Chapter 351: Unexpected Opportunities and Tangled Ties

Director Wang pushed open the door and glanced inside. He only saw Cheng Dazhuang and Dr. Luo Jian—the person he was looking for, Zhou Can, was nowhere in sight.

“Hey, where’s Dr. Zhou?”

Realizing Zhou Can was gone, Director Wang instantly sensed trouble.

The director had made a special point to tell him to keep Zhou Can here—he was supposed to meet Zhou Can as soon as possible!

“He already left.”

Cheng Dazhuang replied.

“How’d he leave so fast? Did he just walk out?”

“He’s been gone at least ten minutes. Did you need him for something?” Cheng Dazhuang couldn’t think why Director Wang would come looking for Zhou Can at this hour.

“Oh, it’s nothing serious. Zhou Can is one of our hometown’s best talents, so I brought it up to the director. Right away, he decided to come meet Zhou Can in person.”

Even as a Chief Physician, Director Wang would never openly admit to wanting to cozy up to Zhou Can.

But when you’re an adult, there’s a lot you don’t need to say out loud—everyone gets it.

Cheng Dazhuang wasn’t stupid. The moment he saw Director Wang acting reserved, he understood right away.

“Uh… You two carry on. I’ll let the director know.”

Director Wang left the office and quickly dialed the director’s number.

The director’s status was important. If he arrived only to find Zhou Can long gone, he’d definitely be annoyed—and blame Wang for not keeping him around.

“Director, I just checked the office. Dr. Zhou has already left. What do you think…?”

“He left that quickly? That’s a real shame. You said he and one of our trainees grew up together, right? They’re close friends?”

The director only sounded a little disappointed.

There wasn’t a hint of anger.

“Exactly! Cheng Dazhuang, the trainee doctor, has been friends with him since childhood. Zhou Can came over just to catch up.” Director Wang finally relaxed a bit.

The last thing he wanted was to let a good thing turn into a problem that left a bad impression.

“It’s late anyway. I’ll visit the hospital in person and talk to Cheng Dazhuang tomorrow. Thanks for your help, Director Wang. You should get some rest.”

“Of course! You too, get some rest.”

Director Wang only released a long breath once the director had hung up.

But now his mind raced: how could he find a good way to get close to Zhou Can? He needed a clever approach—one that was genuine yet not too obvious.

If you miss your chance in this village, don’t count on finding another down the road.

The more he thought about it, the more he was sure that as long as he kept a good relationship with Cheng Dazhuang, he’d always have the upper hand.

With that in mind, he stepped right into the doctors’ office again.

“Xiao Cheng, working night shifts must be tough, huh?”

Director Wang was just making small talk for the sake of it.

Still, asking after someone’s wellbeing is the go-to move for a leader trying to build rapport—doesn’t matter if they’re trying to win someone over or have something more questionable in mind, it always works the same way.

“Thanks for caring, Director Wang. I’m on the late shift often, so I’m used to it by now.” Being suddenly singled out like this left Cheng Dazhuang a little flattered and surprised.

“Ha, you’re a hard worker! Our hospital needs people exactly like you—diligent and willing to put in the grind. But you’ve worked like this long enough. Tomorrow, I’ll talk to your department head. From now on, you won’t have to do so many night shifts.”

See? When a leader says you’re good, you’re good. If they say you’re not, your ability doesn’t matter one bit.

All those night shifts Cheng Dazhuang pulled? Most of the time, he just got chewed out. Praise from the higher-ups was almost unheard of.

When a chief physician from Cardiothoracic Surgery like Director Wang suddenly started being so nice, even an idiot would know what was going on.

Bottom line—it was because he grew up with Zhou Can.

Director Wang clearly wanted to use him as a bridge to get to know Zhou Can.

Stuff like this is something you understand, not something you spell out.

Definitely don’t show it on your face.

Best strategy: act clueless and enjoy the perks. After all, real benefits are never a bad thing.

“Thank you, really! My back aches every night from the cold, so if I could skip a few late shifts, that’d be amazing.”

Cheng Dazhuang gladly played along, happily accepting Director Wang’s goodwill.

“No need to thank me! In the future, if you run into any problems, come straight to me—I’ll do what I can to help. Work hard, alright? I’ll be heading out now.”

Director Wang patted Cheng Dazhuang on the shoulder, then walked out of the office.

Dr. Luo Jian couldn’t help but feel jealous. He was on the night shift too, so why did Director Wang favor Cheng Dazhuang alone and not spare him a glance?

