Chapter 79: A Fresh Start in the City

Thank you, Mr. Zhou, for the reminder. My wife and I talked it over and decided to move in without renovating. Our incomes aren’t high—with the mortgage, our child’s school fees, and living expenses—so by moving in now, we save at least 2100 yuan on rent every month. Renovations can wait until our finances improve.

Lao He isn’t even 40, yet the wrinkles at his eye corners and on his forehead are already deep. Even his sideburns, shaved as short as possible, cannot hide the white strands at the roots.

Not everyone comes from a wealthy family.

Most are just ordinary workers—strivers who’ve moved from the countryside to the city.

They toil in the big city, all in hopes of one day rooting themselves here so their children won’t be left behind.

“Heh, you two have a pretty modern outlook!” someone chuckled. “I saw online that lots of people opt to move in without a full renovation; a little decor can give the place its own charm. Living there isn’t any worse than having an extravagantly renovated home.”

Zhou Can sure knows how to chat.

That remark certainly saved Lao He’s face.

Just look at the smile blooming on Lao He’s face.

“Haha, the poor make do as best they can. Mr. Zhou, please check the house for any damages,” someone urged.

Lao He burst into hearty laughter.

His wife even leaned out from the kitchen, her upper body clearly visible.

“When I first suggested moving in without renovating, Lao He wouldn’t have it for fear of being laughed at!”

Lao He gave an awkward, forced laugh.

“I just didn’t want you and the kids to go through hardship,” he explained.

It was clear the couple shared a deep affection.

“These days, practical and virtuous women like my sister-in-law are hard to find! Most young girls are all about money and show, taking loans for fancy cars and designer bags—without a care for their men. Lao He, count yourself lucky to have such a wonderful wife!”

Zhou Can laughed, praising Lao He’s wife.

Lao He’s wife may not be a stunner, but she sure runs her household well.

These days, a woman who can endure hardships with her husband while striving to buy a home and always putting family first is truly rare.

Marrying a wife like hers is a man’s real blessing.

Zhou Can inspected the house, and it was clearly cherished and well-maintained.

The place was spotless.

“Everything looks fine. Here’s your deposit back,” Zhou Can said as he returned the deposit to Lao He.

“Hey, why did you refund an extra 500 yuan? Did you get it wrong, Mr. Zhou?” Lao He asked in surprise.

“The extra 500 is my little gift for the kids—enough to buy some snacks and school supplies.”

Many tenants don’t bother cleaning when they move out.

Hiring a cleaning lady can easily cost at least 200 yuan.

Zhou Can has never liked taking advantage of others, and besides, Lao He’s family really needs the money since times are tight.

Five hundred yuan is nothing to Zhou Can.

But for Lao He, that 500 yuan could mean a few extra good meals for his family.

“No, no, you can’t do that!”

Lao He hurriedly tried to decline.

“Keep it! After all, our meeting was fated,” Zhou Can insisted.

“Oh, I really can’t accept that!”

After several rounds of refusals, Lao He finally accepted the 500 yuan.

After taking back the keys and watching Lao He’s family move their last few personal belongings, Zhou Can sincerely wished them well.

He snapped a few photos of the interior and posted them online for rent.

Thanks to modern internet, renting out a house no longer requires plastering flyers or seeking agents.

A few posts online and it’s all taken care of.

Once the posts were up, he left it be.

Soon enough, prospective tenants would call to see the place.

Based on current market trends, he hiked the rent to 2200 yuan a month. He even saw similar spaces—same area, basic decoration—going for 2500 yuan a month.

……

Back at the apartment, Jin Mingxi still hadn’t returned.

That guy’s probably off on a date with that female classmate, isn’t he?

That’s his private life; Zhou Can didn’t concern himself with it. He just focused on his own work.

After anesthetizing five white mice, he resumed his relentless surgical practice.

His hands-on training in tissue separation, ligature, hemostasis, and incision steadily boosted his experience.

Around 11 o’clock, Jin Mingxi finally reappeared.

Zhou Can glanced back at him.

With a flushed face, spring in his step, and a smile at the corners of his eyes, it was unmistakable.

He had definitely been on a date.

“Some classmates practically dragged me to a get-together. I had no choice! Ugh…”

He hurried toward the bathroom.

After a bout of vomiting, he staggered out.

“Are you alright?”

Zhou Can quickly set his scalpel aside and rushed over to help him.

“I’m fine, just overdid it on the drinks,” Jin Mingxi mumbled as he slumped onto the bed, quickly drifting off to sleep.

Shaking his head, Zhou Can helped remove his shoes and tucked him under the covers.

He thought to himself that if only his alcohol tolerance was lower, he’d drink less.

Then he returned to the operating table to continue honing his surgical skills.

When he finally used up the last of the white mice, the clock neared midnight—a perfect schedule.

Pulling all-night shifts wasn’t sustainable; his body would soon give out.

The five white mice had netted him 51 points in ligature, 60 in tissue separation, 82 in incision, and 208 in hemostasis experience.

That was quite a haul.

The best part was the hemostasis training—it was like scooping up bonus experience.

Now his hemostasis skill had reached level four, though he needed more experience to advance to the chief level. The challenge was real.

There was one more little surprise.

His ligature skill had climbed to level three with 612 out of 1000 experience points.

He’d advanced from a resident-level beginner to an intermediate level.

This also meant his suturing would speed up, and he could perform ligature on blood vessels and intestines more adeptly.

This was especially important when stitching together delicate blood vessels, which demanded top-notch ligature technique.

Too much force in knot tying could easily rupture the vessel walls.

And his long-cherished deep knot tying was now within reach.

Still, to suture more complex tissues like the peritoneum or other special areas, his suturing and ligature skills would need to reach an outstanding resident level.

……

The next day, Zhou Can headed to work at the hospital. The nurses, having enjoyed the bubble tea he treated them to, greeted him with noticeably warmer smiles.

They smiled and greeted him eagerly as soon as they saw him.

His standing in the Emergency Department had grown considerably.

‘Wealth comes and goes, but people always come together’—a timeless truth.

Spending a few hundred yuan to win over all the nurses was a bargain. If there was an error on a prescription, the experienced nurses would promptly flag it.

Or if you’re on a tiring night shift, you could casually ask a nurse on duty to keep an eye on your patients, giving you a chance to catch up on some much-needed sleep.

And those were just a few of the perks.

There were plenty more benefits like that.

He followed Dr. Xu into the Operating Room.

Dr. Lu had come in early today—he was already in the operating theater.

The night-shift doctor was a sturdy man nearing forty, exuding maturity and steadiness, while the surgical nurse was Qiao Yu.

No wonder Dr. Lu arrived so early.

At that moment, the on-duty doctor and Qiao Yu were performing surgery on a middle-aged woman.

She had a noticeable wound on her palm.

Zhou Can had spent several days working in the Emergency Department Operating Room.

It was his first time meeting this male doctor.

Dr. Lu seemed to be pestering Qiao Yu, but she hardly paid him any attention.

When she saw Zhou Can enter, Qiao Yu beamed, her frozen expression melting away. Although most of her dazzling smile was hidden by her mask.

Zhou Can returned her nod in greeting.