booktalesy Chapter 57 Free Clinic Team
Chapter 57 Free Clinic Team
The middle-aged man asked with some surprise, "Is this... convenient?"
"Convenient! Let's go!"
Upon hearing Lu Yuan confirm again, the group showed expressions of joy.
They had been busy all day without eating, and now they were so hungry that their stomachs were practically touching their backs, and they were dizzy.
We finally passed through a village where some restaurants were open, but most of them were closed.
Just when they thought they would have to go to a more distant town to get a meal, the strange owner actually opened for business again.
It's almost 6 p.m. now, and the braised egg vendors have finished cleaning up the kitchen and gone home. Only Lu Yuan and his family of three are left in the restaurant.
The medical team consisted of seven people: three middle-aged men in their forties and four young men in their twenties.
After staring at the menu for a long time, unsure of what to order, the middle-aged man leading the group asked:
"Boss, this dish isn't cheap."
The man clearly spoke with an accent from the Jiangnan region. Instead of ordering food, he turned around and started chatting with Lu Yuan.
They prefer bland food and couldn't get used to most of the meals on their way to the northern border for medical missions.
So I'm hesitant to order directly; I usually have to ask first.
Lu Yuan also leaned on the counter, joking with a smile:
"This is a shady business, you know! We might not open for three years, but when we do, we'll live off our earnings for three years!"
"Then let's eat at this shady restaurant today!" the man said with a smile. "Boss, do you have any non-spicy dishes?"
"I have a secret menu item here, would you like to try it? If you don't like it, it's free."
Lu Yuan didn't recommend the dishes on the menu, but instead prepared to make a separate serving for them.
These days, transportation is inconvenient, so those who come to the Northwest for free medical consultations are all doctors with great love in their hearts.
It's no big deal for Lu Yuan to cook a meal for himself.
"Alright, then I'll trouble you!" The middle-aged man didn't hesitate and directly asked Lu Yuan to make the arrangements.
Before Lu Yuan entered the kitchen, he asked Wei Yinghong to cut a watermelon for them.
On such a hot day, the store didn't have any chilled drinks, only watermelon was the most thirst-quenching.
"Dr. Huang, this boss is quite enthusiastic!" one of the young men said.
Dr. Huang took off his glasses, took out a lens cloth, and wiped them clean.
"Xiao He, I saw a sign for a flush toilet. Why don't you and Xiao Zhang go use it?"
Xiao Zhang, one of the girls in the group, lit up when she heard about the flush toilet and immediately pulled the other young people to find it.
Dr. Huang and the other two middle-aged men looked at them with relief, but their eyes were full of worry.
"Dr. Wang, how long can our funds last?" Dr. Huang turned around and asked.
Dr. Wang is a female doctor with neat short hair; she looks very capable.
"If we want to go into the city and stay in a hotel, I'm afraid we can only hold out for another 3 days."
"Not staying in a hotel?"
Another middle-aged doctor asked in surprise, "Not staying in a hotel? How can those young people stand it?"
Dr. Huang sighed and said, "Old Wu, we've finally made it to the northern frontier; it would be such a waste to go back now."
"It's just an unexpected situation. When it comes to charity, everyone should just do their best," Old Wu said, patting his old partner on the shoulder.
It turned out that on the way here, the car broke down in a remote mountain village.
There was no village or shop in sight. Not only did it take a week to repair the car, but I was also ripped off.
This past week has been incredibly expensive, with people and animals spending a lot of money on food and supplies.
The northern frontier was their last stop; by the time they reached it, their funds were almost exhausted.
"Let's finish reading it. I'll cover the cost!" Dr. Huang said firmly after a moment of silence.
Old Wu immediately objected, "Aren't we going to make a living? There's plenty of time! We can come back to the north again next time."
At this moment, Wei Yinghong brought a plate of watermelon and placed it on the table.
"Have some watermelon first, our local watermelons are very sweet."
"Thank you, thank you!"
Dr. Huang suddenly asked, "Have you ever seen a patient with cleft lip and palate, which is what you commonly call a harelip?"
Upon hearing the word "cleft lip," Wei Yinghong immediately realized what it meant:
"You mean that kid with a foul mouth? There's one in my son's class. That kid is so pitiful. People laugh at him when they see him."
"My son couldn't stand it anymore, so he beat up the bad boy in the class. That's how no one dared to laugh at that kid anymore. Otherwise, that kid wouldn't even be able to continue studying."
"How is that child now?" Dr. Wang asked with great interest.
Wei Yinghong shook her head and said, "I don't know, that happened when my son was in elementary school."
After chatting for a bit, Wei Yinghong went to wait in the front yard.
She doesn't really like being at the front desk; she always feels like she's watching people eat, which makes them uncomfortable.
Dr. Huang chuckled and turned to ask, "Did you hear that? What a playful nickname, 'Rotten Mouth'."
After saying that word, the expressions of the three people all became somewhat serious.
"So how can we bear to go back like this? The more backward the place, the worse the understanding of this disease. I can't even imagine how these children grew up."
Dr. Huang unconsciously clenched his fist. Old Wu asked, "Should we apply for another round of funding?"
"No!" Dr. Huang shook his head firmly.
"The organization's funds are also very limited; we need to save them for the children's surgeries. We'll handle the transportation ourselves!"
As the group was chatting, the young men returned from the backyard, laughing and talking. Upon hearing this, they immediately stopped talking.
"Dr. Wang, why don't you go too? A restroom with running water is so comfortable!"
Xiao Zhang gently patted his face as he spoke, his face still wet, clearly indicating that he had just washed his face.
Xiao He excitedly lowered his voice and said, "The owner of this shop might be a reclusive master!"
"Oh? How do you know?" Old Wu became interested.
"His yard is unlike any other rural yard we've ever visited. He doesn't raise chickens or pigs; instead, he grows lots of sunflowers. They're really beautiful!"
Xiao He sighed, and the others nodded in agreement.
Wei Yinghong didn't have to farm during this period, and the oil cake workshop wasn't busy either, so she spent her spare time in the courtyard.
She and Lu Changming not only replaced the sheepfold with sunflowers, but also took the time to relaid the ground with bricks.
At this moment, Lu Yuan came out of the kitchen carrying a pot of chicken soup.
This is a dish of stewed chicken with purple mushrooms that he had previously made at a banquet at the Xu family's house. It has both meat and vegetables and is quite a feast.
Lu Yuan happened to have some chicken broth from making mala tang today, so he made good use of what was available.
The members of the medical team, smelling the rich aroma of chicken soup, couldn't help but drool, their throats bobbing uncontrollably.
"This is stewed free-range chicken, a local specialty, you should try it!" After introducing it, Lu Yuan went to the front yard and called out again:
"Mom, come and serve me some rice!"
"Okay!"
Dr. Huang thanked them and then said to the others, "Everyone, please start eating!"
After a brief talk about respecting the elderly and caring for the young, the young people immediately filled a small bowl and began to eat voraciously.
"Wow! It's so fresh!" Xiao Zhang exclaimed involuntarily after taking a sip.
Xiao He scooped up a bowl of rice noodles and slurped it all down in one go: "These rice noodles are so chewy! They're definitely the best rice noodles I've ever eaten!"
Doctor Wang calmly took a sip of soup, put down his spoon, and explained:
"The loess soil here is rich in selenium, with strong sunshine, large temperature differences between day and night, and little rainfall."
"So the potatoes here are of very high quality, and potato noodles are also a local specialty. You can buy some to take home."