Chapter 263 - 173: Professor Jiang Returns to School to Teach

Chapter 263: Chapter 173: Professor Jiang Returns to School to Teach

「The next morning.」

Just as Teacher Shen had said, a light rain was falling.

After the rain, it would probably start to get really cold.

Winter in Yangcheng was always a rare sight. For Jiang He, it brought back a series of indescribable memories.

Memories of summer were always pleasant, but winter was the opposite.

’It seems your feelings about a season are always tied to your memories of it.’

Jiang He held up an umbrella as he bought a cheap, generously filled meat bun from Cafeteria No. 2, eating as he walked toward Affiliated Hospital No. 1.

Today, the atmosphere at Affiliated Hospital No. 1 was different than usual.

The aftershocks of Ma Huaide’s downfall were still being felt; the disciplinary committee’s inspection team had only withdrawn late last night.

In the main hall and corridors, the medical staff hurried by, their conversations a little quieter than normal.

Jiang He crossed through the emergency department hall and walked toward the inpatient building that housed the Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery.

He encountered many familiar faces along the way.

"Dr. Jiang, morning." A resident from the orthopedics department stopped from a fair distance away, offering a slight nod of greeting.

"Morning."

Jiang He nodded back and kept walking.

As he passed the nurses’ station, a few nurses who were verifying medical orders looked up. Upon seeing Jiang He, they immediately straightened their posture.

"Good morning, Dr. Jiang."

Their voices were in perfect unison, their tone reserved.

Jiang He gave them a second look.

’These nurses are usually pretty lively. They even used to joke around and ask if I had a girlfriend. What’s wrong with them today?’

’They’re all avoiding eye contact, as if they’re terrified of saying another word to me.’

"Morning." Jiang He didn’t dwell on it and walked directly to the doctors’ office.

Jiang He had no idea that the tales of his recent exploits at Affiliated Hospital No. 1 had already spun into the stuff of ghost stories.

The year was 2008, and the Tianya forums were at the height of their popularity.

All kinds of urban legends and supernatural stories were extremely popular among the younger generation.

"I’m telling you, it’s absolutely not normal."

One of the nurses watched Jiang He’s retreating figure and said in a hushed, mysterious tone,

"You weren’t in the operating room yesterday, so you didn’t see it. He performed five Grade 1 surgeries in a row in one morning! Each one took less than a third of the time it would take a regular attending physician."

"What’s the big deal? He’s River God, after all," the nurse, Xiaochen, said dismissively.

"What do you know! I was looking it up on the Tianya forums last night. There’s this theory that sorcerers in Southeast Asia can help people summon gods or raise ’little ghosts.’ Just think about it—he’s so young, yet his medical skills are freakishly good. Is that normal? It’s not normal! He could be a reincarnator!"

"Don’t scare me... That’s too far-fetched, isn’t it?"

"Far-fetched? Haven’t you noticed he always wears a necklace? What doctor likes wearing necklaces? You always have to take them off, isn’t that a pain?"

"So?"

"The internet says it’s called a ’contract medium’! Reincarnated people have to keep it on their person, or the backlash could be fatal!"

Xiaochen was taken aback. She stared blankly, recalling Jiang He’s recent deeds.

The more she thought about it, the more frightened she became.

"No wonder... Could it really be true?"

"Of course it is!"

Just then, the door to the preparation room was suddenly pushed open.

"What are you two doing? Have you finished unpacking the gauze yet?"

The head nurse frowned slightly.

The two young women jumped out of their skins.

"BEGONE, EVIL SPIRITS!!"

Xiaoliu blurted it out, then grabbed Xiaochen and bolted.

The head nurse was left standing there, utterly bewildered.

’What in the world has gotten into those two girls so early in the morning...’

...

「8:00 AM, in the shift-change room of the Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery.」

Positioning during shift handover was an art form.

Newcomers generally knew to stand at the very edge of the group.

But Jiang He was called over to stand next to Yang Xu.

This was a spot typically reserved for a deputy department director or a senior attending in charge of teaching.

What was absurd was that no one seemed to think anything of it.

The controversy at the hospital-wide quality control conference, the preview of his top-tier journal publication, plus the series of surgeries from yesterday, had firmly established Jiang He’s hardcore status within the department.

The medical field is a circle of pure meritocracy. When you display absolutely overwhelming ability, seniority and age cease to be problems.

The chief resident who had been on the night shift began to report on the overnight patient conditions.

