Chapter 700: Chapter 699: Powerless to Help

A little after eight in the evening, Mr. Hou, the director of the Affiliated Hospital, arrived at a private room in Luo’s Private Kitchen and pushed the door open.

He saw Liao Guilin sitting in the host’s seat, Ren Zhongyuan next to him, and a young man he didn’t recognize.

"My apologies. I had a lot to deal with, so I’m late."

Mr. Hou exchanged a few pleasantries with Liao Guilin and the others who had stood up to greet him, then took the seat of honor without hesitation.

"Mr. Liao, has your son’s leg injury completely healed?"

"Yes, completely!"

Liao Guilin took the teapot from the young man. While pouring tea for Mr. Hou, he explained, "The stubborn leg pain that had been bothering him for three years is really gone. He’s undergoing physical therapy now."

"I have you to thank for the recommendation back then, Mr. Hou. It’s because of you that Mr. Yan agreed to treat my younger son, Zili."

Mr. Hou smiled faintly. "Don’t thank me. If you’re going to thank anyone, thank Mr. Yan. He’s a true genius. He’s never failed to successfully treat a patient he’s taken on."

He then turned his gaze to Ren Zhongyuan and asked, "How is Xiaobao recovering?"

Ren Zhongyuan replied with a smile, "He’s made a full recovery."

"His weight is back to normal, and he’s even grown another centimeter. He’s made new friends at school and has become much more cheerful and active."

Mr. Hou nodded and smiled. "Once the root of the illness is gone, the pituitary gland is no longer suppressed. Hormone secretion returns to normal, so it’s only natural for him to experience compensatory growth."

"Xiaobao is still young, after all. Given your family’s resources, after a year or two of proper care and recuperation, his physical development won’t be any worse than other kids his age."

Ren Zhongyuan said hopefully, "That’s exactly what we’re hoping for."

He then added with a sigh, "We were so fortunate that Mr. Yan was bold and skilled, achieving a Miraculous Recovery and sparing Xiaobao from any more harm."

Mr. Hou, looking quite proud, said, "Mr. Yan is trustworthy. No matter how complicated the illness, if he takes the case, he’ll cure it."

He picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and asked Liao Guilin, "And how is your older son’s recovery coming along?"

At this, Liao Guilin’s face fell, and he let out a long sigh.

"Did something go wrong?" Mr. Hou asked, a little surprised.

Liao Guilin sighed again. "Nothing went wrong, exactly. His physical injuries are mostly healed, it’s just..."

He said with a pained expression, "Half of his nose was sliced off, and a piece of his upper lip was cut away. More than ten days have passed, and he still hasn’t had the reconstructive surgery."

Mr. Hou let out a soft "Oh" and said lightly, "Top foreign plastic surgeons have tight schedules. And they don’t work overtime on weekends."

"You just have to be patient and wait."

Liao Guilin let out another breath. "That’s not the reason. Through some referrals, we contacted three well-known plastic surgeons one after another, but..."

"My son, Ziqiang, wasn’t satisfied with the post-operative results they showed him, so it’s been delayed until now."

Mr. Hou said "Oh" again, then smiled. "He’s a young man, and unmarried at that. It’s understandable that he’d be particularly concerned about his appearance."

"You should try to persuade him a bit. With an injury of this severity, it’s almost impossible to restore it to how it was before. A few minor imperfections are inevitable."

Just then, the waiter began to bring in the dishes...

After several rounds of food and drinks, Liao Guilin finally revealed the true purpose of his dinner invitation to Mr. Hou.

"Mr. Hou, the reason my son, Ziqiang, is unsatisfied with the post-op results shown by those foreign plastic surgeons is that he has a specific surgical case he’s using as a benchmark."

Hearing this, Mr. Hou asked bluntly, "This surgical case... it wouldn’t happen to be one of Mr. Yan’s, would it?"

Liao Guilin said with an embarrassed expression, "It is, in fact, Mr. Yan’s."

He elaborated, "It was a little girl from an orphanage. Her nose was also destroyed by an injury, and she had lost her memory."

"Mr. Yan reconstructed her nose, she was even on TV, and then her family saw her and they were finally reunited."

Liao Guilin gloomily took a sip of red wine and continued, "That stubborn brat Ziqiang is throwing a fit. He’s showing the before-and-after photos of that little girl to the plastic surgeons and demanding that his own results be at least as good as hers."

Mr. Hou asked for confirmation, "So the three plastic surgeons you hired backed off when they saw how difficult it would be?"

Liao Guilin nodded sheepishly.

"You want to ask Mr. Yan to do it?"

