A quack doctor goes to the battlefield; the first sharpshooter doctor in the Republic of China

Li Ranmo squatted down and began stitching.

He's very quick.

Insert the needle, pull it out, tie a knot, and cut it. Insert it again, pull it out, tie a knot, and cut it.

The opening in the intestine was quite large, and blood was still seeping out. Li Ranmo pressed it down with gauze while continuing to sew with her other hand.

Shen Qiushui handed him the equipment from the side, her eyes fixed on his hands.

"tweezers."

Shen Qiushui handed over the tweezers.

Li Ranmo picked up a piece of cloth and threw it into the iron plate next to him. It was taken from the wound and was covered in blood and mud.

"gauze."

Shen Qiushui handed over another roll of new gauze.

Li Ranmo took it, pressed it around the wound, and continued stitching.

The wind on the dock carried the fishy smell of the river, mixed with the stench of blood, and was a bit pungent.

The woman was still watching at the entrance of the warehouse not far away.

She took a few steps forward and stopped about five or six meters away from them.

Li Ran didn't look up, but he could feel her gaze.

"Can this person survive?" the woman asked, her voice a little hoarse but steady.

Li Ran silently finished sewing the last stitch and cut the thread.

"It's up to fate," he said.

"By fortune-telling?"

"He's lost too much blood, the risk of wound infection is high." Li Ranmo stood up, took off his gloves and threw them on the ground. "There's no medicine now, he can only rely on himself to bear it."

The woman walked over, squatted down, and looked at the wounded man's face.

It was a young face, probably in his early twenties, now as white as paper.

"He's my brother," the woman said.

Li Ranmo did not respond.

He walked over to the second wounded man. This man had been shot in the chest, the bullet was still inside him, and he was breathing very weakly.

"This is more troublesome," Li Ranmo said to Shen Qiushui. "We need to remove the bullet."

"Get it here?"

"Otherwise what?" Li Ranmo opened the first-aid kit. "By the time they get back to the hospital, they'll be long gone."

Shen Qiushui glanced at Chen Qitai.

Chen Qitai was standing next to the ambulance, talking to a policeman. He nodded in their direction.

"What do you need?" Shen Qiushui asked.

"Knife, forceps, gauze, iodine," Li Ranmo said. "Also, tell that nurse next to you, Xiao Zhou, to stop shaking and keep an eye on things."

Xiao Zhou blushed and quickly stood up straight.

Li Ranmo placed his hand on the wounded soldier's chest and touched it.

"Here," he pointed to the lower left side of his chest, "the bullet is lodged between his ribs and lung, it didn't go into his heart, he's lucky to be alive."

He picked up a scalpel and made an incision in his skin.

Blood gushed out.

Li Ranmo inserted his fingers and groped around for a few moments.

"pliers."

Shen Qiushui handed him the pliers.

Li Ranmo gripped something and slowly pulled it out.

A deformed bullet was pulled out and fell into the iron pan with a clatter.

"Pack with gauze, quickly."

Shen Qiushui acted quickly, stuffing gauze into the wound to press down on the bleeding point.

Li Ranmo began stitching.

The whole process took less than ten minutes.

The woman stood by and watched without saying a word.

She only spoke after Li Ran finished sewing.

"What's your name?"

"Li Ranmo." Li Ranmo didn't even look up. "A doctor at the Army Hospital."

"Dr. Li," the woman said, "my name is Han Xiuyun."

Li Ranmo then looked up at her.

Han Xiuyun looked to be in her early thirties, dressed in a black silk shirt, her hair neatly styled, her face expressionless, but her eyes were bright.

"Boss Han," a policeman nearby leaned in with a fawning smile, "Are these all your men?"

"My men," Han Xiuyun said, "What about the Green Dragon Gang?"

"Two are dead, four are seriously injured, and five are slightly injured," the police said. "They've all been taken to Renji Hospital."

Han Xiuyun nodded and then looked at Li Ranmo.

"Dr. Li, this is my brother," she pointed to the first wounded soldier Li Ranmo had stitched up, "Will he survive?"

"As I just said, it's up to fate."

"What if we used the best medicine?"

