godfather of surgery

Chapter 1364 The Best Rural Primary School
Sunlight shone on the four large characters of "Yangping Primary School," making the golden characters glitter in the morning light.

The school gate was packed with cars: sedans from the county, minivans from the town, and villagers' tricycles and electric bikes. People walked into the school in twos and threes, their faces filled with curiosity and anticipation.

Teacher Wang stood at the school gate, welcoming each guest. She had been teaching at the village primary school for over thirty years, from the old campus to the new one, witnessing the school transform from a few dilapidated bungalows into what it is today.

"Teacher Wang, you look so energetic today!" a parent said with a smile.

Ms. Wang looked down at her clothes—a dark blue suit she had bought specifically for today. She smiled and said, "A new school, a new look; I have to dress formally."

The parents nodded and led their child inside. The child, who looked about six or seven years old, was carrying a new schoolbag and looking around with curiosity about everything.

More and more people are gathering on campus.

A simple platform was set up in the square in front of the teaching building, with a row of tables and chairs on it, covered with a red cloth. The backdrop read: "Yangping Primary School Inauguration Ceremony".

The audience was already packed with people, including students in school uniforms, parents dressed simply, leaders in suits, and reporters carrying cameras.

Principal Li, Yang Ping's brother-in-law, was standing next to the podium, talking to several leaders. He was wearing a dark jacket, his hair was neatly combed, and he had a gentle smile on his face.

"Principal Li, congratulations!" A middle-aged man wearing glasses walked over and shook his hand.

This is Deputy Director Zhang from the county education bureau. He came here today specifically to attend the ceremony. He arrived early to pave the way for the subsequent leadership team.

Principal Li said with a smile, "Director Zhang, you're too kind. You went out of your way to make this trip."

Deputy Director Zhang waved his hand: "How can this be considered a special trip? This is a major event for our county, I had to come!"

He looked around at the brand-new teaching building and the spacious playground, and exclaimed, "Principal Li, this school is truly the pride of our county. I've been in education for over 20 years, and I've never seen a rural primary school with such good conditions."

Principal Li nodded: "Yes, it's all thanks to General Manager Huang and General Manager Cheng. Without them, there would be no school."

Deputy Director Zhang said, "Professor Yang Ping made the greatest contribution. If it weren't for him, these two bosses wouldn't have come here to donate money to support education. He is the person we should be most grateful to."

Principal Li smiled but didn't reply. Of course, he knew that the person he should be most grateful to was Yang Ping, but it's always better for someone else to praise a family member.

As they were talking, a commotion broke out in the crowd.

Several cars drove into the campus and stopped next to the square. The car doors opened, and several people got out; some were in suits, some were in casual clothes, and some were carrying video cameras.

Principal Li quickly went to greet them.

Leading the group was the county's deputy head in charge of education, surnamed Liu, followed by the director and deputy director of the education bureau, and the heads of various departments—about ten people in total.

Vice County Head Liu shook Principal Li's hand and said warmly, "Principal Li, congratulations! This school is so beautiful!"

Principal Li said, "County Chief Liu, you flatter me. Please come in, please come in."

A group of people walked towards the stage, and the scene was very joyful.

Several people were already seated in the seats next to the stage. There were town leaders, village party secretary Lao Yang, and some representatives of entrepreneurs who had donated to education. Huang Jiacai and Cheng Liquan were unable to attend today, but sent representatives.

When they heard that Deputy County Head Liu had arrived, they immediately got up and came out to greet him.

Vice County Head Liu sat down in the center of the stage amidst the crowd, with Principal Li sitting next to him, and the others taking their seats in turn.

Below the stage, the students had already lined up. There were more than 100 students from six grades, all wearing the same school uniform. These students were not only from Yangjia Village, but many of them were from nearby villages.

At the very front were the first-year students, each one small, looking up at the adults on the stage with eyes full of curiosity.

The ceremony begins!
The host was a young female teacher surnamed Chen, a recent graduate from a teacher's college who had just been assigned to the school. She was dressed in a well-fitting suit and stood in front of the microphone, her voice clear and bright.

"Distinguished leaders, honored guests, teachers, and students, good morning! Today, we gather here to celebrate the inauguration ceremony of Yangping Primary School..."

applause.

The first to speak was Deputy County Head Liu. He stood up, turned to look at Principal Li, then walked to the microphone and cleared his throat.

"Dear teachers and students, today is a special day. We are gathered here to witness the completion of Yangping Primary School. This school is the first rural primary school in our county built to the standards of a first-tier city. Its completion is inseparable from the care of Professor Yangping, the generous donations of Mr. Huang Jiacai and Mr. Cheng Liquan, and the joint efforts of leaders at all levels and all the teachers..."

