Lo Jun and Yan Feifan stared each other down, neither willing to yield. With every passing second, the atmosphere in the operating room grew heavier.

Like the calm before a storm, everyone in the operating room felt the oppressive tension.

Yu Suye glanced at the electronic clock, which was still counting down.

There were still nearly twenty minutes left on the timer. Mustering her courage, she cautiously reminded them, “Mr. Lo, Feifan, the time?”

Mr. Lo shot her a look, and she immediately fell silent.

Mr. Lo turned his gaze back to Yan Feifan and asked in a cold voice, “Yan Feifan, if I refuse to adopt your proposal, what will you do?”

Yan Feifan seemed to struggle for a moment before replying with a helpless tone, “Director, you’re the chief surgeon. I’m like a chief of staff to a military commander—I only have the right to advise, not to decide.”

Mr. Lo snorted. “It’s a wonder you’re still aware of that.”

“Yan Feifan, you need to understand something. With my level of skill, whether this surgical window is perfectly centered or slightly off makes no significant difference to the outcome of the surgery.”

Seeing that Yan Feifan’s gaze didn’t waver, Mr. Lo continued, “Even if your fenestration design makes the operation more convenient, it causes me to lose face in front of everyone. Aren’t you afraid I’ll make things difficult for you later?”

“And what if your proposal is wrong?”

“The consequences…”

Mr. Lo snorted twice more, then threatened, “Believe it or not, I can keep you out of the operating room for a year or two.”

Mr. Lo paused deliberately. “Yan Feifan, do you still insist on your proposal?”

Without the slightest hesitation, Yan Feifan nodded. “Director, I have confidence in my judgment.”

“As for the consequences, I haven’t thought that far ahead.”

“I’m just being true to myself and what I believe I should stand by.”

“And as for being kept out of the operating room for a year or two?”

Yan Feifan shook his head. “I’m confident my judgment isn’t wrong, so that won’t happen.”

This infuriated Mr. Lo. He said angrily, “Yan Feifan, it’s a good thing we’re in an operating room, and it’s a good thing it’s right now.”

“If this were twenty years ago, somewhere else, I’d beat you up first and ask questions later, no second thoughts.”

With that, he shoved the marker he was holding forward and yelled resentfully, “You brat! Let me see this fenestration you’ve designed.”

This was no time for resentment.

Yan Feifan quickly took the marker. He marked a two-by-two centimeter window slightly below the center of the fourth lumbar vertebra, and another on the left side of the third lumbar vertebra, near the fourth.

As soon as Yan Feifan finished marking, Mr. Lo’s shout rang out. “What are you standing around for? Get to work!”

The two assistant surgeons waiting on the side jolted and hurried to the operating table to begin cutting the vertebrae…

In the observation gallery, Wang Chuan, Qin Ying, and the others breathed a great sigh of relief, seeing the conflict between Yan Feifan and Mr. Lo finally resolved.

Miao Quan said with some annoyance, “I knew it. That kid Yan Feifan is nothing but trouble.”

“This time, Mr. Lo took a step back because he values talent.”

“But Yan Feifan won’t be this lucky every time!”

“After this surgery is over, we absolutely have to teach this brat a good lesson…”

But Qin Ying came to his defense. “Why should we discipline him? Feifan didn’t do anything wrong!”

“When treating a patient, if you believe you’re right, you should stand your ground. You shouldn’t blindly trust superiors and authority.”

“That kind of deep-seated persistence and the courage to question are rare qualities among young doctors these days.”

“I don’t think he should be disciplined. On the contrary, he should be encouraged and rewarded.”

Miao Quan snorted, his voice filled with displeasure. “Dr. Qin, he’s already arrogant because of his talent and acts recklessly. And you want to praise and encourage him?”

“Aren’t you afraid he’ll get too big for his britches?”

Qin Ying let out a soft laugh. “From my perspective, Feifan always acts with a great deal of measure. Everything he does is within his control.”

