“Wen Ci, are you planning to go to the hospital for work today?” Hou Li asked curiously, noticing her attire.
Wen Ci nodded: “Today is my first day at work, and I’m a bit nervous.”
Zhu Jing comforted her: “What’s there to be nervous about? You’ll do just fine.”
Wen Ci’s face lit up with a smile: “Thank you for comforting me.”
Since breakfast at the military canteen was free, it was particularly crowded. Fortunately, the soldiers’ morning training run wasn’t over yet, so the line didn’t take long.
“Is that Zhu Jing?”
Zhu Jing planned to have breakfast at the canteen before heading back. Just as she sat down and took a sip of porridge, a man in military uniform walked out from the kitchen and approached her, asking, “Are you Zhu Jing?”
Zhu Jing nodded: “Yes, I am.”
She recognized the man as the head of logistics for the Northwest Military Region. She had heard her husband mention such a high-ranking official before.
“I heard your ancestors were imperial chefs?”
“Yes,” Zhu Jing nodded.
As she spoke, her gaze shifted to Wen Ci. Only a handful of people knew about her ancestral background as imperial chefs, and among them, Wen Ci’s husband held a military position.
Moreover, Wen Ci had complained more than once during meals that the Northwest Military Region’s logistics had missed out on a treasure.
“We’d like to invite you to be our head chef, but before that, we need to test your culinary skills. When would you be available?”
Hearing this, Zhu Jing’s face lit up with joy. She had complete confidence in her cooking skills. The leader’s request to test her skills was practically a done deal.
“May I ask what the salary for the head chef position is?”
“Thirty-five yuan per month.”
The Northwest Military Region’s canteen would have three head chefs, rotating shifts, and the salary was even higher than that of some newly enlisted young soldiers.
“Th-thirty-five yuan?!” Zhu Jing’s eyes widened in shock.
Her husband only earned thirty yuan a month.
Zhu Jing: “I’m available anytime. You can test me right now if you’d like.”
The logistics chief smiled: “Not right now. How about coming to the canteen at 2:30 this afternoon?”
Zhu Jing: “Sure, Chief.”
After the logistics chief left, Zhu Jing turned to Wen Ci with a look of gratitude, her eyes glistening with tears. She choked up and said, “Wen Ci, thank you.”
Her husband had to give half of his salary to his parents for their retirement. Every month, once the salary was issued, there was hardly anything left, and they struggled to make ends meet. They couldn’t save any money month after month.
If she really got the head chef job, her life would become much easier.
“Why thank me?” Wen Ci shook her head and said earnestly, “Sister Jing, you’re a pearl hidden in the dust. Sooner or later, someone will discover you.”
She had only mentioned it to Huo Jingyuan in passing. Whether Zhu Jing could actually become the head chef at the Northwest Military Region’s canteen still depended on her own skills.
However, she believed that Sister Jing could win over the leaders with her culinary talents.
After breakfast, Wen Ci and Sister Jing went their separate ways. The family quarters and the hospital were in different directions. As she walked into the hospital grounds, she saw many doctors and nurses in white coats.
Whether it was accommodation or meals, the hospital arranged everything independently.
Wen Ci went to the dean’s office on the third floor. New nurses needed to be assigned to different doctors by the dean. She stood outside the door and knocked.
At that moment, an old head nurse was sitting in the dean’s office. Hearing the knock, the dean smiled and said, “It must be the new nurse.”
Then, he called out toward the door, “Come in.”
With permission, Wen Ci pushed the door open and entered. Seeing the dean and the head nurse, she lowered her posture and said in a soft voice, “Hello, I’m the newly hired nurse, Wen Ci.”
The dean nodded, his gaze falling on the head nurse. The specific arrangement of which doctor would mentor the new nurse was up to her.
The dean smiled: “This is Comrade Wang Yan, our hospital’s head nurse.”
In the 1980s, the head nurse’s status in the hospital was even higher than that of many attending physicians, and nurses were highly respected.
Wen Ci obediently said, “Hello, Head Nurse.”
The head nurse nodded and pointed to the brand-new nurse’s white coat on the table, speaking slowly, “You’ll need to wear this uniform every day for work. The hospital has lockers where you can change. After you change on the second floor, I’ll take you to meet the doctor.”
“Okay.”
…
After changing into her uniform, Wen Ci looked down at her white coat and instantly felt a sense of responsibility weighing on her shoulders.
The hospital had an outpatient department, an inpatient department, and a pharmacy.
The head nurse asked, “Do you know traditional Chinese characters?”
“Yes,” Wen Ci nodded.
Under the head nurse’s guidance, Wen Ci arrived at an office where two young female doctors were sitting. One of them, Wen Ci recognized.
Su Wanqing, who had returned from abroad.
Wen Ci thought carefully. If she remembered correctly, the female doctor sitting by the window should be named Su Wanqing.
The head nurse’s eyes shifted between the two female doctors: “Dr. Yu, this new nurse will be under your care. Feel free to assign her tasks.”
“Okay.”
After the head nurse left, Wen Ci introduced herself briefly to Dr. Yu: “My name is Wen Ci. Dr. Yu, please feel free to assign me any tasks.”
“I’m Yu Qing.”
Yu Qing’s gaze fell on Wen Ci, and she asked curiously, “Comrade Wen Ci, why did you decide to come to the Northwest to work as a nurse?”
“Huh?”
Wen Ci was a bit stunned.
She hadn’t expected Dr. Yu to ask this question. She blinked, then smiled and said, “I came to the Northwest Military Region as a military dependent.”
A military dependent?!
Yu Qing’s gaze toward Wen Ci now held a hint of admiration, but she didn’t plan to probe further into Wen Ci’s family situation: “Do you have any knowledge about healthcare?”
Wen Ci answered honestly: “Not much.”
From these few simple sentences, Yu Qing gathered key information. She stood up and walked to Wen Ci’s side, smiling gently: “It’s okay. The work at the Northwest Military Region Hospital isn’t too complicated. You’ll get the hang of it after watching a few times.”
The entire morning, Yu Qing took Wen Ci around to familiarize her with the hospital’s layout and introduce her to other doctors and nurses. By noon, they went to the staff canteen.
“Who do you think Dr. Su came to the Northwest for?”
“I heard…” The voice paused, then continued in a softer tone, “Let me say first that the source of this news isn’t reliable, but Dr. Su came to the Northwest for the ‘Living King of Hell’ next door.”
As soon as Wen Ci and Yu Qing sat down, they overheard this shocking piece of gossip.
As for the “Living King of Hell,” Wen Ci had no idea who that was.
From the nickname “Living King of Hell,” it was clear that this person was a tough figure in the military.
Wen Ci wasn’t curious, though. It was her first day on the job, and she didn’t want to come across as too gossipy. She turned to Yu Qing and asked, “Dr. Yu, did you graduate from a proper medical school?”
She sensed a scholarly air about Yu Qing.
Yu Qing shook her head: “My family has been practicing as barefoot doctors for three generations. I learned medicine from my parents since I was young, and later I went to the city to get my medical license.”
In the past, regulations weren’t as strict. As long as a doctor had the skills, they could treat patients. However, the Northwest Military Region Hospital was also a military hospital, so doctors needed to obtain a license.
“Is the license exam difficult?”
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