Chapter 96: Observing one’s character after being drunk

Translator: imperfectluck Editor: Kurisu

Although Shao Hua’s father was rather reluctant, his wife forcefully dragged him over to Chasu City Hospital at nighttime for neck massage treatment. Zhang Fan had long since been prepared for this, and Shao Hua’s father’s neck’s condition improved greatly after just a few massage treatments.

Zhang Fan had called head nurse Liao Juan beforehand to have her prepare and clean up a patient room in orthopedic department #1 for his use. Although he hadn’t succeeded with Jia Suyue, this wasn’t Zhang Fan’s problem. He had given plenty of face to Liao Juan by agreeing to go out and meet Jia Suyue for those times, so Liao Juan was quite satisfied. With just a single phone call, Liao Juan immediately ordered an intern nurse under her to clean up a patient room.

At Chinese workplaces, relationships were all about giving face to each other, gradually improving the relationship over time. Unless you were the boss, nobody would be willing to help you for free.

This was all the more so between doctors and nurses. To be quite honest, they were actually two completely different groups. The differences between the two groups would be even more obvious in bigger hospitals.

Let’s talk about American nurses, for example. In America, a greater percentage of nurses than the general population would either be Asian-American or African-American. Why did white people not like to be nurses? It wasn’t like being a nurse was a low-paying job. However, the job of a nurse was extremely tiring, dirty, and even dangerous. Those with other options available definitely wouldn’t want to be a nurse.

As for Chinese nurses, perhaps there would be quite a number of pretty nurses, but nobody rich would be a nurse. What pampered girl from a rich family would be willing to do this job? Those who were nurses would only become one due to their circumstances. In China, it was even commonplace for the patient’s family to beat up a doctor or nurse for an improperly placed injection that caused too much pain. Things had only improved in recent years as laws became better enforced, giving nurses a slightly better sense of safety. In the past, there was nothing they could do about being beaten up, especially if the other party had some type of authority!

Respect wasn’t about just verbal respect. More important would be one’s actions. Liao Juan didn’t leave work after her shift was over. She waited around for Zhang Fan because she was curious whom he was treating privately.

Zhang Fan rarely asked for favors. If he was asking for her help, then this person he was treating had to be quite special. This was why she was quite curious. [Author’s note: women are really, really, curious creatures, after all.]

Zhang Fan personally brought Shao Hua and both her parents all the way from the hospital entrance to orthopedic department #1. Many colleagues who saw him asked, “Doctor Zhang, what are you doing? Doctor Zhang, are they your parents?”

Those who knew him better or were closer to him would instead ask, “Are they your in-laws?”

Being able to joke around like that meant that his coworkers were close to him. Shao Hua’s parents were quite surprised. As they had been in working society for several decades already, they could tell that everyone got along well with Zhang Fan. When they arrived in orthopedic department #1, Liao Juan could instantly tell due to her many years of experience from playing matchmaker that Zhang Fan was incredibly serious about this relationship. He was constantly accompanying Shao Hua’s parents, staying by their side to open doors for them and prevent anyone else from running into them, and behaving in other sycophantic ways.

“Hey! Doctor Zhang, when are you going to treat me to a meal?”

“Haha, nice joke, Head Nurse.” Zhang Fan simply chuckled as introductions would be too awkward at this time. “I’m going to treat my uncle here, so I’ll be troubling you today, Head Nurse.”

“Just look at what you’re saying. It’s no trouble at all. Hurry and do your treatment.” Liao Juan secretly observed Shao Hua’s parents as she said this. Shao Hua’s parents wore ordinary clothing. Although Shao Hua had a nice aura about her, they were just an ordinary family. The comparison with Jia Suyue’s family would be obvious.

‘I wonder if Zhang Fan is unlucky, or if Jia Suyue is the unlucky one. Sigh! Such a pity. They’re still young.’ Liao Juan felt that Zhang Fan and Jia Suyue would make an excellent pairing. Zhang Fan had outstanding skills, so if he had the backing of Jia Suyue’s family, it seemed likely that he could even become a hospital superintendent in the future.

