My wife’s childhood friend, Peter White, needed surgery. He requested that I perform the operation as the lead surgeon.

I followed every medical protocol exactly and did my best to save him.

However, after being discharged, he accused me of practicing medicine illegally. He claimed I had made him permanently disabled.

I asked my wife to back me up. But instead, she said to me, “I told you not to act recklessly, but you wouldn’t listen. Now look at what has happened!”

The hospital security footage even showed that I did not follow the standard surgical procedure. I had no way to defend myself.

In the end, I was stabbed to death by Peter’s wife, Janet White, who had been financially supporting him.

Even during my dying moments, I could not understand why the surveillance showed that I was not following the medical protocol!

When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to the day Peter came in for his initial examination.

“Mr. Dawson, I request for a suspension. If they’re claiming I’ve violated medical ethics, then so be it! I refuse to enable such toxic behavior.”

Albert Dawson, my department head, was patiently trying to persuade me not to stoop to the level of the patient’s family.

Nevertheless, I resolutely chose to proceed with the suspension.

“I don’t agree. If you get suspended now, you’ll forfeit your promotion eligibility.”

My wife, Skylar Finch, stormed in angrily.

“Chester, what’s wrong with you?”

She was my colleague, though we worked in different departments.

“I shoved a patient’s family member. Shouldn’t I be suspended? If I’m that unethical, why even bother with a promotion?”

I spoke harshly, which only made Skylar stomp her foot impatiently.

“Chester, I know you acted impulsively because the family member was rude to you. Just apologize to Mr. Dawson, and let’s consider this matter closed.”

I deliberately gritted my teeth and further escalated the conflict. “Mr. Dawson, I committed assault. Why should I be tolerated?”

Albert’s face darkened. “What would you have me do?”

“I’ve already said it. I’ll suspend myself and go home to reflect!”

Skylar asked me furiously, “Have you lost your mind?”

Just as she pointed a finger at me and was about to berate me, someone called for her from outside.

“Dr. Finch, a patient named Peter White is here to see you.”

She shot me a glare and hurried away.

I turned to Albert and said, “Well, since I’m suspended, I’ll head home.”

Peter was Skylar’s childhood friend. He had been admitted that day for an examination due to abdominal discomfort.

In the past, Peter had been diagnosed with appendicitis on that very day.

It was not a major surgery, but Skylar said Peter did not trust anyone else. He had insisted I perform the operation myself.

After the surgery, Peter ended up paralyzed. He accused me of malpractice and causing a major medical incident.

I had asked Skylar to back me up. But instead, she said to me, “I know you’ve always been jealous that Peter is better than you. But did you have to cripple him? How’s he supposed to live now?”

I instantly faced backlash online.

Even the hospital operating room footage showed that I had disobeyed proper protocol.

I had no way to defend myself. Janet White, Peter's wife, suddenly rushed out from the crowd and stabbed me to death.

But until my dying moment, I never understood why Peter suddenly became paralyzed or why the security footage showed that I was not following medical protocol.

I only remembered watching the internet cheer over the medical dispute.

When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to the day Peter was admitted for his examination.

To avoid performing his surgery, I requested to be suspended.

On the second day of my suspension, Skylar called me.

“Chester, why aren’t you at work? Peter’s appendectomy is scheduled for this afternoon, and he won’t trust anyone but you.”

“I can’t. I’ve been suspended.”

“What’s your problem? I told you to just apologize to Mr. Dawson. Did you have to go this far? If someone else operates on Peter and something happens, are you going to take responsibility?”

“Why would I be responsible if I’m not the one doing the surgery?”

“I can’t believe how heartless you are. And Peter actually trusted you. Fine! Don’t you ever set foot in this hospital again!”

After speaking, she hung up angrily.

After my one-week suspension ended, I returned to the hospital. And sure enough, Peter was lying paralyzed on the floor of the hallway, wailing loudly.

I was surprised. I had not even performed the surgery. Why was Peter still paralyzed?

