This Doctor Is Too Wealthy

His relationship with Kang Zhirong was, to put it bluntly, purely an employment one, far from the closeness he shared with Wu Buwei.

If it were Wu Buwei, Du Heng would do more than just offer advice; he might even fly back directly and slap him awake.

But he couldn’t treat Kang Zhirong that way. Never mind slapping him, even speaking harshly, especially concerning personal matters, would be crossing a line.

But now that Wu Shengnan had mentioned it, Du Heng also felt that Kang Zhirong might be no match for this woman.

Regardless of the woman’s motives, if things continued to develop this way, Kang Zhirong would definitely be at a disadvantage.

”Oh, this is difficult to handle,” Du Heng said with a troubled expression. ”Well, I’ll find an opportunity to talk to him later... Wait a moment, I need to take this call.”

Du Heng glanced at the caller ID, raised an eyebrow, and answered the call as soon as the video chat ended. ”Hello, Sir Sun.”

”Xiao Du, I have some good news for you. Your paperwork is all done,” Sun Jiaxiang’s voice came from the other end of the phone.

Du Heng was delighted and quickly said, ”Thank you.”

It had taken him almost a week to complete all the procedures to join the Health Committee.

Sun Jiaxiang’s voice on the other end turned a bit more solemn. ”Now that the paperwork is done, I have a task for you. I’ll give you an address. Come over right away; I’ll be waiting for you at the entrance.”

”Alright, Sir Sun, I’ll be there immediately.”

Du Heng looked at the phone in his hand, now disconnected, took a deep breath, then turned and went to Director Wu’s office to explain the situation.

Director Wu, of course, supported Du Heng and, without a second thought, approved his request for leave, telling him to go ahead and take care of his business.

Just as Du Heng was about to leave, Director Wu suddenly reached out and stopped him. After hesitating for a long moment, he finally said, ”Director Du, when you get there, listen more, observe more, and speak less.

”If you’re not absolutely sure about something, don’t say anything. Don’t try to stand out too much; Sir Sun will be there to handle things.

”There will definitely be many experts there, specialists in both Western and traditional Chinese medicine. We’re still young, so we’re going there with a learning mindset. It’s best if you can help, but if you can’t, no one will blame you.”

Du Heng nodded quickly.

Although Director Wu’s words sounded a bit discouraging, they were genuinely for his benefit, and Du Heng appreciated the sentiment.

The place Sun Jiaxiang mentioned was the First Medical Center they had visited last time.

However, the specific location they were heading to this time was much deeper inside and further away than on their previous visit.

Just before they got out of the car, Sun Jiaxiang suddenly said to Du Heng, ”Xiao Du, don’t be nervous when you get inside. Your task is to assess the patient. Say whatever you think; don’t hold anything back.”

Du Heng was slightly taken aback; Sun Jiaxiang’s words were the complete opposite of what Director Wu had advised.

Nevertheless, Du Heng quickly nodded and followed Sun Jiaxiang inside.

The environment here was similar to other hospital departments, with no shortage of doctors and nurses. However, it was very quiet, almost eerily so. The passing doctors and nurses, though, were all full of energy and seemed particularly driven. Beyond these observations, Du Heng didn’t notice anything else out of the ordinary, though perhaps there were other details he missed.

Instead of taking Du Heng directly to the patient’s room, Sun Jiaxiang first found a director. ”Director Meng, how’s the situation?” Sun Jiaxiang asked. There was no sign on the director’s door indicating his specific role.

However, the name badge on this director’s chest read: ”Geriatrics Department: Meng Yongqian, Chief Doctor.”

Geriatrics Department? Du Heng paused for a moment. Although he wasn’t familiar with the treatment protocols here, he didn’t dare say anything and just obediently followed Sun Jiaxiang.

This Director Meng was about six feet tall, around fifty years old, and from his glasses, appeared to have a prescription of around seven or eight hundred degrees for nearsightedness.

How could one discern his height, age, and even his vision just by looking?

Du Heng really wanted to say, ”Yes, you can.”

