For Central Hospital, an operation for a ruptured transverse colon wasn't difficult at all.
The surgery went very smoothly, except for Tong Kai and Zhang Li, none of the medical staff knew what had happened before.
As he stepped out of the operating room, Tong Kai invited Lin Feng to his office.
"Doctor Lin, we owe you one today!" Tong Kai asked Lin Feng to sit down, then poured a cup of tea for him, and said, "May I ask where you learned your acupuncture technique?"
Lin Feng broke into a cold sweat upon hearing this. He didn't know anything about acupuncture—it was all that old swindler's doing. But if he told Tong Kai that, Tong Kai would surely not believe him.
Observing Lin Feng's expression, Tong Kai smiled and said, "I'm sorry, Doctor Lin, I'm being too rash and have asked a question I shouldn't have. If it's not convenient for you to say, then please act as if I never asked."
Many traditions in Traditional Chinese Medicine are secretive, and being well-versed in both Western and Chinese medicine, Tong Kai was certainly aware of this.
"I'm really sorry, Director Tong!" Lin Feng breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.
"No problem! It is I who should apologize," laughed Tong Kai, then continued, "When I saw you administer the needles earlier, it was the legendary and lost technique of Reverse Acupuncture Flow. Could you perhaps give me some guidance on it?"
Lin Feng thought inwardly, "Old swindler, he's asking you! Hurry up and teach me how to answer!"
Qi Luyi said discontentedly, "Don't call me old swindler in the future! What have I swindled from you? Your money or your love?"
Nevertheless, Qi Luyi didn't hold back and relayed the principles and methods of Reverse Acupuncture Flow through Lin Feng to Tong Kai.
Tong Kai listened with rapt attention, and when Lin Feng finished speaking, Tong Kai still appeared to be mesmerized.
"There's one question I've been wanting to ask. Earlier, the patient had internal bleeding, which is easy to diagnose, but how did Doctor Lin determine the exact location of the patient's injury?" Tong Kai revealed his curiosity.
"Ha ha! Since Director Tong has delved deeply into Traditional Chinese Medicine, surely you must have heard of a diagnostic method known as the 'Technique of Inner and Outer Understanding'?" Lin Feng relayed as per Qi Luyi's words.
"The Technique of Inner and Outer Understanding?!" Tong Kai was startled and asked eagerly, "Is it the diagnostic method invented by Shennong that allows one to see the inner disorders from the outer appearance?"
"Exactly! It was indeed invented by Shennong," Lin Feng said with a smile.
"This Technique of Inner and Outer Understanding was passed on for three hundred years after Shennong before it was lost. It's occasionally mentioned in unofficial historical accounts, and the great medical scholars of later generations have searched for it in vain, saying that the method was lost. I had never imagined that such a lineage still existed in the world!" Tong Kai was profoundly moved.
"Director Tong, these past few days you've been suffering from an imbalance in your qi and blood, and you have a small gallstone. Although it hasn't caused an acute attack, it still causes you frequent pain. Additionally, when you were young, you experienced extreme cold, which, despite decades passing, led to cold energy penetrating your internal organs and causing frequent flare-ups. Am I right?" Lin Feng spoke according to Qi Luyi's words and then intently watched for Tong Kai's reaction.
"That's right!" The more Tong Kai heard, the more astonished he grew. He couldn't believe that Lin Feng had pinpointed his health issues so accurately. It seemed that the Technique of Inner and Outer Understanding truly existed! Any doubts he previously had vanished without a trace.
Lin Feng chuckled inwardly, but then glanced at the time and quickly said, "Director Tong, it's getting late, and I need to go back to start the night shift."
"Ah? Is that the time already?" Tong Kai, realizing his earlier lapse, nodded and said, "That's fine then. By the way, would Doctor Lin mind giving me your phone number? I would like to consult with you about Reverse Acupuncture Flow when you have the time."
Lin Feng smiled and then exchanged phone numbers with Tong Kai.
Afterward, Tong Kai personally escorted Lin Feng to the hospital entrance, which surprised the doctors and nurses in the emergency department.
Tong Kai was a doctor who revered skill. Although he held the position of Director of the Emergency Department, he was not interested in power plays. No one had ever seen Tong Kai personally escort anyone to the hospital entrance, not even for the director of Central Hospital or the head of Quancheng City Health Bureau – he never made an exception for anyone!
But now, Tong Kai was smiling warmly as he escorted a young man to the entrance!
"Who is this young man, anyway?"
"I haven't seen him before. Could he be some official's son?"
"Doesn't look like it. This young man's clothes are so common. Would the son of someone important wear something like that? They just look like street market stuff to me!"
"Then who could he be? From Director Tong's behavior, this young man must be someone special!"
The medical staff in the emergency department quietly speculated among themselves.
Only a few doctors and nurses from Zhang Li's group knew what had happened earlier on the road, but aside from Zhang Li, none of them saw what unfolded now.
In that moment, Zhang Li's face was clouded with gloom because just a moment ago, as Tong Kai and Lin Feng passed by Zhang Li, he overheard Tong Kai saying to Lin Feng, "Doctor Lin, would you be interested in joining our hospital? We have an opening for the head of a primary diagnostic group in our emergency department!"
There were four primary diagnostic groups in the emergency department of Central Hospital. Each was led by a chief or deputy chief physician heading the group. Zhang Li's group, however, had been temporarily without a head since the prior chief went abroad for further studies, leaving Zhang Li as the acting head.
Tong Kai's invitation for Lin Feng to become the head of the group clearly meant taking his own seat!
"Damn it!" Zhang Li cursed inwardly, "Has Tong Kai lost his mind? Why would he let such a small fry become the head? What qualifies Lin Feng? He's just a junior resident doctor! Hmph! There's no way he's going to be the head!"
But then Zhang Li had an uneasy thought: "The former Director Chen has been abroad for three months now. Logically, they should have appointed me the head position by now, but there hasn't been any movement. I've been pulling strings and asking around, to no avail. It seems Tong Kai is dissatisfied with me!"
Tong Kai was a well-respected figure in the national medical community, even the head of the Health Bureau and the director of the hospital had to give him deference. If Tong Kai really let Lin Feng take over as the head, things would become troublesome!
"No, I can't let this kid come to Central Hospital! I have to find a way to stop him!" Zhang Li had an idea the moment this thought struck him.
With that thought, Zhang Li found a secluded spot and took out his phone to dial a number...