The Affiliated Hospital was a large and well-resourced institution, so two small microsurgery practice stations were quickly prepared by Liu Jin, Qee Sheng, and a few others.
Following Qin Ying's instructions, the magnification on the surgical microscopes was adjusted to forty times.
After changing into sterile scrubs and preparing for the procedure, Yan Feifan and Yu Suye entered the operating room together. They saw that Qin Ying, Qee Sheng, and Yu Youhai were also wearing white lab coats.
The two women who had accompanied Qin Ying, who were Qee Sheng's wife and daughter, had already gone to another office to rest.
Standing at the lectern, Qin Ying handed a tray to Yu Suye.
"There are five strands of hair on this tray, each about twenty centimeters long."
"You only need to succeed once!"
Yu Suye took the tray. With an impassive expression, she turned without a word and walked to the practice station on the left.
Qin Ying reached for the other tray on the lectern, but was surprised to see a hand in a rubber surgical glove move faster than hers and pluck a single strand of hair from the tray.
"I only need one."
Qin Ying's eyes grew sharp. Staring into Yan Feifan's eyes, she said coldly, "Arrogance kills patients."
Yan Feifan didn't flinch. Meeting Mr. Qin's piercing gaze, he said calmly, "I'm not arrogant. I'm confident."
After a pause, he added with an air of immense gravity, "A patient on the operating table only gives the surgeon one chance."
Qin Ying stared at Yan Feifan for a moment, noticing the young man's expression was composed and perfectly calm.
She chuckled drily. Her expression abruptly turned stern as she said, "Anyone can spout such high-minded platitudes, but very few have the skill to live up to them."
"We'll see if you're truly confident, or just arrogant..."
Standing some distance away from Qin Ying and Yan Feifan, Qee Sheng broke into a faint smile. He lowered his voice and said to Liu Jin, who was beside him, "It's been a long time since I've seen anyone get a rise out of Qin Ying. But today, both of these young people, Yu Suye and Xiaoyan, have managed to do it. It's just..."
His gaze followed Yan Feifan to the practice station as he continued worriedly, "Don't you think he's being a little too over-the-top?"
"Taking only one strand of hair... is he really that confident, or is he just gambling?"
Liu Jin also felt he could no longer quite figure out his student.
At a time like this, all he could do was bite the bullet and say, "I know this student very well. He's always been meticulous, not the type to make empty boasts or just talk a big game."
"If he says he's confident, then he is."
"Let's just wait and see what he can do..."
Yan Feifan arrived at the practice station, set down the strand of hair, and made a few adjustments to the station to fit his height and preferences.
Then, he let his hands fall naturally to his sides, stood as relaxed as possible, and closed his eyes.
To Yan Feifan's left, Yu Suye assumed the same posture.
They were both regulating their breathing and slowing their heart rates, striving to bring their bodies into a state of steady, sustained equilibrium.
Under the forty-times magnification of the surgical microscope, the strand of hair looked like nothing more than a thread-like object, three or four millimeters in diameter and covered in scales and barbs.
If the hand holding the microsurgical scalpel deviated by even an imperceptible amount, the result would be failure.
Therefore, entering a state of serene coordination before beginning the procedure was not just necessary, but absolutely essential.
However, Yan Feifan had made one extra preparation that Yu Suye had not.
In his mind's eye, he was already at a microsurgery station, beginning the procedure.
It was this ability to perform a virtual run-through that gave Yan Feifan the conviction and confidence to take only a single strand of hair.
As the seconds and minutes ticked by, the operating room grew increasingly quiet, the atmosphere gradually becoming tense and oppressive.
Qee Sheng, Liu Jin, and Yu Youhai, afraid of accidentally making a noise that might disturb Yan Feifan and Yu Suye, tiptoed out of the room. They decided to watch from the window instead.
"Ah, my Su Ye is starting."
Seeing Yu Suye begin first, Yu Youhai said smugly, "Calligraphy is a required lesson for all children of the Yu Family."
