Village Doctor's Women-Chapter 36: I can do all

"Don’t just stand around in the kitchen. Come on, get out of here with me." Wang Jian didn’t give Ren Yu a chance to stay any longer. He figured if she stayed too long, she might notice something, so he immediately pulled her outside. This served two purposes: giving Xu Qian time to adjust her clothes and diverting Ren Yu’s attention.

After leaving the kitchen, Wang Jian grabbed a cup and a toothbrush. He drew some water from the well, squatted in front of the courtyard drain, and began to brush his teeth. He was deliberately avoiding giving Ren Yu any opportunity to question his earlier panic, but luckily, her attention wasn’t on that at all.

This puzzled Wang Jian even more. The girl just kept staring at him without a word, following him around just like when they were children. But seeing her so grown up, especially after what had just happened in the kitchen, put him on edge. He felt he had no choice but to break the silence.

"You’re in college now, why are you still getting up so early?" Wang Jian asked, baffled. If life hadn’t forced my hand back then, I probably would have slept in and skipped classes like everyone else. Who in their right mind gets up this early for no reason?

Ren Yu glanced around the courtyard, pulled over a small stool, and sat down next to him. Since she was wearing a short skirt, she deliberately sat by wrapping her arms around her legs.

"Do you think you don’t have to study in college?" Ren Yu retorted matter-of-factly. "The academic pressure is immense, you know? You think just because you got in, you can stop studying? Dream on. If your grades don’t meet the GPA requirement, you won’t even get your degree."

"I got into the habit back in school. Now I just wake up automatically at this time."

SWISH, SWISH, SWISH...

Wang Jian’s hand never stopped moving. With his mouth full of foam, he couldn’t speak, so he could only give Ren Yu a look that said, ’You have a point.’

This girl’s got her head on straight, just like I did back then. You’d never guess it just by looking at her. After all, with her long, straight black hair, delicate features, large eyes, fine eyebrows, a dainty nose, and small lips, Ren Yu is exceptionally beautiful. Calling her the class or school beauty wouldn’t be an exaggeration. In a place like college, any girl with even a hint of good looks gets put on a pedestal with no shortage of pursuers. If their convictions waver even slightly, the temptations both on and off campus can easily lead them astray. Besides, very few students continue to study diligently after the grueling college entrance exams.

The fact that Ren Yu had this level of awareness made Wang Jian see her in a new light. Before this, his impression of her was still stuck in her elementary school days. Seeing this tall, graceful young woman now, he felt a considerable sense of distance.

The two fell silent for a time as Ren Yu simply watched Wang Jian finish brushing his teeth. Only after a good while did she finally ask, "Brother Jian, isn’t Beijing a good place to be? Why did you suddenly come back home?"

...

Wang Jian had just been reliving some memories last night and couldn’t be bothered to discuss it with Ren Yu. Besides, she wasn’t someone he felt like confiding in. He glared at her, spat out the toothpaste foam, and grunted, "This is adult business. A little girl like you should mind her own."

"I’m twenty, you know?" Ren Yu protested. "Fine, don’t tell me. Who cares anyway!"

"So why did you come looking for me so early?" Wang Jian asked.

"My dad told me not to sit around at home doing nothing, so he kicked me out and sent me to find you. He said, ’That Wang Jian is so capable, you should go learn from him,’" Ren Yu said, perfectly mimicking Uncle Ren’s tone.

Wang Jian was stunned. What the hell is there to learn from me? "He’s got to be kidding," he muttered. "What does he want you to learn from me? How to treat diseases?"

He had no idea what Uncle Ren was thinking. He was already swamped with the free clinic and had no time to spare, let alone mentor a young woman. But since they were neighbors, it was difficult to refuse outright or explain the situation too bluntly. After a moment’s thought, Wang Jian said, "Alright, here’s the deal."

He began putting away his toothbrush and cup while speaking. "The free clinic is still quite busy today. We’re not exactly short-staffed, but if you want to help out, I’d welcome it. You in?"

Wang Jian spoke while standing. He had just hung his towel on the clothesline and turned to look down at where Ren Yu was sitting. That one glance revealed everything.

Ren Yu was tall to begin with. Sitting on that tiny square stool in her summer clothes—a thin top and a short skirt—was quite revealing. Although she was hugging her legs to avoid being exposed, it had the opposite effect. The posture squeezed her chest, making her figure even more prominent, while her long legs left a large expanse of skin visible below her skirt.

The instant their eyes met, they both understood.

