Chapter 12
Lin Yichen ignored the rhythmic beep of the monitors. His gaze, cold and exact, locked onto the elder's medication chart clipped to the bed rail. One glance confirmed it: the schedule had been altered. A sedative doubled at 6:40 p.m., a vasodilator dropped without signature. The result was etched into the elder’s body: shallow, labored breathing, an erratic pulse, and the tell-tale pallor of organ distress. This was the precise mismatch he'd identified in the restaurant's chaos, the one his family had dismissed as irrelevant.
Zhao Meilan, elegant even in the sterile hospital corridor, bristled. “Yichen, what are you doing? Dr. Shen is handling this. You’re not authorized.” Her voice, usually a silken whip, held a tremor of fear. Lin Guozhang stood beside her, his face a mask of patriarchal authority, but his eyes darted between Yichen and the chart. Lin Zhenyu, ever the loudmouth, scoffed. “Still playing doctor? The real doctors are here now.”
Dr. Shen Qiaowen stepped forward, her expression unreadable. “Mr. Lin Yichen is assisting with the preliminary review of the patient’s admission records. As per hospital protocol, any discrepancies must be noted immediately.” Her words, calm and precise, cut through Zhenyu’s bluster. She took the chart from Yichen, her fingers brushing his. “You’ve found something specific?”
Yichen pointed to two entries. “The 6:40 p.m. sedative dosage is inconsistent with the patient’s recorded vitals at that time. Doubling it would induce respiratory depression, which matches his current state. The vasodilator omission, combined with the sedative, suggests a deliberate attempt to destabilize his condition.” He paused, letting the clinical facts hang in the air. “Furthermore, the signature for the alteration is illegible, and there’s no corresponding physician’s order in the digital system.”
Meilan’s face tightened. “That’s preposterous! My husband and I have been meticulous with Elder Lin’s care. These are baseless accusations.”
“Baseless?” Yichen’s voice was level, devoid of emotion. “The hospital’s admission records, which I reviewed with Dr. Shen, show a different medication schedule entirely. The copies you provided for the restaurant transfer packet also differ. Three sets of records, three different stories.” He looked directly at Guozhang. “Which one is the truth, Patriarch?”
Guozhang’s jaw clenched. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.