“Little Zhang, you get along quite well with your coworkers.”

“It’s nothing special. Ma’am, please have a seat on this chair as I treat your husband.”

“It’s okay, no need to mind me. I’ve been sitting down all day, and standing a bit won’t affect me.”

Zhang Fan always paid detailed attention to each of his patients, from Shao Hua’s father to everyone else. He felt that he needed to do so for all the paying patients. This was professionalism, as well as basic morality.

“Little Zhang, how old are your parents? Are they in a good physical condition? Are you an only child?”

“My parents are both 55 years old. Their condition is alright. I also have a younger sister who’s going to take her college entrance examination this year.”

“Oh, that’s good. Are your parents retired?”

“Haha, they quit factory work a few years ago because it wasn’t going well. Right now, they’ve opened up a small supermarket where they live.”

“That’s pretty good. People can’t be idle. Just look at us, retiring not long ago, but now we have these little aches and pains in our bodies.”

“Ma’am, you and your husband both visually appear to be alright. How about both of you come to the hospital tomorrow morning on empty stomachs? That way, I can give both of you a full checkup with the hospital’s equipment. It would be best for both of you to receive periodic checkups at your age.”

“Let’s talk about that some other time. One of our relatives is getting married soon, and things will be quite busy.”

It was indeed the truth that a relative was getting married, but it was also an excuse. Even if Shao Hua’s parents came for a full checkup, they would have to talk it over with Shao Hua first. It would be quite inappropriate if they troubled Zhang Fan so much without establishing a proper relationship.

After the massage treatment concluded, Shao Hua’s parents were about to go back home, but Zhang Fan absolutely refused to let them leave. “It’s dinnertime now, so please eat before you leave. There’s several excellent restaurants near the hospital.”

“There’s no need. I still have to go home and cook for Shao Hua,” Shao Hua’s mother said.

“It’s fine, Ma’am. I’ve already texted Shao Hua. She’ll meet us at a restaurant after she finishes her work shift.”

Nobody would object to free presents like being treated to a meal. Since Zhang Fan was the one offering, Shao Hua’s parents didn’t feel that awkward. Shao Hua’s mother exchanged glances with her husband as she agreed, “Alright then.”

Although Shao Hua’s father didn’t have a happy expression for the entire night so far, he also agreed to have a meal together.

Zhang Fan didn’t choose a big brand restaurant. There were no such major restaurants close to the hospital, and Shao Hua’s parents were ordinary folk who wouldn’t mind such a thing. Not long after they arrived at the restaurant, Shao Hua arrived as well. “Little Zhang absolutely insisted on us having a meal together, so~~!” Her mother explained in such a manner to Shao Hua.

“You really are so shameless,” Shao Hua whispered to Zhang Fan as she sat down.

Zhang Fan pretended not to hear her. Shao Hua took charge of ordering food for everyone as her parents were unwilling to order with Zhang Fan treating. Zhang Fan had no idea what Shao Hua’s parents liked to eat, so he was happy to have Shao Hua do the ordering. She ordered five dishes and one soup.

Shao Hua’s father was the type who liked to drink alcohol with his meals, although not too much, just one glass. But since this was their first time eating together, it wouldn’t be proper for there to be no alcohol. Zhang Fan offered, “Sir, how about a drink?”

Shao Hua’s father hesitated for a moment, glanced at his wife, and then said, “I’ll have just a little.”

The alcohol here in the border province had a special property: the taste was quite crisp, and if you drank an entire glass in one go, you would really feel it running down your throat.

There was a phrase that a person would show their true character when drunk. It was unknown how true this really was, but Shao Hua’s father was a firm believer in this theory. That was the main reason why he agreed to having a drink. He wasn’t that much of an alcoholic.

When the dishes arrived, Zhang Fan poured a glass for Shao Hua’s father. Neither of the two women drank. Zhang Fan didn’t pour any alcohol for himself.

“Why aren’t you pouring any for yourself?” Shao Hua’s father asked.