"You’re..."

"Do I look good?"

They spoke at the same time. Wang Jian had intended to calmly point out that she was exposed, but he was caught completely off guard when she beat him to it by asking if he liked the view.

Is this what kids born after 2000 are like?

HISS...

Wang Jian silently averted his gaze. Whether she looked good or not wasn’t something he could say out loud right now. He cleared his throat twice to dispel the awkwardness. "Right now, the only help I need is for general tasks. If you really want to stick with me, that’s the only job available."

"Can’t I be a nurse?" Ren Yu asked, unfazed. "I heard you haven’t hired a nurse for your clinic yet."

"What would I need a nurse for?" Wang Jian laughed. "You know my clinic’s situation. Don’t be fooled by the crowds for the free event these past two days. Once the hype dies down, I’ll be lucky to get two or three patients a day. I don’t need a nurse for that. Besides," he added, "even if I were hiring, I’d need someone who has at least studied nursing."

Ren Yu’s expression suddenly turned strange, a mixture of disappointment and an ’I-knew-it’ sort of look. "You really have no idea."

"What are you talking about?" Now it was Wang Jian’s turn to be stunned. "What’s wrong? What is it that I don’t know?"

"I’m your junior! I enrolled in Kyoto Medical University! Why else do you think my dad told me to come and learn from you?"

Wang Jian saw that Ren Yu wasn’t joking. "Why?" he asked, completely bewildered. "If I remember correctly, your exam score was more than thirty points higher than the cutoff for Kyoto Medical University. Why would you apply there?"

Xu Qian, who had just stepped out of the kitchen and overheard their conversation, answered for Ren Yu. "Xiao Yu applied to that school because of you."

"What?" Wang Jian looked from his sister-in-law to Ren Yu, completely baffled. "I was just wondering why on earth you’d choose to study medicine... and it was because of me? Am I the one to blame for this?"

Studying medicine is brutal, and so few ever manage to make a name for themselves. The pressure is immense, especially in specialties where patients’ lives are on the line. You spend your time trying to cure people’s illnesses while developing your own—psychological ones. Of all the things to study, why medicine?

"It’s just medicine. What’s all this about ’blame’? Don’t be ridiculous," Xu Qian said, shooting Wang Jian a look. She didn’t see anything wrong with it. In fact, with Wang Jian as a role model, she thought being a medical student was a very promising path.

"Back then," she continued slowly, "when our village produced a top scholar like her, everyone was watching to see what major she would pick. But she only had eyes for your Kyoto Medical University and put it down as her first choice.

"When we asked her why, she said she wanted to learn from you. And being a doctor is a wonderful thing! It’s a great profession that lots of people would kill for. At the time, everyone said she’d made a good choice." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Good choice, my ass.

Wang Jian felt something wasn’t right. He stared at Ren Yu for a moment, but she met his gaze calmly, her expression unreadable. He couldn’t see through her, but he knew he’d be an idiot to believe some nonsense about wanting to learn from him. I haven’t even been home in years, and I never told my family what studying medicine was actually like. We’ve basically been out of touch. How can you learn from someone when you don’t even know what they’ve been through?

"So, can I be your nurse now?" Ren Yu asked. "Just think of it as my summer internship."

Since she’d put it like that, Wang Jian could only nod. He grew warier of this girl. Yesterday she couldn’t even give me a pleasant look, and today she’s acting like this. When something seems this off, there’s always a reason.

"I won’t have time to actively teach you anything. The free clinic is just too busy," Wang Jian said. Since he had already agreed, he wasn’t going to be difficult and laid out his terms. "But you can watch and learn. How much you pick up is on you. As long as you can do what I tell you, then you can be my nurse. No problem."

"You got it, Brother Jian! Rest assured, I’ll follow all your orders!" Ren Yu immediately declared. "Starting today, I’ll do anything you tell me to. Even things like what happened just now... I’m okay with it. I won’t complain."

Wang Jian was floored. This girl has gotten way too bold. Is she seriously going to bring up the fact that I saw her exposed?

Sure enough, Xu Qian asked with a curious smile, "What happened just now?"

Stared at like that by Xu Qian, Wang Jian was utterly speechless.

But Ren Yu explained smoothly, without missing a beat, "It’s nothing, Sister Qian. Brother Jian just asked me to help him get some water. I was just saying that I can handle chores like fetching water and pouring tea."

After saying that, Ren Yu shot Wang Jian a smile, making it clear she was provoking him on purpose.