Chapter 25

When Tang Feiwan entered the resuscitation room and lifted the curtain, Qian Xiaoli was lying half-upright, breathing rapidly. She observed the heart monitor, her heart rate had dropped to 128 again, so she was also anxious and asked the nurse beside her: “What’s going on?”

The nurse had a hint of complaint in her voice: “She tried to turn over and sit up, saying she wanted her phone.” When people move around, their heart rate tends to increase, which is why it went up to 137 just now.

“Doctor, I’m an author, I only have a few hundred words left to finish my novel. Let me lie down and write for half an hour, and then you can do whatever you want to treat me, okay?” Qian Xiaoli frowned slightly, her attitude resolute.

“I’m a doctor, I don’t care if your novel is finished or not, but I’m responsible for your body.” Tang Feiwan instructed the nurse to put an oxygen mask on Qian Xiaoli and reminded her, “If your blood oxygen saturation doesn’t go up, you’ll have to be intubated and put on a ventilator.”

Qian Xiaoli heard her say that she might need a ventilator and realized the seriousness of the problem. She stopped making a fuss.

Her blood pressure was stable, and her rapid heart rate was due to hypoxia. While she was receiving oxygen, they had to find out why she was having difficulty breathing and why she was hypoxic. Tang Feiwan suddenly remembered what the nurse had said earlier and hurriedly asked: “Xiao Tao, you said she vomited when she drank water?”

The nurse nodded: “Yes, she vomited as soon as she drank it.”

Tang Feiwan pondered for a moment and said: “Please bring another cup of water.”

The nurse was confused but still went to get water. Upon returning, she handed the water cup to the patient, Tang Feiwang, who asked Qian Xiaoli to remove her oxygen mask and try drinking water. Qian Xiaoli took off the mask and carefully sipped the water, but after only two sips, she choked and started coughing uncontrollably. After regaining her composure, she looked up at Tang Feiwang and said with difficulty, “Doctor, I don’t want to drink anymore, it’s uncomfortable to swallow.”

Dysphagia.

Tang Feiwang pursed her lips, searching her mind for diseases that could cause dysphagia and respiratory distress, systematically eliminating each possibility. The patient did occasionally cough, but her blood test was normal, so it wasn’t an infectious pneumonia causing respiratory distress and dysphagia. What about her heart? Some acute cardiac diseases could progress at any time, so Tang Feiwang asked the nurse to take another ECG.

The ECG report came back normal. Tang Feiwang had no choice but to instruct the nurse to take an ECG every half hour to monitor the patient’s condition. She was confident in her knowledge of cardiology, so she didn’t consult with the cardiology department. Acute laryngitis? Could inflammation and edema of the laryngeal mucosa be causing difficulty swallowing and breathing?

Tang Feiwang immediately said, “Prepare for a laryngoscopy.”

The emergency room typically performs simple indirect laryngoscopy to examine the patient’s larynx. Electronic laryngoscopy can only be done in the ENT department, but for checking for laryngitis, indirect laryngoscopy is sufficient. Tang Feiwang put on gloves and went to the front of Qian Xiaoli’s head, receiving disposable visual laryngoscopes and other surgical instruments from the nurse. She leaned slightly forward and asked Qian Xiaoli to open her mouth.

Upon examination, the larynx showed no signs of inflammation or edema, ruling out acute laryngitis. Tang Feiwang consulted with the gastroenterology and respiratory departments, and later Lin Ye also participated in the consultation. They considered conducting tests to rule out esophageal diverticula, esophageal cancer, and lung diseases such as viral pneumonia, fungal pneumonia, and lung cancer.

At 1:30 PM, Tang Feiwang, waiting for the results, sat at her computer searching for relevant medical records, unable to eat.

“Your food is cold,” Lin Ye said as she entered the office from outside, reminding her.

“Oh,” Tang Feiwang glanced at the meal set on the table, scooped up some vegetables and chewed two bites, confirming that it was indeed cold. She put down her spoon, looked up, and continued scrolling through the mouse.

