Yan Feifan felt like he’d been set up, and he wasn’t happy about it.

But facing the camera, he still managed a polite, faint smile.

"Mr. Yan, I’m so sorry to take up your precious time."

The flirtatious woman apologized first, then introduced herself. "I’m a self-media creator, Qiaoyan from ’Qiaoyan’s View of Binhai’..."

As she spoke, she made a show of batting her eyelashes flirtatiously at Yan Feifan.

Her gesture was tacky and frivolous, but objectively speaking, from Yan Feifan’s professional perspective, Qiaoyan’s eyes were indeed her most striking feature.

Her almond-shaped eyes held a certain charm as they shimmered.

"And this pretty young lady is Lee Wenwen, who just finished her college entrance exams this year!"

After introducing the young woman, Qiaoyan’s voice turned slightly somber.

"When Wenwen came home after her exams, she learned that her father had been diagnosed with an intraspinal tumor four or five months ago."

"To avoid affecting her exam preparations, her father kept it from her and only underwent conservative treatment."

"Now that the exams are over, her father needs surgery. But after an examination, the doctors said the tumor is large and complex. The operation is extremely difficult and carries a high risk of causing lower-body paralysis."

"Their only hope for a successful recovery is to come to the Affiliated Hospital, to come here and ask you, Mr. Yan, to perform the surgery."

Hearing this, Yan Feifan knew what they were after.

He didn’t let them continue, cutting them off directly. "I sympathize with Lee Wenwen’s father’s situation."

"However, I must make one thing clear."

"My surgical schedule for patients with intraspinal tumors is already booked for the next four months."

"Every single tumor patient on that waiting list has a family behind them, a whole world that revolves around them."

"Cutting in line is not allowed here."

"Not only would it be unfair to the other patients, but once we make an exception, it could trigger many unpredictable chain reactions."

"I hope you can understand."

Then, irresponsibly passing the buck, Yan Feifan added, "You could try to find the patients at the top of the list and see if they’re willing to give up their spot."

At that, not giving the two a chance to plead or play the victim any further, Yan Feifan said, "I have something important to attend to, my apologies," and broke away, practically fleeing into the emergency hall at a trot.

Yan Feifan returned to the teaching and research office, showed the special-appointment expert certificate to Mrs. Qin and Yu Suye, and briefly explained his encounter with the influencer’s livestream.

Yu Suye was clearly more interested in the livestreaming influencer and immediately picked up her phone to search for "Qiaoyan."

"Whoa, this woman is no joke. She’s a major influencer with over a million followers on Douyin."

Yu Suye showed Yan Feifan the information she found on her phone.

"Feifan, some influencers like to create controversial content just to get views and stir up buzz."

"Don’t let them trick you into saying the wrong thing!"

Yan Feifan recalled what he had just said and stated with certainty, "I don’t think I said anything out of line."

Qin Ying snorted. "We doctors make a living with our medical skills. As long as you have the ability to heal the sick and save lives, you have nothing to worry about."

"These days, with that Douyin, Xigua, and what’s that other one... Bilibili..."

Qin Ying shook her head. "I just can’t appreciate any of it."

"A lot of the girls on there wear revealing clothes and just wiggle around. It’s an eyesore."

Yu Suye chuckled. "Mrs. Qin, their main user base is teenagers, so of course it’s full of handsome guys and pretty girls..."

Soon it was twelve noon. As Yan Feifan and Yu Suye were going to lunch together, they ran into Qiaoyan and Lee Wenwen again.

This time, they weren’t livestreaming.

Lee Wenwen grabbed Yan Feifan’s sleeve, her face pleading. "Mr. Yan, I was wrong. I was wrong. I shouldn’t have gone live without asking for your permission."

"Mr. Yan, I did intend to guilt-trip you. The main reason is... the main reason is..."

As she spoke, Lee Wenwen’s voice started to break with sobs.

"I really don’t have any other choice."

"I’ve begged so many people, tried to offer money, but no one would take it. I don’t want my dad to become a paraplegic." 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

"Mr. Yan, I’m begging you, please..."

