The 749 Bureau Doesn't Keep Idlers, but It Doesn't Abandon People Either
I'll be inside for a bit.
Sing Sing looked at Doctor Qiu had followed him out.
Doctor Qiu frowned. "He just had his third debridement procedure, and the risk of infection is extremely high. Even a single speck of dust could kill him."
"I know what I'm doing," Sing Sing said softly. "I can only help calm his turbulent blood pressure so he suffers less."
Doctor Qiu stared at him for a few seconds, then finally relented, turning to the nurse and instructing, "Strict disinfection, wear the highest level of protective gear. Don't touch any of his wounds. Monitor the data closely; stop immediately if there's even the slightest fluctuation."
"Clear."
Sing Sing took off his suit and put on a protective suit.
The ward was quiet.
The infusion pump operates at a fixed rhythm, and the heart rate on the bedside screen remains around 120.
Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Old Zhou placed his right hand on the intact skin of Luke's left arm near his shoulder.
The Inner Qi is slowly sent in.
First, go to the heart and lungs to stabilize the rapidly beating heart. Then, gradually disperse the energy along the still-circulating blood vessels.
The burned tissue was completely necrotic, but the surviving muscle groups gradually became less stiff under the soothing influence of Qi.
Inner Qi is not a magic elixir; it cannot restore dead flesh.
But this stuff can help this kid get through the toughest few days.
My heart rate dropped from 122 to 106, and stabilized at 94 a few minutes later.
On the hospital bed, Luke's only movable left hand twitched slightly.
He tilted his head with difficulty toward Sing Sing.
A few minutes later, it stabilized at 94.
On the hospital bed, Luke's only movable left hand twitched slightly.
His head tilted with difficulty toward where Sing Sing was, his chapped lips opening and closing several times before finally managing to squeeze out a weak, intermittent breath.
"Brother Zhou... is that you?"
Sing Sing glanced at his protective suit. "I'm completely wrapped up like a steamed bun, how can you still recognize me?"
"The smell of smoke." Luke took a light breath.
"Smoking is strictly prohibited in the hospital! Your Brother Zhou has always been a law-abiding and exemplary cadre; I've never smoked in the hospital."
Luke didn't respond to the joke.
He remained silent for a long time before asking in a hoarse voice, "How's Linzi?"
"Three acres were burned."
Is anyone injured?
"No one but you."
Luke's shoulders slowly relaxed.
After a while, he continued, "Brother, I can't feel my wings anymore."
"It couldn't be saved."
Can it grow any longer?
"With current medical methods, it won't last long."
Where are the eyes?
There's no way to restore it for the time being.
"Does your right hand need to be amputated?"
Sing Sing looked at the arm resting beside him.
"Amputating below the elbow is currently the safest way to save your life. However, you're already awake, and the doctor will explain all the risks and circumstances to you clearly. No one can make that decision for you."
Luke gave an "oh" and turned his face to the other side.
The ward fell silent again, and Sing Sing continued to channel his Inner Qi.
"Brother Zhou."
"Um?"
"Looking like this... will the bureau still want me?"
Sing Sing didn't say anything.
Luke took this brief pause as a tacit answer. His speech quickened suddenly, tinged with a panicked eagerness to distance himself.
"Brother, I'm not trying to cheat my company out of paying my salary."
"Without wings, I can't fly up to do aerial patrols. With my eyesight gone, even if there are pests in the fields, I won't be able to locate them. If I lose my right hand too... I won't even be able to hold the soil samples I bring back for testing."
"I'm... useless now."
When he uttered the last word, his voice trembled violently.
"People from Silver Peak have said before that damaged assets shouldn't occupy beds. They should be recycled if necessary, and sent to the incinerator if necessary."
"I understand the rule."
Luke gripped the sheet with his left hand, then quickly let go.
"If you can't afford to keep an idle person, just buy me a ticket once I can walk. I'll find a place myself and won't cause you any trouble."
"Are you done talking?"
Sing Sing asked.
Luke hummed in agreement.
"That's my turn."
Sing Sing slowed down his Inner Qi and leaned closer.
"This time it's called an injury sustained on duty, not a loss of capability."
"The Academy of Agricultural Sciences has approved your work-related injury claim. All subsequent medical expenses, nursing care costs, and long-term rehabilitation expenses will be covered by your employer. Your basic salary during your medical leave will continue to be paid in full."
"Third, no one touched your things in your single dormitory at the research institute. All the documents on the table are still in their original places. The old professor specifically had the last batch of soil samples you collected that day refrigerated and sealed, and the labels still bear Luke Shaw's name."
"The fact that you can smell my unlit smoke through the disinfectant means that your insect senses are still intact."
"If you can't fly in the future, you can do indoor sample screening. If you're blind, you can be fitted with a voice localization device. If you lose your right hand, the bureau will provide you with the best assistive device."
"If a position isn't a good fit, reassign it; if there's not enough equipment, add more."
Even if none of these methods work, you should just follow the prescribed long-term recuperation procedures.
"You saved more than just three acres of forest. If the fire had crossed the firebreak that day, and the storage depot behind it had exploded, the impact would have been far more than just half the county."
Sing Sing tucked the blanket in for him.
"But I didn't think that much about it at the time." Luke's throat bobbed a few times. "The professor said that the grove had been planted for fourteen years. Every tree was raised from the height of half a chopstick."
"When it became popular, I thought... I can't let his fourteen years be gone."
"Luke, listen carefully. You'll always be a member of the 749 Bureau."
The heart rate at the head of the bed is elevated.
Luke opened his mouth, but after a long pause, he finally asked, "So... can I still call you Brother Zhou from now on?"
"Call me whatever you want. Just don't do what Anton did and check my expense reports. Calling me godfather is fine too."
Luke wanted to laugh, but the sound he uttered aloud aggravated his injury, causing him to wince in pain.
"Don't move."
Sing Sing then sent over some more Inner Qi.
"Your only task now is to focus on recovering. Don't cause the unit additional costs for secondary treatment."
"Two boxes of fragrant pears have arrived from Korla," he said. "I'll save a few for you when you can eat again."
Luke hesitated for a moment, "Has Edith been here?"
"I've been here before."
"Will there be any left?"
"This is indeed a serious problem."
Two knocks suddenly came from outside the glass, Sing Sing turned his head to look.
Wenxi
Da Vinci was wearing a blue surgical gown with an old apron printed with peonies over it, and he was holding a modified electric pressure cooker in his arms.
A transparent observation window was cut in the middle of the pot lid, which contained a pale yellow culture medium.
Two transparent films, each only the size of a coin, are swaying in the liquid.
Doctor Qiu stood to the side with a dark expression, his eyes twitching. He had never seen a pressure cooker used for tissue culture in his entire life.
Da Vinci was arguing with Doctor Qiu next to him, "Who told you that wings can't grow back?"
Doctor Qiu stared at the contents of the pot.
"The growth tissue at the stump has completely deactivated; how did you culture it?"
Da Vinci straightened his glasses, which had been repaired with insulating tape.
"Just because the living don't want to work doesn't mean the dead can't be rehired!"
He patted the pressure cooker, "The adult specialized tissue re-employment guidance and training device, thanks to my unremitting efforts, has achieved a preliminary experimental success rate of 17.6%!"
"If they're lucky, the Mayfly might not only be able to continue flying, but its wings might even grow wider."