Throughout the report, several attending physicians kept glancing toward Jiang He, as if trying to gauge his opinions on how to handle certain cases.

Meng Shiyu was standing next to Jiang He.

That kid Meng Shiyu had definitely picked the right person to follow; his status in the hospital was rising with Jiang He’s. A rising tide lifts all boats.

Yesterday, after Jiang He had educated him about the dangers of chewing betel nuts, Meng Shiyu had switched to chewing gum, fully embracing his role as the obedient underling.

Shift change ended. It was time for rounds.

The vitals for the few critical patients were all within the expected parameters.

Afterward, Jiang He changed into his scrubs and entered Operating Room Two.

Today’s first procedure, specially approved by Yang Xu, was a laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Inside the OR.

The team’s atmosphere had leveled up yet again from yesterday.

Zhou Li now knew full well that there was no time for breaks when operating with Jiang He. He hadn’t bothered to bring a newspaper or a teacup at all today; he had come with the sole intention of working his tail off.

Xu Chen’s goal for the day was simple: avoid making mistakes and keep up with Jiang He’s rhythm. That would be a victory in his book.

Chen Jing was considered a veteran, but even she had prepared all the potentially necessary instruments in advance, checking them repeatedly three or four times.

This atmosphere was actually quite familiar to Jiang He.

In top-tier hospitals, whenever a major department director was the lead surgeon, the assisting medical staff would be in this exact state.

The lead surgeon’s pace was too fast and the margin for error was low. A single person’s carelessness could result in a harsh scolding or an inability to keep up.

Jiang He said, "Scalpel."

The surgery began.

The entire process was just as uneventful as before, a complete steamroll from start to finish.

In reality, most surgeries don’t involve that many complications. Bolstered by modern medicine, success rates are quite high.

This was especially true in the hands of a transcendent, freakishly talented, top-tier doctor like Jiang He, where the stability was almost frightening.

In under thirty minutes, the gallbladder was successfully removed.

"Close the abdomen."

Jiang He took a step back.

Zhou Li glanced at the clock on the wall. Amazingly, he was already starting to get used to this.

The experience of assisting in these surgeries was so bizarre.

The pressure was immense, yet watching such an incredibly fluid performance gave him a morbid sense of pleasure.

’So damn satisfying!’

...

「12:00 PM.」

Jiang He found a window seat in the cafeteria and sat down.

Colleagues all around him were chattering away.

"That’s him... He single-handedly performed five surgeries yesterday..."

"I heard Director Ma only got investigated because he messed with him..."

"I saw the record of his suturing in the ER yesterday. The story’s spreading like wildfire in the surgery department..."

Jiang He ignored them and focused on eating his food.

’I need to build a reputation to gain more influence right now. That will make it easier to consolidate clinical resources for my subsequent projects.’

’As long as it doesn’t interfere with my work, they can spread whatever rumors they like.’

After finishing his lunch, Jiang He logged into Dingxiang Garden.

There was no reply from "Yangcheng Panqing."

Jiang He’s brow furrowed slightly.

He hadn’t received any transfer notices from the outpatient or emergency departments all morning.

’Did the family not see my message? Or did they think what I said online was unreliable and decide to follow the city hospital’s advice to proceed with the surgery?’

Jiang He slipped his phone back into his pocket and sighed.

’Medicine is full of regrets.’

’A doctor can see the true nature of a disease, but they can never control the patient’s final decision.’

’I’ve done my part by giving them a warning. The rest is up to that patient’s fate.’

「1:30 PM.」

Jiang He arrived at Yang Xu’s office.

Yang Xu was in the middle of packing.

"Teacher, you were looking for me."

"Yes, Jiang He. I just got a call from the provincial department. A retired senior official in Shencheng has developed acute severe cholangitis complicated by septic shock. They’ve specifically requested me to head over for an emergency consultation. The car is already waiting downstairs."

"Do you need me to go with you?" Jiang He asked.

"No, they have enough experts there, they’re not short-staffed. I called you here because I need you to substitute for me and teach a class at the university this afternoon."

"Substitute teach?" Jiang He faltered.

"That’s right. At 2:30 this afternoon, at the Southern Medical University Main Campus. It’s a major lecture on *Diagnostics* for the third-year students. I was originally scheduled to teach it, but I can’t get away now, and it’s too late to find another professor to cover."

"Teacher, is that allowed?"

