At the entrance of the medical center, Chen Yu and the other two watched Rick and his companion leave.
Lexi couldn’t help but say, "It’s such a shame."
She was busy with work and didn’t watch many Major League Baseball games, but it was hard not to feel regret that such a top-tier pitcher was about to disappear from the league.
Jamie nodded in deep agreement. "Thinking back, I think I’ve seen him play before. I haven’t heard much news about him since, though. So this is the illness he came down with."
Jamie still watched MLB.
Chen Yu thought for a moment before saying, "Jamie, do you think using a psychological approach, like guided imagery, would be a good treatment method?"
’Since he’s sick, it must be either a physical problem or a psychological one. I’ll just have to try tackling it from both angles and see what happens.’
If the yips could be simply classified as a type of anxiety disorder, then a common treatment for anxiety is guided imagery—leading the patient to visualize relaxing and comfortable scenes to alleviate their anxiety.
Jamie considered it for a moment, then shook his head helplessly. "I don’t know. Maybe it would help. You could give it a try."
He was an internist; the yips weren’t really within his scope of treatment.
Chen Yu didn’t press the matter. Indeed, the only way to know if it would work was to try.
’After all, I still have the System. It has a therapeutic effect on Sports Psychology, so if I use guided imagery, the results should be even better.’
Speaking of which, Chen Yu couldn’t help but sigh. "These athletes really are prone to psychological problems."
The wins and losses, combined with their performance, accolades, and professional careers... you can just imagine the pressure.
Chen Yu thought of quite a few people, like Desler.
Back when he was receiving treatment at the clinic, Chen Yu had noticed the kid had some psychological issues. It was probably because he became famous too early, everyone’s expectations for him were too high, and then he suffered a sudden injury—a major one that could have ended his career. This led to immense psychological pressure, and he showed some signs of depression.
’Fortunately, after my treatment, he returned to the field healthy and even had a good showing at the World Cup. The German media praised him quite a bit, so that should have relieved a lot of the pressure.’
"That won’t do."
Chen Yu remembered something else.
Starting last season, Chen Yu had advised the league to pay attention to players’ mental health issues and have every team follow the Phoenix Suns’ example by establishing a dedicated psychological treatment department.
But to this day, the initiative had never gotten off the ground.
Across the entire league, besides the Lakers, it seemed no other team had established such a department.
After all, for the teams, it was an additional expense.
’But thinking about it now, I need to be more firm. Mental health problems can’t be ignored.’
Chen Yu returned to his office. He first contacted Stern to discuss the matter, and after reaching a preliminary agreement, he sent an email to Mark Tatum. He told him to notify all teams in the league that before the start of the season, they must hire a sports psychologist, whether full-time or part-time. The point was, they had to have one to monitor the players’ mental health.
Furthermore, they had to generate treatment records every month and submit them to his department for confirmation.
It might be one big league, but with twenty-nine teams operating independently, getting anything done was like trying to make a lazy donkey turn a millstone. Someone had to give them a good shove from behind.
Having treated so many bone and ligament injuries, this was the first time Chen Yu had encountered a psychological case like Rick’s. He felt it was an excellent case study, one that might let him further explore the field of Sports Psychology.
So, for the next few days, Chen Yu kept a close eye on Rick’s treatment progress.
A few days later, the clinic welcomed another patient.
From Russia.
Aleksey Yagudin.
He was a patient with an appointment.
He had actually booked it back in mid-June, but Chen Yu was in Japan at the time, so all appointments were pushed back.
Throughout all of July, because he was dealing with a large number of VIP clients and his own sports lab, Chen Yu’s progress with the backlog of appointments was very slow. It wasn’t until now, mid-August, that it was finally his turn.
This just went to show how popular Chen Yu’s clinic was, and also how difficult it was to see a doctor in the United States.
Fortunately, the man’s appointment was for a hip joint issue, not an emergency. It wasn’t the kind of problem that would magically heal itself after being delayed for two months.
Arriving at the consultation room, Chen Yu saw two nurses peeking through the window on the door.
He could faintly hear them chattering about someone being handsome.
Chen Yu let out a soft cough, making the two nurses jump. When they turned and saw it was him, they quickly swarmed around him.
One of the nurses pointed into the room and said, "Dr. Chen, I’ve seen that patient on TV! He’s a skater, and he’s so handsome."
The other nurse nodded along enthusiastically, smiling as she asked if a physical exam was needed later and that she would be happy to help.
If this were a public hospital, the nurses would never be this relaxed, let alone dare to joke around with the clinic director.
But Chen Yu was young and not stuffy, so the work atmosphere at the clinic had always been great.
"Is he really that handsome? I’ll have to see for myself." Chen Yu waved his hand, signaling for the two to get back to work, then pushed open the door and entered the consultation room.
William was in the middle of a consultation.
Chen Yu’s gaze fell on the young man sitting across from him.
He was very young, with soft, light-brown hair and blue eyes. He sat upright, maintaining an elegant smile as he answered William’s questions. Although his English was awkward and unpracticed, his tone was calm. He seemed very well-mannered and had a refined air about him.
’Can’t deny it, he really is handsome.’
