"What did you say?!" Shen Changchun, upon hearing Mu Jinyu's words, was furious and, pointing to himself with disbelief, said, "Are you saying I'm like a dilapidated building that's about to be demolished?!"
"Otherwise?" Mu Jinyu shrugged his shoulders and said leisurely, "Many people always think too highly of themselves, believing they are above all others, their achievements great and renown spreading far and wide, destined for the history books, to be immortalized for eons..."
"But—"
Continuing, Mu Jinyu paused, then scoffed disdainfully, "But let's admit it, you bunch of old fogeys, from the beginning to the end, have only hindered the progress of young people, relying on your so-called years, using your so-called rich life experience to forcefully meddle in others' development, killing the infinite possibilities of the youth..."
"People like you are like teetering old buildings, doomed to be dismantled by those who come after, doomed to be forgotten, worthless..."
"No one will write epics for you. You won't become historical monuments, because you're conservative, clinging to your flaws without understanding your own depth or value, and yet you still act as if you're superior, relying on your age, thinking you're something special?"
After finishing, Mu Jinyu couldn't be bothered to argue further with the likes of Shen Changchun, walked into the ward, bypassed him, and spread his hands towards Mei Yinxue, "Thirteen patients, ten treated for ten million yuan, three lives saved for thirty million yuan, a total of forty million yuan. Hand it over."
Mei Yinxue had planned to forge a good relationship with Mu Jinyu after he had finished saving her subordinates, but after he rebuked Shen Changchun, she dared not attempt to ingratiate herself with him, and with a somewhat awkward smile, she quickly took a blank check from her bag, scribbled forty million yuan on it, and handed it to Mu Jinyu.
She had originally planned to write one hundred million yuan, but remembering Mu Jinyu's attitude after he had just saved Wang Zhengbiao, she feared that giving him more money might be overdoing it, and thus didn't dare to write a higher amount, staying honest with the agreed forty million yuan.
Mu Jinyu took the check Mei Yinxue handed over, glanced at it, and showed a satisfied smile, "Efficient. If there's business like this in the future, remember to call me. A million for treatment, ten million for a life-saving procedure, expensive prices for good deals."
Having said that, he turned to leave, ready to go home and chat with Wen Rou.
"Divine Doctor, wait a moment."
Just as Mu Jinyu was about to leave, Shen Changchun, whose expressions had been fluctuating, couldn't hold back and called out to him.
"Anything else you wish to instruct?!" Mu Jinyu stopped in his tracks and looked back at him impatiently.
Shen Changchun's face regained its calmness, and he slowly walked up to Mu Jinyu. Then, under the incredulous stares of everyone, he bent his slightly hunched back and sincerely apologized, "I'm sorry, Divine Doctor. After your just rebuke, I've profoundly realized that I do indeed have many old habits: overestimating myself, resisting change, holding on to flaws, and relying on old age. Seeing Ms. Mei reject my diagnosis, turning to invite a Divine Doctor who was so young, I grew somewhat angry out of embarrassment and regarded you with prejudice. That was my mistake, please forgive me..."
Everyone in the ward stared, eyes widening in disbelief.
What in the world?!
Shen Changchun was apologizing to Mu Jinyu?
This stubborn old man, this celebrated doctor and professor from Jiangnan, was actually bowing and apologizing to Mu Jinyu.
Had they seen wrong?
Mei Yinxue and Shen Shuyao rubbed their eyes. When they looked again and saw Shen Changchun was still bending at the waist in front of Mu Jinyu, they realized they had, in fact, not been mistaken.
Shen Changchun had indeed bowed and apologized to Mu Jinyu.
Shen Shuyao opened her rosy and cute cherry lips wide, her eyes gaping at the scene of Shen Changchun apologizing. The shock in her heart was much greater than that of Mei Yinxue and the others.
She had not anticipated that her grumpy and obstinate grandfather, after being harshly criticized as a building waiting to be demolished, instead of getting angry or starting a fight, had actually apologized to someone.
If this matter were to get out, I'm afraid the whole medical community in Jiangnan would be picking up their jaws off the floor.
The people in the ward were stunned. Mu Jinyu, the object of the apology, naturally couldn't help being a little surprised himself. Originally, he thought that the old man had stopped him to continue arguing, but unexpectedly, the man had the courage to admit his faults and apologize to him in front of everyone.
After a moment of surprise, Mu Jinyu's face also lifted with a faint smile, and he reached out to help Shen Changchun to his feet, saying, "Alright, to err is human, to forgive divine, so I forgive you."
Shen Changchun straightened up in response, and seeing that Mu Jinyu had forgiven him, a smile spread across his aged face. He opened his mouth, ready to say something.
But Mu Jinyu had glanced at the time and said, "Alright, it's getting late, I should be heading home."
With that, he turned to leave.
Seeing Mu Jinyu's decisive action, Shen Changchun's inner turmoil and hesitation were instantly suppressed. He didn't dare to exchange words with Mu Jinyu in a roundabout way and abruptly knelt down with a thud, pleading to Mu Jinyu:
"Doctor Mu, I have always been dedicated to medical skills, and I have never tolerated even a speck of dust in my eyes. That's why, seeing you young and so full of confidence earlier, I doubted you. But now, after witnessing your skills, I realize that there are always higher mountains, and I am merely a frog at the bottom of a well. I've found a clearer direction for my stagnant medical skills, so, today I'm bold enough to ask to become your student, humbly requesting that you, Divine Doctor Mu, take me as your disciple and teach me your medical skills..."
Shen Changchun had a lot to say, and he was very straightforward, hoping that Mu Jinyu would take him as a disciple and teach him medical skills.
The onlookers in the room were once again shocked by this scene.
My God, wasn't this a bit too absurd?!
The director of River City First Medicine, the associate professor at Jiangnan Medical College, was actually kneeling before a young man of about twenty years old, and even asking to be his student?!
Although everyone knew that Mu Jinyu's medical skills were excellent, even being called a Divine Doctor, Shen Changchun was not lacking either. His status and reputation were all well established; he had no need to diminish his own to become a student of Mu Jinyu!
If their roles were reversed, with Mu Jinyu asking to learn from Shen Changchun, that might have been somewhat more acceptable to them.
Upon hearing Shen Changchun's words, Mu Jinyu paused once again and turned to look back at Shen Changchun kneeling on the ground, gazing eagerly at him. From those desirous eyes, Mu Jinyu knew that Shen Changchun was not joking.
—No one would joke about their own reputation like this.
He really was serious about wanting to become Mu Jinyu's student, willing to lower his status and kneel to learn medicine.
At his age of over seventy, kneeling down to someone as young as himself and asking to be taken on as a disciple—if word of this got out, people who did not understand the depth of his own medical skills would surely deal a heavy blow to Shen Changchun's prestige and status!
He must have understood this, yet he still chose to do it anyway.
Only because...
He truly loved medical skills and genuinely wanted to learn more exquisite medical skills to better heal patients and benefit society as a whole.
In other words, he did not wish to become a dilapidated building torn down after a hundred years, vanished into the dust of history—he wanted to become a historical landmark!
Mu Jinyu was somewhat moved by this sentiment.
But he knew that he couldn't really teach him anything.
In the end, he simply shook his head lightly.