Chapter 65: Yan Na’s Difficulties

Lan Mo first took the bucket and thermos to fetch boiling water. After getting the water, she then took the aluminum lunchbox to the cafeteria to get her meal.

Unexpectedly, this small town hospital cafeteria was actually selling braised hairtail tonight. Lan Mo quickly ordered a portion, along with a serving of bok choy.

About ten or twenty li from Xianshui Town, there was a large dock, and most nearby villagers made their living by fishing. So, it wasn’t surprising that seafood would appear in their cafeteria.

“Doctor Lan, Doctor Lan! You need to come with me right away.” The woman from the pharmacy suddenly ran over.

She hadn’t bathed yet, hadn’t eaten, and now she couldn’t even have a quiet meal.

“Comrade, what’s the matter?”

“The family members of the patient who came with you have arrived. They’re making a huge commotion in the ward. The Hospital Director asked me to call you over.”

What did the family’s arrival have to do with her? She hadn’t even started her shift yet. And all that noise—were they looking for trouble with her? That shouldn’t be the case, right? She was their savior…

“Comrade, I haven’t eaten yet, and the hot water I just fetched is still cooling off.”

“Doctor Lan, the Hospital Director wants you to go check on that factory director. Don’t worry, they’re not here to cause trouble for you.”

Alright then, if that’s the case, she’d go and see what they were up to.

“Then wait here for a moment. I’ll take my meal back to the room and lock the door before coming out.”

After all, she had brought a lot of things with her when she came. Although the social atmosphere was simple and honest in this era, there were always those “bad apples” in every time period.

“Doctor Lan, I have other things to do. You finish up your business and then go directly to the innermost room on the second floor. They’re waiting for you there!”

“Okay!”

Lan Mo returned to her room, tossed the meal she had just gotten into her space, checked the room, locked the door, and made her way to the front courtyard.

When she reached the door of the innermost ward on the second floor, she found it packed with people. Several family members of the patient had come, and even the surgeons and physicians who had arrived with them were there.

What was going on? Was this a family interrogation or a joint consultation by the doctors?

Lan Mo walked in nervously and politely greeted everyone, “Hello, everyone.”

Since she wasn’t required to be on duty today, Lan Mo naturally hadn’t changed into her White Coat.

Suddenly seeing such a beautiful female comrade enter, everyone turned their eyes to Lan Mo.

After giving Lan Mo a sharp glance, Yan Na, the wife of Qiao Xueli, said very impolitely, “Young lady, who are you looking for? Did you come to the wrong room, or are you here just to watch the commotion?”

Small hospitals were just small hospitals—anyone could wander in. Could this young lady be trying to cozy up to her Xueli?

The woman’s unfriendly stare made Lan Mo’s scalp tingle. She thought to herself, does this auntie have some kind of mental problem?

The woman was around fifty years old, with rather plain features and not particularly attractive eyes. Yet, her attire and style were exactly like that of a wealthy lady of this era.

Her yellowish face was covered with a thick layer of white powder. Her hair wasn’t very long, but it was permed into retro waves. She wore a red plaid jacket, carried a tan leather handbag on her wrist, and had on a pair of black leather shoes.

Watching her raised head high and her disdainful gaze towards everyone, was she feeling proud of marrying a good husband, or did she think her outfit was particularly fashionable?

Lan Mo couldn’t appreciate her attire at all; she felt that outfit was downright tacky.

Lan Mo walked forward neither arrogantly nor humbly, speaking slowly: “The Hospital Director sent someone to call me over. I came to see what exactly is going on? If it has nothing to do with me, then I’ll leave first.”

After all, she wasn’t on duty today—why should she endure this humiliation?

Ouyang Zhiqiang walked over and comforted her: “Doctor Lan, please don’t leave just yet. This female comrade is the injured person’s wife.”

As soon as Yan Na heard that Lan Mo was a doctor, an awkward expression immediately appeared on her face. She never expected such a small township to have such a good-looking female doctor.

Qiao Xueli glared fiercely at his wife. Her mother really was something—how could she have arranged such a hot-tempered match for him back then?

Turning his head, he smiled gently at Lan Mo and said: “Comrade Xiao Lan, I’m sorry to trouble you to come all this way for me.”

“Director Qiao, may I ask what you need from me?”

Yan Li interrupted: “What’s wrong with your hospital? The wound—the wound isn’t sutured properly; the fixation—the fixation isn’t done well either. The bone-setting—just look at what you’ve done.

