93. This girl’s only shortcoming
The next morning at work, Ling Ling received a call from Adrian, instantly giving her the opportunity to reconnect with her hometown that Yu Chuanbei had mentioned the previous night. She immediately went to Mei Xiao to ask for leave: "Sister Mei, Adrian from Xiangminuo just called me. He said he drank a lot last night and hasn't been feeling well all night. He's been taken to the hospital by ambulance, but he's having trouble understanding the doctor. He wants me to come over and help." Mei Xiao immediately agreed, taking Ling Ling's hand and earnestly saying, "Ling'er, you must do everything you can to save this financial sponsor's life!" "Sister Mei, don't worry, we'll accomplish our mission!" The two held hands and said a tearful farewell. Ling Ling rushed to the hospital, distraught. Arriving, she found Adrian arguing with a doctor amid the chaotic crowd. After explaining her purpose, Ling Ling quickly calmed Old Ai and politely pulled the doctor toward the door to chat. The slightly overweight male doctor's patience had clearly run out, and he spoke to Ling Ling in a somewhat impatient tone. "Alas, this old man drank heavily yesterday, and his liver tests are indeed not very good today. However, the main cause of his current abdominal pain is appendicitis, and we need surgery as soon as possible. I thought I'd explained it clearly enough to him. Yes, the appendix is superfluous and certainly not as important as the liver, but our medical approach must prioritize. I told him to remove the appendix as soon as possible, but he kept telling me he'd already had a circumcision. In all my years in the profession, this is the first time I've found it so difficult to communicate with an international patient in my professional English!" "I'm sorry, sorry. He's originally from Israel, and he's a little overconfident about removing useless things. We absolutely trust your professional judgment. Please wait, I'll go and persuade him." After Ling Ling apologized, she had to go over to comfort the stubborn Old Ai. Although Old Ai's attitude softened considerably upon seeing her presence, her English wasn't good enough to smoothly discuss the surgical plan, and she didn't know how to translate the medical terminology into German. Just as the situation reached a stalemate, a name suddenly popped into her mind—Zhong Mingtong. Hadn't he mentioned earlier that he worked at this hospital? She mustered up the courage to call him, and to her surprise, he answered immediately. "Hello, Dr. Zhong, sorry to bother you. I'm in your hospital's International Department right now and would like to ask a favor. Is that all convenient?" Ling Ling hadn't expected that with just this one phone call, Zhong Mingtong would appear before her so quickly, like a savior, explaining the surgical plan and the prohibitions...
The next morning at the company, Ling Ling received a call from Adrian, which immediately gave her the opportunity to feel the "homesickness" that Yu Chuanbei had mentioned last night.
She immediately went to Mei Xiao to ask for leave: "Sister Mei, Adrian from Xiangminuo just called me and said that he drank a lot of alcohol last night and felt uncomfortable all night. He has been taken to the hospital by ambulance, but he can't understand what the doctor said. He wants me to come over and help."
Mei Xiao immediately agreed upon hearing this, and even took Ling Ling's hand and said earnestly: "Ling'er, you must do everything you can to save this financial sponsor's life!"
"Sister Mei, don't worry, the mission will be accomplished!"
The two held hands and said goodbye to each other with tears in their eyes. Ling Ling rushed to the hospital anxiously.
Arriving at the hospital, Ling Ling found Adrian arguing with the doctor in the chaotic crowd. After explaining her purpose, Ling Ling quickly calmed Old Ai down and politely pulled the doctor to the door to chat.
The slightly overweight male doctor's patience had clearly run out, and he spoke to Ling Ling in a somewhat impatient tone. "Alas, this old man drank heavily yesterday, and his liver indicators today are indeed not very good. However, the main cause of his current abdominal pain is appendicitis, and we need surgery as soon as possible. I think I've explained it to him clearly enough. Yes, the appendix is redundant and certainly not as important as the liver, but our medical treatment must prioritize. I said that the appendix should be removed as soon as possible, but he kept telling me that he had already been circumcised. In all my years in the industry, this is the first time I've found it so difficult to communicate with international patients in my professional English!"
"Sorry, sorry, he's originally from Israel, and he's a little overconfident about cutting off useless things. We absolutely trust your professional judgment. Please wait a moment, I'll go and persuade him."
After Ling Ling apologized, she had to go over there to comfort the stubborn Old Ai. Although Old Ai's attitude softened considerably upon seeing her presence, her English wasn't good enough to communicate the surgical plan smoothly, and she couldn't translate the medical terminology into German. Just as the situation was at a stalemate, a name suddenly popped into her mind: Zhong Mingtong.
Didn't he say before that he worked in this hospital? So she mustered up the courage to call him, and to her surprise, he answered the phone immediately.
"Hello, Dr. Zhong, I'm sorry to bother you. I'm in the International Department of your hospital right now. I'd like to ask you for a favor. Is that convenient?"
Ling Ling didn't expect that with just this one phone call to explain the whole story, Zhong Mingtong would appear in front of her so quickly, like a savior, explaining the surgical plan, clarifying the taboos, and calming everyone's anxiety.
Ling Ling followed behind him, watching him busying around. She could not find the opportunity to express her gratitude, so she kept her lips on the tip of her tongue, opening and closing them timidly.
