I Can Hear the Heart's Voice of Traditional Chinese Medicine

The mindset has changed, the vision has expanded, and the way Anjiang is seen naturally becomes different.

However, a small county like Anjiang, compared to Yong City, indeed has a much slower pace of life.

As the only passenger station in Anjiang County, there weren’t even many people to be seen.

Even if there were people, they were very relaxed, not as impatient as the streets of Yong City.

"Lu Xuan, you know, although your hometown county can’t really compare to Yong City, just one look and you can tell the pace of life here is very slow, without the impatience of Yong City streets. It’s really nice to live like this."

Ji Xiuwen looked around and sighed.

Lu Xuan nodded noncommittally.

Although Anjiang County isn’t large, with a total population of just five to six hundred thousand, as a land of fish and rice, the living standards of Anjiang County’s residents are quite high, and they don’t have the worries of big city crowds.

"Let’s go, there’s nothing much to see here. If you want to see the county, I’ll take you for a tour later."

As Lu Xuan spoke, he hailed a slowly passing taxi. The driver quickly pulled over, having obviously noticed the two coming out of the bus station long ago.

Lu Xuan wasn’t surprised.

With so little business and so many drivers, taxi drivers have to keep their eyes peeled, or they’d barely make any money.

In the whole of Anjiang, there are only five to six hundred thousand people, and even fewer live in the county town. Nowadays, with so many taxis and ride-hailing services, without this kind of awareness, driving a taxi in Anjiang could really cause someone to starve.

...

Bauhinia Garden.

At the gate.

Lu Xuan had just entered the community gate with Ji Xiuwen, pulling his suitcase, when he suddenly heard someone behind him calling his name: "Lu Xuan?"

Hearing this somewhat familiar voice, Lu Xuan turned his head and immediately recognized the person coming: "Aunt Tao, what brings you here?"

It was Lu Xuan’s little uncle’s wife, Tao Xiuhua.

Tao Xiuhua, seeing she hadn’t recognized the wrong person, quickly came forward with her things: "It really is our little Lu. I thought I’d mistaken you."

"Aunt Tao, why are you here?" Lu Xuan asked.

Although Tao Xiuhua’s family didn’t work outside, Lu Xuan’s little uncle ran a small farm in their hometown. Over the year, they didn’t make hundreds of thousands, but they earned tens of thousands in clean money.

Seems not much, but considering this is Anjiang County, not Yong City, it was substantial.

In Anjiang’s county town, a job paying five to six thousand a month is considered good.

Like Lu Xuan’s father’s clinic, it’s hard to say if it makes seven to eight thousand a month in net profit, and they start early and finish late, unlike his uncle’s family who are more leisurely, and their farm has been stable for several years now.

As for Lu Guoquan’s clinic, sometimes they end up losing some money.

When business is bad, the annual net profit might not even reach five figures. Compared to making money, they’re not as good as his uncle’s family.

However, while the farm makes money, it’s demanding, and his uncle’s couple is busy, rarely having a good rest.

Moreover, with many now engaged in farming, and they being small-time operators, they have to rely on quality, meaning they have little time to wander around.

Even if the two families interact, it’s usually during the New Year or when Lu Guoquan and Lin Fangling bring some stuff to visit their grandparents that they can have a meal together.

"Your cousin came back, insisted on visiting your aunt, and just as the family’s workload eased, I, your uncle, and your cousin came along. I happened to be in town to buy some stuff, and just as I came back, I saw your familiar back at the gate and called out. Didn’t expect it was you." Tao Xiuhua said with a smile.

"Oh, and this is...?" Tao Xiuhua asked, curiously glancing at Ji Xiuwen standing by Lu Xuan’s side.

"This is my university classmate, Ji Xiuwen." Lu Xuan introduced.

"Hello, Aunt!"

Ji Xiuwen quickly greeted politely.

