Chapter 32

“He Ting, look at Lu Baiwei, she doesn’t want me to sit on your bike.”

He Yan was eager to sit on the front rack of the bike, as that would mean He Ting would have to half-hug her, holding her close.

Lu Baiwei remained still, and she turned to He Ting to complain.

Facing He Yan, who was trying to climb onto the front rack, He Ting kept his hands firmly on the bike handlebars, showing no intention of letting her sit there.

He Yan signaled him with her eyes to move aside, but He Ting remained unmoved.

He Yan grew anxious!

She thought He Ting wanted her to climb on by herself.

Bending down, He Yan tried to slip into his arms to sit on the bike’s front rack.

“My wife doesn’t want it, so I don’t want it either.”

He Ting coldly spoke up: “This bike can only carry my wife.”

“No, why did you stop then?” He Yan protested.

She was about to continue arguing with He Ting and Lu Baiwei, but He Ting gave her a look as if she were foolish. He then began pedaling the bike, taking Lu Baiwei with him.

“He Ting, wait for me! Take me, take me, I’m going to be late for my exam…”

No matter how much He Yan shouted or chased after them, He Ting ignored her, pedaling faster.

He Yan was left behind, covered in dust, looking helpless.

Lu Baiwei was quite pleased with He Ting’s behavior, feeling that she had married a man who was very protective.

She chuckled softly, “Comrade He Ting, you’re really upholding manly virtue. Well done.”

Seeing that his wife was happy, He Ting smiled, feeling satisfied.

He Yan had been trying to steal his wife’s spot as the barefoot doctor for the brigade and still wanted him to help her? What was she thinking?

Pleased by Lu Baiwei’s compliment, He Ting’s lips curled into a small smile. “That deserves a reward.”

“A reward for what?”

Lu Baiwei held onto the back seat of the bike and playfully leaned her head forward to look at He Ting.

He Ting reminded her, “The road is bumpy, hold onto my waist, don’t fall off.”

Lu Baiwei obediently wrapped her hand around his waist. His waist was firm and lean.

It was so toned!

That was the word that came to Lu Baiwei’s mind as her hand rested on his waist.

The feeling of her heart racing returned as her hand touched his waist.

She still hadn’t figured out what kind of reward He Ting was asking for.

Lu Baiwei cleared her throat to mask her flustered feelings: “What reward do you want? After the exam, I’ll take you to the state-owned restaurant for a meal.”

Lu Baiwei cleared her throat to cover up her embarrassment. “What kind of reward do you want? After the exam, I’ll treat you to a meal at the state-run restaurant.”

“Hold my waist!”

He Ting was succinct.

Lu Baiwei didn’t understand. “What?”

“Your reward is to hold my waist!”

He Ting’s heart was racing, but his face remained serious. “Hmm, wife, how does it feel?”

“Cough, cough…”

Lu Baiwei’s face turned red, and she nearly choked on her own saliva.

What kind of bold words were these?

Wait—was this a reward for her?

Or was she the one rewarding He Ting?

Lu Baiwei was completely confused.

No matter how confused she was, she felt like the man in front of her had tricked her.

This man wasn’t as pure as she thought.

He really knew how to flirt…

Lu Baiwei and He Ting arrived too early and sat outside the county hospital.

It was a while before Lu Baiwei entered the exam hall, and only then did He Yan, panting and out of breath, arrive at the exam location.

“Sorry, teacher, I’m late.”

Sunshine Brigade was quite far from the county town, and it took about an hour on foot to get there.

Fearing she’d be late, He Yan had run all the way to the county, almost losing a shoe in the process, and even sprained her ankle from running too fast.

She could no longer maintain her gentle appearance, and when she spoke about her late arrival, she shot an angry glare at Lu Baiwei.

“I worked as a nurse before I went to the countryside. Some people are afraid I’ll do better than them on the exam, so even though we came together to take the exam, they wouldn’t give me a ride.”