Standing beside him was a middle-aged woman with a shoulder bag, curly blonde hair, and a heavyset build.
When she saw Chen Yu enter, she seemed slightly agitated and quickly offered a smile.
Chen Yu nodded in response, walked over to take William’s seat, and began to look through the medical file.
"Congenital hip dysplasia?"
Chen Yu looked up at Yagudin, his gaze penetrating the man’s groin to focus on his right hip joint.
The inflammation was immediately obvious, as was the femoral head, which was overgrown with bone spurs.
Chen Yu could also see the so-called dysplasia, but it wasn’t the common type.
Common hip dysplasia usually involves a shallow acetabulum or an incompletely developed femoral head, which makes the femoral head prone to dislocation and displacement.
In such cases, a hip replacement surgery is usually performed.
Yagudin’s acetabulum, however, was well-developed. Therefore, his problem was more accurately described as dysplasia of the lunate surface and synovial membrane of the acetabulum, leading to abnormal contact between the femoral head and the socket—what’s known as femoroacetabular impingement syndrome.
It was quite severe. The labrum at the edge of the acetabulum was almost completely worn away, and there were numerous bone spurs on the femoral head. At the same time, the aseptic inflammation caused by the friction was intense; the femoral head was on the verge of necrosis.
Problems with the femoral head can also easily lead to issues with the surrounding ligaments and muscles, with the most common symptom being groin pain.
Chen Yu stood up and had Yagudin lie down for a physical examination.
He first tested his flexion and extension, then examined his back and ankles.
His lumbar spine was also damaged, but his right foot was in even worse condition.
"Have you ever injured this right foot?" Chen Yu asked.
’Of course, the Eye of All-Seeing had already seen it. Chen Yu surmised that he had probably fractured his right foot from a sprain; the lines where the bone had healed were still quite clear.’
’The key thing is how it healed like this. There’s some misalignment and significant bone overgrowth.’
This was a clear sign that a bone fracture hadn’t healed properly, causing the condition to worsen.
Yagudin gave Chen Yu a puzzled look. He remembered that his medical file didn’t mention his ankle. The fact that Chen Yu could tell just from a physical exam meant his reputation was well-deserved.
The middle-aged woman beside him, Tatiana Tarasova, sighed. Her expression was full of pity and helplessness as she looked at Yagudin. "During last year’s World Championships, he sprained his foot. In order to compete, he got a cortisone shot to play. He got quite a few, actually."
Chen Yu paused instinctively and asked, "How many is ’quite a few’?"
Chen Yu had never supported the use of pain-numbing injections.
It was like burying one’s head in the sand—utter self-deception. The consequences of forcing oneself to compete were unpredictable, and sometimes, it just wasn’t worth it.
Tarasova glanced at Yagudin and sighed again. That must have been the decision she regretted the most.
Yagudin secretly tugged on the corner of Tarasova’s clothes to comfort her, then turned to Chen Yu with a relaxed smile. "It was only about eleven shots."
Chen Yu stared at him, taken aback.
’Only?’
’You’re one tough customer.’
He waved for him to get up and then arranged for X-rays as part of the standard procedure.
He let him go first and called for Tarasova to stay.
After Tarasova sat down, Chen Yu asked, "Ms. Tarasova, what are your thoughts regarding your son’s condition?"
When it came to treatment, he definitely needed to ask for the family’s opinion.
Tarasova was taken aback and quickly shook her head. "No, I’m his coach."
Chen Yu paused. Judging by their ages and expressions, they really did look like mother and son.
"My apologies," Chen Yu said quickly.
Tarasova shook her head to show it was fine, then gave a knowing smile. "Actually, he really is like a son to me."
Her eyes didn’t lie; she had clearly poured an immense amount of her heart and soul into Yagudin.
"By the way, I heard from the nurses that he’s a skater. The speed skating kind?" Chen Yu asked.
Tarasova paused, seeming a bit surprised that Chen Yu didn’t know Yagudin’s name. "No, it’s figure skating. And in that field, he’s this."
She gave a thumbs-up, her face beaming with pride, and began to list Yagudin’s achievements as if they were her own family treasures.
An Olympic gold medal, four World Championship golds, three European Championship golds, two Grand Prix Final golds... and he’s the first-ever male singles skater to achieve the Grand Slam.
As she finished, a look of anguish crossed her face. She grabbed Chen Yu’s hand emotionally and said, "Dr. Chen, we’ve seen so many doctors, but none of them could completely cure him. And they all recommended you, saying you’re the authority in this field. We’ve been waiting for a long time, ever since the Winter Olympics ended. Dr. Chen, I’m begging you, please, you have to find a way to cure him."
"So many doctors told us that even if he’s cured, he’ll never be able to figure skate again. But he’s only twenty-two! He still has so many years left in his career. He was going to dominate the sport. It would be such a terrible shame if he had to retire like this."
Chen Yu felt the force of her grip.
At first, Chen Yu had thought Yagudin was just an ordinary athlete, so he was about to suggest an artificial hip replacement.
It was the simplest, most direct option.
But after hearing the long list of Yagudin’s accolades, Chen Yu changed his mind.
Just as Tarasova had said, for a king of the figure skating world to retire at this age... it would truly be too great a loss.

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