After being separated from my family, I became a darling of the military region thanks to my medical

When he finished work in the evening, Ye Cheng leaned his hammer against a stone pillar in the material shed and patted the dust off his hands.

Half of the stone slabs on the east slope have been split and stacked neatly, ready to be loaded onto trucks and sent to the north of the city tomorrow.

More than forty people walked towards the kitchen from all directions one after another. Some were swinging their arms, some were wiping sweat with their sleeves. Zhao Shanhe carried an iron hoe down the slope and said that he had split six square stones today, enough to fill two trucks.

Ye Cheng stood at the entrance of the feed shed, watching the backs of these people, his lips pursed for a long time.

"Mountains and Rivers".

Zhao Shanhe turned around.

"Chengzi, what's wrong?"

"Don't leave after you finish eating, I have something to say."

Zhao Shanhe paused for a moment, then nodded and went to the kitchen.

The kitchen was steaming hot during mealtimes.

Today, Aunt Wang steamed a big pot of cornmeal cakes, which were served with pickled vegetable and dumpling soup. More than forty people squatted on the open ground, slurping the soup down from their bowls.

Zhao Xiuxiu stood by the stove, serving soup to customers, her eyes glancing at Ye Cheng every now and then.

Ye Cheng squatted down next to the stone platform in the food shed, broke off a couple of pieces of steamed cake from the bowl, and put it down.

Ma Zhigang squatted down next to him and glanced at him several times.

"Brother Cheng, you didn't eat much today."

I'm not hungry.

"What did that guy surnamed Zhou say to you?"

Ye Cheng didn't say anything, picked up the bowl, drank the soup, and stood up to walk towards the kitchen.

He stood at the kitchen doorway, waiting for the last few people to put down their bowls before clearing his throat.

"Don't go, I need to say a few words."

People in the open space looked over; some were still squatting, while others stood up.

With the last bite of steamed cake in his mouth, Zhao Shanhe mumbled a question.

"Brother Cheng, what's up?"

Ye Cheng wiped his hands on his trouser leg, his gaze sweeping from the faces of the people in Heishan Village to those in Dahe Village.

"I'm planning to quit the job in the north of the city."

There was a two-second silence in the room.

Someone stood up.

"Brother Cheng, what did you say?"

"I said, I'm prepared to terminate the stone supply contract with the North City General Hospital."

Ye Cheng's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.

Zhao Shanhe almost choked on a mouthful of steamed cake, and coughed twice while patting his chest.

"You... you're quitting? Then all our hard work these past few days has been for nothing?"

"It wasn't all for nothing. The stones we sent out before are all recorded in the accounts, and we'll settle the payment sooner or later."

Ye Cheng put his hands in his pockets, his tone very calm.

"But starting the day after tomorrow, we will no longer deliver to the construction site."

Why?

Zhao Shanhe raised his voice a notch.

"We've already forgotten about the wages. My dad even slaughtered the pig for the New Year, and now you're telling me you're quitting?"

Ma Zhigang stood up from the base of the wall, his expression more unpleasant than anyone else's.

"Brother Cheng, is it because of something that guy surnamed Zhou said?"

Ye Cheng glanced at him.

"It has nothing to do with him." Ye Cheng's Adam's apple bobbed. "Zhigang, listen to me."

"I'll listen to you? You listen to me first."

Ma Zhigang walked up to him and pointed to the pile of stones that had been stacked on the east slope.

"Who chopped those stones? It was more than forty of us who hammered them out one by one under the scorching sun. Xiuxiu slaughtered the pig for the New Year and stewed meat for everyone. Aunt Wang got up before dawn every day to knead dough and steam cakes. The old headmaster walked around the village on his cane, shouting through the loudspeaker to encourage everyone to show good character. What did these people want? They wanted you, Ye Cheng, to hold on, and they wanted your sister to be able to build that life-saving building in Beicheng."

Ye Cheng's eyes reddened, and he turned his head away.

"It's because of Zhenzhen that I'm quitting."

Ma Zhigang was stunned.

"What do you mean?"

Ye Cheng squatted down and drew two lines on the ground with his finger.

"Now the rumors are getting worse and worse, saying that Zhenzhen is taking kickbacks, using back channels, and giving the project to her own family. The more I send stones to the construction site without paying, the more people think that my brother and I are determined to take this lucrative opportunity."

He looked up at Ma Zhigang.

