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

When he first arrived, he didn't know any of the six or seven people at the Siping Township Health Center.

To gain a foothold here and to complete the task Xu Wenshan assigned him—to make things difficult for Chen Ping and cause him trouble—he couldn't just go after Chen Ping right away.

That would be too obvious, too stupid, and would offend everyone.

He needs to win over other people first.

Paying wages is the best way to win someone over.

He solved the problem as soon as he arrived after three months without pay. These people will be grateful to him, trust him, and think, "Section Chief Fang is a good person."

Once he gains prestige among this group, he can slowly and gradually deal with Chen Ping, and then no one will speak up for him.

As for refusing Chen Ping's advance payment of wages, it was a signal, a signal to everyone: I am not personal, I am acting according to the rules, and no one should try to get special treatment.

In this way, Chen Ping was isolated without others feeling that he was targeting Chen Ping.

Killing two birds with one stone.

Fang Hai tidied up the documents on the table, stood up, and smiled at Zhao Guosheng: "Dean Zhao, the salaries have been paid out. I'll go check the accounts. You two are busy."

He picked up his briefcase and left.

Zhao Guosheng stood there, watching his back, then looked at Chen Ping's clinic, and sighed.

The accounting office fell silent, leaving only Cui Ying alone.

She carefully stacked the pay slips and receipts one by one, clipped them together, put them in the drawer, and locked it.

She sat in the chair, lost in thought for a while, her mind filled with the image of Chen Ping's back as he turned and left. He stood ramrod straight, saying nothing, but his figure was heartbreaking to see.

She picked up the mug with the kitten printed on it from the table; the water had already gone cold.

She stood up, went to the water dispenser to get a cup of hot water, and carried it to Chen Ping's clinic.

As I walked to the door, I saw Chen Ping giving an old man acupuncture. His hand was steady, and he had a smile on his face, as if nothing had happened.

Cui Ying stood there for a while, but didn't go in. She turned around and went back to the accounting office.

However, when Cui Ying returned to the accounting office, Fang Hai was back at some point and was sitting in his seat.

"Accountant Cui, let me check the accounts again..." Fang Hai said.

"Oh!" Cui Ying simply responded without saying anything else.

Fang Hai sat in the accounting office all afternoon, but unlike in the morning, he didn't keep flipping through the ledgers, since he had already finished looking through them long ago.

He sat in the seat next to Cui Ying and chatted with her casually.

"Accountant Cui, where are you from?"

"From Tianhai City." Cui Ying said, her head down as she typed something on the computer without looking up.

"From Tianhai City? Then how did you end up in Siping Township?"

Fang Hai spoke casually, as if he were chatting with someone, but his long, narrow eyes kept darting over Cui Ying.

"It's necessary for work," Cui Ying replied briefly, without elaborating.

Fang Hai smiled, didn't press further, and changed the subject: "Which school did Accountant Cui graduate from?"

"University of Finance and Economics"

"A university specializing in finance and economics?"

Fang Hai raised his voice a little, "That's a good school. With your qualifications, you could easily get a job at a big company in the city, how come..."

"Section Chief Fang, would you like some water?"

Cui Ying interrupted him, stood up, picked up his cup, filled a glass with water, placed it in front of him, then sat back down and continued typing.

Fang Hai, holding his water glass, glanced at her.

He could obviously tell that Cui Ying was just giving him the runaround, avoiding him, and deliberately trying to steer the conversation away from him.

But he wasn't in a hurry.

He'd been in officialdom for over a decade; what kind of attitude hadn't he seen?

To him, a young girl's indifference was nothing more than an appetizer.

"Accountant Cui, how long have you been working at the health center?" Fang Hai asked again.

"More than a year."

"Over a year is a long time. Have you thought about transferring back to the city? I have some connections in the bureau, if you'd like..."

"Section Chief Fang, thank you for your kindness."

Cui Ying stopped typing, looked up at him, her face calm and unreadable. "I'm doing fine in Siping Township. I have no plans to transfer back for the time being."

Fang Hai's smile froze for a fraction of a second before returning to normal.

He nodded, picked up his water glass, took a sip, and said nothing more.

But he didn't leave. He just sat in the accounting office, flipping through the ledgers that he had already read three times, page by page, as if he were reading an interesting novel.

Cui Ying's eyes were fixed on the computer screen, her fingers tapping on the keyboard, but her mind was filled with the gaze from the person next to her.

Fang Hai's gaze was sticky, wet, and like a slug crawling across skin.

She wasn't feeling well, but she couldn't send the person away.

They are supervisors sent by the Municipal Health Bureau, so it's only natural for them to sit in the accounting office and check the accounts.

She could only endure it.

Fang Hai asked no fewer than twenty questions that afternoon.

Cui Ying's family background, education, work experience, hobbies, whether she has a boyfriend... some questions were asked directly, and some were asked indirectly.

Cui Ying answered what she could, and glossed over what she couldn't. If she really couldn't avoid it, she would just say "um," "ah," or "really?"

Her answers became shorter and shorter, her smile grew increasingly stiff, and the sound of her fingers tapping on the keyboard grew louder and louder.

Fang Hai seemed to sense her impatience, but he didn't care.

He sat there, legs crossed, flipping through the account book, occasionally glancing up at Cui Ying, looking at her profile, her ponytail, and the strand of hair that fell down when she lowered her head.

He was thinking about something in his mind, but he didn't show it on his face.

Five o'clock.

The sun began to slant westward, and the sounds of people in the courtyard gradually subsided.

Cui Ying glanced at the time in the lower right corner of the computer screen, then looked out the window.

Wang Tao was already tidying up the consultation room, Li Fang was locking the pharmacy door, and Liu Wei was carrying his bag and walking out.

Zhao Guosheng stood in the courtyard, talking to the last patient.

get off work.

Cui Ying stood up and began tidying up the things on the table.

She pushed the keyboard in, closed the folder, and put the pen back in the pen holder.

Fang Hai sat beside her, not moving, watching her pack.

"Section Chief Fang, it's time," Cui Ying said.

Fang Hai glanced at his watch, as if he had just noticed the time, stood up and smiled: "So fast? Okay, Accountant Cui, see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

After saying that, Cui Ying went to change her clothes and prepared to leave.

Fang Hai walked out of the accounting office, turned his head to look at Cui Ying, and the corners of his mouth curled up again.

As a seasoned veteran of the officialdom for over a decade, he had no doubt about his abilities.

He was certain that within a week, Cui Ying, who was still incredibly aloof, would take off her clothes and climb into his bed.

Fang Hai carried his water cup to the backyard. The backyard was quiet, and the poplar leaves rustled in the evening breeze.

Fang Hai pushed open the dormitory door, put his briefcase on the table, took out his phone, and sent Xu Wenshan a text message: First day, everything went smoothly.

Everyone was very grateful when they received their salaries.

Chen Ping wanted to receive an advance on his salary, but I refused as per the rules.

After sending the message, Xu Wenshan smiled and smiled. Although he was just a small section chief in the Health Bureau, he was the local tyrant in Siping Township Health Center.

Let alone Zhao Guosheng, the director of the health center, even the mayor of Siping Township wouldn't be a threat to him.

After all, there is an insurmountable administrative gap between a prefecture-level city and a township!