By the time the surgery was over, it was already 12:30 p.m. There was still food at the cafeteria, and she had time, so Su Xuezhen went to eat lunch first. On her way back, she saw Wei Juan and Lü Ziyue chatting together. Wei Juan was talking animatedly, making gestures as she spoke.
“It was terrifying! I heard both of them were stabbed multiple times, their heads were cut off, and there was blood everywhere.”
“Anyone who saw it would have nightmares.”
Lü Ziyue shivered. “They still haven’t caught the killer?”
“How could it be that easy? It happened around 3 a.m. The factory had already closed, and everyone was asleep. Not many people were around. Two security guards heard the alarm and went to check—only to get killed. By the time the police arrived, the culprit was long gone.”
“They think it’s a gang job.”
From what Su Xuezhen heard, it seemed they were talking about the chemical factory theft that Cen Bai had mentioned the night before. Public security in Hongjiang City had always been good. In fact, in past years, residents had been encouraged to participate in military drills, and people were all strong and fit. It had been many years since such a brutal crime occurred. The story was so shocking that it spread rapidly—within a single day, practically the entire city had heard about it.
Wei Juan’s home was near the west side of the city. She’d been woken by the sound of police cars in the night.
“This morning, on my way to work, I saw the chemical plant surrounded by police—they’re still investigating.”
Su Xuezhen frowned slightly, a little worried for Cen Bai. The criminals were clearly ruthless, and the arrest process wouldn’t be easy.
Time passed quickly, and in the afternoon, Su Xuezhen visited Ma Baocheng’s hospital room. By then, he was already awake. The anesthesia hadn’t worn off yet, so he wasn’t feeling much pain. As soon as he saw her enter, his eyes looked toward her.
His whole family stood up as well. Su Xuezhen was a bit overwhelmed by their response and spoke softly,
“The surgery was very successful. Once the anesthesia wears off, there may be some pain. We will administer pain relief when needed, but because Baocheng is young, we have to be cautious with medication. Some pain is unavoidable, and he may feel uncomfortable for a while. During this time, it’s important that you watch him carefully to prevent him from moving too much, which could affect the healing of the incision.”
“We’ll continue to monitor him closely. If anything comes up, we’ll be in touch.”
Ma Baocheng’s mother gripped her hand emotionally. “Thank you, thank you.”
Su Xuezhen patted her hand reassuringly. “It’s okay, you can rest easy for now.”
After saying that, she walked out of the room with Lü Ziyue. Just as they stepped out, Ma Jian chased after them and gave her a deep bow.
“I heard from my mother that you’ve been taking care of Baocheng all this time. Unfortunately, we couldn’t make it during the day because of work, so we never had the chance to thank you in person. This morning was the first time we saw you, but we were so worried then, we didn’t really have the presence of mind to talk properly.”
Su Xuezhen smiled. “Don’t mention it. The surgery was very successful, and his chances of recovery are very good. He’ll need a follow-up, but in the future, Baocheng probably won’t need to come for regular medical treatment like before.”
Ma Jian wiped the corners of his eyes, moved. “That’s great, that’s great!”
“It’s fine. Go back and stay with Baocheng.”
Once he went back inside, Su Xuezhen gave a few more instructions to Lü Ziyue before returning to her office. But she hadn’t even had time to warm her seat when Wei Juan knocked on the door and called out,
“Dr. Su, Director Ling wants to see you.”
Su Xuezhen quickly responded, “Okay,” and headed to Ling Yurong’s office. The door was open, so she knocked lightly.
“Professor Ling?”
Without looking up, Ling Yurong said, “Come in.”
Su Xuezhen walked in. “Professor, you wanted to see me?”
“Take this and study it thoroughly.”
Ling Yurong handed her a medical file. Su Xuezhen flipped through it and saw that the patient wasn’t from their hospital. She asked, puzzled, “What’s this?”
“A case transferred from Wugang Municipal Hospital. Renal artery stenosis.”
Ling Yurong was 67 years old. Back in his medical school days, there wasn’t a single woman in his class. At the time, hospitals wouldn’t even hire married female doctors. He had once thought, quite naturally, that women becoming pregnant would affect their work. But after that morning’s surgery, he was forced to admit that he had been narrow-minded. Times had changed. Women really could hold up half the sky. Now he sincerely wanted to cultivate Su Xuezhen and contribute to the nation’s pediatric medical field.
He added, “The surgery is scheduled for the day after tomorrow. Study the case carefully. You’ll assist me in the operating room, and I’ll be randomly testing you on what you’ve learned.”
In the past, Su Xuezhen had often assisted Ling Yurong during surgery, but he had never asked her to prepare this early or warned her about testing her knowledge. She couldn’t help but feel excited.
“Thank you, Professor. I’ll study it carefully.”
Ling Yurong nodded. “Alright, go now. Ask me if there’s anything you don’t understand.”
Su Xuezhen nodded repeatedly, holding the case file as she walked out. There weren’t many patients in the outpatient department that afternoon. She first went to pick up Li Junfei’s test results and studied them closely. The ultrasound showed no signs of hydronephrosis, and the electromyogram showed no neuromuscular dysfunction. This basically confirmed that his enuresis was not due to a physiological cause, but likely triggered by psychological factors.