“You think he acts recklessly because you’ve severely underestimated the upper limits of his ability!”

Miao Quan was about to speak again, but Wang Chuan quickly interjected to smooth things over. “Both of your starting points are the same. You’re both concerned about Feifan.”

“Alright, alright, let’s not discuss this any further until after the surgery is over.”

“There are so many people watching, you know.”

Just then, Ma Peilin, who was sitting to the side, chuckled softly. “I rather admire Xiaoyan’s disposition.”

“If he has the ability to match that disposition of his…”

Ma Peilin chuckled again. “Then I must congratulate your Affiliated Hospital. You’re about to produce another great doctor who will be renowned throughout the country.”

Miao Quan said cheerfully, “Dr. Ma, as for Xiaoyan’s skill, just wait a few more minutes. Once these surgical windows are open, you’ll see for yourself…”

Mr. Lo’s two assistants worked in concert, carefully controlling the pace of the bone cutting.

Once the window was fully opened, the pressure inside the spinal canal would change significantly. This could easily cause slight changes in the tumor, perhaps even causing the injected ethanol to leak out.

According to Yan Feifan, by the time he had predicted, most of the injected ethanol would have been absorbed, neutralized, and diluted by the tumor.

Even if a small amount did leak, the damage to the spinal cord and nerves would be within controllable limits.

Amidst the tense or anxious anticipation of everyone in the operating room and the observation gallery, the countdown reached zero.

At the same time, the two sections of vertebrae that had been cut were removed.

The surgical windows were open!

The conditions within the spinal canal were exposed before the eyes of Lo Jun and Yan Feifan.

And via a close-up shot on the large, high-definition screen hanging above the observation gallery, it was also exposed before the eyes of Ma Peilin, Wang Chuan, Miao Quan, and the others.

The sight before him allowed Yan Feifan’s heart, which had been in his throat, to drop back into place.

During the earlier standoff and insistence with Mr. Lo, it would be impossible to say that Yan Feifan hadn’t felt the slightest hesitation.

But things had already come this far. In order not to betray Mr. Pan’s trust, Yan Feifan could only persevere.

Even if he was wrong, he had to see it through to the end.

Fortunately, Yan Feifan’s hard work over the past few days had not been in vain.

At each of the two windows, there was an injection hole in the bone.

The exposed tumor showed a shallow pit, about a centimeter in diameter, that had sunken in due to shrinkage.

Furthermore, as the pressure within the spinal canal was released, the area around the pit began to writhe and wrinkle.

The tumor was contracting toward the pit…

This scene caused the inwardly astonished Mr. Lo to involuntarily glance at Yan Feifan, who was across from him.

After waiting a moment for the tumor before him to stop writhing, Mr. Lo began to meticulously peel away the tumor within the fourth lumbar vertebra’s surgical window…

Because the tumor was deeply entangled with the nerve bundles connecting the spine to external organs or tissues—like two things woven into one—Mr. Lo’s peeling was extremely gentle, terrified of accidentally severing even a single nerve bundle…

More than two hours passed without anyone noticing.

Different professions are worlds apart. Wang Chuan, who had focused on plastic surgery for so many years, felt like a complete stranger to this operation.

However, that didn’t stop him from realizing that Yan Feifan’s design plan had truly worked.

Wang Chuan had been observing Ma Peilin, as well as the two chief physicians from neurosurgery, Zhu Haifeng and Zheng Ling.

For the past two hours, they had been watching Lo Jun’s surgical procedure with extreme concentration.

Moreover, they would occasionally compare what they saw with the MRI scans of the spinal tumor on their tablets, their faces betraying unconscious expressions of surprise or delight…

This made Wang Chuan sigh with emotion.

‘Even though I’ve had the most contact with that kid, Yan Feifan, I still don’t understand him as well as Dr. Qin does.’

‘Just where are the limits of this kid’s abilities?’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep