Chapter 320: Business Trip to Yun Province

He Daqing felt resentful in his heart; the Lao Jia family and the Zhang family did not follow the martial code, as among those of the same age, only his son Yuliang was not yet married.

However, he did have a partner, who was none other than Yan Jiedi. The two children were the same age, and because the He family and the Yan family had a master-disciple relationship, they were even closer, so the two children naturally grew closer than others.

With this back and forth, the two children developed feelings for each other and slowly started dating. He Daqing was happy to see this happen; compared to the uncertainties of the outside world, he knew the roots and the bottom of those in his own courtyard.

Yan Bugui naturally would not object. Not to mention that his eldest son was He Daqing's disciple, He Yuliang himself was very outstanding and more than enough to be a match for his daughter Jiedi.

As a teacher, Yan Bugui had four children who were all poor students; almost everyone of the same age in the courtyard could beat his children, which was something Yan Bugui was always ashamed to speak of.

Moreover, once Yan Jiedi married into the He family, her job could be given to the third son, Yan Jiekuang, who would then be able to return from the countryside.

It was now the end of May in '71, and half a month had passed since Zhang Ping'an's last treatment for Zhao Fangyuan. Today, when Zhang Ping'an arrived, he met a strange young man of twenty-four or twenty-five.

"Brother Zhao, how are you feeling now?"

"Except for the inconvenience in moving, everything else is quite good. By the way, Ping'an, this is my nephew, Zhao Mengsheng."

"Hello, Doctor Zhang."

"Hello." Zhang Ping'an nodded slightly. He found the name familiar, but for a moment, he could not recall where he had heard it.

Suppressing his thoughts, Zhang Ping'an took his pulse again; there were no abnormalities, so he removed the splint and gauze.

Except for some that had stained the gauze, most of the black ointment Zhang Ping'an had applied previously had been absorbed, leaving only a thin layer.

"The recovery is better than I imagined."

Then Zhang Ping'an applied the black ointment again, wrapped it with gauze, and secured it with the splint once more.

Zhao Fangyuan only felt a cool, comfortable sensation. If Zhao Fangyuan had the experience of later generations, he would definitely say it felt like the touch of a technician's hands.

"This is Tiger Bone Wine; it can accelerate the recovery of the bones. Take a small sip of two qian every noon."

Zhang Ping'an took out another bottle of wine. For Zhao Fangyuan, who was after all over fifty, neither his recovery speed nor his bone toughness could compare to a young person's, so he could only be supplemented with various medicinal herbs.

"Good, good, good."

Zhang Ping'an collected the money, declined the invitation to stay for lunch, and went back on his own.

If it were just Zhao Fangyuan's own family, Zhang Ping'an might have stayed, but now that his nephew was there, it was clearly inappropriate.

Zhang Ping'an had already earned over five hundred yuan from Zhao Fangyuan. It could not even be called earning; it was barely enough to cover the cost of the medicinal herbs, and his own service fee had not even been included.

"Second Uncle, the price of this bottle of wine?"

"Do you think two hundred is expensive? Actually, it's not. Ping'an definitely only charged the cost price."

"Look at the herbs I bought before and you'll know; things like ginseng, achyranthes, millettia speciosa, and morinda officinalis are not cheap. Fifteen doses cost nearly a thousand, and that was with Lao San going to buy them."

"The pills Ping'an prescribed, the ointment applied, plus the medicinal wine now—he only charged me five hundred, and that's not counting his service fee. Do you still say it's expensive?"

Zhao Mengsheng might not understand herbs, but he understood medicine or technical skills; after all, people rely on their abilities (skills) to earn money.

"Then it's indeed not expensive. Second Uncle, is he really over thirty? Why does he look the same age as me?"

"It's true. He started learning from an old Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor when he was a teenager, it's just that it's rarely known."

This was also something Zhao Fangyuan had thought of recently. Looking at Zhang Ping'an's early files, other than having a good memory, everything else could be said to be unremarkable.