After her shift ended, Su Xuezhen took her Practical Surgery textbook with her, intending to review renal-related material at home. She hadn’t even stepped out the door when she received a call from Cen Bai. He spoke quickly:
“I don’t know what time I’ll be home tonight. Just letting you know—don’t wait or keep food for me. Go ahead and eat.”
There was a lot of noise in the background on his end. Not wanting to interfere with his work, Su Xuezhen didn’t ask more and responded immediately,
“Alright, be careful out there.”
Cen Bai gave a quick “mm,” then hung up in a hurry.
Su Xuezhen simply ate dinner at the hospital. Since it was still light outside, she rode her bicycle home. When she unlocked the door, she noticed that the light across the hall was on—it looked like the new neighbors had moved in.
She took a closer look but was too tired to go over and disturb them. After showering, she picked up her book and read for a while. By the time it was eleven at night and Cen Bai still hadn’t returned, Su Xuezhen, too sleepy to stay up any longer, simply went to bed. When she woke the next morning, she realized he hadn’t come home all night.
At that moment, the street broadcast came on, looping for five minutes:
[Breaking news! Following the robbery at the chemical plant in the west side of the city, another supply and marketing cooperative has been looted. We urge all residents to be mindful of their personal and property safety. If you spot any suspicious individuals, please report them immediately. Our city’s police department is working at full force to apprehend the criminals and will show no leniency.]
These criminals were getting outrageous!
Su Xuezhen didn’t feel like going out to buy breakfast anymore. She steamed a bowl of egg custard and paired it with meat floss cakes to settle her morning meal. As the broadcast repeated, people on their way to work were all discussing the case. By the time she got to the hospital, Lu Ziyue quickly walked over to her.
“Dr. Su, did you hear? The group who robbed the chemical plant two nights ago hit a supply and marketing cooperative in the Hexin District last night. Luckily, no one was inside since it was after hours, but everything inside got stolen. It’s really terrifying.”
“These people have no regard for the law!”
Su Xuezhen replied firmly, “I believe the police will catch them.”
Lu Ziyue also had confidence in the department. “They definitely will.”
During morning clinic hours, Yu Sibei brought Li Junfei back for a follow-up visit. Su Xuezhen saw that the little boy no longer seemed afraid to make eye contact with her and felt genuinely pleased. She asked about the training progress: “Is the training working?”
Yu Sibei smiled. “Yes, it is. My husband and I now take turns every night—every two and a half hours, one of us gets up to take him to the toilet. It’s tiring, but he really hasn’t wet the bed anymore.”
Su Xuezhen took out the examination report and explained it item by item. “Junfei’s body is fine. It’s mainly psychological. Adjusting that isn’t too difficult.”
“As for medication, I’m prescribing a small dose of desmopressin—take it orally before bed. Just 0.2 milligrams, don’t exceed that.”
“I’ve noted it.”
“Okay, take this slip to the pharmacy to get the medicine. Come back for another check-up in two weeks so we can see how it’s working.”
Yu Sibei accepted the prescription and stood up. As they were leaving, Li Junfei suddenly pointed at her book corner. “Dr. Su, can I take one of the paper cranes?”
“Of course.”
Su Xuezhen replied with a smile, then asked, “Do you want some origami paper too? You can take a few.”
Li Junfei shook his head and carefully picked up the ugliest-looking crane, cradling it in his hands as he left with his mother. Watching them go, Su Xuezhen couldn’t help picking up one of the cranes from the table and placing it on her own desk.
The day passed quickly, and since she had the next day off, Su Xuezhen left work with a smile. When she got home, she found Cen Bai back—he was asleep on the bed.
Not wanting to disturb him, she quietly ate some stir-fried rice noodles and went to boil water for a bath. When she returned, Cen Bai had already gotten up and was sitting on the bed, bleary-eyed.
“What time is it?” he asked.
“Eight o’clock.”
Cen Bai was usually full of energy thanks to his good health, but even after catching up on sleep, he still looked exhausted—he clearly hadn’t slept the night before. Su Xuezhen asked, “Have you eaten?”
“I had a little something when I got back. I still have to go to the bureau later.”
Cen Bai ran a hand through his hair, shook his head to clear it, and got out of bed to change clothes. “We expect them to make a big move tonight. I need to keep an eye on things. I probably won’t come back again tonight.”
Su Xuezhen nodded obediently, her face showing a hint of concern. Before leaving, Cen Bai gave her a hug. “Don’t worry. The bureau has deployed officers all over the major streets today. Safety is assured.”
“They’re probably already outside the city by now.”
As he said this, a trace of fierceness flashed in Cen Bai’s eyes. He slowly released her and said, “Wait for me to come back.”
After seeing Cen Bai off, Su Xuezhen read for a while longer and didn’t go to bed until close to midnight. Since she had the next day off, she didn’t get up early and lay in bed for a while, wondering what to have for breakfast.
At that moment, the door was knocked on. A woman’s gentle voice came through:
“Dr. Su, are you home? I heard from Sister Xu that you’re off today, so I thought I’d stop by to say hello.”
“I’m Gu Hongqing, your new neighbor across the hall.”
“I’m coming!”
Su Xuezhen called back, quickly got out of bed, changed clothes, and opened the door. Standing outside was Gu Hongqing, smiling warmly and holding a basket of steaming egg cakes. A light, fragrant aroma wafted into the room.