Li Ranmo stopped what he was doing and looked at her.

"That depends on what kind of medicine it is."

"Sulfathiazole," Han Xiuyun said. "I have it."

Li Ran remained silent.

Shen Qiushui took a soft breath beside her.

"Boss Han," Chen Qitai walked over, "Regarding the docks, our hospital only cares about saving lives, nothing else."

"I understand," Han Xiuyun said. "I just want to ask, what are the chances of my brother surviving after taking the medication?"

"Seventy percent," Li Ranmo said.

"Okay." Han Xiuyun turned to one of her subordinates and said, "Go and bring that box of sulfathiazole from the warehouse."

His men ran away.

Chen Qitai frowned.

"Master Han, that medicine..."

"Don't worry, Vice President Chen, the medicine came from a clean source," Han Xiuyun said. "It was purchased with money, and we have the receipt."

Chen Qitai didn't say anything more.

The medicine arrived quickly, in a small wooden box. Inside, twenty bottles of sulfathiazole were neatly arranged.

Li Ranmo picked up a bottle and looked at it.

The label is in English, and the production date is last year.

"It works," he said.

He gave the first wounded soldier an injection, and then gave the second one an injection.

Watching his movements, Han Xiuyun suddenly said, "Dr. Li's technique is very skilled."

"I studied in the UK," Li Ranmo said.

"It's not just that you've studied it," Han Xiuyun smiled. "I've seen many doctors, but none of them are as fast as you."

Li Ranmo did not respond.

He threw the empty medicine bottle back into the box and began treating the third wounded soldier.

The injury wasn't serious; there was a cut on my arm, but it was deep enough to see the bone.

Li Ranmo cleaned the wound, stitched it up, and bandaged it.

After doing all that, he stood up and stretched his neck.

The wounded at the dock have been mostly treated. Those with minor injuries have been bandaged, and those with serious injuries are being held steady while waiting for ambulances to bring them back.

"Dr. Li," Shen Qiushui walked over and lowered her voice, "Vice President Chen wants to see you."

Li Ranmo looked up and saw Chen Qitai waving at him from the ambulance.

He walked over.

"What's wrong?"

Chen Qitai glanced at Han Xiuyun in the distance, then looked at Li Ranmo.

"Do you know her?"

"I don't know him."

"Then why was she so polite to you?"

Li Ranmo pushed up his glasses.

"Maybe it's because I saved her brother."

Chen Qitai didn't say anything, but lit a cigarette.

"This Han Xiuyun," he exhaled a puff of smoke, "is the head of the Yi gang. A third of the goods at the docks have to go through her hands."

"Including medicine?" Li Ran asked silently.

Chen Qitai glanced at him.

"Including medicine," he said. "And I heard that she has some dealings with Wang Qingnian from the Department of Health."

Li Ranmo nodded.

"That box of sulfathiazole she mentioned earlier," Chen Qitai continued, "might not have a clean origin. On the black market now, this drug is more expensive than gold."

"But she was willing to use it to save lives."

"That's her business." Chen Qitai threw his cigarette on the ground and stomped it out. "Our business is to save lives, mind your own business."

"clear."

Chen Qitai glanced at Han Xiuyun again, then turned and left.

Li Ranmo returned to Shen Qiushui's side.

Xiao Zhou went to help carry the wounded, leaving only the two of them.

"Dr. Li," Shen Qiushui said in a low voice while tidying up her equipment, "there's some movement from Wang Qingnian's side."

"What's that noise?"

"The guy you caught last night confessed," Shen Qiushui said. "It was indeed Wang Qingnian who instructed him to steal the medicine. And Wang Qingnian has more than one informant in the hospital."

Li Ran silently wiped the blood off his hands.

"several?"

"At least three," Shen Qiushui said. "One is in the pharmacy, one is at the registration desk, and the other... might be in the vice president's office."

Li Ran paused for a moment.

"Does Vice Dean Chen know?"

"They probably don't know," Shen Qiushui said. "I just received the news myself."

She put the last pair of scissors into the box and closed the lid.

