A Smooth Path in Medicine

Chapter 3 System Addition Could it be that Heaven has opened its eyes?

The capital of the frontier, Bird City, has a continental desert climate, scorching hot in summer and freezing cold in winter. Stepping off the train, a wave of heat hits you.

Zhang Fan had contacted the office of Quark County Hospital in advance. The hospital had booked both the train and bus tickets for him—a small employee perk.

The bus was scheduled to depart at 6 PM. Zhang Fan had never traveled far before and didn't dare change routes, worried about getting lost.

He ate some food near the bus station and then rested on a bench in the waiting room.

After boarding the bus, Zhang Fan almost vomited. It was an air-conditioned bus with windows that couldn't be opened. In the sweltering summer heat, the air was thick with various smells—athlete's foot, plus the perfume used by the Uyghurs—the pungent odor made the lamb skewers in his stomach churn several times.

The highway to Quark County was still under construction, the road bumpy and uneven. After a night of jolting, his kidneys felt like they were going to burst.

After a long night, Zhang Fan finally arrived in Kuake County. Wang Hongmei, the director of the hospital's office, greeted him; he was terribly hot.

The county hospital was on the edge of the city, consisting of a four-story building and a small two-story building used as staff dormitories.

Zhang Fan arrived a little later; the other new college graduates had already reported for duty. There were seven people in total, four men and three women. Zhang Fan was the only one single; the others were all in pairs.

These new college graduates were all graduates of different medical colleges in Gansu Province: the affiliated medical college of the Nationalities University, the Traditional Chinese Medicine College, and Zhang Fan's own provincial medical college.

The others had arrived a day or two earlier. Led by Wang Hongmei, the director of the hospital's office, the group went to the dean's office. The dean, Tu, was a Mongolian man who bore a slight resemblance to Putin.

"Finally, all my colleagues are here today! After Zhang Fan settles in, we'll have a welcome party tonight at the Kuake County Hotel restaurant. Welcome to our new colleague who has come from afar," Tu said, beaming.

Then, turning to Wang Hongmei, he said, "Tonight, inform the department heads and head nurses, and then take a few new nurses. Tomorrow is the weekend, so let's take our college students to the grasslands to experience the beauty of Lijiang's grasslands." Tu spoke with confidence and charisma, suggesting he was a rather assertive person.

Zhang Fan and Li Hui shared a dormitory, while Guo Qiliang and Jumabek shared another.

Guo Qiliang was of Xi ethnicity, and Jumabek was of Kazakh ethnicity; both graduated from the Nationalities College. Li Hui graduated from the Traditional Chinese Medicine College (Han ethnicity). His girlfriend from university had moved to Kuake County with him so they could be together.

Since the other students were all taken, Zhang Fan didn't pay much attention, instead focusing on the dean.

Li Hui was tall and thin, and very helpful. He helped Zhang Fan make his bed, using newly purchased hospital bedding.

After making the bed, Li Hui took out a pack of Xue Lian cigarettes, a famous brand from the border region, and offered it to Zhang Fan.

Although he didn't smoke, given it was their first meeting and they would be working and sharing a dormitory, he didn't refuse. Li Hui lit a cigarette for Zhang Fan, sat on his bed, and said, "Brother, you graduated from a 211 university, how come you're stuck here in Guanshanwai?"

"What 211? People from other provinces don't know, but you, a graduate from Lanzhou, surely know. If you don't laugh at me, are you a traditional Chinese medicine doctor or a combination of traditional Chinese and Western medicine?" Zhang Fan replied with a laugh.

"A combination of traditional Chinese and Western medicine, neither. Sigh, it's a headache. When you take the licensing exam, you have to take both, but in practice, it's all Western medicine. And we've only scratched the surface of both."

"It's the same. We Western medicine students are just scratching the surface too."

"Which department are you planning to go to? Yesterday I heard from people at the hospital that all departments are severely understaffed. We don't need to transfer; we can go straight into the department. I'm thinking of going to the department. What about you?"

