Exceptional Physician

Ethan pushed open the door and immediately heard voices—one male, one female—coming from the bathroom. "I've been about to burst these past few days." "I'm still in the shower, look how impatient you are…" Bang! Ethan felt as if he'd been struck by lightning, his face turning deathly pale. Because that second sentence had been spoken by Lily Zhang. Lily was Ethan's girlfriend. They were classmates from medical school, had been together for two years, and after graduation both applied and were accepted into Jiangzhou Hospital as resident doctors. They were still in their probationary period and hadn't yet been given permanent positions. Ethan never imagined Lily would betray him. As the sounds of heavy breathing gradually drifted from the bathroom, Ethan's anger surged to its peak. Clenching his fists, he strode toward the bathroom. He wanted to see exactly who the man inside was. But when he reached the bathroom door, he stopped. What would it change even if he saw the man? Would it undo what had happened? The space of one door made Ethan feel as though, in this moment, he and Lily were worlds apart. Fine. They'd been in love once—maybe they should leave each other some last shred of dignity. Ethan took a deep breath and turned to leave, but just then, voices sounded again from inside the bathroom. "Hurry up. Ethan will be off work soon. If he sees us, it's over." "So what if he sees? I'm not afraid of him." Ethan frowned. The man's voice sounded familiar. Then Lily spoke again: "You're so bad… Oh, right, did you talk to your dad about my permanent position?" "Relax. My dad's the deputy director. Getting you that position is just a word from him." It's him! In an instant, Ethan recognized the man in the bathroom—Kyle Guo. Kyle was a surgeon at Jiangzhou Hospital. Relying on his father's position as the hospital's deputy director, he'd always acted arrogantly and domineeringly. From his very first day in the surgery department, Ethan had heard plenty of gossip about Kyle: forcing a pregnant girlfriend to get an abortion, fooling around with married women, pressuring pretty nurses… In short, Kyle was scum. "To get that permanent position, Lily actually got involved with scum like Kyle. Was it worth it?" Ethan's heart bled. In the bathroom, Lily asked another question: "Will Ethan get a permanent position?" "Not a chance," Kyle said. "I asked my dad. Out of all the doctors in your probationary group, there's only one permanent slot this year. The rest have to wait until next year." Lily said, "Ethan scored full marks on the recruitment exam, performed well during probation, and most importantly, Director Bai thinks highly of him." "What good is Director Bai's opinion? The final say still rests with my dad," Kyle replied. "But I heard from my dad that Director Bai approached him, wanting to give the permanent position to Ethan. I just don't get why Director Bai treats Ethan so well. Maybe they're sleeping together?" "Don't talk nonsense. Director Bai is so beautiful—how could she ever be interested in Ethan?" "True. Director Bai always has that cold face, acting like she's keeping everyone at arm's length. She definitely seems frigid." "Did you ask your dad who's getting the permanent position this time?""Is that even a question? It's yours, of course! It's just too bad for that kid Ethan—not only will he not get the permanent position, but he also got cuckolded. What a tragedy." "What, do you feel sorry for him?" Lily asked. "Sorry my ass!" Kyle laughed. "Speaking of which, that guy is really an idiot. He dated you for two years and never slept with you. Anyone would think he was practicing some vow of chastity." "Enough, stop talking!" "You feel bad when I talk about him? Well, you did date for two years after all…" "Don't talk nonsense! Why would I feel bad for a bastard like him?" Lily said disdainfully. Outside the door, Ethan's breathing grew ragged, his face flushed crimson, his eyes almost spitting fire. A bastard… Those words were harsh, but they weren't wrong. He truly was a bastard. It was precisely because he was a bastard that his mother had been driven out of the family. This was the secret Ethan found most difficult to speak about. He had only ever told Lily. "Ethan's a bastard? What's the story? Tell me," Kyle urged. Lily said, "To this day, Ethan doesn't even know who his biological father is." "No way, he doesn't know who his own father is? He must have been lying to you." "He really doesn't know." "Then who did his mother have him with?" Kyle said. "Even if it were with a dog, you'd at least know the dog's name…" A vein bulged on Ethan's forehead. His mother was his deepest taboo—no one was allowed to insult her. Overcome with rage, he kicked the door open. BANG! The bathroom door suddenly flew open, causing immediate chaos inside. "Ah…!" Lily screamed, quickly grabbing a towel to cover herself. Kyle jumped in fright, scrambling to stand up from the bathtub. When he saw it was Ethan at the doorway, his initial tension vanished, replaced by a smirk. "Lily, look who's here." Lily glanced toward the door and froze. "Ethan… When did you get back?" "I've been back for a while. Sorry to interrupt your… fun," Ethan said, his face dark, struggling to control his fury. Lily tried to explain, "Ethan, it's not what you think, I—" "I saw it with my own eyes! Are you really going to tell me everything I saw was fake? Lily, I never imagined you could be this kind of person!" Ethan's accusation pushed Lily from shame into anger.Lily didn't even bother to explain anymore. Her voice was ice-cold. "Looking back, I must have been blind. How could I ever have been with a loser like you?" "We were together for two years, and all you ever gave me was this cheap bracelet. You even had the nerve to call it a 'family heirloom.' Disgusting." She took off a white jade bracelet from her wrist and threw it at Ethan. "From today on, you go your way, and I'll go mine. We have nothing to do with each other anymore!" Ethan stared at Lily, stunned, his heart turning completely cold. How had the woman he once loved become like this? Kyle wrapped an arm around Lily's waist and grinned at Ethan. "Hey, you wanna watch a live show? Lily and I can put on a performance just for you." "Watch this, you bastard." Ethan's fist shot forward and connected with Kyle's face. Thwack! Blood immediately gushed from Kyle's nose. "Fuck! How dare you hit me? I'll kill you!" Kyle's fists rained down on Ethan like a storm. Kyle stood a head taller than Ethan at 190 cm, and with his regular workouts, he was powerfully built. Ethan was no match for him. Within moments, Ethan was knocked to the floor. "A bastard like you dares to lay hands on me? You've got a death wish!" After beating Ethan for a while, Kyle grew tired. With a vicious stomp, he crushed two of Ethan's fingers. "Ah—!" Ethan cried out in agony before losing consciousness. "Such a weakling, and you still had the guts to touch me. Total trash." Kyle spat on Ethan's limp body. He didn't notice that at that very moment, a trickle of fresh blood from Ethan's broken fingers had begun to seep into the white jade bracelet…