Liao Guilin nodded again and said with a pleading expression, "I hope you’ll put in a good word for us, Mr. Hou!"

Mr. Hou couldn’t help but let out a short, dry laugh. "Mr. Liao, your son’s attitude toward Mr. Yan has never been very respectful, has it."

Liao Guilin criticized himself, "That brat Ziqiang is young and arrogant. Plus, my discipline has been too lax, so he’s a bit lacking in manners."

"But I can’t just let him live his whole life with a flawed nose at such a young age, can I?"

"Mr. Hou, they say doctors have the hearts of parents. I’m begging you to help mediate."

Mr. Hou said with a troubled expression, "Mr. Liao, it’s not that I’m unwilling to help you. If you had come to me right after the accident to ask for my help, I wouldn’t have refused."

"But, even knowing that Mr. Yan is also a top-tier master of plastic surgery, you still sent your son abroad for treatment."

"Isn’t that a clear sign that you don’t trust Mr. Yan?"

"And now you’ve come full circle and are back to begging Mr. Yan?"

Mr. Hou snorted twice and said bluntly, "Even I feel a little offended."

"It’s our fault, it’s our fault."

Liao Guilin stood up and bowed slightly. "It was our own small-mindedness. We were overly cautious and ended up missing our chance with Mr. Yan, choosing a distant and inferior option by going abroad."

At this point, Ren Zhongyuan chimed in, "There’s another reason: a bit of a blind worship of foreign things. They didn’t understand the level of medical care in our own country, just like me in the beginning."

"In the end, after running around in circles, the problem was solved right here at home by Mr. Yan and Dr. Qiu. But a lot of time was wasted, and Xiaobao had to suffer a great deal."

Ren Zhongyuan added his support, "Mr. Hou, this experience has been enough for Mr. Liao and his son, just like me, to recognize their own biases and misunderstandings. They now understand that the medical standards in our country are no worse than those abroad—in fact, they’re even better in some ways."

Liao Guilin quickly agreed, "Yes, yes! My son Zili’s leg, Ziqiang’s facial injury... they’ve made me realize profoundly that the level of medical care in our country has truly developed and improved."

Liao Guilin’s bow became deeper as he pleaded, "Mr. Hou, I’m asking you to go to the trouble one more time and help me just this once."

Liao Guilin was a potential major donor to the hospital. Although Mr. Hou was now the director, he couldn’t afford to be too haughty, so he quickly urged Liao Guilin to sit down.

He said earnestly, "Mr. Liao, your son was the one who disrespected Mr. Yan first. If you want Mr. Yan to agree..."

"First, you need to offer a sincere apology and gain his forgiveness."

"Second is to throw money at the problem. Mr. Yan’s resistance to money is... not that great."

"As for me..."

Mr. Hou sighed softly. "Mr. Liao, it’s really not that I’m trying to shirk responsibility. It’s just that it’s inconvenient for me to get involved now. In fact, I *can’t* get involved!"

"Why not?"

Liao Guilin was completely bewildered. "But you’re the director of the entire hospital! Your position now isn’t what it used to be. Surely Mr. Yan has to give you some face, right?"

He then thought of something else and said tentatively, "I did hear a rumor... that two consecutive Party Secretaries of the hospital were driven out by Mr. Yan."

"That’s probably just a distorted rumor, right?"

"How could a personnel change at that level be decided by a single doctor?"

"It must be that those two secretaries had their own problems, and Mr. Yan just happened to be there at the right time."

"Unless... that’s not how it was?"

Mr. Hou took a sip of tea, set his cup down gently, and said, "The week before last, Mr. Liu and I went to the city for a meeting."

"After the meeting, Mr. Liu and I were called over to the Municipal Party Committee alone to meet with Mr. Chen."

"The head of the Municipal Committee?" Liao Guilin asked for confirmation.

Mr. Hou nodded. "Mr. Chen got straight to the point. He said, ’I’ve called you here for one thing.’"

He paused for a moment, then slowly recounted, "Mr. Chen said, ’Your hospital’s doctor, Yan Feifan, is exceptionally talented—a pillar of the nation. As the hospital’s leadership, you must take good care of him, fully respect his personal wishes, and ensure you create an excellent environment for his growth.’"

As Liao Guilin and Ren Zhongyuan looked on in shock, Mr. Hou said in a low voice, "That was a direct order from Mr. Chen himself: we are to fully respect Mr. Yan’s personal wishes."

"Therefore, with this favor, I am truly powerless to help."

"Mr. Liao, if you want Mr. Yan to take on your son’s surgery, you’ll have to rely on your own sincerity..."

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