This night was destined to be a sleepless one.
Li Liping didn’t go back; Xu Qian had insisted she stay the night. This completely eliminated Wang Jian’s last chance. His opportunity to get closer to his sister-in-law and find out what she was thinking was gone. To his surprise, an even bigger problem arose after the two won finished crying.
Not only did Xu Qian ignore him, but Li Liping did as well.
The sudden feeling of isolation was deeply unsettling, so much so that he couldn’t sleep peacefully. The night passed in a daze. In the middle of it, he could even hear won laughing downstairs, though he had no idea what they were talking about.
The next morning, Wang Jian got up as usual and went to the courtyard to wash his face and brush his teeth, but he quickly realized the kitchen was empty. He rushed to check the room on the first floor and found his sister-in-law’s door tightly shut. How late did those two talk last night? They still aren’t up... This isn’t like them at all. Does this an no one’s making breakfast?
However, Wang Jian had lived alone for a long ti. If no one was going to make him breakfast, he would simply do it himself.
But as he opened the refrigerator, his heart sank. The fridge was nearly empty. There was only a single, solitary egg left—just like him.
Normally, his sister-in-law would have already gone to the Red Star Village market to buy fresh ingredients and at, and she would have been back by now. But Wang Jian had gotten up too late today, making it too late to go to the market. A round trip to Red Star Village would be pointless now. All the good, fresh vegetables and at would have been bought long ago, so there was no reason to go.
In the end, Wang Jian could only quickly fry the one egg. After eating it, his stomach felt just as empty as before.
Still feeling a bit hungry and spiritless, Wang Jian walked slowly toward the clinic. Just as he stepped out the door, he turned his head and saw Liu Zi erging from the widow’s house. The guy was beaming, looking so pleased with himself that you’d think he hadn’t slept all night.
The problem was, Liu Zi was also carrying breakfast, and it definitely wasn’t homade—it was obviously brought back from the market. This imdiately caught Wang Jian’s attention. He couldn’t help it; he had no motivation when he was hungry in the morning.
Feeling annoyed, Wang Jian couldn’t help but call out, "Liu Zi! You just recovered. Didn’t I tell you to take it easy? Have you forgotten already? Why did you stay the night again?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Zi imdiately flashed a big smile. "Doctor Wang, good morning! Don’t get wrong, I didn’t do *that*. I just ca over this morning to bring her so breakfast. You know won. She said she missed last night, so I ca over early to give her a hug. That’s all. Heh heh."
After speaking, he even held up the buns and soy milk for Wang Jian to see. Wang Jian’s eyebrow twitched; he felt like Liu Zi was mocking him.
But Liu Zi was sharp-eyed. Noticing Wang Jian’s gaze lingering on the breakfast in his hand, he quickly handed it over, saying politely, "You’re heading to the clinic so early, you probably haven’t had breakfast, right? That won’t do."
"I just bought this from Mr. Peng’s place in Red Star Village. It’s still warm. If you don’t mind, take it."
Actually, Liu Zi had only bought enough for three people. He gave two portions to the widow and her child, keeping only a few small stead buns and a soy milk for himself—he was still hungry too. But if it hadn’t been for Wang Jian’s advice last ti, he might have been ruined. If a man’s most important part is broken, life is worse than death. Considering that debt of gratitude, giving away so breakfast was no big deal.
Liu Zi didn’t give Wang Jian a chance to refuse and simply pushed it into his hands.
"Thanks, then."
Wang Jian didn’t stand on ceremony and imdiately began stuffing the small stead buns into his mouth.
He had often eaten these small stead buns and soy milk when he was a student up in the mountains. The person running this business was the wife of Mr. Peng, his elentary school Chinese teacher. She would get up very early every morning just for this, and Mr. Peng would occasionally help out. When Wang Jian was in school, he would pass through Red Star Village on his way and often buy so for breakfast.
So, this was a taste of his childhood...
Moreover, Mr. Peng’s family didn’t just sell small stead buns and regular buns; they also had wontons, ensuring that nobody in the neighborhood had a problem getting breakfast. They sold out every single day; business was very good.
"Hmm. I feel like it doesn’t taste as good as it did when I was a kid," Wang Jian remarked. "Maybe my standards are too high now?"
Liu Zi chuckled. "Hey, it’s been almost thirty years, and the price of Mr. Peng’s buns has barely gone up. You should be grateful."
"That’s true."
When Wang Jian heard the price hadn’t changed, he was stunned. No wonder it felt like there was less at in the buns. He rembered the red bean buns he loved most as a child, the ones shaped like little pillows. Even though there wasn’t much red bean paste inside, they were truly delicious.