“Sir, my alcohol tolerance is really low. I rarely drink.”

“Pour some for yourself and have some drink with me.”

There was no helping it, so Zhang Fan poured a glass for himself. He figured he might as well just drink. So what if he got drunk?

“Have some food first. It’s bad for you to drink on an empty stomach.” Shao Hua’s mother put some food on Zhang Fan’s plate.

Zhang Fan had now been working for two years. Although he had drunk alcohol before a few times, he had always been knocked unconscious by the alcohol quite early every time. Thus, he actually knew very little about Chinese drinking etiquette.

Shao Hua’s father waited for quite a while, but still didn’t see Zhang Fan offering to toast him as would be the norm for a junior. Since he wanted to observe Zhang Fan after being drunk, he voluntarily raised his glass, and said, “Come, Doctor Zhang, let us drink a glass together. Thank you for treating my neck.”

No matter how excellent Zhang Fan was, Shao Hua’s father couldn’t feel good about it. Although he indeed hoped for his daughter to mature and have her own happy family, when the prospect was put before him, he felt nothing but a sour reluctance to let his daughter go in his heart.

“A toast to you, sir.” Zhang Fan raised his glass and clinked it slightly lower than Shao Hua’s father’s glass as a sign of deference. He at least knew this much of Chinese drinking etiquette.

Zhang Fan’s alcohol tolerance had yet to improve one bit. He was just naturally the type who couldn’t handle alcohol at all. He already started feeling dizzy after just the first glass. Some people would become more talkative after drinking, while others would be quieter. Zhang Fan was the type who would become dizzy.

Shao Hua glanced at Zhang Fan, and saw that he seemed to be shaking slightly. However, he had only imbibed a single glass of white wine 1 , which even she could handle, so she didn’t think much of it. Still, she did switch Zhang Fan’s wine glass for a cup of warm tea.

However, her action made her father quite unhappy. His daughter was acting close to someone else right in front of him? Of course he wouldn’t be happy about it! Thus, he lifted up his wine glass again for another toast. However, Shao Hua’s mother interrupted him. “Drink a bit slower. We’ve barely eaten any food yet. Why be in such a hurry?”

Shao Hua’s mother was afraid that Zhang Fan would think that Shao Hua’s father was an alcoholic.

“Men must be able to drink without becoming an alcoholic. Doctor Zhang and I should have a few more drinks together.” Shao Hua’s father glanced directly at Zhang Fan without listening to his wife. Since Shao Hua’s parents had been married for many years already, Shao Hua’s mother immediately understood his intention was to test what Zhang Fan would be like when drunk, so she stopped trying to convince him to slow down with the drinking.

So after a few glasses of white wine, Zhang Fan fell unconscious. His head clattered against the table as he fainted, completely drunk.

Shao Hua shook Zhang Fan’s arm, and lightly called out, “Zhang Fan? Zhang Fan?”

“Oh! He’s drunk already?” Shao Hua’s father was about to insist on another round of drinks, but could only raise his glass to his wife.

“Is he alright? How about we take him to the hospital?” Shao Hua was rather worried. While she knew that her father was really good at holding his alcohol, she had never seen someone get drunk so quickly before.

Shao Hua’s father looked over Zhang Fan, and said, “Haha, he’s fine! He’s just drunk. Look at him drooling!”

“Just look at you. I don’t know what I should say. What are we supposed to do now?” Shao Hua’s mother complained.

“Sigh! I originally wanted to see how he would behave when drunk, but this was the result? What else can we do? We’ll just help take him to our home, and he’ll be fine after he sleeps it off.”

“That’s all we can do. We’ll have to take him home since he’s this drunk. Shao Hua, hail a taxi. Your father and I will carry him.” Shao Hua’s family was unable to do something like putting the drunk Zhang Fan at the hospital or bringing him back to his own place to sleep it off. That would seem too impolite.

Zhang Fan’s brain was too sensitive to alcohol, reaching the point where he had zero awareness of what was going on around him while unconscious. Luckily, at least he didn’t vomit!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep