Chapter 63 - 48: Quality Over Quantity

After Xu Chunliang left, Xu Changshan sighed.Zheng Peian said, "Uncle, is there something on your mind?"

Xu Changshan nodded and recounted how Xu Chunliang joined Changxing and then went to the medical department.

After listening, Zheng Peian laughed, "Actually, it’s good for young people to have more experience."

"I know that, but I always feel that administrative work is not a long-term solution. This child may have average academic performance, but his comprehension in traditional Chinese medicine is particularly strong. In just a few months, he’s almost reached the level of others who have been at it for three or five years." Xu Changshan was actually understating it. If he knew his grandson’s true ability, he’d be shocked.

"You need to be more patient. I can’t help him much with medical skills, but once I’m in the traditional Chinese medicine department, he can come and learn anytime. You’ll be responsible for teaching him medicine, and I’ll help guide him. In at most three years, he will definitely be developed, and I promise to do my best to get him into the traditional Chinese medicine department."

Xu Changshan was very happy to hear this; it was exactly what he was hoping for.

The two clinked glasses, and Xu Changshan remembered something: "Peian, are you married?" Ten years ago, when Zheng Peian left Jiangzhou, he was still single. They hadn’t seen each other for years, and he didn’t know his current family situation.

Zheng Peian nodded, "I was, but then divorced."

Xu Changshan didn’t continue to ask, recalling how infatuated he was with his own daughter back then, hoping he had moved on from his youthful troubles.

Gu Houyi took swift action to reorganize the medical aesthetic center, terminated the contract with Zeng Hongwen early, and retained the right to hold her accountable. To outsiders, this seemed like a case of greater good over family ties, proving that Zeng Hongwen’s actions had thoroughly angered her uncle-in-law.

The director of the medical aesthetic center, Cai Rongjuan, also faced related disciplinary actions. After a discussion by the hospital leadership, she was demoted from her director position, with her annual performance bonus withheld, but she was still allowed to manage the operations of the medical aesthetic center.

After receiving the notification of the disciplinary action, Cai Rongjuan, filled with resentment, went to see Gu Houyi.

This time, Gu Houyi did not meet her personally as before, but relayed through the hospital office director, Liu Dengke, that her supervising vice dean was now Gao Xinhua, and she should go to him for any issues.

Cai Rongjuan couldn’t just storm into the dean’s office, so she went to see Vice Dean Gao Xinhua first.

Recently, Gao Xinhua had been feeling overwhelmed. He used to be responsible only for logistical work, but after Gu Houyi sent Geng Wenxiu to the Weishan Island Branch, the outpatient department Geng Wenxiu used to manage also fell under his jurisdiction, causing his workload to multiply.

Few department chairs in the hospital who were involved in the business respected this vice dean with a military background.

Cai Rongjuan arrived with obvious anger, slamming a resignation letter onto his desk the moment she entered his office: "Dean Gao, this is my resignation letter!"

Gao Xinhua looked at the resignation letter on his desk and actually laughed, "Director Cai, did you come to the wrong place? This doesn’t seem to belong to me, does it?"

"You’re the vice dean in charge of the outpatient department, and the medical aesthetic center falls under your supervision. Who else am I supposed to go to?"

Seeing her aggressive demeanor, Gao Xinhua frowned. These so-called business elites have been spoiled — they know I’m their supervising vice dean but don’t even use respectful language?

Suppressing his anger, he said, "Director Cai, why are you resigning? There must be a reason, right?"

"Reason? Don’t you know? The surgery assessment result for Tong Meili is out, and there was nothing wrong with my surgery. Why am I being punished? I’ve worked hard for Changxing, and yet I can’t even get basic fair treatment. How can I continue to stay here? When you solve problems, have you considered my interests? Have you considered my feelings?"

Gao Xinhua said, "Director Cai..."

"Don’t call me Director Cai; I’m not one anymore!" Cai Rongjuan’s eyes were red, not from grievance, but from anger.

"You think you’re innocent and wronged? With so many problems at the medical aesthetic center, as its director, were you completely unaware?"

