Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 91 Medical Reform, Uncle Dong's Letter!
After leaving the residential area, Cheng Ye took out his defense communication device and glanced at it.

The medical application had indeed been approved by the checkpoint, and a dedicated medical clinic had been assigned to it.

'Happiness' Medical Center.

Clicking on the location reveals it's in the southern suburbs of the buffer zone, not far from the southern checkpoint.

"There are currently eight medical facilities still in operation in the buffer zone."

Jiang Chuan quickly caught up and explained, and the two of them, in perfect unison, refrained from revealing what had just happened.

With this tacit understanding, he now truly regarded himself as a clerk sent by the checkpoint to escort someone, his tone exuding a sense of familiarity and confidence.

Cheng Ye didn't stand on ceremony; having someone knowledgeable to lead the way would save him a lot of trouble.

The conversation became more natural.

“Besides the five external medical stations, the other three are for internal use, belonging to the three major legions, with each legion occupying one.” Jiang Chuan said as he walked. “The checkpoint uses the medical station of the Happiness Legion. Their soldiers are rarely injured, and if they are, they go to the inner city for treatment and don’t come to this buffer zone, so this place is relatively empty.”

"How are medical expenses calculated? With contribution points or happiness coins?"

"Medical expenses?"

Jiang Chuan was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled and said, "Prosecutor Cheng is lucky. It seems you've never been to a medical clinic before. In our Happiness City, whether it's the inner city or the buffer zone, all medical clinics are free. As long as you have a resident ID, you can get treatment."

"Completely free?"

"Correct."

"What if you're aggressive and get into a fight, get slashed, and get injured? Will it be free then?"

"Any situation is acceptable, and all expenses will be borne by Happiness City."

Good guy.

Unexpectedly, not only did the idealists waive all electricity fees, but they also waived all medical expenses.

wrong.

Suddenly, Zhu Xiang's words from a couple of days ago flashed through Cheng Ye's mind. He frowned slightly and then asked, "Will I be able to get treatment immediately if I go there?"

"Based on the situation, if there are available beds, then it's fine; if not..."

"Can I buy medicine myself if there are no hospital beds available?"

“No.” Jiang Chuan shook his head. “Medical supplies are controlled items. Only field convoys at checkpoints can purchase them according to quotas. Well, foreign merchant caravans can also buy them, but the prices are outrageously high, especially those special medicines with added mutant crystals. These are the foundation of each sheltered city, so they can’t be allowed to flow out of the country so easily.”

"There are no hospital beds available, and we can't even buy medicine."

Cheng Ye was secretly astonished, and only then did he understand why Zhu Xiang had the idea of ​​promoting private healthcare.

If someone is seriously injured and can't find an available bed, wouldn't they just have to wait to die outside?
Furthermore, since universal free healthcare is provided, the income of medical clinics can only come from government funding.

Advances in the medical field rely on continuous investment in scientific research for technological updates, and a single funding model is clearly insufficient to support these long-term costs.

Over time, it's no wonder they abandoned the development of corresponding drugs for the source of infection.

Just then, a large Jinbei van stopped in front of them; it was a public bus from the checkpoint.

The driver got out of the car and said respectfully with a smile, "These past two days, the buses to the North and South stations have been full of migrants. Prosecutor Cheng, the stationmaster has specially approved your right to use the official vehicle. You are available on call during your medical treatment."

"That's so convenient."

Cheng Ye nodded slightly, his gaze subtly sweeping over Jiang Chuan beside him.

The latter's complexion remained normal, showing no sign of anything amiss.

Ding Yishan's people?
Once in the car, Cheng Ye leaned back in his seat and pondered silently.

The only people who could send someone over at this time of year are definitely not Westerners. Even if they were Westerners, they wouldn't send an Eastern clerk.

Could it be that Ding Yishan found out I was invested in by Idealist and sent someone to test me?

After thinking for a moment, Cheng Ye shook his head dismissively, quickly dismissing these unfounded speculations.

Ultimately, it's the starfish that gives them so much confidence.

Even if he were to get involved in factional struggles within the checkpoint, he wouldn't be afraid at all, at least not of these underhanded tactics.

With this backing, and the fact that he is Cheng Long's sole heir, although the Cheng family has brought wave after wave of "harm" to the checkpoint, there are also countless people who owe the Cheng family favors.