As she said this, the tear-streaked Lee Wenwen began to sink, her knees bending as if to kneel before Yan Feifan.

Yu Suye grabbed her, stopping her from kneeling.

"What do you think you’re doing?"

Yu Suye demanded sternly, "You say you’re apologizing for ambushing him with that livestream, but now you’re trying to kneel in public and continue the guilt-tripping?"

"No, no, that’s not what I meant!"

Lee Wenwen quickly stood up straight, wiped her eyes, and explained in a panic, "Mr. Yan, Mr. Yan, I just don’t know what else to do."

"I’m just a student who recently finished her college entrance exams. I don’t know how to ask for favors."

"Mr. Yan, I know you’re the only one who can save my dad."

"Please, I’m begging you... WAAAH..."

As she spoke, Lee Wenwen broke down, crying in despair.

At this moment, Qiaoyan, who had been standing to the side, also made a show of wiping the corners of her eyes and said with a choked voice, "Mr. Yan, Wenwen is one of my fans. She was out of options, so she came to me and begged for help."

"I didn’t think much of it at the time and just defaulted to my usual method of livestreaming a plea for help on the spot."

"That was my mistake."

After admitting her fault, Qiaoyan said earnestly, "Mr. Yan, from what I understand, the spinal tumor surgeries you perform are all scheduled for Thursdays and Fridays."

"Could you possibly find some time on another day, like a Tuesday or Wednesday, to operate on Wenwen’s father?"

Yan Feifan let out a soft scoff, met Qiaoyan’s gaze, and retorted, "Do you think I’m just sitting around doing nothing on those other days?"

Qiaoyan shook her head hastily. "Mr. Yan, you’ve misunderstood. That’s not what I meant at all..."

She explained further, "I was just hoping you would take pity on Wenwen and her father and work a little harder. Could you possibly squeeze in some time?"

Yan Feifan asked coldly, "Do you have any idea how long I need to prepare for one intraspinal tumor removal surgery?"

"Do you have any idea how many medical staff and logistics personnel work tirelessly before, during, and after a six- or seven-hour surgery to ensure it goes smoothly?"

"Do you have any idea..."

Just then, Yan Feifan’s phone rang.

He took it out and saw it was a call from Dr. Chen Yu.

Yan Feifan knew that Mr. Chen never called him unless it was important, especially around noon.

An idea struck him, and he put the call on speaker.

"Mr. Chen..."

Before Yan Feifan could finish, Chen Yu’s urgent voice burst from the phone.

"Five-year-old boy. Right index finger crushed off by a door."

"I’m tied up in surgery right now and can’t get away. Feifan, you take this one."

"I’ll give you ten minutes. Get over here, now..."

Yan Feifan ended the call and looked at Lee Wenwen’s desperate, pleading face.

He took a deep breath, hardened his heart, and said, "I’m sorry. I’m just an ordinary doctor. I can’t help everyone."

Yan Feifan understood, of course.

For him, it was just a matter of squeezing out one day, but for Wenwen and her father, it would be a world-changing difference.

But this whole thing had been livestreamed. So many people were watching.

If he made an exception this time, more people would come and try to do the same.

When faced with a major, life-changing event, it was nothing for a tumor patient to play the victim and beg tearfully; anyone could take it to the extreme.

This was a bitter lesson Yan Feifan had witnessed with his own eyes and heard about from many senior doctors at the hospital.

Moreover, in the hospital, Yan Feifan had seen plenty of heartlessness—betrayals and conflicts at critical moments, the ugly side of human nature.

When faced with a difficult and uncertain situation, it was sometimes necessary to assume the worst of others’ intentions and protect oneself.

This is what led Yan Feifan to make the final decision to refuse.

In that moment, he felt an even more urgent hope.

He hoped the hundred or so technicians in medical technology could achieve an R&D breakthrough faster and get the surgical robots to market as soon as possible...

PS.

Thank you to my reader "cwkwok" for the generous support!