This doctor is already middle-aged, and he's only just started practicing medicine.

Chapter 32 Business Development!
"Zhang Tiesheng, is it your shift leader today?" Zhang Tiesheng was having dinner with someone outside when he answered a call from Director Lin Qianlong after leaving the private room.

The midday sun was blazing, and the intense light from his dilated pupils made Zhang Tiesheng feel dizzy: "Yes, Director Lin. I'm near the hospital."

Lin Qianlong said in a serious tone: "Zhang Tiesheng, Xiao Lu has been in our emergency department for almost a month now. You have seen his hard work, his efforts, and his abilities."

"Someone with appendicitis has come. If you're too lazy to run around, why don't you just have Professor Chen bring Xiao Lu up on stage?"

"Xiao Lu has performed more than a dozen tendon sutures on his own this month, which has brought a lot of revenue to our department. Currently, patients have a good reputation for Xiao Lu."

Zhang Tiesheng adjusted his glasses, pondered for a few seconds, and sighed, "Okay, Director Lin, I understand."

"Xiao Lu can routinely perform more than a dozen tendon sutures, so appendectomy should be no problem for him."

In the county hospital, you ultimately have to rely on your own abilities to make a living.

Moreover, this kind of earning a living through one's own abilities not only allows one to eat more, but also enables the 'team' to eat more.

With improved transportation, many patients have the opportunity to seek medical treatment outside their hometowns, and referrals are now easier. As a result, most county hospital departments are facing a shortage of patients.

The inevitable consequence of failing to improve the average level of county hospitals is a decreasing number of patients.

"Yes, it's good that you understand this, Tiesheng!"

"The classification of tendon sutures as a medical condition can be said to have been taken over by Xiao Lu from the orthopedics department single-handedly; he has that ability."

"But you also know that envy is a disease. The orthopedics department hadn't thought about tendon suturing for a while, but now that they see Xiao Lu's work is going smoothly, Director Peng from the orthopedics department remembered to invite Director Xiang from the state people's hospital."

“Starting next month, the ownership will be hard to say.”

"Xiao Lu's learning efficiency is quite good. With his aptitude, getting more exposure to surgeries under Professor Chen's guidance will definitely be more beneficial than harmful to our department as a whole," Lin Qianlong explained.

Zhang Tiesheng understood Lin Qianlong's meaning, but he didn't reply. He just paced back and forth in front of the restaurant, his face contorted with worry.

The silence lasted for nearly twenty seconds before Lin Qianlong said, "Tiesheng, I know your concerns, but we are still doctors after all."

“Xiao Lu is talented and learns quickly, so he can learn more techniques from Professor Chen Song.”

"Ultimately, we're all in the workforce. Even setting aside the broader context of serving patients, we still need to consider our own income levels, right?"

"There are still more than two months left. If Xiao Lu can really learn a few surgeries that even specialists can't perform from Professor Chen, then..."

"The total income over the years, all things considered, is definitely no less than what you would earn if you were promoted to director, right?"

"The key point is that there hasn't been any fighting or arguing yet."

The current scope of surgeries performed in the emergency department is largely determined by arguments between Director Lin Qianlong and the head of the surgical department. Examples include debridement and suturing, and appendicitis.

The only undisputed issue right now is the tendon suturing that Lu Cheng is working on.

The head of orthopedics also wants to do it, but he can't. If you keep complaining, you're just making a fool of yourself, even if they have opinions or ideas!

All we can do is try to learn and figure out how to do it.

This is the 'rule' of the county hospital!
Competence is fundamental.

Zhang Tiesheng breathed a sigh of relief: "I understand, Director Lin!"

"What can we do when we encounter someone like this?"

“Xiao Lu is indeed no ordinary person. Giving him more opportunities will allow us to live better lives and also extend the period for him to learn surgery.”

"I can clearly distinguish between the advantages and disadvantages."

"But what about Zeng Huanqi?"

"I'm not in a position to represent you," Zhang Tiesheng unilaterally conceded.

Those working in county hospitals generally don't care about professional standing or overall influence within their field; that's unrealistic. A county hospital director is often just a figurehead at state-level meetings; their main purpose is to wield power, which allows them to increase their income. After all, they have more opportunities to learn surgery and access more resources…

Ultimately, it is 'income' that determines people's thinking.

Providing more medical services to patients, and offering higher-quality medical services to patients that other specialists cannot treat, in order to increase their income, is perfectly legitimate and not at all shameful.

“I just called Zeng Huanqi, and he didn’t have any objections. Actually, Xiao Lu is a relatively pure and easy-going person,” Lin Qianlong hinted to Zhang Tiesheng.

If Lu Cheng really does get promoted to head of the surgical team in the future, he will definitely be easier to get along with than Zeng Huanqi.

"Director Lin, the future is still a long way off."

"If we're really going to talk about it, I actually hope that Xiao Lu can learn more skills," Zhang Tiesheng said sincerely.

Actually, he was helpless. He also wanted to gain Professor Chen Song's favor, but unfortunately Lin Qianlong had already set up the stage, and he himself was useless.

The reason why Professor Chen Song favored Lu Cheng has now become clear.

In less than a month, more than ten tendon suturing procedures, which were previously impossible even in orthopedics, were performed locally.

If tendon suturing were so easy to learn, Dr. Peng Haibo, the director of orthopedics, would have already been performing it routinely.

"Then I'll just call Xiao Lu directly."

“If there really is an opportunity, our emergency surgery department will become a strong department in the surgical ward. Even though Xiao Lu is gone, his influence will still remain,” Lin Qianlong said.

Zhang Tiesheng's voice trembled: "Gah."

"Xiao Lu can walk? Director Lin? This is no joke."

Lin Qianlong said, "Professor Chen seems to want to hold Xiao Lu in his palm every day. What is he planning?"

"While academic qualifications are certainly a constraint for Xiao Lu, they can only change a person's aptitude, not their fundamental talent."

"Education is one aspect of learning ability, but it is not an absolute indicator. A person's learning ability will not fundamentally change because of higher education."

"We have no doubt about Professor Chen's ability to judge people."

“Even if he doesn’t leave now, I believe Professor Chen will find a way to let him go out and explore. What we need to do is to let Xiao Lu learn as much as possible while he is still here.”

"Then we'll extend the time window for learning surgery."

Ultimately, he can't get in your way.

"You understand the difference between giving someone a fish and teaching them how to fish, right?" Lin Qianlong said.

Lin Qianlong continued, "Moreover, Xiao Lu has recently been obsessively investigating details in the department, making it even more theoretical and academic than the teaching hospital. Neither you nor I know why, but he must have something to ask for."

Zhang Tiesheng nodded: "Hmm...that's true. If Xiao Lu just wants to stay at the county hospital for a long time...there's really no need to nitpick over such details."

"There must be a reason for this?"

"Director Lin, are you willing to let Xiao Lu go?"

Lin Qianlong chuckled: "Tiesheng, work is work. We just happened to come together to do some things."

"Everyone has their own destiny, so it's best not to do things that could ruin someone's future."

“Xiao Lu is a smart man. He will make a good decision about when to leave, and I am quite sure of that.”

Lin Qianlong had already analyzed the situation thoroughly and concluded that Zhang Tiesheng's temporary resignation was beneficial and harmless. Therefore, he was no longer concerned about the possibility that Lu Cheng's surgical skills would threaten his 'status'.

'Status' is 'status', and income is income. Once your income goes up, the 'status of ward director' doesn't matter that much.

(End of this chapter)