"Of course I feel wronged. I was responsible for the medical work and never meddled in the management!" Cai Rongjuan cleanly absolved herself of responsibility.

"Do I need to remind you of your job duties? Do you understand what the management fee signifies each month?" Gao Xinhua’s tone remained calm.

"I don’t care about any management fee, Dean Gao. If you think I didn’t fulfill my responsibilities, I can return all the management fees to the hospital. Are you satisfied now? Please approve my resignation."

Gao Xinhua shook his head.

"I’ve decided to leave, whether you approve it or not is irrelevant." Cai Rongjuan maintained a strong stance.

Finally losing his temper, Gao Xinhua said, "Don’t forget how much it cost the hospital to send you abroad for training back then. Now you’ve finished your studies? Grown wings and intend to fly away?"

"Dean Gao, the wealth I’ve created for Changxing over the years far exceeds what the hospital has invested in me. I have a clear conscience."

"A clear conscience, indeed! I can give you an answer right now: I accept your resignation! I’ll arrange for the HR department to handle the related procedures. Go prepare for the handover!"


Cai Rongjuan was stunned. Gao Xinhua’s response clearly caught her by surprise. She had always believed that the Changxing Hospital’s medical aesthetic center couldn’t operate without her, and that the hospital would never agree to her resignation. But Gao Xinhua actually agreed?

Urology Department Deputy Director Tan Guoliang was certainly aware of his wife’s resignation incident. Cai Rongjuan had always been strong-willed and decisive at home, but she still consulted him before taking such a big step. It was his idea for Cai Rongjuan to resign and thereby exert pressure on the hospital.

Although she was stripped of her director title for the medical aesthetic center, she was still allowed to manage its operations. The withholding of her annual allowance was merely a drop in the bucket for her.

After the couple discussed it, they decided to make a fuss because they had received confirmed news that Gu Houyi would be transferred next month, and a new dean was about to take over. Following the usual logic, with every new leader comes new followers, and any new leader would likely make changes to the team left by the previous leader.

Before the Tong Meili incident broke out, the couple was close to Gu Houyi, both being nurtured by him, especially Cai Rongjuan. They planned to leverage this situation to create some influence; firstly, to have an honorable reason, and secondly, to show the outside world that they had broken with Gu Houyi, and naturally align themselves with the new leadership.

Gao Xinhua’s acceptance of Cai Rongjuan’s resignation was due to instructions from Gu Houyi. When Gu Houyi decided to punish Cai Rongjuan, he anticipated she would return with a resignation letter.

While Cai Rongjuan’s medical skills were indeed commendable, her other shortcomings were also evident. Gu Houyi placed great importance on sentiments, especially for the medical backbone he had nurtured. However, as his term neared its end, he increasingly realized that loyalty and camaraderie often don’t go hand in hand.

The massive issues at the medical aesthetic center nearly destroyed his lifelong reputation and undermined his rule at Changxing. If he took no action, he couldn’t account for it with the higher authorities or within Changxing Hospital itself. Therefore, he wielded the rod, starting with his niece.

Removing Zeng Hongwen meant severing ties with her. The nature of the medical aesthetic center’s operations required independence, but Changxing Hospital also bore significant responsibility for failing to regulate it effectively, leading to numerous issues.

The discipline against Cai Rongjuan was merely symbolic, much lighter than that against Zeng Hongwen. Being a director was just a title; removing her title but allowing her to continue overseeing the medical aesthetic center meant she remained the de facto leader.

Now that the medical aesthetic center had been reined in, Cai Rongjuan’s actual power had only increased, as she no longer faced restrictions from financiers. Regarding the withholding of her year’s performance bonus, it amounted to at most a hundred thousand, but her annual income from the medical aesthetic center already exceeded a million, which Gu Houyi was well aware of.

When deciding on the penalty for Cai Rongjuan, Gao Xinhua privately asked for Gu Houyi’s thoughts: what if Cai Rongjuan resigned because of the penalty? As the academic leader of the medical aesthetic center and a leading figure in Dongzhou’s medical aesthetic community, her departure would be a great loss for Changxing.

Gu Houyi didn’t hesitate to respond with four words — better to have none than mediocrity.