Theoretically, it was unlikely that the Divine Doctor Wang would marry his granddaughter to him, even if the two were childhood sweethearts.

But what if Zhang Ping'an was a genius of Traditional Chinese Medicine or his disciple? Then everything made sense.

Zhao Fangyuan had to admire Zhang Ping'an; he was not old, yet his medical attainments were even more formidable than some old Traditional Chinese Medicine doctors, and the key was that he hid it very well, with few people knowing.

On the way home, Zhang Ping'an was still thinking about who this Zhao Mengsheng was, but he had no clue. He guessed it was probably a movie clip he had scrolled past in short videos in his previous life.

Three months later, Zhao Fangyuan was already able to walk on the ground without crutches, though he could not yet correct the limp he had had for nearly twenty years.

"Don't be in a rush. For now, you should still focus on resting. Wait another two months until the bones are truly grown solid, then try practicing for longer periods."

"Good, good, good."

Zhao Fangyuan was excited inside at this moment. Having been decadent for more than ten years in a small clothing shop because of his uneven feet, how could he not be excited now that he was cured?

Zhang Ping'an applied the ointment to Zhao Fangyuan one last time, left four doses of medicinal patches, and then left. After a month, he could remove the splint and gauze himself and apply the patches to stabilize it.

In this half year, no one knew who had exerted influence, but Zhao Guoliang was directly kicked out of the Rolling Mill, Wu Qiang successfully sat in the position of Deputy Director of the Rolling Mill, and Jia Dongxu was also promoted.

"I don't know either."

Li Huaide was also baffled. He had asked his father-in-law, but Old Xu just said to do his own job well.

However, this was also good; with one less thorn in his side, it was beneficial for him to fully control the Rolling Mill.

The current Li Huaide was not purging dissidents, but he was truly enjoying himself, eating with great pleasure in the cafeteria every day.

With the three chefs He Daqing, his son, and Nan Yi, Li Huaide ate something different every noon.

"Ping'an, pack up. In two days, come with me on a business trip to Yun Province for about half a month to exchange and learn with their Steel Mill."

"Ah? I'm going too?"

"Yes, you are going to represent logistics for the exchange and learning. When you come back, I'll promote you to Deputy Director."

Cao Guodong would retire at the end of the year, and Zhu Weiguo would take over. With a Deputy Director position opening up, Li Huaide planned to arrange for Zhang Ping'an directly.

Zhang Ping'an's mouth twitched. Although he also wanted to enter the department, wasn't this step a bit too big?

"Don't worry, it's all in accordance with the rules," Li Huaide said, as if seeing Zhang Ping'an's concerns.

"Then thank you, Li Ge."

"Don't say those outsider words, go back and pack up."

"Alright."

The government had just opened the train from Sijiucheng to Yun Province last month, greatly shortening the journey. Now a one-way trip was estimated to take three days.

Returning home, Zhang Ping'an told his family about the business trip.

"Brother Ping'an, are you going with Uncle Li?"

"Yes."

Li Aihua understood instantly. This was the same as when they went somewhere for exchange and learning; those who were picked to learn were eight or nine times out of ten going to be promoted when they returned. It seemed Brother Ping'an was going to advance again.

"Then I'll go pack your things," Li Aihua said, excitedly going to pack Zhang Ping'an's luggage.

Zhang Laohan did not understand what his daughter-in-law meant; usually, when his son went on a business trip, she would have a bitter face, so why was she so happy today?

"Son, are you about to get a promotion?" Dong Dani, however, was lost in thought.

"Ahem, it's not certain yet, it won't be confirmed until after the New Year."

Although he was not worried about his parents blabbing to outsiders, the greatest taboo in officialdom was popping the champagne too early.

Clearly, there are many times when you have the ability to be promoted, but perhaps just because you were quick-mouthed or accidentally saw yourself on the promotion list and were discovered by a leader, you might no longer be on that list.

Of course, this kind of situation would not happen to Zhang Ping'an, but being careful was never wrong.