At that point, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and everything else was deployed, but nothing worked.
Watching the patient deteriorate rapidly, within less than fifteen minutes, they could only declare death.
The family arrived shortly after. Initially entering with anger, thinking their child had caused trouble again. But upon entering the emergency room, they were stunned and immediately erupted. Anyone would have reacted the same—how could their child, with only minor injuries, die in your care within a single afternoon?
The forensic examiner arrived and discovered a ruptured abdominal aorta. Pulling down the underwear, they found a small puncture wound about two centimeters above the clitoris, barely larger than a needle prick, concealed by pubic hair. This tiny opening had penetrated diagonally into the uterus and iliac artery.
The forensic examiner told Director Zhao of the emergency department, "If you had conducted a thorough examination at the time, it would have been better. This girl had only this one fatal wound—everywhere else was just minor bruising. The injuries on her thighs were only three to four centimeters deep because human thighs have abundant muscle, making it difficult for a screwdriver to penetrate deeply. This single wound went in at an angle, and by sheer bad luck, it passed through ligaments, avoided the hip bone, and went straight in. Piercing the uterus wasn’t fatal, but it just happened to nick the artery."
Chen Junnan was overwhelmed with regret at this moment.
Chen Junnan wept as he told Director Zhao, "I never imagined there could be a wound there. I was embarrassed—she was just a young girl. Why was I so embarrassed back then?"
Director Zhao was furious and scolded him, "What does her being a young girl matter? Do we distinguish between men and women on the hospital bed? Because of your inexplicable shame and inexplicable moral constraints, a life was lost just like that."
The legal dispute dragged on for a month. The hospital settled out of court for 800,000 yuan, and only then did the family relent. Initially, the family said 800,000 was nowhere near enough—is a human life only worth 800,000? They even threatened to hire local thugs to set up a mourning hall in the hospital. Ai Chen brought in Ai San, who confronted the hired thugs and said, "Let me see who’s leading this?"
The thugs withdrew, and the commotion stopped.
Although the 800,000 was paid by the hospital, Dean Long said, "This counts as a medical malpractice incident, and a very serious one at that. You will still be fined 50,000 yuan, deducted from your salary monthly over three years."
Liu Zhengliang and Che Mingming went to see Dean Long, arguing that although it was a major incident, the patient was conscious upon admission, and the doctor had conducted an examination. The patient herself might have been too embarrassed or too overwhelmed by pain to clearly perceive the wound, but ultimately, she didn’t mention it either. Placing all the blame on the doctor was unfair.
After listening to Che Mingming, Dean Long said, "Is there any recording? Any video? With nothing at all, how can responsibility be determined?"
Che Mingming grew agitated and said, "Our nurses, the head nurse—several people were right there. They can all testify!"
Dean Long slammed his teacup onto the desk and said, "You testifying for yourselves—is that useful? Would the court accept your testimony? You’re legally ignorant!"
Liu Zhengliang knew there was nothing more to say and pulled Che Mingming out of the dean’s office.Chen Junnan had completely changed. He had lost all passion for his work, arriving and leaving precisely on time every day. Previously, he would often be late but also frequently worked overtime, chatting with colleagues during breaks. Now, he had become utterly dispirited.
Chen Junnan said to Liu Zhengliang, "I might really not be cut out to be a doctor. I only studied medicine because my dad said it was a golden rice bowl—the older you get, the more valuable you become. Now I realize we earn cabbage money while carrying the stress of drug dealers. Do you think I need the money? The returns from my hundreds of thousands in stocks far exceed my salary. When have I ever needed to touch my paycheck?"
Liu Zhengliang tried to persuade Chen Junnan not to think this way. After downing a mouthful of beer, Chen Junnan broke down in tears. The two brothers strolled along the banks of the Hun River, with Liu Zhengliang carrying a six-pack of Tianhu beer in his backpack, handing one can after another to Chen Junnan.
Across the river stood Ga'er Mountain, where Li Ji and his disciple Xue Rengui, clad in white robes and riding white horses, had fought their way through hundreds of thousands of enemy troops seven times.
Chen Junnan felt that being a doctor was like going to war—every day was a test of courage. Some senior doctors translated "constant anxiety" into "diligence and dedication." Chen Junnan said to Liu Zhengliang, "Liangzi, let me ask you—dare we start a business together? Let's take off these white coats."
Liu Zhengliang replied, "Dean Long once told me: every good doctor is forged through countless cases, even at the cost of lives. Haven’t we both carried the weight of lives on our shoulders?"
Chen Junnan said, "It’s not that I’m upset about patients dying. It’s that I realize I can’t handle this profession. After ten years, I’ve discovered my limits."
From that moment on, Chen Junnan began to entertain thoughts of leaving.
The municipal government finally decided that Fushun Second Hospital would be handed over to Shengjing Hospital Group affiliated with China Medical University for management in six months. Small-city hospitals had low efficiency in training doctors, insufficient funds, and poor morale, making them suitable for management by large hospital groups. Dean Long felt somewhat uneasy about this. Of course, he was nearing retirement and it didn’t matter much to him, but he was concerned about the junior colleagues who had worked tirelessly under him for years. He had hoped they would advance further, but now Shenyang was about to send people to take over. These brothers were all older now, and most hadn’t graduated from prestigious schools—their highest qualifications were bachelor’s degrees, with several holding only associate degrees. The idea of being managed by doctors in their thirties from Shenyang while they themselves were in their fifties was a blow to their pride.
