It was only after a long time that Shen Fangyu, who was standing like a wax statue, moved sluggishly, his head felt heavy but his feet were light, like he was stepping on cotton.
He let out a long breath, shook his head, and bent down to pick up all the examination reports one by one. He arranged them on the table, straightened the borders, and put them back on Jiang Xu’s table, asking in a slow tone, “What do you need me to do?”
Jiang Xu didn’t turn around.
Shen Fangyu pressed between his eyebrows and said to Jiang Xu, “You didn’t come to me just to inform me that I’m going to become a father.”
He knew Jiang Xu’s character very well, he had a strong personality and strong self-esteem. After calming down, his first thought was that if he hadn’t encountered a difficult problem, there was no way he would have confessed this to him.
Jiang Xu closed his eyes, before saying, “Do an operate on me and remove this fetus.”
He did not refer to it as a child.
Jiang Xu added, “A doctor in M country has just done a related operation but the article hasn’t been published yet. I’ve emailed him to ask if he’d be willing to share the details of the operation with us, and I’d like you to do it for me.”
They had been rivals for over ten years, yet when it really came down to it, Shen Fangyu was the only one Jiang Xu trusted.
It was precisely because they were rivals that he knew Shen Fangyu’s abilities best, and the fact that he believed he could do it himself was the same as believing Shen Fangyu could do it; the two of them had never been evenly matched.
But no doctor could heartlessly pat himself on the back and say that there was no problem when faced with such a situation.
And sure enough, Shen Fangyu hesitated.
Jiang Xu’s gaze fell on the computer screen, his index finger sliding over the mouse, the curve of his jawline sharp, “You can also refuse, I understand.”
“You know the dangers, Jiang Xu.”
“I know.”
Only the sound of the two men’s breathing remained in the silent office, and Shen Fangyu just looked at him.
Jiang Xu waited so long that he felt his face stiffen a little. His heart felt like it had been dipped in water, sinking little by little. He silently took a deep breath and just as he returned his attention to the unfinished literature in an attempt to stabilize his emotions, Shen Fangyu suddenly spoke out.
“I can do it.”
“There’s no need to rush to say yes,” Jiang Xu said, “you can go back and think about it.”
“I’m your first choice, aren’t I?” Shen Fangyu asked.
Jiang Xu didn’t say anything, it was a tacit acknowledgment.
“Then I don’t need to think about it,” Shen Fangyu repeated, “I can do it.”
Jiang Xu gave him a look.
“But I need a full record of the operation,” Shen Fangyu said, “I have to be responsible.”
He pulled out the chair beside Jiang Xu and sat down, “When do you think he’ll reply? We need to prepare as early as possible, the longer we delay, the higher the risk of the operation.”
Jiang Xu glanced at his phone, there was still no reply, and he shook his head gently, “It’s not easy to guess.”
“Are you sure he’s willing to give it?” Shen Fangyu asked, “After all, he hasn’t even published the article yet.”
“Science knows no borders,” Jiang Xu himself had never been selfish. In addition, he was confident in his ability and speed, so he never had problems sharing his unpublished articles during sharing and debriefing, “Besides, a doctor’s belief is to heal and save people.”
Shen Fangyu did not say anything, in fact, he was not as optimistic as Jiang Xu, but he did not want to add fuel to the fire, so he chose to be silent.
It seemed that after talking about this matter, there was no longer any need for them to talk to each other again, and Jiang Xu did not speak to Shen Fangyu again.
His eyes did not leave the computer screen the whole time, obviously already in a working state.
Shen Fangyu scanned Jiang Xu’s screen and found that he was reading a paper on targeted cervical cancer drugs that was written in English.
He suddenly admired Jiang Xu’s psychological quality; he— Jiang Xu— could still give his full attention to the content on the computer even at this time.
Yet his— Shen Fangyu— mind was in turmoil.
His thoughts were still a jumbled mess, and although he was much calmer than earlier, it was more like being shocked to the point of madness.
When Shen Fangyu withdrew his gaze from Jiang Xu’s workstation, he suddenly glanced at Jiang Xu’s hand and saw that the coffee he drank all year had been replaced with plain water.
Jiang Xu, who used coffee as water, didn’t drink coffee anymore.
It was because he was pregnant with a child.
For some unknown reason, Shen Fangyu lowered his eyes and looked at Jiang Xu’s abdomen.
Under the cover of the white coat, he could not see anything, but when he thought that there was a child inside, and that child was his and Jiang Xu’s, Shen Fangyu suddenly did not know how to face Jiang Xu.
The documents on the screen were marked accurately and highlighted, and Jiang Xu had already turned to the next page. It was obvious that he was really reading and not acting.
Shen Fangyu suddenly reached out and touched Jiang Xu.
“Quiet.” Jiang Xu didn’t want to hear Shen Fangyu’s sneers or taunts at this time.
However, Shen Fangyu was silent for a moment, and for the first time, he briefly bowed his head in front of him, “I’m sorry, I’ll take responsibility.”
Jiang Xu’s index finger on the mouse suddenly curled up and after a long time, he said expressionlessly, “There’s no need, it was just an accident, I didn’t take it to heart, and I don’t need you to be responsible for me. Dr. Shen, just mind your own business.”
“Jiang Xu.…”
Jiang Xu continued, “After this matter is resolved, we will remain the same as before, I just hope you will appear in front of me less frequently.”
It was like having a basin of cold water poured over his head, and the small flame of warmth that had just been ignited in Shen Fangyu’s heart was extinguished in an instant.
