When I'm on the night shift, all the department heads can't sleep.

The automatic door swung open with a clatter, and three workers in reflective vests rushed in carrying a door panel. On it lay a man in his forties, cursing and swearing all the way.

"His left ankle is swollen so badly, we didn't dare touch it." The foreman was so anxious that he kept rubbing his hands, his vest covered in a layer of dust.

The day shift nurses were already packing up, and glanced at Nurse Zhao. Nurse Zhao waved her hand, "Let's go, let's go, we'll take care of it."

When Lin Ye and Ma Hao moved the man from the door panel onto the flatbed, he winced in pain.

"Gently, gently, gently!"

Nurse Zhao wrapped the blood pressure cuff and announced, "136 to 82, heart rate 98, blood oxygen 98."

"Bear with it, I'll show you soon." Lin Ye glanced at his left ankle; it was swollen and deformed, with a bruise underneath, but the skin wasn't broken. "How did you get hurt?"

"It slipped from the scaffolding on the construction site. It wasn't high, just over two meters. His left foot landed first, and he tilted and hit a steel pipe," a coworker chimed in.

"Did you hit your head?"

"No, just the feet."

"Does your back hurt? Does your chest feel tight?"

"It's not stuffy, but my feet hurt like crazy."

"Where's your belly?"

The man finally started to get impatient. "Doctor, could you please check my feet first? My stomach is perfectly fine!"

Ma Hao suppressed a laugh.

Lin Ye ignored him, pressed his fingers along the spine from top to bottom, and then pressed on both sides of the chest.

"Alright, here's my foot."

The left ankle is obviously deformed, with swelling on the medial side, and the dorsalis pedis artery can be felt. The toes can move, and sensation is still present.

"Can you move your toes?"

The man tried and moved, but his ankle hurt again when he moved, and he cursed again.

Nurse Zhao pushed a pillow over and placed it under his calves.

"Don't move around. Let's take an X-ray first to see how the bones are."

Lin Ye applied for an X-ray, filled out the form, and handed it to Ma Hao.

"Take him to take the picture, and be careful not to move his ankles when you move him."

"Okay." Ma Hao went to push the flatbed cart, and his coworkers followed. The dust on the reflective vests of the three of them shimmered under the corridor lights.

Nurse Zhao leaned back in her chair at the nurses' station, unscrewed the thermos, and took a sip.

"Finally, something simple."

Lin Ye glanced at her.

"Sister Zhao, please don't say such things."

"What's wrong?"

"If you say something simple, something complicated will immediately follow; that's a rule."

Nurse Zhao chuckled. "You're still superstitious, aren't you? Fine, I won't say anything more, so you don't blame me later."

The emergency room lobby had quieted down. A few people were still waiting in the general ward, some scrolling on their phones, others dozing on the waiting chairs. In a corner, an elderly man was pacing back and forth with an IV stand, probably trying to stretch his legs. Sun Zhiqiang was typing on his computer, occasionally flipping through a report from the day shift.

Taking advantage of the break, Lin Ye glanced at the patient in bed two. The IV bag was almost empty, so he called out to Nurse Zhao. Nurse Zhao came to change the IV, and Lin Ye checked the temperature record. It was 38.9 degrees Celsius, a little lower than before. The fever-reducing patch was still on, and the patient turned over, ignoring him.

Less than two minutes after returning to the nurses' station, Ma Hao pushed someone back from the other end of the corridor. The X-ray was tucked under his arm.

"Brother Ye, the scans are out. The orthopedics department lets you see them first; they're taking over the broadcast."

Lin Ye took the film and hung it on the lightbox.

Left ankle joint. Lateral malleolus fracture with displacement. The medial malleolus also looks off; there's a faint line visible.

He took a picture using the camera at the nurses' station and sent it to the orthopedic doctor on duty.

"Teacher Sun, could you please take a look?"

Sun Zhiqiang turned around and glanced at the film.

"The lateral malleolus is fractured and displaced, and the medial malleolus appears to have a fracture line. We'll temporarily immobilize it for now, and the orthopedic surgeons will decide whether surgery is necessary once they arrive."

Lin Ye nodded.

"The plaster cast material is in the second cabinet in the treatment room. Ma Hao, go get it," Nurse Zhao pointed in the direction.

The man, lying on the gurney, heard the word "surgery" and his face changed instantly.

"Doctor, I just slipped and fell, why do I need surgery?"

"Don't panic." Lin Ye took the X-ray off the lightbox and showed it to him. "Look here, this bone is broken and displaced. Whether we can avoid surgery depends on what the orthopedic surgeon says. For now, we'll stabilize it to prevent it from shifting further."

The man stared at the white line on the screen for a long time.

"Is that the white part the broken section?"

"right."

He tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling.

"I fucking slipped one step."

Nurse Zhao chimed in from the side, "One step is enough. Next time, make sure to fasten the safety harness."

The man's lips twitched, whether from pain or a desire to laugh, it was hard to tell.

Ma Hao returned with the plaster cast materials and bandages, and Lin Ye washed his hands to prepare for the fixation.

Sun Zhiqiang stood at the foot of the bed watching, not in a hurry to intervene, occasionally offering a suggestion about the angle.

"Keep the ankle at a 90-degree angle; don't let it bend too much."

"understood."

After securing the foot, Lin Ye tucked in the excess bandage and checked the blood circulation to the toes. The color was good, the temperature was normal, and the foot could move.

"Okay. Don't get out of bed, wait for the orthopedic specialist."

The man nodded. His complexion was much better than when he first arrived.

He suddenly remembered something and turned to look towards the doorway.

"Aren't my coworkers still waiting outside?"

"He's here, he's been peeking inside," Ma Hao said.

"Let them in. They have to go to work tomorrow. Don't let them waste time outside."

Ma Hao waved at the door, and three coworkers wearing reflective vests filed in, standing next to the flatbed cart, unsure of what to do with their hands.

"Brother, how are you?" the leader asked.

"He won't die. His bones are broken."

"Huh? Is it serious?"

"The outer bone is broken, and there might be a crack in the inner one too." The man pointed to his ankle and gestured. "The doctor said we have to wait for the orthopedic specialist to see if surgery can be avoided."

The workers looked at each other, and one of them muttered, "Work injury should be reimbursable, right?"

The man waved his hand. "Alright, alright, you guys go back now. Tell the captain tomorrow I won't be able to go back for the next couple of days. Hey, lock up my toolbox for me, and make sure no one takes that welding torch."

"Okay, brother. Take good care of yourself."

"Go ahead, go ahead."

The workers left. The man watched their backs disappear through the automatic doors and sighed.

"A whole day's work for nothing."

Ma Hao pushed him to bed five in the observation area. As he was being pushed, the man was still muttering, asking what time the orthopedics department would start work tomorrow, how long the cast would last, and whether he could go to work with a limp.

Ma Hao didn't answer any of the questions, only saying, "Ask him when the orthopedic surgeon arrives."

Lin Ye washed his hands and returned to the nurses' station, glancing at the clock on the wall.

8:10 PM.

The night shift has just begun.