Village Doctor's Women-Chapter 42 childhood sweethearts
Heaven and earth were their witnesses; in all their time roaming the underworld, Li Long and Zhao Hu had never been so wrongly accused and taken in for a "tea session." Every time before, they had been caught red-handed.
Luckily, Ren Yu, the person at the center of it all, stood up to explain. The police, however, still didn’t look kindly on the two. After all, they weren’t exactly upstanding citizens to begin with. They were taken away on the spot to give a statement, purely to teach them a lesson.
Once everything was cleared up, Li Dayu didn’t feel embarrassed at all. He felt he had fulfilled his responsibilities as the village chief. With his frame of over one hundred kilograms, running back and forth had been utterly exhausting. He might seem mercenary in his dealings, but that was only with outsiders on business matters. When it came to the villagers, he treated everyone like family. Over the years, whenever an opportunity arose, he always brought the villagers along to share in the wealth. Was there a single child in the village they hadn’t watched grow up? That was why he had been terrified when he thought Ren Yu was missing, and why he had run around so frantically. Now, he was completely spent. All he wanted to do was relax, take a good bath, and sleep.
After seeing off Li Dayu, Wang Jian was the last person left.
Wang Jian looked around and was surprised to find only Ren Yu left in the living room. Uncle Ren had vanished right after seeing everyone off.
"Where’s Uncle Ren?"
Ren Yu was taken aback. Her eyes were only for Wang Jian; she wasn’t paying attention to anything else. Hearing his question, she glanced back and was embarrassed to realize her father was gone.
Wang Jian might not know, but she did. She was at least somewhat aware of her father’s intentions. Just last night, right after she got back, Ren Jiacheng had a long talk with her. It started with him scolding her for being impolite—for not speaking up when someone talked to her. The conversation gradually drifted toward her future, the usual parental nagging. Ren Yu didn’t argue much about the impoliteness. After eight years, having just run into Wang Jian again, it would have been strange for her to want to talk to him. Ren Jiacheng, however, didn’t care what she thought. He just kept praising Wang Jian, as if he’d been given some sort of love potion. He even hinted at wanting to play matchmaker, which led to the arrangement for Ren Yu to learn from Wang Jian.
That idea, however, was only truly put into practice today after Ren Jiacheng heard Li Long and Zhao Hu’s talk of flirtatious banter. Hearing a noise from behind, Ren Yu was certain her father had intentionally made himself scarce.
"He might have had something to do," Ren Yu said, her face turning red as she decided to play dumb. She continued, feigning normalcy, "He’s usually asleep by this time. He’s already stayed up much later than normal, so it’s nothing special."
"I see. But you’re right, it is getting late." Wang Jian pulled out his phone to check the time; it was ten o’clock. At this hour, he’d normally be in the shower, getting ready for bed. Back in the city, ten at night was when he was at his most energetic. After less than a week back in the village, his biological clock had almost completely reset. He was now sleeping early and waking up early every day, a ridiculously healthy routine.
"We still have half a day of the free clinic tomorrow, so don’t drop the ball at the last minute, alright?" Wang Jian said directly. "Anyway, I’ll get going."
As he spoke, Wang Jian began walking toward the door.
Ren Yu was clearly reluctant to see him go but didn’t know what to say. She silently followed him to the main gate. All the while, she just watched his profile. She hadn’t noticed it before, but now, illuminated by the yard light, his sharp features left her feeling a little dazed. She had so much to say, but she just didn’t know how to start.
Now that they were outside, Ren Yu watched Wang Jian wave to her, turn on his phone’s flashlight, and start walking into the darkness. At last, she found her voice. "Big Brother, when you found out I was missing today, were you really worried?"
The sudden question made Wang Jian stop. He turned back, and the first thing that caught his eye was a pair of eyes full of expectation. The light was dim, but those eyes seemed to glow, as if they wanted to steal his very soul.
"Yes," Wang Jian nodded. They stood there, two meters apart, looking at each other. "I was eating dinner when I saw the message from Uncle Ren saying you were gone. I panicked on the spot."
Hearing his confirmation, the young woman bit her lip, looking as if she had received the greatest reward imaginable. But she wanted to hear more. "How panicked were you?"
Wang Jian faltered. Her intense gaze made him a little afraid to look her in the eye, so he didn’t answer immediately. But after thinking back on his emotions at the time, he finally spoke. "While I was looking for you... I kept regretting it, hating myself for letting you go off alone. Then I hated myself for not taking down Li Long and his crony in the afternoon..."
