godfather of surgery

Chapter 1348 Professor Su's Pride
Nandu Medical University, President's Office.

Su Qingyun had been sitting at her desk for twenty minutes, with Yang Ping's application materials spread out on it.

This was not his usual practice. As the president of a university and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, his schedule was meticulously planned down to the fifteenth minute, and he never delayed processing documents or arriving late for meetings. But at this moment, he made an exception.

Looking at these materials, he recalled the first time he met Yang Ping a few years ago when he took Su Nanchen to Sanbo Hospital for a consultation.

Su Qingyun remembered it clearly: the young man sat in the most inconspicuous corner of the conference table, wearing a slightly worn dark blue shirt under his white lab coat, with the cuffs rolled up neatly. His speech caught Su Qingyun's attention.

He never imagined that this young man would later become his son-in-law.

Fate is a mysterious thing, sometimes hard to explain. Their daughter, Xiao Su, has always been quiet and independent. Su Qingyun and his wife were most worried about Xiao Su's marriage and introduced her to several outstanding young men, but Xiao Su didn't like any of them.

And the result? Their vision was indeed excellent.

Su Qingyun snapped out of her thoughts and looked down at the two documents placed side by side on the table.

The document on the left is a summary of preliminary materials for recommending Comrade Yang Ping for membership in the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and the document on the right is a summary of preliminary materials for recommending Comrade Yang for membership in the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The two documents have white and blue covers, respectively.

The application process for academicians of both the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering was launched simultaneously.

This was not his decision, nor even the school's decision; it was an instruction from a higher level.

He was chairing a school affairs meeting when he received that call last Friday. His secretary handed him a note, which he glanced at before getting up and walking to the small reception room next door.

The voice on the other end of the phone was old yet familiar.

"Qingyun, why hasn't your school made any progress on Comrade Yang Ping's application for academician?"

It was Elder Chen. Su Qingyun immediately stood up straight, his tone extremely respectful. Elder Chen had actually called him personally to inquire about this matter.

"Old Chen, we are making preparations..." Su Qingyun carefully chose his words.

"Preparations? You're only starting preparations now? Qingyun, I'm telling you, you need to hurry..." Old Chen's voice was urgent.

"Mr. Chen, I understand."

"It's good that you understand. You are his principal, so it's perfectly legitimate for you to handle this matter." Old Chen paused, a hint of a smile in his voice. "Besides, it's a great story in the academic world for a father-in-law and son-in-law to be both academicians. Qingyun, I'm happy for you and for your father. Your Su family has produced talented people generation after generation."

Just then, a very soft knock came at the door.

"Please come in."

The door opened a crack, and the secretary poked half her body in: "Principal Su, everyone is here. The meeting will start in five minutes."

"Okay, I'm coming right now." Su Qingyun stood up, straightened his suit collar, and took out a pair of glasses from the drawer.

The meeting room was at the end of the corridor. When the door was opened, the long table on both sides was already full of people.

The delegation included Vice President Zhou, who is in charge of scientific research; the Director of the Personnel Department; the Director of the Science and Education Department; the Secretary-General of the Academic Committee; the Dean of the School of Clinical Medicine; the Dean of the School of Basic Medical Sciences; and the administrative representative of the Sanbo Research Institute. Also present were two guests who had traveled from Beijing: Director Liu of the Academician Affairs Office and Academician Sun, a consulting expert.

When he entered, everyone stood up.

"Principal Su."

"headmaster."

Su Qingyun shook hands with Director Liu and Academician Sun, nodded to several colleagues, and took her seat at the head of the table.

He didn't start speaking immediately. Instead, he took off his glasses and slowly wiped the lenses with a cloth. He was feeling uneasy, not because of nervousness, but because of an overwhelming emotion that needed to be calmed by such a simple action.

"I've read the first draft of Professor Yang Ping's application materials for academician," he said, his voice steady. "Overall, they are very solid, and there's nothing that needs major changes."

He paused, then looked at the Dean of the Clinical Medical School: "In the clinical case section, don't just list the successful cases. Include the Heidelberg case, along with the twists and turns encountered during the treatment process, as a core case under the subheading 'Risk Management and Dynamic Optimization of Interventions in Complex Systems.' The data must be complete, including the part about the initial misjudgment."

The dean of the medical school looked up, a hint of surprise in his eyes. Normally, academician application materials emphasize brilliant achievements, rarely mentioning setbacks. But he quickly grasped the point and nodded: “President, this is a good angle. It reflects a mature and honest research culture, aligning with international cutting-edge academic evaluation trends.”

