To the woman before him, Joe Di's words were like grabbing onto a piece of driftwood while drowning. Without a second thought, she nearly knelt to him in gratitude, but Joe Di quickly pulled her up and said, "Let's hurry. If we're too slow, it might be too late."
His words were crucial. Upon hearing 'too late,' the woman dared not say another word—she even forgot to thank him, and hurriedly led Joe Di downstairs.
The patient was on the seventh floor. The ward was no larger than thirty square meters, yet it held four beds. Compared to the previous ward Joe Di saw, which had a hundred square meters for just one bed, this was an entirely different world.
The young man lying on the hospital bed was painfully thin, looking like a skeleton wrapped in skin, his hair sparse and yellowed.
As soon as Joe Di approached the bed, a diagnosis flashed through his mind—Nieyuan Disease. Then another thought emerged: those afflicted with this illness always possessed exceptionally strong Spiritual Roots.
But what exactly were Spiritual Roots? Joe Di frowned deeply in thought. He had never heard of such a term, nor had anyone ever mentioned it to him. Why, then, did this strange phrase suddenly appear in his mind? For a moment, he felt as dazed as he once had back in Jay Family Village.
"Doctor..." the woman called out to Joe Di, her voice full of urgency and desperate hope.
She was most afraid of two things: first, that Joe Di would say her son couldn't be saved; second, that he would ask her to pay.
Joe Di snapped out of his thoughts and nodded to the woman. "There is hope. Pull the curtain closed and wait outside."
"Yes, yes..." The woman dared not contradict Joe Di in the slightest. She quickly drew the curtain and, clutching the little boy, waited outside.
Joe Di took out his Gold Needles from his backpack and, with incredible speed, performed nearly two or three thousand acupuncture points on the patient. Despite the thousands of insertions, it took him only about thirty minutes.
Even though he used the Five-Yin Six-Yang Healing Art with the Gold Needles, which required no internal energy, Joe Di still found it hard to keep up. He put away the needles, massaged his aching hands, and then opened the curtain.
"Doctor..." The woman's eyes brimmed with hope as she looked at Joe Di.
"He'll wake up soon. Give him some porridge to drink. There's no need to stay here—he can recover at home." Joe Di nodded to the woman, then left the ward.
By the time the woman came to her senses, Joe Di's figure had already vanished from the doorway.
She didn't bother chasing after Joe Di, but quickly turned to look at her son. He had already opened his eyes and weakly called out, "Mom."
Overwhelmed with emotion, the woman knelt on the ground—her son was awake and could call her. She quickly remembered Joe Di's instructions, told her younger son to keep watch, and hurried out.
Besides buying porridge for her son, she also wanted to thank Joe Di.
But when she got outside, Joe Di was already gone.
......
Joe Di left Jinhai Hospital, but the hospital itself was in an uproar.
The reason for the commotion was that Dr. Paul Lin, an internal medicine doctor, had become famous—he had saved a poisoned patient from Tianhuang District in just one hour. The news was nothing short of global.
Reporters swarmed Jinhai Hospital, and countless influential figures were asking about Dr. Paul Lin, with some even planning to visit in person.
"Impossible! I know Dr. Paul Lin—his medical skills are quite average. How could he possibly save a patient from Tianhuang District?"
"Absolutely impossible. Poisoned patients sent from Tianhuang District to Jinhai are basically beyond saving..."
"It shouldn't be possible, but now the patient can get out of bed and move freely. After various tests, it's confirmed—the poison is gone."
For a time, all the doctors and administrators at Jinhai Hospital were talking about it, while the patient's family was overjoyed.
Even more, the big shots from Tianhuang District had already arrived at Jinhai Hospital, or were on their way. At this moment, Jinhai Hospital became the center of attention.
These powerful figures knew well how difficult it was to save a poisoned patient from Tianhuang District at Jinhai Hospital. Those sent here were usually ones the Tianhuang District hospitals couldn't save. If there was even a sliver of hope, they'd have been treated in Tianhuang; only the hopeless cases were sent to Jinhai.
Patients sent to Jinhai were given one last shred of hope—or simply to free up a bed for someone else.
Now that a poisoned patient sent to Jinhai had been saved, it was like something out of a fairy tale. So many international experts and renowned medical authorities from Tianhuang District had failed, yet a junior internal medicine doctor at Jinhai Hospital succeeded?
At this moment, Dr. Charles Fu, the director of Jinhai Hospital, led two deputy directors in accompanying three visitors. The leader of these three, though only in his thirties, had piercing eyes like a sword—he was Dr. Eugene Yu, director of Tianhuang Martial Hospital.
Compared to Dr. Eugene Yu, Dr. Charles Fu was in his fifties, bald, and his eyes nearly disappeared when he smiled. He looked every bit the type who was just muddling through life.
Accompanying Dr. Eugene Yu were a man and a woman, both directors of other hospitals in Tianhuang District.
Among the various powers of Tianhuang District, the first to learn that Jinhai Hospital had saved a poisoned martial artist were the major hospitals themselves. That's why their directors came to investigate immediately.
Dr. Charles Fu was the director, but compared to the directors from Tianhuang District's major hospitals, he was far outclassed.
"Dr. Yu, shall I call Dr. Paul Lin over?" Dr. Charles Fu asked cautiously, forcing a smile.
Dr. Eugene Yu laughed heartily and waved his hand, "Director Fu, our names even share a syllable—it seems we're quite fated. Dr. Lin is truly skilled, but for now I'd like to see how he treats patients."
Clearly, Dr. Eugene Yu still had doubts about whether Dr. Paul Lin had really saved a poisoned patient from Tianhuang District. Seeing it for himself was a must.
"Of course, Dr. Yu—please." Dr. Charles Fu replied quickly, then led the group toward the monitoring room in Building Three.
The monitoring room quickly pulled up footage of Dr. Paul Lin treating the patient. He looked serious as he took out numerous Gold Needles and continuously inserted them into the patient. When Dr. Lin removed the gauze from the patient's face and the blue color faded, Dr. Eugene Yu stood up, visibly excited.
For poisoned patients from Tianhuang District, the fading of the blue color on their faces meant the detoxification was successful.
Suppressing his excitement, Dr. Eugene Yu pointed to the man in a white coat and mask—Joe Di—and asked, "Who is he?"
"He must be Dr. Lin's assistant. Judging by Dr. Lin's demeanor, he seems quite satisfied with his assistant," offered another director from a Tianhuang District hospital.
Dr. Eugene Yu nodded, apparently agreeing. He then said to Dr. Charles Fu, "Director, we'd very much like to meet this remarkable Dr. Lin. Could you arrange it?"
"Of course, of course..." Dr. Charles Fu replied repeatedly.
......
At the Zeng Family Group compound in Jinhai, Henry Zeng—his hair already white—suddenly stood up, excitement flashing in his eyes as he asked the woman before him, "Sharon Xiao, you said a doctor at Jinhai Hospital can cure poisoned martial artists from Tianhuang District? What's his name?"
Sharon Xiao quickly replied, "Yes, Uncle. Reporters are flocking to the Martial Arts Academy, and it's said Dr. Lin will hold a press conference tomorrow."
"We must invite him here, we must! Where is he now?" Henry Zeng repeated insistently, hope rekindled in his heart. He knew well that poisoned patients sent from Tianhuang District to Jinhai Hospital were those beyond help. Yet Dr. Paul Lin had cured them—his skill must be extraordinary.
"But Uncle, it won't be easy. Many big shots are looking for him, and he has a press conference tomorrow..." Sharon Xiao said, trying to soften her tone.
(That's all for today's update. Good night, friends!)