Faced with the internal medicine professor’s questioning, Xu Ze lowered his head in shame. This professor had devoted decades to teaching, and his lectures were naturally top-notch. Yet, Xu Ze found himself unable to engage.
After all, everything the professor covered was already too familiar to him. Moreover, some theories presented, limited by current research, contained inaccuracies in finer details from his perspective.
For Xu Ze, even if the professor’s lectures were captivating, they were like reheated leftovers that had gone slightly sour—hardly appealing to anyone.
“So? If you don’t think my lecture is bad, why were you dozing off? I’ve seen you do it more than once. Do you think internal medicine isn’t important?” Seeing the young man finally show a hint of remorse, the professor grew even more indignant. “Don’t you know internal medicine is a fundamental subject you’ll constantly need in the future…?”
Watching Xu Ze’s expression of amused exasperation, his classmates quietly chuckled. They knew Xu Ze’s demonstrated medical skills were already formidable; he likely didn’t need to study these basics as diligently as they did. Given his proficiency, he had probably mastered this material long ago.
Xu Ze watched as the professor continued his stern lecture with an air of deep disappointment. No matter how thick-skinned he was, even his forced smile began to feel stiff and dry.
“Um… Professor…” Xu Ze swallowed hard, interrupting the professor, who was clearly annoyed at being cut off mid-tirade. “Professor, I’ve taken note of your words. I’ll definitely listen attentively from now on…”
It had been a long time since the professor had reprimanded a student like this. He was deeply irritated by the interruption. “I think you’re just saying that. You don’t truly grasp the importance of internal medicine.”
Seeing the professor’s relentless attitude, Xu Ze began to feel annoyed. Sure, dozing off was wrong, but a scolding should suffice—why the endless nagging?
He let the strained smile fade from his face and looked directly at the professor. “Professor… I’ve apologized sincerely and promised not to sleep in your class again. Please continue with the lecture. I truly understand the importance of internal medicine.”
“You… You…” The professor’s temper flared again at Xu Ze’s retort. He glared and said angrily, “You understand? Let’s see how well you understand!”
Seeing Xu Ze’s slightly furrowed brow and impatient expression, the professor felt even more displeased. He snorted, “Since you claim to understand and dare to sleep in my class, I’ll give you a chance.”
“We’ve just covered the chapter on coronary heart disease. I’ll test you on what you’ve learned so far. If you can answer everything correctly, I’ll allow you to sleep or even skip my classes in the future. I won’t deduct any credits.”
Hearing this, Xu Ze felt a flicker of relief. He had grown weary of the tedious routine lately. If the professor kept his word, today’s scolding might not be in vain.
However, the professor wasn’t about to make it easy. Noticing Xu Ze’s hopeful expression, he added coldly, “But if you can’t answer, you must attend every single class from now on, without any lapses in attention. If I catch you distracted even once, you’ll have to retake the course.”
“Ugh…” Xu Ze’s excitement vanished. This old man is cunning, he thought. He set a trap, and I have no choice but to walk into it.
Still, Xu Ze wasn’t overly worried. He had mastered the material long ago. His only concern was mixing in knowledge from the future, which sometimes conflicted with current theories. If he accidentally answered based on future concepts, it could spell trouble.
Seeing the professor’s smug expression and his classmates’ eager anticipation, Xu Ze sighed in resignation. There was no backing out now.
“Alright, Professor. Your test is fair. I accept,” Xu Ze said with a wry smile, his tone tinged with sarcasm.
The professor’s face flushed slightly. They had covered a significant amount of material over the past month. Asking detailed questions to a student who had just started learning seemed somewhat unfair.
He couldn’t help but cough, secretly making up his mind that he would ask about some key points later, making sure not to leave any evidence that he was deliberately making things difficult for the student. He would just ask a few more questions… He didn’t believe the kid could answer them all correctly…
“Good. Now for the first question…”
Xu Ze pursed his lips, raised an eyebrow slightly, sighed softly, and nodded.
