Zheng Ren heaved a sigh of relief when he heard the newborn’s loud cries.
He lay on the ground. Not only was his view of the operating area restricted, but he also could not see what Su Yun was doing either.
The child was fine. The ‘operation’ was more than half successful.
“The fetus is male and weighs about three thousand five hundred grams. Its Apgar score is nine per minute. I estimate that it will reach ten points within five minutes,” Su Yun said in a very professional manner behind Zheng Ren.
Zheng Ren grunted and began to check the incision. There were no signs of lacerations, so he took out the placenta that had naturally peeled off after giving birth. After that, he hesitated.
At this time, he should use oxytocin to make the blood vessels contract and heal naturally.
However, whether it was his team or the team from the military hospital that arrived first, neither of them had oxytocin.
They definitely would not be able to bring all the emergency medicine.
What should they do next?
Zheng Ren hesitated for a few seconds. After that, he picked up a piece of portable hemostatic gauze and stuffed it into the wound where the placenta was peeled off.
That was because the pregnant woman gave birth prematurely after being frightened. To a certain extent, it could be considered a type of placental abruption.
If they were in the hospital, they could use interventional methods to stop the bleeding. Zheng Ren was very familiar with that kind of surgery.
However, in a place where there was a shortage of doctors and medicine, Zheng Ren could only do a simple treatment first and then wait for the arrival of the rescue helicopter.
Not only did he not have an assistant, but he could also only use one hand to handle it.
One hand was not enough. Zheng Ren could not even see the operating field.
Zheng Ren could barely sew the hemostatic gauze onto the wound. He really had no choice.
“Little girl?” Zheng Ren said softly.
“Uncle… Is that my brother?” the little girl asked timidly as she curled up in a corner of the ruins.
“Yes, your brother is very brave. Can you be as brave as him?” Zheng Ren asked.
“Yes!” The little girl’s reply was not loud or firm. However, it was enough for Zheng Ren.
“There’s a pair of scissors on the side. Do you know what scissors are?”
“Uncle, I know. It’s this.” The little girl pointed at the blunt scissors on the sterile surgical drapes.
“Okay, pick up the pair of scissors gently. Be careful not to touch anything else. Yes, that’s right. You’re doing very well. Very well.”
After hearing Zheng Ren’s encouragement, the little girl seemed to have more courage. She picked up the scissors.
“See this thread? Help uncle cut the thread,” Zheng Ren said.
“Cut it here?” The little girl opened the scissors and measured it from afar.
“Uh…” If he cut it here, he would definitely leave a very long thread. However, Zheng Ren thought about it and decided that it did not matter. After all, if the pregnant woman could survive to Huaxi, she would still need to undergo the second stage of surgery. If she died from toxic shock due to infection, it did not matter how long the thread was.
“Yes, this is the place. You’re really brave and smart.” Zheng Ren comforted the little girl.
“My mother said that I’m the smartest child in the class.” The little girl tried hard to resist the fear in her heart. She approached Zheng Ren and the knot.
The scissors were trembling so much that she could not bear to watch.
“Little girl, use both hands. Don’t tremble too much. I know you’re scared but it’s okay. I’m here,” Zheng Ren said.
The little girl obediently held the scissors with both hands. It was better this time. The scissors were no longer shaking.
The knot was cut and Zheng Ren let out a long breath. There was no 1 #0 non-invasive suture, only the simplest #4 thread.
However, that was not a problem. Zheng Ren put the needle holder on the sterile surgical drapes and pierced the #4 thread into the eye of the needle with one hand. After that, he skillfully placed the needle holder in the mouth and held it in his hand.
The full-thickness continuous suture of the uterine incision and the continuous suture of the pleura of the bladder peritoneum made the little girl’s cutting movements a lot more skillful.
It was just a habit to check that there was no active bleeding. Although it was not important in the current situation, Zheng Ren still did it subconsciously. Zheng Ren tried his best to find a line of sight through the narrow gap and saw a corner of the incision.
The damage was very small. He only needed to deal with it in the second stage.
He closed the abdomen layer by layer. He continued to suture the abdominal incision with the #4 thread. After the little girl cut the thread, Zheng Ren finally smiled.
“Little girl, you did a good job,” Zheng Ren praised.
“Yes!” The little girl responded, full of pride.
“Next, you open this. It’s tape. Use it to cover your mom’s wound,” Zheng Ren instructed.
The little girl became more and more confident and better at it. Although she was very small, under such circumstances, being small was an advantage.
She swiftly followed Zheng Ren’s instructions and covered the wound with bandages. Zheng Ren touched her head and smiled. “That’s great. Wait here for a while. The uncles will rescue you soon.”
The little girl smiled innocently.
Zheng Ren retracted his hand. The venous flow was blocked. The arteries on the back of his hand and arms bulged like reptiles. The back of his hand had turned purple-red. It was sore, numb, swollen, and painful. All kinds of feelings were present.
Moving his numb arm, Zheng Ren saw Su Yun carrying the child and surrounded by a few tired figures.
In less than 24 hours, these people who had rushed into the disaster area had witnessed too many tragedies.
It was like layers of haze, shrouding everyone’s hearts.
They were already numb from watching.
At first, two people carried the bodies that were dug out from the ruins to the ground. Later, one person carried them and went.
There was no disrespect, but everyone was numb to it.
There were no supplies and they were waiting to be rescued. Every minute and every second felt like a year.
The rescue workers were almost silent until the sound of a tender and clear crying could be heard from the ruins.
“Find someone to take care of the baby. Don’t be lazy with the child in your arms,” Zheng Ren said straightforwardly.
“Hey, don’t you think this is a new life? Is this hope?” Su Yun said.
“Yes, this is hope. Su Yun, if you hurry up, you might be able to save another person.” Zheng Ren began to search through the ruins, following the faint cries for help.
Su Yun handed the newborn to a female student from the military medical university next to him. He started to talk about how he did not understand the concept of romance and began to search.
The search and rescue work was extremely arduous.
There were no tools and not a lot of people to help.
The doctors, soldiers, and young men among the survivors on the scene dug with their hands. Their fingers were dripping with blood, and some of their bones could be seen.
After bandaging, the gauze was quickly exposed.
The flesh and gauze were mixed together, causing a mess.
However, no one gave up. The search and rescue work was still going on with difficulty. Everyone was looking forward to the other teams and the arrival of the rescue helicopter.
During that time, only the arrival of helicopters meant that the wounded could be transferred out of this dead land. It also meant that new rescue and medical tools would be sent over.
However, when they looked up, they could see the clouds and the fine drizzle that filled the sky.
Under such circumstances, could rescue helicopters come?
The thoughts in people’s hearts were all negative but no one voiced them out loud.
As long as they existed, they could support people step by step. That was the thought of hope that they all had.
