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

As I passed by Lao Zhou's noodle shop, Lao Zhou was wiping tables at the entrance. Seeing me, he called out, "Dr. Chen, have you eaten yet?"

"have eaten."

"Would you like to eat some more after you've already eaten?"

Chen Ping smiled, waved his hand, and continued walking.

Back at the health center, there were already several patients lined up in the courtyard.

Wang Tao was maintaining order at the door when he saw Chen Ping, and his eyes lit up: "Dr. Chen is back! Dr. Chen is back!"

Cui Ying peeked out from the accounting office, glanced at Chen Ping, and a slight smile appeared on her lips.

The morning passed by in a flurry of activity.

Chen Ping saw more than a dozen patients, suffering from all sorts of ailments, including lumbar spine problems, cervical spine problems, stomach problems, and high blood pressure.

Wang Tao ran around so much that his legs became thin, but he was full of energy.

Liu Wei was still writing down the recipes in his notebook, filling most of it up, and looking at it over and over again.

At lunchtime, Cui Ying was carrying two lunch boxes, which she had packed from Lao Zhou: one with braised pork and the other with tomato and egg.

"for you."

She handed the box of braised pork to Chen Ping, saying, "Eat more meat; you've lost weight these past few days."

Chen Ping took the lunchbox and smiled, "Thank you."

The two sat in the clinic eating. Cui Ying sat opposite him, picked up the egg from the tomato and egg dish and put half of the braised pork into her own bowl.

Chen Ping stared at her actions for a moment, then lowered his head to eat without saying a word.

Halfway through the meal, the sound of a car engine suddenly came from outside the courtyard.

Chen Ping looked up, and Cui Ying stopped eating.

The two walked to the entrance and saw a black Mercedes-Benz SUV parked at the entrance of the health center.

The vehicle was spotless, gleaming, a stark contrast to the dilapidated state of the clinic.

The car door opened, and a middle-aged woman got out first. She had curly hair, wore a beige trench coat, and high heels. Her heels sank half an inch into the muddy ground. She looked down and frowned.

Then a middle-aged man, in his fifties, got out of the driver's seat. He had his hair neatly combed, wore a dark blue jacket, and had a watch on his wrist that glittered in the sunlight.

He glanced at the gate of the health center, then at the crooked locust tree in the courtyard, his expression as if he had eaten something unclean.

Cui Ying's expression changed.

She stood at the door of the clinic, almost dropping the boxed lunch in her hand.

Chen Ping noticed her lips were trembling and looked curious, wondering what was wrong with Cui Ying.

"Dad? Mom?" Cui Ying's voice sounded like it was being squeezed out of her throat.

The middle-aged woman turned around, saw Cui Ying, and forced a smile.

"Yingying, you really are here."

She walked over in her high heels, each step leaving a hole in the mud. "You, instead of living a good life, you ran off to a place like this. Do you know how long your father and I have been looking for you?"

Cui Ying didn't say anything, but took a step back and bumped into Chen Ping.

Chen Ping helped her up, but she didn't turn around, though her body was trembling.

Cui Ying's father didn't say anything, standing next to the car, his gaze sweeping across the front yard of the health center.

The windows with peeling paint, the dilapidated clinic doors, the mottled white plaster on the walls, and the old hens running around on the ground.

Then the gaze fell on Chen Ping, looking him up and down.

"Yingying, pack your things and come back with us."

Cui Ying's mother walked up to Cui Ying, reached out and took her arm, "Your father asked someone to find you a job in the city, a hundred times better than this wretched place."

Cui Ying shook off her hand: "I'm not going back."

"What did you say?"

Cui Ying's mother raised her voice, "You're a girl, running off to this remote mountain village! Do you know what people are saying about you behind your back? You've completely disgraced your father!"

"That's your face, not mine. I'm not going back. I'm fine here," Cui Ying said stubbornly.

"What's so good about it?"

Cui Ying's mother pointed to the gate of the health center, "Look at this place, is it even fit for a human to live? You graduated from a prestigious university, are you content to be an accountant in a place like this for the rest of your life?"

"Mom, stop talking." Cui Ying was getting impatient.

"I'm going to say it anyway! You have to come back with us today. If you don't, I'll..." Cui Ying's mother glared at Cui Ying.

"What do you mean?"

Cui Ying raised her head, her eyes showing no sign of weakness. "Are you going to say you're severing ties again? Are you going to say you don't recognize me as your daughter again?"

You've said it before, several times. I listened, I came back, and then what?

"You're still arranging blind dates for me, still making me marry someone I don't even know!"

The courtyard was quiet.

Everyone else at the health center peeked out to see what was going on.

Everyone stared at Cui Ying and her mother; no one spoke.

Standing beside the car, Cui Ying's father, his face ashen, finally spoke: "Yingying, your mother is doing this for your own good. That boy comes from a well-off family and is an honest man. You won't suffer if you marry him."

"I won't marry."

Cui Ying roared, "Did you even ask me if I wanted to? Did you even ask me what I wanted? All you care about is making arrangements, saving face, and matching social status! Have you ever thought about whether I'm happy or not?"

Cui Ying's mother was stunned for a moment, and the expression on her face changed several times, from anger to grievance, and then from grievance to rage.

"We're doing this for your own good! You're just a young girl, so immature. If we don't worry about you, who will?" Cui Ying's mother was also angry.

"I don't need it!"

Cui Ying stared, her eyes red-rimmed. "I live my own life, and whether I live it well or not is my business. If you really care about me, then leave me alone."

Cui Ying's father walked over, his facial muscles twitching, and pointed a finger at Cui Ying: "Say that again?"

Cui Ying raised her head and looked at him, her lips trembling, but she didn't say a word.

Wang Tao, standing at the door of the consultation room, saw Chen Ping and quickly ran over, lowering his voice to say, "Dr. Chen, aren't you going to try and persuade him?"

Chen Ping nodded, stood next to Cui Ying, and looked at her with red eyes and clenched fists. Something in his heart was tugged at.

"Uncle, Auntie."

Chen Ping spoke up, his voice neither humble nor arrogant, "Stop arguing, let's talk this out."

Cui Ying's mother turned to look at Chen Ping, scrutinizing him from head to toe: "Who are you?"

"I am Chen Ping, a doctor at the health center."

"doctor?"

Cui Ying's mother looked at her with a hint of disdain, but didn't reply. Instead, she turned to Cui Ying and asked, "Yingying, are you coming with us or not?"

Cui Ying didn't speak, her head was down, and tears fell to the ground drop by drop.

"Crying won't do any good. You're not a child anymore. You're our only daughter. You're hiding in this remote mountain village, not even looking for a boyfriend. What are your father and I going to do when we get old?"

Cui Ying's mother said with a frown.