Chapter 14: Let Me Treat You to Some Meat Soup

“Then why didn’t you speak up from the beginning?” Luo Dongqiang sized up the young doctor before him.

Fang Zhiyan looked up. “Because I couldn’t compete with them. I just started here the day before yesterday, still an intern.”

Luo Dongqiang nodded, and Tang Ya beside him showed her agreement as well. He seemed like an honest person.

“I had someone check at the pharmacy to confirm it was you who saved my daughter. That’s why I came to find you, wanting to thank you properly,” Luo Dongqiang said slowly.

“So, tell me, what do you want?” he added.

A string of question marks flashed through Fang Zhiyan’s mind.

What kind of question was that? How was he supposed to answer?

Money?

Power?

Or should he just pretend to refuse?

According to Yin Jing, the girl he saved, Luo Jing, was the mayor’s daughter. But this man in front of him hadn’t revealed his identity. How could Fang Zhiyan ask for anything?

To be honest, in these times, doctors weren’t scrutinized so strictly. Taking red envelopes and such was quite common.

Fang Zhiyan hesitated, then asked, “Who are you?”

Luo Dongqiang remained silent. The woman beside him stood up.

“I’m Tang Ya, Luo Yun’s mother, and I work at the Jiang’an City Health Bureau,” she said.

“You saved my daughter’s life, so whatever you need, just say it.”

Fang Zhiyan blinked, a strange expression on his face.

So direct?

Really very direct.

It felt like a cliché from an urban feel-good novel.

But he didn’t need these clichés.

With the experience of a surgical expert from his previous life, Fang Zhiyan was confident he could provide a good life for his family. It was just a matter of time.

However, the surgical expert in his current life had one glaring flaw: he was still an intern doctor without a practicing physician’s license.

An idea sparked in Fang Zhiyan’s mind.

“Are you really from the Jiang’an City Health Bureau?”

“Yes,” Tang Ya nodded, her eyes unreadable.

“Then could you arrange for me to skip one year of work experience and take the practicing physician’s exam this year directly?”

The exam required one year of internship — a strict rule that severely limited Fang Zhiyan’s ability to apply his surgical expertise.

If he could bypass this period and take the exam directly, he wouldn’t be so constrained.

For others, this might be difficult.

But for Tang Ya, it wasn’t a big deal.

Besides, it wasn’t cheating — just skipping a year of internship.

The request was almost ridiculously mild.

Tang Ya raised an eyebrow and asked, “Is that all?”

“That’s all.” Fang Zhiyan nodded. He didn’t even know if she would agree.

After all...

“I agree,” Tang Ya said casually before Fang Zhiyan had fully formed the thought.

“Since you saved my daughter, I’ll approve your request and help you register.”

Fang Zhiyan felt a surge of joy.

As long as he could take the exam smoothly, he was certain he could pass and get his license.

Then he’d move from intern to resident doctor — a huge step forward.

“Thank you,” Fang Zhiyan smiled broadly, then looked at Luo Yun.

She had a scar on her temple, stitched by Cao Chong.

Though Cao Chong was careful, his technique was rough compared to Fang Zhiyan’s.

“Don’t worry about the scar on your temple, or the one on your abdomen,” Fang Zhiyan said.

“I made the abdominal incision myself, and I know that kind of wound, once sutured, leaves almost no scar.”

“As for the temple wound, after the stitches come out, you can use scar removal ointment and tension-relieving care. It should give you a result you’ll be satisfied with.”

Hearing this, Luo Yun’s face brightened with surprise.

“Really? I won’t have a scar?”

“Of course not. Young people’s healing abilities are strong,” Fang Zhiyan explained.

Though she didn’t say it aloud, she clearly cared about this.

If there was a scar on her belly, people might assume she had a C-section when she got married.

Of course, that was a joke Fang Zhiyan kept to himself.

If he said it out loud, these two definitely wouldn’t let him off easily.

After comforting Luo Yun, Fang Zhiyan left the ward.

The night shift went smoothly. Aside from a few emergency cases earlier, there were no other patients.

During his shift, Fang Zhiyan also pulled out some books to study.

If Tang Ya really helped him register, he needed to prepare for the exam.

By the time it reached 2 a.m., it was time for the night shift handover.

After finishing the handover, Fang Zhiyan left the hospital.

He returned home still in the early morning hours. His mother and younger sister were asleep.

He didn’t make a sound and lay down on the sofa, falling asleep fully clothed.

Early the next morning, seeing Fang Zhiyan already home, Jiang Xu and Fang Zhixia didn’t disturb him.

They each carefully went about their own tasks — one went to school, the other began work.

By the time Fang Zhiyan woke up, it was noon.

When he opened the door, he heard voices outside.

“Keep this broth for yourselves. No need to be so polite.”

“Dr. Fang saved my brother’s life; it’s the least I can do.”

The voices stopped abruptly as they saw Fang Zhiyan.

“Teacher Xu?” Fang Zhiyan was surprised. Why was Xu Qiushuang at his home?

“Dr. Fang, I came to thank you,” Xu Qiushuang said, a flicker of nervousness in her eyes as she held up a food container.

“This is soup I made for my brother, but his esophagus is injured, so he can’t drink it. I’m bringing it to you, to help you recover.”

“Thank you for last night. I asked Dr. Cui, and he said if it weren’t for your method, my brother would have needed open-chest surgery.”

Upon hearing this, understanding dawned on Fang Zhiyan’s face.

“No need to mention it. I’m a doctor — saving lives is my duty.”

“No, no. I saw how hard you worked on the night shift. This soup is specially made for you. Please take care of your health.”

With that, Xu Qiushuang set down the container and turned to leave in a flash.

“Wait, Teacher Xu?” Fang Zhiyan called after her, confused.

Jiang Xu, standing nearby, smiled and said, “Zhiyan, what do you think of Teacher Xu?”

“Mom?” Fang Zhiyan rolled his eyes.

He knew exactly what his mother was thinking.

But his main goal now was to give his family a better life, not to pursue romance.

He shook his head, took the soup, and went to his room.

The fragrant broth was a rare treat — hard to get otherwise.

Jiang Xu followed him in, smiling.

“Our Zhiyan is quite the handsome young man, someone’s taken a liking to him.”

Fang Zhiyan said nothing.

At that moment, footsteps sounded outside.

The door was pushed open, and Fang Zhiyan’s older brother, Fang Bei, walked in.