Chapter 12 Cornering

• Lin Fang tried to stop me, but I was quicker than her. I cut in front of Dr. Zhu as he was about to walk away, stopping him short, “Doctor, let’s be frank. As the old saying goes, good doctors treat their patients as they would their children. Don’t you think that you’re a disgrace to all doctors and tarnishing their good name by doing what you’ve done?”
• This particular Dr. Zhu looked to be about fifty years old. He has a mole at the corner of his mouth. Every time he spoke, the hair on his mouth shook and trembled with his mouth. He uttered something under his breath, then turned around and said uncaringly, “Young man, you should learn to be careful with that foul mouth of yours. In this hospital, we must abide by our regulations!”
• “The hospital’s regulation? I saw it just then. You guys have so many empty rooms to spare. Why won’t you let us stay for a few more days!? Everyone, gather around and see for yourselves. This is how this hospital do things! If we don’t get to the bottom of this today, we’ll bring this up to the director of the hospital himself!”
• I was being unnecessarily loud on purpose, so as to attract the attention of nearby doctors and nurses, as well as other patients and their family and friends that came visiting.
• This floor was mainly for the long term hospitalized patients, and their family members. Most of them have nothing but time on their hands, and so many of them peeked their heads out from their rooms, curious about what was going on with all the commotions.
• Lin Fang tugged at my shirt, motioning me to stop causing a scene. I turned around and said to her softly, “Didn’t you say before that you felt safe with me around? Just trust me one more time.”
• Lin Fang looked at me suspiciously, and I continued, “Do you really think Chen Yuzhou can be trusted? Even if you accepted his demands, he may still go back on his words.”
• As the crowd grew bigger and bigger, Dr. Zhu began to feel the pressure of numbers, and all the attention they were giving him. Perplexed, he tried to get away from here by going into and disappear behind the crowd, but I was ready for that. As soon as he turned around, I shot my hand out and grabbed his shoulder.
• There was no way that this overly plump and untrained civilian could withstand my grip. He yelped in pain, and I held him against the wall. Putting on a rough and vicious tone, I said, “Today, none of us will be going anywhere until you own up to what you’ve done! Everyone, families and friends! Look at him, look at what he has done! He took someone’s money to throw us out of the hospital. He would even go as far as to forcibly discharge a dying patient!”
• The onlookers likely had already heard about Lin Fang’s father’s case. They all pointed at Dr. Zhu, muttering and gossiping to each other over what a terrible man he was.
• “Let me go. Stop slandering me. I’ve done nothing of the sort. Why don’t you go ahead and sue me if you actually think I am in the wrong?”
• Dr. Zhu wiped at the sweat that had began forming from his agitation, and turned around to leave again. But I was not going to let him go so easily. I secretly extended my foot and hooked it in front of his when he wasn’t watching. He took one step forward, then tripped and fell, planting his face into the floor.
• “Ouch!” Lying sprawled on the floor, Dr. Zhu winced in pain, and yelled at the few nurses that had gathered to watch the show, “Can’t you see that I’ve fallen and can’t get up? What are all of you just standing around for? Somebody, come and help me up!”
• Perhaps this particular Dr. Zhu had always been this insufferable. All the nurses flipped their eyes at his demand, but they had no choice but to heed it. Unwillingly, one of the nurses came and supported him back onto his feet.
• Knowing that I won’t let him get away, and at the same time knowing that he couldn’t talk me down with words since I have the higher ground in both reasoning and morality, Dr. Zhu thought for a while in awkward silence, then his face lit as if he had came up with a good idea. Taking his phone out and after a few swipes and taps, he said, “You just hit a doctor, this is medical violence. I’ll record a video of this and post it on the internet for the world to see. You’ll be famous for this act of violence before the sun goes down today!”
• The absurdity in his thoughts almost made me laugh. Compared to a no name nobody like me, a supposedly respected doctor working in a well known hospital like him would have a lot more to lose from exposures like that. I’ve never seen someone shooting themselves in the foot with such merry enthusiasm.
• I simply stood my ground on the spot, and looked at him with my arms crossed, unafraid.
• Seeing my reaction, Dr. Zhu asked me in his confusion, “Why... why are you still smiling for?”
• “Oh, nothing much. I was just waiting for you to do just that. Then I’ll be able to point out to the rest of the world just how many vacant rooms there are around this place in your recordings, and see just how you could possibly explain yourself away for not letting us stay in the hospital. In fact, let me help you. I’ll take a video recording with my phone and post it onto the net as well, and let’s see which one of us would become famous quicker. Your name is Zhu Wangshen right? Do you own this hospital or something? Because you sure acts as if you do.”
