Song Tan's Notes

Zheng Qu took one last look at the strangely familiar license plate number before starting the car.

In the trunk, two large square baskets were stacked together—there was no other way; the old-fashioned baskets with oval edges and handles couldn't be stacked in the trunk, which would delay people from buying groceries, and they stopped selling well after two days.

Fortunately, Grandpa is very modern and worked through the night to figure it out. Now everything is square. Even the handle is now on the sides.

Otherwise, how could it sell so well?

Because after you've filled it with vegetables, you can still use it as a storage basket when you get home.

As for the license plate number...

You really can't blame Zheng Qu for this.

Since the leader wasn't going to make a big fuss about coming, he certainly couldn't drive the car assigned to him. That car belonged to Secretary Wang's wife, and he had occasionally driven it to work before.

Now that the leaders and their entourage had eaten their fill and worked up a good sweat, they tidied themselves up a bit before heading to the clinic.

Following the navigation, Zheng Qu drove directly to Song Tan's door.

"Song Tan!"

Huo Xueying jumped out of the car first and shouted, "I missed dinner!!! Ahhh, it's all because my brain isn't working properly right now..."

Who goes around buying things and then just disappears? It took me ages just to look for it when I got home.

Fortunately, Zheng Qu was also well-trained in the office and had no shortage of good temper and patience; otherwise, the two of them would have had a fight before even setting off.

Song Tan smiled and showered her with praise, then concluded, "You two complement each other quite well!"

Hearing this, Huo Xueying instantly perked up: "Right, right! He's usually so old-fashioned, but I didn't expect him to be so useful in a crucial moment..."

“However…” she looked at Song Tan with curiosity:

"Is starting a business at home really that challenging? If you had this much emotional intelligence when you were working your previous job, you wouldn't have had it so tough..."

Back then, Song Tan was practically the epitome of a typical test-taker in a small town: a pushover, quiet, and good at enduring hardship.

She did whatever she was asked to do, and she rarely refused help from colleagues. At first, Huo Xueying often got angry with her about this…

Song Tan thought for a moment: "Back then, we didn't have money, and it was hard to find a job, so we lacked confidence."

Now I'm fearless, I'm assertive, and I speak with confidence.

The two chattered on and on, while Wulan urged from the side, "Tantan, don't just leave them standing outside, quickly invite them in to eat—young man, let me serve you some rice noodles, are there any dietary restrictions?"

Huo Xueying has a very outgoing personality. She greeted everyone—uncle, aunt, grandfather, grandmother—as soon as she entered, then rushed into the kitchen. She looked at the clean, spacious, and bright kitchen, where a cold draft was still blowing, with almost admiration, before reverently carrying a large bowl:
"Auntie, we're family, don't be shy, I'll do it myself, let me experience this big pot too!"

This pot is huge!
She had only seen this kind of pot in short videos before, and it was only slightly smaller than the one used for cooking pig feed...

However, it would be impolite to say this aloud, so I just kept it to myself.

Zheng Qu hesitated and awkwardly opened the trunk, took out some milk and snacks, and then said embarrassedly:

"I know you have everything you need, but we feel bad about bothering you for a couple of days. These were all gifts from someone else, so we're just offering them as a token of our appreciation..."

Song Tan looked at his trunk, where the two baskets lay, their green bamboo strips not yet fully aged, making them particularly eye-catching.

Zheng Qu: ...Sigh! This is too conspicuous.

But then Song Tan laughed and said, "This is obviously my grandfather's handiwork. Did you buy it from him?"

Zheng Qu: ? ? ?
"Your maternal grandfather?"

"Or maybe it was my cousin who sold the baskets for him, a dark-skinned, thin young man..."

Zheng Qu was speechless.

He watched as the man carried two huge piles of bamboo baskets, walking alone along the roadside in the early morning, looking so tired.

In addition, Huo Xueying also said a few words, thinking about how she was enjoying the air conditioning in the office and driving around, so she got out of the car to patronize the other party's business.

did not expect……

But this made him less embarrassed, and he simply asked, "Does your cousin also work from home?"

"Hmm." Song Tan nodded calmly, "My cousin is straightforward and honest, so he simply stayed home to herd cattle. His beef is in high demand..."

Zheng Qu was instantly filled with admiration.

They're practically an agricultural family!
But he soon had no time for pleasantries or to dwell on other things, because Huo Xueying had already come out carrying a large bowl:
"It's so hot, so hot, so hot!"

Zheng Qu immediately put down what he was holding and quickly took it from him.

