Chapter 124: First Aid

The ICU was in chaos. Dr. Zhu was busy performing CPR.

But it wasn't long before he came out looking crestfallen, leaving only a few assistant doctors to carry on out of a sense of duty, taking turns performing chest compressions.

Li Yinhe rushed over, his steps frantic.

Hearing the familiar footsteps, Li Xue instantly found her pillar of support and followed the sound to her father.

"Dad!"

Li Yinhe held Li Xue's shoulders. "Xue'Er, how is the situation?"

Li Xue was speechless, shaking her head slightly. "It's touch and go."

She had cried until she had no tears left, hugging her father for comfort.

'But who could Li Yinhe turn to for comfort?'

'Elder Li was his last refuge in this world. If he was gone, Li Yinhe would be truly alone.'

Li Yinhe's heart felt suspended in a void, with nothing to anchor it.

At that moment, Chen Jingyun appeared from the corridor, accompanied by an elderly man.

Li Xue's eyes lit up. "Dad, that's Chen Jingyun, the security captain from District One. He's the one who protected me during the attack! He's also the one who brought Grandpa and Mom to the hospital!"

Li Yinhe hurried forward and gave Chen Jingyun a deep bow. "Captain Chen, thank you so much for saving my father and my wife!"

'How could I take Mu Lin's credit?' Chen Jingyun thought. He quickly explained, "It was a small effort! It was all thanks to Mr. Mu for chasing away the attacker. Otherwise, I would have been completely in the dark, unable to do a thing."

"Mu Lin chased away the attacker?" Li Yinhe was shocked.

Elder Li was, after all, a powerful expert who had cultivated external force. For the attacker to injure him so badly meant they were immeasurably stronger than him.

And yet, Mu Lin was supposedly even stronger than the attacker.

Li Yinhe simply couldn't believe it.

Chen Jingyun said, "It's the absolute truth!"

Li Xue added, "If it wasn't for Mu Lin, I probably would have been burned to death in the car by a fireball..."

She recounted the events, and Li Yinhe's face turned ashen.

'What on earth was the background of this son-in-law Elder Li had accepted without any discussion? And how did he know these kinds of shady skills?'

'But right now, there was no outlet for his simmering anger. After all, Mu Lin had saved Li Xue. That fact alone silenced any criticism.'

'He, Li Yinhe, was not an unreasonable person. He had to remember the favor.'

Seeing that this topic was more or less concluded, Chen Jingyun turned and walked over to the elderly man:

"Chairman Li, this is a senior doctor of traditional Chinese medicine from our hospital, Zhang Chunlei."

Li Yinhe bowed to Zhang Chunlei. "Doctor Zhang, I'm entrusting my family to you!"

But Zhang Chunlei didn't look at him. His gaze was already fixed on the scene inside the ICU.

'A truly benevolent doctor, with eyes only for his patients!'

Li Yinhe felt a sense of relief. 'Since he's a good doctor, I don't need to worry anymore.'

But Zhang Chunlei muttered, "Something's not right..."

The words struck Li Yinhe like a clap of thunder. He pressed, "What's not right?"

He was terrified something had happened to his father and wife.

"Based on their injuries, neither of them should have survived for more than ten minutes... And yet, they were still breathing until just a moment ago. It's clear that some method was used to prolong their lives."

Li Xue's eyes lit up as she blurted out, "The needles! It was the needles!"

Zhang Chunlei was confused. "Miss, please be more specific. What needles?"

Li Xue said, "When I found my grandpa and my mom, there were needles in them. We didn't remove them on the way to the hospital."

Zhang Chunlei's eyes shone. "That might be it! If we can replace the needles, we might be able to prolong their lives. Miss, do you remember where the needles were placed?"

After seeing her grandfather and mother collapse, Li Xue's mind had gone completely blank. She couldn't remember a thing.

Asking her to recall the details was simply impossible.

Chen Jingyun said, "Doctor Zhang, I remember, but I'm not sure of the exact locations!"

Zhang Chunlei waved his hand dismissively. "A hair's breadth of deviation leads to a thousand miles of error. The mysteries of the human body are far too vast to be handled with 'about' and 'around'."

"My hands are tied. Unless we can find the person who placed the needles, no medicine or treatment will work!"

Li Xue clapped her hands in delight. "He'll be here any minute! Ten minutes at the very most!"

Zhang Chunlei said, "Alright then. I'll go see what I can do for you!"

He walked into the ICU. When the two assistant doctors saw him, they rushed over to respectfully ask for his guidance.

Zhang Chunlei began deftly giving commands: administering injections, performing defibrillation, and so on.

