In just a few short days, this small hut—once inhabited by a former landlord’s farmhand and on the verge of collapse—had been transformed by her into a warm little home.
The interior and exterior walls were covered with a fresh layer of mud plaster, coated with white lime, and the inner walls were further lined with several layers of newspaper.
The windows had also been enlarged to let in more light, though they were usually kept covered with curtains to block the prying eyes of the curious.
Both the heated brick bed and the stove had been fully constructed. Water vats, rice jars, and flour containers were all in place. The newly purchased items, whether bedside tables or cabinets, had been arranged in the most convenient and appropriate positions.
Every corner was filled with various household necessities.
Su Mi took out a handful of fruit candies wrapped in colorful paper and sent away the children who had been following her bicycle.
Just as Su Mi was organizing the medicines she had brought back, Village Chief Niu cheerfully arrived at her door.
“Little Su, I heard you passed the exam for the medical license. I came to check it out. Oh, and the clinic we arranged for you has been cleaned up. Let me know if you need anything, and I’ll take care of it all. Here’s the key to the clinic.”
Before he even finished speaking, Village Chief Niu had already stepped into the courtyard.
His eyes gleamed with eagerness as he looked at the medicine boxes on the table.
“Village Chief Uncle, look, this is the medical license. With this, I can openly treat the villagers.”
Su Mi happily handed over her newly issued medical certificate.
Village Chief Niu took it, examined it carefully from every angle, and only after he was satisfied did he return it to Su Mi.
“I always knew you were a capable girl. Starting tomorrow, you can begin working at the clinic. I’ve already moved in the desks, chairs, benches, and medicine cabinets. Let me know if anything else is missing. Don’t hesitate to tell me. Oh, and here’s the key to the clinic.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t hold back. I’ll take the herbs I’ve collected and prepared over this time to the clinic later.”
Su Mi, the educated youth, had successfully passed the exam and become an esteemed doctor.
When Su Mi returned, she rode a bicycle, carrying a large box of medicines with her.
Su Mi was wealthy, capable, and beautiful, and she even had a brand-new bicycle.
These rumors spread throughout the entire village in just one afternoon, including among the educated youth community.
They were all educated youths sent to the countryside, yet while the others toiled in the fields every day to earn work points like the villagers, Su Mi was different. Now, she was not only a respected doctor but also had a much easier job.
As for Su Mi becoming the village’s barefoot doctor, some were happy for her, thinking that they wouldn’t have to worry about finding treatment for minor illnesses in the future.
Of course, there were also a few who felt resentful, with Bai Qianqian being the most prominent among them.
During this time, she had cried more than once. Although she knew life in the countryside would be tough, she never imagined it would be this difficult.
Even though the tasks assigned to her daily were shared among Zhao Kai, Gu Mo, and Li Fan, they had their own responsibilities too. Bai Xianxian couldn’t just sit idle—even if it was just for show, she had to do some work while waiting for her three childhood friends to finish their tasks and come help her.
Another issue was the educated youth dormitory, where cooking duties were shared among the female comrades in pairs on a rotating basis.
The male comrades were responsible for carrying water and gathering firewood in the mountains. Of course, the female comrades also went up the mountain to collect firewood, but most of what they gathered were small branches and leaves used for kindling.
The heavier, long-burning firewood had to be handled by the male educated youths, who would chop it with machetes or axes in the mountains and then either carry it back on their shoulders or drag it home.
On her very first day, Bai Xianxian didn’t want to stay in the communal dormitory, so she went to find the village chief to rent a separate house.
Unexpectedly, she was a step too late—the house had already been rented by Su Mi, and for a full ten years at that.
Ten years’ worth of rent could have built a brand-new house.
When Bai Xianxian found out, she just cursed the other girl as a fool in her heart.
In her own plans, she would return to the city in at most two or three years—there was no way she’d stay that long.
Moreover, Su Mi was prettier than her, and that alone was enough to make Bai Xianxian dislike her.
What she never expected was that Su Mi would become a doctor, sheltered from wind and rain, seeing patients only at scheduled times each day. How many patients could there possibly be in a single village every day?
Wasn’t that just too comfortable?
Bai Xianxian felt extremely resentful, especially now that she had blisters on her hands and feet. Every night, she would hug her own feet and cry, feeling sorry for herself.
But crying was useless. When she tried to ask for leave, the village chief refused.
If it weren’t for maintaining her image, Bai Xianxian would have long since given up and stopped working altogether. After all, she wasn’t without money or ration coupons to support herself.
But where did the money and coupons come from? Naturally, from her three “good brothers.” Of course, even without these, she had her treasures and wouldn’t starve.
During this period, before Su Mi had even taken her exams, Bai Xianxian had been gossiping about her nonstop, both at the educated youth dormitory and in the fields during work.
Her way with words was quite skillful. Some straightforward people didn’t think too much about it and even assumed Bai Xianxian was praising Su Mi, so they chimed in agreement.
This infuriated Bai Xianxian, but she also discovered a few others who shared her dislike for Su Mi.
Bai Xianxian grew even more enthusiastic, subtly guiding these people to nurture their resentment toward Su Mi.
Sometimes during meals, or when everyone gathered in the courtyard after dinner to chat while listening to Gu Mo play the harmonica, Bai Xianxian would casually sigh, “If only Su Mi were here, it would be so much livelier.”
After hearing such remarks often enough, some people naturally began to say the same.
Of course, even if Su Mi didn’t know about this, she could have anticipated it. Moreover, He Caiwen, Li Meixian, and Wang Yajuan—the three who had come to the countryside with her—would often come to her courtyard to hang out after dinner when they were bored, bringing her the latest news from the educated youth dormitory.
As for the original female lead, Bai Xianxian, Su Mi felt indifferent, even annoyed.
But as long as she didn’t come knocking, Su Mi treated her as a stranger.
What she didn’t expect was that Bai Xianxian not only disliked her but also talked behind her back to others.
This was something Su Mi couldn’t tolerate. After all, jealousy was a powerful force, especially when someone felt deeply resentful.
There was always a tipping point that could push someone over the edge.
What if, one day, Su Mi was eating braised pork at home at noon, someone found out, and that became the final straw, driving that person to burn her house down?
Even though she wasn’t afraid, it would still be incredibly annoying.
Lately, Su Mi had been quite busy and hadn’t had time to deal with it. She planned to settle the score with this gossip once she was free.
That afternoon, she spent the entire time at the clinic, organizing medicines and traditional Chinese herbs.
It wasn’t until the usual end of the workday that Su Mi finally locked the clinic door.
The clinic was actually just a room inside the village committee building.
It was in the same row of houses as the offices of the village party secretary, the scorekeeper, and the village head.
It was actually quite convenient.
Since she had a bicycle, distance wasn’t an issue anyway.
After stir-frying some shredded potatoes to mix with noodles, Su Mi was just eating when village children started showing up at her door, some carrying baskets on their backs, others holding them in their hands.