country bumpkin

Kong Xiuyan entered the examination room and showed the X-ray to the fat woman. The fat woman looked up at Kong Xiuyan and then at Lu Gangtie.

He said, "The baby is very healthy, but he's only a little over a month old and still very young, so it's not very clear. Let's come back for another check-up in 8 weeks!"

Kong Xiuyan nodded: "Okay, thank you, doctor."

The fat woman waved her hand: "It's alright, you can go now, next one..."

Kong Xiuyan remained seated. The plump woman looked at her and asked, "What? Is there something else?"

Kong Xiuyan asked, "You are a doctor, a physician who saves lives, not a money-grubbing scoundrel. How can you work like this? You treat patients only when they give you kickbacks, and you make things difficult for them when they don't. Are you even human?"

The fat woman's chest heaved violently as she pointed at Kong Xiuyan and said, "You...you...what do you want? Are you looking for trouble? I'm not afraid of you."

Lu Gangtie shielded Kong Xiuyan behind him and said fiercely, "If you don't want your claws anymore, I don't mind chopping them off for you."

The fat woman was so frightened that she quickly withdrew her hand and shouted in a trembling voice, "Security, security, quick, someone is causing trouble."

Lu Gangtie deliberately shouted loudly, "Are the dean and director here? I want to report that some doctors are asking for kickbacks and refusing to treat patients if they don't receive kickbacks."

His voice was loud and clear, and everyone on the floor could hear it. Some patients who were there for treatment came over to see what was going on.

The nurses and doctors from next door also rushed over to check on the situation. It just so happened that the vice president was conducting an inspection on this floor.

Hearing the noise, she came over to check. Kong Xiuyan saw a middle-aged man being escorted by a group of people walking towards them.

She quickly and loudly recounted what had happened, including how she had been forced to give kickbacks.

The fat woman yelled, "You're talking nonsense! I didn't ask you for a kickback, I didn't take a single penny from you. Don't spout nonsense and make false accusations."

The vice dean looked at Kong Xiuyan and asked, "Comrade, do you have any evidence for what you're saying?"

Kong Xiuyan said, "Of course there is evidence, and there are witnesses too!" As she spoke, she called over the dark-faced couple who were watching the commotion.

"Boss, the couple didn't give the fat doctor a red envelope, so the doctor kicked them out. I saw it with my own eyes."

The vice-dean looked at the stern-faced couple and asked, "Is that what happened?"

The couple nodded: "Yes, sir. Our family lives in the countryside, far from the town hospital, so it's not easy for us to come here. That fat doctor wouldn't treat us. He told us to go home and get our identification documents. He wouldn't treat us without them and even kicked us out. We're already poor, so where would we get so much money? We even had to borrow money for the medical bills."

The fat woman retorted, "You didn't bring your identification, that's a fact! But that doesn't prove I took a kickback."

Kong Xiuyan sneered, "Is that so? Just now when I went to see the doctor, you wouldn't treat me either, and you chased me away. I had to give you 50 yuan before you would treat me."

The fat woman screamed like a madwoman, "The money in my pocket is my own money, how can you prove it was given to me by you? Is your name on it? Call it and see if it answers!"

Kong Xiuyan scoffed, "You know what a code is? Every bill has a different code. No two are the same. The code on the bill I just gave you is...JU0... The leader can take out the 50 yuan in her pocket to verify it."

The fat woman panicked. She shakily pulled out the money from her pocket. There were no 50-yuan notes, though. Lu Gangtie walked over and said, "There must be more inside; you didn't empty it all."

Several nurses came over and forcibly turned her pockets inside out. With a "thud," a 50-yuan note fell out, already crumpled into a round ball.

The number on the round egg matched Kong Xiuyan's description perfectly. Now all eyes were on the fat woman.

Terrified, she knelt on the ground, grabbing the vice dean's trouser leg and pleading, "Vice dean, please give me another chance. I'll never do it again."

The onlookers pointed and whispered among themselves. Patients who had previously been refused treatment by her also came forward to testify and report her to the vice president of the hospital.

The fat woman got scared, fearing she would lose her job, so she quickly admitted her mistake and returned the kickbacks she had received to those people.

Kong Xiuyan accepted the money without hesitation. It was 50 yuan, enough to eat for several months in the village! She couldn't let this fat woman get it for free.

Seeing that the situation was very bad and had a negative impact on the hospital's reputation, the vice president decided to suspend the fat woman's work and send her home to reflect on her actions.

Whether you can come to work in the future will be decided by the dean in a meeting. For now, just go home and wait for the notification.

All the patients and their families applauded and gave the vice president a thumbs up. They praised him for being incorruptible, impartial, and of high moral character, treating patients and their families fairly and justly. They said he set a good example for the hospital staff and was a good leader.

Seeing that the public anger had been quelled, the vice dean went to the dean's office to tell him everything that had happened that day and to see how the dean would handle it.

The two men with dark complexions went to a regular clinic for a checkup. They told the doctor about their situation, and the doctor patiently answered their questions.

Then he prescribed some nutritional supplements, told her to rest, do less light work, and avoid heavy work. He also told her to eat an egg every day, walk more, walk slowly, and not walk fast. He went on and on about all these things, and the woman listened attentively, remembering everything.

When the two came out, Kong Xiuyan stepped forward, took out two 10-yuan bills, and handed them to them.

He said, "Thank you for coming out to witness for me earlier. This is a small token of my appreciation, and I hope you will accept it."

The woman quickly backed away, saying, "No, we can't take your money. Earning money isn't easy for anyone, how can we take your money! Besides, what we said is true, so we should come out and testify. And it's also for our own sake to vent our anger."

Kong Xiuyan laughed, "Don't be so polite, just accept it! Meeting is fate, consider it as making a friend. When a friend comes to the hospital, you should at least show your appreciation!"

Kong Xiuyan just wanted to help them; looking at their patched clothes, it was clear they were living a very frugal life.

They just mentioned that the money for their medical treatment was borrowed. Kong Xiuyan felt that if it was too much, she didn't need to; if it was too little, she could help out.

She originally intended to give 50 yuan, but she felt that since they were not related, the couple with the dark expression would definitely not accept such a large sum of money.

So I took out 20 yuan, which they should be able to accept.

Sure enough, the woman accepted it with tears in her eyes. She kept thanking her, saying her name was Qiao Feie and she lived in Tuwa Village. She said that if they met again by chance, she would definitely repay her kindness.

Kong Xiuyan didn't take it seriously and said, "Okay, I'll definitely come to your house for dinner when we meet again."

After exchanging only a few words, they said goodbye and went home.

Lu Gangtie drove home first, since it was lunchtime. He figured his mother had already prepared lunch and was waiting for them!

Twenty minutes later, we arrived at her doorstep. On the way, I bought two skewers of candied hawthorn for Kong Xiuyan. She said she wanted something sour to whet her appetite.

They also bought hawthorn, dried plums, and dried apricots. They packed a big bag of snacks, which Kong Xiuyan carried.

When they arrived home, Lu Gangtie stopped the car, took the snacks, and led her into the house.