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

Before dawn, Chen Ping was awakened by the noise in the courtyard.

It wasn't the roosters crowing. After Wang Tao chased those old hens out yesterday, Zhao Guosheng gave them a strict order not to come back into the yard.

It was a human voice, Zhao Guosheng's, so loud it could lift the roof off.

"Wang Tao! There's still dust on the window frame! What are you wiping?"

"Li Fang! Move that pile of cardboard boxes outside the pharmacy right now! What kind of mess does it look like!"

"Liu Wei! The banner is crooked again! Raise it a little higher on the left!"

Chen Ping opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling for a while.

The sunlight hadn't yet shone in, and the shadows on the window were hazy and gray.

He sat up and put on the dark blue T-shirt.

Pushing open the door, Cui Ying's door was closed, and there was no sound.

The front yard has become lively.

Zhao Guosheng was wearing a faded shirt, with the top button fastened all the way up, which was uncomfortable around his neck, but he endured it.

I washed my hair with water, combed it neatly, and looked five years younger than usual.

He stood in the middle of the yard, like an old rooster patrolling its territory, pecking here and there.

Wang Tao was squatting on the windowsill wiping the glass, his butt sticking out, and he almost fell off.

Li Fang carried the cardboard box to the backyard, losing one of her shoes in the process.

Liu Wei stood on a stool adjusting the banner, sometimes raising it too high on the left and lowering it on the right, sometimes raising it too high on the right and lowering it on the left, going back and forth more than a dozen times.

Wang Jianguo wiped the table in the consultation room three times, and then arranged the medical records by date, color, and thickness. In the end, he still felt that the first arrangement was the most pleasing to the eye.

Chen Ping walked into the consultation room and put the things on the table away.

Actually, he had already tidied up yesterday, but he always had to do something; if his hands were idle, his mind wouldn't listen.

One sentence kept replaying in my mind: what Cui Ying said.

"It's because of you."

He shook his head, dismissing the words, but they came back to him.

Throw it again, then come back.

Like a fly, you can't shoo it away or swat it, it just keeps buzzing around your ear.

"Dr. Chen! Come out and line up!" Zhao Guosheng called from outside.

Chen Ping walked out.

A row of people stood in the courtyard, with Zhao Guosheng at the very front, chest out, stomach in, and chin held high.

Wang Jianguo stood next to him, his white coat buttoned up neatly, with three pens clipped to his pocket.

Liu Wei stood next to Wang Jianguo, having changed into a clean shirt, the collar of which was a bit too big and didn't fit him well.

Li Fang stood next to Liu Wei, her hair tied up higher than usual, and adorned with a sparkly hair clip.

Wang Tao stood at the very edge. His shoes had been polished, but with black shoe polish; the shoes themselves were white.

Chen Ping stood next to Wang Tao.

Cui Ying came out of the accounting office and stood next to Chen Ping. Today she was wearing a light blue shirt, and her hair was loose, hanging down over her shoulders.

She glanced at Chen Ping, said nothing, and stood still.

Chen Ping glanced at her but didn't say anything.

The two were about a fist's width apart, but neither of them moved in that direction.

"Cheer up, everyone!" Zhao Guosheng clapped his hands. "The city leaders are here, so smile! Don't look so serious! Wang Tao, what's wrong with your shoes?"

Wang Tao glanced down and blushed: "Dean, this is the only pair of shoes I have."

Zhao Guosheng glared at him but didn't say anything more.

Six people stood in the courtyard, facing the gate, like six trees planted in the wrong place.

The sun rose from the east, shining warmly on their faces.

The yard had been swept and watered; the ground was wet and glistening.

The leaves of the old locust tree rustled in the wind, sounding like applause.

At 7:30, no one came.

Eight o'clock, no one came.

At 8:30, still no one came.

"Dean, are you not coming?" Wang Tao asked in a low voice.

"Shut up!" Zhao Guosheng glared at him.

Nine o'clock.

The sun rose higher, making people's backs feel hot.

Wang Tao started shaking his leg, but Zhao Guosheng glared at him, so he stopped and started picking his fingers instead.

Li Fang got tired of standing, so she secretly shifted her weight from her left foot to her right foot, and then from her right foot to her left foot.

Liu Wei looked down at the tips of his shoes, while Wang Jianguo had his eyes closed, it was unclear whether he was resting or asleep.

"Dean, it's almost ten o'clock," Wang Tao said again. "Is he not coming?"

"I told you to shut up!"

Zhao Guosheng's voice rose, but his confidence was clearly lacking.

He glanced at his watch, then at the front door, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"How about... we go inside and wait?" Wang Jianguo opened his eyes. "Standing in the yard in the sun isn't a good idea."

Zhao Guosheng hesitated for a moment, and just as he was about to speak, the sound of a car engine came from afar.

It wasn't the sound of a car, but a large truck, a diesel engine, roaring and getting closer.

Everyone craned their necks, their eyes fixed on the front door.

A white minibus turned in, its body bearing the words "Tianhai City Health Bureau" in blue, gleaming in the sunlight.

The car stopped, and the door opened.

A young female cadre got off first. She had short hair, wore glasses, and was carrying a notebook. She stood by the car door as if she was waiting for someone.

Then there were two people, a man and a woman, both quite old, carrying briefcases.

Then three more came down, all in their thirties, wearing matching white shirts and dark pants. The men had their hair neatly combed, and the women wore light makeup.

The last person came down.

High heels, a black pencil skirt, a white shirt, and her hair was neatly styled in a bun.

As she got out of the car, the sunlight shone directly on her face. She squinted slightly, raised her hand to shield her eyes, then lowered her hand, her gaze sweeping over the gate of the health center, over the crooked locust tree, and over the six people standing in the courtyard.

Finally, it fell on Chen Ping.

Su Meng.

The moment Chen Ping saw her, his mind went blank.

It wasn't the sound of medical books flipping through pages; it was something else—a heartbeat, the sound of blood rushing upwards.

He stood there, hands in his pockets, fists clenched, nails digging into his flesh, but it didn't hurt; he felt nothing at all.

Then I saw Su Meng standing in the sunlight, wearing a white shirt and a black skirt, looking just as beautiful as she did on her wedding day six years ago.

Su Meng glanced at him only once, a very brief glance, as if to confirm that he was still there, and then looked away.

She walked up to Zhao Guosheng and extended her hand: "Director Zhao, hello, I am Su Meng from the Municipal Health Bureau."

Zhao Guosheng rubbed his hand on his trousers twice before reaching out to shake it, shaking it three times before daring not to shake it any further: "Director Su... Director Su, welcome, welcome! Welcome to our health center to guide our work!"

Just call me Su Meng.

Su Meng smiled, a very slight and polite smile, "Dean Zhao, we are here today for research, not inspection, so you don't need to be nervous."

"Don't be nervous, don't be nervous." Zhao Guosheng's voice trembled, and his hands trembled so much that even the words "don't be nervous" sounded unreal.

Su Meng turned around and looked at the row of people standing in the courtyard: "Are these all my colleagues from the health center?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Zhao Guosheng quickly turned to the side and, as if introducing exhibits, pointed to each one one by one, "This is Wang Jianguo, our old doctor here, who has been doing this for more than 20 years."

This is Liu Wei, a medical college graduate and a key professional.

This is Li Fang, our pharmacist.

This is Wang Tao, an intern, a young and energetic person.

He paused for a moment when he pointed to Chen Ping: "This is Chen Ping, sent by the city hospital to provide counterpart support. He's here..."

"I've been here for almost half a month," Chen Ping said.