24: The nemesis of nerve-related tinnitus

Shanghai, Zhongshan Hospital, Department of Neurology.

Having just seen off a follow-up patient, Li Bin habitually picked up his phone and opened the group chat.

[Huge news! longevity water is rumored to be able to treat neurogenic tinnitus!]

The group instantly flooded with countless question mark emojis.

[Isn't that just a functional health supplement?]

[Is this rumor reliable?]

[Absolutely reliable. Old Liu from Huashan has suffered from tinnitus for thirty years, and he personally confirmed its effectiveness.]

Li Bin stopped reading; his heart began pounding wildly.

He immediately thought of Zhao Cheng, the old engineer in his department who also suffered from chronic tinnitus. Recently, it had become so severe that he could barely hear external conversations, leaving his entire family distraught.

Li Bin was a man of action and instantly realized this was a golden opportunity to earn merit.

The first person he thought of was his brother-in-law, Lin Dong, an executive at Xinghai Biotechnology.

He immediately locked the door, temporarily paused patient notifications, and dialed Lin Dong's private number.

The call connected quickly.

"Dongzi!"

"What's up, Brother-in-law?"

"The situation is urgent. Hurry up and send me a truckload of longevity water. I need it immediately."

Lin Dong was taken aback.

"Didn't we just deliver a truckload to your hospital recently?"

"Stop wasting time. Hurry up; we need it by tomorrow."

Lin Dong rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache. He could arrange it, but he absolutely needed a reasonable justification.

"You have to give me a reasonable justification, otherwise, I really can't make this happen on my end."

Li Bin immediately sent Lin Dong a screenshot of the gossip circulating in the group chat.

"There you go. But this must be kept confidential!"

After seeing the content of the screenshot, Lin Dong realized the seriousness of the situation.

"Fine. I'll have someone deliver it to your hospital this afternoon."

After hanging up, Li Bin quickly dialed another number.

The Director of Zhongshan Hospital in Shanghai.

After providing a brief overview of the situation, Li Bin's tone became extremely serious.

"Uncle, Xinghai Biology will be sending over a batch of longevity water this afternoon. Help me arrange its handling; we can't let people from other departments snatch it."

"Done. I understand."

Hanging up the phone, Li Bin then called his own father.

"Dad, you know that longevity water has miraculous effects on neurogenic tinnitus, right?"

"I know. What is it?"

"You must use your connections in East China. Transfer all severe, incurable patients to me."

"I've already secured the resources from Dongzi; all I'm missing are the patients."

"Fine, noted."

After finishing the three phone calls, Li Bin let out a long breath, feeling exceptionally exhilarated.

He knew that once this news spread, it would inevitably draw neurogenic tinnitus patients from across the country, and even the world.

This was going to be a tough fight, so he needed to make ample preparations and collect sufficient data before the news fully broke.

Zhongshan Hospital acted quickly. One floor of the inpatient building was cleared out specifically to receive severe tinnitus patients.

That afternoon, a truck loaded with longevity water parked in the hospital's storage area.

The doctors and nurses of the Department of Neurology were ready, moving the precious boxes, one by one, into their department's storage room.

This move immediately attracted the attention of several departments, but the staff in the Department of Neurology were extremely tight-lipped, refusing to divulge a single word.

Are you kidding? longevity water is currently a hot commodity. Scalpers outside have driven the price of one set up to 300 yuan, and it remains in short supply.

The next day, patients were gradually admitted to the inpatient department.

One patient with the most severe symptoms caught Li Bin's attention.

Chen Wei, in his early forties.

He contracted neurogenic tinnitus at the age of thirty due to a high fever. His symptoms had rapidly worsened over the past two years, causing him to develop severe depression and attempt suicide multiple times.

If his family hadn't been watching him closely, he would have likely taken his own life already.

During the consultation, Chen Wei described his brain as being filled with countless cicadas chirping day and night. The sound was sharp and loud, making it difficult for him to hear conversations and preventing him from getting a full night's sleep.

Chen Wei had suffered immensely trying to cure this illness.

