A month had passed, and Du Heng truly felt as if a lifetime had gone by. The familiar local accent constantly reaching his ears sounded harsh and coarse to others, but to him, it was exceptionally dear.

Liu Amei curiously observed the northwestern city. Beyond the bustling crowds, her gaze was met by a pervasive grayness and desolation that enveloped everything. The air was dry, vegetation was scarce, and any plants she did spot were bare. This was quite different from her southwestern hometown, in terms of both sight and feel.

The people here spoke in high tones and had loud voices. Their speech was heavily stressed and rather gruff. If you only heard their voices without seeing them, you might think they were arguing or about to start an argument. Yet, when you looked around, you couldn’t help but be infected by their voices and actions.

Liu Amei, who had been in low spirits, was gently supported by Du Xuejing as they walked out. The farther they went, the more relaxed she became, the gloom weighing on her heart gradually dispersed by the rugged grandeur of the northwestern land.

"Senior Brother, over here!" Suddenly, an excited voice called out from ahead.

Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw a young man with a beaming smile already striding up to meet them.

"Tingting, you’re back too! How’s school in the Capital?"

"Buwei, you look like you’ve put on weight!" Du Xuejing didn’t answer his question; instead, her remark immediately deflated Wu Buwei.

Wu Buwei’s outstretched hand, ready to take Du Heng’s luggage, paused. He shot Du Xuejing a reproachful look. "Tingting, you should call me Uncle. I’m your Little Uncle’s junior fellow apprentice."

Returning to her hometown and seeing familiar faces made Du Xuejing happy too. Seeing Wu Buwei’s expression now, she chuckled aloud. "I will not! You’re only six years older than me. Why should I call you Uncle? Wouldn’t that make you sound old?"

"Senior Brother, be the judge! I’ve been unfairly demoted in seniority here."

"You two sort that out yourselves," Du Heng chuckled, his spirits lifting upon returning to his hometown, his own turf. "Where’s the car?"

Wu Buwei shot Du Xuejing a surreptitious glare, only to receive a playful face in return. He sighed and turned back, explaining, "There were too many taxis at the station’s pick-up area, so we couldn’t drive in. We had to park on the roadside. We’ll have to walk a little."

Du Heng nodded and pointed to Liu Amei beside him. "This is Liu Amei, the person I mentioned on the phone. Have you prepared everything?"

Wu Buwei turned to greet Liu Amei. "Yes, everything’s prepared," he replied.

"Good, let’s go straight to the Health Clinic."

The vehicle was an ambulance from the Health Clinic, chosen specifically for its spaciousness. Because Liu Amei’s abdomen was severely distended, a regular private car would have been extremely uncomfortable for her. Using the ambulance was the only way to ensure she could travel with some measure of comfort.

After helping Liu Amei into the ambulance, Du Heng was about to get in when Wu Buwei quietly tugged at him.

Seeing this, Du Heng followed him a bit to the side and whispered, "What’s wrong?"

Wu Buwei first glanced into the ambulance; seeing they weren’t visible from inside, he lowered his voice. "Senior Brother, her abdominal distension is incredibly severe. Will the Health Clinic really be able to handle it? Shouldn’t we take her to the Municipal First Hospital or the Provincial First Hospital? Their facilities are much better than ours. If there’s an emergency, they won’t be caught off guard like we might be."

Du Heng understood Wu Buwei’s concern and, truth be told, was also inclined to agree with that approach. However, the problem they faced was the same as in the Capital: other hospitals might not agree to admit Liu Amei. The Capital Hospital had been unwilling to bear the risks involved, and these local hospitals would likely feel the same way.

Furthermore, there was the critical factor of Liu Amei herself. Given her current psychological endurance, if she were taken to another hospital, she might mistakenly believe Du Heng was deceiving her. In such an unfamiliar place, she could genuinely lose all hope.

Therefore, after careful consideration, Du Heng decided to take her directly to his own Health Clinic for treatment. Besides, the treatment plan he had conceived didn’t involve any overly sophisticated equipment—just a color doppler ultrasound to investigate the cause of Liu Amei’s ’disappearing’ internal organs. Once this mystery was solved, he was still somewhat confident about treating her ovarian cancer.

"No need. Let’s just go straight to the Health Clinic." Du Heng didn’t elaborate, merely stating his decision.

Wu Buwei had only voiced his concerns and offered his suggestion; whether Du Heng listened was Du Heng’s affair. Seeing Du Heng heading back to the ambulance, Wu Buwei quickly followed.

On the way, Du Heng asked Wu Buwei about matters at the Health Clinic to get an update on the recent situation.

Wu Buwei summarized three main points. First, the treatment for stroke paralysis was on the right track, progressing steadily just as Du Heng had planned before he left. The Municipal First Hospital, seemingly having seen the benefits reaped by the Provincial First Hospital, also wanted to emulate them and try out a cooperative pilot program. However, due to Du Heng’s absence, the proposal had been temporarily shelved. Wu Buwei also informed Du Heng that the Municipal First Hospital had extended an olive branch to him, the meaning of which was clear to everyone. However, Wu Buwei had directly refused; frankly, he didn’t think much of the Chinese Medicine Department at the Municipal First Hospital. The thought of being ordered around all day by those incompetents made him extremely uncomfortable. That’s what Wu Buwei told Du Heng verbatim, and Du Heng teased that Wu Buwei’s words sounded a bit conceited.