Lin Ye walked to her side with her lunchbox and said softly, “I have a few dumplings left over, corn and shrimp filling. If you like…”

Before she could finish, Tang Feiwang nodded repeatedly, “I like them, I like them.” She took the lunchbox and picked up a dumpling with chopsticks, putting it in her mouth. After finishing one, she smiled with her eyes narrowed into a slit, sincerely praising, “Delicious.”

Lin Ye walked towards her own desk, leaving a light, airy remark, “You have a stomach problem, no matter how busy you are, try to eat on time.”

“Okay, I’ll eat on time from now on!” She’s caring about me, she’s caring about me, only I can eat her dumplings. Tang Feiwang muttered to herself, after finishing 10 dumplings, she felt like she hadn’t eaten enough, whereas before, she would have been full after 7 or 8.

She closed the lunchbox lid and was about to get up to wash it when Lu Yuqing came in with her lunchbox, “Hey, Lin Ye, I finished my spicy noodles and I’m still hungry. Didn’t you say you had a few dumplings left?”

Lin Ye was typing on the computer and replied, “You said you didn’t want them, I saw that Dr. Tang hadn’t eaten lunch, so I let her fill her stomach.”

It turned out she was the last one to be considered. Tang Feiwang’s smile instantly faded, but thinking that the dumplings ended up in her stomach, and what if they were actually made by Lin Ye herself, the curve of her lips involuntarily rose slightly.

“My aunt said you haven’t gone home in a few days, she even called me.” Lin Ye saw her sitting beside her and remembered the phone call she received five minutes ago.

Lu Yuqing was chatting with someone on WeChat and casually replied, “Oh, I’ve been staying at her place lately.”

Lin Ye’s right hand, holding a water cup, paused slightly. She was puzzled in her heart, but her tone was still calm as she asked, “You, every day?”

“What are you thinking? I can’t go there on my night shift, and I don’t want to go on my day shift, it’s too tiring. I only go to her place when I’m off.” Lu Yuqing put down her phone, rolled her eyes, “Oh, the other day, didn’t I save a guy on the road who had a cerebral hemorrhage?”

Lin Ye nodded, “Didn’t he wake up last night?”

“Yeah, he woke up, and this morning he wanted to extort money by claiming he was a victim.” Lu Yuqing picked up her phone and opened WeChat, showing her the chat history, “He called the police, I have to go to the traffic police brigade.”

“Probably he can’t afford the huge medical expenses, so he wants to get some reimbursement from you.” Lin Ye shook her head, she had seen many cases where people saved others but ended up with huge medical bills.

“Yeah, today is the 8th day he’s been in the ICU, and he’ll have to stay for a few more days. Plus the surgery fees, it’s almost 200,000 yuan.” Lu Yuqing got up, waved her hand, “Lin Director, bless me to find evidence, otherwise I’ll be poor for the rest of my life.”

As soon as Lu Yuqing left, Qian Xiaoli’s attending nurse came in with the examination results, “Dr. Tang, Qian Xiaoli’s report.”

“Thank you.” Tang Feiwang took the report and looked at it carefully, Lin Ye also came over.

“Ruled out, ruled out, all ruled out.” Tang Feiwang flipped through the report, relieved but also frowning. If she couldn’t find the cause, how could she completely cure her? The patient couldn’t be on high-flow oxygen forever.

Lin Ye crossed her arms, leaning very close to her because of the report, “This is good news too, at least it rules out the more troublesome lung cancer and esophageal cancer.”

“Yeah, I’ll go talk to her family again.” She suddenly got up from the chair, Lin Ye was caught off guard, and their shoulders collided without warning, hitting Tang Feiwang’s left shoulder, which was painful. Tang Feiwang let out a muffled groan in pain, Lin Ye quickly stepped back, lost her balance, and leaned back. In the next instant, a slender yet powerful arm wrapped around her waist.

“Are you okay?” Tang Feiwang instinctively asked nervously.

“I’m fine.” The two of them were inches apart, and as they spoke, a familiar scent silently flowed between them. Lin Ye realized that her cheeks were unusually warm, she turned her head and took half a step back, the hand hidden under her white coat sleeve unconsciously clenched.