In this situation, there was a greater need to cultivate local young talent. Opportunities for training in Shenyang, Dalian, or Beijing had to be given to them for more experience.
Originally, the emergency department had arranged for Liu Zhengliang and Che Mingming to go to Dalian. Considering Chen Junnan’s recent low spirits, Liu Zhengliang gave his spot to him.
During his half-month in Dalian, Chen Junnan kept busy. Aside from training sessions, he spent time accompanying Che Mingming shopping and eating. In truth, Che Mingming wanted to help him relax—visiting tourist spots like Tiger Beach for beach volleyball and Ocean Park performances, hoping to see Chen Junnan’s long-lost smile through casual outings and conversations. They were both adults; how could Che Mingming not understand what Chen Junnan was thinking?To cheer up Chen Junnan, Che Mingming pretended to look at her phone and teased him: "Do you know the difference between a married woman and a young girl when kissing?"
Chen Junnan looked completely confused.
Che Mingming said: "The young girl would say, 'Mm, don't.'"
"What about the married woman?"
Che Mingming replied: "The married woman would ask, 'Did you brush your teeth?'"
Chen Junnan laughed and responded: "I brushed my teeth."
That evening, Chen Junnan began researching the data analysis task on cervical spondylosis treatment theory assigned by Liu Zhengliang. Having this extra work helped distract him, otherwise he could easily fall into a depressive state and struggle to get out. Coincidentally, among the trainees was an orthopedic professor from Beijing. Chen Junnan had discussed with him during the day, and the orthopedic professor also found his research theory very reasonable. Not only did he help obtain follow-up visit rate data, but he also shared statistics on clinical treatment costs from several top hospitals' orthopedics departments. Chen Junnan immediately spotted business opportunities. As soon as the professor emailed the data to his phone, he glanced at it and felt like he'd struck gold. Forgetting about Che Mingming who was watching the dolphin show with him, he immediately called Liu Zhengliang to share the information.
The audience's screams were too loud, so he covered one ear while calling Liu Zhengliang: "Liangzi, I found the follow-up visit rate data you asked me to research. Moreover, I also obtained clinical treatment cost data. I can responsibly tell you that Professor Du's theory from China Rehabilitation Center is correct. Not only is his theory well-developed, but he also has patented inventions specifically for treating cervical spondylosis. And there's huge business potential here. Do you know how much the average treatment cost for cervical spondylosis is? Thirty thousand yuan. And the follow-up visit rate? In several top-tier hospitals, it's less than 35%, while the secondary follow-up rate is too low to even calculate. Ultimately, using treatment cycles to determine how many people persist with treatment shows a very low proportion. This means each patient spends thirty thousand yuan on treatment but still can't get cured. Guess why?"
Liu Zhengliang responded: "Tell me?"
Chen Junnan continued: "Based on the statistics I've seen, except for a few hospitals, current spinal treatment plans nationwide are mostly external corrections. According to Professor Du's theory, we should adopt internal exercise-based rehabilitation methods. If we secure Professor Du's patent, I'm telling you, we brothers won't need to be doctors anymore - we'll achieve financial freedom directly. With tens of millions of people getting cervical spondylosis annually, even if just one percent of them buy our product, we'll strike it rich."
After hanging up, the two left the ocean park and went to a restaurant for lunch. As soon as they sat down, Che Mingming asked: "Is this theory you're researching really that remarkable? We're doctors - if you casually come up with some scam, your reputation will be ruined, and you'll never practice medicine again. Every few years, things like Chinese Turtle Essence, Life Nuclear Energy, and Hongmao Medicinal Wine appear on the market - just saccharin mixed with water, with jokes about how not a single turtle was used in ten years. We're different from those scammers - don't let greed blind you."
Chen Junnan laughed and said: "What, you think I joined a pyramid scheme? Let me explain this theory to you, then you'll understand why I'm excited."
Che Mingming nodded.
Chen Junnan asked: "Why do you think people get cervical spondylosis with numb limbs?"Che Mingming opened his computer while displaying an anatomy app, answering dismissively, "Because the skeletal system is compressed by gravity, the intervertebral disc tissue between the spinal bones protrudes, pressing against the spinal canal. The electrical signals transmitted by the brain through the spinal cord are affected, causing numbness in the hands and feet, and even impairing motor functions."
Chen Junnan asked, "How do traditional hospital methods treat this?"
Che Mingming replied, "Traction therapy or cervical immobilization."
Chen Junnan said, "Exactly. It's like making patients lie down for forced growth, similar to stretching noodles. Or they fix a protective device around the neck, almost like the cones put on cats and dogs after neutering at veterinary clinics. Then why do patients relapse within two or three months after over a month of such treatments?"
Che Mingming said, "I don't know about that."
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