“Xu Ze…” Hearing that familiar voice and feeling that familiar sense, Xu Ze’s hand trembled slightly. He sighed softly, then slowly turned around. His clear gaze, like a gentle breeze, fell upon Zhang Linyun, a hint of inquiry in his eyes.
“What… what should we do?” Looking at those eyes, so much clearer and brighter than before, Zhang Linyun looked hopefully at this familiar yet unfamiliar person, a pleading look in her own eyes.
Following Zhang Linyun’s words, Zhang’s mother’s gaze also turned to Xu Ze. She now understood quite clearly what position this young man held here, and she could also tell from the way the two directors responded to his opinions that they were seriously considering what he had to say.
Since he was her daughter’s ex-boyfriend, and her daughter could even turn to him for help now, this young man was probably trustworthy.
So, Zhang’s mother also looked at this handsome young man with a hint of hope, wishing he could offer some good advice to help her make a decision.
Hearing this family member suddenly ask Xu Ze for advice, Zhang Li De and Zhang Jiangyou were both startled. They looked up at Xu Ze, and seeing his expression, which showed no surprise at all, both were inwardly shocked. So Xu Ze actually knew this patient’s daughter, and they seemed to have a fairly close relationship.
However, Zhang Li De quickly reacted and gave a soft cough.
As an experienced senior physician and head of the Internal Medicine Department, Zhang Li De now had to remind Xu Ze that while wearing his work coat and standing here, he represented the hospital. At this moment, he absolutely could not casually help the family make a decision.
Xu Ze could offer reminders or help analyze the situation, but he absolutely could not make the decision directly. The current medical environment was extremely harsh. If Xu Ze said something like surgery was necessary, and if the surgery unfortunately failed and the patient died on the table, and if the family turned out to be unreasonable, they could easily accuse the hospital of encouraging them to choose surgery and demand that the hospital take responsibility if something went wrong.
Although the First Affiliated Hospital was never afraid of medical disputes or lawsuits, that didn’t mean they weren’t afraid of the hassle…
Furthermore, Zhang Li De didn’t know exactly what the relationship was between Xu Ze and these family members, but it probably wasn’t overly close. So Xu Ze shouldn’t easily help them decide. If he spoke and influenced their decision, and nothing went wrong, fine. But if problems arose later, even if the family didn’t cause trouble for the hospital, they might still hold a grudge against Xu Ze for helping them make the wrong choice.
It was best to avoid such thankless tasks… So, out of concern for Xu Ze, Zhang Li De quickly responded, reminding him.
Hearing that soft cough beside him, Xu Ze smiled faintly, which quickly put Zhang Li De at ease. Xu Ze was not an ordinary person; that smile was enough…
Seeing the faint smile appear at the corner of Xu Ze’s mouth – not mocking, not proud, just a sign of understanding – the awkwardness Zhang Linyun had felt in her heart finally vanished. She gathered her courage and asked again hopefully: “A Ze… you’re… a doctor. What do you think we should do?”
Xu Ze’s eyelids fluttered slightly. He looked at Zhang Linyun and finally spoke: “In this situation, as Director Zhang said, none of us really know which choice is best, because both carry risks…”
“Surgery can solve the problem quickly, but relatively speaking, the risk is also greater. Life or death hangs in the balance. Continuing conservative treatment depends on the future effect. If things don’t improve, then your father will have difficulty waking up, and there’s always the risk of sudden cardiac arrest…”
“All of this depends on your father’s own luck… So, I can’t really say which is better, because I can’t make the decision for you,” Xu Ze said. Indeed… although he personally leaned towards surgery, the risk of surgery in this situation was extremely high. Even though the condition could greatly improve if the surgery was completed, Xu Ze couldn’t guarantee that Zhang Lizhi, in his current state, could hold on until the surgery was finished.
So, just like Zhang Li De and Zhang Jiangyou, Xu Ze couldn’t make the decision for them. After all, this was a matter of life and death; only the closest family had the right to choose…
Hearing Xu Ze’s words, looking at his still warm but no longer intensely loving and caring gaze like before,
Zhang Linyun sighed softly, then looked at her mother. A glimmer of tears appeared in her eyes, whether for her father… or for something else…
Unsurprisingly, Zhang Linyun and her mother chose conservative treatment. They couldn’t bring themselves to bet their dearest family member’s life on this one surgery. Since conservative treatment still held hope, most people wouldn’t choose such a dangerous path.
Xu Ze walked slowly down the corridor. He checked the time; it was almost noon, just about time for lunch.
He was about to head to Zhang Li De’s office to take off his work coat when a soft call came from not too far away: “A Ze…”
Hearing this voice, Xu Ze was slightly startled, then sighed softly. He slowly turned around and looked at Zhang Linyun, who seemed in much better spirits than in the morning but still somewhat haggard. He showed a faint smile: “Long time no see. I never expected to meet you here.”
“Yeah… I never expected it either…” A hint of gloom crossed Zhang Linyun’s face. She walked over and stood in front of Xu Ze, smiling as she asked: “Have you been doing well lately?”
“Pretty well…” Xu Ze nodded gently. Looking at her gloomy expression, he smiled lightly and comforted her: “Don’t worry too much. A good man has good fortune. Your father will be okay…”
“Xu Ze, thank you…” Zhang Linyun looked up at Xu Ze and realized that in this past year or so, he had grown taller again. Before, he was only three or four centimeters taller than her, but now she seemed only to reach up to his ear.
“You’ve grown taller again…” Zhang Linyun’s voice was full of melancholy.
“Yeah… I’ve been exercising quite a bit lately. I guess I’ve grown some more…” Xu Ze instinctively lowered his head slightly, looking at Zhang Linyun’s eyes as she looked up at him, and said with a faint smile.
Looking into those familiar, clear eyes, Zhang Linyun suddenly felt a pang in her nose. She quickly turned her head away, gazing towards the distant door. It was a long while before she turned back to look at Xu Ze and asked: “Xu Ze… do you think my dad… still has hope?”
Seeing the redness in Zhang Linyun’s eyes after she finally turned back, Xu Ze’s lingering resentment towards her over these many months faded considerably. Thinking back, he realized he had been so focused on working to earn a living during his student days. Perhaps he really hadn’t been a qualified boyfriend…