He spoke for about ten minutes, discussing the importance of education, rural revitalization, Yang Ping's upbringing, and the significance of the school. The audience listened attentively, applauding frequently.

Next, Deputy Director Zhang gave a speech, followed by speeches from town leaders, and then village Party Secretary Lao Yang.

This was the first time Old Yang had spoken in front of so many people, and he was so nervous he didn't know what to do with his hands. He stammered, "On behalf of all the villagers, I thank Professor Yang Ping, General Manager Huang and General Manager Cheng, and all the leaders. This school is so well built! The children in our village, and the children in the surrounding villages, will be able to go to a good school in the future..."

Some people in the audience laughed, but there was more applause in goodwill.

After the leaders finished their speeches, student representatives spoke.

A sixth-grade girl walked onto the stage, dressed in a neat school uniform and with her hair in a ponytail. She was the student representative chosen by the school; she had excellent grades and was articulate.

She stood in front of the microphone, took a deep breath, and began to read her prepared statement.

"Respected leaders, teachers, and classmates, good afternoon. My name is Wang Xiaoyan, and I am a sixth-grade student. Today, I stand here with great excitement..."

Her voice was clear and crisp, her Mandarin was very standard, and her script was well-written. The audience listened and nodded frequently.

"...Our new school has spacious and bright classrooms, all kinds of laboratories, a beautiful playground, and a swimming pool. We are so lucky to be able to study in such a wonderful environment. We will definitely study hard and strive for excellence every day, living up to everyone's expectations..."

After reading her speech, she bowed to the audience. A round of enthusiastic applause followed.

Deputy County Head Liu clapped the most enthusiastically, and while clapping, he asked Principal Li, who was standing next to him, some questions.

Principal Li provided detailed answers.

After the ceremony, there was a tour.

Deputy County Head Liu led a group of people on a tour of the campus. They visited the teaching buildings, laboratories, library, indoor sports field, swimming pool, soccer field, basketball court, volleyball court, table tennis court… leaving no stone unturned.

When he reached the edge of the swimming pool, Deputy County Head Liu stopped and watched for a while.

"Is this water kept at a constant temperature?" he asked.

Principal Li nodded: "Yes, they can swim even in winter. General Manager Huang specifically requested that the children learn to swim. They've also been provided with coaches and lifeguards!"

Deputy County Head Liu remarked with emotion, "I've mentioned in county meetings several times that we should teach children to swim, but it's never been implemented. I never expected that we'd achieve it here first."

Deputy Director Zhang said from the side, "County Chief Liu, the standard of this swimming pool is even higher than that of the county's No. 1 Middle School."

Deputy County Head Liu nodded without saying a word, but his face was full of approval.

After touring the campus, the group went to the teaching building.

The classroom was spacious and bright, with spotless windows and clean desks. Brand new desks and chairs were neatly arranged, each with a new set of textbooks. However, the blackboard was a regular blackboard, not a multimedia blackboard.

When Deputy County Head Liu raised a question, Principal Li immediately explained: "This was instructed by General Manager Huang. He said that the current multimedia blackboards are too harmful to children's eyesight, so they are not used. Only ordinary blackboards are used. If multimedia is needed occasionally, a special screen can be used for projection."

Deputy County Head Liu walked into a classroom, stood in front of the podium, and asked the teacher accompanying him, "Can this projector be used?"

The young female teacher nodded, stepped forward, turned on the projector and screen, and gave a demonstration. The picture and sound were extremely clear, even clearer than in a movie theater. Deputy County Head Liu watched, then suddenly turned to Deputy Bureau Chief Zhang and said, "Old Zhang, is the multimedia equipment at our county's No. 1 Middle School this advanced?"

Deputy Director Zhang was taken aback for a moment, then honestly replied, "No, it's not that advanced."

Deputy County Head Liu shook his head without saying anything, but the meaning was clear: the village school is better than the county school.

After the tour, you will have free time.

Parents led their children around the campus, looking at this and touching that, their eyes filled with curiosity and pride.

An old man stood in front of the school building, looking up at the four big characters, and muttered to himself, "Yangping Primary School, Yangping Primary School... This child has made something of himself."

A person nearby asked, "Sir, do you know Yang Ping?"

The old man said, "How could I not recognize him? He went to school here when he was a child. I watched him grow up. Back then, the school was very dilapidated. It let in drafts in winter and rain in summer. Who would have thought it would become like this?"

Another person said, "That's all thanks to Yang Ping."

