Surgeons Episode 31 Recap
> Surgeons Recap
Lin Hao's condition remained severely critical, marked by his advanced age, extensive thoracic injuries, the earliest onset of post-operative infection, and subsequent multi-organ failure. Even with antibiotics controlling the infection, his chances of recovery were grim. Lin Hao's daughter, Lin Huan, was greatly distressed by the news. Meanwhile, Zhuang Shu noticed that all patients with drug-resistant infections had lower urinary tract infections and had used Foley catheters. This led him to suspect a problem with a specific batch of catheters.
He suggested to Yang Fan that a comprehensive investigation into the quality and source of these catheters was necessary. Yang Fan, however, dismissed Zhuang Shu's concerns, attributing them to exhaustion and implying he was overly sensitive due to Lin Hao's case. He claimed the hospital had always used that type of catheter without issues and suggested the high infection rate was due to cross-contamination amidst the disaster relief efforts, with too many patients and inadequate aseptic isolation.
Yang Fan then tried to reassure Zhuang Shu that after the disaster relief, he wouldn't need to involve himself in "miscellaneous matters in management" anymore. Undeterred, Zhuang Shu emphasized that he was not a naive intern; he understood the complexities of hospital administration, but insisted that medical treatment itself should remain pure.
He shared with Yang Fan that his childhood experiences had made him deeply resentful of hospitals and doctors, and that Yang Fan had been the first person to change his perspective, a revelation that visibly surprised Yang Fan. Separately, Yang Zixuan continued his investigation into Renhe Hospital's high-volume usage of expensive drugs and medical equipment from Pioneer Medical Treatment Corporation, his father's company.
He directly questioned Chen Shaocong about whether his father had specifically increased the supply of these chemotherapy drugs. Chen Shaocong found the question too pointed but explained that the hospital's low clinical fees meant they relied on drug sales to stay afloat, implying Yang Fan had his own difficulties. Yang Zixuan countered that many impoverished patients couldn't afford such high medical costs, arguing that profiting from expensive drugs in such situations was tantamount to harming people.
Chen Shaocong remarked that with Lu Chenxi gone, Yang Zixuan had now taken up a similar cause. Later, Zhuang Shu sat alone on a bench outside the hospital, visibly burdened by Lin Hao and Lin Huan's predicament. Chu Jun approached him after buying food. Their conversation touched upon the earlier unrest caused by patient families regarding an HIV patient, Cai Wei, and how Lin Huan had initially confronted Zhuang Shu about admitting an HIV patient to their ward.
Zhuang Shu reflected that there were no truly "good" or "bad" patient families, only differing perspectives. While he, as a doctor, disagreed with Lin Huan's actions, he could understand her position as a concerned relative. He admitted they had underestimated the public's strong resistance to HIV patients and expressed deep worry about how Lin Huan would perceive him if her father, Lin Hao, were to die. Meanwhile, the disaster relief team was packing up to return to Renhe Hospital.
On the bus, Lu Chenxi looked at Zhuang Shu’s photo. Yang Yu playfully teased her about Zhuang Shu, prompting Lu Chenxi to call him. Her colleagues on the bus joined in, jokingly speculating about her marriage. Amidst the cheerful banter, a sudden landslide struck. Boulders tumbled down the mountain, crashing into the vehicle convoy. Director Zhong Xi Bei’s equipment vehicle was directly hit, leaving him severely injured and critically endangered, while the driver was killed instantly.
Director Zhong Xi Bei was rushed to Renhe Hospital, causing widespread panic. Yang Fan and Fu Bowen immediately arrived at the emergency room. Zhuang Shu quickly assessed Director Zhong's grave injuries, noting multiple rib fractures, a completely fractured sternum, pericardial injury, hemopneumothorax, and severe effusions in both the pericardial and thoracic cavities. He ordered immediate pericardiocentesis and chest tube insertion.
Yang Fan frantically ran to the blood bank to retrieve blood plasma and urged them to send more blood and prepare the operating room. Everyone worked tirelessly, desperate to save Director Zhong. Chen Shaocong, who had been mentored by Director Zhong, was overcome with grief and became extremely agitated. When the emergency room received a family of four suffering from food poisoning, Chen Shaocong, in his distraught state, snapped at the nurse, refusing to attend to them.