The county hospital has two departments: one combines respiratory, digestive, and cardiology; the other combines endocrinology and infectious diseases. I don't know what the hospital was thinking, not grouping respiratory and infectious diseases together.

Li Hui had already inquired about the situation yesterday. He wanted to join the department, and if Zhang Fan also went there, he wanted to choose a department Zhang Fan hadn't chosen, even though Zhang Fan was a graduate of a 211 university.

"I want to go to surgery, orthopedics would be best." Zhang Fan's basic skills were average, and the department tested basic skills more than surgery.

After chatting for a while, Guo Qiliang and Jumabiek came in. They chatted for a bit, then Li Hui's friend Wang Sha came in.

"You guys are still chatting? Why haven't you tidied up? Director Wang just called and told us to go downstairs to get ready for lunch. Hurry up." Wang Sha wasn't tall, but her voice was very pleasant.

Upon hearing this, the group hurried downstairs. Two ambulances from the hospital were already parked downstairs at the dormitory building.

Director Wang waved to everyone from the car, "Get in the car, the hospital director has already left."

The car was a Hyundai Elantra, occasionally used by the hospital to pick up leaders, but usually used as the director's private car.

The Quark County Hotel is designated by the county government, so subordinate organizations usually hold banquets there. When Zhang Fan and his group entered, they found several people already seated at the tables in the private room.

The group consisted of recent graduates, lacking social experience and unfamiliar with such events, standing somewhat bewildered at the door.

Tu stood up and smiled at Director Wang, saying, "Our housekeeper, let's start assigning seats. Men, sit separately, in pairs, don't make a mistake!" Everyone chuckled in agreement.

The dishes were served quickly; the cold dishes had barely finished when the hot dishes began to arrive. Since the director hadn't said anything about eating, no one had chopsticks.

After the first hot dish was served, Tu, holding a wine glass, said, "Whether you're a veteran of the hospital or a new college graduate, it's a blessing from heaven that we're all here together today.

I hope the veterans can help the new graduates, and we graduates need to hurry up and integrate into our county hospital family as soon as possible.

Today, with this glass of wine, I welcome the new graduates and wish them success in their work and a fulfilling life." He then downed his wine.

Zhang Fan looked at the glass of wine in his hand, which probably contained an ounce or two, and felt apprehensive. He was a heavy drinker, occasionally having beer but never baijiu (Chinese liquor).

In Quark County, the custom is to drink three glasses of wine before eating. After three glasses, Zhang Fan felt the room begin to spin. He picked up his chopsticks, wanting to take a few bites, but before he could even put them down, everything went black, and he instinctively crawled under the table.

Those present, all medical professionals, weren't in a hurry. They helped Zhang Fan up, checked his pulse, and Li Jun, the head of the department, smiled and said to Tu, "Young man, you're drunk. A little hangover medicine at the hospital will do."

"Looks like our college students haven't quite entered society yet. They need to work hard, and they need to keep up with the drinking too. Xiao Chen, take Zhang Fan to the emergency room first." Xiao Chen was an ambulance driver.

Tu finished speaking and raised his glass again, saying, "Come on, our young men and women, have another drink! The more you drink, the more work you can do!"

That night, all the college students were drunk. Zhang Fan was the first to succumb. Tu and his team had deliberately gotten the students drunk; he believed in the saying that alcohol reveals true character.

Zhang Fan had never drunk baijiu before, and he sobered up quickly because he drank so much. When he woke up, he found himself lying on a bed in the emergency room, surrounded by emergency equipment.

Although he was awake, his head was still incredibly dizzy. He was just about to get up to go to the bathroom when a screen suddenly appeared in front of him, displaying the message: "Binding the Super Medical Assistance System, initiating system data transfer." Zhang Fan's vision blurred, and he fainted again.

(End of Chapter)