Chapter 18: Chapter 0017 Eldest Apprentice Brother

“Task completed, reward 2400 points.”

Yang Ping didn’t expect to accumulate a few thousand points so quickly. Full of confidence, he believed he could make a fortune from finger amputation and replantation. He had thought there would be no opportunity for such operations, but now it seemed otherwise. Therefore, his plan started to take shape.

Yang Ping entered the System Space, went to the mall to buy several basic techniques, and completed the training while the iron was still hot.

As such, his points dwindled to about a thousand or so. He was now hard up for points.

Song Zimo, Zhang Lin, and the anesthesia nurse together sent the patient back to the ward. All the others had already left, each still relishing the experience.

In the changing room, Director Han and Yang Ping sat on a bench in their surgical gowns, leaning against the backrest to rest. Director Han took out a cigarette and offered it to Yang Ping: “Do you smoke?”

Yang Ping shook his head with a smile and said, “Thanks, Director, I don’t smoke and I can’t hold my liquor either. If it was a few decades ago, I wouldn’t have passed the first cut in the interview. I would have tried to grit my teeth and lift the heavy weights, but with liquor, I’m a complete mess.”

Director Han laughed heartily: “What a pity, the team of doctors is short of a drinker, and the hundreds of millions of drinking people in China have one less doctor to turn to, a double loss!”

Director Han put the cigarette to his nose and took a sniff, then put it away. Perhaps he worried that Yang Ping would inhale his second-hand smoke, he leaned back against the chair even more and asked: “There aren’t many finger amputations and replantations in People’s Hospital. I’m curious, how did you develop your skill in microsurgery?”

“Director, I also don’t know why. Under the microscope, I feel very fluent in operation, just like when I do surgery in direct view.” Yang Ping’s face was slightly flushed.

“When you have the time, you need to train everyone else and help sharpen their skills. It’s not spring when only one flower blooms, but rather when all the flowers blossom together.” Director Han said meaningfully.

Yang Ping nodded, “Understood, Director. I’ll actively communicate with everyone and make progress together.”

Director Han excitedly gave him a thumbs up and said, “Magnanimous!”

“Oh, feel free to bring up any difficulties or requirements you have at work, and you can always talk to me about any ideas you have, whether they’re mature or not. You can call me Old Han in private, just like Tian Yuan and Song Zimo do. It’s more casual that way. Sanbo provides a big platform where you can freely display your talents.” With his eyes closed, Director Han seemed a bit tired.

The two had their post-operative meal, and Yang Ping quickly left to rest.

On his way home, Yang Ping had to cross an overhead bridge. The bridge was wide and bustling. Both sides were lined with stalls, offering fortune-telling, cures for all ailments, and mobile phone screen protection services.

Yang Ping stood on the bridge in the breeze, planning his next steps when his phone buzzed with a message from Song Zimo: “Doctor Yang, have you had dinner yet?”

“Just had it.” Yang Ping had already had his post-surgery meal.

“Are you still at the hospital?” Song Zimo asked cautiously.

“Still here!” Yang Ping glanced around.

“Can you come to the lab?” Song Zimo asked, sounding a bit embarrassed.

The lab of the Orthopedics Department was actually a large room for surgical training.

It held training microscopes, arthroscopes, and other equipment for the younger doctors to use. These training materials are very expensive, and only top hospitals in the country could afford them.

What could Song Zimo possibly want? Usually, they would just nod and greet each other when they saw each other. It was rare for Song Zimo to initiate a call.

Yang Ping returned to the department where the lab was located at the end of the corridor.

The door wasn’t shut completely, just ajar, with a slit of light shining through. Yang Ping gently pushed the door open and entered.

There was one person inside, sitting in front of a microscope, practicing. It was Song Zimo.

A diligent rich second generation indeed. The saying was true — he had more money and worked harder than you.

Hearing someone enter, Song Zimo turned around: “Come, come, senior brother, I practice very quickly and steadily, but why was I always using too much force during today’s surgery, and couldn’t pick up the pace?”

Senior brother?

Below the Associate Chief Physician and Chief Physician, Song Zimo’s position in the department was that of the senior brother. No one could shake it.

