Justice System: I Litigate for the Whole City

Chapter 189 : An Origin That Cannot Be Forged

Song Qiming lifted his hand from the stack of papers and straightened up.

”That statement is already in the court file.” The presiding judge turned a page. ”One and a half lines. Aside from the sentence ʼno record contains the words ”Decided to Use,”ʼ does the defendant have anything else to say today?”

”No.”

”The court will ask once more.” The presiding judge said, ”The four words ʼDecided to Useʼ—on which piece of paper do they first appear, written by whom, on which date?”

Song Qiming lowered his head and flipped through the materials, paging forward three or four sheets, then back again. ”The defendant has no knowledge of this. What the defendant can provide is that statement.”

The court clerkʼs keystrokes paused half a beat, then resumed.

”Staff member Xu.” The presiding judge addressed the second person at the defendantʼs table.

Director Xu stood. Today he wore a suit, both cuffs buttoned, hands hanging at his sides.

”The Self-Review Statement forwarded through the Health Commission on April 15th—you signed the handler column.”

”Yes.”

”Who wrote the contents?”

”Each department reported their sections, and I compiled them.” He spoke without hurry, as if selecting each word. ”The writer column was left blank. That column is meant for the person who wrote those four words. The hospital investigated and could not determine who.”

”Which departments submitted reports?”

”Verbally. Nothing was kept on paper.”

”When they reported it, did anyone say where those four words came from?”

He paused. ”It concerned the obstetrics medical records. I didnʼt ask which individual raised those four words.”

”Thatʼs not what Iʼm asking.” Shen Zhixia rose and turned the photocopy to the main text, holding the page toward the court. ”On March 30th, your hospital sent the Health Commission an Explanatory Statement. The main text contains these four words, and at the end there is a signature line. To date, there is no name on that line.”

”Correct.”

”On what date was this document sent out?”

”The afternoon of March 30th.”

”Before it was sent out, did anyone sign it?”

”The hospital intended to ask Doctor Lin to sign.” Director Xu said. ”She did not sign.”

”She didnʼt sign, and the document was still sent.”

He crossed his hands in front of him. ”Administrative materials were submitted according to hospital requirements.”

”In that case, who added those four words to the statement?”

”I did not handle that sentence.” He said. ”I signed as the handler.”

[Thud. Words no one claims still grow on paper.]

”Please note this for the record.” Shen Zhixia said. ”As of today, the defendant has provided no written basis regarding the time, writer, or handler of the four words ʼDecided to Use.ʼ”

”Noted.” The presiding judge said.

”I have one more question, directed to the defendantʼs counsel.” She turned to face the other side. ”In the defense statement of January 18th, and in the column at the end of the transcribed copy, the defendant wrote the same sentence: the medical records were ʼverified by the duty physician.ʼ”

Song Qiming turned to that page. ”ʼVerified by the duty physicianʼ refers to verification of the records.”

”The signature at the bottom of that column—on what date was the verification done?”

”The record states it was verified.” He said. ”The defendant has no further supplement.”

”Then these four words—does the defendant, here today, still maintain they represent a decision made by that duty physician?”

”The defendant offers no opinion on the outcome of the administrative process.” Song Qiming said. ”This court is hearing a medical damage liability case.”

”Regarding the two applications the defendant submitted before trial.” The presiding judge glanced at him. ”The re-determination of the appraisal institution and the notice for the appraiser to appear in court. The grounds were already stated once at the March 5th hearing. The evidentiary basis and procedures for the appraisal opinion in this case are on record. The defendant may address them in its arguments. The court will not issue a separate reply.”

He Xiufen wrote a line on a notepad and slid it across from under the table: One line on each end.

Shen Zhixia folded the note and pressed it beneath the case file.

* * *

”Court investigation is concluded.” The gavel struck once. ”We now proceed to court arguments. The plaintiff speaks first.”

She stood and arranged the three stacks of paper in order, without reading out any exhibit numbers.

”I wonʼt read through these three stacks again today. Iʼll only trace one line, from one end to the other.”

”This end is December 27th of last year, 3:40 a.m. The plaintiffʼs wife died in the delivery bed. Two hours after she was gone, the hospital produced a Notice of Voluntary Waiver of Autopsy. Her own name appears on the signature line, and the time written is 6:20. The person died first. The signature came after.”

”The hospital calls this improper management of medical records.”

”That end is the drug. On the daily charge sheet, at the row for 00:40 on the 27th—Carbetocin, 186 yuan, with ʼHengyue Pharmaceuticalʼ in the origin column. In the drug warehouseʼs receiving register, the December 26th row ends with a surname, and the receiver column is blank. Of the two accompanying shipment documents, the receiver column is blank on both. In the procurement and acceptance record, the acceptance inspectorʼs slot is empty, with a batch number beginning with 23 written in. The batch number on the outgoing record has been scraped off, and a person receiving the medication signed over the scrape marks. The remaining ampoule in the pharmacy bears batch number 240517. Three numbers laid on one table, and none match. Further back, thereʼs the investigation transcript the court retrieved: early in the morning of December 27th, someone told the drug warehouse to collect the empty ampoules used in obstetrics and not leave them in the disposal room—before leaving, that person asked one question: which batch was that drug from.”

”The person who asked that question was earlier than the plaintiff, earlier than the court, and earlier than that notice stamped 6:20.”

”Between these two ends runs a thread of four words: Decided to Use.”

