Chapter 211: He Really Did It!
“Little Mu Mu, aren’t you a bit too calm?” Xie Yuan’an had only gone out to have fun after the competition, not disappeared. She shared this with Mu Nanshu while shopping.
“The current competition results are very similar to Lu Cheng’s predictions.”
Xie Yuan’an knew that Lu Cheng’s original intention was just to win two first prizes in the vascular and nerve categories, and now he had exceeded expectations.
Mu Nanshu only had time to reply when taking a break from the laboratory: “Since it was predicted long ago, there isn’t much surprise.”
“He himself didn’t even compete. Only a few people know the fun behind this. Most people only care about whether the results are real.”
Xie Yuan’an: “Anyway, I came out after my competition. A doctor from our hospital sent me updates from the other two competition venues, and it looks quite amusing.”
“Probably not many people know the truth even now.”
Mu Nanshu sent a smiling emoji: “Lu Cheng told me that quite a few people have called him.”
“Who specifically? Tell me quickly.” Xie Yuan’an’s inner gossip attribute was activated.
Mu Nanshu: “Lu Cheng didn’t tell me either, but he did mention that a professor from Huashan Hospital called him and chatted with him for a long time.”
Xie Yuan’an waited for seven or eight minutes, and Mu Nanshu had no follow-up: “??? Your ‘but’ has no follow-up? Are you trying to kill me with anxiety?”
Mu Nanshu said: “Lu Cheng only told me this much. I’m about to finish my experiment. I’ll chat with him when I get back. He’s on duty today, I don’t know if he has surgery.”
“You.” Xie Yuan’an sent a head-tapping emoji.
“Then can’t you finish telling me the story after asking?”
Mu Nanshu said: “Sister Xie, you were the one who asked, so I naturally have to tell you the truth. You already know the general direction of the results.”
Xie Yuan’an: “Are the results important? It’s the process, I want to know the specific process.”
“The more detailed, the better!~”
“Let me tell you secretly, actually, my dad is also quite curious…” Xie Yuan’an started to leverage her influence.
Mu Nanshu thought seriously before saying: “This really depends on whether Lu Cheng is convenient to reply.”
Xie Yuan’an’s inquiry was fruitless, and she couldn’t do anything about it: “Alright, I’m going back after a bit more shopping. It’s getting late. After my dad finishes his meeting, he’ll want to take me to see ‘seniors’!”
“Then you go quickly. We’ll contact each other again tonight,” Mu Nanshu said.
Xie Yuan’an: “I’ll definitely contact you, muah.”
“Little Mu Mu, I bought you three gifts and will bring you lots of hot pot base ingredients.”
Mu Nanshu: “Why three? That’s so many?”
Xie Yuan’an: “Two are to thank the teachers, and the third is for a friend!”
“I thought it wouldn’t be good to buy a gift directly for Lu Cheng, and he might not accept it, so I gave it to you directly.”
Mu Nanshu didn’t reply anymore.
Half an hour later, Xie Yuan’an was almost at Xie Xiao’s place, but her phone remained silent.
“Little Mu Mu, have you misunderstood something? Let me tell you, Lu Cheng and I really have no connection, and no special relationship. I only contact you. “This time, Xie Yuan’an didn’t say anything particularly innocent.
Mu Nanshu: “I know. Sister Xie, why are you explaining so much?”
“I just got back to eat. I was on the road before. Thank you, Sister Xie.”
Xie Yuan’an: “…”
…
Zhang Tiesheng, Du Daihua, and Lu Cheng were on duty together and ate together in the emergency surgery clinic.
It was already 8:30 in the evening. Their normal mealtime was delayed by an emergency surgery that rushed in. They ordered grilled meat rice.
Du Daihua was still conflicted: “Brother Lu, Brother Zhang, that limb replantation surgery just now, Professor Tong was called but not invited to eat with us. Is that really okay?”
Zhang Tiesheng gave Du Daihua a glare: “Didn’t you understand? Professor Tong planned to eat outside. You still want to invite him to eat in the department at this time?”
“Are you stupid?”
Tong Yuan’an was originally going to attend the National Microsurgery Academic Conference, but he was delayed by some matters. Now, Tong Yuan’an is in the “operating room” in Long County with two doctors from Xiangya Hospital, performing repairs.
Zhang Tiesheng and Du Daihua did not know about these matters.
“There are brothers who respect Teacher Tong. We don’t need to worry about anything!” Lu Cheng said with a smile.
