Chapter 11: An Unexpected Opportunity to Consult Patients

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Huang Biao was a veteran at Mingde Hall. When the clinic was first established, Ma Hui had recruited him and regarded him as the “face of the clinic.” To make full use of this “face,” Huang Biao’s consulting room was arranged on the ground floor, right by the street, in the outermost corner. The room was designed with an oversized floor-to-ceiling glass window, so when the blinds were opened, the inside was visible from a great distance.

With a deputy senior professional title and a head full of silver hair, just sitting there gave off the aura of an expert traditional Chinese medicine doctor. However, after working alongside him for nearly half a year, Zhang Jing knew clearly that Huang Biao’s only pride was his flawless memorization of the little booklet of “Formulas in Verse.” Whenever he faced patients and prescribed medicines, he would shake his head and chant a passage from it. Then, he’d launch into a complex explanation about the theory of the five elements and their mutual generation and restriction, which sounded impressive but was difficult to understand.

But treating illnesses with traditional Chinese medicine isn’t about bluffing; the key lies in efficacy. The reality proved that Huang Biao’s prescriptions were not very effective. Except for some returning patients for gynecological care, very few came back for follow-ups. Thinking about it, it made sense. If he truly had expertise, he wouldn’t stubbornly cling to the clinic with a deputy chief TCM doctor title, stuck in this half-alive little clinic unwilling to leave.

Therefore, according to the system’s ten-level medical skill ranking, despite claiming decades of clinical experience, Huang Biao’s real skill was at best intermediate. Still, there was one admirable thing about him: he was always the first to arrive at work every day, and since Zhang Jing joined, he had never once taken a day off.

Yet, exceptions exist. Today, upon arriving, Zhang Jing was surprised to find Huang Biao hadn’t shown up yet. To confirm that today wasn’t Huang Biao’s day off, Zhang Jing pulled out his old phone for a quick check. The small screen displayed: Tuesday, October 18, 2022. That was correct! Huang Biao routinely rested every Monday, and since yesterday was his day off, he should be working normally today. For such a diligent person to be nearly late—what was going on?

Just as Zhang Jing pondered, he heard the voice of Gui Cui from the herbal pharmacy nearby. “Dr. Zhang, Dr. Zhang.” Turning toward the voice, he saw Gui Cui waving at him from the medicine dispensing and payment window.

Zhang Jing approached and asked, “Little Cui, what’s up?”

“Sis said you should come to her office first,” Gui Cui replied.

“Did she say what it’s about?” Zhang Jing asked casually.

“Nope, you’ll find out when you get there. What’s wrong—is it that you’re feeling a little guilty?” Gui Cui teased with a smile.

Guilty? Zhang Jing knew exactly what she meant—it was just the fear of being fired.

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After all, Gui Cui, as both pharmacist and cashier, was fully aware of how much business Zhang Jing had generated over the past six months. Actually, that small amount of business was mostly “gifted” to him by Gui Cui deliberately putting his name on the sales when selling medicines.

Yet, this slightly dark-skinned, tall and slender young woman never dreamed that Zhang Jing had already changed beyond recognition.

Zhang Jing smiled confidently, “You’re overthinking it!”

With that, he held his chest high and strode away, leaving a completely baffled Gui Cui behind.

She couldn’t help but wonder: what was going on with Zhang Jing today? Why did he seem a little strange?

Soon, Zhang Jing arrived at the office on the second floor. He extended two fingers and gently knocked on the door.

“Knock, knock, knock.”

“Come in,” came a gentle female voice from inside.

Pushing open the door, he immediately saw Feng Hui sitting behind a large desk, her face kindly and warm.

“Xiao Jing, don’t just stand there like a fool, come sit down,” Ma Hui greeted him enthusiastically.

Zhang Jing found a sofa chair and sat down casually.

“Uh, Xiao Jing, you’ve been with our clinic almost half a year now, right?” Ma Hui asked.

“Yeah,” Zhang Jing nodded slightly.

“How do you feel? Getting used to it?”

“Pretty good,” Zhang Jing nodded again.

This was not an attempt to please but his genuine feeling. Although he had never been given much recognition at work, he had no real conflicts with any colleague. Moreover, prior to this, he had just graduated from university and had almost no clinical experience. Mingde Hall only saw a handful of patients daily, and both doctors Huang Biao and Wang Sen were overwhelmed. So there was no chance for him to attend to patients.

“That’s good to hear. Here’s the thing: Old Huang has been sick these past two days, and today he’s still receiving IV treatment at the hospital.”

“Sick? What’s wrong with Director Huang?” Zhang Jing was slightly taken aback.

“Not really serious, just the flu with a high fever. The fever reducer didn’t work, so he had to go to the hospital.”

The flu?

A deputy chief traditional Chinese medicine doctor needing hospital IV treatment for a simple cold and fever—it would be laughable if this got out. Yet Zhang Jing did not laugh. For a TCM doctor, this was no joke but a sad reality.

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Seeing the sorrow on Zhang Jing’s face, Ma Hui thought he was worried about his colleague’s illness. She quickly reassured him, “Don’t worry, Xiao Jing. Old Huang called me and said he’ll finish the IV treatment today and be back to work tomorrow.”

Then, changing the subject, she said, “Xiao Jing, the reason I called you here is to ask if you can cover for Old Huang today. The notice outside says the internal medicine clinic is closed every Monday, but today is Tuesday. If no doctor is here, it might look bad.”

Hearing this, Zhang Jing’s spirits soared. He was just worrying about having learned all these skills but no chance to use them. Unexpectedly, the opportunity came just like that. The system truly was his lucky angel!

Zhang Jing was so excited that he stammered, “I… I…”

Ma Hui clearly misunderstood and quickly encouraged him, “Xiao Jing, don’t be so lacking in confidence. After all, you have a professional medical license and a bachelor’s degree. Everyone has a first time. Believe in yourself—you’ll be fine.”

By now, Zhang Jing had calmed down and spoke solemnly, word by word: “Sister, I can do it.”

“That’s the spirit! I knew I wasn’t wrong about you!” Ma Hui stood and nodded firmly. “Go now. I’ll talk to Wang Sen later.”

...

After leaving the office, Zhang Jing returned to the herbal pharmacy on the first floor. Just as he entered, he saw Gui Cui, who had been anxiously waiting, quickly approaching.

“Well? How did it go? Is it nothing serious?” Gui Cui asked rapidly, full of concern.

“It’s something,” Zhang Jing replied.

“Ah? They really want to put you on?” Gui Cui’s eyes widened in shock.

“Where did you get that idea? Director Huang is sick and took leave. Sis asked me to cover his internal medicine clinic for the day.”

Zhang Jing deliberately didn’t mention that Huang Biao was hospitalized for IV treatment to avoid further lowering his image in her eyes.

“Wow, that’s great! This is a rare chance to get some hands-on experience. Dr. Zhang, I believe you’ll do great. Good luck!” Gui Cui’s excitement rivaled Zhang Jing’s, and it was clearly heartfelt.

“Thank you!” Zhang Jing responded sincerely.

“Hey, we’re all colleagues. No need to be so polite. Don’t worry, Dr. Zhang, when patients come later, I’ll be sure to recommend you properly,” Gui Cui said joyfully.