”The hospital wrote those four words into materials sent to the Health Commission, written as a decision made by a duty physician on her own. Yet those four words have no traceable origin in any hospital record. The only place with a traceable origin is an empty signature line. That physician stood in this courtroom this morning and said three things: the medical order was hers, the drug was not signed for by her, and the name was not written by her.”

She turned toward the defendantʼs table.

”Defendantʼs counsel stated in the defense that improper management had no causal relationship with the motherʼs death. I ask the court to view this line as a whole: the medical records were recopied during the night, with two lines added that were not originally there. The origin of those four words cannot be forged into existence. The drugʼs provenance—from acceptance inspection, to receiving, to batch number—is blank link after blank link. And finally, someone collected the used empty ampoules. Every point along this line points in the same direction: someone used something, and did not want the paper to speak clearly.”

”The phrase ʼno written basis for the usageʼ in the appraisal opinion was written by the defendantʼs own ledgers, its own receipts, and that mismatched ampoule in its own warehouse. The words ʼequal contributionʼ in the causal analysis were settled the same way. The portion the defendant cannot account for—there is a legal term for it, and it is written on paper.”

Song Qiming rose, first flipping the hearing record back to the front, then reading down point by point.

”First, causation is supported by the appraisal opinion, but the appraisal opinion cannot replace clinical judgment. Postpartum hemorrhage is inherently dangerous and involves unforeseeable patient-specific factors. Second, the drug in question was procured through legal channels and passed inspection; the price difference between purchase and sale falls within the scope of independent enterprise pricing. Third, defects in medical record writing are administrative issues and have no necessary connection to the motherʼs death. Fourth, the alleged pressure occurred during the administrative process and is irrelevant to the liability for damages in this case.”

”The defendantʼs position is: the court should assess compensation items according to law and reject those without basis.”

”Two sentences.” Shen Zhixia said. ”The first is directed at your second point: the appraisal opinion does not say there was a problem with the drug itself. It says the procurement acceptance and receiving procedures were incomplete, and there was no written basis for the usage. A drug passing quality inspection and its paperwork being in order are two different things. For the same formulation, Hengyue Pharmaceutical sold it to Hengkang at 61.2 yuan per ampoule. Hengkang sold it to Chengbei Hospital at 186 yuan per ampoule. The two companies share the same address, the same floor, the same phone number. Whose account the 124.8 yuan in between landed in—for half a year, the defendant never once asked.”

”The second is directed at your fourth point. That Explanatory Statement had its date pre-filled, its seal pre-stamped, and its signature line empty—and it went to the Health Commission like that. On January 27th, the hospital pinned the changes to the medical records on her alone and suspended her work. In the early morning of April 12th, she stood on the roof of the hospital building in her white coat. She stood there for four hours.”

She lowered her voice. ”Whether this counts as fault, I leave to the court. Iʼll only add one thing: that physician stood in this courtroom and spoke this morning. This afternoon, she returns to the defendantʼs ward.”

He Xiufen shifted forward half an inch and spoke into the microphone. ”The agent adds one point. Nine claims in total—the court is asked to assess each one. We have not asked for a single cent more.”

”Court arguments are concluded.” The presiding judge said. ”The plaintiff makes a final statement.”

Peng Weidong stood. His hands left the table, hung for a moment, then pressed back down on the surface.

”I donʼt know what to say.” He said.

The court clerkʼs fingers stilled over the keyboard.

”Just one sentence.” He raised his head. ”How she died—if itʼs written on paper, I accept it. If they canʼt write it down, Iʼll wait one more round.”

The presiding judge looked at him for a moment. ”Plaintiff, please be seated. The judgment will be served on both parties according to law.”

”The defendant makes a final statement.”

”The defendant submits to the courtʼs direction and will comply with the judgment.” Song Qiming said.

Director Xu remained seated, motionless. The pen was still clipped to the case file, its cap never once removed.

”Court is adjourned.” The gavel struck once. ”Judgment in this case will be announced at a later date.”

* * *

The corridor suddenly buzzed with noise. The two men from the printing plant clustered around Peng Weidong; one clapped his shoulder, saying the car was waiting outside. He only grunted, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets, then pulling them out again.

”The two most valuable words in court today.” He Xiufen said as she gathered up the case files. ”Were that ʼNo.ʼ”

Shen Zhixia was just about to support Peng Weidong when someone called from behind her.

”Lawyer Shen.”

Director Xu stood beside the water dispenser, a paper cup in hand, unfilled, slightly crumpled from his grip.

”This case—weʼll likely lose.” He said.

”The outcome is for the court to decide.”

”I donʼt care how the court decides.” He set the paper cup back down. ”Iʼm giving you a word of warning. You win this case, thereʼs another round waiting for you after.”

She looked at him.

”Last Friday, someone came to the Medical Affairs Office, pulled the authorization documents for your representation in this case, and made a photocopy.” He said. ”What they asked about wasnʼt the case. They asked about your practice certificate—when it would be issued.”

”Who sent them?”

Director Xu shook his head. ”He didnʼt say, and didnʼt leave a card. I provided the copy according to procedure, stamped ʼverified against the original.ʼ”

He dropped the crumpled cup into the trash, walked past her, his leather soles tapping against the tile floor, one step at a time.

[Thud. The paper in court is still warm, but someone elsewhere is already counting the days.]

She slipped her hand into her coat pocket. The name badge was still there, all four corners worn smooth.

He Xiufen came up from behind, the case file bag tucked under her arm.

”From where?”

”He didnʼt say.”

He Xiufen stood still, looking at the door at the end of the hallway for two seconds, then pushed her glasses up.

”The certificate isnʼt even in hand yet, and theyʼre already asking about the date.”