Sent to the countryside, I turned the health center into a top-tier hospital.

A man in the crowd spoke; his voice wasn't loud, but it was firm.

"Dr. Chen, we know you work hard, and you cured our child. But the root of the problem lies with the school. If the school doesn't pay, why should we? Our child suffered, and we haven't even asked them for compensation for emotional distress."

The others nodded in agreement.

Chen Ping glanced at the man, then at the others, and was about to speak when the sound of a car engine came from the courtyard gate.

Zhang Jianmin got out of the car and strode into the courtyard. Principal Zhao followed behind, his head down, his face still showing signs of sleeplessness.

It turned out that Zhao Guosheng had called Zhang Jianmin early in the morning. The township government couldn't make a decision on this matter without him, as the director of the health center.

Zhang Jianmin stood in the middle of the courtyard, glanced at the crowd, then at Zhao Guosheng and Chen Ping, and roughly understood what was going on.

Without asking further questions, he said directly, "Folks, the school bears undeniable responsibility for the children's poisoning. The school will cover the medical expenses today. Principal Zhao, please state your position."

All eyes turned to Principal Zhao.

Principal Zhao stood next to Zhang Jianmin, his hands in his pockets, clutching something, probably his car keys.

His lips moved several times, his voice muffled, "This... the school's budget isn't very tight, and to come up with so much money all at once..."

Zhang Jianmin didn't look at him. His voice wasn't loud, but every word was like a nail: "Principal Zhao, more than thirty children came last night. Don't you know how much medicine we used?"

"You've seen how much the children have suffered. If the parents go to the county government and report you for mismanagement, will you still be the principal?"

Principal Zhao's face paled slightly.

He opened his mouth, then closed it again, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down several times.

Finally, he lowered his head and said somewhat helplessly, "Okay, the school will pay."

The atmosphere in the courtyard immediately relaxed.

The parents' expressions changed from stiff to speechless. The woman in red put down the child's hand, stepped aside, and remained silent.

Zhao Guosheng let out a long sigh, picked up the jar next to the flower bed, took a sip, and swallowed the tea, which had long since gone cold.

Zhang Jianmin turned around and looked at Chen Ping. "Dr. Chen, come with me to Xiaoxishan. We need to find the source of the poisoning. We can't afford any more accidents."

Chen Ping nodded. "Okay, this matter really needs to be investigated thoroughly. The children's poisoning is too suspicious."

Chen Ping was also curious: how could so many children in this beautiful Siping Township suddenly be poisoned?

"Dr. Chen, you must help us find the source. In the end, all the medical expenses for the children will be charged to him."

Principal Zhao stepped forward, grasped Chen Ping's hand, and said with a face full of anticipation.

Siping Township is an impoverished township, and the Siping Township Primary School doesn't have much funding. It's indeed difficult for the school to come up with the medical expenses for so many children all at once.

If the source is found, things will be different; whoever caused the child's poisoning should pay for it.

"Don't worry, Principal Zhao, I will definitely find the source and prevent this from happening again." Chen Ping nodded.

"Let's go," Zhang Jianmin called to Chen Ping.

Zhang Jianmin's car was still parked at the entrance, a black Santana with a thin layer of dust on the body.

Zhang Jianmin got into the driver's seat, and Chen Ping sat in the passenger seat.

The car started, exited the health center gate, turned onto the main road, and drove towards Xiaoxishan.

Zhang Jianmin didn't say anything on the way, and neither did Chen Ping.

The car window was open, and the wind blew in, carrying the coolness of the mountains in the morning and the scent of grass and trees.

Dewdrops clung to the grass blades by the roadside, glistening in the sunlight.

Upon arriving at Xiaoxishan, Zhang Jianmin parked his car on the dirt road at the foot of the mountain.

Chen Ping got out of the car, stood by the stream, and took a deep breath.

The air was clean, carrying the scent of pine resin and earth, with no unpleasant odors.

The trees on the mountain were a deep, almost black green, and the stream was crystal clear, gurgling as it flowed between the rocks, just like yesterday.

Birds are calling in the distance, one long call followed by one short call, unhurried and unhurried.

Chen Ping walked around, looked at the surrounding mountains and the fields in the distance, and asked, "Secretary Zhang, are there any chemical plants or similar businesses around here?"

Zhang Jianmin shook his head. "No, Siping Township has poor transportation and few businesses. Let alone chemical plants, even small workshops are rare."

Chen Ping didn't say anything and walked upstream along the stream, with Zhang Jianmin following behind.

The two walked for about two or three hundred meters when a smell suddenly wafted into the air.

It's not strong, just faint, but pungent. It's not the smell of rotting grass or earth; it smells like chemicals, sour and with an indescribable astringency.

Chen Ping stopped, twitched his nose, and looked to the right in the direction of the wind.

The trees over there aren't very dense, and there's a winding path worn down by people that leads deep into the woods.

"there."

Chen Ping pointed and walked over.

The grass on both sides of the path was trampled and bent over, and people often walked on this path.

After walking about a hundred meters, the woods suddenly opened up, and a courtyard appeared in front of us, surrounded by wire mesh, with several simple sheds inside.

Several rows of slaughtered poultry and livestock hung under the shed, including chickens, ducks, geese, and a few skinned rabbits, white and fluffy, swaying slightly in the wind.

A plastic sheet was laid on the ground, with several large plastic buckets on it. The labels on the buckets were blurred and illegible.

A man in his forties or fifties was squatting next to a plastic bucket, holding a plastic ladle. He scooped white powder from one bucket into another, then scooped a clear liquid from another bucket and poured it on top, before stirring it with a wooden stick.

A plume of white smoke rose from the bucket. The man quickly turned around, pressed the switch on the wall fan, and the exhaust fan hummed, drawing the white smoke out into the yard.

The pungent smell was coming from the exhaust fan outlet, exactly the same as the one Chen Ping had smelled on the street.

Chen Ping frowned. He walked over, stood outside the wire fence, looked in the direction of the fan outlet, then looked at the two plastic buckets in the yard, and asked, "Master, what are you doing?"

The man looked up, saw Chen Ping and Zhang Jianmin, paused for a moment, and didn't put down the wooden stick in his hand.

He was wearing an old gray work uniform, the sleeves of which were covered in stains, as were his face and hands, with black dirt embedded in his fingernails.

"It's a defecation agent used for plucking feathers from chickens. Mixing the two together makes it work well and removes feathers cleanly."

The man spoke in a very ordinary tone, as if he were talking about something very common.

Chen Ping looked at the two buckets, frowned, and asked, "Do you know what happens when these two medicines are mixed together?"