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

The compound of the Beicheng Military Region General Hospital.

Four Jiefang brand trucks rolled over the speed bumps, and before the vehicles had even come to a complete stop, Thomas, the president of Siemens Healthineers, and Hans, the manager, jumped out of the trucks.

Several German engineers carefully unloaded the sturdy, shockproof wooden crate from the truck.

Thirteen of the latest European-made electrocardiogram monitors and four high-end ventilators were lined up in the open space of the somewhat old military hospital from the 1980s.

Thomas strode into the intervention building, straightened his expensive suit and tie, and stopped Ye Zhen, who had just come off the operating table.

"Dr. Ye, Siemens kept its promise, and all the equipment has arrived."

Thomas, speaking fluent but slightly arrogant English, said, "To demonstrate the efficiency of Sino-German cooperation, I have requested that the surgeries of these thirteen German children be scheduled at the very beginning. They deserve to enjoy the VIP access."

Seeing Ye Zhen's eyes turn cold, Hans quickly stepped forward, wiping his sweat as he tried to smooth things over: "Dr. Ye, the president's idea is that since the equipment is in place so quickly, could we speed things up as much as possible and give it priority..."

Ye Zhen stopped in her tracks.

She bent down, took off her gloves, and threw them into the yellow medical waste bin.

"Mr. Thomas."

Ye Zhen looked up: "The equipment will be handed over to the logistics department for inventory. As for the schedule, it's all written clearly on the whiteboard. It will be based on the severity of the illness, there's absolutely no room for discussion."

Thomas frowned deeply: "Dr. Ye, Siemens provided the equipment. In Europe, the largest sponsor should have special privileges; that's the rule!"

"This is the northern part of China."

Gu Zheng leaned against the corridor wall, his military uniform crisp and clear, an orange tossing in his hand, his eyes cold and sharp: "In this building, there are only two kinds of privilege. One is for those who are almost dead, and the other is for those who can still hold on for a couple more days. Which one is your child?"

Thomas was furious, and Hans quickly put on a smiling face and looked to Ye Zhen for help.

Ye Zhen took the orange Gu Zheng handed her and said, "Line up according to the rules. Thirteen people. Li Hong, take them to the second ward on the third floor. I'll be making rounds in half an hour."

Half an hour later, in the foreign-related special ward.

The thirteen German children have been settled in their hospital beds.

The German family members accompanying the patient stood nervously by the bedside.

BBC reporter George, along with his cameraman, quietly waited in a corner of the corridor.

Ye Zhen, holding the medical record folder, pushed open the door to ward number 5.

Bed number: 05.

Name: Julian.

Age: Eight years old.

European diagnostic conclusion: Ventricular septal defect, moderate risk.

This is the only medical record that Ye Zhen glanced at more than once out of the 20 medical records faxed from Germany.

Julian's father, Karl, a tall German automotive engineer, nervously greeted him in broken English: "Dr. Ye, please."

Ye Zhen nodded and walked to the bedside.

Julian's golden hair clung to his forehead, and his breathing was slightly rapid.

Ye Zhen took out her stethoscope, put on the earplugs, and placed the cool stethoscope head against the outer edge of Julian's left sternum.

The ward was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

three seconds.

Five seconds.

ten seconds.

Ye Zhen's brows furrowed sharply.

She ripped off the stethoscope.

"Lin Yi, go and push the supercomputer! Immediately!"

Lin Yi, standing outside the door, felt a chill run down his spine and turned to run towards the nurses' station.

In less than a minute, the heavy ultrasound machine was pushed to the bedside.

Ye Zhen grabbed the probe, applied coupling gel, and pressed it against the child's chest.

On the black-and-white screen, the image of a contracting heart beats violently.

Dr. Brown happened to be passing by, peeked into the screen, and his face instantly turned pale.

"This is not a simple ventricular septal defect!"

Brown exclaimed, "There's a hidden abnormal blood flow at the apex of the heart... This is congenital left ventricular myocompaction failure! Damn it, how did those colleagues in Munich come up with that report?"

Carl didn't understand the medical terminology, but he could read the expressions on the faces of the doctors around him. "Dr. Ye, is this serious?"

"His heart muscle is now like a leaky, broken sponge."