"I withdrew, and the rumors died down. Zhenzhen's reputation is preserved, and the building can be continued with a different supplier without any delays."

Ma Zhigang stared at him, his lips trembling several times.

"That's what that guy surnamed Zhou taught you to say."

"He didn't teach me; I came up with it myself."

Ye Cheng stood up and patted the dirt off his knees.

"I thought about it all day and I've figured it out. Whether my stones are good or not is stated in the inspection report, so I don't need to prove it to anyone. But Zhenzhen is different. She saved so many people in Beicheng. I can't let people gossip about me because of a few truckloads of stones."

Zhao Xiuxiu came out of the kitchen at some point, stood at the door listening for a long time, her hand gripping the iron spoon so tightly it turned white.

"Ye Cheng".

Ye Cheng turned around.

Zhao Xiuxiu walked up to him.

"Were you scammed?"

Ye Cheng frowned.

No one is lying to me.

"That guy said a bunch of nice things to get you to back out so he could take over. Isn't that just lying to you?"

Ye Cheng opened his mouth.

He makes a good point.

"Makes sense?" Zhao Xiuxiu slammed the iron ladle onto the table. "Ye Cheng, you'd better think this through. All those people at the quarry are counting on you!"

Ma Zhigang chimed in from the side.

"Brother Cheng, Xiuxiu is right. That guy surnamed Zhou is up to no good; he's obviously after your contract. If you back out, he can just take over."

Zhao Shanhe also came over, looking incredulous.

"Ye Cheng, if you really quit, what's the point of those fifteen brothers from Dahe Village working tirelessly from dawn till dusk with you?"

Ye Cheng's face turned bright red, his lips tightened into a line, and he couldn't utter a word for a long time.

Ma Zhigang stared at him for a while, then turned and walked towards the brigade headquarters.

"Where are you going?" Ye Cheng shouted.

Ma Zhigang didn't even turn his head.

"Call up."

"Who should I call?"

Ma Zhigang paused, took out the crumpled piece of paper from his pocket, and waved it.

"Your brother-in-law."

Ye Cheng's expression changed.

"You come back here. Don't bother them with this."

Ma Zhigang had already walked more than ten steps when he turned back and threw out a sentence.

"Brother Cheng, you don't want to trouble your sister, fine, I understand. But you're being set up and still want to jump into the trap, I don't understand. If you won't call, I'll call for you. You can curse all you want, I'm making the call anyway."

He took two steps at a time and disappeared around the bend in the dirt road.

Ye Cheng took two steps to catch up, but Zhao Xiuxiu grabbed his arm.

"Stop chasing."

Zhao Xiuxiu looked at him, her eyes also a little red.

"Ye Cheng, you want to shoulder everything and don't want your sister to worry about anything. But have you ever thought about what your sister will think if you really quit? She'll feel like she's dragged you down."

Ye Cheng stood there, his back to everyone, his shoulders shrugging.

As dusk descended from the mountaintop, the piles of stones in the quarry became dark shadows.

The kitchen chimney was still emitting the last wisp of white smoke.

Uncle Gen, the old stonemason, emerged from behind the pile of rubble, a pipe dangling from his mouth. He had apparently overheard the whole thing. He walked up to Ye Cheng and tapped him on the shoulder with the pipe.

"Chengzi, are you going to listen to what your Uncle Gen has to say?"

Ye Cheng didn't move.

Uncle Gen took a drag of his cigarette and slowly exhaled.

"You're a good kid in every way, except you're too honest. You believe a few nice words from someone. If that guy surnamed Zhou really cares about you, what does he want from you? He wants you to leave so he can sit in."

He tapped the tobacco pipe on the sole of his shoe.

"Your sister's reputation isn't something you can protect by canceling a contract. She saved so many lives in Beicheng; her reputation is something she earned herself, not something you gave up. If you cancel it, it will only confirm those rumors, and people will say that you and your sister are guilty."

Ye Cheng swayed slightly.

Uncle Gen patted him on the back.

"Alright, stop thinking about it. Wait for news from your brother-in-law."

The hand-cranked telephone at the brigade headquarters rang for a long time in the twilight. The operator transferred the line three times, and the last time it was transferred to the family quarters of the North City Military Region General Hospital.

Ma Zhigang gripped the receiver, his palms sweaty.

The phone rang six or seven times before clicking to connect.

"Who?"

It was Gu Zheng's voice.

Ma Zhigang swallowed.

"Old Gu, this is Ma Zhigang."

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.

"explain."