Chapter 135: Smashing with Money

Chapter 135: Chapter 135: Smashing with Money

By late April in Binhai, the weather had already grown somewhat hot and dry. Once the sun was up, it was best to stay in the shade.

However, on Phoenix Tail Mountain in the suburbs, the temperature was still quite pleasant. In the mornings, you could still feel a refreshing coolness.

Just past seven in the morning, Pan Lirong, dressed in a red tracksuit, was strolling alone along the forested fitness path that rose and fell with the mountain. Leaning on a single crutch, he walked at a slow, leisurely pace.

This was his habit.

Every day at this hour, he savored his time alone, exercising while lost in thought.

He had stuck to this routine for nearly twenty years, rain or shine.

Pan Lirong had made many of his most important decisions during these moments—decisions concerning his business, his family, and his life.

It’s just that he used to run, but now he could only walk.

In a little while longer, perhaps he would have to rely on a wheelchair...

Pan Lirong stopped walking.

He watched the path ahead curve into the depths of the woods. The thought that he would soon be confined to a wheelchair filled him with a sudden, overwhelming dread...

At this moment, Pan Lirong heard the sound of running footsteps coming from behind him.

He lifted his foot and resumed his walk.

"Mr. Pan, good morning!"

Pan Lirong turned to see who was greeting him. It was a charming, middle-aged man in a blue workout suit, with a stylish and dapper air about him.

The man’s face looked a bit familiar. Pan Lirong guessed he might be a neighbor from the community whom he had run into a few times.

"Good morning!" Pan Lirong replied politely.

"Mr. Pan, I’m Wang Chuan, the chief physician of the Plastic Surgery Center at the Affiliated Hospital. I live in Villa 16 in Phase Three."

’Phase Three? That’s not very close to here.’

’Is this a deliberately manufactured chance encounter?’

Just as Pan Lirong grew wary, the man continued, "I’m also Yan Feifan’s mentor!"

"Mr. Yan is a plastic surgeon?"

This undisguised surprise made Wang Chuan very unhappy.

’What’s wrong with being a plastic surgeon? Why do people look down on us so much?’

’Most surgeons, with their crude surgical skills, aren’t even qualified to become plastic surgeons.’

Wang Chuan shot back internally, but his expression remained pleasant as he explained, "Mr. Pan, perhaps I wasn’t clear. I’m not Yan Feifan’s only mentor."

"For example, trauma surgery expert Dr. Qin Ying and Dr. Qee, an expert in diagnosing complex diseases, are also Yan Feifan’s mentors."

"Yan Feifan isn’t a plastic surgeon. He’s just currently training and studying at the Plastic Surgery Center."

Pan Lirong let out a soft ’oh’ of realization and asked directly, "Dr. Wang, I doubt you stopped me just to make small talk, did you?"

Wang Chuan nodded. "Mr. Pan, I’ll get straight to the point. I know that you’ve lost faith in Yan Feifan’s proposed surgical concept—the one involving anhydrous ethanol injection to assist in spinal canal tumor resection. It’s because of his age and experience, as well as Dr. Lo’s opposition."

He paused, then said slowly, "What if there were an opportunity right now to verify whether Yan Feifan’s surgical concept is actually viable?"

"I wonder, Mr. Pan, would you be interested in taking part?"

Pan Lirong’s interest was piqued. He asked, "How would you verify it?"

"And how would I be involved?"

Wang Chuan chuckled. "The verification, of course, would happen on an operating table. We would prove it with a real surgery."

"Therefore, we need a patient with a condition similar to yours!"

"And to recruit a patient like that—someone willing to risk being a test subject—we would need a considerable amount of funding..."

Pan Lirong immediately understood the other party’s purpose in seeking him out.

"Dr. Wang, the funding is not a problem."

After making his position clear, Pan Lirong asked, "Will Mr. Lo be involved in this verification process?"

Wang Chuan shook his head. "Dr. Lo doesn’t believe Yan Feifan is capable of it. He’s very stubborn and hard to persuade."

