Journey to the West: The Mysterious Doctor - Starting with a Heart Transplant for Princess Sizi

There's only one solution: change it.

Replace the bad part with the good part.

Just like the worms in Eucommia ulmoides, if you can't get rid of them, cut them open and let them out; if you can't save the heart of a rhinoceros, replace it.

But a heart transplant.

When the idea took shape in his mind, he himself felt like he was going crazy.

Even with the advancements in cardiac surgery to this day, heart transplantation remains an extremely high-risk procedure, requiring a complete surgical system: cardiopulmonary bypass, a sterile environment, precise vascular reconnection, and postoperative anti-rejection measures—none of which he could handle.

But he possessed an ancient medical classic.

He can cure diseases, accumulate experience, upgrade his skills, and unlock new abilities.

What we lack now is not direction, but time.

Li Shimin was still waiting for his answer.

Zhang Zhao took a deep breath and raised his head:

"Your Majesty, I have a plan. But this plan requires some time and certain... conditions."

"Speak," Li Shimin said in a deep voice.

Zhang Zhao stood by the bed, gathered his thoughts, and began to speak:

"The princess's heart wasn't invaded by external evil, but rather her own structure was disintegrating. This disintegration, I call 'deconstruction.'"

He explained it in the simplest language, without using pedantry or keeping people in suspense:

"A normal heart is a complete three-dimensional structure. A part of the princess's heart is degenerating from a three-dimensional structure into a two-dimensional one—not truly becoming two-dimensional, but losing the structural support of its three-dimensional form, turning into a scattered mass of lines and colors. This part of the tissue is already unusable, and it continues to spread."

The hall was so quiet that the crackling of the candles could be heard.

Li Shimin's expression remained unchanged; he simply asked, "Can it be reversed?"

"No," Zhang Zhao said decisively. "The parts that have already been deconstructed cannot be restored. The only way is replacement—cut off the broken parts and replace them with good ones."

"Exchange? Exchange with what?"

"With another heart."

The hall fell into a deathly silence for a moment.

Jiang Jizhang's face turned pale. Xuanzang lowered his eyes and remained silent.

Li Shimin stared at Zhang Zhao, his gaze like a knife: "You mean, give her a new heart?"

"yes."

"Treat others as you would like to be treated."

Zhang Zhao knew the weight of those words. Speaking them in the Tang Dynasty carried just as much weight as it would in later generations. But he also knew that there was no other choice at the moment.

"Your Majesty," he looked directly at Li Shimin, "this is not a metaphor, it's the literal meaning. Part of the princess's heart is already damaged and incurable. The remaining part is still functioning with difficulty, but it's deteriorating every day. At the current rate of deterioration, in three to four days at most, the necrotic part will exceed the critical threshold. At that time, the heart will completely fail, and there will be no way to save it."

"Three days?" Li Shimin asked in a low voice.

"I was referring to three to four days. But the princess is currently clinging to life with Master Sun's medicinal pills, and there's only enough left for six hours at most."

This statement is like a stone thrown into water.

Li Shimin's hands clenched tightly inside his sleeves, his knuckles turning white.

Six hours. Not even three days.

"Master Xuanzang," Zhang Zhao turned to the monk, "you just said you could continue for three days using Buddhist teachings. Is this three days a precise number?"

Xuanzang nodded: "This humble monk will use my primordial power to seal the crack, which can extend the princess's lifespan by three days. However, Doctor Zhang is right; the dismantling is still ongoing. After three days, the seal will fail, and the princess will immediately be in grave danger."

Three days plus six hours are not enough for five days.

The worst-case scenario Zhang Zhao just mentioned is three to four days.

In other words, the time left for him was even tighter than he said.

Li Shimin was silent for a moment, then lowered his voice: "You said it requires time and certain conditions, but what exactly are those?"

Zhang Zhao took a deep breath:

"First, technical skills. I need to master the complete range of cardiac surgery techniques, including open-chest surgery, vascular reconnection, cardiac arrest and restart, and postoperative suturing. I have a foundation in this area, but I still need to improve."

"Secondly, the materials. We need a 'heart' to replace the original heart—not a living person's heart, but some kind of substitute with heart function that is compatible with the human body. I currently have a lead, but it still needs verification."

"Third, control of the process. During the surgery, the deconstruction won't stop; it might even accelerate due to external stimuli. We need methods to suppress the spread of deconstruction. We don't have a clue about this yet."

"Fourth, rejection. The body will reject the new heart. Techniques are needed to reduce this rejection reaction."

Fifth, manpower. I can't do this alone; I need at least one qualified assistant.

He listed them one by one, and finally said, "With my current level of competence, it will take me at least three days to complete these preparations."

Three days.

Xuanzang was able to continue for three days.

It connects perfectly.

But Li Shimin understood another meaning: "You said it would take three days. The rhinoceros doesn't have three days."

"This humble citizen knows."

"What should we do then?"

Zhang Zhao did not answer immediately. He knew that Li Shimin was waiting for him to say "I can't do it," so that the conversation could end, declaring despair, and then they could go their separate ways.

But he didn't want to say he couldn't do it.

He glanced at Xuanzang: "Master, can the three days you've extended be maintained during the surgery?"

Xuanzang paused slightly, seemingly surprised by the question, before replying, "It is possible. However, to prolong my life, I must be fully focused and cannot afford to be distracted. If I wish to maintain this for three days, Doctor Zhang's surgery must be completed within those three days."

"What if the surgery is completed ahead of schedule?"

"Completing it ahead of schedule will save this humble monk's magical energy for post-operative stabilization. But the prerequisite is—can Dr. Zhang really complete all preparations within three days?"

Zhang Zhao paused for a moment.

He said three days was his most optimistic estimate of his abilities. But what he didn't say was that he hadn't even taken the first step yet; his skills were insufficient, he lacked materials, and he had no means of controlling the situation. These three days were less of a "preparation time" and more of an "extreme compression."

But he didn't want to admit defeat.

He recalled the rules of the medical manual: the higher the difficulty of the treatment, the greater the reward. If he could cure Princess Sizi's illness, even just by participating in the treatment, the reward…

He took a deep breath and said to Li Shimin:

"Your Majesty, I need two things. First, I need freedom of movement within the palace for these three days to prepare for the surgery. Second, I need Your Majesty's trust."

"trust?"

"This humble subject is not confident I can cure him. But I will do my best," Zhang Zhao said. "Could Your Majesty provide these two items?"

Li Shimin looked at him with a deep gaze, as if he were weighing something.

After a long silence, he spoke:

"I will give you three days."

"For the next three days, you may freely enter and leave the palace. I will send people to assist you; just ask for anything you need."

He paused, then said:

"I have never trusted folk doctors. But Xuanzang said you have some real skills, so I choose to believe you."

Zhang Zhao cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Li Shimin waved his hand: "Go. I want to see the results in three days."