The Enhanced Doctor-Chapter 502 This patient seems a bit off (void, lonely and cold 671112 additional 3/5)
(Thanks to Xin Wuyang for the encouragement, and to Kongxujiemo671112, Mao’er Wangyue, and kpkkan for their monthly ticket support)
"Qiaoqiao, during the New Year festivities, you shouldn’t be here flaunting your relationship like this. I bet after you leave, Liu Banxia is going to be teased mercilessly by everyone," Zhou Li said with a smile as Qiaoqiao walked in.
"Sister Li, I made sweet and sour pork ribs for the first time today!" Qiaoqiao said, showing off.
"Great, then we won’t need to buy groceries after dinner," Liu Banxia chimed in, approaching them.
"Hey, don’t come over and chat with me. It creates a bad impression," Qiaoqiao said, keeping a straight face.
"Oh my, you two are so lovey-dovey. There aren’t many people around these couple of days anyway. Why don’t you go eat first? You can switch out later," Zhou Li said.
Liu Banxia glanced around; it seemed that was indeed the case.
There were fewer patients now, and mealtimes had been so regular these past two days that he felt a bit unaccustomed to it.
He called out, and the interns eagerly gathered around, their eyes glued to the insulated lunch box in Liu Banxia’s hand.
"Oh, I brought a lot," Qiaoqiao said with a smile.
"Qiaoqiao, I must give you a serious warning. You can’t keep spoiling our Teacher Liu like this. What if he gets completely spoiled?" Xu Yino declared righteously.
"No problem. If he dares to turn bad, I’ll just discipline him, and that’ll be the end of it," Qiaoqiao replied nonchalantly.
Everyone laughed. They knew this wasn’t an empty threat from Qiaoqiao; if she said she’d discipline him, she really would.
"There’s something else. Liu Haibing, Grandpa Cao, and Uncle Jiang all sent gifts to my place. I said I didn’t want them, but they threatened to send them to the hospital," Qiaoqiao continued.
Liu Banxia nodded. "They’re old neighbors. Even though I didn’t live in the rental for long, we have a good relationship. Liu Haibing too. These are genuine friends; it doesn’t count as bribery."
Qiaoqiao rolled her eyes. "You? Take bribes? Are you even at that level yet?"
This amused the interns again. Indeed, Qiaoqiao’s skills were profound.
They dished out some food from the cafeteria, and then Qiaoqiao opened the three-tiered insulated lunch box. It was filled to the brim with pork ribs. Judging by the color alone, they looked excellent.
"Huh? This piece of rib looks like it has a bite taken out of it. Did you try one?" Liu Banxia asked, picking up a piece.
"Yes, that was me. I was going to eat that whole piece, but Doudou begged for two pieces. Then, when I was arranging them in the box, it looked too empty, so I had to put the half-eaten one back in," Qiaoqiao explained.
Liu Banxia nodded and, without a shred of concern, popped the rib into his mouth. He even gnawed off the cartilage from the bone, devouring it with more gusto than Tang Dou.
"So, how is it?" Qiaoqiao asked, a little nervously.
"It’s so delicious I couldn’t even tell what flavor it is! Maybe I should try another piece?" Liu Banxia asked with a smile.
"This one, this one! This piece looks the best," Qiaoqiao said, directly picking one out for him.
"Good heavens, eating with you two is just a mistake! What’s there left to eat? We’re practically choking on all this sweetness!" Liu Yiqing exclaimed.
"Cloying? I only used a little light and dark soy sauce, and some rock sugar," Qiaoqiao said with a frown.
"Don’t mind them. They’re just overwhelmed by our sweet love. It’s fine if they don’t eat; I’ll finish it all," Liu Banxia said with a grin.
"Get lost! Who’s being sweet with you?" Qiaoqiao glared at him.
Of course, saying they wouldn’t eat was just a joke. How could they let Demon King Liu devour all the food Qiaoqiao personally made?
However, they were sensible enough to eat quickly today, leaving the rest of the time for the couple. Liang Xiaolin and Qing Kewa did the same, not lingering over their meal.
It had to be said that Qiaoqiao’s recent dedicated efforts to improve her cooking skills had shown significant progress. Indeed, when it comes to cooking, unless one is born with a "disaster-class" lack of talent, a little effort can usually salvage things.
Liu Banxia finished every last rib; not a single one was left. He even used rice to scrape up all the sauce clinging to the lunch box. Nothing Qiaoqiao made could go to waste.
Qiaoqiao was very satisfied. Even though she knew Liu Banxia was deliberately trying to please her, it genuinely made her happy.
"Ah... I’m late. Missed out on everything," Shi Lei said with a sigh, carrying his meal over.
"Oh, don’t worry. I’ve already mobilized my close friends to help find you a wife. Do you want one who’s a good cook?" Qiaoqiao asked with a smile.
Shi Lei, who had come prepared to launch a full-blown teasing offensive against Liu Banxia, was completely disarmed by Qiaoqiao’s single sentence. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢
"Hmm? Come to think of it, there actually is someone," Qiaoqiao said, clearly not intending to let him off the hook.
"Remember those pastries I brought for you all once? The friend who made them is also single. She runs her own bakery, making Western-style pastries. We haven’t interacted a lot, but I think she’s a decent person."
"After the holidays, we’ll get this sorted out. But first, we need to take a photo of you to show my friend. Only if she agrees, then you can see her photo."
"This is settled then! Later, we’ll give him a makeover and get him a couple of new outfits," Liu Banxia chimed in eagerly.