It had been pure bliss to eat a stear basket of them on his way to school every morning.
He hadn’t eaten them in nearly a decade. Though the taste wasn’t exactly as he rembered, eating them now still brought back so of that old feeling.
Wang Jian said with emotion, "Even though I used to buy them all the ti as a kid, this must be the first ti I’ve had them in over ten years."
"Well, think about it..." Liu Zi did the math. "You’ve been gone for eight years, so you couldn’t have eaten them even if you wanted to. But breakfast must be a lot better out there, right? The Capital has all kinds of breakfast from all over the place, so you have plenty of choices."
"There are many options, that’s true," Wang Jian nodded, adding, "but breakfast out there is a different story. It’s expensive, and it’s hard to find anything decent. Ten yuan for breakfast is considered cheap, and a single at bun costs three yuan."
After a pause, Wang Jian asked, "By the way, how much are Mr. Peng’s big at buns now?"
Liu Zi replied instantly, "Fifty cents."
"Fifty cents..." Wang Jian sighed. "The price of a single bun in the Capital City could buy six of these."
"Well, that’s the big city for you."
This was the first ti Wang Jian had a real chat like this with Liu Zi since coming back. They had been in the sa elentary school but had drifted apart after taking different paths in life. Still, when it ca to mories of the village, they found they had a lot to talk about. Now that Wang Jian was a doctor and Liu Zi was technically his patient, the barrier between them had lessened considerably.
They walked toward the village entrance together. By the ti they nearly reached it, Wang Jian had finished his breakfast and felt a sense of comfort spread through his body. A morning without a full stomach makes for a lackluster day; without a good breakfast, the entire day feels off.
"Oh, right," Liu Zi said suddenly as they walked. "Are you still doing the free clinic today?"
"What’s up?"
When people asked questions like that, there was usually more to it, so Wang Jian didn’t answer directly. For anyone else, he might have been straightforward, but with Liu Zi, he had to be cautious.
"I was just wondering if you were free. See, I have a girlfriend who’s been feeling a bit under the weather. She’s from the town and knows a lot of people, so she’s embarrassed to go to the hospital. I thought maybe she could co see you," Liu Zi explained with a smile. "I’m only asking because if you’re still doing the free clinic, you obviously wouldn’t have ti. But if it’s over, I can bring her by today. I haven’t been in the village much recently, so I honestly don’t know if it’s done or not."
Since it concerned another woman, Liu Zi, with his understanding of them, knew he couldn’t ask the widow, so he asked Wang Jian directly.
This Liu Zi certainly has his thods. Hearing him ntion ’a girlfriend,’ I know what he’s up to. From his tone, he’s not just two-timing; this guy is ruthless.
As for the request itself, Wang Jian saw no reason to avoid it. "It ended yesterday at noon," he said frankly. "If you think it’s a good idea, bring her over."
"Great!"
Ever since his own personal issue was resolved, Liu Zi’s faith in Wang Jian’s dical skills had soared. If he ever had a tricky health problem and going to the hospital was inconvenient, he was confident that coming to Wang Jian was the right choice.
Wang Jian asked, "What’s the situation, exactly? Tell beforehand. For won’s health issues, I might not be able to treat everything here. If it’s sothing that can’t be delayed, I’ll tell you to go straight to a major hospital."
After Wang Jian spoke, Liu Zi seed to search his mory. "It shouldn’t be anything serious," he said.
"Whether it’s serious or not isn’t for you to decide," Wang Jian interjected cautiously. "A woman’s ailnts can be simple, but they can also be extrely complicated. So symptoms might seem ordinary, but the underlying problem could be complex and severe. That’s why when you go to a doctor, it’s best to be objective when describing your symptoms."
"Alright!"
Liu Zi nodded, took out his phone, glanced at WeChat, and then simply handed it to Wang Jian. "You’d better just read it yourself. I’m too lazy to explain."
Wang Jian was speechless. He glanced at the ssages on the phone and saw it was more or less what he’d expected. A woman too embarrassed to go to the hospital, afraid of being seen by acquaintances, was likely dealing with a problem of *that* nature.
In their chat history, besides her ntioning that she was a bit itchy ’down there’ and wanted to see a doctor, the sa screen also showed ssages where she called him ’Daddy’. These two really knew how to play.
No, it was Liu Zi who was the player.
Wang Jian looked at Liu Zi with suspicion, wondering if the man had caught sothing himself.
For a mont, Wang Jian was filled with regret. Should I have eaten that breakfast?
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