Once they finished, the two left together.
Because of Shi Wenli, they were closer than ordinary colleagues.
Chatting, they reached the elevator lobby.
Xu Qinghe asked her, "Have you had lunch?"
"Not yet."
Xu Qinghe casually said, "Are you going to the cafeteria or ordering takeout?"
Shi Miao said, "I've been too busy lately and don't have much appetite. My husband is bringing me lunch."
"Oh my, I won't need to go to the cafeteria today. I'm already full from all this sweet talk."
Shi Miao smiled sheepishly.
"Bye." They waved and laughed, entering different elevators.
At lunch, Xu Qinghe didn't see Shi Wenli in the cafeteria. It wasn't until she was almost done eating that she suddenly remembered—it was Wednesday, and Shi Wenli had outpatient clinic all day; he wouldn't come to the surgical cafeteria to eat.
As she was spacing out, the department head sat down across from her.
Zhao Mingde noticed her absent-minded look. "No wonder you can't drive—you even zone out over cases while eating."
Xu Qinghe: "..."
She wasn't thinking about cases at all.
But in the eyes of a teacher, a good student was always studying, no matter what they were doing.
The department head was always serious, and no one dared to joke with him, including her.
She asked, "Director, what is it?"
Zhao Mingde said, "You didn't get any rest during the New Year. Take tomorrow off."
Even an iron man couldn't handle a long stretch without rest.
If he didn't give her a proper break, her father would call to complain about him again.
Xu Qinghe said she wouldn't take tomorrow off. "I'll take the ninth off."
"What's special about the ninth?"
"Shi Miao's wedding."
"Oh, right."
Zhao Mingde remembered. He had also received an invitation.
He came over to remind her again to quickly make up the surgical volume in other departments.
Although she was the department's key compound talent, the hospital had hard requirements for promotion: within the past three years, she had to accumulate a certain number of anesthesia cases in basic departments.
In the past few years, she had focused only on neurosurgery and cardiac anesthesia, neglecting some basic departments. This was also a chance to fill her gaps.
"I just looked at your surgical records. You're quite short on orthopedic cases."
Xu Qinghe: "I'll make them up this year."
Mentioning orthopedics gave Zhao Mingde a headache. "You're just making up the case numbers, but you only go to the orthopedic OR every now and then, and even then, you managed to offend all the chief physicians in orthopedics. You're something!"
Xu Qinghe didn't respond.
Zhao Mingde brought up Director Liao from orthopedics. "Director Liao has come to me several times, clearly stating that for his surgeries, you should never be assigned anesthesia again. Xu Qinghe, you're unique in our department to be blacklisted by a surgeon."
Xu Qinghe had nothing to say. She lowered her head and continued eating.
Zhao Mingde was helpless against her temperament.
People with great skills often have big tempers—he always comforted himself that way.
After a pause, Zhao Mingde continued, "Don't you want to become the youngest associate chief physician in our department? Then, before the application deadline next year, make sure to complete all the hard requirements for promotion."
"Also," he stressed, "from now on, whenever you need to cancel a surgery, communicate well with the surgeons, especially the orthopedics team. If you keep being so stubborn, do you think you'll have any good relationships left?"
Xu Qinghe looked up and was about to say, "What do you mean no good relationships?"
Aren't there plenty of people in the anesthesia department who liked her?
But the words stuck in her throat. She swallowed them back to save face for the department head.
Zhao Mingde could guess what expression meant.
Xu Qinghe didn't have a great reputation among surgeons, but her colleagues in the department all liked her.
Because she dared to stand up to surgeons, especially arguing with him, everyone said she was the only one who could "handle" the surgeons and him.
He advised earnestly, "Right now, only Wu Xiaofeng in orthopedics has a decent impression of you. Don't go offending him, or when will you ever make up your missing case numbers?"
Xu Qinghe wasn't familiar with Wu Xiaofeng; she had never been assigned to his surgeries and rarely crossed paths with him.
The last time she heard his voice was the day she found out Shi Wenli was back—when he exclaimed, "Wow! I thought I was seeing things. When did you get back?" That line was still fresh in her memory.
Zhao Mingde said, "I've already talked to them. Over the next few months, I'll arrange a few more orthopedic surgeries for you each week."
Chatting about orthopedics and urging her to be more tactful in the future, the meal left both Xu Qinghe and Zhao Mingde a bit indigestion.