“Oh, okay, I’ll go do my work.” Tang Feiwang’s mind was almost entirely on the patient, Qian Xiaoli. Seeing that Lin Ye had stabilized, she withdrew the hand that had been around her waist, without thinking, she turned and walked out.

The sound of footsteps faded away, Lin Ye returned to her own desk, sat down, and felt the weight of Tang Feiwang’s embrace still lingering around her waist. She swallowed, turned her head and looked in the direction where the other person had left, the emotions in her eyes were complex and obscure, difficult to discern.

Outside the hospital, Lu Yuqing, wearing a striped Hong Kong-style shirt, brown knee-length pencil pants, and large sunglasses, sent a WeChat message to Jiang Mu, but got no reply. She directly called, and it took three consecutive calls before it connected. “Officer Jiang, I’m at the south gate of the hospital, where are you?”

“Behind you.”

Lu Yuqing turned around and saw Jiang Mu, wearing a traffic police uniform and a police helmet, sitting on a police motorcycle in the sunlight, 2 meters away, gesturing for her to come over. Lu Yuqing stood there dumbfounded, this was the first time she saw the other person riding a motorcycle. She couldn’t hear Jiang Mu calling her, only the sound of her own heartbeat in her ears.

“Dr. Lu.” Jiang Mu raised her voice.

“What’s the hurry?” Lu Yuqing walked towards her.

Jiang Mu handed her the helmet, “Here, put it on.”

Lu Yuqing put on the helmet, put her arms around Jiang Mu’s waist, and whispered in her ear, “Officer Jiang, I need to talk to you about something.”

Jiang Mu squeezed the brake, “What?”

Lu Yuqing didn’t feel shy at all, she said directly, “Tonight, can you wear your uniform home? We…”

Jiang Mu flatly refused, “No.”

Lu Yuqing pouted, “Why not? You’re wilder than me.”

Jiang Mu ignored her, released the brake, “Hold on tight, I’m starting the engine.”

In the traffic police brigade office, Jiang Mu pushed the report form to another colleague, “Brother Luo, please help me with this case.”

The male police officer looked up, “What’s wrong? Do you know the perpetrator?”

Lu Yuqing outside the door, without waiting for Jiang Mu to speak, said first, “I don’t know her, and I’m not the perpetrator either.”

“Brother Luo, wait a minute, I’ll go out and explain it to her.” Jiang Mu walked a few steps and closed the office door.

Lu Yuqing took the initiative, “Officer Jiang, I remember that you police officers only need to avoid relatives when investigating cases, right?”

Jiang Mu affirmed, “Yes.”

Lu Yuqing raised an eyebrow, “So what kind of relative am I to you?”

Jiang Mu looked up at her, her brows slightly furrowed, and she didn’t answer.

“Then that’s right, you should continue to be in charge of my case, don’t hand it over to anyone else.” Lu Yuqing sat down on the long bench outside the office door, crossed her legs, looked up at her, and smiled, “Or are you afraid that our relationship will affect your impartial handling of the case?” Their harmonious bedmate relationship had been going on for almost a month, each not interfering with the other’s life, but Lu Yuqing wanted to test Jiang Mu’s heart, whether she could truly separate sex and love.

At least she occasionally felt a little dazed, when Jiang Mu repeatedly bought her takeout, when Jiang Mu cared about her lack of sleep, when Jiang Mu was moved, she called her name again and again…

“Okay, I’ll handle it, wait a minute.” Jiang Mu withdrew her gaze and opened the office door. Unfortunately, Officer Jiang was too cunning, Lu Yuqing couldn’t catch her tail.

Jiang Mu took Lu Yuqing to a room and asked her to fill out the other half of the form first, “You fill it out first, I’ll go get something.”

The door closed gently, Jiang Mu’s phone was left behind, on Lu Yuqing’s right side. Lu Yuqing was about to write when she accidentally saw the words on her phone’s lock screen, “Wise men don’t enter the river of love, if you drown, no one is responsible.”