Chapter Fourteen: An Invitation

After the surgery, the chubby Li Liang looked at Zhang Fan with shining eyes. “Isn’t this a living, breathing master of the craft!” He quickened his pace and caught up with Zhang Fan. “Brother Zhang, you’ve been standing there for a long time. I don’t have any good tea, but I’ll brew some for you. You need to rest well. I’ll handle the medical orders verbally, then enter them into the computer.”

“Forget the tea—I can’t really tell good from bad anyway. If you want to enter the orders, that’s fine; we can sort it out together back in the ward.” Everyone likes someone eager to improve. Yang Chengming rolled his eyes and ignored them.

“Teacher Zhang, you do the surgery, I’ll manage the patients. Let’s split the cost of the medicine evenly; otherwise, I’d feel awkward.” After returning to the office and entering the orders, Old Chen leaned over to Zhang Fan and whispered.

“Teacher Chen, don’t be polite. Your child is in high school in the city, and you’re under a lot of pressure. Let’s keep things as usual.” Zhang Fan’s heart ached; he was short on money too, but he had to protect Old Chen. Without him, Zhang Fan wouldn’t even have an assistant. After all, Shi Lei was a neurosurgeon who helped occasionally but didn’t want to be drafted daily. Plus, Shi Lei was more focused on his political career than improving his skills.

As more senior nurses came to Zhang Fan for help with back pain, his reputation gradually grew throughout Quark County. “My back hurts badly; I’ll have to visit the city hospital this weekend,” some ladies from the county union chatted idly.

“Why bother with the city hospital? They only offer acupuncture, which worked well at first but the pain just comes back,” another replied.

“Well, it’s better than doing nothing,” said a few middle-aged women from the county union. Their husbands were either officials or influential relatives, and since they had little to do at work, gossip was their pastime.

“Don’t go to the city hospital. My sister-in-law had terrible back pain, her leg was numb and she could hardly walk. But a young therapist at their hospital massaged her for a few days. Can you guess? She’s fine now, like a healthy person again.”

“No way they massaged her in bed, right? Haha.”

“You’re being naughty again. Watch out, your husband might tear your mouth apart.” The conversation veered off—these official wives barely had any intimacy at home and mostly enjoyed verbal banter.

“What’s the doctor’s name? I’ll go see him after work.” They cared about their aching backs.

As long as it wasn’t a ruptured disc, Zhang Fan’s massages helped somewhat. Gradually, more and more people came to him for back treatments. Kang Hua, the county’s deputy head of education with a background as a teacher, had injured his back years ago and suffered frequent flare-ups due to endless meetings after becoming an official. He relied on painkillers and had been to many hospitals with mediocre results. A few days ago, someone told him the county hospital had a doctor who was good at treating back problems. Since it was just a phone call away, he decided to give it a try.

“Brother, the director is calling you.” Guli, now Zhang Fan’s number one fan, was incredibly supportive. In her words, “If I were twenty years younger, I’d definitely have Zhang Fan’s children.”

“Remember the female county chief we dined with last time? She has a back problem and called you to take a look. I’ll bring you there this afternoon. If there are no emergency surgeries, don’t go back to the ward later; we’ll be working at the county government.” Batu instructed.

“Okay.”

“When treating leaders, keep your mouth shut. Whether the treatment works or not, don’t spread anything.”

“I understand.”

“Change into something respectable; that shirt’s collar is all frayed.” Batu suddenly noticed Zhang Fan’s worn clothes.

Zhang Fan only had two jackets, one he brought from home, so it was no wonder they looked old. “I only have one!” Zhang Fan said embarrassedly. If he hadn’t just sent all his money home yesterday, he wouldn’t have said that.

“What about your salary? Don’t tell me you spent it all on cards and games.” Batu was surprised. Young people all like to look good; when they get paid, they usually buy new clothes.

“I sent it all home. My sister’s in high school, and my mom’s health isn’t great.” Zhang Fan told the truth, helpless.

“You, what can I say? I’ve told you so many times—if you’re in trouble, come to me. I’m not just a leader at the county hospital; I’m like family. Why keep things to yourself?”

Zhang Fan blushed and said nothing. He hadn’t taken the director’s words seriously before. Batu, who rose from an auxiliary department to hospital director partly through family help but also by his own savvy, had gathered all the department’s top talents around him. As long as they obeyed him, the county hospital was his domain.

“Let me emphasize again: no matter if it’s life or work, come to me. Don’t see me as the director—see me as your uncle.” After speaking, he wrote a note and handed it to Zhang Fan. “Go to finance and get five thousand yuan. Quickly buy yourself a new set of clothes. This is a political task. Don’t be stingy, or I’ll have Director Wang take you shopping.” Zhang Fan felt utterly embarrassed but promised not to slack off.

Leaving the director’s office, Zhang Fan’s eyes were red. No matter what Batu thought, he had genuinely helped Zhang Fan—and very well at that. Zhang Fan was grateful. This was true help in a time of need. Regardless of how things would turn out, Batu’s action showed he was a man of principle.

That afternoon, dressed in his new clothes, Zhang Fan rode in Batu’s car to the county government. Zhang Fan wasn’t nervous at all—he had nothing to lose. Batu, however, was anxious, giving instructions all the way.

“Do as much as you can, but don’t force it if you can’t.”

In the office, Kang Hua was courteous. “University students coming to support the West must have high ideals. I hope Director Batu will take good care of us so we can work in Quark County with peace of mind.” As he spoke, Kang Hua presented a CT scan to Zhang Fan. “Could you please take a look? I won’t say much else. If you can’t read the scan, there’s no point in discussing further.”

“The lumbar disc between the fourth and fifth vertebrae is protruding on the right side, pressing on the nerve, and there are also bone spurs on the vertebrae.” Zhang Fan set down the scan and looked at Kang Hua.

“This was taken at the provincial hospital last year. Their doctors said the same thing. I wonder if there’s any better solution.” Though the scan was clear, Kang Hua still doubted Zhang Fan’s abilities.

“The fastest treatment would be a minimally invasive surgery using a disc endoscope.”

“Hmm, are there any alternatives to surgery?” Kang Hua leaned forward.

“Manual rehabilitation is possible, but the results are uncertain, and if work is strenuous, the problem may recur.”

“Excellent. Doctor Zhang’s skills are really impressive—just like the provincial hospital’s doctors said. Thank you, Director Batu and Doctor Zhang. I have some work to attend to, so I won’t see you out.” Kang Hua stood.

“Looks like County K is satisfied with you.”

“Satisfied? They haven’t said anything. No discussion about the condition or anything,” Zhang Fan said on the way back, chatting with Batu.

“Fool, how can you tell just by being in the office? Just wait; maybe there’ll be news tomorrow.” Batu was glad to have Zhang Fan as his connection to County K.