In the emergency operating room next door, after Lu Cheng entered having scrubbed up, the circulating nurse, Li Min, immediately came forward to help him put on a sterile surgical gown, saying playfully, "Dr. Lu, if you hadn't arrived, I was about to go and call you."

"Professor Tong has already urged you several times," Li Min added gently as she adjusted the collar of the sterile gown.

From the operating table, Tong Yuan'an slightly turned his head: "Xiao Lu, you're here just in time. Dr. Zhang can step down for a break."

Tong Yuan'an subtly implied criticism of Zhang Tiesheng's lack of professionalism.

Zhang Tiesheng knew well that hand surgery was not his forte; his assistance was mechanical, unable to expose the surgical field as ideally as needed by Tong Yuan'an.

Tendon suturing belongs to orthopedics; Zhang Tiesheng was more familiar with the anatomical areas of general surgery and was essentially an outsider when it came to hand surgery, just slightly more knowledgeable than an average person.

Zhang Tiesheng apologized, "Professor Tong, my hands and feet are indeed clumsy, and I haven't been reading enough. I'll ensure to study harder when I return."

"Thanks a lot, Li Min." Lu Cheng turned to put on sterile surgical gloves and prepared to step onto the stage, focused and undistracted.

Li Min withdrew her hands, folding them behind her back, calmly watching Lu Cheng as he turned and walked away, casting a glance around the operating room, feeling a ripple of interest inside.

The operating room wasn't spacious, nor were there many people—just a few.

The anesthesiologist sat at the anesthesia machine, one foot on the footrest, occasionally glancing at a novel on his phone, now and then interrupted by inappropriate ad pop-ups.

Clearly a pirated copy, life isn't easy for a middle-aged man, even harder after starting a family…

Two stainless steel round stools, followed by the hand surgery's microscopic instruments.

Li Min didn't know Tong Yuan'an, was familiar with Zhang Tiesheng, and with Lu Cheng, familiar yet unfamiliar at the same time.

At the beginning, Li Min somewhat looked down on Lu Cheng, having heard he couldn't make it in orthopedics and voluntarily transferred to the emergency department.

Back then, Li Min thought, Lu Cheng must have lost his mind—everyone wanted to move back to their specialties from the emergency department just couldn't get the transfer, but Lu Cheng, like Tian Zhuang, came from a specialty to the emergency department almost as if banished…

So, back then, even though Lu Cheng was a bit handsome, because he was relatively aloof, and since she had her pride, she didn't think much of it.

But in just two months, Lu Cheng had become a dazzling presence in the emergency surgery room!

Here's why: Lu Cheng could perform surgeries that even Director Lin Qianlong of the emergency couldn't handle. At least thirty percent of Li Min's performance pay was brought by Lu Cheng's surgeries, enough to make her view him differently.

However, Li Min knew better than to suddenly cozy up to him; it wasn't her style either.

So, she defaulted to simply enjoying the view of a handsome guy…

Li Min didn't dwell on complex feelings, merely experiencing slight ripples.

Once Lu Cheng stepped into position, Tong Yuan'an immediately felt the operation become smooth and seamless, his suturing hand moving with more ease.

"Hmm, hold it," Tong Yuan'an kindly uttered just two words.

Although Tong Yuan'an said Zhang Tiesheng could take a break, Zhang Tiesheng, knowing better, didn't walk away.

No matter whether Tong Yuan'an could offer advancement opportunities, maintaining a good relationship wouldn't hurt either.

"Professor Tong, you can immediately sense the difference between a professional and a non-professional, right? Could you smooth things out a bit more?" Zhang Tiesheng, having nothing to do, tried flattering with his words.

Tong Yuan'an nodded, delighted, "It shows Xiao Lu's skill in operation is so proficient—one wonders where he practiced it."

Li Min let out a soft cough upon hearing this.