While I was still in shock, a woman beside him started filming me with her phone.

Then, Peter shouted, “That’s him! He’s the malpracticing fraud! He’s the reason a simple appendectomy has left me paralyzed!”

Instantly, all eyes were on me as if I were a spectacle.

“What kind of doctor is this? I’m not getting treated here anymore. What if you kill me over a common cold?”

“Someone from this hospital needs to get out here right now and explain this to us patients!”

“Seriously! A doctor’s job is to save lives, not cripple them!”

I was met with a barrage of public criticism. Peter had clearly been playing the victim and sharing his sob story for a long time.

Skylar suddenly rushed out from the crowd. She picked Peter up from the floor and held him in her arms.

She glared at me with teary eyes and said, “Chester, how could you be so heartless? Was this all because you were jealous that Peter was better than you? Did you have to ruin his entire life over this?

“I’m divorcing you!”

“Good grief. Even his own wife says he’s the problem. What kind of person does that make him?”

“Why hasn’t he been fired? Where is the management?”

I watched them all talking over each other.

Finally, I spoke. “Peter, I wasn’t even on duty during your hospital stay. I didn’t perform your surgery. On what grounds are you accusing me of illegal practice and ruining your life?”

After I finished speaking, the crowd immediately fell silent.

How could a doctor who was not even at the hospital have harmed him on the operating table?

The commotion grew so loud that it drew the attention of the hospital security and administration. Albert walked up to me to get a better understanding.

I explained everything to him. He frowned and said, “This matter has nothing to do with Dr. Alcott. He hasn’t been to the hospital at all for the past week.”

After Albert said that, the crowd immediately changed their tone.

“Wait, this doctor didn’t even do the surgery? Why is he being accused?”

“Exactly. The hospital needs to bring out the doctor who actually caused the accident.”

Albert looked at Peter on the floor. He was also surprised by his sudden leg paralysis, but still said, “Sir, if there was a medical error, we will handle it. But you need to take this up with the surgeon who actually operated on you.”

Peter continued to cry and said, “The one who operated on me was Chester’s trainee! He told me every step was taught to him by Chester himself!”

I was taken aback. I looked toward my mentee, Paul Kent, who had just arrived.

Paul had been assigned to me by the hospital. He was usually well-behaved and attentive. It had not been his first independent surgery. He could have never slipped up that badly.

When I looked at Paul, his eyes were already swollen from crying.

“How could a medical mistake like this happen?

“Chester, I followed your surgical procedure to the letter. I told you the steps felt wrong at the time, but you shut me down. This happened because you had insisted on the wrong protocol!”

I looked at Paul in a daze. He had just betrayed me.

I never imagined that someone I had spent three months earnestly mentoring would actually team up with Peter and Skyler to frame me together.

“I knew something was off about him. Why else would a patient come after him specifically?”

“Right. The patient bore no grudges against him. He was supposed to save his life. But instead, he deliberately taught his mentee the wrong thing? Would he try to get the rest of us killed, too?”

“Even his own mentee couldn’t stand it anymore. What kind of garbage human being is this?”

“Aren’t the hospital management here? We want answers! If this hospital keeps doctors like him on staff, who in their right mind would ever come here?”

An uproar erupted. Security did their best to maintain order, but they could not suppress the agitated crowd.

I shouted, “I never taught you the wrong protocol! What proof do you have that it was me?!”

“You did the exact same thing in the last operation. I pointed it out to you in the operating room, but you rolled your eyes and yelled at me.

“I’ve got surveillance footage to prove it!”

Paul showed the footage. I was stunned.

It showed a surgery I had just performed. Because of my previous medical dispute, the management had even reviewed my surgical procedure and confirmed it was flawless.

So how had it changed in the footage that Paul showed?

A man emerged from the crowd and started weeping.

“I knew your surgical protocol was problematic. Why else would my dad still be stuck in bed right now?”

He pointed at my face and yelled, “You’re a heartless excuse for a doctor! Don’t you have a father? Why did you have to destroy mine?!”

