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

The barbecue stall is located at the west end of Siping Township Street, run by Liu Er, who is Uncle Liu's younger brother.

Business is usually slow, only getting busier on holidays.

Today, Zhao Guosheng brought all the people from the health center. Two tables were put together, and seven people sat around the tables on small stools.

The charcoal fire was already burning, glowing red, with flames leaping up and down, and smoke sizzling from the grill, the aroma of meat wafting half a street away.

"Dean Zhao, why are you being so generous today?"

Wearing an apron, Liu Er chuckled as he flipped the skewers, "Have you struck it rich?"

Zhao Guosheng is a bit stingy, which is common knowledge in Siping Township.

"What's the big deal? The city allocated 500,000 yuan to them!"

Zhao Guosheng slammed the jar on the table, his voice so loud it seemed the whole village would hear, "Five hundred thousand! Dedicated funds! I'm in a good mood today, so bring me all your best meat and vegetables. Money's no object!"

"Alright!" Liu Er responded, then shouted to the kitchen, "Bring out those lamb chops from the fridge too, Dean Zhao is treating!"

Wang Tao was the first to rush to the grill, his eyes fixed on the sizzling, oily meat skewers, his saliva practically dripping onto the charcoal.

Li Fang brought over a case of beer, popped open a bottle, took a swig straight from the bottle, wiped her mouth after drinking, and let out a long sigh.

"It's been three months, and this is the first time I've drunk so heartily."

She slammed the bottle on the table. "Anyone who doesn't get drunk today is a dog."

"Sister Li Fang, the way you're talking makes it sound like you can drink a lot," Wang Tao chuckled.

"Why don't you give it a try?" Li Fang glared at him.

Cui Ying brought out two plates of edamame and peanuts from the shed, placing one plate in front of Chen Ping and the other in front of herself.

She sat down, peeled a peanut, threw it into her mouth, chewed it twice, then peeled another one and handed it to Chen Ping.

"Try it, these peanuts are well-pickled."

Chen Ping took it, popped it into his mouth, and found it to be salty and savory—quite delicious.

He glanced at Cui Ying, who had already turned to talk to Li Fang, as if she wasn't the one who had handed him the peanuts.

The meat skewers have arrived.

Two large plates were piled high with lamb skewers, beef skewers, cartilage, chicken wings, lamb kidneys, and beef tendon.

Wang Tao grabbed the first skewer, his face burning from the heat, but he couldn't bear to spit it out, so he slurped it down, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Delicious! So delicious!" He gave a thumbs up while still chewing on some meat.

Liu Wei poured himself a glass of beer, picked it up, looked at Zhao Guosheng, then at Chen Ping, and his eyes reddened again.

He took a deep breath and raised his glass: "Dean Zhao, Dr. Chen, I, Liu Wei, am not good with words and don't know how to say nice things. This glass is for you, for the health center, and for all of us."

After saying that, he tilted his head back and gulped down the whole glass.

The wine was too cold, which made him shiver, but the smile on his face was genuine.

Zhao Guosheng's eyes also reddened. He stood up, holding the jar, and said, "Liu Wei, sit down. This glass of wine shouldn't be offered to me by you, it should be offered to you all by me."

He paused for a moment, his voice trembling slightly, "I've worked at the Siping Township Health Center for twenty years. I've endured all kinds of hardships and suffered all kinds of torment, but I've never been as happy as I am today."

"Five hundred thousand! Our clinic has never received so much money before. This money isn't my achievement; it belongs to Dr. Chen, to Director Su, and to every one of you."

"Come on, bottoms up!"

He downed the beer in the jug in one gulp, choked a little, coughed twice, but laughed loudly.

Everyone raised their glasses, beer foam splashed all over the table, but no one minded, and they finished drinking with smiles.

Before we knew it, we'd already drunk almost two cases of beer!

Li Fang wiped her mouth, stood up, and walked to Chen Ping with a glass of wine in her hand.

She drank quite a bit today; her face was flushed, her eyes were a little unfocused, but she still spoke fairly clearly.

"Dr. Chen, I, Li Fang, am a rough person and not good at saying nice things. But since you came, the health center has been getting better day by day, and I've seen it for myself."

Before, the pharmacy wouldn't sell more than a few boxes of medicine a month. Now, we're getting new stock every day, I'm so busy I'm practically running around like crazy, but I'm happy.

She picked up her wine glass. "Dr. Chen, you're the mascot of our clinic, you can't leave."

"A mascot?" Chen Ping smiled.

"You're like a mascot. Everything went smoothly after you came." After saying that, Li Fang downed her drink, burped, and sat down.

Wang Tao stood up, holding his wine glass, still chewing on some meat, and said indistinctly, "Dr. Chen, the luckiest thing in my life is coming to Siping Township Health Center and meeting you."

Don't laugh, I'm serious. You taught me acupuncture, you taught me how to write prescriptions, you taught me how to be a person—you are my master. Master, your disciple toasts you.

He gulped it down, then covered his mouth, almost spitting it out, but managed to swallow it back down.

Liu Wei also stood up, holding his wine glass, his hand still trembling.

He looked at Chen Ping, his lips trembled twice, as if he wanted to say something, but then swallowed it back.

In the end, he only said one sentence: "Dr. Chen, thank you."

Three words, spoken with the weight of a thousand pounds.

Chen Ping stood up, holding his wine glass, and looked at them.

His eyes were a little hot, but he held them back.

He took a deep breath, smiled, and said, "Don't thank me. The health center belongs to everyone, not just me. If you want to thank someone, thank Director Zhao. He's been holding this place up for twenty years. Without him, the health center would have collapsed long ago."

Zhao Guosheng waved his hand: "No, no, no, don't flatter me. I'm just a gatekeeper, you guys are the ones doing the work."

"Dean Zhao, don't be modest."

Wang Jianguo stood up, holding a wine glass. His reading glasses were fogged up, so he wiped them.

After looking at everyone, he said, "I've worked at the health center for twenty years. Many people have come and gone, but never before have we had a group of people sitting together like today, happily having a meal together."

Old Zhao, you're a great guy. Dr. Chen, you're a great guy too. You're all great guys.

He raised his glass, tilted his head back, and downed it in one gulp.

He choked after drinking it, coughed several times, and his face turned bright red.

After several rounds of drinks and several dishes, the atmosphere at the table became increasingly lively.

Wang Tao, his face flushed and neck red from drinking, became more talkative. He tugged at Wang Jianguo's sleeve and chuckled, "Dr. Wang, tell us a dirty joke, we all want to hear it."

"Go away, what kind of dirty jokes are you listening to, kid?" Wang Jianguo glared at him.

"Dr. Wang, just tell me one."

Li Fang chimed in, "That thing you told me last time, something about 'I'll give you some noodles to eat,' it cracked me up."

When Chen Ping heard the words "I'll give you some noodles to eat," he paused for a moment, then lowered his head, picked up his wine glass, and took a sip.

Cui Ying sat next to him, her face flushed, and she lowered her head to peel peanuts, her fingers trembling slightly.

No one noticed the expressions on their faces, and even fewer knew that this joke had actually happened to them.