He Yan said angrily, “These people won’t even help with a small favor. How could someone like that become a barefoot doctor and save lives?”

The invigilator, who had been distributing the exam papers to people from different brigades, frowned and looked at Lu Baiwei after hearing He Yan’s words.

Everyone in the exam room turned their attention to Lu Baiwei.

As a doctor, the most important thing was medical ethics. Lu Baiwei didn’t care much about other things, but He Yan’s words were clearly aimed at blocking her from becoming a barefoot doctor. She wasn’t going to stand for it.

“He Yan, my husband carried me to the county for the exam, and we only had one bicycle. How could he have carried you?”

Lu Baiwei retorted, “You’re a young, unmarried woman. Do you expect to sit on my husband’s bike rack?”

Lu Baiwei retorted, “Are you suggesting that a young, unmarried educated youth like you should sit on my husband’s bicycle rack?”

“You’d like to sit there, but my husband thinks it’s inappropriate for a pure, unmarried young woman like you,” she added, directly confronting He Yan.

He Yan, embarrassed, didn’t dare to admit that she wanted to push Lu Baiwei aside and take her place on the back of the bike.

Someone from another brigade who was there for the exam couldn’t help but chuckle.

Seeing that He Yan could no longer come up with anything to say, Lu Baiwei kindly reminded her, “Knowing you were coming for the exam, He Yan, you should’ve set out earlier.”

“Being a doctor and saving lives is about acting swiftly and efficiently,” Lu Baiwei continued. “Without a sense of time, He Yan, how could you be a good barefoot doctor?”

“You—”

He Yan was momentarily speechless, unable to respond to Lu Baiwei’s sharp words.

The invigilator, sensing the personal conflict between the two, intervened before it could disrupt the exam. “Alright, it’s time for the exam to begin. If anyone isn’t interested in taking the test, please leave. Don’t disrupt the others.”

He Yan had no choice but to step back.

Lu Baiwei didn’t let the exchange bother her. She took her exam paper and immediately began to write.

In a month’s time, she had memorized the barefoot doctor manual thoroughly. With the experience she had accumulated from accompanying her grandfather on medical visits and herb collecting, the medical knowledge in the exam was simple for her.

Lu Baiwei finished the entire paper in half the time, but instead of submitting it early, she carefully checked her answers.

Once the theory portion was done, someone immediately began grading the papers.

Those who passed the theory exam would proceed to the next practical exam.

Only those who passed both rounds would receive the barefoot doctor certification.

Although Lu Baiwei had scored a perfect score on the theory exam, He Yan was still skeptical about the practical portion, thinking that Lu Baiwei might not perform as well as she did.

After all, He Yan had worked as a temporary nurse in a hospital before coming to the countryside.

However, when the practical exam came, whether it was dressing wounds or giving injections, Lu Baiwei performed excellently and even demonstrated her skill with silver needles.

The invigilator, impressed by Lu Baiwei’s perfect performance in both the theory and practical exams, was curious about her background. Upon hearing that her grandfather was a traditional Chinese medicine doctor, he added a special question on using silver needles, which Lu Baiwei also excelled at, successfully performing an emergency treatment on a patient who had fainted from heatstroke.

The senior doctor who was in charge of the exam pulled Lu Baiwei aside. “When you came to the exam, I recognized you as Dr. Tang’s granddaughter. You came with him to the county before.”

“I noticed back then that you were a calm and composed young girl. Turns out, you’re really suited for this work. You’ve learned your grandfather’s needle techniques very well.”

Lu Baiwei modestly replied, “Dr. Shen, you flatter me. I’ve only learned a little bit.”

“There’s no end to learning, especially in Chinese medicine. It’s good that you, as a young person, are so humble,” Dr. Shen said.

“You’ve passed the county hospital exam by exception and have become an honorary barefoot doctor.”

“Little girl, I have high hopes for you. For the next half month, you’ll intern with me at the county hospital.”