As the youngest doctor there, one who had yet to earn the qualifications to consult with patients on his own, Hu Qiming hid in a corner.

He watched Li Xu wage a one-man war against the crowd, his heart feeling like it was about to leap out of his chest.

He was both excited and worried. With trembling hands, he sent the latest battle report to his old classmates’ group chat.

[Hu Qiming: Li Xu... he said he’s going to use medicine... traditional Chinese medicine, to expel the nail... It’s over. He’s really lost his mind...]

[Li Baojie: Medicine?! Holy shit, how is that possible?! Hu Qiming, you have to stop him! If something goes wrong with this medicine, he’ll go to jail.]

[Miaoli: Oh my god! What on earth is Li Xu thinking? Did Professor Xue make him so mad he lost his mind? It’s completely hopeless now...]

[Jiang Peng: Sigh... I guess there really is a fine line between a genius and a madman... Li Xu used to be a genius, but now he’s a madman...]

The group chat was flooded with cries of despair.

Everyone thought Li Xu had gone mad.

To actually think he could use traditional Chinese medicine to expel an iron nail.

However, Li Xu, standing at the center of the storm, turned a deaf ear to everything around him.

He paid no mind to the other doctors’ doubts and ridicule.

He just looked quietly at the parents by the hospital bed, who were utterly desperate and on the verge of collapse.

He spoke to them in a tone of supreme confidence:

"I know you’re both very worried. I can’t promise you that my method is absolutely safe,"

"but..."

Li Xu’s tone shifted. "I am ninety percent confident that I can have your child pass the nail safely."

"Now, the choice is in your hands."

"Will you choose to believe me and let me treat him? Or will you choose to transfer back to the City People’s Hospital and sign that consent form for a high-risk surgery with an unknown outcome?"

What?

Ninety percent confidence??

Everyone was stunned when they heard this.

Even the specialists and professors weren’t very confident.

And Li Xu was claiming ninety percent right off the bat?

Regardless of whether anyone else believed him,

Wang Jianhao and his wife did.

On one side, there was the hospital repeatedly passing the buck, a high-risk surgery that even the doctors themselves weren’t confident in, and that cold consent form that felt like a death notice.

On the other, there was Li Xu’s guarantee of a "ninety percent" success rate.

The couple didn’t hesitate for long.

Wang Jianhao gritted his teeth and made his decision. "Divine Physician Li, we... we believe you. My son’s life is in your hands!"

"Don’t do it!"

"Li Xu, don’t be reckless!"

Seeing this, Lin Guorui and Zhu Quanxin turned pale and rushed forward, grabbing Li Xu by his left and right arms.

"Doctor Li, think about this! This is no joke," Lin Guorui urged anxiously. "This is simply untreatable! If something goes wrong, your career will be ruined."

"That’s right, Doctor Li." Zhu Quanxin’s expression was also grave. "I know you’re highly skilled and bold, but there’s a limit to everything. You absolutely cannot do this."

Xue Shuheng stepped forward directly, blocking the way between Li Xu and the hospital bed, and barked self-righteously:

"No! I will not allow you to cause trouble here. This is the City Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, not some little clinic where you can do whatever you want. If you treat him recklessly and a medical incident occurs, our entire hospital will have to bear the responsibility for you."

He wasn’t stopping Li Xu out of kindness.

He just didn’t want the City Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine to get dragged into trouble.

After all,

in his eyes, Li Xu was doomed to fail.

When that time comes, Li Xu, who wasn’t even a doctor at the Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, could just walk away scot-free.

But the patient’s family would still be raising hell at their hospital.

The commotion

even alerted Dean Song.

He had heard there was a major incident in the emergency department and had rushed over.

"What’s going on? What’s all this shouting about?"

Dean Song walked in, his face grim.

After he understood the full story, he too looked troubled.

Just when everyone thought the matter would end with Li Xu backing down,

Li Xu did something completely unexpected.

He calmly pulled his Medical Practitioner Qualification Certificate and Medical Practitioner License from his pocket.

He presented the certificates to Dean Song and said calmly:

"Dean Song, first, I am a licensed medical practitioner, legally certified by the state. I have the legal right to diagnose and treat patients."

"Second, the patient’s family, on the premise of trusting me, has actively requested that I treat their child. This is equivalent to them registering for my services. A legal doctor-patient relationship has already been established between us."

"Third, it is true that I am currently in your hospital. But because the child’s condition is critical and it is not advisable to move him, I am merely borrowing your facilities to perform an emergency procedure. During this process, any and all consequences, good or bad, will have nothing to do with your hospital or any other doctor present. I, Li Xu, will bear all responsibility alone. If necessary, I can sign a liability waiver immediately!"

His words were logical, well-reasoned, and measured. He had clearly shouldered all the responsibility, leaving everyone speechless.

Of course,

with any other patient or under different circumstances,

Li Xu wouldn’t have dared to take on such a massive responsibility.

But for the patient before him, the intelligence system had provided a clear treatment method.

He trusted the system, which was why he dared to speak so boldly.

As Dean Song looked at Li Xu,

for a moment, he sensed a powerful aura from him, the kind of unyielding spirit that would advance even if a million people stood against him.

He recalled Professor Gao Guanghui’s high regard for Li Xu, and he remembered the medical miracles Li Xu had performed before.

A surge of boldness rose in Dean Song’s heart as well.

’Perhaps... I should trust him this one time?’

"Good!"

Dean Song took a deep breath and decisively made his final decision.

"We’ll do as Doctor Li says!"

He looked around the room and said in a tone that allowed no argument: "Our City Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine may have limited resources, but we cannot lack tolerance. Even more, we cannot lack the courage to innovate and take responsibility. Today, we will make an exception. We will give our full cooperation to Doctor Li as he carries out the treatment in our hospital."

With Dean Song’s decision made,

the matter was urgent, so Li Xu wasted no time and began the treatment immediately. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

He didn’t use any complex medical equipment,

nor did he write a complicated prescription.

He simply said to Director Han:

"Director Han, could you please get two medicines for me?"

"What medicines?"

"Living Magnet Stone, one qian. Potassium nitrate, two qian."

Living Magnet Stone? Potassium nitrate?

All the doctors present, including Director Han, were completely baffled.

Both were relatively obscure mineral-based ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine, rarely used in normal practice, let alone for dealing with an iron nail in the digestive tract.

Li Xu recalled the intelligence from earlier.

The intelligence had specifically mentioned a record from Shennong’s Materia Medica: "Iron fears potassium nitrate."

In the theory of herb compatibility in traditional Chinese medicine, known as the "Seven Methods," the concept of "fear" (畏) describes a relationship of mutual inhibition.

This means that the toxic reactions or side effects of one substance can be reduced or eliminated by another.

Literally interpreted, "Iron fears potassium nitrate" means that iron, as a substance, is "afraid" of potassium nitrate.