In the afternoon, Mu Lin arrived at the ward at the usual time. The clinic staff had already arrived early and completed all the necessary preparations. They were just waiting for Mu Lin’s arrival to begin the afternoon treatment for the patient, following the same procedures used in the morning, and under the supervision of the expert monitoring group.
However, none of the monitoring experts had arrived at the clinic on time during the normal working hours. Faced with this unusual situation, Mu Lin instructed his secretary to inquire about the whereabouts of the monitoring experts to find out what had happened and why the usually punctual experts were late today.
Mu Lin had a premonition that something significant was about to unfold, but so far he had received no information that could help him understand what was happening. While waiting, he extended his thoughts beyond the clinic.
Strange! There were no reporters from the media outside the clinic as expected. Instead, there were many people holding banners and silently sitting in support of the clinic. The crowd was growing larger and larger, gathering in open spaces and blocking the streets around the clinic, surrounding it completely and cutting it off from the outside world.
At that moment, the person in charge of the clinic’s security rushed in, panic-stricken, to inform Mu Lin about the situation outside and to seek instructions for next steps.
Faced with this unexpected development, Mu Lin realized something must have happened that he was not yet aware of. However, with no additional intelligence available, and since the crowd outside was actually supporting the clinic, he instructed the security chief not to make contact with the crowd or reveal any information, to avoid escalating the situation.
At that moment, Sara and Stephen approached Mu Lin and informed him that they had contacted all the experts. They explained that due to McCall’s midday statements regarding the true situation of the clinic and its patients, the citizens of New York had become outraged with the government, believing it had colluded with foreign governments to deceive and suppress domestic businesses—in this case, Mu Lin’s clinic.
The situation had already been confirmed with the police department. Spontaneous protests were now happening in major cities across the country.
With such a large number of participants, the protests had caused traffic paralysis, and in some areas, unrest had already broken out. All the experts outside were currently unable to arrive on time, partly due to traffic disruptions, and partly out of concerns for their personal safety. They would not return to the clinic until the situation had calmed down.
McCall hoped that, even without the monitoring experts present, Mu Lin would continue to focus on treating the patient and prevent any deterioration in the patient’s condition. Otherwise, if the patient’s condition worsened amid the already emotionally charged public, it could provoke an even greater reaction from the public, leading to more severe consequences for the nation and its people, and potentially causing a major diplomatic crisis between the two countries.
These cunning experts—Mu Lin had always assumed they were dedicated scholars, but now he realized how much they valued their reputations. Deep down, they knew the patient’s condition was extremely serious and had little hope of recovery. Now, with the protests serving as a convenient excuse, they could distance themselves from the situation. Even after the protests ended, they likely wouldn’t return to the clinic, to avoid being associated with a failed treatment that could damage their reputations. Moreover, any serious consequences arising from the protests, such as strained diplomatic relations between the two countries, would have nothing to do with them.
Since the situation had escalated to this point, Mu Lin felt he needed to accelerate the patient’s treatment and revise his original plans for standard procedures. With spontaneous protests now spreading nationwide, it would likely take at least two or three days before everything calmed down completely.
Looking at his staff, he could see that the news of the protests had unsettled them. Fortunately, the families of the staff members who had come from China were living in a villa not far from the clinic, so there was no need to worry about their safety. They were only concerned about the clinic. However, the Western doctors hired by the clinic had not yet confirmed the safety of their families, and anxiety was clearly visible on their faces. Mu Lin understood their fears about their families’ safety. He knew that once the staff could confirm that their families were safe, they would be able to focus on their work again. Otherwise, if the staff became too anxious or distracted, even a small mistake during treatment could jeopardize the entire process.
Fortunately, following the impact of the previous incident, the security company responsible for Mu Lin’s clinic had already sensed something was wrong and dispatched a large number of security personnel to the clinic. This allowed Mu Lin to assign some of the guards to escort employees who needed to return home. Mu Lin understood that only by treating employees like family would they, in turn, treat the clinic as their own home.
Seeing the situation, Mu Lin immediately announced a meeting for all clinic staff. At the meeting, he announced that all Western medical staff who were married or had families would be given time off. The clinic would arrange for security personnel to escort them home, and those guards would remain at the staff members’ homes to ensure their safety until the situation had completely calmed down and they could return to the clinic. For unmarried medical staff and those from China, he gave them half an hour to contact their families to confirm their loved ones’ safety. If any emergencies arose, clinic security would accompany them to handle the situation. As soon as this announcement was made, it was met with cheers from all the staff.
As for the patient’s treatment, it would now be handled by the unmarried staff and the Chinese acupuncturists who had come from China. No one else was allowed to enter or leave the clinic without Mu Lin’s permission. The security personnel were to ensure the clinic’s protection to prevent any opportunistic attacks.
If the patient could not be cured before the entire situation was resolved, the U.S. government, in order to save face and provide a satisfactory explanation to the public, would certainly return the patient to Country Y. Although the clinic might succeed in treating future patients sent by the U.S., this incident would leave a vulnerable point for criticism, especially from Western countries and certain Asian nations that promoted their own traditional medicine as the authentic version.
This was a scenario Mu Lin was unwilling to allow. Fortunately, there were still staff from the notary organization present. Under their supervision and certification, the clinic’s independent success in treating the patient would prevent unnecessary speculation. Since the Christian group experts were not coming, there was no longer any obligation to provide them with documentation. After discussing with the notary staff, Mu Lin instructed that the cameras be turned off, citing the need to maintain confidentiality regarding the treatment techniques. After all, all the patient’s pre-admission conditions had already been fully documented by the media and the clinic itself. Only the post-treatment documentation was needed to complete the full set of records.
After submitting legal documents to the notary organization guaranteeing that the clinic would bear full responsibility for any unexpected events during the treatment process, and that the notary staff would bear no liability, Mu Lin prepared to begin the treatment.
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