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

When we ate dinner, the cafeteria was deserted, and most of the large round tables were empty.

Aunt Li carried the last bowl of seaweed and egg drop soup out of the kitchen, put it on the table, put her hands on her hips, glanced around at the empty chairs, and frowned.

"Where did everyone go? I made so many dishes, and you're the only ones eating them?" Aunt Li's voice carried a sense of grievance that all her efforts had been in vain.

Chen Ping briefly explained how Zhao Guosheng and the others had left work early to go home and tidy up.

After hearing this, Aunt Li pouted so much her lips could hang an oil bottle, and muttered as she untied her apron, "Why didn't you say so earlier? If I had known, I would have cooked two fewer dishes. What are we going to do with the leftovers? They won't be fresh even if we reheat them tomorrow."

"Aunt Li, it's alright. We can just reheat it tomorrow morning and eat it anyway. It won't go to waste."

Chen Ping picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of braised chicken, put it in his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and gave Aunt Li a thumbs up. "It's even more flavorful than yesterday's. It'll be even more fragrant when it's cooked again tomorrow."

Aunt Li couldn't help but laugh at his antics. She took off her apron, draped it over the back of the chair, sat down, and served herself a bowl of rice.

Zhou Jie and Sun Xiaoyan sat opposite Chen Ping, barely touching their food, but constantly glancing at Chen Ping.

After holding it in for a while, Zhou Jie finally couldn't resist any longer. She put down her chopsticks, leaned forward, and lowered her voice as if afraid of being overheard, "Dr. Chen, are there really any TV reporters coming to interview us tomorrow?"

Chen Ping picked up a piece of stir-fried pork with garlic sprouts with his chopsticks, nodded, and said, "Dean Ma came over this afternoon. He's from the county TV station, and he should be coming tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jie cupped her face in her hands, her eyes practically sparkling with excitement. "Oh my god, we've only been here a few days and we're already on TV? My mom would be ecstatic to see me on the news!"

After she finished speaking, she grabbed Sun Xiaoyan's sleeve and shook it vigorously, "Xiaoyan, did you hear that? It's the TV station! We're going to be on TV!"

Sun Xiaoyan's chopsticks were shaken so badly that the food fell off. She glanced at Zhou Jie, her tone still cold and indifferent, "The interview is with Dr. Chen, not you. It's not even certain whether the camera will capture you."

"I still need to dress up a bit, just in case I get caught on camera? What if a reporter asks me to say something? I need to think about what to say..."

Zhou Jie had no time to eat. She pushed her bowl away, stood up, and pulled Sun Xiaoyan to run back to the dormitory. "Come on, come on, help me pick out what to wear tomorrow. My graduation photo from nursing school has never been on TV, so I need to get my hair done properly."

The two quickly disappeared at the cafeteria entrance. Zhou Jie's chattering voice echoed down the corridor, with Sun Xiaoyan occasionally responding in a low voice, making it difficult to hear what she was saying.

The cafeteria quieted down, leaving only Chen Ping, Cui Ying, and Zhou Xiaohe.

Zhou Xiaohe buried her head in her rice, her cheeks bulging, her eyes darting between Chen Ping and Cui Ying. She wisely picked up her bowl, said, "I'm going to take a look around the yard," and ran off with her bowl.

Cui Ying put down her chopsticks, picked up her water glass, and took a sip.

"What brings your ex-wife here?" Cui Ying asked calmly.

Chen Ping placed his chopsticks on the bowl, paused for two seconds, and then told the truth, "She took the initiative to propose remarriage."

Cui Ying's hand stopped on the rim of the cup, her fingertips trembled slightly, but she quickly returned to normal.

"You agreed?" Cui Ying's voice was flat.

"No." Chen Ping shook his head.

Cui Ying lowered her head and continued eating. She picked up a few grains of rice and put them in her mouth, chewing very slowly. It didn't seem like she was holding something in her mouth, but rather like she was hiding some kind of expression.

She put down her chopsticks, took a tissue to wipe her mouth, looked up at Chen Ping, her tone unchanged but her speech quickened slightly, "Change my dressing after you finish eating, I haven't changed it today."

Chen Ping responded and lowered his head to eat his rice.

