Chapter 50 Medical Conspiracy: Almost Unable to Breathe
The smell of disinfectant grew stronger and stronger, spreading into the nasal mucosa of the person who came in, causing a painful irritation.
At the end of the pure white corridor stood a tightly closed stainless steel door. A chill emanated from within, seeping through the metal handle and reaching every corner outside the operating room.
When Liang Jun arrived at the door of operating room number three, the indicator light above the iron door that read "Operating" had completely gone dark, leaving only the faint, echoing alarm sound in her ears.
A small figure was huddled on the waiting chair outside the operating room.
Hearing footsteps, Gu Keke looked up and met Liang Xuan's gaze.
She immediately stood up and said, "Sister Jun, you're here!"
"Yes." Liang Xun was running fast, her chest heaving. "Have you seen Qi Zhixia?"
Gu Keke shook her head and said, "No. By the time I got here, the surgery was already over, and there was no one else here."
After hearing this, Liang Jun remembered Wang Jianping's words. Without taking a quick break, she turned around and prepared to return the way she came.
"Let's go to the emergency department on the basement level to find her."
The number of injured people in the hospital is increasing exponentially. Previously deserted outpatient clinics, with only a handful of patients, are now overflowing with patients.
The elevator was occupied by injured people in urgent need of rescue and could not be used for the time being. Liang Jun and Gu Keke had no choice but to take the stairs down to the emergency department on the basement level.
The surrounding cries and noise rushed into the depths of their minds.
This extremely negative emotion washed over them like a tidal wave. Unable to escape this troubling environment, Liang Xun and Gu Keke's mood grew increasingly heavy.
The power supply on the basement level seemed to be inefficient, and the lights in the entire emergency department flickered, adding to the gloomy atmosphere.
The rescue equipment kept emitting short, sharp beeps, which made people feel confused.
The smell of disinfectant on this floor was becoming increasingly overwhelming, completely exceeding Gu Keke's tolerance. She frowned, covered her mouth and nose, and followed Liang Yun listlessly.
Liang Jun clutched the stamped medical record tightly as she walked confidently to the triage desk.
"Hello, I need to find Wang Jianping."
"Director Wang?"
The nurse sitting at the triage desk glanced at Liang Jun, then took the consultation form from her hand. After a brief examination, she tied it to a stack of forms already stamped with red seals.
The nurse braced herself against the triage table and managed to stand up.
“Go that way,” she said, pointing to her left. “The second to last office at the end of the corridor is Director Wang’s. Just knock on the door and go in.”
"OK, thanks."
After thanking them in unison, the two continued walking inside without stopping.
As you go deeper into the corridor, the smell of disinfectant begins to fade.
Gu Keke also let go of her hand covering her mouth and nose, and a red mark the size of a palm appeared on her face instantly.
Liang Jun knocked on the office door three times before a familiar voice came from inside.
"Please come in—"
Liang Jun pushed open the door and entered, seeing Wang Jianping sitting at his office desk, turning his head to look at her.
Several potted plants were placed on the windowsill, but it seemed that no one had taken care of them for a long time. These poor plants were either dried up or dead, and had no vitality at all.
Wang Jianping seemed oblivious to Liang Jun's gaze, his hands crossed on the table.
"You've arrived."
Liang Jun didn't stand on ceremony and sat down directly opposite him, her tone slightly urgent.
"How is Qi Zhixia?"
"She's fine, you don't need to worry."
Although Liang Jun was the one who spoke, Wang Jianping's eyes kept darting back and forth between her and Gu Keke, who was speaking after her.
His hands, clasped together on the table, remained in place. "The rescue was very successful. Her will to live was also very strong, which allowed her to be pulled back from the brink of death. The anesthesia has not yet worn off, and she has been placed in room 602 of the inpatient department. You can go and visit her directly."
He seemed to have anticipated what Liang Jun was going to ask, and before she could speak, he added, "The hospitalization fee is already included in the consultation fee, so there is no need to pay extra. You don't need to worry about that."
But he didn't expect that Liang Jun wanted to ask that wasn't the question.
“Director Wang, I still have a question,” Liang Jun’s voice regained its composure, her right hand casually resting on the table in front of Wang Jianping, her fingers tapping rhythmically, “From the time I started queuing to pay the fees to arriving at the operating room door, it probably took no more than half an hour. How could you possibly save Qi Zhixia with such severe injuries within half an hour?”
She blinked innocently, as if trying to patch herself up.
"Of course, I'm not questioning your medical skills. I'm just curious because I haven't learned about this area before."
But Wang Jianping's face darkened instantly.
His interlaced fingers were secretly exerting force, pressing out light red dents on the opposite palm.
"I'm sorry, this is something we cannot explain."
Perhaps he could have patiently explained using relevant medical terminology, or perhaps he could have impatiently chased the two away, but Wang Jianping chose the most controversial method—
His body language clearly showed his resistance to the question, yet he still wore only a polite smile on his face.
This strange combination made the two people opposite him feel very uncomfortable.
Liang Jun tried to ignore the strange feeling and continue asking, but someone quietly tugged at the clothes behind her.
Wang Jianping didn't notice this little gesture, but Liang Jun understood it instantly. So, the question that was about to come out turned into a farewell.
"I apologize for being so abrupt. We won't bother Director Wang any longer; let's go check on our teammates first."
Wang Jianping maintained a polite smile towards them until the two girls closed the office door again, at which point he completely tore off his mask of a forced smile.