"You’ve already passed your early graduation defense and received your dual medical practice and qualification certificates. From an administrative standpoint, you are now a direct-entry PhD student under my supervision and a licensed physician at Affiliated Hospital No. 1. It is both reasonable and procedurally correct for a PhD student with teaching duties to substitute for their mentor in an undergraduate class. This is common practice at all major medical schools. What’s more, with your grasp of clinical fundamentals, teaching Diagnostics to a group of third-year undergrads will be a piece of cake. I have faith in you."

Jiang He considered it for a moment.

’He’s right. Procedurally, it’s perfectly sound.’

’Besides, I do need to go back to the university anyway.’

’I was just thinking the other day about how my team is understaffed.’

’I’m in desperate need of a group of promising, hardworking, and obedient ’workhorses’ to expand my team.’

’A large lecture combining three classes... I can probably scout out some good candidates.’

"I understand, Teacher." Jiang He nodded and agreed.

"Great. I had one of your junior brothers prepare the textbook and lesson plan for you. Go find him and pick it up. I have to go now. Call me anytime."

After saying that, Yang Xu suddenly pouted, looking rather put-out.

Jiang He was confused. "What is it, Teacher?"

Yang Xu said melancholically, "It’s nothing. It’s just... Professor Wang had asked me on a date. Now I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it back in time..."

"Uh..."

Jiang He had no idea what to say.

’He may be standing right here, but it feels like his soul left the building a long time ago.’

...

「That afternoon.」

Southern Medical University Main Campus, Basic Medical College Teaching Building.

Jiang He met up with a young man.

The man was young, but his hairline was looking a bit dangerous, as if he was on the verge of becoming "brilliantly bald."

"Senior Brother Cai," Jiang He said with a friendly smile.

Cai Zhuoqun.

In his past life, when Jiang He was pursuing his master’s degree, Cai Zhuoqun had been his senior brother in the doctoral program.

His senior brother had been a wonderful person. Later, when publishing in a core journal, he had gone out of his way to add Jiang He’s name as a co-author, which helped him smoothly secure that year’s scholarship.

Jiang He had never forgotten this act of kindness.

However, the young man before him now waved his hands frantically, his expression flustered.

"Th-that... I-I couldn’t possibly. Senior Brother Jiang... Greetings, Senior Brother Jiang!"

Jiang He froze.

Only then did it hit him.

’Right. I’m now an officially admitted direct-entry PhD student under Director Yang. According to the hierarchy of our mentorship line, I am indeed Cai Zhuoqun’s senior brother.’

Cai Zhuoqun stammered, "Y-you... You can just call me Xiaocai!"

Jiang He stood rooted to the spot, dazed for a moment.

’The Senior Brother Cai from my past life, the one who patiently taught me how to run electrophoresis and fought to get me that scholarship...’

’...is now standing before me, calling *me* Senior Brother.’

’The butterfly effect... It’s completely altered my relationships with everyone around me.’

A wave of emotion washed over Jiang He. He then said gently, "You have the materials?"

"Y-yep, yep! Teacher Yang... he, he had me help, p-p-prepare them! They’re all ready!"

Cai Zhuoqun had a slight stutter, which became more pronounced when he was nervous.

It was just that in his past life, Jiang He had hardly ever heard him stutter like this in front of him...

"Alright, let’s head over together."

"O-okay, Senior Brother Jiang. A-a-after you."

Led by Cai Zhuoqun, the two of them arrived at a tiered lecture hall.

It was a massive hall, capable of seating more than two hundred people.

At this point, it was already full.

Students from Clinical Medicine Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3 were all gathered here.

Jiang He could hear the noisy chatter from inside, even through the door.

’Hmm...’

’Lin Yue, Zhou Yang, and Chen Hao from my own class.’

’Li Wei and Cheng Xiyao from Class 1.’

’Li Zijian and Wang Bo from Class 3...’

’All the familiar faces are here.’

’Just a few days ago, my buddies and I were grabbing skewers and beer and took a graduation picture together.’

’Everyone was joking that if I ever came back to teach, I’d better give them some extra points.’

’And now, their words have come true.’

’Isn’t Teacher Jiang here to teach a class for real?’

’The look on Chen Hao’s face in a few moments will definitely be interesting.’

’I should make sure to call on him to answer questions over and over again.’

’Dr. Jiang is here to help you become an outstanding physician. You’re welcome, buddy!’