Director Liu put down his teacup and slowly said, "Principal Su, you've grasped this detail very well. A true scientist isn't always right, but always faces the truth."

He was a veteran of the Academician Office, having participated in over twenty election processes, and was intimately familiar with the review styles of each division. At that moment, he flicked his finger and gently tapped it on the table:

"I'd like to add a few points! Professor Yang Ping's case is unprecedented in the history of the two academies; there has never been such a young candidate. Youth is not a problem, it's an advantage, but we need to make the application materials so compelling that no one can argue with them."

He looked at everyone present: "First, international evaluation must be convincing. The Nobel Prize is of course the most prestigious, but it's not enough on its own. We need to compile a list of the international academic community's follow-up research, verification research, and applied research on the three-dimensional guide gene theory and the system regulation theory. It's not about listing citations; we need to provide concrete evidence. Which top laboratories have followed up and verified it? Which international guidelines have adopted it? Which transnational collaborations have been implemented? This part needs to be done as solidly as the literature review in a doctoral dissertation."

Academician Sun picked up the thread. He was a senior expert from Peking Union Medical College Hospital, nearly eighty years old, with a full head of silver hair. He spoke slowly and deliberately, yet with great weight: "Secondly, it's not just about theory; clinical contributions need to be visualized. The Chinese Academy of Engineering values ​​whether the technology can be implemented and whether it can save lives. Yang Ping's K therapy has already cured many patients, such as Sisi, the girl with osteosarcoma. The girl should be in junior high school now, right? Do you have recent follow-up images or photos? These cases are not stories; they are evidence. We need to show them that this is not just theoretical talk; these are lives pulled back from the brink of death."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the crowd: "I've been participating in the review process for thirty years, and the hardest currency has always been living, breathing patients. Whoever has the real skill to save lives, no one can smear them."

The meeting room fell silent for a few seconds.

Vice Principal Zhou broke the silence: "Professor Sun is right. Our previous considerations were too academic. In terms of clinical cases, we can indeed make them more impactful. Sanbo has complete follow-up records. I asked the publicity department to help compile a set of imaging materials, which will not be made public, but only for review reference."

Academician Sun nodded: "That's exactly what I mean."

Director Liu spoke again: "Third, the lineup of recommenders. Five from the Chinese Academy of Engineering and five from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. This combination needs to be carefully designed. It's not about being the most authoritative, but about having credibility and representativeness. We need senior academicians from Beijing, Shanghai, and Nanjing, as well as young and middle-aged backbone members; those from the field of basic research, and those from the front line of clinical practice; those familiar with Yang Ping's work, and those who are purely moved by his academic achievements."

He looked at Su Qingyun: "Principal Su, as a close relative, it is appropriate for you to recuse yourself. But before we came, Professor Chen specifically instructed that he would personally coordinate the recommenders. He has already spoken to Professor Xiang by phone, and he has also spoken to Academician Wang. As for the rest, the department will make overall arrangements, so you don't need to worry too much about it."

Su Qingyun felt a warmth in her heart. Old Chen was eighty-three years old, and he was still making a phone call about this matter personally.

"Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Chen," he said.

"Old Chen said it's no trouble at all," Director Liu smiled. "He said it's our own business, if he doesn't care, who will?"

The meeting lasted nearly two hours. The agenda items were reviewed one by one: the priority of representative works selection, the organization logic of supporting materials, the list of recommended peer review experts, and mock presentations and defenses. Su Qingyun went through each item meticulously, occasionally asking questions, but mostly just listening quietly.

When the discussion turned to "potential points of contention," Academician Sun suddenly asked a question:
"What is Yang Ping's own attitude towards applying for academician status?" The meeting room fell silent, and everyone looked at Su Qingyun.

Su Qingyun remained silent for a moment.

“He’s not very proactive,” he said, “but he doesn’t avoid it either.”

Academician Sun nodded and didn't ask any further questions. Some answers don't need to be explained too clearly.

When the meeting ended, Director Liu and Academician Sun had to catch their afternoon flight back to Beijing, and Su Qingyun saw them off to the elevator.

Director Liu held his hand and lowered his voice: "Principal Su, Old Chen asked me to pass on another message."

"Please speak."

"Old Chen said that doing this well is not for Yang Ping personally, but for our country's scientific cause." Director Liu paused, "Old Chen's exact words were: Please ask Comrade Su Qingyun to do this well."

The elevator doors opened, and Director Liu and Academician Sun stepped into the elevator, turned around, and nodded to him.

Su Qingyun stood there, watching the elevator doors slowly close.

