Surgeons Episode 8 Recap
> Surgeons Recap
Chu Jun examined a patient, Xiao Zheng, who presented with pneumothorax requiring closed chest tube drainage. As Chu Jun prepared to call Dr. Zhang, Lu Chenxi returned from surgery, vibrant and energetic. Lu Chenxi encouraged Chu Jun to perform the procedure herself, reminding her that it was a fundamental skill for a resident, especially one with three years of training like Chu Jun. Despite her hesitation, Chu Jun relented.
Meanwhile, Lu Chenxi received an urgent call from the emergency center about a critical case: a six-year-old boy who had fallen from a third-story building, suffering multiple fractures and shock. His mother had also fallen, having sustained natural gas poisoning. Paramedics reported that the mother had deliberately opened the gas and, in a delirious state, embraced her child and jumped. Lu Chenxi immediately took charge, mobilizing neurosurgery, pediatrics, orthopedics, radiology, and the laboratory to prepare for the incoming patients.
She also instructed Nurse Yang Yu to retrieve the mother's past medical records, which revealed a mediastinal tumor excision five years prior that, despite being benign, had left her with persistent and unexplained chest pain. The child's father, now divorced and residing in the UK, had been contacted and was arranging his return. With these urgent instructions, Lu Chenxi rushed to the emergency ward.
Later that night, Dean Fu unexpectedly visited Yang Fan, confronting him about arranging the day's reporter interview. Yang Fan denied making special arrangements, claiming the television station had simply approached him for an interview about the successful lung transplant, which he viewed as an opportunity to showcase Renhe Hospital's surgical expertise. He then subtly implied that Dean Fu's anger stemmed from questions the reporters might have asked.
Dean Fu, visibly agitated, pushed Yang Fan, accusing him of ulterior motives, especially since the reporters were asking to see the surgery video. He reminded Yang Fan that he was nearing retirement and would no longer pose a threat, clarifying that his decision to reassign Lu Chenxi to the operating room was solely out of appreciation for her talent, not to undermine Yang Fan's authority.
He asked Yang Fan to show respect for his elders and allow him a peaceful retirement. Yang Fan, feigning innocence, questioned why Dean Fu suspected him of hidden agendas. Dean Fu then confessed his reluctance to publicly acknowledge that Zhuang Shu had performed the critical portions of the lung transplant, fearing it would expose his own declining surgical capabilities and his unsuitability to continue as Dean.
Yang Fan, pretending to be surprised by these "rumors," pressed Dean Fu further, asking why he simply didn't tell the truth. Dean Fu, overcome by pride and refusing to accept his age and illness, declared that he would formally submit his request for early retirement within a few days, challenging Yang Fan if he was "satisfied now." At Lu Chenxi's apartment, Zhuang Shu arrived to move in.
Chen Shaocong warmly welcomed him, helping him unpack and expressing Lu Chenxi's excitement, despite her being on night duty. Zhuang Shu remarked on Lu Chenxi's surgical skill but noted her volatile temper. Chen Shaocong explained that her temper had been indulged by Dean Fu, not only because of her talent but also due to a tragic past.
He revealed that Lu Chenxi was born in June 1984, and on that very day, her father died in a medical accident that resulted in a malpractice case. Both Lu Chenxi and her mother survived, and since then, the hospital's senior doctors, including Dean Fu, had taken special care of her.
This revelation deeply disturbed Zhuang Shu, who immediately connected the dates and circumstances to the medical tragedy involving Lu Zhonghe, the patient whose death was linked to his own family's past. Distraught, Zhuang Shu abruptly left the apartment, telling Chen Shaocong he needed to check on a post-operative patient. As he drove frantically back to the hospital, a flood of painful memories overwhelmed him: his mother's desperate cries of innocence, "Lu Zhonghe wasn't killed by me!
I really didn't inject the wrong drug!" ; the childhood fight where he was accused of his mother being a killer, leading to the loss of his younger sister, Nan Nan; and the devastating image of his mother's suicide. Tears streamed down his face as he pulled up to the Out-Patient Building. He found Lu Chenxi still working diligently in the emergency room, his gaze fixed on her. Lu Chenxi, finishing her swing shift, encountered Zhuang Shu in the hallway.
She noticed an unusual tenderness in his voice but remained oblivious to the profound emotional burden he carried. Happily, she suggested they go home together. As they prepared to leave, Lu Chenxi realized her car wouldn't start due to forgotten headlights, and she only had one parking space, making it impossible for Zhuang Shu to park his rental car. They decided to walk the five kilometers home.
Along the way, Lu Chenxi profusely apologized for the inconvenience, leading Zhuang Shu to ask if she was always so determined not to owe favors. She explained that her father's early death and her mother's struggles meant she was often cared for by neighbors. This fostered a strong independence and a desire to avoid burdening others.
She added that her mother, fearing a psychological imbalance, taught her to see the world as simple and wonderful, which made her "hate evil as one hates one's enemy" when confronting injustice. She also shared that her mother never pursued legal action for her father's death, consistently describing it as an "unintentional mistake." During their walk, Yang Fan called Zhuang Shu regarding the massive hemoptysis patient, Zhang Gencai.
The patient's son refused to sign discharge papers for home chemotherapy unless Zhuang Shu or Yang Fan personally explained the plan. Zhuang Shu agreed to speak with him the next day. Lu Chenxi, having overheard some of the conversation, questioned Zhuang Shu about Yang Fan's proposed remote chemotherapy plan, which involved Renhe designing the treatment and remotely monitoring the patient while local hospitals administered it.
Lu Chenxi immediately suspected Yang Fan of ulterior motives, criticizing the "business model" approach to medicine. Zhuang Shu countered that if the outcome was good for the patient, personal benefit was secondary. Unable to agree, Lu Chenxi angrily walked away, returning home and venting her frustrations on Chen Shaocong. At the hospital, the pneumothorax patient, Xiao Zheng, was visited by his girlfriend. She approached Chu Jun for an update.
Chu Jun, attempting to be helpful, inadvertently revealed that Xiao Zheng's pneumothorax was likely caused by moving heavy objects for a delivery company the previous night—a fact that shocked his girlfriend, who believed he was with his professor. Realizing she had "talked too much again," Chu Jun was mortified as the girlfriend stormed off to confront Xiao Zheng.
The next morning, Xiao Zheng, agitated and still recovering, emerged from his room, loudly demanding to speak with Chu Jun, whom he blamed for exposing his secret and causing problems with his girlfriend. Chu Jun, frightened, hid inside her office. That morning, after her argument with Zhuang Shu, Lu Chenxi, feeling remorseful, made breakfast for Chen Shaocong and Zhuang Shu. Chen Shaocong teased her about her tempestuous relationship with Zhuang Shu, noting their frequent arguments and subsequent reconciliations.
Lu Chenxi explained that she often gets angry at Zhuang Shu but later realizes her own fault. She recounted how Zhuang Shu had insisted on walking her home the previous night, and they had a pleasant conversation until Yang Fan's call about Zhang Gencai shifted the atmosphere, leading to another argument over Yang Fan's true intentions.
Later, at the emergency room, Zhao Liwu, the brother of a patient from the previous day's brawl, arrived with a basket of breakfast as a token of gratitude for the ER staff. Nurse Yang Yu readily accepted it. Lu Chenxi, observing the gesture, wondered aloud if Zhuang Shu would accept such a gift. Yang Yu playfully teased her about having a crush on Zhuang Shu. Lu Chenxi vehemently denied it, declaring, "Who has a crush on him? When did I ever do crushes? I always just pounce on them!" Just then, her phone rang, and it was Zhuang Shu.