He was older than Cheng Dazhuang by several years.

If anything, this old hand should be the one getting a little care.

Once a man hit thirty-six or thirty-seven, he usually had a family—wife, kids, elderly parents. Night shifts made it impossible to spend time with his wife.

How many married women, left alone at night, end up falling for the neighbor while their husbands are away?

Dr. Luo sighed to himself. If only he had a childhood friend like Zhou Can who was that impressive!

……

The next morning, Zhou Can’s family was greeted with wave after wave of good news.

Yesterday afternoon, after they paid off the bank loan, the court promptly filed for the villa’s release with the land and housing department. The process would take about a week.

But to speed things up, and with some discreet help from Zhou Can’s parents, by nine in the morning a court employee had already come by to tear off the villa’s seal.

That meant they could finally move back in.

The family had also paid off their suppliers and settled all the workers’ wages. Thanks to Boss Zhou’s efforts, the factory was already starting up again, though it’d take a little time.

You can’t get a whole factory running again overnight.

Restarting production after a shutdown takes preparation on all sides.

Now that Boss Zhou had cleared debts and paid the workers, he still had solid cash flow in hand—enough to get the factory humming again.

“Dad, Mom, I took five days of leave from the hospital, and today’s the fifth. After lunch, I’m heading back to the provincial capital with Qian Qian.”

With the family’s crisis resolved and everything back to normal, Zhou Can no longer had any worries.

This whole experience reminded him just how important it was to focus on his job as a doctor.

After all, the connections that saved them came from his work in medicine.

“Leaving already? The housekeepers are still tidying up, but around ten you and Qian Qian should be able to check out the villa. This family crisis really opened your dad and my eyes to who our true friends and relatives are. But your uncle has been helping us the whole way. He knows you brought your girlfriend home to meet us, and he wants to meet you both too.”

Zhou Can’s father was one of three siblings. His uncle’s family was well off—not as rich as theirs had once been, but still comfortable.

Not every family can claim tens of millions in assets.

Only a lucky few make it big, whether through hard work or family connections.

Their uncle did visit sometimes—at least they always had New Year’s dinner together.

The bond between the brothers wasn’t bad.

Third Aunt, who married into a family in the provincial capital, was always sour-tongued and loved to compare. Ever since both grandparents passed away, she’d hardly kept in touch.

This time, when the family had their crisis, Third Aunt initially promised to lend three hundred thousand.

But Uncle wouldn’t agree, and the three hundred thousand turned into three thousand instead.

Word was, she secretly wired those three thousand to Boss Zhou. Of course, he didn’t accept it.

Three thousand wasn’t going to make a dent in a thirty-seven million debt.

And cutting down an offer from three hundred thousand to three thousand—well, that just felt like pity.

Both Boss Zhou and Zhou Can shared a stubborn streak. There was no way he would take that kind of charity.

Back when Third Aunt first got married, Zhou Can’s family wasn’t exactly wealthy.

Even so, Zhou Can’s father gave his sister a wedding gift of a hundred thousand.

Later, when she needed money for a house, he handed over another four hundred thousand.

But not everyone knows how to be grateful.

Once, Third Aunt asked to borrow two million to open a restaurant. Zhou Can’s dad refused—and ever since, Uncle’s held a grudge.

That’s how ugly people can get.

You could do someone a hundred favors, but say no the hundred and first time, and you become the villain.

As the saying goes: give someone one measure of rice and they thank you; give ten and they hate you.

Truth is, they should thank Boss Zhou for refusing the loan for that restaurant.

Since they couldn’t get two million from the family, Third Aunt scraped together just two hundred thousand and went into business with a partner. The restaurant didn’t even last two months—they lost everything.

If they’d borrowed that whole two million, the loss would have been way worse.

There are plenty of industries where outsiders think there’s easy money, but if you know nothing and just dive in, every penny you have can vanish.

Most people just see someone else making it big, get reckless, and jump on the bandwagon—usually right into disaster.

“I’m going to let Qian Qian know. We can head to the villa right after.”

He figured a family meal was only proper.

Their uncle had helped when it mattered—he deserved a toast.

Besides, his uncle had always cared about him. It made sense to introduce his girlfriend.

On his way to the hotel, Zhou Can’s phone rang.

He saw it was Cheng Dazhuang.

“Dazhuang, what’s up?”