Second, when Du Heng left, he had entrusted the treatment strategies and prescriptions for skin diseases to Han Yujian. Moreover, Zhou Yixian from the Municipal First Hospital and Li Jianwei from the Provincial First Hospital had been very supportive, recommending five patients so far. But Han Yujian and his two colleagues had been too disappointing. Of the five patients, the one who had been undergoing treatment the longest had been at it for half a month, and the shortest for a week. Not only had they failed to cure any of them, but the first patient they began treating, after five days—just yesterday, in fact—had started showing signs of spreading ulceration on his skin. It was only because they heard Du Heng was returning that they hadn’t called him; otherwise, they would have contacted him directly. Now, they were waiting for Du Heng to come back and save the day.

Third, an Executive Deputy Dean named Cui Guanghai had arrived at the Health Clinic. Du Heng knew of him; he was the former dean of Cuijiachuan Health Clinic, forty-six years old. What Du Heng didn’t know was that on his third day in office, Cui Guanghai had seized financial authority from Lu Zhongjiang. He also had a penchant for holding meetings and was constantly cracking down on and disciplining Wu Buwei and the others.

Du Heng listened without saying much, then directly changed the subject. "Buwei, now that you have your professional practice license, what’s the situation with your father wanting to transfer you?"

Seeing Du Heng didn’t respond to his earlier points, Wu Buwei didn’t press the issue and followed his lead. "After Secretary Lu spoke with me last time, I talked to my father. He respects my decision and also advised me to learn more from you, Senior Brother."

"So, what’s your decision?"

"Of course, it’s to follow you, Senior Brother. Wherever you go, I’ll go."

Du Heng chuckled. "That might be tough for you then. I plan on working at our Health Clinic for the rest of my life."

Wu Buwei laughed too. "Then I’ll follow you, Senior Brother, and work at the Health Clinic for life too."

As they talked, Du Heng found himself back on his own turf after a month’s absence.

However, before he could even get out of the ambulance, a scowling, fleshy-faced man blocked their way. The man had a stern face and his hands clasped behind his back.

The moment the ambulance came to a halt, the man began to berate Old Wang, the driver, loudly. "Old Wang, what do you think you’re doing? Don’t you know what an ambulance is for? Are you ignorant of your own duties? What if our villagers needed an ambulance while you were away? Could you bear the responsibility if something happened? Completely undisciplined! This is the first and last time. I’m docking you one hundred yuan!"

Old Wang merely smiled faintly without a word and walked directly to the back of the ambulance.

The man on the steps was enraged by Old Wang’s attitude. Pointing at him, he yelled, "Old Wang, what kind of attitude is that? Have you no sense of discipline at all?" With that, he quickly strode towards the back of the ambulance as well.

Du Heng and Wu Buwei pushed open the rear doors of the ambulance and simultaneously heard the man berating Old Wang.

Du Heng looked at Wu Buwei questioningly. Wu Buwei whispered, "Vice Dean Cui."

Du Heng murmured an "Oh," then jumped out of the ambulance. Together with Wu Buwei, who was still inside, they carefully lifted Liu Amei out.

Just then, a number of people emerged from the Health Clinic’s Outpatient Hall, all familiar faces.

Cui Guanghai had also reached Old Wang’s side and was about to continue his tirade when he abruptly spotted Du Heng by the ambulance door. Du Heng... Cui Guanghai was very familiar with him. They had attended several meetings together, and recently, he saw Du Heng’s photograph every day in the Outpatient Hall—it hung right above his own, impossible to miss.

"Dean... Du, what brings you back?" Cui Guanghai stammered.

Du Heng handed one end of the gurney to the driver, Old Wang, then took the suitcase Du Xuejing passed him from the ambulance. After setting the suitcase down, Du Heng turned to Cui Guanghai. "What, I can’t come back?"

Cui Guanghai was momentarily speechless. Just as he was about to speak, Lu Zhongjiang emerged with a group of people. Xiao Li and Xiao Liu hurried forward, took the luggage Du Heng was holding, and, along with Du Xuejing, began moving it towards Du Heng’s dormitory.

After everyone had exchanged warm greetings, the nurses wheeled Liu Amei to a prepared hospital room. Du Heng, Lu Zhongjiang, and Yu Haiting chatted and laughed as they headed towards Du Heng’s office.

As for Cui Guanghai, who trailed behind them, no one paid him any attention.

Cui Guanghai had tried to assert his authority the moment Du Heng returned, and Du Heng was thoroughly displeased. He considered the Health Clinic his domain. To be so blatantly challenged and have his subordinate berated on his own turf—it would be a miracle if he weren’t furious. He knew this kind of turf mentality wasn’t right, but annoyed was annoyed. His current demeanor was meant to send a clear message: This is my territory, and I’m back!

As for Lu Zhongjiang and Yu Haiting, they too had probably had their fill of Cui Guanghai’s high-handedness. With Du Heng’s return, they completely ignored Cui Guanghai, eagerly accompanying Du Heng to his office.

Cui Guanghai’s face alternated between livid and flushed. He stood rooted to the spot for a long time. Only when Du Heng’s figure had completely disappeared from sight did he grind his teeth and mutter, "Let’s see how long you can keep up this arrogance. We’ll just wait and see."