Chapter 145: I Wasn't Lying

When the crowd heard the girl’s answer, they all broke into kind smiles.

To these doctors from various departments, how could a surgery possibly be related to a simple technique of pressing on the chest?

In their eyes, Su Chen’s preoperative chest pressing was nothing more than a mere touch on the elderly man’s chest—barely even an emergency measure.

The doctors from traditional Chinese medicine were overthinking it.

Everyone turned their gaze toward Elder Shen, waiting for him to refute the girl’s answer and then provide the standard explanation.

Indeed, they had all given up on finding the answer themselves. After all, in their view, even surgery wasn’t the key to curing the patient—so what else could be?

While anticipating the answer, they were also preparing to counter Elder Shen’s forthcoming words. These were not mere wage slaves in a private enterprise; they were hospital doctors. The most frequent lesson Elder Shen imparted was to approach every problem with a dialectical perspective.

Meanwhile, the girl from the traditional Chinese medicine department standing before them now felt a twinge of regret.

She regretted standing up so hastily. If even the surgeons, who were well-versed in operations, hadn’t answered correctly, how could she have possibly guessed right?

Yet, as the girl replayed the scene of Su Chen pressing on the old man’s chest in her mind, she also heard the words her barefoot doctor grandfather had spoken when she was admitted to medical school.

“My dear little one, Grandpa knows you dream of becoming a doctor and that you want to study Western medicine—but our ancient roots must not be lost!”

“Western medicine acts quickly, saving lives with science. To Western doctors, everyone is pretty much the same, a generic model—so they don’t consider meridians or prescriptions; their goal is simply to save the person.”

“But traditional Chinese medicine is different. To TCM practitioners, every individual is unique, just like no two leaves in the world are identical.”

“TCM healing involves looking, listening, questioning, and palpating, treating from within to balance the patient’s condition. Though slower to show effects, it is the gentlest way to heal. Unlike Western medicine’s focus on saving lives, TCM’s aim is more about curing the illness.”

At that time, the girl had asked innocently, “If Western medicine saves lives faster, why do we still need Chinese medicine? And Western surgical techniques are so advanced; why doesn’t TCM have such a legacy?”

Her rare question made her kind, gentle grandfather glare at her in mock scolding for the first time.

“Who says we don’t? When Grandpa was young and followed his master on the road, he heard that Chinese medicine used to perform surgeries—very well, in fact. Thousands of years ago, there were sophisticated techniques far earlier than the modern surgeries developed by Western medicine!”

The memory of her grandfather’s words startled the girl. She replied, “Grandpa, you must be exaggerating! Thousands of years ago, there were no X-rays or such equipment. How could anyone possibly perform surgery without seeing inside the body?”

“TCM doesn’t rely on X-rays. They have a special technique—just by touching you, they can clearly feel your internal organs, bones, and meridians—clearer than any X-ray!”

Her grandfather’s proud smile lasted barely two seconds before turning into a deep sigh.

“Alas… the most precious legacies left by the ancients have been lost, the knowledge broken and nowhere to be found…”

Seeing her grandfather’s wistful expression, the girl smiled warmly and said, “Grandpa, then I will study traditional Chinese medicine and pass down these precious treasures for future generations, alright?”

“All right, all right, as expected of Grandpa’s favorite little girl!”

...

These scenes played in the girl’s mind, causing her to purse her lips.

It was her grandfather who had led her onto the path of traditional Chinese medicine. To be honest, she had once complained during university that TCM was not favored in the medical field, always looked down upon by Western medicine.

But as she matured and entered society, she came to understand that both TCM and Western medicine were the same in their purpose: healing and saving lives. There was no hierarchy of superiority.

Though there might be differences in salary and treatment, she never minded.

This sentiment only deepened after her grandfather passed away two years ago.

No contention, no rivalry—only the desire to pass on the legacy. This not only reflected the current state of TCM but had been etched deeply into her heart.

Yet today, faced with a technique that seemed to be a lost heritage of ancient TCM, the girl felt a rare surge of excitement.

This excitement came not only because she saw a lost tradition but because she realized her grandfather had never deceived her.

Traditional Chinese medicine could perform surgery—perhaps even better than some surgical experts.

Thinking this, the girl’s timid gaze grew steadily more confident. She stood calmly before the seat, quietly awaiting Elder Shen’s response.

At that moment, all eyes also fixed on Elder Shen, expecting him to offer a dismissive reply.

But instead, they saw Elder Shen wear a satisfied smile and nod approvingly at the girl.

“The young lady from the TCM department is correct. The fundamental reason Mr. Su saved the elderly man was precisely because of the chest-pressing technique he used before surgery.”

Elder Shen’s words caused an uproar in the conference room. No one had expected him to attribute the success of such a textbook-level surgery to a simple chest-pressing method.

The surgeons were the first to lose their composure. They exchanged glances before the most senior among them stood up and asked, “Elder Shen, why do you say that the success of this surgery was due to that pressing technique? What’s the reasoning behind this?”

The question carried doubt, directed at Elder Shen.

Yet Elder Shen was unperturbed. With a cheerful smile, he replied, “Explaining this technique to you all is a bit complicated. How about I pose another question for you to ponder?”

“The question is... how did Mr. Su manage to perform a perfect surgery in such an environment?”

Upon hearing this, the surgeon answered without hesitation, “That must be because Mr. Su’s medical skill is superb, and he has rich experience handling this kind of surgery.”

Elder Shen nodded but before the surgeon could smile confidently, he continued.

“However, what you said is only part of the story; it misses the crucial point.”

“Here’s a hint: Mr. Su did not perform any X-ray examination on the patient before the operation.”

At these words, the surgeon was about to blurt out that it was just luck.

But in medicine, nothing is more unconvincing than luck.