The girl stared at him, unwavering, and he could only continue, "Although I still don’t know why I made you angry, I won’t let you leave on your own again."
"I believe you, Big Brother."
The little deer in Ren Yu’s heart wouldn’t stop fluttering. The dim, yellow incandescent bulb couldn’t reveal her blush, but she could feel the heat on her cheeks with painful clarity. She really wished Wang Jian would reach out and cool her burning cheeks with his hand.
Ren Yu took a step toward Wang Jian, closing the distance between them.
Wang Jian nodded and said, "Promise me one thing. Even if you get angry in the future, don’t run off by yourself, okay?"
He truly never wanted a repeat of what had happened with Li Long and Zhao Hu. If it really happened, he knew he would be consumed by regret.
"Mhm. I’ll be good," Ren Yu promised, her eyes shimmering as she gazed at him passionately and nodded vigorously.
Only then did Wang Jian reach out and pat Ren Yu’s head, smiling fondly as he said, "Good girl."
The moment his hand touched her head, Ren Yu’s breath hitched. An indescribable emotion surged from the depths of her heart. She loved this feeling. Unconsciously, she twisted her body and nuzzled against his hand. It was an embarrassing gesture, like a pet trying to please its master.
Wang Jian was taken aback and his hand froze. At the same time, Ren Yu, who had been enjoying the caress, snapped back to her senses.
Both of them froze in place, and the atmosphere instantly became awkward.
Ren Yu’s entire face felt like it was on fire; she thought it must be as red as a monkey’s butt by now. Caught between her shame and her addiction to the feeling from a moment ago, she didn’t want to move. Yet she also knew she shouldn’t stay like this and wanted to pull away. Torn between these two impulses, she remained completely still.
Wang Jian cleared his throat twice, breaking the silence. He put on a mock-stern expression. "Alright, you should go back inside. It’s getting late. If you’re late tomorrow, I’ll have to punish you."
The words had barely left his mouth when he regretted them. He saw Ren Yu nod obediently, not only unopposed to the punishment but seemingly even looking forward to it.
Seeing this, Wang Jian made a hasty retreat.
And with that, the farce finally came to an end. The ridiculous events of the evening spread through the village the next morning and remained the hot topic of gossip for nearly a week before the excitement finally died down.
The situation had an amusing twist, however. While the free clinic had yet to gain much traction, Wang Jian had become famous throughout the surrounding mountains because of the fake kidnapping. The story had even reached the ears of some people in town. It just went to show that good news rarely leaves the house, while bad news travels a thousand miles.
「The next day at noon.」
The free clinic concluded perfectly.
Wang Jian had only had a few minutes to rest when some distinguished guests arrived: Cai Xing appeared at the clinic with Doctor Deng.
Cai Xing walked in, beaming. "We were only gone for two days, and you’ve already made such a splash! You planned to build a reputation through the free clinic, but who would’ve thought you’d become famous for a comical mix-up? How interesting."
After speaking, Cai Xing shook his head. It wasn’t just him; Deng Xianhua also had a faint smile, a clear sign they both knew the whole story.
Wang Jian was exasperated but had no desire to discuss the topic further. He turned to introduce the two men to Ren Yu.
At this, Ren Yu looked shocked again. Having just returned, she was still somewhat out of the loop. As a pinnacle figure in the world of acupuncture who had even given a lecture at her university, she certainly knew who Deng Xianhua was. As for Cai Xing, anyone who wasn’t like Wang Jian—someone who was rarely home—would have recognized him.
"This must be the heroine of last night’s events," Cai Xing said with a smile. "I hear you’re Wang Jian’s junior? Just finished your first year of university, is that right?"
"Yes," Ren Yu replied, nodding obediently. She seemed a bit reserved in the presence of Doctor Deng and Cai Xing, like a student facing her teachers.
Cai Xing nodded in satisfaction. "Excellent, excellent. Study hard and become a good doctor in the future."
Deng Xianhua chimed in, "Learn well from Wang Jian. A summer internship isn’t long, but you can still learn a great deal. This young man’s medical skills are extraordinary."
Ren Yu continued to nod obediently, her curious gaze fixed on Wang Jian. Although she had helped out at the free clinic for a day and a half, she hadn’t seen him demonstrate his true abilities. Now, hearing such high praise from Doctor Deng himself, her curiosity was simply irrepressible.
Cai Xing didn’t waste any more words. He rolled up his sleeves, sat down in front of Wang Jian, and finally got to the point. "Alright, come on. Take a look at me. I need to know how this old problem of mine is doing."
