Chapter 49 Exchanging Medical Skills

Leading the way was none other than Jiang Xiaoman.

Right behind her followed Zhao Weiguo, Lin Xiaoyue, Li Weidong, Wang Qiang, Sun Fang, and other educated youth.

Clearly, they had also caught wind of the news and rushed over specially to watch the excitement.

"Make way! Everyone make way!"

Jiang Xiaoman’s shoulder-length short hair swayed slightly with her movements. Relying on her agility, she wriggled her way through the cracks of the crowd.

When she saw Zhou Yichen being clustered in the center by everyone like a hero, a brilliant, proud-by-association smile instantly bloomed on her cute baby face.

That was her buddy! Her childhood friend!

Yet, in the very next second, when her gaze landed on the dirt and stains on Zhou Yichen’s face and hair, her smile froze instantly, replaced entirely by deep heartache.

"Yichen!"

"Are you alright? How did you end up in such a state?"

Jiang Xiaoman walked up to Zhou Yichen and asked with concern.

Looking at her like this, Zhou Yichen felt a warmth in his heart, and even his fatigue seemed to dissipate quite a bit.

He smiled, raised his hand, and gently patted her head.

"What are you making a fuss about for? Aren't I right here, safe and sound?"

"I'm just a bit exhausted."

Seeing the crowd growing larger and larger, Zhou Yichen knew this place was no longer suitable for a prolonged stay.

Catching sight of Accountant Li in the crowd, he quickly raised his voice and called out.

"Accountant Li! I need a favor!"

Accountant Li was looking at him with a face full of admiration and immediately hurried over upon hearing this. "Yichen, what is it? Tell me!"

"That bicycle belonging to the production team—could I trouble you to return it for me?"

Zhou Yichen pointed at the heavy-duty bicycle parked not far away.

"I need to accompany Uncle Sun on a trip, so I won't be riding it back."

"Oh! Is that all!" Accountant Li patted his chest so hard it thumped loudly. "Don't you worry! Leave this to me! Hurry back and get some rest; you've certainly worked yourself to the bone today!"

"Then thank you so much, Accountant Li."

Expressing his gratitude, Zhou Yichen did not delay any further. He took the pork—wrapped securely in oiled paper—off the bicycle, and amid the adulation of the crowd, walked out of the livestock shed alongside Dr. Sun and Jiang Xiaoman.

Along the way, Jiang Xiaoman trotted by Zhou Yichen's side, her mouth still chattering away incessantly.

"Just look at you! You can barely even raise your arm, can you? What were you showing off for?"

"That's an ox! What if it had given you a kick? Would you still want this hand of yours?"

"If there's ever anything like this again, you are forbidden from stepping up!"

Zhou Yichen merely smiled without refuting, letting her scold him while feeling a profound sense of peace within his heart.

He turned his head slightly, looked at the curious Dr. Sun beside him, and introduced with a smile:

"Uncle Sun, this is Jiang Xiaoman, my childhood friend, we grew up together."

Then, turning to Jiang Xiaoman, he said, "Xiaoman, let me introduce you. This is Dr. Sun from the neighboring Red Flag Production Brigade. His medical skills are exceptionally brilliant, and I was just about to seek some guidance from him."

Hearing that he was a doctor and a senior whom Zhou Yichen sought advice from, Jiang Xiaoman immediately put away her fierce expression and greeted him politely.

"Hello, Uncle Sun."

Dr. Sun responded with a hearty chuckle, his eyes darting between Zhou Yichen and Jiang Xiaoman as if he had seen through something, the smile on his face carrying a meaningful undertone.

"Good girl, good girl."

These two youngsters were probably far more than just simple childhood friends.

Jiang Xiaoman had thin skin; being looked at like that by the elderly man, she lowered her head in bashful embarrassment.

Zhou Yichen, on the other hand, maintained his usual composure as if he knew nothing at all.

When it came to matters of the heart, he preferred to let things take their natural course, needing no earth-shattering spectacles.