“Du Daihua, can you pass me some more of that fermented bean curd…”
Du Daihua quickly handed the fermented bean curd in front of him to Lu Cheng, then continued with his
consideration: “It’s Professor Tong’s business if someone has arranged for him, but our invitation is our gesture.”
“Brother Zhang, isn’t this what you’ve been teaching me?”
Zhang Tiesheng choked: “That depends on the situation. You can’t just blindly pursue it all the time; that’s annoying. You need to be just right.”
“You still need to watch and learn well. Brother Lu, right?”
Lu Cheng crooked his mouth: “Brother Zhang, if you continue like this, I’ll start too.”
“Don’t, Lu Cheng, don’t play these little games with me. Being an elder brother means acting like one. Please naturally put aside your modesty.”
“Have you seen Master Zhou’s movie 《Flirting Scholar》? If you’re too polite, I’m going to get angry!” Zhang Tiesheng’s expression was stern.
Du Daihua’s eyes darted back and forth between Lu Cheng and Zhang Tiesheng. His big eyes widened, making his nose appear even smaller, his face full of confusion. He had no idea what these two elders were plotting.
…
After the meal, Lu Cheng was about to catch up on his surgical records. As he stepped out, he noticed a colleague from the Personnel Department had come to the Emergency Department and was asking about something at the nurse station.
Seeing Lu Cheng turn around, she pretended to smile coincidentally and walked towards him: “Doctor Lu, good evening. Are you on duty tonight?”
Lu Cheng said: “Leader, hello. Why are you suddenly inspecting our Emergency Department today?”
Lu Cheng recognized the person because Xiao Minzhi had joined the hospital in the same year as him, and they had participated in team-building activities together as new employees.
“Doctor Lu, are you this wary of me too?”
“Leaders are leaders, and we are all subordinates.” Xiao Minzhi was from administration, and clinical staff often had ‘hostility’ towards administration!
However, administration was the decision-making body of the leaders, and she, as a clerk, was only responsible for the ‘decisions’ and orders issued by the leaders.
Xiao Minzhi, from the Personnel Department, was attractive, tall, with light makeup, looking very intellectual, mature, and generous: “And I’m actually here to see you privately today, Doctor Lu.”
“Xiao Minzhi, let’s sit in the office for a bit. Would you like tea or water? Or I can buy you a drink? I’ll finish my surgical records, and we can chat slowly?” Xiao Minzhi was younger than Lu Cheng.
“No need to be so polite, Doctor Lu Cheng. I’ll just sit for a moment and then leave.”
“I was also assigned to work overtime at the last minute. We’re all just pawns, there’s nothing we can do.” Xiao Minzhi didn’t bring any documents and entered the doctor’s office with Lu Cheng empty-handed.
Du Daihua was on night duty in the ward. After dinner, he had nothing to do and had already gone to lie down in the lounge.
Du Daihua had written the patient’s progress notes for the previous surgery, but he couldn’t perform limb replantation surgery and wasn’t very proficient in the surgical procedure, so he had only created a template for the surgical record, which Lu Cheng had to complete.
Lu Cheng poured Xiao Minzhi a glass of water: “Xiao Minzhi, why are you here to see me today?”
“It’s Saturday today, is your Personnel Department working overtime too?”
Xiao Minzhi placed her phone and cup on the table: “Lu Cheng, to put it jokingly, it’s all because of you that I have to rush here to work overtime immediately.”
“Our Director Tao called me an hour ago and asked me to come to the Emergency Department to talk to you.”
“Lu Cheng, you’ve been here for quite some time, and you’re about to be promoted to deputy senior. However, the leadership is aware that you and Director Du Qiang of the Emergency Department are not on good terms.”
“Director Du Qiang has also approached our Personnel Department Director Tao many times, saying he wants to replace you because you’re not playing by the rules…”
“After Director Tao discussed it with the leaders of the Medical Affairs Department, the idea is to ask if you would consider returning to the Orthopedics Department?”
“You originally came from Orthopedics, and you are indeed an important talent for our hospital,” Xiao Minzhi said implicitly.
After listening, Lu Cheng felt at ease. He had almost thought that the Personnel Department of Long County People’s Hospital had eyes everywhere and knew the inside story of no one participating in the Microsurgery Skills Competition, so they specifically came to talk to him.
“Leader Xiao, you might not know, but I wasn’t comfortable in the Orthopedics Department before, which is why I came to the Emergency Department.”
