinvasive was not overly ambitious to think they could monopolize the whole Northeastern market.

When Feng Xuhui received Zheng Ren’s call the night before, he nearly fainted.

The Northeastern branch of Changfeng Microinvasive did not have that many TIPS materials on hand.

However, Chairman Ma did not hesitate to utilize resources to courier 20 units of TIPS materials from Imperial Capital to Sea City. In addition, he had the foresight to order more to replenish Imperial Capital’s TIPS materials.

Imperial Capital was a six-hour drive to Sea City.

At 4:00 a.m, the salesperson from Imperial Capital arrived at Sea City. Feng Xuhui breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the TIPS materials.

The salesperson left the BMW X5 to Feng Xuhui. Chairman Ma provided the car, and it was to be used to service clients in the Northeastern district.

Feng Xuhui was grateful for the amount of support Chairman Ma was extending to him.

Delivering breakfast to Zheng Ren was no longer something Feng Xuhui did, hence there was little chance to build rapport with the young doctor.

Fulfilling Zheng Ren’s last minute request was the least he could do.

After all, Zheng Ren had helped his career.

Feng Xuhui was their ride to the Secondary Hospital.

Zheng Ren sat quietly in the passenger seat. Feng Xuhui began contemplating the next best step.

His benefactor was here. He could not not make conversation.

Chief Zheng was a hard man to interact with. No matter what Feng Xuhui said, he only got monosyllabic responses from the man.

In the end, Professor Rudolf Wagner who contributed to most of the conversations from the back seat; his heavy Northeastern accent was a source of amusement for Feng Xuhui.

Zheng Ren received a call from Director Zhang. Over the call, he asked if they were allowed to visit the patients before the surgery.

Permission was granted.

It was courtesy for surgeons to have a look at the patient prior to the procedure.

However, fly-in surgeons often circumvented this step as they wanted to squeeze in as many patients as they could in a day. Money was a strong motivating factor.

The patient was usually already on the operating table when the surgeon touched down at the airport.

This had nothing to do with ethics. Typically, only Class Three Grade A Hospitals could hire fly-in surgeons from Imperial Capital or Sorcery Capital, and the quality of service was enforced. The basic preparations would be done beforehand and the surgeon would have reviewed the patient’s scans and charts. If they were not confident, the surgery would be cancelled.

There were always simpler procedures that needed the surgeon’s attention. Death was not to be toyed with.

Of course, there were downsides to being a fly-in surgeon.

In the 2000s, an orthopedic fly-in surgeon went to Shijiazhuang for a case.

The patient had a simple fracture, but due to his old age, the bone could not heal completely. Without any warning, the family sent people to Imperial Capital to break the surgeon’s leg[1].

To Zheng Ren, it was essential that he had a look at the patients before any procedures.

Although the Secondary Hospital was only 18.4km away from Sea City General Hospital, they were separate entities; it was best to minimize any chance of mistakes.

Caution was a habit that Zheng Ren had long cultivated.

It did not take long for them to arrive despite the peak hour traffic.

Traffic in Sea City was nothing compared to Imperial Capital, Sorcery Capital, or Provincial Capital.

The Infectious Disease Secondary Hospital was located slightly off the beaten path. After a 25-minute journey, Feng Xuhui drove up to the hospital lobby entrance.

There were a dozen or so doctors in white coats at the ready at the entrance. It was, without a doubt, to welcome Zheng Ren.

Feng Xuhui was surprised to see the size of the welcoming party.

These were professionals and senior management personnel.

Professor Rudolf Wagner, however, was not the least bit surprised.

He had been to many hospitals to perform surgical demonstrations and…their welcoming parties were definitely grander than this.

When the car stopped, the plump man who had delivered the scans to Imperial Capital rushed up to the passenger side and opened the door for Zheng Ren.

“Chief Zheng, you came.”

The fearful sincerity on the plump man’s face almost made Zheng Ren laugh out loud.

It must be uncomfortable for a man in his 40s to treat a young doctor like Zheng Ren with reverence.

“Of course. Thank you for all this,” Zheng Ren said.

“Oh, it is a small matter. When I came back to the hospital, I detailed your emergency rescue yesterday to our resident cardiothoracic department chief. He says your diagnosis and rescue techniques were accurate and worthy of praise,” the man said with a broad smile.

The compliment had little effect on Zheng Ren’s deadpan expression, so the plump man changed tack and kept his mouth shut.

“Chief Zheng, we meet again,” Director Zhang led the cavalry of doctors to greet Zheng Ren. They shook hands.

“Thank you for all this, Director Zhang.” Zheng Ren smiled and continued. “From the records, the patients fit the criteria; this helps reduce the chance of failure.”

“For once, I worry our equipment may not be up to par to a fly-in surgeon’s standards.”

“I have Changfeng’s equipment and materials with me. This man here is the Northeastern District Manager from Changfeng Microinvasive, Feng Xuhui,” Zheng Ren introduced and clapped Feng Xuhui on the shoulder.

The proclamations made Feng Xuhui grateful to have Zheng Ren on his side.

Director Zhang acknowledged Feng Xuhui without extending a handshake. Feng Xuhui did not take it personally. The man was the deputy director of the hospital and was many levels above Feng Xuhui’s pay grade. Even if Director Zhang spat at him, he would have to maintain a courteous demeanor.

Next came the introductions to the chief of each department. Zheng Ren shook hands with all of them.

The hepatology department chief was amicable, but the interventional surgery department chief had a bone to pick with Zheng Ren.

The tension was tangible, but Zheng Ren ignored it. He made an effort to learn the department chief’s name.

Cheng Lixue: the name resembled the Chinese proverb–to stand in the snow, respectfully waiting upon your master.

Judging from the department chief’s expression, he was holding in his anger. If it were not for Professor Rudolf Wagner backing Zheng Ren, the department chief would have made a scene.

‘The professor’s a useful prop to boost our reputation,’ Zheng Ren thought.

Director Zhang led them to the patients.

The first patient suffered from refractory ascites. This morning’s routine check-up indicated the patient was in a favorable condition. This patient’s diagnosis was less severe than the one Zheng Ren faced in Sea City General Hospital.

With Zheng Ren’s go ahead, doctors transported the patient to the operating room as Zheng Ren and the team moved on to check on the next candidate.

After the eighth patient, Zheng Ren developed a deeper understanding of Director Zhang’s selection criteria.

All the candidates suffered from refractory ascites and this minimized the risk of hematemesis during surgery.

It was a good call by Director Zhang. Zheng Ren was pleasantly impressed.

[1] Author’s note: This is a story from a Beijing surgeon who performed a surgery on my grandpa ten years ago. – Author