After being separated from my family, I became a darling of the military region thanks to my medical

In Dean Zhou Hai's office, a potted asparagus fern sits on the windowsill, its green leaves vibrant and healthy.

On the old wooden table sat an enamel tea mug, the tea leaves steeped until they were heavy, and wisps of steam rose from it.

When Ye Zhen handed over the surgical plan, Zhou Hai was preparing to add water.

Upon seeing the title on the cover, the thermos in his hand froze in mid-air.

— Emergency Implantation Protocol for Nickel-Titanium Alloy Cardiac Patch

Zhou Hai put down the thermos, picked up the plan, and turned the pages one by one.

The office was very quiet, with only the sound of pages turning.

The tea in the teacup grew stronger and stronger with each brew, but he didn't bother to drink it.

Ye Zhen sat opposite her, her hands folded on her knees, without urging her.

Five minutes later, Zhou Hai closed the plan, took off his glasses, and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Nickel-titanium alloy heart patch".

He kept his voice very low.

There is no precedent for human heart patch implantation in publicly available information.

Ye Zhen nodded.

"right."

Zhou Hai put his glasses back on and looked at her.

"Xiao Ye, you know what it means when this is handed to my desk, right?"

"I know."

"This material does not have formal usage permits in China, does not have complete new technology filing materials, and does not have long-term animal follow-up data."

Zhou Hai wasn't questioning him.

It was more like he was pointing out all the pitfalls for her, one by one.

"According to the rules, such new materials and techniques must be reported to the hospital's academic committee, go through the medical affairs department, and be reviewed by experts. Just getting everyone together for a meeting takes more than a day or two."

Ye Zhen looked up.

"The child can't wait."

Zhou Hai paused for a moment.

He stood up, walked to the window, and turned his back to her.

Outside the window was the gray-white hospital building. Downstairs, someone was pushing an oxygen tank past hurriedly, the iron wheels making a series of muffled thuds as they rolled over the concrete.

"I'm not trying to make things difficult for you."

Zhou Hai lowered his voice.

"I'm thinking of a backup plan for you."

"If this surgery succeeds, you'll be the one paving the way. But if something goes wrong, even if it's just a tiny mistake with the patch, no one will care how critical the child was or if there were any other options."

He turned around.

"They'll only ask one question—what about the paperwork?"

Ye Zhen also stood up.

"Therefore, I do not intend to go through the regular joint review process."

Zhou Hai frowned.

"What are you planning to do?"

Ye Zhen took a folded piece of paper out of her pocket.

The paper contained the application she had written in the early hours of the morning; the handwriting was neat, but the strokes were firm.

"Special approval granted for critical care."

She handed the paper over.

"The child's condition is critical, and existing conventional patches cannot meet the surgical requirements. The only feasible alternative material is an experimental nickel-titanium alloy patch."

"The surgeon who performed the operation will bear full medical responsibility."

"Family members signed a form of fully informed consent."

"Within seven days after the operation, submit complete materials to the hospital's academic committee, medical affairs department, and higher-level authorities."

Zhou Hai took the paper and read it over.

His finger stopped on the line that read "The surgeon assumes full medical responsibility".

I haven't spoken for a long time.

"This road is listed in the regulations."

Zhou Hai slowly began to speak.

"But no one has ever actually walked that way."

Ye Zhen spoke calmly.

"That's why I came to you, not to ask you to approve it for me."

"It's to let you know."

Zhou Hai looked up at her.

Ye Zhen stood ramrod straight.

"I will bear all the risks and consequences of this surgery myself. But I need the hospital to provide an operating room, extracorporeal circulation team, and postoperative ICU monitoring."

The office fell silent again.

The leaves of the asparagus fern on the windowsill shimmered slightly from the warmth of the heater.

Zhou Hai placed the application on the table, pressed it down with his palm, and didn't move it for a long time.

"Xiao Ye".

He said.

"I watched the entire surgery performed by Tian Xiaobao from the observation room."

Ye Zhen didn't reply.

"I have no doubt about your knife. I have no doubt about your judgment of the materials."

Zhou Hai looked at her, his eyes showing both weariness and caution.

"What worries me is that this patch isn't something that can be stitched up in three or five days. It will stay inside the child's body for three or five years, or even a lifetime."

"If problems arise then, who will cover for us?"

Ye Zhen answered quickly.

"Hans conducted an in vitro fatigue test, simulating a ten-year heartbeat cycle, and found no microcracks or permanent deformation."

Zhou Hai stared at her.

Can you guarantee 100% safety?

"cannot."

Ye Zhen made no attempt to embellish.

"Nothing is 100% certain in medicine."

She paused.

"But I can guarantee that, of all the options available, this is the only one that can save Xiaoman's life."

Zhou Hai asked, "What if we don't do it?"

Ye Zhen looked at him, speaking each word clearly.

"If left untreated, the tumor-like bulge will continue to grow. It could rupture spontaneously at any time within three to six months."

"The child will die."