Seeing Xu Ze’s resigned expression, the professor felt a surge of satisfaction. He decided to start with something relatively simple, lulling the student into a false sense of confidence.
“What type of fever is commonly seen in lobar pneumonia?” The professor watched Xu Ze, thinking smugly, If you can’t even answer this, you have only yourself to blame.
This was no challenge for Xu Ze. He raised an eyebrow slightly and answered without hesitation, “Continuous fever.”
The professor nodded and continued, “What is the most valuable test for diagnosing obstructive pulmonary emphysema?”
“Pulmonary function tests.”
“What is the most common cause of chronic respiratory failure?”
“Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.”
Seeing Xu Ze answer several questions without hesitation, the professor inwardly acknowledged, I thought this kid wasn’t paying attention and hadn’t learned anything, but he seems to know his stuff. These aren’t the hardest questions, but without proper study, most students would struggle.
Still, he wasn’t about to let a student sleep in his class—not just for the sake of discipline, but for his own pride.
He thought for a moment and posed a slightly harder question: “What are the three major clinical manifestations of portal hypertension?”
Xu Ze knew this well. If he couldn’t answer such a fundamental question, what kind of doctor would he be? He replied confidently, “Splenomegaly, ascites, and the establishment and opening of collateral circulation.”
Seeing Xu Ze answer effortlessly, the hundred or so students in the classroom were impressed. Xu Ze is truly Xu Ze, they thought. He doesn’t even need to think—he just knows. His familiarity with this material is extraordinary.
The professor glanced at Xu Ze’s calm, composed expression and frowned slightly. This kid really knows his stuff. He might not be the slacker I thought. But he wasn’t ready to let Xu Ze off the hook yet.
I need something harder. Let’s see how he handles this. How about a case analysis? I doubt he can apply his knowledge so flexibly this early on. After a moment’s thought, the professor asked, “Female, 40 years old. Has coughed since childhood, often worsening with colds, with yellow sputum. Yesterday, she suddenly coughed up 100ml of fresh blood. What is the possible cause?”
He watched Xu Ze closely. Case analysis questions like this were tricky—one slight misstep could lead to a completely wrong answer.
Seeing the professor’s scrutinizing gaze, Xu Ze smiled faintly. For other students, this might be a challenging analysis, but for someone with extensive clinical experience like him, it was almost too easy.
“The patient has a long history of coughing since childhood, often worsening with colds and producing yellow sputum. This suggests chronic bronchitis. The sudden onset of significant hemoptysis points strongly toward bronchiectasis.” Xu Ze calmly analyzed the details, his explanation met with nods from his classmates.
They had been pondering the question themselves, but Xu Ze’s swift and clear analysis made everything click. Xu Ze is really impressive, they thought. His reasoning aligns perfectly with the textbook.
The professor was taken aback. While this question wasn’t difficult for most doctors, it was quite challenging for students just starting internal medicine. He had expected Xu Ze to take much longer to answer, if he could answer at all. Yet, Xu Ze had responded in seconds, even providing a detailed analysis. This was astonishing.
How did he answer so easily and so quickly? The professor wondered, feeling a bit dazed. Am I getting old, or are young people just too sharp these days?
Noticing the professor’s distracted expression, Xu Ze raised an eyebrow and couldn’t help but say, “Professor… may we proceed to the next question?”
“Ahem…” The professor snapped back to reality, aware of the curious eyes around him. He cleared his throat to hide his embarrassment. “Yes, well done. Next question…”
“How many types of tuberculosis are there, and what are the clinical diagnostic criteria?” Seeing that case analysis couldn’t stump Xu Ze, the professor shifted to broader, comprehensive questions.
“Tuberculosis is generally classified into primary tuberculosis, hematogenous disseminated tuberculosis, infiltrative tuberculosis, spreading tuberculosis, and chronic fibrocavitary tuberculosis.”