"Alright, alright." 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Tao Xiuhua wasn’t familiar with Ji Xiuwen, so she just smiled politely and turned back to Lu Xuan: "Are you just back?"

She said this while looking at the suitcase Lu Xuan was pulling.

"Yes!"

Lu Xuan replied: "It’s the holidays, so with so many days off, I thought there’s not much going on in Yong City, and decided to come back to see my parents and grandparents."

"You really should come back often."

Tao Xiuhua nodded noncommittally: "Especially your grandparents, they’re getting old, and being able to spend another year with them is a blessing. Plus, your grandpa’s health hasn’t been great this year, so he’ll definitely be happy to see you back. And if you could bring back a girlfriend, he’d be even happier."

"What’s wrong with my grandpa?" Hearing about his grandpa’s ill health, Lu Xuan immediately asked nervously.

His grandpa, Lu Qinian, was already in his late eighties, and at this age, any health issue, even minor, could be serious. Lu Xuan couldn’t take it lightly.

However, Tao Xiuhua seemed to realize she had said too much, and vaguely replied: "Oh, it’s nothing serious. I visited the old man the other day, and he’s in good health, so don’t worry. Instead of worrying about that, bringing back a girlfriend would probably make the old man jump for joy."

"I’ve just graduated and I’m not thinking about that for now. I’ll consider it once my job is stable." Lu Xuan replied casually.

But Tao Xiuhua took it seriously.

"That’s true. For men, career should come first. Once you’re stable and successful, you’ll have no trouble finding a good girl."

"Just the other day, when your cousin came back, I mentioned girlfriends to him, and he said almost the exact same thing."

Lu Xuan laughed awkwardly and asked: "Did my cousin come back so early? His department at the Second Provincial Hospital is quite busy, so it’s unlikely he’d get so many days off."

Lu Xuan’s cousin, Lin Yongzhen, was four or five years older than him, in his early thirties now. He had excelled academically through school, later joining the provincial medical university for undergrad and master’s, and went to work at the Second Provincial Hospital upon graduation. In the year of his internship, he even secured a position in the hospital, and now seemed to be working in their cardiac surgery department.

"Indeed, but you know your cousin; he insisted on coming back to visit your grandparents. We, as parents, have no choice. Fortunately, his director values him and granted the leave."

Mentioning her son Lin Yongzhen, Tao Xiuhua was both frustrated and proud.

Frustrated because her son rarely listened to her; proud because he had always been outstanding, now a doctor at the Second Provincial Hospital. Although he’s not yet an attending physician, often assisting other doctors, her son is excellent. He might get his title this year or next.

An attending physician, while not a chief, still holds the qualification to consult.

At that time, patients when seeing him might call him Dr. Lin.

Thinking about all this, Tao Xiuhua couldn’t help but feel proud.

Lu Xuan knew a bit about his cousin Lin Yongzhen, who was treasured in the cardiac surgery department at the Second Provincial Hospital, having a talent for cardiac surgery. But, having freshly graduated, it would still be a while before he’d be on the operating table performing surgeries himself.

But Lu Xuan didn’t say this out loud, although it’s true that Lin Yongzhen was indeed exceptional.

In the Lin family circle, everyone basically knew his cousin, and often, Lin Yongzhen was the kid mentioned by others.

"The Second Provincial Hospital is so busy, yet my cousin got a leave. It seems he’s quite valued there." Lu Xuan echoed Tao Xiuhua’s words.

Aunt Tao Xiuhua liked hearing this, Lu Xuan knew. She often liked to boast, though she was nice and treated Lu Xuan well. It’s just her character that could be headache-inducing.

She would show off her cousin Lin Yongzhen to anyone. His uncle had spoken to her about it many times, but it made no difference. She would still boast as usual, and in the end, his uncle could only turn a blind eye as if he hadn’t seen anything.

There was no helping it, words were useless.

Tao Xiuhua beamed and asked: "By the way, little Lu, you should be graduating this year, right? Which hospital are you interning at?"