Everything flowed smoothly.

But the Grim Reaper was still creeping closer. He had to seize the last glimmer of hope before death became absolute.

Thanks to his vast experience and two excellent novices, he was barely able to hold the line.

Seeing the flurry of activity in the ICU, Li Xue felt a wave of relief and gave Chen Jingyun a solemn bow.

"Thank you so much, Captain Chen, for finding such a wonderful doctor."

Chen Jingyun quickly waved his hands. "I can't take the credit, I really can't!"

He didn't have that kind of influence. It was all because Zhou Qianfan had relayed the matter to Elder Zhou, who then made the call, using a personal favor to convince Zhang Chunlei to step in.

Zhang Chunlei was a pivotal figure in this hospital, one who did not make appearances lightly.

"You can be modest, Captain Chen, but I will never forget this kindness!" Li Xue said with great solemnity.

Li Yinhe checked the time. 'How can these ten minutes feel so long?'

"Li Xue, hurry up and call him! Why isn't that expert here yet?"

Li Xue blinked, not immediately understanding which expert her father was referring to.

"Dad, are you talking about Mu Lin?"

"What?" Li Yinhe's shout was so loud it made everyone in the corridor turn to look.

"Yes!"

Li Yinhe was stunned. But having just caused such a scene, he could only suppress his turbulent emotions for the moment.

Inside the ICU, Dr. Zhu, having heard that Elder Zhang was there to "steal" his patients, rushed back over.

"Elder Zhang, these are my patients!"

Zhang Chunlei glanced at Dr. Zhu. "Patients aren't objects. They don't belong to anyone. You claim they're your patients, yet you gave up on them."

"But they're beyond saving! No matter how many cardiac stimulants you use or how much energy you expend, they're still going to die."

'So what if you, Zhang Chunlei, are one of the most skilled doctors in this hospital?'

'People who are fated to die aren't going to pause on your account.'

"Their hearts are still beating! Their blood is still warm! And you call that dead? Are you dead inside?" Zhang Chunlei was so furious he started yelling.

He was normally a very composed man, but he couldn't suppress his anger when faced with someone like Dr. Zhu.

Dr. Zhu's expression turned ugly. He folded his arms and watched coldly from the sidelines.

"Are you just going to stand there? Think you're some kind of hospital princeling? Even if your dad's the director, you should be over here assisting!"

Zhang Chunlei snapped.

Dr. Zhu simply turned and walked away, completely unafraid, because his father really was the director.

Zhang Chunlei, on the other hand, was only a vice director. A higher rank could crush a lower one.

Zhang Chunlei sighed. 'That man has no medical ethics. If he's allowed to gain power in the future, it will be a disaster for the patients.'

With him gone, the remaining team was actually more united.

At least now he could concentrate on the matter at hand.

Finding the placement points of those five miraculous needles!

"A genius," he thought. "To come up with those placements... absolutely incredible."

Although Chen Jingyun had pointed out the general locations, Zhang Chunlei still didn't dare to proceed.

It was too risky. One wrong move would be like plunging into a bottomless abyss from which there was no return.

Gritting his teeth, he decided to do it his own way.

He would find the acupoints himself, attempting to forcibly stimulate the two patients' Qi and Blood circulation.

But their life force continued to fade before his very eyes.

"Just a little more time! Please, just slow down a little!"

Zhang Chunlei's forehead was drenched in sweat. A doctor at his side kept wiping it, but it was useless; the moment it was cleared, a fresh sheen would appear.

Li Yinhe couldn't sit still any longer. "Why isn't Mu Lin here yet... It's just like him to drop the ball at a critical moment!"

There was nothing Li Xue could do but close her eyes and pray with all her might.

She prayed for the wind itself to push Mu Lin along and make him hurry.

Inside the ICU, the electrocardiograms flatlined.

Zhang Chunlei looked up in regret, fighting to hold back his tears.

After fighting for so long, he was still powerless to turn the tide.

Seeing the flat lines on the monitors, Li Xue swayed and collapsed to the floor. "Mu Lin, why aren't you here..."

"But I am here. I know you're in a hurry, but take a breath."

Li Xue said, "But Grandpa is already..."

"I have a way."

Mu Lin's voice was firm and decisive as he pushed open the ICU door and slipped inside.

Li Xue stared at Mu Lin's back, grinding her teeth in frustration.

'You dawdled while Grandpa was still hanging on, and now you show up to play the part of the filial son-in-law!'

'You'd better be able to save Grandpa and Mom, or else...'

'We are through for good!'