Xu Ze paused briefly before continuing, “For clinical diagnosis: First, sputum smear: examining the patient’s sputum under a microscope to detect positive or negative results. Second, X-ray examination: not only can it detect tuberculosis early, but it also helps determine the lesion’s location, extent, nature, progression, and treatment response. Third, a positive tuberculin test indicates tuberculosis infection but not necessarily active disease. A positive reaction at a low dilution often suggests active tuberculosis lesions.”
Hearing this, the professor’s eyes lit up. He had finally found a mistake—and a significant one at that.
Relieved, he said with a hint of triumph, “Xu Ze, you’ve answered this one incorrectly. I’m surprised you’d get such a basic question wrong.”
“Wrong?” Xu Ze was taken aback. He replayed his answer in his mind and suddenly realized his error. Oh no…
Regarding the classification of tuberculosis, he had listed five types. While not technically incorrect, current textbooks only recognized four. “Spreading tuberculosis” wasn’t included yet.
He had learned about the fifth type from Xiao Dao. Although international medical organizations had recently adopted this classification, it was still new in China, with experts currently studying it. Domestically, the four-type classification was still the standard.
Seeing Xu Ze’s realization dawn, the professor said smugly, “Well? Admit defeat. Focus on your studies from now on, and no more sleeping in class. If I catch you dozing off again, you’ll retake the course.”
By now, the professor’s anger had subsided. He no longer saw Xu Ze as a troublesome student but was simply trying to save face by challenging him. His warning was more about maintaining discipline than true severity.
The classmates felt a mix of disappointment and sympathy. They had been rooting for Xu Ze to triumph over the professor, only to see him stumble on what seemed like a basic detail. Some, however, who had always been envious of Xu Ze, felt a surge of schadenfreude. Xu Ze often dozes off in class. Asking him to stay awake in internal medicine is nearly impossible. Now he’ll likely have to retake the course. Imagine the top student on the leaderboard having to repeat a subject—how satisfying.
Xu Ze, however, wasn’t ready to give up. The prospect of being excused from these tedious classes was too appealing. Sitting through lectures without dozing off, under the constant threat of retaking the course, was unbearable.
With a resigned sigh, he looked up at the professor and said, “Professor… I believe my answer was correct.”
The entire class fell silent, staring at Xu Ze in disbelief. Correct? How could it be? The textbook clearly states otherwise. Does Xu Ze think he knows better than the book?
Hah, still trying to squirm your way out? Who do you think you are? The professor won’t be fooled, some thought disdainfully.
The professor was equally stunned. Seeing Xu Ze’s serious expression, he couldn’t help but laugh. “Young man, if you’re worried about retaking the course, I can make an exception. Just pay a bit more attention in class. An occasional mistake is forgivable. You might not have to retake it.”
Hearing this, most students felt relieved for Xu Ze. Aside from a few envious individuals, Xu Ze was widely respected and liked.
Those who had been gloating inwardly grumbled, This old professor is going back on his word. What a letdown.
Everyone assumed Xu Ze would let the matter drop and graciously accept the compromise. But Xu Ze wasn’t interested in saving face through the professor’s leniency. It would feel like a hollow victory.
Instead, he smiled and said, “Professor, have you read the recent issues of the National Medical Journal? The international medical community has recently reclassified tuberculosis into five types. China has also begun to recognize this classification, though our textbooks haven’t been updated yet. I believe the next edition will include all five types.”
The professor was taken aback. He regularly read the National Medical Journal, a respected publication featuring the latest medical advancements, though he hadn’t kept up with recent issues. However, he vaguely recalled a discussion about new developments in tuberculosis classification during a recent department meeting, though he hadn’t paid much attention at the time.
Now that Xu Ze mentioned it, it clicked. That must be what they were talking about.
The other students exchanged doubtful glances. Is Xu Ze making this up?
Despite their skepticism, the professor’s eyes lit up with appreciation. Not only was this student proficient in internal medicine, but he also kept up with academic journals. No wonder he stood out so remarkably.
He nodded approvingly. “Indeed, I believe you’re right about that.”
