Gao-Yuan climbed onto the rooftop, letting the wind cool his restless thoughts.

The commander had left. Gao-Yuan was certain he had reported his situation to the higher-ups, yet days passed without any response, as if his plea had vanished into thin air.

This outcome, though disheartening, wasn’t entirely unexpected. Gao-Yuan had anticipated such a result from the beginning. After all, what hadn’t been accomplished in over a decade in his past life couldn’t possibly be resolved in just a month or two in this life. It was an inescapable deadlock.

Despite mentally preparing himself, Gao-Yuan couldn’t help feeling a pang of disappointment.

He stayed on the rooftop for a long time, lost in thought, as the sun dipped lower in the sky.

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Downstairs in the Zhang Village clinic, the doctors watched Gao-Yuan anxiously.

"Sigh..." Zhao Huanzhang exhaled heavily, his voice tinged with empathy. "I truly understand what Dr. Gao must be feeling."

“You understand?” Li Shengli interrupted with a scoff. “How could you possibly understand? You and Dr. Gao aren’t even remotely alike.”

“I…” Zhao Huanzhang choked on his words, then threw up his hands in frustration and stomped back inside, visibly upset.

Shen Congyun tried to smooth things over. “There’s no need to always pick on Dr. Zhao. What’s the point?”

Li Shengli, not one to hold back, snapped, “And you think you’re any better? If it weren’t for you Nationalist spies, would Dr. Gao be in this mess?”

Shen Congyun froze. “I’m not a spy.”

“Yet you still grovel to them?” Li Shengli retorted, rolling his eyes.

Frustrated, Shen Congyun also stormed inside.

Li Shengli glanced at the remaining Liu Sanquan.

Without a word, Liu Sanquan retreated inside as well, his expression unreadable.

Li Shengli looked up at Gao-Yuan again, growing increasingly irritated before finally heading inside himself. It wasn’t long before the clinic was filled with bickering once more.

Meanwhile, Gao-Yuan remained silent on the rooftop, his gaze fixed on the setting sun.

The arguing downstairs dragged on, only to suddenly stop. Everyone looked up, realising something was amiss. They’d been squabbling for ages, yet Gao-Yuan hadn’t come down to play the role of peacemaker as usual.

Zhao Huanzhang furrowed his brows. “This time, it seems whatever happened has truly shaken Dr. Gao.”

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The room fell into an uneasy silence.

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The next day, at the county hospital, Su Pingchuan was in the courtyard, recovering his strength. By the time Gao-Yuan arrived, Su was practicing martial arts.

Gao-Yuan waited until Su finished before speaking. “Comrade Su, you haven’t fully recovered yet. Your exercise should be moderate.”

Shen Congyun sidled up with a smile. “It’s fine. I’ll give Comrade Su a massage afterward to help him relax.”

Su waved him off. “No, no, no. I’ve told you before, I’m not some capitalist tycoon. I don’t need anyone massaging me.”

“It’s an external treatment in traditional Chinese medicine,” Shen explained earnestly. “It’s science.”

Su shook his head firmly. “I don’t want it, no matter what.”

Shen, out of options, gave up.

Turning to Gao-Yuan, Su asked, “Dr. Gao, any updates on your matter?”

Gao-Yuan shook his head silently.

Su frowned. He studied Gao-Yuan’s face for a moment before suddenly rolling up his sleeves. “Dr. Gao, I heard you’re a former soldier. How about a spar?”

“No, thank you,” Gao-Yuan replied.

“Come on, don’t be shy,” Su said, lunging playfully at Gao-Yuan and grabbing at him.

Caught off guard, Gao-Yuan instinctively stepped back, but seeing no way to avoid it, he reached out his hands to counter. Their arms locked immediately, and the two began grappling.

Their movements were fluid yet forceful, each trying to outmanoeuvre and unbalance the other.

Watching in astonishment, Shen Congyun muttered to himself, “How did this escalate so quickly?”

Despite Su’s injuries and missing toes, his movements retained the sharpness of a battle-hardened soldier. Gao-Yuan found himself struggling to keep up, marvelling at Su’s strength and resilience.

Suddenly, Su stared directly into Gao-Yuan’s eyes and bellowed, “If the organisation has denied your appeals repeatedly, doesn’t that prove you weren’t wronged in the first place?”

The words struck Gao-Yuan like a bolt of lightning.

Taking advantage of Gao-Yuan’s momentary hesitation, Su closed in, attempting to trip him. But out of nowhere, Gao-Yuan drew strength from deep within, shifting his weight and channelling immense force through his legs. In a single explosive motion, he flipped Su over and sent him flying.

Su stumbled backward several paces before losing his balance and landing flat on the ground.

Shen Congyun was stunned.

From the doorway, Wang Hanzhang burst in with a shout. “Dr. Gao, what on earth are you doing?” He hurried to Su’s side to help him up.

Su laughed heartily as he dusted himself off. “Relax, we were just horsing around.”

“Reckless,” Wang scolded. “Su’s still recovering, and you didn’t hold back at all.”

Gao-Yuan said nothing.

Su grinned and waved dismissively. “A real man never holds back in a fight. Holding back is an insult.”

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The day’s meeting began shortly after. Wang Hanzhang discussed upcoming public health initiatives, heavily referencing Gao-Yuan’s proposed plans. He emphasised the importance of training health aides, though the room’s atmosphere grew tense at the prospect of additional workload.

But the day’s tension was interrupted by an unexpected commotion outside the window.

“Dr. Gao! Is Dr. Gao here?” A loud voice called out.

Everyone turned towards the source of the noise.

Peering out, Gao-Yuan was surprised to see villagers from Huo Township, carrying bundles and looking travel-worn. At the forefront was Wan Jinliang, the husband of the woman Gao-Yuan had saved from postpartum haemorrhage.

Seeing Gao-Yuan, the villagers waved excitedly, their voices brimming with hope. “Dr. Gao! We finally found you! Is your offer to train us still valid? The whole village pooled our food together so we could come. We can’t stop now!”

Inside, the room was stunned. The level of trust and desperation displayed by these impoverished villagers was unimaginable.

Gao-Yuan’s grip on the window frame tightened as he called down to them, his voice resolute. “Yes, it’s valid! I promise to train each one of you so that every village in Huo Township will have its own doctor.”

The villagers erupted in cheers, their faces alight with joy.

From the balcony above, Su Pingchuan chuckled, rubbing his sore backside. “So that’s the tenfold strength he used on me,” he muttered with a grin.