Zhong Mingtong went to see Lao Ai's attending physician for a final consultation. Alone in the fat doctor's office, the fat doctor couldn't help but taunt him: "Mingtong, you're onto something! You have good taste. That girl was quite nice."
"Director Chen, what are you talking about?" Zhong Mingtong seemed to be playing dumb.
"If it weren't for the power of love, I can't imagine what level of friendship could drive you to come comfort a patient who isn't in critical condition, rather than rush home to rest in bed after working a long night shift and having just come off a six-hour operating table."
"No, no, Director Chen, I really don't. She, she has a boyfriend." Zhong Mingtong was so embarrassed that she stuttered a little.
"So the only shortcoming of this girl in your mind is that she has a boyfriend?" Chen Gang teased loudly. Zhong Mingtong smiled bitterly, lowered his head and said nothing.
*~*~*~*~*~*~
Ling Ling had been standing outside the half-open door of Director Chen Gang's office. She had originally wanted to wait for Zhong Mingtong to come out and formally thank him, but she didn't expect to hear this conversation.
She felt very embarrassed, swayed aimlessly for a few times, and walked towards the crowded place. She didn't know what to do. Maybe she just subconsciously wanted to hide in the crowd for a while and be submerged.
Zhong Mingtong happened to come out and met Ling Ling. The moment he called her from behind, he realized that she might have heard the conversation just now, and a trace of embarrassment flashed across his face.
"Uh, Dr. Zhong, I, I was just looking for you. Thank you so much for saving my life today!" Ling Ling quickly changed and entered the dramatic role that an adult should play.
Zhong Mingtong smiled calmly and said, "Aren't doctors supposed to cure illnesses and save lives?"
"It's different. This time you saved an advertising man. During working hours, clients are my life; and I don't have non-working hours." Ling Ling made up little jokes in a self-deprecating manner, and the atmosphere between the two became natural.
"Then..." Zhong Mingtong wanted to say something, but seemed to find it difficult to speak.
Ling Ling took over the conversation alertly and said, "Then I'll treat you to dinner another day. Thank you very much. You've worked too hard today. Go home and rest."
Zhong Mingtong realized that Ling Ling had indeed heard the conversation between him and Director Chen just now, so he had to agree awkwardly and say goodbye to her.
For the next few days, Ling Ling kept going back and forth to the hospital to take care of Adrien. Although there were nurses for post-operative medical treatment and daily life, Ling Ling had to do things like chatting with him personally. From classical art to philosophical schools, Ling Ling's cultural foundation of more than twenty years was almost completely drained. Her parents died early, leaving her with only this little cultural heritage. She didn't want her reason for wanting them to live a few more years to be unfilial and want to give her more true teachings to cope with this mundane work. And as the saying goes, there is no filial son by the bedside of a long-term patient. According to the food chain level of the workplace, in front of such a heavyweight client, she, a small person who didn't even have the title of Party B, was just a grandchild.
Out of humanitarian concern and respect for Lao Ai, Ling Ling sincerely hoped for his speedy recovery, but she also wanted more time alone with him to discuss her vision for the Hemino brand advertising. Lao Ai wanted to keep his hospitalization a secret from his wife and daughter, who were far away on the other side of the Pacific, so as not to worry them. Therefore, he had kept the news of his illness a secret, thus avoiding attracting competitors. This gave Ling Ling a brief opportunity to spend time alone with him and build a trusting relationship.
She then catered to his tastes by designing a visual poster that portrayed food as various types of classical European cultural art, accompanied by a somber and powerful copy. However, she never expected that Lao Ai would be completely unimpressed, repeatedly shaking his head and saying, "That's not what I want." Of course, even a sophisticated client never says exactly what they want.
At that moment, Ling Ling was generous and humble in front of her, smiling peacefully, but his heart was turbulent and he had a sharp desire to tie his catheter into a knot.
The nurse was going to change Lao Ai's clothes. Ling Ling left the ward and sat dejectedly in the corridor, swiping dejectedly at the rejected poster on her tablet.
“Is this your work?”
Zhong Mingtong's voice, as gentle as jade, came from above her head. Ling Ling looked up and met his slightly smiling eyes.
Ling Ling was stunned for a moment, then quickly recovered and responded, "Uh, yes, it's a pity it was just rejected. Adrian is a senior executive at Hemino in China, and I want to do advertising planning for their seasoning products. Sigh, it's quite difficult to do."
Zhong Mingtong sat down next to her and said to her comfortingly, "Your creative ideas are very colorful and appealing. I think the visual effect is quite good! However, if they were just making condiments and seasonings, everyday household items for ordinary people, wouldn't they seem too high-end and intimidating to ordinary people?"
Ling Ling carefully considered his advice and nodded deeply, feeling it was very helpful. "Thank you, Dr. Zhong. Alas, I was quite depressed just now. I thought that Lao Ai and I had been chatting very well together and that my proposal would align with his preferences. But when I saw his expression when he saw my proposal and saw the disappointment in his eyes, I felt that all my efforts had been in vain."
"No effort is wasted. Bad experiences can also serve as negative lessons. Mr. Ai is willing to give you a chance, right? I'll come over often and give you some help."
Zhong Mingtong's comfort was like a clear stream, flowing into Ling Ling's heart and washing away her sorrow.
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