Jiang Xu always had a knack for making him angry.
Shen Fangyu looked at the side of his face in silence, and then he pulled the corners of his mouth, “Fine, as you wish,” he snapped his fingers and stood up, “but thank you, Dr. Jiang, for your trust and your recognition of my medical skills.”
The two of them were always equal when it came to stabbing each other in the heart.
However, before Jiang Xu could say anything else, a young doctor from the next office suddenly opened the door in a panic, and the two men, who were facing each other in a standoff, shifted their eyes tacitly and awkwardly.
Fortunately, the doctor who barged in didn’t notice the strange atmosphere in the office, and when he saw the two of them, it was like holding on to a lifeline. His mouth immediately went off like a barrage of bullets.
“Dr. Shen, a pregnant woman fell down the stairs and has been sent to the operating room, Dr. Wu is on the second line today. An hour ago, the emergency department sent a pregnant woman who was involved in a car accident and Xiao Yang went to the rescue. I just contacted the third line and they were still on the way, so Doctor Wu asked me to come to the office to see if there is anyone else who can help.”
Halfway through his words, Jiang Xu and Shen Fangyu were already following him toward the emergency ward of the obstetrics and gynecology department, and they soon saw the woman in the hospital bed.
Jiang Xu lowered his head and began to check the patient’s condition, while the emergency nurse reported on the ECG monitoring indicators.
Liu Ran, the emergency physician who had also entered them, followed up with a report, “The patient has multiple soft tissue contusions on her arms and knees, and fluid in her knees, the wounds have been disinfected, intravenous access has been established, and there are no obvious fractures at this time.”
“Patient Zhang Yun, thirty-two weeks gestation, fetal heart monitoring is normal and no contractions have yet occurred.” The regulation doctor, whose name was Chen Qi, finished looking at the fetal heart monitor and said to Jiang Xu, “It should be a false alarm.”
Liu Ran breathed a sigh of relief, “That’s good. The patient’s family said she fell down the stairs, and when I saw that the mother was unconscious, I rushed to the emergency obstetrics and gynecology channel after treating her wounds, fearing that she would go into premature labor.”
He looked young and it must have been his first time being on duty alone.
“Since it’s nothing serious, then I’ll leave first.” He said to Jiang Xu, “Let me know when the patient wakes up.”
“Wait,” Jiang Xu’s eyes flickered over the bruised arm and knee of the patient. Zhang Yun’s forehead was covered in a cold sweat and Jiang Xu reached out to touch it. He found that her arm was also a little damp, so he moved closer to Zhang Yun to smell it. A very faint smell of garlic passed through the mask.
He raised his hand and said, “Flashlight.”
“Already checked, bilateral pupils equal size and equal circle diameter 3.5mm, reflection to light is normal .” Liu Ran said inexplicably.
Jiang Xu’s gaze fell on the ECG monitor, “I won’t say it again.”
Liu Ran lowered his eyes somewhat indignantly and handed him the torch.
Jiang Xu opened Zhang Yun’s eyelids and shone a bright, strong light into the patient’s pupils, “Did you check the cholinesterase in the blood work?”
“Cholinesterase?” Liu Ran looked at Jiang Xu and said with astonishment, “The patient’s family said the patient fell down the stairs and the emergency department treated it as a trauma, why would they check cholinesterase?”
“Draw blood and check the serum cholinesterase and organic phosphorus concentration,” Jiang Xu finished explaining to the nurse at the side and turned his head to Liu Ran, “Prepare the stomach lavage.”
Liu Ran’s eyes were clearly disapproving as he paused and glanced at Jiang Xu’s badge.
“Dr Jiang,” he retorted, “the patient showed no obvious muscarinic-like symptoms and no history of pesticide consumption.”
Jiang Xu said to him as he reached for his stethoscope, “I am your superior doctor here, I will be responsible for all my orders and the only thing you have to do is carry them out.”
After saying that, he gave Liu Ran a cold glance and put the stethoscope head on the patient’s skin.
Liu Ran had a sullen expression as he looked at Jiang Xu who seemed indifferent to his presence and didn’t take his words to heart at all. He got furious and said, “I’m going to file a complaint against you!”
“You can,” Jiang Xu said without stopping his hands, “but right now you have to listen to me.” He got up and looked at Liu Ran, his eyes stern with a sense of oppression.
Liu Ran’s heart suddenly faltered, and he couldn’t utter another word as they suddenly got stuck in his throat. He snorted angrily and began to indwell a gastric tube for gastric lavage with water.
Shen Fangyu remained silent at the side. When he saw that Liu Ran had quietened down, he asked Jiang Xu, “Do you want to inject atropine and clofibrate in advance?”
Both were commonly used antidotes for organophosphorus pesticides.
Jiang Xu was silent for a moment, then he nodded and instructed the nurse to get ready to administer the drugs.
“You guys–“ Liu Ran still wanted to retort, but was firmly pinned back by a look from Shen Fangyu. It was strange to say that although Shen Fangyu looked amiable, that look made Liu Ran inexplicably a little scared.
The blood test sheet had not yet come out, and the transparent liquid had already been injected into the patient’s vein.
Jiang Xu subconsciously glanced at Shen Fangyu, but unexpectedly met his gaze. Their eyes met and they averted them almost simultaneously.
Jiang Xu returned his gaze to the patient, and a thought flashed through his mind for a very brief moment.
It seemed like ages since he and Shen Fangyu last rescued a patient together.