Great Doctor Ling Ran

“Hahaha…” Han Wenlin laughed out loud to reduce the awkward atmosphere in the consultation room.

However, everyone in the room was a smart person—they did not really understand the meaning of awkward.

“I have been working as a consultant for the Sports Bureau for almost ten years, must I be the expert for every surgery to be able to review your surgical plan?” Han Wenlin laughed loudly and said, “I have met many young men and many young doctors, and they all thought the same as you. But let me tell you, I have been verifying surgical plans throughout these years—”

“Actually, it doesn’t really matter.” Ling Ran did not like how the people of the Sports Bureau just speaking whatever they felt like, and he did not want Han Wenlin to continue speaking. So, he gently interrupted Han Wenlin and said, “I know there are a lot of people who are not suitable to become clinicians, especially to become surgeons. You’re not good at performing surgery, so you changed to offer medical advice. That’s actually good career planning. So, you don’t have to feel… embarrassed.”

“Me? Embarrassed?” Han Wenlin was already in his forties. When faced with a young man like Ling Ran, he just felt awkward. He really wanted to describe the power of a rehabilitation specialist from the Sports Bureau, and he really wanted to show Ling Ran how administrative staff, doctors, and pharmaceutical sales representatives kissed his boots and curried his favor.

It was so rare to see Ling Ran speak in a considerate tone. He then comforted Han Wenlin. “To become a surgeon, you need some luck. To become a good surgeon, you need even more luck. I know that there are some famous medical scientists who realized that they can’t work as a surgeon, or met with difficulty in improving their skills. They changed their careers to be forensic doctors, internists, medical researchers, or rehabilitation… specialists. Well, it’s also an option.”

“I…” The anger in Han Wenlin could ignite the contempt he felt in his heart.

The director of the Sports Bureau, who was well-known for his straightforward, simple, and harsh attitude, suddenly shed his disguise and revealed the brilliant mind that lay within himself. Director-General Wang went past Han Wenlin and spoke directly to Zhu Tongyi. “Academician Zhu, will Liu Weichen recover fully? To what extent will he recover to?”

This was the main problem that they were concerned with. It also reflected Liu Weichen’s value at the current stage. After they settle this question, then the internal management of the Sports Bureau could make a decision that would help the development of Liu Weichen’s sports career.

Zhu Tongyi was unwilling to discuss that. He then politely replied, “The surgery was very good. There’s a high possibility for a better recovery.”

Director-General Wang thought about it and asked again, “Is there any possibility for a full recovery?”

If Director-General Wang asked this question for him, then Liu Weichen’s status could already be discerned. From this, it was clear that Liu Weichen was the most important person on the track and field team.

Liu Weichen chose to perform an experimental surgery because he hoped to be fully recovered as well. Only with a full recovery could Liu Weichen continue competing, especially in international competitions—he was almost considered the top in the country.

There would always be a Chinese who would be the champion in local competitions, and Director-General Wang no longer needed the athletes to win in those competitions. He wanted the athletes to win in the high-standard races hosted in foreign countries, and only when Liu Weichen recovered completely—and could continue with the high-intensity training—could he then win in the races in other countries.

In the opinion of the directors from the Sports Bureau, Liu Weichen was only important to them if he was fully recovered. In others words, if he only recovered partially, he would no longer be considered an important athlete to the Sports Bureau.

Zhu Tongyi was a little hesitant for a few seconds. He looked at Ling Ran and asked, “What do you think?”

Ling Ran saw that his mission completion status had achieved 91%. From a medical student’s perspective, it could be considered a complete recovery. However, considering the changes that happened in the mission completion status during the surgery, Ling Ran carefully answered, “We can hope for good results, but I can’t say for sure.”

This reply was what Director-General Wang expected. He smiled, but then showed the uneasy look on his face again from when he first entered. “What you said meant nothing. I think, we should let Old Han perform an examination.”

“Even if you examine him now, you won’t be able to make any conclusions,” Zhu Tongyi rejected indirectly.

Ling Ran was bored of listening to the conversation. He looked at Academician Zhu Tongyi and said, “I still have two more surgeries, can I get to those first?”

Of the ten patients admitted that day, Ling Ran had operated on five of them last night. Then, he started performing another two surgeries at midnight, and another one just now. So, only two patients were left.

Ling Ran drank a bottle of Energy Serum in between surgeries, and he felt that it was only worthwhile after he finished the other two surgeries.

For Ling Ran, the trip to Shanghai was worth it because he got the chance to perform ten normal Achilles tendon repair surgeries, and one experimental Achilles tendon repair surgery.