The old man nodded: "Yes, it's all thanks to him."

On the playground, children were running and playing. Several boys were kicking a soccer ball, shouting as they went, their voices carrying far. Several girls were jumping rope on the basketball court, the rope drawing arcs in the air.

A first-grade boy stood on the edge of the playground, watching the older children play with longing eyes. He had just started school and didn't know anyone yet, so he was a little timid.

An older girl walked over and asked him, "Why aren't you playing?"

The little boy lowered his head and didn't say anything.

The girl took his hand and said, "Come on, I'll take you there."

She led him into the playground and introduced him to the other children. Soon, the little boy blended into the group, a smile spreading across his face.

A group of people had gathered around the swimming pool. The water was already filled, a deep blue, and crystal clear.

A middle-aged woman looked at the swimming pool and said to the person next to her, "This water is so clean. I've lived so long and I've never seen such clean water."

The person next to him said, "That's right, their water is recycled and filtered every day."

The middle-aged woman said, "Then my grandson can swim here in the future?"

The people next to him laughed: "Of course they can! This is a shelter for them, and there are instructors and lifeguards too."

The middle-aged woman nodded, a relieved smile on her face.

Inside the teaching building, a group of teachers sat in a conference room, drinking tea and chatting.

They are all teachers at this school; some stayed from the old campus, while others were newly assigned this year. The older teachers are more experienced, while the newer teachers are younger and full of energy.

In order to attract and retain high-quality teachers, Huang Jiacai and Cheng Liquan established a special fund to pay teachers' salaries. The salaries here are much higher than those of teachers in the county town, more than double.

They know that the most important thing about a school is its teachers and students, not its tall buildings.

An old teacher said, "I have been teaching here for more than 30 years and I never thought that one day I would be able to teach in such a good environment."

A young teacher said, "Teacher Wang, you can teach here until you retire."

The old teacher smiled: "Yes, I'll try to teach for another ten years."

Another young teacher said, "I heard that in the future, we will also pair up with famous schools in the city so that teachers from the city can come and exchange ideas regularly."

The veteran teacher nodded: "That's good, we can learn from their advanced experience."

One teacher said, "Exchange with the city? I heard that you can go to first-tier coastal cities for further study, and there are also opportunities to study abroad."

Just then, Principal Li walked in. The teachers quickly stood up, but Principal Li waved his hand, gesturing for them to sit down.

"Please sit down, everyone. I'm just here to check in. How's everyone's feeling on the first day?"

The teachers all praised it. A young female teacher said, "Principal Li, this school is so wonderful, I feel embarrassed not to teach well."

Principal Li smiled and said, "Yes, that's the kind of mindset we should have. If the school improves, our teaching quality must also keep up. Otherwise, we'll be letting down these excellent conditions and the people who donated to build the school."

The teachers nodded.

Principal Li added, "If you encounter any difficulties in the future, just tell me. If I can solve them, I will definitely do so. If I can't, we'll figure out a solution together."

An older teacher said, "Principal Li, don't worry, we will definitely teach the children well."

Principal Li nodded, turned around, and left.

In the afternoon, the visitors gradually dispersed.

The campus quieted down, with only a few children playing on the playground. The setting sun shone on the teaching building, making the four large characters on it gleam golden.

Principal Li stood in front of the teaching building, staring at those words for a long time.

Teacher Chen walked over and stood next to him.

"Principal Li, today was truly a wonderful day," she said.

Principal Li nodded: "Yes, perfect."

Teacher Chen said, "Do you think Professor Yang Ping would be happy to see this school?"

Principal Li thought for a moment and said, "Probably. He grew up here and knows what it's like here. Now that it's better, he'll definitely be happy."

Teacher Chen asked, "When can he come back to visit?"

Principal Li said, "Soon. He said he'll try to come back when the school officially starts."

Teacher Chen's eyes lit up: "Really? Then we'd better prepare properly."

Principal Li smiled and said, "Yes, prepare well."

The sun gradually set, and dusk settled in.

The lights on campus came on, illuminating the entire school as if it were daytime. In the distance, wisps of smoke rose from the village chimneys, blending into the twilight.

On the playground, the children were still playing. Their laughter carried far, drifting in the evening breeze.

Principal Li stood there, listening to the laughter, and a warm feeling welled up in his heart.

He thought, this must be hope.

These children will learn knowledge, learn how to be good people, and grow into adults in this brand-new school. In the future, perhaps another Yang Ping will emerge from among them, or perhaps they will leave this village and go to faraway places.

But no matter where they go, they will always remember that there was once a school that gave them the best starting point.