Ye Zhen unplugged the probe, picked up a dry towel hanging by the bedside to wipe her hands, and said in a strained voice, "His heart could stop beating at any moment."

Carl understood the translator's words, and the 1.9-meter-tall German man's eyes instantly turned red.

Ignoring the chaos in the ward, Ye Zhen turned and strode toward the nurses' station.

"Bring the whiteboard."

Liu Xiaohe hurriedly handed over the whiteboard used for scheduling.

Ye Zhen picked up a black pen and crossed out the name "Chinese patient - Little Stone" at 1 p.m., then wrote "Julian" heavily next to it.

"Prepare the equipment, one o'clock, catheterization lab number one. Julian."

Ye Zhen threw down her pen.

Liu Xiaohe panicked: "Professor Ye, what if we temporarily remove the Chinese patient and replace them with a foreign one? What if the family makes a scene? Those foreign reporters are still filming outside!"

George's camera lens had indeed been quietly pointed at the nurses' station.

Ye Zhen remained expressionless: "The rule is that those with more serious conditions go first. Julian is in danger at any moment, and Xiao Shitou's surgery can be postponed for 24 hours if his condition stabilizes. I'll go and talk to the family."

Ye Zhen took Xiao Shitou's medical record and walked to the waiting chair at the end of the corridor.

There squatted a man wearing a faded blue Zhongshan suit, his liberation shoes still covered in yellow mud.

This is Little Stone's father, Old Stone.

The man from northern Shaanxi sold everything he owned to pay for his son's medical treatment.

When Old Shi saw Ye Zhen approaching, he quickly stood up, rubbing his hands vigorously on his trouser legs. His bloodshot eyes were full of hope: "Dr. Ye, shouldn't my child go in now?"

Ye Zhen stopped and looked at the weathered man in front of her.

"Brother Shi."

Ye Zhen didn't use cold medical jargon, but rather the most straightforward words: "I have to apologize to you. Little Stone can't do it this afternoon. I need to cut in line and arrange for a German child to go first."

Old Shi froze, his calloused hands frozen in mid-air.

When the family members of several Chinese patients nearby heard this, they immediately erupted in uproar.

"Why?! Foreigners' lives matter, but the lives of ordinary Chinese people don't?"

An older woman got jealous and started raising her voice.

"Exactly! There's no reason to postpone something that's already been decided!"

Ye Zhen neither raised her voice nor took a step back.

"The German boy inside has just been diagnosed with a hidden danger; his heart is in danger at any time."

Ye Zhen looked directly into Lao Shi's eyes: "I checked Xiao Shitou's condition last night, and we'll do the procedure tomorrow morning. It won't delay anything. Brother Lao Shi, you're Xiao Shitou's father, don't you think?"

The corridor fell silent immediately.

The older woman shut up as well.

All eyes were on this taciturn man from northern Shaanxi.

Old Shi's lips trembled slightly.

He turned his head and looked at the door of the other ward. Through the glass, he could see that the German parent named Karl was covering his face and crying bitterly.

Old Shi swallowed hard, then suddenly raised his rough hand and wiped his face haphazardly.

"Dr. Ye."

Old Shi's voice was hoarse: "My child was also born with a heart defect. I know what it feels like to watch your child stop breathing.

"Saving lives knows no nationality. If that foreign kid is about to die, you must hurry and save him. My Stone... my Stone can wait."

Thomas, who was standing a few steps away, had prepared a whole host of pressuring words, but now felt as if someone had grabbed him by the throat.

Carl came out of the ward and understood the sentence through a translator.

The meticulous and rigid senior German engineer burst into tears.

He strode up to Old Shi.

Karl didn't know what Chinese etiquette to use, so he simply opened his arms and hugged the Chinese farmer tightly.

"Thank you, brother."

Karl choked out in German, his forehead pressed tightly against Old Stone's thin shoulder.

Old Shi's withered hands hung in mid-air, unsure of what to do. Finally, he patted the foreign man's back somewhat awkwardly: "It's alright, it's alright, the doctor's skills are excellent."

George stood a short distance away, quietly pressing the record button.

In the footage, a 1.9-meter-tall German executive is seen embracing a Chinese farmer, weeping uncontrollably.

Ye Zhen did not interrupt the embrace.

She turned to look at Lin Yi, her voice steady and powerful: "Notify the catheterization lab and have Julian wheeled in."