"Also, that batch of imported sulfathiazole," she said, looking at Li Ranmo, "the ship will arrive tomorrow. Wang Qingnian has already sent people to the dock to wait for it."

"Is he trying to intercept the goods?"

"It's not about intercepting the goods," Shen Qiushui said. "It's about 'inspecting' them. The Department of Health has the right to conduct random inspections of imported medicines, and each inspection can take ten days to half a month. After the inspections are completed, it's hard to say how much medicine will be left."

Li Ran remained silent.

In the distance, Han Xiuyun was directing her men to lift the wounded onto stretchers.

She turned to look at Li Ranmo, and their eyes met.

Han Xiuyun nodded at him.

Li Ranmo nodded as well.

"Dr. Li," Shen Qiushui said, "be careful with that Han Xiuyun."

"What's wrong?"

"She's no ordinary person," Shen Qiushui said. "Women who can make it big at the docks are never clean. Besides, she's in cahoots with Wang Qingnian; who knows what she's up to?"

"I know," Li Ranmo said.

The ambulance started and drove the seriously injured person to the hospital.

Chen Qitai walked over.

"Dr. Li, Nurse Shen, you should take the next bus back," he said. "I'll stay here and keep watch for a while longer."

"it is good."

Chen Qitai glanced at Li Ranmo, then at Han Xiuyun in the distance, hesitated, and finally turned and left.

Only a few people remained on the dock.

Han Xiuyun walked over.

"Dr. Li."

"Boss Han."

"Thank you for today," Han Xiuyun said. "You saved my brother's life."

"It's my duty."

"It's your duty, but not mine." Han Xiuyun took a small wooden tag out of her pocket and handed it to Li Ranmo. "Take this."

Li Ranmo took it.

The wooden sign was ordinary, with the character "义" (righteousness) engraved on it.

"If you need anything at the dock, just show this sign, and my people will help you," Han Xiuyun said. "Consider it a favor I owe you."

Li Ranmo put the sign into his pocket.

"Boss Han," he said, "there's something I want to ask you."

"explain."

"A batch of medicine is arriving in Hong Kong tomorrow, sulfathiazole." Li Ranmo looked at her. "Section Chief Wang from the Department of Health will send someone to 'inspect' it. This batch of medicine is urgently needed on the front lines and cannot be delayed."

Han Xiuyun smiled.

"Dr. Li," she said, "you're a doctor, yet you're meddling in so much."

"I'll take care of any medicine that can save lives."

Han Xiuyun stared at him for a few seconds.

"What time tomorrow?"

"3 PM, Pier 3."

"Okay," Han Xiuyun said. "I'll have someone take a look. But Dr. Li, I've already repaid this favor."

"clear."

Han Xiuyun turned to leave, but then stopped.

"Dr. Li," she turned around, "who exactly are you?"

Li Ranmo pushed up his glasses.

"doctor."

"It doesn't seem like it." Han Xiuyun shook her head. "I've seen many doctors, but none of them are like you."

She didn't wait for Li Ranmo's reply before turning and leaving.

Shen Qiushui walked over.

"She agreed?"

"Um."

"You really believe her that much?"

"I don't believe it," Li Ranmo said, "but there's no other way now."

The second ambulance arrived.

The two got into the car.

The car started and drove away from the dock.

Looking out the window at the rapidly receding river, Shen Qiushui suddenly asked, "Dr. Li, do you think Vice President Chen knows about Wang Qingnian's matter?"

Li Ran remained silent.

"I think he knows," Shen Qiushui said, "but he can't touch Wang Qingnian. Wang Qingnian has connections."

"so what?"

"That's why we need someone like Han Xiuyun." Shen Qiushui turned back to look at Li Ranmo. "Even if she's not clean, even if she has dealings with Wang Qingnian, at least she can get the medicine."

Li Ranmo nodded.

The car turned a corner, and the hospital gates appeared in front of us.

There was a person standing at the door.

It's Chen Qitai.

He got back before the ambulance.

After the car came to a stop, Li Ranmo and Shen Qiushui got out.

Chen Qitai walked over, his expression not looking good.

"Dr. Li," he said, "come to my office."

"Now?"

"Now."