"Aren’t you guys going to leave me any way out?" Shi Lei said with a wry smile.
"What do you need a way out for?" Liu Banxia glared at him, then turned to Qiaoqiao. "You need to be serious about this. Why don’t you take him to the bulletin board area first and get a work photo taken?"
"Those ID photos of yours are all so goofy; they don’t look good. I’ll head over there myself to get some fresh air when I leave," Qiaoqiao said.
"I’ve been quite busy recently and haven’t been over to see them. Actually, this person is Yanzi’s friend. I’ll talk to Yanzi again and have her put in a good word."
And just like that, the matter was settled. Shi Lei, the person in question, had absolutely no say in it.
"Qiaoqiao, seeing as you’re practically my sister-in-law now, and I’m such a staunch supporter of President Liu, could you help me out a bit too?" Wang Chao piped up.
"One step at a time. Let’s solve the most difficult case first. You’re still prime young meat; there’s no rush for you," Qiaoqiao replied casually.
Wang Chao smacked his lips. Fresh meat is still meat, after all, and definitely better than an old piece of cured bacon like Shi Lei.
"I’m heading off then. I’ll go sound things out first." With that, Qiaoqiao grabbed her lunch box and trotted out.
"Fresh meat, take good care of our ’most difficult case.’ You’re the main force for the night shift, so give it your all," Liu Banxia said, patting Wang Chao’s shoulder.
Shi Lei glared at him. Actually, I’m not *that* much of a ’difficult case,’ maybe just moderately difficult.
Back in the Emergency Center, he saw the lights on in Resuscitation Room One.
"Did an emergency patient come in?" Liu Banxia asked.
"Just arrived. A 55-year-old male with a history of diabetes, fainted at home. Dr. Wei is resuscitating him with Liu Yiqing and Miao Rui now," Su Wenhao reported.
Liu Banxia frowned. "Li Hao, tell me, what are the possible conditions this patient might have?"
"The coma could be caused by a neurological condition or complications from diabetes," Li Hao said.
"Xu Yino, be more specific," Liu Banxia said.
"It could be an organic brain lesion, or possibly a hemorrhage or cerebral infarction. Regarding diabetes, it might be a hyperglycemic coma or diabetic ketoacidosis," Xu Yino elaborated.
Liu Banxia nodded in satisfaction. "You’ve all considered this quite comprehensively. When a middle-aged patient with diabetes loses consciousness, these are indeed the aspects we must consider."
"Good work, everyone. Keep it up. With patients of this age, we must heighten our vigilance. Nowadays, people around fifty are in the high-risk age group for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. I’m not wrong, am I?"
He directed the last question to Liang Xiaolin.
Liang Xiaolin nodded. "Actually, the age can be even lower; upwards of forty is already a concern. The pressures from life and work are immense these days, easily triggering such problems."
Just then, the nurses wheeled the patient out, heading directly to the CT room.
"What’s the general situation?" Liu Banxia asked.
"History of type 2 diabetes for seven years, previously taking metformin. A few months ago, he switched to some medicinal pills and has been taking them since," Wei Yuan reported.
"Current assessment is diabetic ketoacidosis. Blood glucose is 21 mmol/L, and he has muscle weakness. However, given the loss of consciousness, a cranial CT is necessary for safety. We’ll do a urinalysis later too; that should be comprehensive enough."
"That’s about right. If the blood sugar isn’t over 33 mmol/L, it’s generally not a hyperglycemic coma," Liu Banxia commented.
"I was just quizzing them, and their answers were very comprehensive. With a bit more training, they’ll all be competent. You all need to keep up the hard work; I have high expectations."
"Teacher Liu, we know. You’re eager for us to become residents quickly so you’ll have more people to order around," Liu Yiqing said with a rueful expression.
"That’s right. Everyone has to be ordered around like this. Besides, am I not ordering you around enough already? It’ll just be even more convenient for me in the future," Liu Banxia said smugly.
Faced with his blatant admission, the interns had no comeback.
What could they do? Demon King Liu had always been this shameless. Could they actually rebel or something?
"This patient, has he never monitored his blood sugar? Or is traditional Chinese medicine really that effective?" Qing Kewa asked curiously.
"They have a glucometer at home. According to the patient’s wife, his blood sugar has been well-controlled," Wei Yuan replied.
"However, the traditional Chinese medicine he’s taking is self-made, wrapped in wax paper, and called ’Diabetes Pills.’ Who knows what the ingredients are? They might have even mixed in Western medications."
"Haha, if you say that, someone might accuse you of slandering traditional Chinese medicine," Liu Banxia said with a smile.
Wei Yuan shot him a look. "Am I afraid of that? Haven’t we seen enough similar patients in our hospital? Speaking of which, wasn’t your Grandpa Cao also harmed by those so-called health supplements?"
"Actually, the pattern is quite similar, especially with these homemade pills; their composition is even more dubious. According to the patient’s family, he hasn’t urinated all afternoon. He might even have renal failure. We’ll have to see the test results."
At this moment, Liu Banxia’s brow furrowed.
"What’s wrong?" Wei Yuan asked, noticing Liu Banxia’s expression.
Liu Banxia pinched the bridge of his nose. "There’s something not right about this patient. Xu Yino, go inform the lab. For this patient, add tests for creatine kinase and myoglobin."
"Rhabdomyolysis?"
The interns exclaimed in unison.
Wei Yuan paused, his expression changing as well.
