Chapter 41

The turmoil sparked by Tong Meili has yet to subside. Although the video about Changxing Hospital posted by the couple was taken down, they still have a myriad of tactics at their disposal.

They persistently called 12345 to file complaints and frequently voiced their grievances on other social media platforms.

They even hired a group of middle-aged and elderly women to take turns causing disturbances at the beauty center, accusing Cai Rongjuan of surgical malpractice that disfigured them.

The hospital's security department was powerless against these middle-aged and elderly women, and the local police station also sent people over to warn the troublemakers not to disrupt the normal medical order. However, they had no good solutions for this situation; they couldn't possibly take all these people to the police station, and what if they started doing square dancing?

The police suggested that Changxing Hospital quickly negotiate with the patients to find common ground and resolve the issues amicably.

Gu Houyi instructed the deputy director in charge of outpatient services, Geng Wenxiu, to go to the Weishan Island branch. This arrangement greatly intimidated a group of middle-level officials at Changxing Hospital. Of course, Geng Wenxiu did not obediently follow orders; she took a sick leave as a way to silently resist Gu Houyi. Gu Houyi, of course, could not force her to go, and since she was not coming to the hospital for the time being, out of sight, out of mind.

The outpatient department, medical affairs office, and security department took turns actively mediating the dispute at the beauty center.

However, they could not get in touch with Tong Meili and her husband, who were reportedly going to authoritative departments in other places for further evaluation.

The internet was also not quiet for long. Soon, the background of the beauty center's contractor, Zeng Hongwen, was thoroughly exposed.

Not only did someone submit materials to the higher authorities accusing Gu Houyi of using public resources for personal gain and favoritism, but others also complained about the unreasonable charges at the beauty center to the Price Bureau.

Zeng Hongwen now regrets her actions. If she had known this would happen, she should not have been so aggressive during the negotiations. Now, the incident has caused a city-wide uproar, and her relationship with Gu Houyi is widely known. Her doting aunt even scolded her for lacking a sense of the bigger picture and causing her uncle to lose his reputation.

Compared to Gu Houyi's loss of reputation, Zeng Hongwen is more concerned about herself. The beauty center has been in chaos for the past two days, unable to conduct normal medical services. Cai Rongjuan even took a sick leave to avoid the storm.

Representatives from the Consumer Association and the Price Bureau came to investigate the situation. Departments of this nature, which are contracted, cannot withstand scrutiny; once investigated, problems are bound to be found.

Zeng Hongwen called Gu Houyi, but he did not answer, clearly angry with her.

Zeng Hongwen realized that, regardless of whether this dispute could be resolved, she could no longer stay at Changxing Hospital.

After seeing off the representatives from the Consumer Association and the Price Bureau, she went to the lobby and saw the group of middle-aged and elderly women eating boxed meals in the waiting area, clearly prepared for a long-term struggle.

While pondering how to extricate herself from this predicament, Deputy Director Gao Xinhu called her to come over.

Zeng Hongwen had also heard about Geng Wenxiu's transfer. According to rumors, Geng Wenxiu's downfall was due to submitting incriminating materials against Gu Houyi. Now, the outpatient services were temporarily managed by Deputy Director Gao Xinhu.

When she arrived at Gao Xinhu's office, she found that the head of the medical affairs office, Zhou Wenbin, was also there.

Zeng Hongwen greeted them, and Gao Xinhu's desk had her contract, which was originally signed for a ten-year term, but only three years had passed.

Gao Xinhu said, "Zeng, I called you here today to discuss the contract."

Zeng Hongwen replied, "The contract still has seven years left, right?" The contract clearly stated that discussions about renewal should take place one year in advance.

Gao Xinhu bluntly told her that, given the negative impact she had brought to the hospital during the contract period, the hospital leadership decided to terminate the contract early. This meeting was not to negotiate but to formally notify her.

"Terminating the contract is fine, but what about my losses? I invested five million in the beauty center, and I haven't even recouped my costs. How can you terminate the contract like this?"

Gao Xinhu said, "The losses you've caused Changxing are far more than five million."

"It's not my fault! There was nothing wrong with Tong Meili's surgery. It's their couple who are making a fuss. Director Zhou, you should speak up for justice."

Zhou Wenbin said, "At this point, who is responsible is no longer important."

Zeng Hongwen said, "You just want to drive me away, right? Fine, I'll leave, but according to the contract, Changxing Hospital is in breach. You should compensate me as per the terms!"

Gao Xinhu sighed inwardly, thinking that the one who wanted to drive her away was her uncle, Gu Houyi. Gu Houyi had never been so embarrassed in his entire career. Whether or not he had profited from the beauty center, others believed he must have benefited.

The beauty center's violations were not limited to high fees; they also engaged in covert sales of health supplements and exaggerated the effects of beauty treatments. Now, all these issues were exposed. Tong Meili spent 38,000 yuan, of which the surgery fee was only a small part.

Tong Meili's case was just the trigger; the person who managed to bring the fire to Gu Houyi must be someone familiar with the inside story.

Geng Wenxiu's transfer might just be the tip of the iceberg; there could be others.

Gu Houyi was scheduled to report to the disciplinary department in the afternoon. Regardless of whether he could get through this, his leadership career at Changxing would come to an early end. Last night, Gu Houyi talked a lot with Gao Xinhu. Kicking Geng Wenxiu out before his departure was not just for revenge; at this critical moment, he did not want anyone to stab him in the back. Many things he could no longer handle himself, so he had to entrust them to Gao Xinhu.

Gao Xinhu said, "Zeng, I advise you to face reality. The contract has a very important clause: during the contract period, you must not engage in illegal operations. If you cause significant losses to the hospital due to personal reasons, the hospital has the right to terminate the contract early and reserve the right to hold you accountable!"

"You don't need to threaten me. The one who suffered the loss is me, not Changxing Hospital."

Gao Xinhu was tired of continuing the conversation: "Alright, go back and think about it. I'll wait for your response." In his view, Zeng Hongwen was not being wise. Given the current situation, even if the hospital did not take the initiative, she should have chosen to leave, understanding the principle of cutting off a limb to save the body or sacrificing a pawn to save the king.

Before the meeting, Gao Xinhu carefully studied the original lease contract. According to the terms, the hospital could unilaterally terminate the contract. Now, it all depended on Gu Houyi's attitude, as Zeng Hongwen was his niece.

When Gao Xinhu went to report to Gu Houyi, he encountered the head of the Traditional Chinese Medicine department, Zhu Mingyuan, in the corridor.

Zhu Mingyuan was carrying a medical kit, looking somewhat nervous. He nodded at Gao Xinhu and hurried to the director's office without stopping to chat.

Gao Xinhu realized something must have happened. He decided to wait a bit before going to see Gu Houyi. Just as he returned to his office, the hospital office director, Liu Dengke, came to ask him to go to the director's office.

Gu Houyi was originally scheduled to report to the disciplinary department in two hours, but he suddenly lost his hearing.