Part 1Mom Promoted the Wrong Son

I was an excellent internal medicine doctor, but my mother Judy, who was the hospital director, promoted James—the son of her first love, John—to department head instead.

James secretly beat and verbally abused me, and even refused to admit my critically ill father to the hospital.

After Dad died, Mom praised James even more.

"James is the backbone of our hospital. I hereby announce he is my successor!"

But later, when James killed the supervisor's wife through surgical malpractice, Mom Judy pinned the crime on me.

I raised my scalpel triumphantly and said:

"That's right, I was the one who performed that surgery!"

Today was the big day for James's promotion to head of internal medicine at Grace Harmony Hospital.

Many colleagues gave me pitying looks.

But before I could feel disappointed, my neighbor called to tell me Dad had suffered a sudden heart attack.

In the emergency room, I was preparing to change clothes to operate on Dad when James came in with security guards and pushed Dad away.

I desperately protected Dad and demanded to know why they were doing this.

James's eyes were full of venom:

"Torres, you're just a junior doctor—you're not qualified to perform surgery. What, are you so desperate for a promotion that you want to practice on your own father?"

The security guards looked at me with contempt, accusing me of being an unfilial son.

Seeing Dad's pained expression, I frantically dialed Judy's number.

It wasn't until the tenth call that she finally picked up, taking her sweet time.

After hearing my request, she said without hesitation:

"Don't you think I know your father's situation? Don't think putting on this pathetic act will fool me."

"The hospital equipment suddenly broke down today, so we've suspended admissions for heart patients. Thank goodness James stopped you in time, or you—you useless waste—would have caused major trouble for our hospital!"

"James is your superior. You must follow his decisions in everything. If you dare defy him, don't blame me for firing you on the spot!"

Her tone was cold, but I could still detect a hint of gloating satisfaction.

I knew these were all excuses she made up. What was broken wasn't the equipment—it was her heart.

Then James took a phone call, summoned more security guards, and had them carry Dad to the hospital entrance and dump him there.

I used to be the most skilled physician in the hospital, saving countless lives.

But now, I could only watch helplessly as my own father's life slowly slipped away, powerless to do anything.

By the time I transferred Dad to the nearest hospital, I was told it was already too late.

Dad gripped my hand, tears of regret streaming down his face:

"Torres, it's all my fault for trusting Judy back then. I held you back from achieving success. I'm so filled with regret..."

"Listen to me—while you're still young, transfer to another hospital quickly. Don't let Judy bury your talent..."

Watching Dad die with such resentment, I could no longer suppress my grief and broke down sobbing.

But I couldn't transfer hospitals yet, because I had to watch them destroy themselves!

Judy used to be a small-time nurse at Hospital A.

When she learned that Dad, as the director's son, was working at the grassroots level for training, her desire for power and status was instantly ignited.

She abandoned her childhood sweetheart John and used every trick in the book to pursue Dad.

Simple and honest Dad had never experienced such passionate pursuit and soon fell for her.

After marriage, Dad defied everyone's opposition and insisted on using the family's resources to help Judy rise to the position of hospital director.

But she turned around and abandoned Dad. When she next appeared, she was brazenly going on intimate outings with John and his son.

She even arranged jobs for both of them at the hospital—one as head of the security team, the other as an attending physician despite just graduating.

At that time, I had already accumulated three years of surgical experience at the hospital, with countless successful cases, and had just been appointed as an attending physician.

But as soon as she became director, she demoted me to junior doctor.

Even though I had a master's degree from a prestigious university, Judy insisted on supporting James, who only had a vocational diploma.

No matter how much Dad tried to persuade her, she ignored him and transferred me to the records room to do menial work.

All the hospital's quality resources were allocated to James. Though everyone complained privately, no one dared speak up publicly.

To cover for James, Judy even assigned the most experienced professor to be his assistant.

Meanwhile, I—who used to need appointments booked half a year in advance—could only sit alone in the empty storage room, nursing my sorrow.

A senior colleague who had mentored me couldn't bear to see me wasted like this, so along with other colleagues friendly to me, they went to confront her.

The next day, they were all fired from the hospital.

Each one was a backbone member of the hospital, yet they kept hitting walls when looking for new jobs.

Later I learned that Judy had spread rumors in the industry that they had lawsuits over patient deaths, so no one dared hire them.

From then on, I became isolated and helpless in the hospital.