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

The jeep rolled through the shade of the locust trees and slowly came to a stop at the entrance of the Gu family compound.

Gu Zheng turned off the engine and glanced at Ye Zhen, who was pretending to sleep with her eyes closed in the passenger seat. She was still clutching the German atlas she had just bought.

"arrive."

Ye Zhen opened her eyes, her eyelashes blinking twice in the light streaming through the car window.

As she pushed open the door and got out of the car, her bodyguard, Xiao Wang, jogged up to greet her.

"Sister-in-law, you're finally back."

Ye Zhen stopped in her tracks: "What's wrong?"

Xiao Wang scratched the back of his head, looking a little embarrassed: "Three groups of people came to the courtyard, all saying they wanted to see you. I told them to wait at the gatehouse, but none of them wanted to leave first, and they're still sitting inside now."

Gu Zheng locked the car door and walked over, raising an eyebrow upon hearing this: "Three groups? Who are they?"

"One of them claimed to be from the President's Office of Peking University, surnamed Chen, dressed in a suit and tie, very imposing," Xiao Wang counted on his fingers. "And another one claimed to be from the Academic Affairs Office of Tsinghua University, surnamed Li, carrying a briefcase, his face as stern as an investigating official."

He paused, then lowered his voice.

"There's another one... uh, he came by bicycle. He said he was a professor from Peking University Medical School, surnamed Sun, over seventy years old, and his legs weren't very good. He insisted on sitting on the stone bench in the courtyard and waiting, saying he wasn't going anywhere."

Ye Zhen and Gu Zheng exchanged a glance.

Gu Zheng's lips twitched slightly: "Okay, let's go in and take a look."

Passing through the screen wall, the scene in the front yard was even more lively than I had imagined.

The three people each occupied a corner, appearing polite on the surface, but exchanging sharp glances in secret.

Director Chen, a representative from Peking University, sat at the stone table, his dark gray Zhongshan suit impeccably pressed, his leather shoes polished to a shine. A cup of tea sat before him, untouched, his fingers rhythmically tapping the tabletop.

Director Li, a representative from Tsinghua University, stood under the eaves, holding a brown leather briefcase in his hands. His gaze, behind his glasses, frequently swept towards the courtyard gate. He stood ramrod straight, like a javelin.

Professor Sun Shouyi from Peking University Medical School was sitting on a stone bench in the southeast corner of the courtyard, slowly sipping the large bowl of tea that the guard had poured for him. He was wearing a blue cloth jacket, his trousers were still speckled with mud, and a worn-out bicycle leaned against his feet.

The three of them ignored each other, yet they were all observing each other out of the corner of their eyes.

When Ye Zhen walked into the courtyard, three pairs of eyes looked at her at the same time.

Gu Zheng didn't follow him inside. He leaned against the screen wall, took out a cigarette case from his pocket, put one in his mouth, but didn't light it.

Ye Zhen first took two steps toward the stone table, then stopped and turned to walk toward the southeast corner.

She knelt down in front of Sun Shouyi, her eyes level with the old man's.

"Professor Sun, hello."

Sun Shouyi put down his teacup, the bottom of which made a dull thud as it hit the stone bench. He looked Ye Zhen up and down for a couple of seconds, then grinned.

"Girl, I've finally waited for you."

Ye Zhen, supporting herself on her knees, stood up: "Why did you come in person?"

"It's alright, it's no trouble at all." Sun Shouyi waved his hand, his wrinkles deepening. "My old bones are a bit slow at riding a bike, but I can still move around. I'm just worried that if I'm late, someone else will snatch you up."

As he said this, he glanced at the stone table out of the corner of his eye.

Director Chen stopped tapping his fingers on the table.

Director Li switched the hand holding the briefcase.

Ye Zhen didn't turn around. She squatted back down and reached out to help the old man tidy up his hair that had been ruffled by the wind.

Have you eaten?

"I ate. I bought a roasted sweet potato at the entrance before coming here." Sun Shouyi patted his stomach. "It was so sweet."

Ye Zhen nodded, stood up, and turned to walk towards the stone table.

Director Chen immediately stood up, put on a professional smile, and extended his hands.

"Dr. Ye, I have long admired your name. I am Chen Mingyuan from the President's Office of Beijing University. I have come to visit you today on behalf of the President."

Ye Zhen shook hands with him, her grip firm but not too tight.

"Director Chen, you're too kind."

Director Li also walked over quickly, his eyes shining brightly behind his glasses.

"Dr. Ye, I am Li Jianguo from the Academic Affairs Office of Tsinghua University. Our president heard that you were coming to Beijing and attached great importance to it, so he specially asked me to bring you a personal letter."

He unzipped his briefcase, took out a brown paper envelope, and handed it to him with both hands.

Ye Zhen took it but did not open it immediately.

"Please have a seat, both of you."

