Chapter 1 — After I Resigned, The Whole Hospital Was Paralyzed

After being removed from the position of Chief Surgeon, I resigned, the next day the whole hospital was paralyzed! Three times in a row, I was removed from the position of chief surgeon. And the person who replaced me this time was a "relationship guy" who could even make mistakes with basic stitching operations. The director patted my shoulder, his tone filled with sincerity:

"Tieu To, you must know how to put collective interests first. Your professional ability is truly nothing to criticize, but your way of dealing with people still lacks a bit of experience. Just continue to practice more."

I just nodded slightly. Then quietly cleaned up the things on the desk, submitted his resignation, and left the hospital. The next day, ten highly difficult surgeries were simultaneously forced to pause. The entire Department of Surgery fell into a state of paralysis. The director was so frantic that sweat poured down his forehead that he led the entire department to stand in front of my house, constantly begging me to come back for help. I leisurely took a sip of tea and replied:

"The fire isn't strong enough yet. I'm still not fit to go back."

The door to the dean's office closed in front of me for the third time. The cup of tea on Liu Zhenhua's table was still steaming. On his face was a familiar look of regret, so fake that it made people feel sick. He spoke up. The tone was heavy as if trying to appear reluctant.

"The position of chief surgeon this time, after the hospital meeting, was decided to be assigned to Tu Khai."

I looked at him. Don't say a word. Liu Zhenhua continued his drama.

"You must know how to put collective interests first."

"Tu Kai's father is President Xu. He plans to sponsor the hospital with the latest fourth generation Da Vinci surgical robot system."

"This is a rare good thing. With this equipment, our entire General Surgery department will step up to a new level."

I nodded slightly. It turns out that all my years of effort... Thousands of days and nights staying awake for the patient... In the end, it still wasn't as good as a cold machine.

"Her professional qualifications are at the top of the entire institute, everyone recognizes this."

Liu Zhenhua changed his tone. Begin the familiar teaching session.

"But your way of dealing with people still lacks a bit of experience."

"Look, your relationship with Academician Truong, Professor Ly and other leading experts in the field are all very good. Why don't you think more about the hospital and take advantage of those resources?"

"When you're young, you have to learn more. Your future is still very open."

Having said that, he patted my shoulder. Fat, warm hands. But it makes people only feel the lie. I nodded again.

"Thank you, Headmaster, for your advice."

Other than that sentence, I don't say anything else. I stood up. Behind him, Tu Khai burst out laughing. The laughter was full of triumph and undisguised mockery. Back to the office. The sunlight outside the window is just beautiful. The green leaves on the betel pot next to the desk are covered with a layer of pale yellow light. I turned on the computer. On the screen is a dynamic 3D model I just completed for my next extended pancreaticoduodenectomy. Path of blood vessels. The extent of tumor invasion. Optimal resection plan. All data is calculated to the nearest millimeter. I select the entire folder. Then press Delete. Next, open system tools. Select delete data permanently. The progress bar begins to move slowly. I removed the personal encrypted hard drive connected to the computer. Inside are all the achievements of the past eight years. Eighteen technical improvement options for highly difficult major surgeries. Along with a real-time perioperative risk assessment system built by myself from thousands of clinical cases. Complete source code. It's all in there. Finally, I pulled out the desk drawer. Get the resignation letter that you have prepared a long time ago. The content is extremely simple.

"I, Tran Hy, for personal reasons, officially resign from my job. I respectfully hope to be approved."

I picked up the internal phone.

"Human resources department, right? I'm Tran Hy. Would you mind coming up here to help me with the resignation procedures?"

The other end of the line was silent for a few seconds.

"Doctor Tran... You... you're not kidding, are you?"

I hung up. Every item on the table is cleaned. White blouse. Specialized books. All are placed in cartons one by one. In the end there was only one photo frame left. That is a photo of me and my instructor - Academician Truong, at an international medical forum. I also put it in a bin. Human resources staff quickly ran over. His eyes were full of complexity.

"Doctor Tran, do you really want to go?"

"Does Director Liu know about this?"

"He already knows."

I signed all the documents. Then grabbed the box and walked out of the office. Outside in the hallway. Colleagues passing by kept turning their heads to look at me. People were surprised. People regret. There are also people who gloat because they see others in trouble. Tu Khai stood leaning against the nurse's counter. Arms folded across chest.

"Doctor Tran, are you leaving in such a hurry?"

"Aren't you going to stay and teach juniors like me a few things?"

I didn't even bother looking at him. Right at that moment. The elevator door opens. An intern doctor rushed over. It's the Little King. His eyes were red.

"Miss Tran..."

His voice choked.

"You're gone... what should we do?"

I looked at you. Looking at the student whom I personally guided every step of the way. In the end, just say four words.

"Forge the foundation."

The elevator door slowly closed. Separate all outside eyes. My passing... It's not just about losing a doctor. It's about losing the success rate of General Surgery over the next five years. The loss of the "navigation system" for more than eighty percent of highly difficult surgeries. I lost the only connection with leading experts from Hiep Hoa, Hoa Tay, and Thuy Kim. Liu Zhenhua thought he had traded for an advanced surgical machine. But he didn't know. What he lost... was the soul of the entire system.