“I just didn’t expect that the Emergency Department wouldn’t be easy to navigate either. I’m definitely not going back,” Lu Cheng replied disingenuously.
Xiao Minzhi shook her head: “Lu Cheng, in fact, we all know your abilities. You passed the prefecture-level selection examination, so your ability is definitely not a problem.”
“Lu Cheng, you also know that our hospital’s overall strength is not strong, and we’ve encountered many issues recently. Many departments have suffered severe blows.”
“Including but not limited to your Emergency Department and Orthopedics, but no matter how the personnel changes, we all bear the responsibility for the health of the people in the entire county.”
“In such a situation…”
Lu Cheng stopped typing, turned his head, and interrupted: “Xiao Minzhi, are you here to give me a lecture?”
Xiao Minzhi then smiled bitterly and said: “Yes, then let’s not beat around the bush. Our Personnel Department leaders asked me to keep you here. This is the task they assigned me, otherwise, my bonus will be deducted.”
“What do you want me to do, Doctor Lu? Our salaries are not that high to begin with,” Xiao Minzhi’s voice sounded a little pitiful.
Lu Cheng rolled his eyes: “You have easy work and get the hospital’s average performance bonus, and you think that’s not much? Our Emergency Department’s comprehensive performance isn’t even as good as yours.”
“What about us?”
Xiao Minzhi said: “Lu Cheng, so you’re determined to leave, then?”
Lu Cheng nodded and replied disingenuously: “To be realistic, people strive for improvement. To put it helplessly, it’s difficult for me to manage here, and I really have no other choice.”
Xiao Minzhi nodded slightly: “Actually, Lu Cheng, I can understand you. I don’t want to be here either, but you know, we are all workers. We cannot refuse the orders and tasks issued by the leaders.”
“So I still have to go through the motions.”
“I believe Lu Cheng, you also know that there is a deputy senior position vacant in Orthopedics District One, and it’s for a capable deputy senior. Considering the comprehensive abilities of all our hospital’s staff, you are probably the only one who can barely fill the vacancy.”
“Even if we were to recruit, it’s not easy to find a good hand at the director level.”
“The hospital’s intention is that if Lu Cheng is willing to return to Orthopedics, you will definitely be a key focus for cultivation. The situation you encountered before will not happen again.”
“The current acting director of Orthopedics, Director Xiang Kuihua, has also expressed this to us!”
“In fact, the reason Director Tao gave me this order was at Director Xiang’s request!”
Peng Haibo was capable, and his absence would significantly reduce the strength of the Orthopedics Department, which was an undeniable fact.
If Peng Haibo had no ability, he wouldn’t be able to hold the director’s position even with the opportunity.
Secondly, Xiang Kuihua also has extensive connections. He is currently the acting director of Orthopedics District One, so he naturally hears a lot of rumors.
After becoming a leader, he has to consider how to develop the department better. In this situation, it is understandable that Xiang Kuihua wants to poach Lu Cheng back and cultivate him as his “backbone.”
Lu Cheng did not think Xiao Minzhi was wrong: “Thank you for Director Xiang’s appreciation, and thank you for Director Tao’s kindness. I have already made my intentions clear regarding my current work.”
Xiao Minzhi said: “Doctor Lu, as the saying goes, it’s better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix.”
“I think Director Xiang of Orthopedics is different from the previous Director Peng. Director Xiang is more capable and has better cognition.”
“He will definitely be able to develop our county’s orthopedics better. If Doctor Lu goes to Orthopedics, you will be valued more, and perhaps as Director Xiang said, you will truly support our county’s hand surgery. And develop Orthopedics District Three.”
Xiang Kuihua’s understanding was good, but it was no longer within Lu Cheng’s plans: “Xiao Minzhi, we’ve known each other for a long time, so I’ll tell you the truth.”
“It’s not easy for people like us to get out. If I have such an opportunity, I naturally won’t miss it.”
“As for whether I’m the tail of a phoenix, I don’t care. I’ve been the tail of a chicken for many years.”
Lu Cheng’s words were bleak.
Didn’t you say chicken head and phoenix tail? Then if I was the tail of a chicken for so many years, wasn’t that even more disgusting?
Isn’t being the tail of a phoenix more comfortable than being the tail of a chicken?
Xiao Minzhi was also helpless. She joined the hospital in the same year as Lu Cheng. She had some contact with him before because Lu Cheng was quite handsome, but after realizing Lu Cheng didn’t have much background or ‘ability,’ their contact gradually faded.