Look at my Xueli—isn’t the wound at the corner of his eye sutured as messily as if a dog chewed it? The fracture probably wasn’t fully reduced before it was bandaged. You should learn more from the First People’s Hospital…”

The on-duty doctor at the township hospital, hearing the family member criticize them like this, couldn’t hide his embarrassment.

Just as he was about to retort, Lan Mo waved her hand, signaling him not to speak yet.

“Comrade, why are you telling me this? This is a township, not a big city. The conditions naturally can’t compare to the First People’s Hospital… But how do you know Director Qiao’s fracture wasn’t fully reduced?”

It was precisely because the medical standards here were lacking that their hospital had sent them to provide support.

Yan Na sneered: “So you’re admitting your skills aren’t up to par? If the reduction were done properly, would it still be so swollen?”

Ouyang Zhiqiang shook his head helplessly and said: “Comrade, didn’t you just say we weren’t professional enough and wanted an orthopedics doctor to come reexamine him? She’s here now, standing right in front of you…”

Doctor Zhu smiled and added: “That’s right, Doctor Lan is an orthopedics doctor from our First People’s Hospital. Among all the doctors present, she has the highest education level—she graduated from a medical university…”

Although these senior doctors had more work experience than her, their education levels weren’t as high.

Yan Li immediately deflated like a punctured ball, never expecting this young woman to have attended university.

Earlier, she had already thrown a fit, shouting and making a scene, and no one dared to talk back. But as soon as this young woman arrived, everyone started opposing her and talking back.

A hint of apology appeared on Qiao Xueli’s face as he said softly: “Doctor Lan, I’m sorry. My wife doesn’t know any better—please don’t mind her words. You, your brother, and these doctors are our saviors. Without you, who knows what would have happened to us today?”

Seeing Director Qiao speak like this, Ouyang Zhiqiang immediately smiled.

“Factory Director Qiao, you’re too kind! If we’re talking about a lifesaver, Doctor Lan is the savior for all of us. If she hadn’t insisted on having the driver pull the bus over today, everyone on our bus might have ended up in the hospital.

If the two vehicles had collided, who knows if any of you would have survived! She was also the one who braved the heavy rain and took the initiative to lead our group to pry open your car door. If you want to thank someone, thank our Doctor Lan!”

Since no one specifically told them that the bus had been deliberately forced to stop, Qiao Xueli naturally didn’t know the full story of what had happened.

These Lan siblings truly were his saviors. A debt of gratitude for saving one’s life is greater than anything, and this favor he acknowledged—he had to find a way to repay it.

Qiao Xueli sincerely expressed his thanks: “Doctor Lan, thank you!”

“Factory Director Qiao, there’s no need to be so polite. Everyone contributed today. If you want to thank someone, you should thank them!”

Upon learning that Lan Mo was her husband’s lifesaver, Yan Na’s attitude suddenly improved considerably.

She forced an awkward smile and said, “Doctor Lan, I spoke carelessly earlier. Please don’t take it to heart. Can we just treat it as if I let out a fart and it’s over?”

To take someone else’s nonsense to heart—wasn’t that foolish? For such a self-important, arrogant, and rude woman, it was best to ignore her. If you didn’t engage with her, she naturally couldn’t act so high and mighty.

“Comrade, rest assured, I haven’t taken it to heart.”

Lan Mo then turned to Qiao Xueli and asked, “Factory Director Qiao, may I ask why you called me over?”

“Could you please check for me whether the fractured area has been fully reset?”

It wasn’t just his wife who doubted the bone-setting skills of the small-town doctor; he himself felt something was off. The doctor who examined him earlier not only lacked proficiency in his movements but also just casually felt around a couple of times before fixing it with pine bark, and the bandaging was loose and sloppy.

Although this small hospital had seven or eight doctors, none of them had graduated with a specialization in orthopedics. When it came to orthopedics, everyone only had a superficial understanding.

Helping him with bone-setting wasn’t a problem, but with so many people around, it would be difficult for her to move freely. Lan Mo said, “Alright, let me take a look for you. If everyone has nothing else to attend to, please step out for now. Just one family member can stay to assist.”

Then she pointed to the female comrade behind Yan Na and said, “You’ll do. Everyone else, please leave.”

Qiao Xue whispered, “Doctor, but I don’t know how to bandage…”

“You’re Factory Director Qiao’s daughter, right? You don’t need to know how to bandage. Just come over and help support your father.”

“Oh…”

Yan Na had originally wanted to stay and help, but seeing that Lan Mo didn’t seem particularly welcoming toward her, she had no choice but to follow the others out of the ward.