They’d just met yesterday—if Cheng Dazhuang was calling this early, it couldn’t just be to catch up.

“I had the night shift yesterday—just woke up!”

Cheng Dazhuang yawned on the other end.

“So, since you can’t find a wife, you’re calling your old friend to chat, am I right?” Zhou Can couldn’t help rolling his eyes.

Cheng Dazhuang was older than him by a few months—no spring chicken.

He could have started dating already.

“Heh! You think everyone’s life is as smooth as yours? With a rich background and great prospects, it’s easy for you. Me, I can’t pass the physician’s exam, my job’s stuck in training, can’t even get a permanent position. What girl would pick a guy like me?”

Cheng Dazhuang began venting about how tough things were.

Girls these days can be so practical—even a decent guy has a tough time finding a wife.

“Didn’t I say yesterday I’d help you with the physician’s certificate?” Zhou Can figured this guy was still half-asleep, so he repeated himself.

“Yeah, yeah. But there’s something else I need help with right now. Just now, our hospital’s Director Lu called me—personally! Scared me half to death. Guess what?”

Cheng Dazhuang actually started teasing him.

“Let me guess, he scolded you!”

Zhou Can deliberately needled him.

He’d known Cheng Dazhuang his whole life—he knew exactly how to push his buttons.

If you asked directly, Cheng Dazhuang would drag out the suspense forever.

But try a little reverse psychology, and he’d spill everything in no time.

“Pah! Don’t expect any wisdom from you. I’m not that useless! Listen—Director Lu himself called me, super friendly too, asked if I was resting alright, and then tactfully said he wanted me to introduce you over a meal. Look at that, even Director Lu is chasing after you. You must be a big shot at Tuyu Hospital by now! But honestly, these people are too much—see someone successful and just rush to make friends.”

After laying it all out, Cheng Dazhuang waited.

“Did you agree?”

Zhou Can asked.

“I wouldn’t dare without checking with you first! If I promised and you turned him down, Director Lu would probably have my head!” Cheng Dazhuang still knew his place.

He’d never risk making decisions for Zhou Can behind his back.

“Glad you didn’t. After lunch, I’m heading back to the provincial capital with my girlfriend. As for your Director Lu, just let him know I’m really sorry but I don’t have the time this round. Maybe next time.”

Zhou Can understood exactly what Director Lu wanted.

Truthfully, he didn’t care for that kind of networking.

Relationships built on benefit end when the benefit runs out. Relationships built on power end once the power’s gone.

Director Lu wanted to get to know him just because he’d made a name for himself at Tuyu Hospital—so that if the county hospital ran into trouble, he’d have Zhou Can for backup.

In Zhou Can’s eyes, these connections weren’t real friendships—they were just people to eat and drink with.

He was doing fine at Tuyu Hospital and didn’t need anything from Director Lu. It was clear Director Lu, on the other hand, would probably have lots to ask of Zhou Can down the line.

If Zhou Can ever fell on hard times and turned to Director Lu, the man would probably turn a cold shoulder before he finished asking.

When things get tough, only genuine friends and family help out.

These so-called ‘fair-weather friends’ are all buddy-buddy when they need you—once they don’t, you get tossed aside.

“A Can, can’t you just tough it out and say yes to the meal? Look, the director even personally asked me to help.”

Cheng Dazhuang pleaded.

Clearly, he didn’t see people quite as clearly as Zhou Can did.

“Dazhuang, just pass on my words, it’s fine. I guarantee no one will hold it against you. As long as we’re childhood friends and I’m still doing well at Tuyu Hospital, your status at the county hospital will only rise.”

Zhou Can understood things far better.

Whether he showed up for dinner or not didn’t matter.

In fact, turning down the meal could be the better play for Cheng Dazhuang.

“If I do that, he’ll probably curse me out for not being able to handle one simple thing,” Cheng Dazhuang grumbled.

“You still don’t get it? If I agreed to the meal, I’d be dealing with Director Lu directly. After that, if he wanted a favor, what would he need you for? But now, if I don’t know him personally, your hospital will have to go through you for anything they want from me. Doesn’t that make you more valuable?”

Zhou Can spelled it out.

Compared to Zhou Can, Cheng Dazhuang really had a lot left to learn—not just in medicine, but in reading people and relationships.

“You’re right. That actually makes a lot of sense. Alright, I’ll turn him down then.”

After that guidance, Cheng Dazhuang couldn’t help smiling.