The lenses of this director’s glasses were not much thinner than the bottom of a beer bottle. Du Heng felt slightly dizzy just glancing at them. If his prescription isn’t seven or eight hundred degrees, I wouldn’t believe it, Du Heng thought.

When Director Meng heard Sun Jiaxiang’s question, he gently pushed up his glasses. ”His condition is about the same as when you left this morning, Sir Sun. He’s still in a light coma, but the degree of heart failure has slightly worsened.”

Sun Jiaxiang showed no surprise, nodded gently, and then asked, ”What about the other experts?”

”They’re all in the small conference room next door. None of them have left.”

”Have they come up with a solution?”

Director Meng sighed softly and slowly shook his head. ”If they could have found a solution, they would have done so half a month ago. Why wait until he’s already in a coma to suddenly figure something out?”

Sun Jiaxiang frowned slightly. ”They’re a bunch of good-for-nothings. If they can’t find a solution, just tell them to get lost. Having them here is just adding to your troubles, isn’t it?”

Director Meng pushed his glasses up again. ”Sir Sun, you must be joking. They were all sent by the Health Bureau. How could I have the authority to ask them to leave?” He looked at Du Heng, who was standing behind Sun Jiaxiang, and then asked Sun Jiaxiang with some hesitation, ”Sir Sun, who is this person with you?”

Sun Jiaxiang said, ”Oh,” and quickly turned to introduce Du Heng. ”This is Du Heng, the Deputy Director of the Chinese Medicine Department at Good Friend Hospital.”

Director Meng’s expression soured. ”Sir Sun, you know the requirements here. Bringing Doctor Du here, I’m afraid...”

”Don’t worry, I won’t make things difficult for you,” Sun Jiaxiang explained. ”He has already been approved to join the Health Committee. His paperwork was just finalized today. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have brought him.”

Only then did Director Meng relax. ”Well, that’s good, that’s good. Then there’s no problem. Since he’s here, I assume Doctor Du already knows the specifics of the situation?”

Sir Sun chuckled lightly. ”Director Meng, don’t bother probing. I know the rules.

”I haven’t told him anything; he doesn’t know a thing.”

Director Meng once again pushed up his glasses and chuckled. ”Sir Sun, you’re being too serious. This isn’t me testing you. You’re a senior, and I trust you wouldn’t do anything against the rules or put me in a difficult position.” He then looked at Du Heng and said, ”Since Doctor Du is here, please take a look at the information.”

Director Meng operated the computer for a moment and then made space for Du Heng.

Du Heng didn’t move but looked at Sun Jiaxiang.

Sun Jiaxiang nodded. ”Director Meng is letting you look, so go ahead. After you’ve seen it, tell us your thoughts.”

Only after Sun Jiaxiang finished speaking did Du Heng walk over to the computer.

Just as Du Heng was about to view the contents on the computer, Director Meng spoke again. ”Deputy Director Du, what you see today is for your eyes only. You cannot repeat it to a second person, not a single word.

”You understand that, right?”

Du Heng nodded, still not speaking.

The patient was ninety-one years old. A month ago, he had started to experience irritability and insomnia. Two weeks ago, this progressed to constipation. He often described a sensation of heat rising from his lower abdomen directly to his heart, which would cause feelings of agitation, heartburn, and palpitations. Concurrently, he also experienced dizziness and lightheadedness. Three days ago, he slipped into a light coma, and just last night, he suddenly suffered heart failure.

After reading this, Du Heng took a deep breath. No wonder these people are at their wits’ end, he thought. And no wonder Sir Sun previously asked me about geriatric decline. So, the patient is ninety-one years old.

For an ordinary person of this age to experience these symptoms would be considered quite normal. The outcome would also be obvious: death from old age. For any other elderly individual in such a state, this progression wouldn’t typically raise any particular issue. Presumably, Sir Sun, Director Meng, and those currently in the meeting discussing the case were all mentally prepared for such an eventuality.

Du Heng stared blankly at the computer. Director Meng said nothing, just watched him silently from the side.

After waiting for a few seconds, Sun Jiaxiang couldn’t help but ask, ”Xiao Du, have you finished reading?”