Leading the two of them through the bustling crowd, he headed toward his small courtyard.

"Uncle Sun, the courtyard assigned to me by the production team is just ahead. It's a bit humble, so please don't mind it."

"What are you talking about!" Dr. Sun waved his hand dismissively, completely unconcerned. "Having a place to shield us from wind and rain is already wonderful enough. Back in the famine years, being able to sleep under a straw shed was considered a blessing!"

Before long, the three of them arrived at the destination.

"Xiaoman, you keep Uncle Sun company in the courtyard for a moment. I'm far too filthy; I need to go clean myself up."

Zhou Yichen pointed at the damp stains still clinging to his clothes and gave a wry smile.

"Go on, go on! Hurry up and go!" Jiang Xiaoman waved her hands repeatedly, shooing him away like a fly. "Look at how filthy you are, the stench is practically drifting off you!"

Chuckling, Zhou Yichen made his apologies to Dr. Sun, then grabbed a clean set of clothes, a towel, and a thermos bottle to wash up briefly.

Mixing boiling water in a bucket to create warm water, Zhou Yichen took a hurried rinse. Following the cleaning, a refreshing sensation that washed away both the grime and exhaustion spread through every bone and joint of his body.

By the time he emerged wearing a clean set of cotton-padded clothes, his entire demeanor appeared much more spirited.

Meanwhile, a fragrant aroma of food was already drifting from the kitchen.

Jiang Xiaoman was busy in front of the earthen stove, while Uncle Sun stood with his hands behind his back, examining the medicinal herbs Zhou Yichen had laid out to dry under the eaves.

Stepping into the kitchen, Zhou Yichen said to Jiang Xiaoman, "Xiaoman, let me take over."

"Shoo, shoo, shoo!"

Without even turning her head, Jiang Xiaoman nudged him away with her elbow.

"You're the great hero today, so just honestly rest for a moment! Hurry up and host Uncle Sun, don't neglect our guest!"

Knowing he couldn't easily squeeze into the kitchen workspace, Zhou Yichen walked back outside to attend to Dr. Sun.

He led Dr. Sun onto the *kang* (heated brick bed) and poured two bowls of hot water.

In the Heilongjiang region, whenever guests arrived, people loved inviting them onto the *kang*, where it stayed warm and cozy.

Zhou Yichen naturally followed local customs.

"Uncle Sun, have some water."

"Ah."

Holding the warm bowl, Dr. Sun glanced toward the kitchen, then looked back at the steady and composed young man before him, unable to help his sigh of admiration.

"Yichen, you certainly have quite a blessing."

Zhou Yichen smiled without taking up the thread, smoothly steering the conversation toward the matter he cared about most.

"Uncle Sun, speaking of which, while reading these past few days, I happened to come across a medicinal formula using dandelion and honeysuckle to treat boils and carbuncles. But the book explained it too generally, and I always felt that the principles of monarch, minister, assistant, and guide, along with the dosages, couldn't possibly be that simple."

His inquiry was extremely natural, sounding both like an accidental casual chat and carrying a sincere earnestness for humble learning.

Hearing this, Dr. Sun instantly perked up.

"Ah! You've hit the nail right on the head!"

Setting his water bowl down, he slapped his thigh.

"Books are dead, but people are alive! Boils and carbuncles come in several varieties—there are yang syndromes and yin syndromes, early-stage ones and those that have already ulcerated. The methods of medication are entirely different! Take dandelion, for instance. If you're treating the initial redness, swelling, heat, and pain of a yang syndrome, you have to use it fresh, pound it roots and all into a mash for external application, and only then will the effect be truly good..."

Dr. Sun completely opened the floodgates of conversation. His decades of medical practice experience seemed to have found an outlet, and he began lecturing endlessly.

Zhou Yichen nodded repeatedly as he listened, his face filled with total concentration while his heart rejoiced endlessly.

Because his medical skill proficiency was steadily and continuously ticking upward.

[Medical Skill: LV1 (937/1000)]

[Medical Skill: LV1 (938/1000)]

……