When changing the dressing, Chen Ping's technique was already very skilled.

Cui Ying lay on the bed, pulling her pajamas down to her waist. The wounds on her back had healed much better than they had a couple of days ago. The redness and swelling around the stitches had mostly subsided, and new pink skin was growing neatly from the edges of the wounds inwards.

Chen Ping disinfected her, changed her dressing, and applied adhesive tape. His movements were quick and steady, just like when he usually treated patients in the clinic.

Cui Ying lay face down on the pillow, her face turned to the side, so her expression was not visible.

Just as Chen Ping finished applying the last piece of tape, she gently asked, "Is it still red?" Chen Ping said it wasn't red anymore, and that after changing it two or three more times, she wouldn't need the dressing anymore.

Cui Ying hummed in agreement, sat up and put on her clothes. As she bent down to button them, her lips twitched slightly, as if she wanted to say something but didn't.

"You should get some rest!" Chen Ping said before returning to his dormitory.

Cui Ying watched Chen Ping's departing figure, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.

She really hoped that Chen Ping could hug her, pin her down, and let his hands roam freely, just like he did yesterday.

She had made up her mind that if Chen Ping were there, she would not struggle; instead, she would actively go along with him.

Unfortunately, Chen Ping didn't lose his mind tonight.

In the middle of the night, Chen Ping was awakened by a slight noise.

He opened his eyes, stared at the ceiling, and pricked up his ears.

There were footsteps in the yard, very light, as if someone was deliberately walking on tiptoe, rustling on the gravel.

The footsteps stopped for a few seconds, then came low voices, a man and a woman, speaking in hushed tones.

Chen Ping rolled out of bed, put on his coat and shoes, grabbed a mop handle from behind the door, and quietly opened the door.

The moonlight was bright in the front yard, and two figures stood close together by the flower bed, as if they were talking in hushed tones.

He gripped the mop handle tightly, crept along the wall of the corridor, and when he could see the two figures clearly, he suddenly took a step forward and slammed the mop handle to the ground.

"Who's there! What are you doing here!"

The two figures bounced away as if they had been electrocuted.

Chen Ping looked closely and saw that the taller one was Sun Xiaoyan. She was wearing a dark coat, her hair was loose, and her expression was not very clear in the moonlight, but she was obviously frozen.

Chen Ping didn't recognize the shorter one. He was a boy in his early twenties, wearing a faded dark blue work jacket. His face was tanned, and he wasn't very tall. He was thin and stood next to Sun Xiaoyan, his face alternating between pale and flushed.

Sun Xiaoyan reacted first, taking a step forward to shield the boy behind her, as if afraid Chen Ping would make a move.

Her voice was as cold as ever, but with a rare hint of nervousness. "Dr. Chen, I'm sorry, this is my boyfriend. He rode his bike to find me, but he took the wrong turn and spent several hours getting there before arriving in the middle of the night."

The boy peeked out from behind Sun Xiaoyan, rubbed his hands together, and said, "I'm sorry, I... I didn't know where this place was. I've been looking for it for a long time."

Chen Ping put down the mop handle and leaned it against the wall. The streetlight shone directly on his face. He frowned and looked the boy up and down, then glanced at Sun Xiaoyan.

Sun Xiaoyan usually ignores everyone she talks to, but now she's shielding the boy behind her, her shoulders tense, clearly nervous. Even a cold beauty can be nervous sometimes.

"How did you get in? Wasn't the front door locked?" Chen Ping asked the boy.

The boy scratched the back of his head, pointed somewhat embarrassedly to the courtyard wall, and said, "I climbed over the wall. The gate was locked, and I was too embarrassed to knock on the door in the middle of the night for fear of disturbing people."

Chen Ping placed the mop handle against the wall, put his hands on his hips, and remained silent for a few seconds.

The moonlight shone in the courtyard, casting long shadows of the three people on the ground.

He checked the time; it was almost one in the morning.

The boy's work jacket was covered in dirt, and there were several mud stains on his trouser legs. The soles of his sneakers were almost worn down to the bottom, which showed that he had been doing manual labor.

He rode his bicycle for several hours from elsewhere to this mountain valley just to catch a glimpse of Sun Xiaoyan; his dedication was genuine.