Witnessing his outburst, Lu Chenxi angrily confronted him, reminding him forcefully that he was a doctor and he should not disgrace Director Zhong in the ER. Chen Shaocong, weeping, nodded in agreement. Composing themselves despite their heartache, Lu Chenxi and Chen Shaocong then proceeded to attend to the food poisoning patients, prioritizing their medical duties.
After stabilizing the food poisoning patients, Lu Chenxi rushed back to Director Zhong's room, only to find Zhuang Shu, Yang Fan, and Fu Bowen appearing to have given up hope. Unable to accept this, Lu Chenxi desperately insisted on performing surgery, believing they must at least try to save him.
Zhuang Shu gently pulled her aside, trying to explain that Director Zhong's condition was irreversible due to irreparable blood vessel damage, lacerations of the main aorta and lung, splenic rupture, and multiple fractures including a cranial fracture. He elaborated that Director Zhong's uncorrectable shock, massive blood loss, and prolonged time without adequate intervention had led to metabolic acidosis and damage to his heart and kidneys, resulting in multi-organ failure, making him unable to withstand any surgery.
Lu Chenxi, highly emotional, refused to listen, demanding to re-examine Director Zhong. At that moment, Director Zhong unexpectedly regained consciousness. Sensing his impending death, he requested everyone else to leave, keeping only Fu Bowen by his side. With immense effort, Director Zhong spoke to Fu Bowen, stating that Zhang Shumei, Zhuang Shu's mother, had been gone for thirty years, and they both had wronged her and her children, Xiao Bin (Zhuang Shu) and Nan Nan (Lin Huan).
He revealed that Zhuang Shu had not yet recognized Lin Huan as his sister and shouldn't, to spare her the cruel truth of how her mother died so unjustly. He then demanded to know who was truly responsible for their family's tragic fate. Director Zhong pressed on, recalling that he had personally witnessed Zhang Shumei holding an aqueous drug, specifically lidocaine, not a powder drug like penicillin, implying their culpability in her death.
He disclosed that he had written a testimony about this and that his wife, Qiao He, knew its whereabouts. With his last reserves of strength, Director Zhong gripped Fu Bowen's hand, pleading with him to finally stand up and reveal the truth. Just as he finished speaking, Director Zhong took his last breath. His dying questions and desperate plea left Fu Bowen deeply tormented by his conscience. The hospital was plunged into profound grief following Director Zhong's death.
Zhuang Shu stood alone on the rooftop where he had last spoken to Director Zhong on the phone, lost in sorrow. Lu Chenxi, with red-rimmed eyes, tenderly wiped Director Zhong's name tag. Chen Shaocong sat blankly on the floor of his office, his gaze empty. Yang Yu tried to comfort him, suggesting they visit Auntie Qiao (Director Zhong's wife) whose health might be affected. Chen Shaocong vehemently refused, overwhelmed by guilt.
He confessed to Yang Yu that Director Zhong had gone to the disaster area in his stead because his own mother had called, and he had wanted to stay behind to focus on his initial mobile platform project to showcase his abilities. He blamed himself entirely for Director Zhong's death, lamenting that he never imagined Director Zhong would go in his place and never return.
Collapsing to his knees in tears, Chen Shaocong declared he was too ashamed to face Director Zhong's family, feeling he deserved their hatred. The relentless stress and lack of rest endured by the medical team during the disaster relief efforts, compounded by Director Zhong's tragic death, pushed everyone to their physical and mental limits.
Yang Yu recounted that Director Zhong had insisted on riding in the equipment bus with the driver, fearing the driver might doze off, and tragically, the accident occurred just a few miles into their journey. She and Lu Chenxi reflected that if they had loaded the buses faster or departed earlier, they might have avoided the landslide. Lu Chenxi, exhausted, expressed her profound weariness, choosing to stay in the office rather than go home, where she knew she would only cry.
