Chapter 5

However, Zuo Xiaoqing's arched eyebrows suddenly furrowed, and her expression turned serious. Although the patient's blood pressure was normal, his breathing had clearly become rapid. The patient, who had just regained consciousness, pointed to his throat, and his face quickly turned purplish-red, clearly showing signs of respiratory distress.

Zuo Xiaoqing hurriedly ran to Gao Wei. Upon hearing that Patient No. 7 was experiencing respiratory distress, Gao Wei came over, took a look, and quickly proposed a treatment plan: "It might be an upper airway obstruction; perform a tracheotomy! You do it!" Then he hurriedly walked to another critically injured patient.

Zuo Xiaoqing was already at a loss. Oh no! She was just a student who had been interning for half a year. A tracheotomy—her knowledge was limited to what she had read in textbooks, and she had never performed one herself. Recalling Zhang Yang's miraculous actions earlier, Zuo Xiaoqing looked at this nursing student for help: "You must know how to do it, right?"

How could Zhang Yang know how to perform a tracheotomy? He lightly tapped the patient's chest and immediately noticed the difference on both sides. Although he was unfamiliar with modern medical terms, Gao Wei's proposed tracheotomy seemed to be the wrong approach. The patient's left chest was injured, causing gas to enter the chest cavity, which compressed the lung, leading to his breathing difficulties. Using the old methods, Zhang Yang could use a hollow needle to extract the gas, but there seemed to be no suitable instruments at hand. His gaze swept around the room, and he suddenly noticed a syringe on the treatment cart. A smile appeared on his lips; this might work.

Under Zuo Xiaoqing's astonished gaze, he grabbed the syringe, pulled out the plunger, and swiftly inserted it into the patient's left chest between the ribs.

Zuo Xiaoqing nearly fainted, covering her mouth with both hands. Time seemed to freeze for a moment until she heard the hissing sound of air being released. She then came to her senses, realizing that Zhang Yang's diagnosis was spot-on. The patient had a simple pneumothorax, and the correct treatment was to extract the accumulated air in the chest, not to perform a tracheotomy. If Gao Wei's treatment plan had been followed, the patient would likely have been in grave danger.

After the symptoms of pneumothorax were relieved, the patient's respiratory distress immediately disappeared, and Zhang Yang quickly removed the syringe.

At this point, the on-duty doctor from the inpatient department rushed over, and the medical team was fully reinforced. The interns' work was taken over by these senior doctors.

Gao Wei then remembered Patient No. 7, came over to check, and found that Zuo Xiaoqing had not started the procedure. He frowned: "Xiaoqing, why haven't you started yet?"

Zuo Xiaoqing weakly replied, "He has a pneumothorax!" and then turned to walk towards the rest room.

Gao Wei's expression turned awkward, and his gaze shifted to Zhang Yang, turning into anger. Zhang Yang, with his sharp eyes, immediately realized that this guy was about to blame him. He quickly turned and hurriedly followed Zuo Xiaoqing's footsteps to escape.

Zuo Xiaoqing absentmindedly washed her hands, still thinking about what had just happened. This unassuming nursing student had shown incredible skills, and if she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn't have believed it.

Zhang Yang came to her side and washed his hands at the adjacent faucet, lightly coughing.

Zuo Xiaoqing looked at him: "You're Zhang Yang?"

Zhang Yang nodded.

Zuo Xiaoqing smiled brightly and extended her fair, delicate hand: "I'm Zuo Xiaoqing, nice to meet you!"

Zhang Yang, who had seen this handshake gesture countless times on TV news, awkwardly extended his hand. Their wet right hands clasped together, and Zuo Xiaoqing's soft, smooth hand gave Zhang Yang a very pleasant feeling.

Zuo Xiaoqing whispered, "You're really amazing!"

Zhang Yang grinned, revealing a mouthful of white, even teeth, and whispered, "It's just a minor skill, not worth mentioning!" He was indeed being modest, but Zuo Xiaoqing didn't see it that way. To her, he seemed unfathomable and very good at putting on a show.

The incident involving the fifteen injured construction workers was a significant event for the small county of Chunyang. An hour later, the county's top leaders arrived at the hospital, both to comfort the injured workers and to minimize the impact of the incident. Such news would not be good for anyone if it spread, but fortunately, none of the fifteen workers were in mortal danger. The two critically injured workers had been stabilized after emergency treatment.

County Party Secretary Li Changyu gave an impassioned speech in the emergency room. He first praised the county hospital's rescue efforts, then extolled the benefits of reform and opening up. He then shifted the narrative, attributing the accident to the cost of progress during the reform and opening up process. He said earnestly, "These injured workers have dedicated their hearts and souls to the cause of reform and opening up. They are great contributors to the reform and opening up, and we will not forget them, nor will the people. I assure all levels of leadership, all family members, and the general public that these patients will receive the most meticulous and attentive treatment. I believe it won't be long before they are back on the front lines of reform and opening up, full of energy. Thank you, medical workers, thank you, white angels, and thank you, young comrades..."

Thunderous applause and flashing camera lights filled the room. Zhang Yang was deeply impressed by the scene and whispered to Zuo Xiaoqing, "Who is this official?"

"County Party Secretary!"

"What rank?"

Zuo Xiaoqing looked at Zhang Yang in surprise, then laughed at his dry humor, her smile charming: "He should be a 7th-rank official!"

Zhang Yang looked at the short but towering County Secretary Li, deeply impressed by the aura of authority that surrounded him. A 7th-rank official! A 7th-rank official is so impressive, I thought he was some prince. It seems that being an official in this era is really great! A strong desire suddenly arose in Zhang Yang's heart, which had been dormant for 1396 years. He wanted to be an official, to be the bright moon among the stars, not for any other reason but for the satisfaction of being in a position of power and influence.

Due to work, the two fixed updates during the new book period will be posted in the morning and evening, with additional updates at irregular times. The update speed is already quite fast, and I hope everyone can support the book by voting and collecting it, so that "The Path of Medicine and Politics" can proceed smoothly. I don't seek to be the most popular, only to be more popular. Thank you!