Looking down at the huge bowl again, I couldn't help but chuckle: "You really filled it very tightly!"

Not only was the rice noodles piled high, but there was also a thick layer of braised beef on top. The soup noodles were less than a centimeter away from the rim of the bowl, so you were afraid of spilling them if you took a few more steps.

Huo Xueying urged him, "Smell it! Tell me if it smells good or not. Can you finish it? If you can't, give this bowl to me."

The intense aroma of braised beef, the mixed flavors of cilantro leaves and scallions, perilla, mint, and lemon, and the crispy soybeans floating in the milky white broth...

Zheng Qu said earnestly, "I can eat two bowls."

Huo Xueying instantly became smug: "If you eat two bowls, I can eat two bowls too!"

Song Tan: ...Two childish brats! Eat as much as you want.

only……

"Eat quickly, and after you're done, I'll take you to Dr. Guo's to cut in line. If the temperature's still okay when we get back, I'll take you to the mountains to pick peaches..."

and many more!

Is Zheng Qu from the secretary's office?

Song Tan looked at him with a complicated expression: "You're out having fun, what if you run into your boss? Aren't you nervous?"

Zheng Qu was so engrossed in the aroma of braised beef that his head was spinning, and he could only shake his head haphazardly.
"What's the rush? It's just a normal weekend..."

"Oh." Song Tan was relieved.
"Let's eat first. One bowl each. If we're too full, it won't be convenient if we need moxibustion treatment."

Then look at Huo Xueying—okay, no need to look anymore, she has already gone to the kitchen and brought out her big bowl again.

The two sat at the small dining table in the yard, their heads touching, neither giving the other a second glance.

……

And this moment.

Outside Dr. Guo's clinic, many people had already brought out stools and were sitting there chatting.

Upon seeing her arrive, everyone said with a mixture of envy and familiarity, "Someone's lining up early again today..."

Many of these patients are regulars who know that Dr. Guo will never see them unless it's an emergency—she can't help them if it's an emergency, as that's not her area of ​​expertise.

In short, everyone now knows that she arrived early to let her relatives and friends cut in line!
But this way, it wouldn't take up everyone's normal queuing time, nor would it delay their medical treatment. Everyone was envious and jealous for a while, but then someone called out, "Dr. Guo, the herbal tea here needs some water added. Where's your water bucket? I'll go get it."

Dr. Guo was speechless: "I cooked this whole big bucket last night before bed, and it's all gone now?"

The people sitting or standing in the courtyard chuckled awkwardly, each hiding their large water bottles (the kind used by the convenience store) behind their legs.

Dr. Guo: ...

She didn't have the strength to handle that big bucket, and her boyfriend, a pretty but useless guy, was no match for her either...

"The water used for boiling is all spring water, which was prepared in advance and is in a water tank on the side. The herbs inside also need to be mixed again..."

Mountain spring water?
Is it sweet?

Why insist on using spring water when there's tap water available? There must be something special about this spring water, right?
The focus shifted again: "We thought you had tap water in that tank. Can we try some? We haven't drunk water stored in a tank like this in years."

Dr. Guo: ...Tsk!

"It's for public use, so please pay attention to hygiene! Use your own cups—if the cups are full, use the lids. Your lids are so big, try them out, they'll work."

As soon as he said this, the man who had asked the question first happily picked up the large water ladle from the water vat lid, and three or five people quickly lined up behind him:
"Hey bro, let's try some together. I'm from the countryside too..."

The leader and Secretary Wang watched the scene with great interest.

Although rural clinics are small, they may not be as well-regulated as those in regular tertiary hospitals.

However, in terms of humanistic harmony and doctor-patient relationships, nothing can compare.

And the water in that vat—not to mention them, even the leaders themselves wanted to taste it.
Why must we use spring water?

After entering the house, he also raised the same question.

Without nurses and doctors, Dr. Guo did the preliminary preparations herself—it's easy to go from frugality to extravagance; she used to do it all by herself and never thought it was a big deal.

After enjoying it for a few days, now all I want to do is rely on my employees.

He said this while he was busy:
"That spring water comes from the mountain top of Song Tan's house. Every day when the security team patrols, they collect a few buckets and put them in their car, then bring them to me on their way down the mountain..."

"Have you ever tried Aunt Zhang Hong's tofu? The reason their tofu is so good is because they use water from the mountains."

Water is actually a national mineral resource, but the leader didn't dwell on this point; he simply asked out of curiosity:
"This could actually be developed into the mineral water industry..."