He had visited every hospital in the provincial capital, tried countless folk remedies, and spent money like water, yet the incessant ringing hadn't lessened in the slightest.

One hope after another was met with crushing disappointment.

His family had practically dragged him to Zhongshan Hospital this time.

That afternoon, Chen Wei drank the cup of longevity water with a blank expression, then lay down to wait.

He personally held no hope, as even the most renowned specialists had given him a death sentence, stating that there was no cure other than learning to live with it.

Unexpectedly, after about an hour, the noise in his ears seemed to have diminished slightly.

Chen Wei sat bolt upright in astonishment, vigorously patting his ears, afraid he had misheard.

Having been accustomed to high-frequency noise for so long, he was extremely sensitive to even the slightest change.

He held his breath and focused intently.

The cicada ringing was still loud, but it was no longer unbearable.

"The noise is quieter!"

Chen Wei turned his head and grabbed his wife's hand, too excited to speak coherently.

"Did you hear that? Didn't it get quieter?"

His wife was momentarily stunned, taking a few seconds to process what he said.

Tears began streaming down her face uncontrollably.

"Yes, I hear it. It's quieter."

The couple embraced, simultaneously crying and laughing.

Chen Wei wiped away a tear, recalling the painful two years: the wasted money, the countless methods he had tried only to be repeatedly disappointed.

And now, he finally saw the dawn of hope.

Li Bin stood by, silently recording the data displayed on the instruments.

Just as he finished recording the data and was about to check on other wards, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and saw a message from the internal department chat group.

[We can't keep it secret anymore. Lots of people from various departments are here, and they even brought hydraulic cutters. They must be trying to get their hands on the longevity water.]

Immediately, the scene in the consulting rooms across the Department of Neurology shifted dramatically.

Dr. Zhang, who was currently examining a patient, heard the phone notification, looked down, and his expression subtly changed.

He apologized to the patient, found a quick excuse, rolled up his sleeves, and sprinted toward the Department of Neurology's storage room.

Dr. Wang, who was prescribing medication at his computer, noticed the group message, stood up, and dashed out of his consulting room.

The patients in the waiting area were dumbfounded, watching the doctors who had just been diligently consulting them suddenly rush out of their rooms like soldiers hearing the assembly call.

"Is the hospital running a fire drill?"

At the entrance of the Department of Neurology storage room, a full-blown melee was currently unfolding.

The Head Nurse, along with several nurses, formed a human wall, linking arms and fiercely guarding the storage room door.

A large crowd of doctors from various departments surrounded them, clamoring and trying to force their way in.

"Head Nurse Zhang, just one box! Our ICU can't hold out much longer!"

"We were here first! Get in line!"

"Brother departments should help each other! Our Orthopedics department will give your entire department free physical exams next week."

In the chaos, someone's stethoscope was knocked off, and the scene completely spiraled out of control.

The usually refined experts and department directors were now acting like middle-aged women scrambling for discounted eggs at the supermarket, all for a few boxes of longevity water.

Just then, Li Bin arrived, panting heavily after hearing the commotion.

Seeing this scene, he was so angry he almost laughed out loud. He took out his phone and quietly filmed this precious footage.

"The Director is here!"

These four words were more effective than anything else, and the crowd quickly scattered like a receding tide.

Some doctors pretended to tie their shoelaces, some looked up to examine the ceiling, and others suddenly took a keen interest in the promotional posters on the wall.

Li Bin surveyed the area, then slowly began to speak.

"Everyone, should I create a group chat, invite the Director, and let us discuss the distribution plan for longevity water face-to-face?"

The corridor, which had been noisy moments ago, was instantly left with only a few doctors from the Department of Neurology.

Li Bin was a special presence at Zhongshan Hospital, possessing frighteningly strong connections and background.

The reason Zhongshan Hospital was able to secure a large amount of longevity water in the first place was entirely due to his connections; he was someone no one dared to offend.

"Send two people to guard this well. This relates directly to the performance metrics of our Department of Neurology."

"Understood, Director!"