Paul explained to everyone, “This is the family member of the patient who suffered from Dr. Alcott’s surgical error. Back then, they had already suspected something was wrong with his procedure and wanted an explanation. But he physically assaulted them!”

“Does this man even deserve to be called a doctor? Is the hospital really so desperate for staff?”

“We came to your hospital seeking treatment. We put our lives in your hands because we trusted you. In response, you hired someone like this? Is this how you honor our trust?”

“Pay up! Compensate the family! We demand an apology!”

“Everyone, I found the old video footage. Look! This unethical doctor physically assaulted the patient’s family! He even cursed that the patient would never recover.”

I had no idea where they had obtained that footage. But amid the chaos, I heard my own voice, cursing that the patient would never heal.

In truth, the family had asked me whether their father could go home immediately after surgery. I explained he needed a full week of bed rest before being discharged.

They claimed they had consulted experts. According to them, a patient in their father’s condition should be able to go home right after surgery. They insisted I must have made an error during the operation. They accused me of keeping their father in the hospital just to line my own pockets.

I tried to explain that experts only provided estimates. The actual recovery always depended on the patient’s individual condition.

But they refused to listen. They doubled down, insisting I had made their father’s condition worse. Following that, they lunged at me, grabbing and tearing at my clothes.

The matter had escalated all the way to Albert. I had simply gone along with the situation and volunteered to be suspended, but the words in that footage were definitely not mine.

Just as I was trying to figure out how to explain myself, Paul spoke up indignantly. “Chester, I looked up to you as my mentor. I wanted to learn from you. But you didn’t care about the patient’s well-being, you created conflict with the family, and even after being suspended, you returned here with zero remorse!”

“Suspended? So that’s why he said he hasn’t been at the hospital. He got suspended.”

“But look at him. He has no remorse whatsoever. He should be fired.”

I guffawed in cold fury. I turned to Paul, who was radiating self-righteousness.

“If you knew it was wrong, then why did you follow the same surgical steps? At the end of the day, this is on you, isn’t it?”

Before Paul could respond, Peter spoke up from the floor. “He’s just a young man. He raised his concerns with you. But because of your gaslighting, he was led to believe your actions were right. That’s what caused this disaster.

“At the end of the day, you’re the one to blame. With people like you practicing, countless families will end up like me and this man's father.”

With just a few sentences, Peter had successfully shifted the blame back onto me.

“Chester, you don’t deserve to be a doctor. You don’t even deserve to be called a human being. I’m divorcing you, and I mean it.”

Suddenly, Skylar looked terrified. She quickly let go of Peter and stood up.

Following her gaze, I saw a familiar figure. It was the wealthy woman who had been supporting Peter for years.

The moment she stepped into the crowd, Peter began to cry. “Honey, it’s this doctor. He tried to ruin me!”

The memory of being stabbed in the past sent a shiver down my body. As the wealthy woman approached, I stepped backward repeatedly. I watched as her designer bag swung toward me, about to land.

A pair of silver handcuffs snapped onto her wrists instantly.

The officers had arrived just in time. I had almost died at their hands again.

Several officers restrained Janet, telling her to calm down. They addressed the crowd. “We received a report of a disturbance. Who called the police officers?”

I felt a weight lifted off my chest. I slowly raised my hand. “I did.”

The onlookers stared at me in surprise. They apparently had not expected me, the apparent villain in this situation, to dare call the police officers.

An officer asked me, “What happened here?”

I pointed at Peter. “This man is causing a medical disturbance.”

“Nonsense! He has no medical ethics. His malpractice has ruined two people’s lives!

“Two families! This is a major malpractice case. Arrest this unqualified doctor!”

The officer frowned and looked at me. “What’s really going on here?”

“I can tell you what’s going on!”

A frail, elderly voice interrupted. The crowd turned to look. An old gray-haired man was walking slowly toward us.

“Dad? You... you can walk?”