She is now married, and her attention to Lu Cheng was only recently forced to resume due to this task.
“Lu Cheng, I just think this is a good opportunity. However, since Doctor Lu has already made his own choice, then we can only wish Doctor Lu a better future and development.”
“I just feel it’s a pity! Such a pity, Doctor Lu, you should understand what I mean,” Xiao Minzhi said quite implicitly.
The strength of Xiang Kuihua’s connections was already an open secret.
Lu Cheng said: “Xiao Minzhi, there are so many opportunities in this world, and countless opportunities have slipped through my fingers.”
“But I’ve always believed that only the opportunities we can grasp are true opportunities. Those we can’t grasp are all illusory.”
Xiao Minzhi stated more directly: “Director Xiang said that if the opportunity is suitable, he can even recommend you to work in the province, and you can also pursue further education while working.”
Lu Cheng didn’t deny Xiang Kuihua’s ability, but the perspective seen by people inside and outside the circle was completely different.
Even if Xiang Kuihua’s connections were strong, he was not truly an insider and could not influence the most basic rules of medical practice. Most of it was operating on the fringes of the rules.
Improving his academic qualifications but not his core abilities, what’s the use? It’s just ostentatious embellishment.
Of course, academic qualifications are very useful, but their usefulness is not just those two degree certificates, but everything learned, seen, encountered, and experienced in the process of obtaining them, combined with the abilities and connections one acquires.
To put it more simply, the excellence of a master’s degree holder is not just their learning ability itself, but also the lineage, mentor, and grand-mentor behind the master’s degree.
If such a person is hired, even if something goes wrong, they can call for help.
Can an undergraduate do that without certain connections?
“Xiao Minzhi, thank you for telling me so much. I have my own considerations. Those superficial things don’t belong to me and are far from me, so they cannot be my reliance.”
“If it’s not my bone, it will never support me to walk. I used to be a doctor in orthopedics, so when it comes to walking independently, I only trust my own bones,” Lu Cheng used a vivid analogy.
Xiang Kuihua’s connections through his relatives were certainly stronger than those of Professor Tong Yuan’an, but in the industry, they couldn’t compare to the direct support from top professors like Tan Zhongyuan and Professor Zhong Junyun.
It’s useless for anyone to provide evidence; the hand surgery circle only recognizes people within the circle. Even the most powerful connections can only operate on the fringes and will not easily encroach on the core.
…
Xiao Minzhi left.
Lu Cheng also finished writing his surgical records, closed the surgical record progress notes, and then carefully reviewed Du Daihua’s postoperative medical records and related postoperative orders.
After reviewing, Lu Cheng nodded slightly. Du Daihua had been working harder and improving recently, not as superficial as before.
In the past, Du Daihua only thought about how to curry favor with Zhang Tiesheng and Zeng Huanqi, hoping to break into the circle.
It was only recently that he realized Han Xiaoping had a better relationship with Zhang Tiesheng than he did, and then he gradually changed his thinking.
When one doesn’t have solid connections to build bridges, the only way to build a network is to enhance one’s personal abilities.
All relationships are essentially ‘equivalent exchanges’ that are relatively fair or unfair!
…
Mu Nanshu sent a message with some photos that Xie Yuan’an had previously sent to Mu Nanshu: “You really did it. What are your thoughts?”
Mu Nanshu did not call Lu Cheng’s name.
Lu Cheng thought for a moment and asked: “Which version of the answer do you want to hear? The petty version? The real version?”
“Tell me both?” Mu Nanshu liked Lu Cheng’s authenticity and straightforwardness.
“The petty version of the answer is, it wasn’t satisfying enough. I didn’t manage to push the people I truly wanted to hit into a corner, trembling.”
“The real version of the answer is, I just realized now, what were those past events? There are too many tables in this world, too many circles.”
“If I were still dwelling on competing with them, it would mean I have shallow insight. They don’t even have the qualifications to sit at the table now.”
“Their teachers, I don’t dare to boast for now, but their senior brothers, and even their senior brothers who have been working for a long time, are worthy of my serious attention.”
“Do you remember someone who made you cry in kindergarten?” Lu Cheng asked.
Mu Nanshu: “Hong Zhifei.”
Lu Cheng was amused by Mu Nanshu’s message: “You are truly genuine then.”
As they were speaking, Lu Cheng’s phone rang again…
The caller ID showed a Shanghai number.
