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

The courtyard was quiet.

There were sticks, iron pipes, a shoe, and several pools of blood on the ground, dark and indistinct in the moonlight.

Chen Ping stood at the entrance of the courtyard, covered in blood, his left eye unable to open, and his right eye almost closed as well.

He tried to take a step, but his legs wouldn't obey him; he swayed and grabbed the door frame for support.

Sun Xiuying ran out of the house, her hair disheveled, with a slap mark on her face that was red and purple.

She ran to Chen Ping and saw that his head and face were covered in blood, and tears immediately streamed down her face.

"Dr. Chen, Dr. Chen, you..." Her hands were trembling, she didn't dare to touch him, she didn't know where to hold him, there was blood everywhere.

"It's nothing." Chen Ping's voice wasn't loud, a little hoarse, but very steady. "Just a superficial wound."

Zhao Dezhu came out of the house, but shrank back at the doorway, too afraid to come closer.

He also had injuries on his face, and the blood at the corner of his mouth hadn't dried yet, but compared to Chen Ping, his injuries were nothing.

He stood at the door, looking at Chen Ping, his lips trembling slightly, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

"Zhao Dezhu, come and help!" Sun Xiuying turned around and shouted.

Zhao Dezhu shuddered and ran over.

The two men, one on each side, helped Chen Ping into the house.

The main room was small, with a table, a few chairs, and yellowed newspapers pasted on the walls.

Sun Xiuying helped Chen Ping to a chair and then turned to look for the first-aid kit.

Zhao Dezhu stood to the side, at a loss, like a child who had done something wrong.

The first-aid kit is right by the door; Chen Ping just put it there.

Sun Xiuying picked it up, opened it, and inside were gauze, iodine, cotton swabs, and tourniquets, all neatly arranged.

She squatted down in front of Chen Ping, dipped a cotton swab in iodine, and carefully wiped the wound on his forehead.

The wound is at the hairline; it's not long, but it's deep, and blood is still seeping out.

"Zhao Dezhu, go boil some water!" Sun Xiuying said without even looking up.

Zhao Dezhu responded and ran out.

The sound of a match being struck came from the kitchen, followed by the crackling of burning firewood.

Sun Xiuying's hands were very light, but they kept trembling.

She wiped the blood off Chen Ping's face, exposing the wound, and then pressed a piece of gauze onto it. After pressing for a while, the bleeding finally stopped.

She then examined Chen Ping's shoulders, back, and thighs, which were covered in bruises, some swollen, and some with broken skin, but the bones were fine.

"Dr. Chen, you need stitches for this cut on your head." Sun Xiuying's voice was still trembling.

"No need for stitches, just a bandage will do," Chen Ping said casually.

Sun Xiuying ignored him and took out suture needles and thread from the first-aid kit.

She had helped deliver babies and suture wounds in the village; she wasn't a professional, but she was quite skilled.

She disinfected the wound, threaded the needle, and began to sew, one stitch at a time. Her hands were very gentle, but with each stitch, a tear fell from her own eyes, landing on Chen Ping's face, warm and wet.

Chen Ping didn't move or make a sound.

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes closed, his right eye closed as well. The bleeding had stopped, but his eyelids felt very heavy.

He could feel the needle piercing his skin; it didn't hurt, it was numb, like an ant bite.

After stitching it up, Sun Xiuying applied gauze, checked the other wounds again, applied medicine, and bandaged them.

After she finished all that, she squatted down in front of Chen Ping, looking at his head and face covered in gauze and tape, and tears welled up in her eyes again.

"Dr. Chen, I'm so sorry... We've hurt you..." She covered her face and cried.

Chen Ping opened his eyes; he could still see with his right eye.

He looked at Sun Xiuying and smiled, "Sister Sun, don't cry, I'm fine. What about you? Did Ma Hu hit you?"

Sun Xiuying shook her head, then nodded, pointing to the handprint on her face: "Just this one, it's nothing."