The anesthesiologist glanced at the monitor then returned to his novel, now on chapter nine hundred thirty-one…

Zhang Tiesheng remarked, "Professor Tong, I heard our Dr. Lu hasn't had a girlfriend before, so he thinks a wider view is more convenient for operations."

"For us, the narrower it is, the more we can feel the points…"

Experienced ones know what "points" refer to.

Tong Yuan'an lifted his head, "Dr. Zhang, I'll tell you, smoothness isn't much related to view, as it doesn't affect the alignment…"

"As for suturing," Tong Yuan'an raised the pitch on the word for emphasis, offering a setup: "It requires both sides to align properly, meeting at the right place, the better the suture, the stronger the tension, facilitating post-operative exercises…"

Tong Yuan'an was ostensibly speaking about tendon rehabilitation post-surgery, yet upon reflection, it seemed not quite so simple.

Leave it to the person "driving."

"Professor Tong, your understanding of contraction is much more in-depth," Zhang Tiesheng chuckled, giving a thumbs up.

"Nonprofessional, tendons do not involve bones?" Tong Yuan'an looked up, asking Lu Cheng: "Right, Xiao Lu?"

"Yes, with smooth muscle relaxation, blood vessel dilation, blood retention, nerve supply causing vessel expansion, gland secretion increases, smooth yet not greasy, quite a taste," Lu Cheng stated matter-of-factly, though lacking real-life experience, he boasted significant physiological knowledge.

Zhang Tiesheng didn't quite grasp it, whereas Tong Yuan'an caught the undertones of congestion and flow: "Is this taste serious?"

"I'm talking about pig's trotters and salivary gland secretion." Lu Cheng earnestly stated.

"Damn!~ I'd be crazy to believe you." Tong Yuan'an, realizing he couldn't continue with such serious discussion, lowered his head and began suturing.

Quickly, Tong Yuan'an completed the flexor tendon suturing, then said, "Dr. Zhang, come over here and assist him in completing the extensor tendon suturing."

"I'll suture the skin wound," Tong Yuan'an directed.

Zhang Tiesheng, trusting, promptly began transitioning to the opposite side, maintaining a standard distance on the operating table.

Lu Cheng glanced at Tong Yuan'an, guessing that Tong Yuan'an wanted to see him use the Tajima Suturing Technique for extensor tendon suturing.

This was evident from Tong Yuan'an only suturing the flexor tendons from multiple injuries.

With the technology benefiting the patient, Tong Yuan'an's persistence was like feeding skill points directly into his mouth; how could Lu Cheng not partake?

He picked up another set of microscopic suturing instruments and started in and out of the needle!

Tong Yuan'an, just suturing the skin, naturally operated quicker; once done, he shifted his focus to Lu Cheng's operational details.

As he watched, he found himself increasingly absorbed.

He kept murmuring: "Thirty-two, thirty, thirty-two, thirty, understandable, right..."

Zhang Tiesheng asked, "Professor Tong, what are thirty-two and thirty? Is there something sneaky?"

Tong Yuan'an replied with a hint of lament, "Around thirty-two, I had the suturing skills that Xiao Lu has now, and he's only thirty."

"Furthermore, these suturing techniques?" Having watched, Tong Yuan'an squinted his pudgy eyes, reflecting with emotion.

Clearly, jealousy triggered his "self-contained" mode once more.

Bear in mind, Lu Cheng isn't a professional hand surgeon, hasn't undergone formal hand surgery training, and scarcely had any serious mentorship beforehand… 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Yet, even so, at this age, Lu Cheng possesses such profound suturing skills and command over tendon suturing techniques that it's beyond reasoning.

"Brother Zhang, it's because Teacher Tong taught well," Lu Cheng replied.

Tong Yuan'an's chin and fleshy face quivered beneath his mask; though used by Lu Cheng, he had no words of refute.

He hadn't taught well at all!~

"Professor Tong is a big professor at Xiangya Hospital; his teaching skills are definitely top-notch!~" Zhang Tiesheng continued with flattery.

The trembling in Tong Yuan'an's chubby cheeks intensified…