Doctors in society are mainly divided into two factions. One faction regards Western medicine as superior, believing it to be the most scientific, while considering traditional Chinese medicine feudal superstition. The other faction believes traditional Chinese medicine is the most useful; they think that as long as it’s properly understood, no disease is incurable. They see it as the ultimate answer, whereas Western medicine is merely a tool for capital accumulation.

But what people don’t know is that there is a third faction, like Deputy Director Cai right now, who doesn’t lean towards either side and uses whatever is effective.

However, it is this third faction that is the least popular. Their Western medical knowledge is insufficient, and their understanding of the theories of traditional Chinese medicine is shallow. It seems they dabble in both, but neither side wants to associate with them.

Sigh, how did that President Du get so smart? If only he were a full-time doctor at Provincial First Hospital. If only he were on my team. Sigh.

Ge Long was extremely envious of Du Heng. However, Du Heng himself had significant worries, particularly when dealing with self-righteous patients and their families, which often left him distressed and finding it hard to explain things clearly.

"Doctor, we beg you. We were referred by Director Mei from the Provincial Women and Children’s Hospital. He said if you can’t help either, we should go to major cities in the south, or even the Capital to seek treatment."

An auntie with permed, tightly curled hair, accompanied by a fashionably dressed young woman, walked in. The young woman cradled an infant who appeared to be about five or six months old. As soon as they entered, the auntie clasped her hands together and began to plead earnestly with Du Heng.

It had been a while since Du Heng had worked in the outpatient service. He originally planned to gradually introduce Doctor Ma and the others, but persistent requests from old patients, coupled with Du Heng’s own inability to stay idle, led him to resume his once-a-week outpatient clinic.

At this moment, looking at the two adults and the child, Du Heng asked slowly, "No rush, take your time. Who needs medical attention here?"

The auntie with the permed hair hastily pulled the fashionable young woman forward to sit across from Du Heng. "It’s my little grandson, Doctor. Please help us."

"Don’t worry, tell me what’s going on." Du Heng was curious, wondering what illness could have prompted Director Mei to refer them.

The auntie with the permed hair, her voice slightly agitated, quickly began to unwrap her little grandson from his swaddling clothes as she spoke rapidly, "My little grandson has had diarrhea since birth. We thought he’d get better as he got older, but it’s still the same now."

"We’ve been to the Provincial Women and Children’s Hospital and the Children Hospital. They mentioned something about his intestinal flora. The condition can be controlled with medication, but as soon as the medicine is stopped, the diarrhea starts again."

Du Heng murmured a soft "oh," then began to examine the child while gently trying to keep him entertained.

The child was well-behaved and energetic but looked a little thin; his baby fat wasn’t very noticeable.

"How old is he?"

"Eight months old," the auntie with the permed hair answered quickly.

Eight months. Du Heng couldn’t help but take another look at the child; his development seemed a bit behind. He then asked, "You said he has diarrhea. What does his stool look like?"

"It’s like water, yellowish-green."

Du Heng hummed thoughtfully. "Breastfed or formula-fed?"

"Both."

The auntie with the permed hair, standing behind the fashionable young woman, replied, all the while shooting a disapproving glare, typical of a difficult mother-in-law, at the young woman. "Other children who are only breastfed or only formula-fed grow plump and chubby."

"But my little grandson, despite being breastfed and given imported formula, is still thin. All the nutrients are lost due to the diarrhea."

Du Heng observed everything, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly. The relationships were clear: a mother-in-law, a daughter-in-law, and a grandson—definitely not a mother, daughter, and maternal grandson.

"I just took the child’s pulse," Du Heng said, looking at the two adults. "His Spleen and Stomach are a bit weak, but it’s not a major problem. He’s eight months old; have you introduced any supplementary food?"

The woman holding the baby was about to speak, but her mother-in-law behind her interjected, "I read online that a child’s digestive system is still weak, and giving supplementary food will increase the burden on their gastrointestinal tract, so I haven’t allowed any."

"Last month, the doctor at the Children Hospital told us to add some supplementary food for the child. We did when we got home, but as soon as he started eating it, his diarrhea got worse, and he even developed stomach pain. We were so scared that we stopped immediately."

"Later, we went to the Provincial Women and Children’s Hospital and got some medicine, but it still didn’t help much."

Du Heng sighed inwardly. His least favorite type of patient was the kind who researched illnesses online. If the internet is so great, why not just use that for treatment? Why bother coming to the hospital and seeing a doctor?

To still claim the child’s gastrointestinal tract was too weak for supplementary food at eight months... were they planning to wait until he was an adult before letting him eat rice and noodles? He was speechless.

However, Du Heng could only grumble about these things internally; he couldn’t say them out loud. Otherwise, he’d surely face an onslaught of the permed-haired auntie’s theories.

"How do you know Director Mei?"

"Oh, our daughter-in-law had some complications during childbirth. The baby had trouble breathing right after he was born, so he was sent to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit."

Du Heng acknowledged with another "oh," then looked at the two women and said, "There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with the child. It’s just that his gastrointestinal system is weak, leading to poor nutrient absorption."

"Doctor, what you’re saying is similar to what the Children Hospital told us. So, how should we treat this? They prescribed medicine, but it didn’t seem effective."

Listening to the permed-haired auntie interject again, Du Heng felt a twinge of annoyance. "It doesn’t require special treatment. I’ll give you a method. Go home and feed your child according to this method, and he should be fine within three days."

Hearing that it would only take three days, the woman holding the child became excited. Just as she was about to speak, her mother-in-law cut in front of her again, "Doctor, don’t worry about the money. Just prescribe medicine; we can afford it."

Du Heng couldn’t help but rub his forehead. "The method I’m suggesting is dietary therapy. As the saying goes, ’food is the best medicine.’ Besides, for such a young child, constantly taking medicine is hard on his system."

"Moreover, the child’s gastrointestinal system is already weak. If you keep using medication daily, it will overtax his system, preventing him from recovering properly. It could even lead to a chronic condition."

These words directly refuted the permed-haired auntie. As Du Heng finished speaking, the woman holding the child couldn’t help but roll her eyes, ensuring her mother-in-law behind her didn’t see.

Du Heng shook his head and asked directly, "Do you know about rice oil?"