"From the moment they learn to read, they begin practicing with a brush. It not only cultivates their character and temperament, but it also trains the flexibility and stability of their hands."
"We also consciously train them in other surgical skills through their daily activities and games as they grow up."
"So this time, my Su Ye is guaranteed to win!"
Liu Jin, unable to stand Yu Youhai's smugness, retorted, "Yu Youhai, do you even know what a true genius is?"
"A genius is someone who can work for one day and surpass a year of your hard work—an exceptional person who makes unconventional, quantum leaps in progress."
"My student, Yan Feifan, is precisely that kind of true genius, someone who could wipe the floor with every person his age in the Yu Family."
Yu Youhai just scoffed in disdain. "Liu Jin, are you going senile?"
"That might be possible for theoretical knowledge, but practical skills can only be honed and perfected through cumulative practice over time."
Then he added provocatively, "Liu Jin, if you're really that confident in your student, how about a little wager?"
Just as Liu Jin was about to take the bait, Qee Sheng quickly warned him, "Don't fall for his goading. He's setting a trap for you."
Liu Jin chuckled. "Mr. Qi, I'm not falling for his little tricks. I just truly have faith in Yan Feifan."
He looked at Yu Youhai and said, "Last night, I just came into possession of fifty grams of precious Mingqian Longjing tea."
"If you win, it's all yours..."
Yu Youhai immediately cut in, "And if I lose, I'll give you a bottle of expensive red wine from my private collection."
"Alright. A word, once spoken..."
"...cannot be taken back!"
Just as the two were about to slap hands to seal the deal, Qee Sheng spoke up again. "You two, quiet down a bit. Xiaoyan is starting..."
Inside the operating room, Yan Feifan unhurriedly used two microsurgical forceps to clamp the ends of the hair, stretching it taut and securing it to the practice station.
He then leaned into the microscope, slowly adjusting the lens until one end of the hair was centered in his field of vision.
Next, Yan Feifan picked up the microsurgical scalpel with his right hand. He brought it into the microscope's field of view, aimed for the center of the hair, and, without a moment's hesitation, sliced down.
The sharp scalpel easily pierced the hair, cutting it lengthwise.
Then, Yan Feifan's hand, holding the scalpel, became as steady as a mountain. Following an invisible centerline, he began to slice it open at a slow, constant speed.
Simultaneously, his left hand slowly moved the microscope lens, keeping the scalpel perfectly centered in his field of vision at all times.
Not until the forceps clamping the other end of the hair came into view did Yan Feifan lift the scalpel and take a deep breath in and out.
After that, Yan Feifan began to work on the ends of the hair.
The process was a little easier than he had anticipated.
The hair had a respectable amount of rigidity.
Following the force of the scalpel, the two ends of the strand split apart as smoothly as a piece of cleaved wood.
When he was done, Yan Feifan glanced at the digital clock on the wall. The time was 10:05:21.
He recalled the time before he'd started and calculated that splitting the twenty-centimeter-long hair had taken him a total of two minutes and fifteen seconds.
'Still too slow!'
Yan Feifan was somewhat dissatisfied with his own performance.
He placed the split hair on the tray, glanced over at Yu Suye, who was still completely absorbed in her work to his left, and then carried the tray slowly toward the lectern.
Qin Ying's eyes gleamed as she looked at the bisected hair on the tray. She gave Yan Feifan a long, appraising look and then nodded.
She gave a slight wave of her hand, dismissing him.
Yan Feifan gently placed the tray on the lectern, then walked into the adjoining scrub and changing room.
He removed his mask, sterile scrubs, and finally his gloves, placing them in the proper receptacle before changing back into his white lab coat.
Yan Feifan pulled his phone from his lab coat pocket and saw he had a voice message from Yan Ziruo.
He played it, and Yan Ziruo's bright, cheerful voice rang in his ear.
"Someone sent me some high-res, no-makeup photos of Zhao Yuqi."
"Let's meet at Staff Cafeteria Number One during lunch."
"Feifan, we're about to find out if you really have the skills you claim, or if you're just full of hot air..."