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

Around 2 PM, Chen Ping was giving an acupuncture treatment to an elderly man with back pain when Wang Tao's ghostly screams suddenly came from outside.

"It's here! The money's here!" Wang Tao's voice was hoarse, as if someone had stepped on his tail.

Chen Ping's hand trembled, and he almost inserted the needle at the wrong spot.

He steadied himself, finished inserting the last needle, said, "Don't move, leave the needle in for fifteen minutes," and turned to leave.

The courtyard was already full of people.

Wang Tao held up his phone like he was holding an Olympic torch, his face flushed red, and his eyes almost bulging out of their sockets.

Zhao Guosheng rushed out of the office, without even carrying the jar or fastening his belt, pulling up his pants as he ran.

Li Fang climbed out of the pharmacy window. This time, her shoes didn't fall off, but her hair was disheveled, making her look like a madwoman.

Liu Wei ran out of the consultation room, still holding his pen, and drew a long mark on his notebook.

Wang Jianguo took off his reading glasses and slowly walked out, but his hands were trembling.

"How much? How much?" Zhao Guosheng's voice trembled.

"Five hundred thousand! Not a penny less!"

Wang Tao held the phone up to Zhao Guosheng. Zhao Guosheng looked at it for a long time, but without his reading glasses, he couldn't see clearly. He stamped his feet in frustration, "Read it! Read it to me!"

"Five hundred thousand yuan in special funds from the Tianhai Municipal Health Bureau has been transferred to the designated account. Please check."

Wang Tao read it aloud word by word, and when he finished, he burst into tears.

Liu Wei stood to the side, tears welling up in his eyes.

He turned around, leaned against the wall, and his shoulders were trembling, even more so than last time.

Li Fang squatted on the ground, hugging her knees, crying like a child.

Wang Jianguo didn't cry, but his eyes were red, and he took off his reading glasses three times to wipe them.

Chen Ping stood at the door of the consultation room, looking at them without saying a word.

Cui Ying came out of the accounting office and stood next to him without saying a word.

The two of them watched their colleagues crying in the courtyard, and their hearts were warmed.

Zhao Guosheng was the first to recover.

He took a deep breath, fastened his belt, coughed, and tried to put on airs, but his voice still trembled: "Alright, alright, stop crying. What are you crying about? The money is here, that's a good thing. What are you crying about?"

"Dean, I'm so happy." Wang Tao wiped away his tears, his face covered in snot.

"Laugh when you're happy, why cry?" Zhao Guosheng's own eyes were red, but he forced himself to stay calm.

Liu Wei turned around, his face still wet with tears, and looked at Zhao Guosheng, his lips trembling several times: "Dean Zhao, what about the salary..."

Zhao Guosheng waved his hand, his expression changing from excitement to embarrassment.

He sighed and lowered his voice: "Liu Wei, the money has arrived, but we can't send it out yet."

The courtyard was quiet.

Liu Wei was stunned for a moment, his expression changing from expectation to confusion, and then from confusion to bewilderment.

"Why?" Liu Wei's voice was a little dry.

"The bureau said that this money is for a specific purpose, and every penny spent must be supervised."

Zhao Guosheng rubbed his hands together. "The Health Bureau will send someone over. We can only use the money under their supervision once they arrive. The salary issue will be resolved soon; just bear with it for a few more days."

Liu Wei opened his mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

He looked down at the pen in his hand, the nib still stained with ink, a deep blue.

After a long while, he finally looked up and forced a smile: "Okay, I'll bear with it for a few more days. I've already endured it for three months, a few more days won't make a difference."

Zhao Guosheng patted him on the shoulder without saying a word.

Wang Tao stopped crying, put his phone away, and his expression changed from excitement to anticipation: "Dean, who will the Health Bureau send? A man or a woman? Young or not?"

"It's none of your business whether someone is a man or a woman." Zhao Guosheng glared at him.

"Let me ask."

Wang Tao chuckled, "If a young and beautiful female cadre comes, our health center will have two beauties."

Li Fang stood up from the ground, her hair disheveled, and glared at Wang Tao: "Wang Tao, what do you mean? Are you saying I'm not beautiful? Explain yourself."

"You, you, you are beautiful too," Wang Tao quickly corrected himself.

"That's more like it." Li Fang patted the dirt off her pants and laughed.

Everyone laughed again, but not as unrestrainedly; they all had something on their minds.

The salary issue is resolved, but the money hasn't arrived yet. Half of my anxiety has subsided, but the other half remains.

Chen Ping turned around and went back to the clinic, removed the old man's needle, wrote a prescription, and asked Wang Tao to get the medicine.

As the old man was leaving, he asked, "Dr. Chen, has your clinic made a fortune? I just heard you shouting 500,000."

Chen Ping smiled and said, "The higher-ups have allocated funds; the health center needs some repairs."

"Good news, good news."

The old man walked away with his cane, but turned back at the door and said, "Dr. Chen, please don't renovate your clinic too much. If you do, the cost of medical care will increase, and we won't be able to afford it."

Chen Ping paused for a moment, then smiled: "Don't worry, sir, the price won't go up."

The old man nodded in satisfaction and left.

Chen Ping stood at the door, watching the old man's back as he thought about many things.

Five hundred thousand sounds like a lot, but when it comes to actually spending it, it doesn't last long.

Repairing houses, buying equipment, purchasing medicine, paying wages—all of these require money.

You have to be careful with your money and stretch every penny.

Just then, Cui Ying came over with the mug that had a kitten printed on it.

The water was still warm, and the cup still held the warmth of her fingers.

"What are you thinking about?" Cui Ying handed him the cup.

"Think about how to spend the money." Chen Ping took the drink and drank a sip.

"As a doctor, what you think about and how you spend your money is Dean Zhao's business."

"What the health center does is everyone's business."

Cui Ying glanced at him, a slight smirk playing on her lips, but said nothing and turned back to the accounting office.

…………

Hongcheng, a private restaurant.

The private room wasn't large, but it was very exquisite.

A calligraphy scroll hangs on the wall, which reads "Tranquility leads to far-reaching influence." The paper is Xuan paper, and the frame is solid wood, so it doesn't look cheap.

There were four dishes and a soup on the table. There weren't many dishes, but each one was a signature dish: steamed sea bass, braised pork ribs, garlic broccoli, cold black fungus salad, plus a bowl of old duck soup.

Xu Wenshan sat opposite Xiao Lei, his face beaming with smiles, but his eyes betrayed his unease.

He poured Xiao Lei a cup of tea, presented it to him with both hands, and humbled himself greatly.

"Young Master Xiao, I couldn't stop the allocation of funds."

Xu Wenshan's voice was very low, as if he were talking about something shameful, "Su Meng has teamed up with a few people, and I don't have enough votes."

Xiao Lei didn't take the tea. He leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, and looked at Xu Wenshan, his expression unreadable.

He picked up his teacup, took a sip, put it down, and then spoke: "Director Xu, I'm not the kind of person who's unreasonable. I don't blame you for not being able to stop me. But you'd better put on a good show from here on out."

"Yes, yes, yes."

Xu Wenshan nodded quickly, "Young Master Xiao, don't worry, I've already made arrangements. The bureau needs to send someone to Siping Township to supervise the use of funds, and I recommended my own person, Fang Hai, the deputy head of the finance department. He's been with me for seven or eight years, and he's reliable."