"He might die at home, or he might die on his way to the hospital."

Zhou Hai picked up his teacup and took a sip.

The tea was over-brewed, becoming both strong and bitter, and he frowned slightly.

After a while, he put down the teacup.

"I'll reserve the operating room for you."

Ye Zhen looked at him.

Zhou Hai continued, "The ICU is equipped to the highest standards. The blood bank, extracorporeal circulation, anesthesia, and pediatric intensive care unit are all in place ahead of schedule."

"But Xiao Ye, you must do a good job of talking to the family members."

"Every risk must be clearly explained. There can be no ambiguity, and we can't just trick people into signing."

Ye Zhen nodded.

"I can."

"besides."

Zhou Hai pushed the application back and then pressed down on one corner.

"When Hans arrived, I asked him to give me a copy of all the material reports, heat treatment records, fatigue test records, and quality inspection reports."

"I need to keep this on file for future reference."

"It's already been arranged."

Zhou Hai waved his hand.

"Go."

Ye Zhen picked up the plan, walked to the door, and then turned back.

"Dean Zhou, thank you."

Zhou Hai took off his glasses and slowly wiped the lenses with a handkerchief without looking up.

"Don't thank me."

He said.

"Just save the child's life."

……

Forty-six hours later.

Hans appeared at the main gate of the North City Military Region General Hospital.

He was wearing a wrinkled gray trench coat, his hair was a mess as if he had just crawled out of a chicken coop, and his eyes were bloodshot.

But his two hands were tightly clutching a silver insulated flight case.

That doesn't look like someone carrying a box.

Like holding one's own son.

Ye Zhen was waiting for him in her office.

Hans almost tripped over the threshold when he entered, and staggered a couple of steps before regaining his balance.

He didn't even have time to catch his breath before carefully placing the flight case on Ye Zhen's desk.

Thirty-nine hours.

He held up three fingers, then quickly added another, speaking haltingly in Chinese.

"From heat treatment to fine grinding, to quality inspection, and then to boarding, my team didn't sleep for thirty-nine hours."

Getting excited, he added a few more words in German.

"Ye, open it and take a look."

Ye Zhen unfastened the clips on the flight case.

The lid pops open, revealing a thick layer of insulating foam inside, with a transparent, sealed box embedded in the center.

The box had a German label and a temperature recording strip next to it.

Ye Zhen put on gloves and took out the sealed box.

open the lid.

The patch lay quietly on the sterile pad.

Silver-gray.

The edges are smooth.

It's so thin that you can almost see the texture of the padding underneath.

Ye Zhen used tweezers to pick up the edge of the patch and placed it in her palm.

At room temperature, the patch is so soft that it can be folded in half.

She gently bent two fingers.

After being released, the patch slowly rebounded, but did not fully return to its original shape.

Hans leaned closer, rubbing his hands together as he explained.

"The room temperature is currently 22 degrees Celsius, which is below the recovery temperature, so it is soft."

"Once placed in the human body, it will be at 37 degrees and return to the preset curvature within six seconds."

Ye Zhen placed the patch back in her palm, then covered it with her other hand, warming it with her body heat.

one second.

two seconds.

three seconds.

Six seconds later, she let go.

The patch, which was originally almost flat, has now become a shallow arc.

The radian value matched the value she marked on the parameter table perfectly.

Ye Zhen picked up the tweezers and gently tapped the edge of the patch.

A very faint metallic echo rang out.

crisp.

Short and brief.

The frequency is uniform and there is no noise.

She only said one word.

"OK."

Hans seemed to finally let out a sigh of relief, leaning back and slumping into the chair.

"Ye".

He wiped his face.

"Do you know what I was thinking about the whole flight?"

"What are you thinking about?"

Hans looked at the sealed box on the table, his voice trembling slightly.

"I'm thinking that if anything goes wrong with this patch, I'll never forgive myself for the rest of my life."

"It's not a piece of metal."

He paused for a moment.

"It's about to become part of a child's heart."

Ye Zhen put the patch back into the sealed box and closed the lid.

"So you did 39 hours of quality control."

Hans gave a wry smile.

"I personally oversee every step of the process."

"I didn't even go to the toilet while I was grinding the grain."

Ye Zhen glanced at him.

"Go wash your face and eat something."

"You will be in the observation room for at least four hours for tomorrow's surgery."

Hans nodded, stood up, and walked outside.

He took two steps, then stopped and turned around.

"Ye".

"During the pre-operative consultation, if the family asks whether this material is safe, you can have them ask me."

"I will explain all the data to them one by one."

"Need not."

Ye Zhen fastened the flight case back in place.

"They don't understand the data."

Hans was taken aback.

Ye Zhen raised her head, her voice calm.

"They just need to trust me."

Hans opened his mouth, but in the end said nothing.

He turned and went out the door.

The office fell silent.

Ye Zhen looked down at the silver flight case.

There was more than just a patch lying inside.

It was Xiaoman's only chance to survive.

It is also a road that no one has ever walked before.