• Dr. Zhu was in the middle of recording with his phone, and when he heard that he panicked and threw himself at me in an attempt to knock away my phone. Thankfully, my grip had been tight enough so my phone withstood the impact and remained in my hand, but because of it I was able to get a nice and clear footage of him charging at me like a wild pig.
• “Dr. Zhu, what are you doing? Let me remind you that this is a hospital, not some circus for you to put on such an unsightly display for. The patient has overstayed for a period exceeding twenty days already. Why have you not notified the patient and arranged for his discharge according to the hospital regulations? Another patient has already booked this particular spot, and he will be needing this room soon in the afternoon.”
• As I continued drawing more attention to Dr. Zhu, a thin high pitched voice cut through the crowd, and all of us turned our head towards the direction of the sound.
• The voice belonged to a woman. But before I could see who this voice had came from, the one that came into my eyes first was Che Yuzhou, and the two well built men dressed completely in black, walking beside him at his left and right.
• Those who were trained usually have an eye for others who had gone through similar training. Though these two in black had yet to do anything, I knew that they were in a completely different league than the four thugs that Chen Yuzhou hired last night. They kept their expression calm, betraying nothing of their emotions, and watched their surroundings like wolves. They said nothing, but their posture and habit already spoke volumes about them. They were well trained. Perhaps they were even once part of the forces like I was.
• Seeing that I looked in their direction, Chen Yuzhou subconsciously flinched and backed off a little. But he quickly remembered that he had brought two hitters with him, and stepped up again.
• The crowd parted and made way for them. Only when they came through, did I discover that behind them, stood a short and scrawny woman, looking to be in her forties. Her face was dry and wrinkled, but her eyes gleamed with a calculating shrewdness.
• “Fang Fang, so you came already. This is my aunt over here.” Chen Yuzhou couldn’t wait to show off his connection to Lin Fang.
• This boy really wasn’t suited for plots and schemes. In the presence of so many others, saying what he said would be more or less an open announcement that he was personally involved in this mess, and that he was related to the one who was behind everything. And, even if his plot should succeed and Lin Fang submitted, hadn’t he considered that Lin Fang would hate him all the more because of it?
• Lin Fang was conflicted. She bit down on her lips, unsure of what she should do. Seeing her indecisiveness, Lin Kang gave her a shove from behind and urged her, “Sis, the one who can really help us is here. What are you hesitating for?”
• I swept my eyes across the tag pinned at tiny woman’s front. Chen Mengyun, a rather elegant sounding name, meaning “dream” and “cloud”. Which is all the more disappointing because her appearance really didn't live up to the name that she was given.
• Evidently, this Chen Mengyun had a much better head than Chen Yuzhou. Immediately, she scolded him sternly, “Is she a friend of yours? But even if she is, I still couldn’t be partial about this. I am the head of the cardiology department of this hospital, and I of all people should, and would, set a proper example for all to follow.”
• Though she saved it, anyone with a sliver of common sense would know what was really going on. More than a few of the onlookers chuckled with a smug expression over their faces. Some of them even expressed sympathy for Lin Fang, but most of those present were either family members of residing patients, or the patients themselves, or Chen Mengyun’s subordinates. In short, no others present would dare speak out against Chen Mengyun, who quite literally had a say over their lives or deaths.
• Lin Fang pleaded, her eyes once again red with tears, “Mrs. Chen, please, I beg you. Please let my father stay a few more days. We have enough money for the operation. I can give it to you now.”
• Chen Mengyun steeled her face, “Who said it was about money at all? Here in the hospital, we have our own rules that we must follow. Your father has been hospitalized for more than twenty days. If he wishes to perform the surgery, he must apply for a readmission to the hospital, but unfortunately all our beds are currently accounted for. You are welcome to submit an application for your father’s readmission, but he must wait for a bed to be vacant just like anyone else!”
• Finally about to get a word in, Dr. Zhu followed, “That’s how it is. A bunch of country bumpkins, making a ruckus and wasting our precious time!”
• It appeared to Lin Fang that she was all out of options apart from begging Chen Yuzhou to help her and accepting his terms. She knew very clearly that Chen Yuzhou was a bottomless abyss that would ask even more of her if she gave in, but she really had no other options.
• Chen Yuzhou’s eyes were filled with anticipation, as he waited for the words that he wanted to hear so much from Lin Fang’s mouth. Standing beside Lin Fang, Lin Kang also urged her on relentlessly.
• Just as Lin Fang was about to give in to her hopelessness, I reached and held her hand firmly.