Being called his senior now fills him with a strange flattery.

“Aren’t you resting yet? Practicing with the microscope so late?” Yang Ping guessed that he might be seeking her to discuss today’s surgery, but she didn’t expect such earnestness. This version of Song Zimo was completely different from the one she usually saw.

Song Zimo gave up his seat, and Yang Ping sat down, putting her eyes close to the eyepiece.

In her field of view, on a fixation plate, a 0.05mm simulated blood vessel was flawlessly anastomosed, very standard.

He truly is a genius.

These simulated vessels are consumed in training for microscopic surgery. They are expensive and consumed in large quantities; only hospitals like Sanbo that are willing to invest could afford to establish such a laboratory.

Famous hand surgery hospitals, like Jishuitan Hospital, Hospital 401, and Hospital 89, all have their own laboratories and host a large number of rabbits and rats.

Using rabbit ears or rat tails for practice presents a more realistic scenario, but it is also more time-consuming. With these artificial blood vessels that come in a variety of diameters, one could use as many as they want, and practice for as long as they are willing to pay for.

Currently, Song Zimo is practicing with a 0.05mm blood vessel, roughly the same thickness as the finger vessels of a newborn baby. The vessels he bridged in the infant surgery were even thinner than this.

“During the surgery today, I always felt I couldn’t go any faster. I needed to go very slow. As soon as I sped up a little, my movements became too large, and I tore the blood vessels,” Song Zimo admitted, rubbing his neck in frustration.

In fact, he was already quite impressive, managing to accurately anastomose a 0.05mm blood vessel.

However, he met with a challenge – Yang Ping.

What could be done? They were on different levels.

Yang Ping was quite willing to be friends with Song Zimo. Having just arrived at the new hospital, she needed to establish good relationships. If she could handle her relationship with Song Zimo well, the other young doctors would naturally align with her, or, at the very least, not be unfriendly towards her.

Being too harsh isn’t a good thing, but being too soft could lead to being overlooked and missing out on many opportunities. It was critical to strike a balance.

“Today’s infant was premature, and the blood vessels were underdeveloped and brittle, differing from normal vessels. This is the paradox between training and actual scenarios. I suggest you use a newborn rat as a model, feed it corticosteroid dexamethasone for a while, to create a model for the type of finger vessels a premature baby would have, and then practice on that. This field is about talent and hard work, and practice makes perfect.” Yang Ping helped him analyze the situation and provided practical advice.

“Actually, your talent is really high, you just haven’t encountered this kind of case before, and it just so happens that I have, so I have the experience,” Yang Ping added, encouraging him.

Praise works for anyone – this is a famous quote by Dale Carnegie, whose books have topped best-seller lists worldwide.

From childhood to adulthood, Song Zimo had always been number one. He accomplished with ease what others struggled to achieve.

Experiencing today’s setback unsettled Song Zimo’s mood, but with Yang Ping’s words, he could find a face-saving exit.

If he had the experience of dealing with such cases, he certainly wouldn’t have been as passive as he was today.

“Try my approach, and practice for a while, you’ll definitely be able to break through this bottleneck.” Yang Ping encouraged him.

Song Zimo nodded. He felt that Yang Ping was right. She didn’t get arrogant after successfully reattaching the finger of a premature baby today and wasn’t protective of her techniques or perfunctory towards him.

“Teach me more when you have time, you’re more experienced than me,” Song Zimo said somewhat awkwardly.

Yang Ping nodded, “Let’s learn from each other and improve together.”

“Senior, you should go rest now, you worked hard today during the surgery, I will practice a bit more.” Song Zimo’s tone was a lot more natural.

Yang Ping also wanted to go rest, “Alright, if you have any insights from your practice, do share them with me.”

Within just half an hour of conversation, Song Zimo granted his respect to Yang Ping. She was highly talented yet lacked even a trace of arrogance, which is quite rare.

Having such a colleague was indeed fortune in disguise.

Song Zimo held pride, but he didn’t have narrow-mindedness; on the contrary, he disliked narrow-minded people.