Gu Qin was a revered metaphysical master in the previous era, respected by millions. She was reborn as an ordinary girl in a city thousands of years in the future.
"Anesthesia dosage is normal, the patient is unconscious. Director Chen, we can begin the surgery now." In the fully sterilized operating room, several doctors in light blue surgical gowns stood, watching the various instruments. Several assistants were also on high alert. On the operating table lay a frail young girl, about fourteen or fifteen years old, pale, with her upper body bare and multiple tubes and wires attached to her chest, connected to various monitoring devices.
For a brief moment, the fluctuations on the electrocardiogram flatlined into a straight line. The assistant monitoring the machine was startled and was about to inform Director Chen when he noticed the fluctuations gradually returning. He blinked in disbelief, wondering if he had seen it wrong.
Director Chen, holding a scalpel, began to cut along a line marked with purple ink on the left atrium. The moment the scalpel sliced through the skin, the girl on the operating table jolted, her face contorted with pain. Gu Qin felt immense pain, her head throbbed, and countless chaotic, unfamiliar memories flooded her mind. She didn't understand why she couldn't move. Gradually, the memories became a part of her, the pain subsided, and her emotions began to stabilize. She heard disordered voices around her.
Director Chen was startled, and the scalpel slipped, cutting the girl's chest, causing blood to pour out. He looked at a younger doctor beside him. "Didn't you say the patient was unconscious? What's going on with the anesthesia?" The young doctor was flustered. "Director, she was unconscious just moments ago. I even pricked her with a needle, and she had no reaction. What's happening?"
Another doctor asked cautiously, "Director, could it be that the anesthesia dosage wasn't enough?" The young anesthesiologist quickly denied, "That's impossible! I tested it earlier. She had no reaction at all." Director Chen frowned. "Increase the dosage. You all know how important this surgery is. What if she wakes up while we're removing her heart? If she struggles and the heart gets damaged, the whole province's RH-negative blood type is a match with her heart. Another patient is waiting for it! Be careful! Don't mess this up!"
The young anesthesiologist opened his mouth, but closed it again, giving a sympathetic glance at the girl on the operating table. He knew what he was doing was illegal, but what could he do? The conditions offered were too tempting. Even Director Chen was performing the surgery, and her father had already signed the consent form…
Heart transplant surgeries were typically for patients with severe heart conditions, and donors were rare. Most heart donations came from brain-dead individuals. But this girl was still alive, being wheeled into the operating room, sedated by him, and moments ago, she even trembled and asked, "Doctor, the kidney donation surgery won't be dangerous, right? But I'm still so scared…" He didn't answer because the anesthesia had already been injected, and within seconds, she lost consciousness.
Sighing, the anesthesiologist grabbed another vial of anesthesia and walked over to the girl, intending to give her a supplementary dose. But just as the needle touched her skin, he froze, staring in disbelief at the girl's dark, shiny eyes. Her gaze slowly moved from the needle to meet his, and then, in a deliberate tone, she said, "What… are… you… trying… to… do?" Her voice, hoarse from dehydration, echoed in the silent operating room. For a moment, the doctors and assistants froze, staring in shock at the girl who had opened her eyes.
The doctors and assistants exchanged nervous glances, too stunned to approach. Gu Qin slowly sat up, frowning at the strange needle-like device still embedded in her body. Without hesitation, she yanked it out. When she saw her bare upper body, her face changed, and she shot a glare at the crowd, wrapping herself in a pale blue surgical sheet.
She knew these people were doctors, but deep down, she couldn't bring herself to expose her naked body in front of them. Moreover, though she now understood she had died and been reborn as a girl in the future, with memories of her past life and knowledge of this new era, everything still felt too surreal. It was hard to understand why female patients in this era were exposed to male doctors.
The doctors finally snapped back to reality. Director Chen's face turned pale. "Stop her! Don't let her leave!" Gu Qin turned to face the shouting man, her expression tense. The young anesthesiologist, closest to her, lunged to grab her. In response, Gu Qin stabbed the syringe in her hand into his arm, pressing the plunger. The clear liquid quickly flowed into his veins.
The young doctor's eyes widened, his expression slackened, and his body went limp, collapsing to the floor with a loud thud. Gu Qin gripped the sheet tightly and jumped off the operating table, running toward the door. Though her body was weak and her steps staggered, she could hear the panicked shouts behind her: "Stop her! Don't let her leave! If she escapes, we're all done for!"
Gu Qin gritted her teeth. A kidney donation surgery? She had learned from the girl's memories about what was happening and knew where her kidneys were. But why was the wound on her chest, near the heart's left atrium?
The doctors and assistants came to the same realization: If this girl escaped, they would all be in deep trouble. Gu Qin had already reached the door, her fingers almost touching the handle, when someone grabbed her shoulder with great force and pulled her back.
She clenched her teeth. She knew that if they caught her, her newfound life would be over. Despite her weakening strength, she fought back, kicking the person who had grabbed her in the throat. Though her kick wasn't powerful enough to kill him, it was enough to knock him unconscious.
Director Chen was even more frantic. "Quick… catch her!" Gu Qin felt her body growing weaker as more people closed in on her. She knew if she didn't get out now, she'd be doomed. Summoning the last of her strength, she ran toward the door and grasped the handle. In an instant, the door opened, but just as she pushed through, the people behind her grabbed her arm.
She used the last of her energy to slam herself forward, sending the door flying open. She collapsed into the corridor outside the operating room, with the doctors tumbling after her. The hospital had more than twenty operating rooms in the cardiology section, and this was the largest tertiary hospital in the city. The corridor outside was filled with families waiting for their loved ones. Most of them had heart conditions, requiring bypass surgery or heart repairs.
Hearing the commotion, the families looked toward the scene. They saw a girl in a pale blue surgical sheet on the ground, with several doctors piled on top of her. Confused, they didn't understand what was going on but were curious enough to approach. Director Chen hurried out, his face pale. Several families recognized him as the hospital's director. After all, heart conditions were chronic and required repeated visits, so it was normal to be familiar with the hospital staff.
Someone said, "Isn't that Director Chen? What's going on?" "Could this girl be the patient? She's lucky to have the director himself performing her surgery." Director Chen tried to calm himself, walking up to the girl. He apologized to the onlookers, "Sorry for the commotion, everyone. This girl is a little agitated and refused to undergo the surgery. I'll have the doctors take her back to the operating room and calm her down. We won't disturb you further."
Gu Qin, feeling lightheaded, clenched her teeth and moved her fingers slightly. A faint stream of energy entered her body through her fingertips, and her mind cleared up significantly. But then, a question nagged at her: Why could she see this gentle, glowing energy?
But now was not the time to think about that. As soon as someone grabbed her shoulder, Gu Qin flipped over, kicking everyone off her, and pushed Director Chen aside. "Don't touch me!" The onlookers were even more confused. The girl seemed full of vitality and didn't look like a heart patient at all.
A young man, who had been playing with his phone earlier, now secretly turned on his camera to record the scene. Gu Qin, looking disheveled, her hair messy and her body dirty, clutched the fabric at her chest. With tears beginning to well up in her eyes, she looked at the surrounding patients. "Please help me! I'm begging you, I don't have heart disease! I don't know what's going on. They told me it was a kidney donation surgery. They injected me with anesthesia, but it didn't work. I woke up and found they were going to perform a chest surgery on me…"