The attending physician said, "The child's heart has stopped. We recommend starting ECMO. You, the family members, need to consider the actual situation and give me an answer immediately. This cardiopulmonary support system is extremely expensive, so it's up to the family to decide whether to use it."
Upon hearing that the child's heart had stopped, the father initially thought the child was gone, his eyes instantly losing all hope. But when he heard that resuscitation was still possible, he tentatively asked, "How much does this thing cost?"
The attending physician replied, "It starts at sixty thousand yuan, basically ten thousand per day."
The child's mother immediately collapsed to the floor, tears and mucus rushing out as if on command. She wiped her nose with her already somewhat shiny sleeve covers, not knowing what to do, muttering, "How can it be so expensive? How can buying a life be so expensive? I only brought ten thousand yuan with me, and even if we sold everything we have at home, we wouldn't have that much money."
The father suppressed his emotions, holding back the sting in his nose, his face contorted as he said, "I'm useless, I'm so damn useless."
Liu Zhengliang said, "I have money, I'll cover it."
Wang Bao suddenly struggled to stand up and asked Liu Zhengliang, "Is that thing he mentioned, ECMO, the same as what you were talking about?"
Liu Zhengliang nodded.
"Use it, treat him, quickly. We have money," Wang Bao said, pulling out his bank card. "I have money, go pay immediately. My legs are weak, I can't walk. Liu Zhengliang, you go pay."
Liu Zhengliang quickly took the bank card from the teacher, got the password, and went to pay. When he returned, the parents were sitting on the bench, holding hands, their eyes fixed intently on the ICU door. Liu Zhengliang then said to Wang Bao, "Teacher Wang, it's not appropriate for you to use this money. How much do you earn in a month? Let me cover half, since this was all my idea anyway."
Wang Bao said, "Are you still a student from my class? You used to just bury your head in studying, never considering others. You're smart, but too selfish and insecure. Do you remember our class rules?"
Liu Zhengliang stood there blankly, unable to recall.
Wang Bao said, "Back when you were in school, all your parents were laid-off workers. That was my first year teaching, my first year as a homeroom teacher, and I was assigned to your class of high-achieving government-funded students. The self-funded students' families weren't short on money, but most of you government-funded students came from poor families. Remember when it snowed in winter, and our class was assigned a snow-clearing section? Everyone went to shovel snow, do you remember?"
Liu Zhengliang nodded and said he remembered.
Wang Bao asked, "Then do you know why our class had to clear such a long section of snow, while several self-funded classes didn't have to?"
Liu Zhengliang shook his head and said, "It's been over ten years, I can't remember."
Wang Bao said, "It's because they paid. Back then, we could earn four hundred yuan for clearing snow once. Now with inflation, it's two thousand yuan per clearing. After shoveling, that money was used to buy insurance for the whole class. With over ten snowfalls a year, every single student in the class had commercial insurance with full reimbursement coverage. Combined with the basic insurance provided by the school, the maximum payout was two million yuan. Isn't two million enough to buy this kid's life?"
Liu Zhengliang remembered now - there was such a thing, though he had long since lost the insurance policy. But with Wang Bao's reminder, he confirmed that this memory was indeed real.Wang Bao continued, "I've stuck to this rule for so many years, through countless batches of students, and today it finally came in handy. Children from poor families have little resilience against risks, just like radish seedlings planted in early spring. They may appear sturdy and thriving, but one frost can wipe them out. If you can't afford to build a greenhouse, does that mean you stop farming? You light fires to create smoke, using the smoke to cover the seedlings and protect them from frost. For you as individuals, you may not have faced any major illnesses in your decades of life, but as a teacher who has seen thousands of students come and go, if even one child falls seriously ill, it shatters a family's hopes. It's a matter of probability. Learn from this, kid. Don't think just because you have a higher education than me now, my wisdom is all about practical application. Once your teacher, always a step ahead in the game."
Liu Zhengliang had already left the ICU, and going back in and out would require repeated disinfection, which was troublesome, so he called Li Qingcheng to ask about the child's condition. Li Qingcheng said, "The child is already on ECMO, but there's still no heartbeat."
Wang Bao asked Liu Zhengliang, "Why is ECMO so expensive? It starts at sixty thousand yuan, with daily costs of ten thousand yuan."
Liu Zhengliang explained, "The most expensive part of this machine is the consumables. The working principle is simple: it extracts carbon dioxide from venous blood outside the body, infuses oxygen into the arterial blood, and then pumps the oxygenated blood throughout the body, bypassing the lungs entirely within the machine. But the materials required for this exchange are extremely demanding—they must allow oxygen in, let carbon dioxide out, and retain the blood. The Americans use a type of plastic stretched into very fine hollow fibers, allowing blood to flow through them for oxygenation. These fibers are prone to clotting over time and can't be reused for another person. Disinfecting such fine tubes is nearly impossible, so the entire set must be replaced every few days. Think of it like replacing the filter in an air purifier. The purifier itself might be expensive but is a one-time investment, whereas the filters need regular replacement—that's what makes it daunting. Moreover, the PMP oxygenation membrane material is monopolized by the American company 3M. Anything that's both monopolized and essential is bound to be pricey. However, experts in China have started researching this material, and it's said to be nearing mass production. Perhaps in the future, ECMO won't be so expensive for us Chinese. Once we Chinese mass-produce something, no matter how costly, we can make it as cheap as cabbage. Penicillin used to be a miracle drug only wealthy foreigners could afford, but we turned it into a basic medication. If you wanted to, you could practically eat it like a meal.With hope came even greater torment. Liu Zhengliang went downstairs to buy some steamed buns for everyone's dinner, but the child's parents couldn't eat a bite.