Dr. Guo immediately smiled:

"It's just a small well that we dug casually at home so that the irrigation ditch would have running water. How could it have such a large water output... Come, sit down and put your wrist here."

She was a modest person, and besides, knowing full well that the person who came was a leader, she made it clear beforehand:

"My experience and study time are not enough, so I am only good at a few key areas: strengthening the body's foundation, gynecological conditioning, and some health preservation remedies."

“I won’t prescribe any medicine for you here. Your own doctor should be more reliable than me—well, judging from your pulse alone, you’re actually in pretty good health, you’re just overworked and don’t get enough exercise…”

"We can't not prescribe medicine; they came specifically for it," Secretary Wang said anxiously.

The leader didn't speak, but listened quietly as Dr. Guo continued:

"Your lower back and legs aren't great, but they're doing alright. It doesn't seem much different from last year. Today I'll do a simple moxibustion treatment and prescribe some of the same tonics you had before. For more internal conditioning, you'll need to rely on your doctors..."

She withdrew her hand and made the suggestion with a smile.

The leader was somewhat surprised.

This doctor looks very young, but he speaks and acts with great order and tact. Yunqiao Village is truly a place of outstanding people and resources.

What the other party suggested was exactly what he wanted, so he nodded in agreement.
"I will follow the doctor's orders."

Dr. Guo actually likes patients like this: they have plenty of money, little trouble, and they're not lazy or irresponsible.

She led the people to the other bed, personally unwrapped a disposable sheet and laid it on, then said to the other two:
"Please wait a moment. You can come and take your pulse while we are doing moxibustion. It won't be a problem."

Secretary Wang immediately followed and helped the leader slowly lie down:
"It's alright, I can help watch over the moxibustion."

Dr. Guo sighed immediately: Look at the demeanor of that chief secretary, it's so meticulous!
"Taking your pulse won't take long, but it will take a while for the moxa stick to really burn properly—I deliberately didn't let it burn too much because you just finished eating and need a few more minutes to digest. You can come back later to hold it in your hand or with ginger in between."

"The mugwort from Song Tan's family is very potent; you've probably already experienced that. Don't worry."

After tidying up this area, she took out a large solid wood box and counted out the wax-sealed pills one by one.

Seeing this quantity, Secretary Wang felt a surge of joy.

So many!
It's definitely different when you come in person, there are so many!
Dr. Guo glanced at him, inwardly scoffing:

She knew perfectly well why she had come all this way.

But the leaders did do a lot for the village, so in return, they prepared more good things for the villagers, and she received a lot of money in return.

The silent ox driver watched the whole way.

First, the image of the old Chinese medicine doctor—with his white hair, vigorous spirit, and ruddy complexion—was shattered.

Then, after a few minutes of the same unremarkable pulse diagnosis, they immediately started moxibustion, shattering his fantasies about things like golden thread pulse diagnosis and golden needle acupuncture.

Looking at Dr. Guo's rather plain face, he really didn't know why the other party had the ability to get so many patients to wait so early in the morning.
The leader also drove a long way over – even though he was driving, he still got tired after a long drive.

Looking at Secretary Wang again, he stared at the hands of the person packing the medicine, and even his usually reserved personality couldn't help but reveal a smile.

Those wax-sealed dumplings look like they're counterfeit products!

"Is this medicine expensive?" he asked softly.

Secretary Wang snapped out of her daze, then said with a pained expression, "Expensive! It used to be 799 for seven, but the price has gone up... You..."

He wanted to say something, but then he remembered that Master Niu also sat for long periods and had a bad back, so he patted him on the shoulder instead.

“It’s not easy to come all this way, and Dr. Guo doesn’t prescribe this much medicine every time. Although it’s a bit expensive, I still suggest you seize the opportunity.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Guo glanced at him and, sure enough, saw that a new box had been used, and medicine was being filled into it one pill at a time.

This is obviously meant for him!
Before the moxibustion even started, Secretary Wang was already feeling so blissfully dizzy.

Only the driver, Niu, fell into deep silence upon hearing the shocking claim that the medicine was already priced at 799 even before the price increase.

If it weren't for the special nature of his profession, he would really be wondering if his two superiors were setting him up.
"So what's so good about this medicine?" he couldn't help but ask.

Secretary Wang: ...

Secretary Wang couldn't answer.

But the driver was waiting for his answer, so he had no choice but to remain calm and composed:
"In short, it's about strengthening the body's foundation, nourishing the kidneys, and regulating the body. There's no complicated formula or medicinal effects; it's just about health preservation."

He paused, then added, "Very healthy." (End of Chapter)