"However, we will invite other neurosurgery experts to perform the operation, while Yan Feifan will be responsible for the assistive part involving the ethanol injection."

Pan Lirong mulled it over for a moment, then said, "Mr. Lo is one of the top neurosurgeons in the country, especially in the field of spinal canal tumors."

"I personally believe that even if Mr. Yan’s assistive concept proves viable, it will only make the most critical part—the tumor resection—relatively easier."

"Dr. Wang, isn’t that right?"

Seeing Wang Chuan nod, Pan Lirong continued, "I need Mr. Lo to be the lead surgeon for my operation. Only then will I have peace of mind!"

"Therefore, Mr. Lo must participate in this verification process."

This put Wang Chuan in a bind. He tried to reason with him, "Mr. Pan, Dr. Lo is notoriously stubborn at the hospital. He’s truly difficult to persuade."

"But if we approach Dr. Lo with the results of a successful verification, he’ll have to adopt Yan Feifan’s surgical plan, no matter how stubborn he is."

"So, whether Dr. Lo participates in the verification or not, the outcome will be the same."

But Pan Lirong remained insistent. "How could it be the same whether Mr. Lo participates or not?"

"If he participates, he’ll become familiar with the process and with collaborating with Mr. Yan. When it’s time to operate on me, he’ll be treading a familiar path, and the chances of success will naturally be higher."

"So, Mr. Lo must participate!"

Pan Lirong’s stubbornness was starting to annoy Wang Chuan.

’Damn it! We’re in a hurry to do this verification, and one of the main reasons is so you don’t have to spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair.’

’And here you are, making fucking demands.’

’We don’t have to rush this verification. We can afford to wait.’

’You, on the other hand, can’t.’

’You’ll regret it then...’

Just as Wang Chuan was cursing viciously in his head, Pan Lirong’s voice sounded again. "If Mr. Lo participates in the verification project, I will provide two million in support."

"If the project is successfully verified, I will add another two million."

"If my surgery is successful, I will add another two million!"

Wang Chuan immediately promised in a loud voice, "Mr. Pan, you can rest assured. Dr. Lo will be involved in the entire verification surgery..."

「Eight in the morning, Zuimo Court.」

Yan Feifan had gone to bed late, and with Wang Chuan going to persuade Pan Lirong this morning, he didn’t head to the hospital first thing as he usually did.

He finished making breakfast and set it on the table. After calling out to them loudly several times, the two lazybones, Yan Ziruo and Tian Yu, finally emerged from their bedrooms with messy hair, sloppily scrolling through their phones.

"Mr. Yan, I found a post online about that dung-throwing incident from last night. It’s just text, though, no pictures."

Hearing Tian Yu’s report, Yan Feifan pressed, "Does it say if they caught the person who did it?"

Tian Yu shook her head. "I didn’t see anything about that."

She added, "I thought there would be a more detailed report, since a lot of people were sharing it."

"When I searched, I only found two or three short posts."

Yan Feifan explained, "Ouyang Yanran and her people, and probably the Paris Restaurant, must have used their resources to suppress the reports."

"For something like this, the fewer people who know, the better."

At this, Yan Feifan flicked Tian Yu on the forehead and chided, "It’s time for breakfast. Are you still playing on your phone?"

Tian Yu quickly put down her phone, rubbed her forehead, and glanced at Yan Ziruo. "Ruoruo is on her phone, too!" she said, feeling wronged.

Yan Feifan said without the slightest hint of a blush, "My sister is older than me, so I can’t boss her around. But I can boss you around!"

"Eat..."

During breakfast, Yan Feifan received a call from Wang Chuan.

When he heard about the sponsorship, which could reach as high as six million, Yan Feifan’s breathing quickened involuntarily.

’Money really is a wonderful thing.’

"Director, you have a way to persuade Dr. Lo? Are you going to throw money at him?"

"Throw money at him?"

Wang Chuan’s voice on the other end of the line was dismissive. "That method is too crude, too low-brow."

"I’ll rally the troops. I’ll get a few more people to persuade that old stick-in-the-mud..."