National Doctor: When You Perfect a Skill

5:55 PM, Afternoon.

After a full day of outpatient consultations, even Zhou Yanqing felt a bit fatigued. Pushing open the consultation room door and looking outside, Zhou Yanqing said, "Master, there are no more patients outside."

"Thank you for giving me the opportunity, but I've taken up your off-duty time."

The usual time for outpatient clinics to close was 5:30 PM, but when Gong Yi saw there were only a few more new patients, he stood up and let Zhou Yanqing handle three cases.

Zhou Yanqing was both nervous and meticulous as he worked through the cases, taking a full hour to finish seeing the three new patients.

New patients weren't the same as hospitalized patients. Hospitalized patients had already been seen by senior doctors, and their diagnoses and surgical indications were clear before being admitted to the ward. New patients, on the other hand, were a complete unknown.

As a novice doctor, even though Zhou Yanqing had been assisting Gong Yi for more than two months and had gained some experience, it wasn't much.

After all, Gong Yi was like a mother hen with a bunch of chicks beneath her, and the rule was that soon-to-graduate students would get a little outpatient experience to build qualifications.

Brother Huang Yuandong had only graduated in June.

Fortunately, there were no significant diagnostic errors, and the medical orders were written carefully and appropriately.

"Your theoretical knowledge is much better than Huang Yuandong's. When I first let Xiao Huang handle outpatient patients, he..."

"Never mind, I won't say it." Gong Yi stopped mid-sentence.

Becoming proficient in outpatient consultations wasn't easy. Deriving the most suitable diagnosis from the countless unknowns was no simple feat.

Medical exams had a clear focus, but in the clinic, one quickly realized that the textbooks weren't detailed enough. The typical cases described in textbooks were rare in the real world...

"You did really well, handling and diagnosing all three outpatient cases smoothly on your first try," Gong Yi said just as the second-to-last patient returned and pushed the door open again.

A middle-aged man with a slightly plump build entered, holding a prescription and asking, "Doctor, is it really unnecessary to do surgery? I feel a lot of pain every time."

Hearing this, Zhou Yanqing quickly replied, "What you have is tennis elbow. It used to be common among tennis players, but now anyone who uses their elbow a lot in their job can get it. You're a chef, right? Constantly flipping pans and chopping—it's essentially the same kind of chronic repetitive strain injury."

"Your symptoms are still mild, and there's no serious structural damage. The most important thing is to rest and avoid using your elbow as much as possible."

"Of course, if your job requires it, we can only treat the symptoms. Apply Loxoprofen Sodium gel, rest for a while, and..."

"Best to rest as much as possible," Zhou Yanqing almost said "maybe you should change careers," but ended up swallowing the words.

In reality, who doesn't rely on wearing down their body to make a living?

Orthopedic surgeons tend to suffer from lumbar disc herniation when they get older, and even Gong Yi, now wearing a lumbar support, never advised anyone to change careers.

The patient looked at Gong Yi.

Gong Yi nodded, understanding what the middle-aged man meant, and explained, "That's right. You might think my student is young, but he's a master's student, and has studied medicine for seven or eight years, which is much longer than your culinary studies, right?"

The middle-aged man smiled. "I didn't... I didn't think that. Thank you, Doctor. Thank you, Expert."

At Off-Duty Time

Downstairs in the outpatient building, Zhou Yanqing carefully stacked his and his teacher's white coats into a cloth bag and asked cautiously, "Master, this morning before rounds, Brother Zhong said that I should rotate with him tomorrow to learn how to suture flaps."

"I don't know if he was joking."

Clinical practice was no joke.

According to the rules, the First Affiliated Hospital of Heng University operated under a chief-responsible doctor system, meaning that the chief doctor in charge had the authority over all diagnostic procedures and treatment assignments. Even Deputy Chief Physician Tao Yubin could only follow Gong Yi's lead.

Li Zhong, a resident at the hospital, had mentioned last month that he wanted to practice suturing and had gained the rights to suture flaps. Now he was saying he wanted to rotate with Zhou Yanqing, and Zhou Yanqing wasn't sure whether Li Zhong was serious, so he had to ask his teacher Gong Yi.

Being a small doctor was not easy.

In the department, Li Zhong was just a slightly senior resident. He also had his own struggles and needed more chances to practice.

"If you're unsure whether it's a joke, just go and observe tomorrow during the surgery. If you want to try suturing, bring it up with Li Zhong and ask for his opinion."

"Even though I'm the chief, I can't make all the decisions alone."

"Of course, if you insist and really want to suture, Master can be the 'grandest master of pressure' for you!" Gong Yi teased with a playful smile, feeling immensely pleased.

Zhou Yanqing's suturing skills were almost on par with Li Zhong's, both of them at the level of suturing skin flaps. Which teacher wouldn't be proud of such a student?

Zhou Yanqing's diligence and attitude toward learning were well-known.

As for his abilities, Gong Yi was fully aware.

"Hey..." Zhou Yanqing paused, not expecting his serious question to be sidetracked by his teacher, but he didn't want to disturb Gong Yi's good mood. With a sly glance, he asked softly, "Master, what if I 'press one more layer'? Could I try suturing tendons?"

Gong Yi's little eyes darted around rapidly, as he hopped off his scooter, forgot to adjust the stand, and the scooter tilted sideways.

His tone was both serious and excited: "Go to the practice room!"

"No... not now, Master!" Zhou Yanqing quickly waved his hands to calm his teacher's impatient nature. "It's soon... I just have a feeling."

Zhou Yanqing couldn't see a progress bar for his suturing, but from his own calculations, he believed he was close.

In September, Zhou Yanqing had devoted almost all his time to practicing suturing. At that time, he thought that since he wouldn't be able to pass the Jishuitan hospital's special professional entrance channel, he might as well extend his "practice period" for suturing.

He was pushing himself hard, aiming for the impossible.

Of course, that was just Zhou Yanqing's own fantasy. Suturing 10,000 times? That's not something that happens quickly.

The cost of buying suturing threads, needles, and pigskin for practice wasn't small.

Hearing this, Gong Yi chuckled and climbed back onto his scooter: "I thought you could already suture by now."

"It's my fault for being too impatient, always thinking you're capable of more..." Gong Yi trailed off.

"Alright, go to the practice room. If Jishuitan doesn't work out, there are many other opportunities. You don't have to be a bone doctor just because you're from Jishuitan."

"Sure, Jishuitan is good, but it's not the only path."

"Okay, Master!" Zhou Yanqing smiled. "I'll go to the practice room after I drop off my clothes."

Today, Zhou Yanqing had declined Gong Yi's invitation to dinner.

He knew Gong Yi invited him to comfort him after his failed PhD exam, and he understood that Gong Yi's hesitation was meant to encourage him to find a way forward.

If the Jishuitan PhD didn't work, maybe the one from Xiangya Hospital would.

Suturing, stretching, and applying pressure bands were all part of the Xiangya Hospital's hand surgery PhD entrance requirements.

"Yanqing, I've transferred a little money to you. Not much, just 3,000 yuan, but it should be enough for you to buy practice materials for a while. I've already informed your teacher-wife about this..." Gong Yi said, twisting the throttle on his scooter before leaving.

His departing figure was hurried, as if he didn't want his student to know about his family's situation.

In fact, he didn't want to face Zhou Yanqing's response, which had inadvertently revealed his family's unpretentious situation.