Chapter 25: Orders
It actually took less than ten minutes to walk from the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department to the director's office, but Huo Mian managed to stretch it to fifteen by walking slowly.
Director Wu Zhongxing was a man of over fifty, with a square face, sharp eyes, and an old-fashioned way of doing things.
Of course, as a nurse intern who had been working at the First Hospital for less than a year, Huo Mian had yet to have the honor of meeting the director in person.
She had only seen him in photographs on the hospital's official webpage. From what she had heard, the director was an outstanding orthopedics professor in his youth.
In addition, he was a visiting professor in Europe many times in the past.
Without realizing it, she arrived outside the director's office. Standing at the door was a fancy man in a crisp suit and gold-rimmed glasses.
"Are you Huo Mian?" the man spoke first.
"Yes."
"The director's waiting for you inside. Head on in."
"Okay." Huo Mian nodded. Then, being slightly anxious, she knocked on the door.
"Come in." A deep, solemn voice rang out from inside.
Huo Mian walked inside to see the director. As expected, he looked pretty much the same as in his photos, and the white physician's lab coat was extremely bright.
Although the director was not yet sixty years old, his hair was already streaked with white, and there were clear wrinkles at the corners of his eyes.
"Are you Huo Mian?" The director began the conversation.
"I am."
"Come and sit down." The director's attitude was surprisingly amicable. This, however, made Huo Mian even more uneasy.
"It's alright, I'll just stand." Huo Mian was still a little withdrawn.
"Don't be afraid. Let's sit down and talk." The director gestured, motioning for Huo Mian to have a seat.
Huo Mian thought that if she were to refuse again, she might appear unreasonable. So, she walked over and sat down gently on the black sofa.
"Here's the thing: I called you here today because I have a very important task for you."
Huo Mian nodded, "Okay, director. Please tell me. As long as it's within the range of my capabilities, I promise I will do my best."
"Yesterday, an official from the capital city of Jing came to inspect C City. However, he suddenly suffered acute cerebral hemorrhaging and was brought into our hospital's most exclusive VIP suite last night. Our medical facilities and equipment aren't really top of the line to begin with. However, the official's condition is dire and he's not stable enough to be transferred to another hospital. With his critical condition, the slightest move can result in severe intracranial hemorrhaging. Therefore, the other executives and I held an emergency meeting and decided to perform the craniotomy here, at this hospital. The surgery will take place three hours from now, and the top neurosurgeons will personally perform the procedure."
After the director had finished, Huo Mian nodded her head. She understood the situation now; it was dire indeed.
Since the official came from Jing City, he or she must hold a highly important position within the government. No wonder the director was taking this matter so seriously.
"Director, is there anything I can do to help?"
"I would like you to be the scrub nurse for this surgery."
At this, Huo Mian immediately objected, "Director, how can you ask that of me? I'm a delivery nurse who works in the OB/GYN Department, and I don't know anything about neurosurgery. You should send someone like the head nurse to assist, not an intern like me. I believe that you must have seen my resume. I'm not a graduate of a famous institution. Rather, I graduated from the advanced nursing program at one of our city's ordinary medical academies."
"I know that," the director replied earnestly.
"If you already know, then why are you giving this task to me? That... that's not a sensible decision," Huo Mian said calmly.