The Deputy Chief followed the Chief and the Minister's gaze to Chen Lihua, and he became envious. But Chen Lihua, who was the center of attention, had something else going on in her mind.

So she was a bit distracted and lost in her thoughts. She only came back to reality when the Chief continued with his speech.

​​

After speaking, the Chief gave the Minister the platform to speak.

The Minister spoke to them all with smiles. He told them not to be nervous because of his identity. He ended his speech by saying that he was in their capable hands and should take care of him.

The surgeons gave him a round of applause with relaxed smiles.

They were nervous, and most of them were scared because of the identity of the patient they would operate on, plus the intimidating bodyguards, standing behind him.

But now that the Minister had spoken to them amicably, they became more relaxed freely.

The Chief surgeon assigned some tasks to some of them before dismissing the rest.

As Chen Lihua stood up to walk away, the Chief called her back.

"Dr. Chen, please, may I have your attention?"

Chen Lihua walked towards the Chief and the Minister, while the deputy chief lingered in the meeting room.

"Dr. Chen, meet the Minister for finance. Sir, meet the world's youngest cardiothoracic surgeon. She is the best among her peers, and she would be assisting me with your surgery," the Chief introduced the two individuals while praising Chen Lihua in all smiles.

Chen Lihua and the Minister shook hands.

"Dr. Chen, it's good to see you after your wedding. I am in your hands, please take care of me," the Minister said to Chen Lihua as he smiled cheerfully.

Chen Lihua returned a smile while saying, "We would do our best, Sir."

The Minister chuckled loudly while saying, turning the Chief today, "I like this lad already. She is not nervous at all; neither is she trying to curry favors with me."

"That is the way she is. She only treats me as her superior at work, and she is always serious," the Chief replied happily.

Chen Lihua smiled and left after the Chief dismissed her.

Chen Lihua walked back to her office and took a glass of water.

When Chen Lihua left the meeting room, the deputy chief came out from his hiding place.

When the Chief, the Minister, and Chen Lihua talked, he lingered in the room. He only left when he heard the Chief surgeon say to the Minister that Chen Lihua was to assist him with the surgery.

He became jealous and envious because the Chief forgot about him, who has been working together with him for years before he met Chen Lihua.

He was supposed to assist him directly throughout the heart transplant procedures. Still, he made Chen Lihua his personal assistant and made him who had a higher ranking and experienced doctor than Chen Lihua, his second assistant.

So why wouldn't he be jealous?

His heartfelt so bitter that his thoughts changed, and so he began to make plans on how he would prevent Chen Lihua from partaking in the surgery and basking in the glory.

With this thought, he left for his office.

As for the Minister, he was getting ready for the surgery. And so he underwent some tests to ensure that he was in good health with no active illness.

He completed a medical history and physical. He had blood work done, and lastly, he got x-rays done.

That same evening, the Chief instructed Chen Lihua to brief the Minister on what to expect during the surgery after undergoing the crucial tests.

Chen Lihua accepted the task and did it professionally. She didn't waste time at all.

She summarized the whole surgery process to the Minister. The way she spoke to him was the same way she spoke to any of her other patients.

She treated them the same; nobody was above the other. They were all patients to her, as long as they were admitted to the hospital.

The Minister admired how competent she was. She left when she was done talking to him, and after asking him if he had any questions to ask, and if he needed more explanations.

As for the deputy chief, he kept following the Chief around as if he was his personal assistant.

Those who didn't know would think they were inseparable or had a task to carry out together.

The Chief ignored him at first. But when he couldn't take it any longer, he stopped in his tracks and asked.

"Deputy Chief, are you mentally and physically ready for tomorrow's surgery?"

The deputy chief gave him a perfect smile and left a positive reply.

Since the deputy chief didn't get the cue to leave, the Chief decided to send him away directly, despite knowing his reason for following him around.

The Chief assigned a task to him, and only then did the deputy chief reluctantly leave his side.

In her office, Chen Lihua replied all of Liu Longwei's texts to her before going to sleep.

She had a long day ahead of her tomorrow, so she needed to rest early.

As for the deputy chief, he didn't sleep until he got an idea of how to prevent Chen Lihua from partaking in the surgery.

He smiled victoriously to himself before going to sleep.

He even had a dream of when the Chief surgeon, the Minister, and the rest of his colleagues praised him after the surgery was completed.

He smiled happily and looked to the side to see Chen Lihua angry. And before he could know what was happening, the angry Chen Lihua threw bloody water to his face.

He immediately woke up in fear, only to actually see Chen Lihua staring at him curiously.

He screamed and jumped up in fright.

His scream caused Chen Lihua to jerk back unconsciously.

"Deputy Chief, are you alright? You seem to have had a nightmare," Chen Lihua said to him as she stared at him with a facade of a smile.