Chapter 22

“Since you have a medical qualification certificate, you should take the medical school entrance exam. If you pass, you’ll be able to enter the Military Medical University smoothly.”

In the village, treating patients made you a barefoot doctor. Having a medical qualification certificate would make it even better.

Hearing the wives speak so enthusiastically and helpfully, Lu Zhiyao felt quite happy. She thanked everyone and then called over the children nearby to give them some of the snacks she had made.

After tasting the snacks, the children nodded vigorously.

“Mommy, mommy, this auntie’s snacks taste so good!”

“Really delicious! Mommy, can you learn how to make them too?”

“Yeah! Yeah! Mommy, please learn how to make them. We want to eat some too!”

…

The children chattered excitedly. Lu Zhiyao handed out the remaining snacks to them and said, “Eat more. If you like them, I’ll make more for you in the future.”

After speaking, she greeted the military wives and took the two kids home first.

The children behind were still chattering. Some of the military wives tapped their children’s heads and scolded:

“Eat, eat, eat! Eat what, huh?”

“You think it’s something you can just casually eat? Do you know how much sugar and oil went into those snacks?”

They usually cooked and cleaned at home and sometimes did light work at the base. So of course, they knew exactly what went into those snacks.

Without oil and sugar, how could they smell so good?

To them, those two ingredients were relatively expensive, so anything made with them would taste great.

Like a universal dipping sauce in the future—
Even if you dipped a shoe sole in it, it would still taste amazing!

After bringing the two children home, Lu Zhiyao made them a good meal. As they happily ate, she began to ponder.

From what the wives said, it was true—she could take the entrance exam for the Military Medical University.

But once she got in, she’d have to attend school, which would take a long time. There’d be no one to look after the kids.

She could technically leave the kids in her space and just say they were playing at home. But if they were home for too long without anyone seeing them, it might arouse suspicion.

Some wives might worry and come over to check. If they found out the truth, she wouldn’t be able to explain.

The military base kindergarten only accepted kids over three years old. Her two little ones were still nearly a year away from that age.

If she waited for them to be old enough for the kindergarten and then took the exam, Mu Qingyuan might already be back by then.

She really wanted to finish everything she needed to do before he returned.

Lu Zhiyao felt conflicted.

Even so, life had to go on. That afternoon, while out shopping for groceries, she ran into Huang Meimei.

“I heard from the wives this morning that you were asking around in the family compound, wanting to attend the Military Medical University and become a military doctor?”

Huang Meimei was a straightforward person. If she heard something, she’d just ask directly—no beating around the bush, no scheming behind people’s backs.

“Yes, I want to become a military doctor. I used to be a barefoot doctor, and I want to do something meaningful while also improving my skills.”

Lu Zhiyao lowered her head and pretended to be shy. “After all, I’m a military wife too. I don’t want to embarrass my husband.”

Hearing that, Huang Meimei burst out laughing.

“Of course! I totally get it. I used to want to lose weight so I’d look better and not embarrass my husband—but no matter what I did, I couldn’t slim down!”

After sighing, she added, “But I think you can definitely do it. Military Medical University allows students to skip grades. Did the other wives tell you that?”

“Huh?”

Lu Zhiyao was momentarily stunned. The wives hadn’t mentioned that earlier, so she was quite surprised.

“As long as you’re capable enough, and your grades are good, you can skip ahead if you can complete the next level’s curriculum.”

“I think you’re pretty smart. Maybe you really could skip a grade. That way, you’ll finish your studies sooner and get to the military district faster.”

Huang Meimei had genuine confidence in Lu Zhiyao.

Lu Zhiyao couldn’t help but laugh. She turned and asked with a smile, “Do you really think I’m that amazing?”

“Yes! If it were someone else saying these things, I’d think they were bragging. But when you say it, it feels real—and I believe you can do it!”

Even though Huang Meimei couldn’t say exactly why, she just had faith in Lu Zhiyao.

Lu Zhiyao nodded.

The two of them bought groceries together and ran into several other military wives on the way back. They all smiled and greeted her warmly.

Back at home, Lu Zhiyao seriously considered her options. If skipping grades was really possible, she would definitely go for it.

In her past life, she was a highly skilled surgeon. Passing an ordinary entrance exam was nothing for her.

Skipping grades wouldn’t be a problem either. The medical knowledge she had learned before was far more detailed and complex than anything taught in this era. If she could handle that back then, why not now?

Having thought it through, Lu Zhiyao smiled faintly.

Little Bao, after finishing dinner, saw her smiling like that and tugged at her clothes, asking seriously, “Mommy, why are you so happy? Did something good happen?”

Lu Zhiyao gently pinched her little cheek. “Yes, Mommy’s very happy because something good did happen.”

“Can Mommy share it with us?”

Both Da Bao and Xiao Bao stared at her eagerly. Lu Zhiyao stroked their hair and told them about her plan to attend the Military Medical University.

“So Mommy’s going back to school?”

“Wow, Mommy, you’re amazing! We support you and hope you become a great doctor!”

Hearing their cute little voices, Lu Zhiyao felt even more fond of them. She hugged the two kids and said, “Let’s live happily here and wait for Daddy to come back, okay?”

“Okay! We’ll wait for Daddy!”

The two little ones nodded in unison. Lu Zhiyao smiled at their adorable faces, gave each of them a playful pinch, and let them go off to play while she went into the kitchen to wash dishes.

Now that she understood the rules of the Military Medical University, Lu Zhiyao got up early the next day, placed the kids in her space, and went to the university’s gate.

There, she explained her situation and learned more about the rules.

She was pleasantly surprised—the university was very accommodating. They held admissions every six months, and the new semester was just about to begin.

Her timing was perfect.

As long as she could pass the entrance exam before the new term started, she could enroll and study with the new cohort.

“Can I go in?” she asked.

The gate guard went inside briefly. When he returned, he asked her to show identification.

After verifying that she was a military spouse, the guard escorted her in to meet the admissions officer.

The admissions officer was a woman in her 40s, surnamed Xu.

“You want to take the entrance exam?” Xu Wenxiu adjusted her black-rimmed glasses. “Do you have a medical qualification certificate? Or any basic knowledge? You’ll need to complete a basic assessment first.”

“If you can’t even handle the basics, you won’t be allowed to take the entrance exam.”

Lu Zhiyao nodded. “I do have a medical qualification certificate, but I’m also happy to take the basic exam.”

She knew this requirement was just to filter out those with zero background.

Xu Wenxiu didn’t say much more. She stepped out and soon returned with a test paper, some paper, and a pen.

“You have half an hour to complete this basic test. I’ll come back to check it afterward. If you meet the requirements, return in three days for the entrance exam.”