51: Operation

Lin Private Hospital, the place with the highest medical standards in Anqing City today.

In the VIP area on the top floor, the air was so quiet you could hear your own heartbeat.

Lin Zhengyuan stood at the end of the corridor outside the operating room, her posture ramrod straight, but her slightly trembling fingertips betrayed her inner turmoil.

Beside her was Ping Qi's wife, a young woman who was also full of worry.

Behind them, neither Ping Chong nor the brothers Ping Qi and Ping Yan followed.

Lin Zhengyuan had not allowed them to come.

Before the Lin family truly accepted them, such an occasion would only increase their mutual awkwardness.

"Little sister, don't worry too much, Yueyue will definitely be fine." Lin Zhengchu walked over. His words were steady, offering Lin Zhengyuan a sliver of support.

Lin Zhengyuan nodded, yet she couldn't utter a single word.

Before long, the elevator doors opened again.

Lin Yunjia, Lin Yangshu, Lin Yunzhou... The core members of the Lin family's younger generation had all arrived.

Lin Yunjia, who had just stepped away from Martial Arts University enrollment duties, Lin Yunshi, who was busy with Martial Arts Alliance Branch affairs, and Lin Yangshu, who carried the dusty aura of having just finished a wilderness hunt.

They put down everything they were doing and converged here from various corners of the city.

"Aunt."

"Great-aunt."

Each address represented a silent declaration of attitude.

Lin Zhengyuan could no longer hold back. The grievances accumulated over half her life, interwoven with her current gratitude, caused tears to stream from her eyes.

She did not cry aloud, merely letting the tears fall and wiping them away forcefully with the back of her hand.

The Lin family was using action to tell her that she, Lin Zhengyuan, was still a part of the Lin family.

Her granddaughter was the Lin family's great-granddaughter.

At the other end of the corridor, several doctors in white coats were talking in low voices. Leading them was the hospital director, the authority on cardiothoracic surgery in Anqing City, He Weimin.

"Chairman Lin, the child's condition... is extremely unfavorable."

He Weimin walked up to Lin Zhengchu, his forehead covered in fine beads of sweat. "Her body is too weak. For a routine major surgery, the success rate is less than ten percent. We... we don't have the confidence."

This statement plunged the recently eased atmosphere back into an icy stillness.

Everyone knew the status of the Lin family in Anqing City. He Weimin knew clearly that if today's surgery failed, even if the Lin family didn't pursue the matter, the reputation of him and his team would be ruined.

Moreover, who could guarantee that the Lin family truly wouldn't pursue the matter?

This pressure made the palms of these renowned doctors, who usually held scalpels with rock-steady hands, sweat profusely.

Lin Zhengchu's brows furrowed. He was not an unreasonable man, but he understood that this was the only chance for his granddaughter, Ping Xiyue, to live.

Just then, a figure walked unhurriedly from the corridor entrance.

He was wearing ordinary casual clothes, his steps steady. None of the patients and family members walking around paid him a second glance; he seemed to melt into the environment without causing a ripple.

Until he walked in front of the assembled Lin family members.

"Dad." Lin Zhengchu was the first to react, bowing respectfully.

"Grandfather!" Lin Yunshi, Lin Yangshu, and the others saluted in unison.

In that instant, the air in the entire corridor solidified.

He Weimin and the group of doctors, as well as some people nearby who noticed the commotion, were all stunned.

The founder of the Lin Group, the principal of Anqing City Martial Arts University, that legendary Martial Arts expert, Lin Qian!

Why would he appear here?

After a brief silence came an irrepressible commotion. Countless people cast looks of curiosity, awe, and scrutiny.

Lin Qian merely scanned the area calmly.

An invisible pressure spread out, and the recently noisy corridor instantly fell silent. Those who had been whispering felt a sudden, inexplicable palpitation, involuntarily closing their mouths and lowering their heads.

This was a shallow application of Mental Energy by Lin Qian, combined with some psychological techniques, capable of providing mild suggestion and suppression.

"A hospital is a place that requires quiet."

Lin Qian spoke. His voice was not loud, yet it clearly reached everyone's ears. "Go do your own business."

The crowd quickly dispersed, and order was restored to the corridor.

Lin Qian walked up to Lin Zhengyuan, looking at his youngest daughter, who had been stubborn all her life. He reached out and gently patted her shoulder.

"I am here."

Three simple words, yet they contained immense power.

Lin Zhengyuan's tears welled up again, but this time, they were not tears of worry or grievance, but of complete relief.

Lin Qian turned to He Weimin.

"Director He, prepare for surgery."

He Weimin started, quickly stepping forward and speaking with difficulty: "Old Mr. Lin, it's not that we aren't trying our best, but the child's body..."

"I know," Lin Qian interrupted him. "During the surgery, I will personally protect her heart meridian. You only need to handle your professional duties."

Personally protect the heart meridian?

He Weimin and the medical team behind him exchanged bewildered glances, completely unable to grasp the meaning of this statement.

The methods of a Martial Arts expert were already beyond their scope of understanding.

But Lin Qian's words carried an undeniable force.

"Yes! We will prepare immediately!" He Weimin no longer hesitated, turning instantly to make arrangements.

Lin Qian's promise was the greatest guarantee. If it still failed under these circumstances, it would no longer be their responsibility.

A moment later, the red light of the operating room turned on.

The Lin family members were separated by the heavy metal door.

Under the surgical lights, various precision instruments surrounded the central operating table.

Three-year-old Ping Xiyue lay there, her tiny body connected to various tubes, her breathing faint, appearing even more fragile against the backdrop of the cold machinery.

He Weimin and his team had completed all pre-operative preparations.

"May we begin?"

He looked at Lin Qian standing beside him. The old man had only changed into sterile scrubs and had not taken any other protective measures.

"Wait."

Lin Qian walked to the side of the operating table and looked down at his great-granddaughter.

He extended his right hand, hovering it over Ping Xiyue's frail chest, without touching her body.

A wisp of pale green Qi and blood energy, invisible to ordinary people and filled with vitality, slowly flowed from his palm, transforming into countless fine threads that gently probed into the girl's body.

This was the wood-attribute Qi and blood energy that accompanied the *Taichu Wood Dao Chapter*, which was best at nurturing life force.

Lin Qian closed his eyes, using the Qi and blood as feelers to carefully sense the condition inside the girl's body.

Organ failure, severe loss of vitality, and various parts of the body were on the verge of collapse... The situation was worse than expected.

He mobilized more Qi and blood, carefully wrapping the fragile heart to provide the most fundamental life support for the upcoming surgery.

Just then, his senses reached the deepest part of the girl's life Origin.

Within that faint flame of life, he "saw" a completely different trace of something.

It was a wisp of extremely faint, subtle grey-black aura, like a maggot attached to the bone, tightly wrapped around the flame of life, constantly drawing away the already meager vitality.

This aura was cold, decaying, and filled with the meaning of death.

It was absolutely not something that could be produced by illness.