This miracle doctor just wants to be fired!

After the puncture was completed, Zhou Cheng instructed Li Yang to retest the patient's vital signs to confirm that the heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature were all stable.

At that moment, the clock on the wall pointed exactly to twelve o'clock.

After a busy morning, Zhou Cheng finally breathed a sigh of relief, took off his stethoscope, and put it in his white coat pocket.

He had just stepped out of the emergency room when he ran into Fang Hang, who was also getting off work.

"Let's go eat!" Fang Hang patted his shoulder, his tone a little tired but still cheerful. "The nurses said the food in the hospital cafeteria isn't very good today. Let's go to that home-style restaurant next door and order a couple of hot dishes to have a proper meal."

Zhou Cheng had the same idea, so he nodded and replied, "Okay, I'll listen to you, Senior Brother."

The two walked out of the emergency room building side by side. The afternoon sun shone through the leaves and cast dappled shadows on the ground, dispelling some of the oppressive atmosphere in the emergency room.

The small restaurant next to the hospital was clean and tidy, and it was packed with people at lunchtime, bustling with a lively atmosphere.

After finding an empty seat by the window, Fang Hang skillfully called over the waiter and ordered a twice-cooked pork, a tomato and egg stir-fry, a seaweed and egg soup, and two bowls of rice—all home-style dishes that the two of them often order.

After the waiter left, Fang Hang picked up the teapot on the table and poured Zhou Cheng a cup of tea, then asked directly, "How is that female patient? I heard from Lin Ling this morning that you just had a lumbar puncture?"

"Yes, it was just done not long ago. The cerebrospinal fluid has been sent to the laboratory, and the preliminary results should be available this afternoon." Zhou Cheng picked up his teacup and took a sip. "The puncture process went relatively smoothly. The patient suddenly became agitated midway through, but we managed to stabilize him in time without any major problems. The patient's vital signs are currently quite stable."

"That's good." Fang Hang breathed a sigh of relief, but his brows were still furrowed. "But this patient will probably face a lot of trouble later on. The family is difficult to deal with, and the condition is complicated. Before the cerebrospinal fluid results come out, no one can say for sure what the future holds. You have to be extra careful, especially when communicating with the family. Be very careful not to give them any leverage."

A warm feeling welled up in Zhou Cheng's heart. Fang Hang's worry was undisguised and genuine.

He nodded: "Don't worry, senior. I know. When I was communicating with the family and getting them to sign the consent form, I explained everything very clearly and paid attention to my tone the whole time. The family hasn't caused any trouble so far. I will keep an eye on the cerebrospinal fluid results and report to Professor Li and the director as soon as there are any issues."

"That's good." Fang Hang picked up his teacup and clinked it with his. "However, if you ask me, once the cerebrospinal fluid results come out, whether it confirms meningitis or not, we should quickly apply to Director Wang to find a way to transfer the patient to a specialist department. We should get rid of the patient in the emergency department as soon as possible, because things can get complicated if we wait too long."

"Senior, I understand what you mean." Zhou Cheng nodded slowly. "I will keep an eye out for opportunities to switch departments, but right now the priority is to wait for the results and stabilize the condition. We can only take it one step at a time."

As we were talking, the waiter brought out the dish, and the steaming hot twice-cooked pork smelled delicious.

Fang Hang picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of meat, and put it in his bowl. While chewing, he sighed, "That's how we emergency room doctors are; we can't avoid the most difficult patients. Junior brother, to be honest, I admire and worry about you taking on this responsibility. I admire your sense of responsibility, but I'm worried you won't be able to handle the pressure, since it's so easy for family members to cause trouble."

"Actually, I didn't think too much about it. The director had already made it clear, so I couldn't back down at the last minute." Zhou Cheng picked up his chopsticks. "Besides, no matter how difficult it is, the patient's condition is what it is, and someone has to take care of it. I'm just treating it as accumulating experience. If I really encounter a problem that I can't solve, there are senior doctors to help me out."

Fang Hang nodded: "Forget it, don't think about working while eating. Fill your stomach first. There's a ton of work waiting for us this afternoon, especially the cerebrospinal fluid results for your patient. We'll probably be busy for a while after that."

Zhou Cheng responded and took a bite of rice.

After finishing the hot meal, much of the fatigue from the morning dissipated, but the inner turmoil did not lessen in the slightest.

He hoped that the cerebrospinal fluid results would allow him to be transferred to another department smoothly, thus minimizing his troubles. He also secretly hoped that some "accidents" would happen during the process, making it possible for his "resignation plan" to move forward.

He couldn't confide these conflicting feelings to anyone; he could only keep them buried deep inside...

The two chatted as they ate, discussing not only the patients but also some trivial matters in the department, gradually creating a relaxed atmosphere.

Zhou Cheng knew that this moment of relaxation would be fleeting, and that the afternoon would still bring him tedious clinical work.

……

At noon, Zhou Cheng rested for a while in his rented room before coming to work in the emergency department.

Upon arriving at the department, his first action was to check on the girl's condition in the emergency room.

The girl remained lying flat with her eyes closed. Her family members stood by the bedside, talking quietly. When Zhou Cheng entered, the man greeted him.

"Dr. Zhou, the child woke up for a while just now and said his headache is much better, and his temperature hasn't risen anymore."

Zhou Cheng nodded and walked to the bedside to check the monitor.

Heart rate 72 beats/min, blood pressure 95/60 mmHg, blood oxygen saturation 97%, vital signs very stable.

"Keep her lying flat, don't let her get up, and call me immediately if anything happens."

"Okay, Dr. Zhou."

However, as soon as he stepped out of the emergency room, nurse Lin Ling hurried over with a stack of reports, her expression somewhat complicated: "Dr. Zhou, the lab just sent these over; they're the girl's cerebrospinal fluid test reports. Take a look."

Seeing Lin Ling's expression, Zhou Cheng's heart tightened, and he quickly took the report.

The white blood cell count and red blood cell count in the routine cerebrospinal fluid analysis were both within the normal range.

The biochemical tests showed that protein, sugar, and chloride levels were all within the normal range, with no abnormalities detected.

"Is everything normal?" Zhou Cheng frowned slightly, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him.

On the one hand, he breathed a sigh of relief after ruling out infectious meningitis for the patient, which meant that the patient would not have to suffer the side effects of anti-infective treatment.

On the other hand, the normal cerebrospinal fluid results ruled out the most likely cause, and the patient's cause returned to its original point, making subsequent diagnosis and treatment even more difficult.

He composed himself, took the report, and strode towards the doctor's office, where Li Degang and Wang Jianming happened to be.

"Teacher Li, Director Wang, the patient's cerebrospinal fluid report is in." Zhou Cheng handed over the report. "The biochemistry and routine tests are all normal, which can rule out infectious meningitis."

Li Degang quickly took the report, skimmed through it, and his face showed obvious surprise: "Everything is normal? That's strange. The EEG shows diffuse slow waves, so how can the cerebrospinal fluid be normal?"

Wang Jianming also leaned over to examine the report, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper: "If infectious meningitis has been ruled out, then the theory of central nervous system inflammation doesn't hold water. What caused the previous abnormal mental state, cardiac arrest, low-grade fever, and headache?"

The atmosphere in the office instantly became tense.

I originally thought that a cerebrospinal fluid test would provide a clear diagnosis, but the results made the condition even more perplexing.