He returned to his office, and his phone vibrated.

Caller ID: Daughter.

"Dad, are you coming home for dinner tonight?" Xiao Su's voice came through the phone, carrying a familiar gentleness. "Yang Ping came home early today, and Xiao Shu misses Grandpa too."

“Go back!” Su Qingyun said without hesitation.

After hanging up the phone, he realized it was already dark outside. The lights in the office building came on one by one, and the campus was bathed in a warm, orange glow. He closed the window, tidied his desk, put the two application materials, one white and one blue, into his briefcase, and then put on his coat.

The driver was already waiting downstairs, and he got into the car.

The car drove into the night, the city lights flowing like a river outside the window. Su Qingyun leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes to rest, but his fingers gently stroked the document in his briefcase. He knew every piece of data, every evaluation, every detail inside, not because he had participated in the writing, but because, as Yang Ping's father-in-law, he had already read every single paper Yang Ping had published countless times.

He rang the doorbell, and Yang Ping opened the door.

"Dad, you're here." Yang Ping stepped aside to let him in and took the briefcase from his hand.

"Is the little tree asleep?" Su Qingyun asked.

"Just fell asleep. I played too hard this afternoon and got sleepy before I even finished dinner." Yang Ping put his briefcase on the entryway cabinet and added, "Knowing you were coming, he kept calling for his grandfather before going to sleep."

A smile spread across Su Qingyun's face. He tiptoed to the children's room first. Xiao Shu was lying on his side in the crib, one foot sticking out of the blanket, a trace of drool at the corner of his mouth, fast asleep. He gently tucked the foot back under the blanket, stood there for a few seconds, and then closed the door and left.

In the living room, Xiao Su was setting the table. There were four dishes and a soup on the table, all of which were her father's favorite light flavors.

"Dad, wash your hands and eat," Xiao Su called out.

Su Qingyun sat down at the table. Yang Ping sat down opposite him, saying nothing, but quietly serving soup. He was always the quietest person at the table, but he never made anyone feel bored. There was a solid, reliable strength in that quietness.

“I’ve reviewed the materials,” Su Qingyun said, taking the soup bowl. “The school’s working group has compiled them very meticulously. They have suggested revisions in a few places; I’ll have the secretary send them to you tomorrow.”

Yang Ping nodded: "Thank you, Dad."

Three simple words. Yet Su Qingyun understood everything from them.

"Regarding the recommenders," Su Qingyun continued, "Director Liu and Academician Sun came all the way from Beijing today for this meeting, and Professor Chen also personally inquired about it. The Academic Committee will have a recommended list; you can consider it yourself. In recent years, the evaluation criteria of the two academies have increasingly emphasized research integrity and talent cultivation, in addition to academic contributions. The young people in your team, Tang Shun, Song Ziming, and Lu Xiaolu, all have excellent development momentum. This has already been reflected in the application materials; you can further emphasize it in your future presentation."

"Okay." Yang Ping simply nodded.

Xiao Su served food to her father and said softly, "Dad, you're worrying. You know him; he never cares about these kinds of things."

Su Qingyun put down her chopsticks and looked at Yang Ping.

"Actually, my superiors are more concerned than I am," he said. "Old Chen has already called several times to urge me on, afraid that I'll slack off. Today, Director Liu also relayed a message that Old Chen told me to make sure I do this well."

Yang Ping raised his head.

"Thank you, Mr. Chen," he said. He paused, then added, "Thank you, Dad."

Su Qingyun picked up her teacup, gently blew away the floating leaves, and took a sip.

"This shows that the country values ​​talent," he said. "The research environment is getting better and better, both in terms of hardware and software."

The night outside the window grew deeper, and the neighborhood quieted down.

Xiao Shu turned over in the bedroom and murmured incoherently in her sleep.

Xiao Su said softly, "I'll go take a look." She got up and went into the inner room.

Only the father-in-law and son-in-law remained in the living room.

Su Qingyun looked at the young man opposite her. He was still the same as before, not saying much, with a calm gaze that revealed a strong sense of confidence.

The two became increasingly enthusiastic as they talked, focusing on academic topics.

Xiao Su came out from the inner room and said softly, "Xiao Shu has woken up again and insists on being coaxed by her father."

Yang Ping got up and quickly went into the inner room. Through the door, Su Qingyun heard him awkwardly coaxing his son, his voice low and gentle: "Daddy's here, Daddy's here."

Xiao Su looked at her father and said, "Dad, it's so late, why don't you stay tonight? The guest room is ready, I've already told Mom."

"Okay," Su Qingyun said.