Liang Jun and Gu Keke hurried towards the inpatient department.
The inpatient department and the emergency department are not in the same building, so they need to go against the flow of people and get out of this noisy environment first.
The two women had been surrounded by the smell of disinfectant for a long time, but once they stepped out of the emergency department building, the fresh and sweet air returned.
Liang Jun and Gu Keke unconsciously and greedily took a few more breaths.
On the way to the inpatient department, Liang Xun asked Gu Keke, "You also feel that Wang Jianping is acting strangely, right?"
Gu Keke's brows began to furrow slightly. "I don't know what grudge you two had before, but this person gives me a very sinister feeling, as if he's secretly preparing something..."
She started to say something, then shook her head, "I was just guessing based on my sixth sense, don't..."
"I feel the same way."
Although Liang Jun's steps were quick, they were still heavy.
"Given Qi Zhixia's injuries, she would need at least two hours of emergency treatment, but they resolved it in less than half an hour. There must be something fishy going on here that we don't know about..."
She turned to look at Gu Keke beside her, "What do you think?"
"I was just guessing randomly!"
Gu Keke first gave Liang Xun a heads-up, "I think they might have some tools that could help them, such as speeding up the treatment or improving the quality of the surgery."
Her imagination ran wilder and wilder as she spoke.
"Think about it, once the operating room door is closed, no one except the medical staff will know the details of their surgery. If they wanted to tamper with things during the process, they could easily keep it a secret since everyone around them is their own people..."
Although Liang Xuan did not respond to Gu Keke's so-called "wild thoughts," she took in every word of the other's conjecture.
Because that's what she thought too.
Clearly, all the medical staff in this hospital have become a group—a group with systems and order.
They each had a clear division of labor, and their ability to treat the wounded was clearly priced using items. These items, which served as bargaining chips, would later become their strongest guarantee for advancing through the game.
Human nature has no bottom line.
Since they have chosen the method of "trading with other players' items", this "selfish" mentality will never end.
In places unseen by other players, they can completely exploit players to extract even more resources to satisfy their ever-growing desires.
The smell inside the inpatient ward was noticeably better than that in the emergency room.
There's no overpowering disinfectant smell here; instead, there's a faint, pleasant fragrance that brings a sense of peace and tranquility.
Following Wang Jianping's instructions, Liang Jun and Gu Keke took the elevator to the sixth floor of the inpatient department.
Room 602 was located at the very end of the sixth floor. They didn't knock; the doorknob opened easily.
The door was slowly pushed open, and Liang Xun and Gu Keke consciously slowed their steps and tiptoed into the ward.
This is a hospital room that can accommodate four people.
However, the first and third beds were empty, and only the second bed showed signs of being occupied, with the surrounding area isolated by the bed curtains provided by the ward.
Qi Zhixia's bed was the fourth one, the one closest to the window.
She wasn't fully awake yet, and the doctor wasn't obligated to cover her bed with the curtains. The two women had just walked over when they caught a glimpse of Qi Zhixia's legs, which were completely wrapped up.
Her complexion became rosier, and her lips gained a touch of pink.
An IV drip hung by the bedside, continuously infusing medicine into Qi Zhixia's body. Gu Keke, still somewhat uneasy, used the stand to remove the medicine bottle.
"What's inside?" Liang Jun asked softly.
Gu Keke turned the bottle around and looked at it for a long time, then suspiciously put the IV drip back in its place.
"It says 'glucose solution' on it, but I don't know if the medicine inside has been changed..."
Just as Liang Xuan was about to say something, Qi Zhixia on the hospital bed suddenly trembled slightly.
The trembling was slight, but both men's attention was completely focused on her.
Gu Keke was about to hold Qi Zhixia's hand tightly when she suddenly remembered that there was still an IV drip in her hand, and she put her hand back in place in a panic.
Liang Jun leaned forward, watching Qi Zhixia's eyelashes tremble until those gray-blue pupils came into view again.
"You're awake..."
Liang Jun felt a tightness in her throat.
Qi Zhixia's lips were so dry they were cracked. She struggled to open and close her lips, her voice hoarse from the anesthetic.
“Liang Jun…Gu Keke…”
The grey-blue stars fell into the ocean, and the Creator repeated the name of her savior over and over again.
“Liang Jun…Gu Keke…”
A sound of something falling suddenly came from the second bed, but they didn't pay any attention to it.
Gu Keke was eager to catch up with Qi Zhixia, but after Liang Jun reminded her a few times, she gave up her seat to Qi Zhixia.
Just as she was about to leave the ward and get some fresh air, the curtain of the second bed was suddenly and forcefully pulled open.
The man's arm was in a solid cast, hanging on his somewhat thin body, making him feel a little top-heavy.
He seemed to have taken a gamble, but when he actually saw the person in front of him, he felt a lump in his throat. He was so choked up that his face turned red, and he could barely breathe.
Amid Gu Keke's cheerful greetings, Liang Xuan felt a ringing in her ears and a headache.
“Luo Chuan Ge…”
She hesitantly called out the other person's name.
Gu Keke's small talk came to an abrupt end.
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The author's note: This is the first year we've met, but we'll have many more springs, summers, autumns, and winters to come.
Wishing everyone a joyful and prosperous new year, smooth sailing in studies, success in career, and all your wishes fulfilled!
This blessing is permanent; good fortune will always be with us, no matter when or where we meet!
Happy Chinese New Year and Happy Lunar New Year's Eve!
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