She turned her head, looking towards the kitchen, and her voice suddenly rose, "Zhao Dezhu! Are you dead in the kitchen? Has the water boiled yet?"

Zhao Dezhu brought out a basin of hot water, placed it on the table, and stood beside it with his head down, not daring to look at Chen Ping or Sun Xiuying.

Sun Xiuying stood up, turned around, and looked at Zhao Dezhu.

There was fire in her eyes, not the fire of burning firewood, but the fire that burned her heart.

"Zhao Dezhu, are you even a man?"

Her voice wasn't loud, but every word was like a knife. "Dr. Chen saved my life, saved yours, helped you pay off your debts, and got you out of the police station. And what did you do? You called him to lure him here, and he almost got beaten to death. What kind of man are you?"

Zhao Dezhu kept his head down and remained silent.

His shoulders were shaking, and tears were falling to the ground, drop by drop.

"Say something!" Sun Xiuying's voice rose. "When Ma Hu hit me just now, you hid in the corner trembling. When Dr. Chen was taking on more than a dozen people by himself, you hid in the room, too scared to come out. Are you even a man?"

Zhao Dezhu's lips trembled several times, and he looked up with his face covered in tears.

He looked at Chen Ping and knelt down with a thud.

"Dr. Chen, I'm not human... I'm not human..."

His voice was terribly hoarse, "I shouldn't have called you... but if I hadn't, Ma Hu would have taken Xiuying away... I'm useless, I can't protect her..."

Chen Ping looked at him and sighed, "Get up, don't kneel."

Zhao Dezhu didn't get up; he knelt on the ground and cried like a child.

Sun Xiuying stood beside him, looking at him, tears welling up in her eyes.

She knelt down, hugged him, and the two of them cried together.

Chen Ping leaned back in his chair, looking at them without saying a word.

The incandescent light bulb overhead buzzed, moths circled around it, and shadows flickered on the wall.

He closed his eyes, but the thoughts in his mind were still swirling, not churning, but spinning like a windmill, going round and round, never stopping.

After a while, Sun Xiuying stopped crying, let go of Zhao Dezhu, stood up, wiped her face, and walked to Chen Ping.

"Dr. Chen, please don't leave tonight."

Her voice was still choked with sobs, but her tone was resolute: "You can't ride a bike in this condition. The mountain roads are dark and steep. If something happens to you, we'll never have peace of mind for the rest of our lives."

Chen Ping opened his eyes and shook his head: "It's okay, I'll ride slowly, I can get there before dawn."

"No way!" Sun Xiuying's attitude was firm. "Even if you talk until you're in heaven, you're not leaving. Zhao Dezhu, go and tidy up the west room and make sure the bedding is clean."

Zhao Dezhu got up from the ground, wiped his face, and went to the west room.

Before Chen Ping could say anything more, Sun Xiuying had already squatted down and started packing the first-aid kit.

She rolled up the used gauze, tightened the cap of the iodine solution, and put the needle and thread back in their original places, arranging everything neatly, as if she were performing some kind of ritual.

"Dr. Chen, please listen to me this once." Sun Xiuying lowered her head and spoke softly, "If anything happens to you, I will never live in peace for the rest of my life."

Chen Ping looked at her, sighed, and said, "Alright, then I'll leave it to you."

Sun Xiuying looked up and smiled.

Tears were still on her face, but she smiled.

The west room was small, containing a bed, a table, and a wardrobe.

The bedding was clean, though a bit old, but it had been aired out and smelled of sunshine.

Zhao Dezhu spread out the quilt, stood at the door, rubbed his hands together, and didn't know what to say.

Chen Ping stood up from the chair, his legs were a little weak, he swayed and grabbed the wall for support.

Zhao Dezhu wanted to come over and help, but he didn't dare. He stood there, at a loss.

"It's alright, I can walk by myself." Chen Ping smiled, slowly walked into the west room, and sat down on the bed.

Zhao Dezhu stood at the door, opened his mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed his words back.

Finally, he lowered his head, said "Dr. Chen, I'm sorry," and turned to leave.

The door closed.