Right when Zhu Tongyi was about to approve Ling Ran’s request, the rehabilitation specialist Han Wenlin spoke in dissatisfaction, “We need to know on what’s going on in Liu Weichen’s surgery, right?”

Even though the chain of contempt had shifted more and more against his favor, Han Wenlin did not want to let go of this matter.

“Hmm…” Zhu Tongyi was somewhat annoyed as well.

Ling Ran said, “Bring the video here, then.”

Zhu Tongyi thought about it and agreed. Then, he ordered someone to bring the video to him.

At this moment, Zhu Tongyi was slightly relieved. He called for the leaders of the Sports Bureau to have their seats, and he invited the reporters to sit down as well. He smiled and said, “Since the surgery was just completed, it’s not accurate to evaluate any of the impact right now. The exact details on what we did during the surgery can also be seen on the video.”

Nowadays, the major surgeries in hospitals were usually recorded on video. In small hospitals back then, when the operating procedures were not standardized, a recorded video could probably expose the doctor’s flaws and weaknesses. Therefore, every doctor was reluctant to operate this way.

However, as time progressed, the old doctors who entered the hospital from different fields had retired. For the doctors who started their professions in a big hospital, it was normal for them to practice the standard operating procedure. In this kind of environment, video recordings could be considered as a protection for the doctors… Particularly when a surgery failed without any reason. The doctors would then not have to find ways to explain themselves.

When Zhu Tongyi wanted to grant Liu Weichen the surgery, he took this matter even more seriously. Strict standards were followed throughout the entire process of the operation, starting from the preparation, until the end of the surgery. The video was even recorded from multiple angles, which was more detailed than the display in the demonstration room.

After a while, three display screens in the reception hall played the video at the same time.

The leaders of the Sports Bureau along with the reporters were a little scared to look at the screen at first. They covered their eyes, just like a child watching a scary film for the first time. Soon, they forgot about the scary feeling and started to get curious.

“Why is the surgical wound S-shaped?”

“For better recovery.”

“You cut off such a large chunk of the Achilles tendon? How could you do that?!”

“The ruptured parts are in the shape of a horsetail, and those parts cannot be used anymore. Even if it was preserved, it will delay recovery time and may even cause inflammation in the future.”

“How long does it take to suture the blood vessels?”

“It took quite a long time to suture it.”

“Blood vessels are actually very tiny, right? What is the power used in the microscope?”

“8x macro zoom lens.”

…..

Zhu Tongyi, Ji Tianlu, and Doctor Qu were the spokespeople who answered the questions. Ling Ran sat on the side, too lazy to talk.

At first, Han Wenlin did ask a few questions, then he gradually became quieter.

As the first vascular channel was made, Ling Ran insisted on anastomosing the second vascular channel. Han Wenlin then saw the change in Ling Ran’s expression. When he recalled his conversation with Ling Ran, Han Wenlin realized that some parts were quite accurate.

For example, was this plan interesting, or premature?

Han Wenlin watched Ling Ran’s movements. He could not help but think, ‘To a surgeon like this, plan A really sounds interesting…’

“So, did the continuous blood supply method really work?” Han Wenlin seemed to understand the knack behind this at last.

The only thing they could discuss right now was about whether their efforts to ensure blood supply worked, because there was no direct evidence to show it could aid athletes in recovery by performing surgery such as this one.

Han Wenlin was a bit reluctant to discuss this problem. As a surgeon, Han Wenlin also had a basic sense of shame. Even he would find himself unable to justify himself if he had to continue to point out more problems in such a clear-cut surgery.

After he heard the friendly tone in Han Wenlin, Ji Tianlu smiled and said, “The blood supply was pretty good. The index we measured just now, such as temperature and so on, met the expected standards.”

“That’s pretty good.” Han Wenlin’s mouth twitched.

The leader of the Sports Bureau asked the question that he was most concerned about, “So, do you mean that Weichen can have a full recovery?”

“There’s a chance he might,” said Han Wenlin. He pulled the leader away and whispered to the leader in a soft voice.

Ling Ran could no longer resist the urge. He stood up quietly and left the reception hall. Then, he ran towards the operating theater.

He looked for the young nurse whom he had just met and asked her to send the patient into the operating theater. Then, he started a new surgery with the appointed anesthetist and nurse, with Lu Wenbin as his assistant.

Ling Ran bathed and washed his hands, changed into a fresh pair of underwear, and put on his scrubs before he entered the operating theater. He could not help but take a deep breath, and showed a happy smile. “Anesthetize the patient.”