As it turned out, no matter how scattered the disaster relief sites were, the people destined to meet would still cross paths.
By the time Song Ning and the others arrived back in Gaoping, dusk was approaching.
Compared to the previous day, the resettlement site was noticeably more crowded.
The moment they entered the village, several groups of soldiers stopped Han Xiao to discuss various matters.
Song Ning said she could return to her lodging on her own. Han Xiao and Chen Liang didn’t stand on ceremony. After reminding her to get some proper rest, they immediately threw themselves back into the relief effort.
As she approached the farmhouse being used by the medical team, she spotted Zheng Chang’an pacing anxiously outside the entrance, occasionally peering inside.
“Dr. Zheng, you’re back in Gaoping too?” Song Ning called out from a distance.
The moment Zheng Chang’an saw her, he hurried over. He first grabbed her shoulders and looked her up and down before speaking.
“Dr. Song, are you alright? They said you got caught in the mudslide! I nearly had a heart attack when I heard!”
“I’m fine. A close call, but no real danger. I’m perfectly okay.”
Her tone was so calm and ordinary that it sounded nothing like someone who had narrowly escaped death in a mudslide.
Zheng Chang’an scratched his head.
For a moment, he wondered whether all his worrying throughout the day had been unnecessary.
He even began reflecting on whether his concern had sounded overly dramatic and whether Song Ning might think less of him because of it.
Song Ning had no time to pay attention to his reaction.
She was exhausted and hungry and only wanted to sit down and rest.
“Let’s go inside first.”
Then she asked,
“What were you pacing around for out here?”
Zheng Chang’an immediately glanced toward the house again and nervously pulled her aside.
“How about… you go somewhere else for a while?”
Song Ning looked puzzled.
Lowering his voice, Zheng Chang’an said,
“There’s a medical dispute.”
“A medical dispute?”
Song Ning’s eyes widened.
Hearing that term in such a remote mountain village felt strangely out of place.
“Who’s causing trouble? Surely not for me?” she said with a laugh.
Zheng Chang’an frowned.
“Why don’t you believe me?”
As he spoke, he pulled her beside the doorway and gestured for her to listen.
At that moment, Dr. Feng’s voice came from inside.
His tone was careful but helpless.
“Comrade, you can’t put it that way. Under the emergency circumstances yesterday, we provided the best treatment possible. You saw for yourself how limited the conditions here are…”
“Limited conditions are no excuse!”
The speaker was a woman.
Her voice was sharp and furious.
“This is an extremely irresponsible attitude toward the patient! If the conditions are inadequate and the medical skills insufficient, then the patient should have been transferred somewhere with proper facilities. Instead, you gave him this kind of perfunctory treatment! This could seriously affect the rest of his life!”
Song Ning turned to Zheng Chang’an.
“What’s going on?”
He lowered his voice.
“The guy with the leg injury from last night… He developed a fever today. His family came and insists it’s our fault, saying we didn’t treat him properly.”
The moment Song Ning heard that, her temper flared.
She strode straight inside and declared loudly,
“Family member, is it? I treated him. If you have a problem, take it up with me!”
Her sudden appearance brought the heated argument to an abrupt halt.
Compared to the day before, Song Ning’s white coat was no longer recognizable as white.
After being soaked by rain, it was wrinkled and stained.
Her hair, which had never fully dried, clung damply to her scalp.
Despite her disheveled appearance, her eyes remained sharp and determined, and her voice carried unwavering confidence.
The people inside couldn’t help freezing for a moment.
“Oh, so you’re the half-baked doctor, are you? Finally decided to show yourself?”
The woman immediately redirected her hostility toward Song Ning.
When Song Ning saw her, however, she was somewhat surprised.
The person making such a scene was actually a female military doctor wearing a military cap and a white coat.
Beside her stood another woman dressed similarly.
The two stood in the middle of the room, completely ignoring the row of patients lying nearby, glaring aggressively at a group of doctors much older than themselves.
Song Ning’s first thought was—
A military doctor?
With manners like that, how did she even get into the army?