She sat down on the other side of the stone table and opened the envelope.

Kyoto University's letter was printed, formally worded, and offered very generous terms: private car service, the president's full accompaniment, a lecture in the largest auditorium that can accommodate 3,000 people, and a promise to compile the lecture content into a book and include it in the university's historical archives.

Tsinghua University's letter was handwritten, with neat handwriting, and made more practical promises: the entire process would be video recorded and archived, a professional photography team would be arranged to record the event, three special reports would be published in the Tsinghua University Journal, and Ye Zhen would be invited to serve as a visiting professor.

The letter from Peking University Health Science Center was the shortest.

There is only one line of text.

"Dr. Ye, our students need you."

After reading the letters, Ye Zhen neatly stacked them and placed them on the table.

Director Chen leaned forward slightly.

"Dr. Ye, our principal said that as long as you agree, all conditions are negotiable. The auditorium has been cleared out, the sound system was just tested yesterday, and with three thousand seats, it's guaranteed to be full."

Director Li followed up, saying, "Our recording equipment at Tsinghua University is imported from Japan. The picture quality is clear, and the data is well preserved. Your lecture will become a classic case study in our medical history textbooks."

Ye Zhen didn't reply.

She stood up and walked to Sun Shouyi's side.

"Professor Sun, how long have you been sitting here?"

Sun Shouyi glanced at the sun.

"About... two hours."

"Does your leg hurt?"

"It's an old problem, nothing serious."

Ye Zhen turned around to face the two people at the stone table.

"Director Chen, Section Chief Li, I'm so sorry."

Director Chen's smile froze for a moment.

Ye Zhen continued, "My time in Beijing is limited this time, and I simply can't schedule three lectures. It's not that your school is bad, it's just that my personal time and energy are limited."

She picked up the letter from Peking University Medical School.

"Let's go to Peking University Health Science Center."

The courtyard was quiet for two seconds.

Director Chen opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything.

Director Li pushed up his glasses, his eyes gleaming behind the lenses.

"Dr. Ye, would you like to reconsider? The conditions at Tsinghua University..."

"No need to consider it." Ye Zhen interrupted him, her tone calm but leaving no room for negotiation. "Please tell your school leaders that we are truly sorry for what happened this time. I will definitely pay a visit next time I have the opportunity."

She returned both letters separately.

"Thank you both for making the trip."

Director Chen took the letter, his expression complex. He had obtained the invitation through official channels that morning, following the proper procedures, but he hadn't expected someone to use this "barefoot march" method to overtake him.

Director Li put away his briefcase, and before leaving, he looked back at Sun Shouyi sitting on the stone bench one last time.

The old man was holding a large bowl of tea, drinking it with a smile.

After the two left, Sun Shouyi took his place.

"Girl, are you really going to Peking University Medical School?"

"Mm." Ye Zhen nodded.

"Okay, okay, okay." Sun Shouyi said "okay" three times in a row. "At first I didn't have much hope, but it seems I've done my job well. Alright, you guys get back to work, I'll head back now."

"Professor Sun, let me see you out."

Sun Shouyi has already stood up.

"No need to see me off, no need to see me off." He waved his hand. "I ride my bike slowly."

"I'll help you push it to the alley entrance."

Sun Shouyi looked at her, and suddenly his eyes reddened.

"Girl, do you know why I insisted on coming?"

Ye Zhen held onto the bicycle handlebars without saying a word.

"The kids at our school are all buried in their studies, but as they study, they forget why they studied medicine in the first place." Sun Shouyi's voice was a little hoarse. "I thought we needed a living example to stand in front of them and show them how to walk this path."

He patted Ye Zhen's hand.

"Your presence is more effective than us telling you a hundred times."

Ye Zhen pushed the bicycle to the gate of the courtyard and watched as Sun Shouyi shakily got on the bike and slowly disappeared around the corner of the alley.

She stood there for a while, then turned around, went back into the inner room, and sat down at the desk.

The German atlas of pathology was still lying open on the table. When you turned to the page on cardiac anatomy, the network of blood vessels was dense and intricate.

She reached out and closed the diagram, then took out a stack of blank manuscript paper from the drawer.

He unscrewed the pen cap, held it on the paper for a few seconds, and then put it down.

Gu Zheng brought in an enamel mug, saw her like this, and put the mug on the corner of the table.

"What are you thinking about?"

Ye Zhen leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.

"What should I talk about the day after tomorrow?"

Gu Zheng pulled over a stool and sat down without urging her.

After a while, Ye Zhen opened her eyes.

"You go and rest first, I want to be by myself for a while."

Gu Zheng glanced at her for two seconds, didn't ask any more questions, and stood up to walk out.

As he reached the door, he glanced back.

Ye Zhen was staring blankly at the stack of blank manuscript papers.

Gu Zheng closed the door gently without making a sound.