Liu Zhengliang continued chatting with Wang Bao while eating buns. Wang Bao asked about Chen Junnan. Hearing that Chen Junnan had actually been Liu Zhengliang's colleague for over a year, Wang Bao laughed and said, "I never thought the second-place and second-to-last students in our class would end up as colleagues.Liu Zhengliang chuckled in response, "Well, the top student and the very last in our class are both overseas doing purchasing on behalf of others." Different paths, same destination."Wang Bao sighed, "You must be talking about Zhang Dongmei, the top student in our class. She studied better than you, but lacked great wisdom. She got into China's best university to study aerospace engineering - such a promising major - yet ended up emigrating. Americans don't trust ethnic Chinese, so they wouldn't let her work in aerospace. When she wanted to return to China for aerospace work, her nationality had changed, and Chinese people didn't trust her either. This is understandable - that oath for American citizenship sounds so heartless, renouncing all loyalty to one's homeland. Who would dare trust you after that? So she could only do overseas shopping services. Such a brilliant mind missed our country's best development period over the past decade. How much better it would have been to achieve something domestically - certainly more valuable than being an overseas shopper abroad. Just because she got American citizenship, does she think the air she breathes is sweeter? Such intelligence not being used to create value - forget about whether she's let others down, when she's lived most of her life, she'll realize the person she's failed most is herself. Don't think just because you were dismissed from Heping Hospital that you can't shine. We rely on our brains to make a living, earning respect through capability - isn't that wonderful?"
In the intensive care unit, the attending physician administered Vitamin C, Coenzyme Q10, and Sodium Fructose Diphosphate to the child. As this phase of treatment concluded, facing the child's stilled heart, the doctors could only pin their hopes on these substantial nutrients to reactivate the heart and restore its beat. The heart - you can give it bypass surgery, reinforce its valves, add a pacemaker, add anything - but when it suddenly stops and refuses to respond to any stimulation, even gods can do nothing but wait.
As the Count of Monte Cristo said, the greatest human wisdom lies in waiting and hoping.
At 2 AM, the child woke as the medication wore off, complaining of hunger and craving Spicy Mix. Li Qingcheng chuckled, "Where would we get Spicy Mix here? We have apples - you can have these."
While the child ate the apple, Li Qingcheng recorded videos for Liu Zhengliang, capturing both the child and the medical equipment. The ECG showed a flat line with no fluctuations. Li Qingcheng narrated while filming, "See? The child is awake with normal cerebral blood supply. It seems the brain hasn't been affected. The heart hasn't recovered yet, but don't worry - the Creatine kinase-MB levels have dropped significantly."
Liu Zhengliang showed his phone to the parents and Teacher Wang. Teacher Wang cried through her laughter, tears and sniffles mingling as she said, "If you become successful someday and forget about me, I'll break your legs."
The child's parents asked anxiously, "Since he's awake, does that mean he's out of danger?"
Liu Zhengliang smiled reassuringly, "We still need to wait. This only proves his brain wasn't affected, but his heart hasn't resumed beating. However, he's young - young people have vitality. Let's wait a bit longer - there's definitely hope."
At 3 AM, the child's heartbeat finally returned. Cheers suddenly erupted from the ICU. Li Qingcheng came running out and gave Liu Zhengliang a huge hug. The parents immediately stood up asking what happened. Li Qingcheng explained that the child's condition had greatly improved - both Creatine kinase-MB and Cardiac troponin had returned to normal levels, the heart had begun self-repairing, and the child had come back to life.
A full twelve hours - the heart had stopped for twelve entire hours.
Li Qingcheng hugged Liu Zhengliang tightly, saying, "You're amazing. Thank goodness you didn't go to Central Hospital."Only then did Liu Zhengliang shed tears, saying, "I made a mistake yesterday. When I received the patient, I didn't first use a stethoscope to listen to his heart, nor did I measure his temperature. Seeing how young he was, I didn't consider myocarditis. This child was delayed for two hours and fifteen minutes under my care. If he couldn't be saved, I would have carried this guilt for life."
Atropine sulfate—this medication Liu Zhengliang would also remember for life.
Dean Long had said that good doctors are forged through countless surgeries, numerous patients, and even lives lost. Liu Zhengliang knew that in this profession, the first misdiagnosed patient would inevitably come, just as even the most brilliant lawyers lose cases, the most skilled detectives have unsolved mysteries, and the finest technicians produce flawed welds. He had merely hoped this day would come later.
At this moment, Li Qingcheng felt an indescribable emotion toward Liu Zhengliang. Wherein lies the complexity of human feelings? It lies in knowingly marching toward danger despite the risks. Her gaze toward Liu Zhengliang had shifted entirely. Initially, she hadn't believed there were any perceptive people in Fushun and had even felt resentful about being assigned there by the hospital. But now, seated in the returning ambulance watching Liu Zhengliang's profile, her heart fluttered like a infatuated schoolgirl's.
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