“What? Nothing to say now?” the female military doctor sneered. “Do you think staying silent will help you escape responsibility?”
Song Ning let out a cold laugh.
“You’re a military doctor?”
The other woman immediately spoke up.
“Hmph! Sister Yuting is a formally appointed military doctor with official credentials.”
Dr. Feng quickly whispered from the side,
“These two just arrived. One is Military Doctor Chen, and the other is Nurse Zhang.”
The military doctor named Chen Yuting spoke arrogantly.
“I know most of you aren’t professionals. Since you’re not professionals, you should at least remain humble and cautious. You can’t treat patients’ lives as a joke.”
“Professional?”
Song Ning’s voice turned cold.
“You’re supposedly an official military doctor, yet you’re loudly arguing and making a scene in a room full of seriously injured patients. Do you lack even that basic level of professionalism?”
“You—”
Chen Yuting glanced around.
The main room was lined with makeshift stretchers holding critically injured victims, most of whom were receiving IV drips.
By now, many had already been awakened by her shouting and were staring at her.
“That’s point one,” Song Ning continued.
“Point two: when that injured comrade arrived, he was suffering from severe blood loss and a fracture. Anyone with basic medical knowledge knows that massive bleeding must be controlled immediately, and fracture patients cannot be moved casually, or they risk secondary injuries. Since you’re so knowledgeable, perhaps you’d like to explain exactly how we were supposed to transfer him somewhere with better facilities?”
“And point three: despite the limited conditions, we provided the most appropriate and effective treatment available. There was nothing perfunctory about it. The patient’s fever is a normal immune response following traumatic injury. It is not an excuse for you to stand here and accuse everyone.”
As soon as she finished speaking, murmurs spread among the patients and doctors.
This military doctor had been ranting for quite some time, and not a single thing she said had sat well with anyone.
People had long since grown dissatisfied with her.
Chen Yuting’s face darkened.
Pointing at Song Ning, she snapped,
“You’re nothing but a country doctor! Twisting words won’t help you! It’s because your medical skills are inadequate and you failed to properly clean the wound that an infection developed and caused Brother Changqing’s fever! It’s too late to cover up the truth now! I’m reporting you!”
“Yuting—”
A hoarse voice suddenly came from nearby.
It belonged to the company commander from the previous night.
He sounded utterly exhausted.
“Brother Changqing!”
Chen Yuting immediately rushed over.
Her previously arrogant attitude vanished at once, replaced by a tone of grievance.
“Brother Changqing! They’re ganging up on me because there are so many of them! We’re not staying here anymore! Let’s return to the military district!”
Brother Changqing?
The first time she used the name, Song Ning hadn’t paid much attention.
But the second time—
She heard it clearly.
And just so happened, this man was also from the communications company.
Well then.
What a coincidence.
The world really was small.
Thanks to Director Hao’s foresight, Song Ning felt she had probably already met the “family member” he had mentioned.
And in the most dramatic fashion possible.
The man lying in bed looked at Chen Yuting and said,
“Yuting, I’m fine. You don’t need to argue with them.”
“How can you say you’re fine? You’ve had a fever all day! If I hadn’t come, I wouldn’t even know you’d gotten this sick!”
“I’m really alright.”
…
Song Ning watched their affectionate exchange for a moment before scratching the tip of her nose.
“Um… sorry to interrupt.”
Both of them turned toward her.
Chen Yuting looked at her disdainfully.
“So you’ve realized your mistake? Unless you give us a sincere apology and write a self-criticism, I’m definitely reporting you!”
Ignoring Chen Yuting completely, Song Ning addressed the man in the bed.
“Right. I just need to confirm something. Your surname is Lu—Lu as in road—and your name is Lu Changqing, correct?”
The man nodded, looking confused.
“Yes. I’m Lu Changqing.”
“From the Seventh Regiment of the Thirteenth Army under the Southwestern Military Region?”
He nodded again.
“Yes.”
“Excellent.”
Song Ning nodded.
Then she turned to Zheng Chang’an behind her and said,
“Dr. Zheng, could you hand me a pair of surgical scissors?”