To be honest, who would dare to touch him openly?

The car headed south, and by this time of afternoon, there were far fewer migrants on the road.

It would be too dangerous to go out once it got dark.

Most migrants set off in the dark and walked from night until dawn; few dared to set off at night.

"Prosecutor Cheng, this is the first time I've seen someone so respected and loved by the community residents."

Seeing that Cheng Ye remained silent, Jiang Chuan, true to his original aspiration, probed again.

However, to his utter surprise, Cheng Ye seemed to make no attempt to hide anything, and actually said directly:
"Yes, on the night the infection outbreak occurred, I led them in a few rounds of fighting. That third-class merit award was earned by my team. How could they not be grateful to me?"

"Ok?"

Jiang Chuan was taken aback for a moment, then quickly wrote down the information. "So you weren't in danger?"

"How is that possible? I encountered three fusion entities, two at the beginner level and one at the advanced level."

It's that simple to test each other.

Cheng Ye slowed down his speech, his eyes lingering on Jiang Chuan's face, taking in the surprise in his eyes.

Hey, doesn't the checkpoint know what happened that night?
In an instant, Cheng Ye's mind raced. If he wasn't testing me because he knew I was an idealist, was he trying to win me over?

This is good news.

Ding Yishan had already begun extending goodwill the moment Liu Bi called back.

However, it seems that because of the Cheng family, this goodwill was released very slowly.

Jiang Chuan's arrival has now validated his judgment.

Thinking of this, he feigned relief and said, "Fortunately, the command center in the inner city contacted me and provided me with enough information support, which enabled me to defeat that advanced infected."

"Command center?"

Jiang Chuan was stunned again, this time very obviously, and it took him a full two seconds to come back to his senses.

Realizing that Cheng Ye was staring at him, he quickly forced a smile: "Advanced infected are not easy to deal with. Prosecutor Cheng, you are quite skilled."

"I've only had three months of proper training, so I'm definitely no match for you experts."

Cheng Ye shook his head.

In this wasteland, strength and intelligence are not synonymous, especially for those who have mastered martial arts to the extreme, whose minds are often rather "simple".

Although Jiang Chuan was slightly better than Liu Bi, he wasn't by much.

Now that he knew his purpose, Cheng Ye simply continued to talk, "Moreover, the command center saw that I performed well and Tianyuan Community cooperated well, so they specially rewarded the community with 20,000 contribution points for construction funds, which I supervised and was responsible for the development of area B-7. You should have seen it when you went there."

"Look, I saw it."

Jiang Chuan nodded, unaware that his voice was slightly stuttering.

"Don't tell anyone when you get back to the checkpoint. I only told you because I think we're destined to meet."

Cheng Ye grinned, then changed the subject, "Actually, it's not that those people respect me, it's that I can bring them benefits. Only when everyone benefits can we continue to grow together."

He emphasized the point about mutual benefit.

Jiang Chuan was taken aback upon hearing this, a mischievous look of understanding flashing across his face, but he quickly regained his composure and simply nodded.

He wasn't stupid; having followed Ding Yishan for so many years, he naturally understood the unspoken meaning in Cheng Ye's words.

These clever people always subtly hint at their true intentions in their words, making you understand.

If you don't understand it, it's just the literal meaning; but if you do understand it, it's a completely different meaning.

Speechless all the way.

Cheng Ye tilted his head to look at the street scene flashing past the window, while Jiang Chuan pondered repeatedly what he had seen that afternoon, figuring out how to report it to Ding Yishan.

He had been in the buffer zone for three months and there were still many places he hadn't set foot in.

The medical clinic is one of them.

Not long after the car left the city, a cluster of buildings appeared in the distance.

Three six-story buildings are enclosed by a mottled wall, with signs for "Outpatient," "Inpatient," and "Emergency" hanging on the buildings.

On the side of the building near the outer edge, the old marks of the word "hospital" can still be faintly seen where the wall plaster has peeled off.

Was this a hospital before?

Cheng Ye looked at it curiously, somewhat puzzled.

"Yes!" Jiang Chuan came back to his senses and explained, "In the past, there were no medical clinics in the buffer zone, only two hospitals. One was called Happiness Hospital, which served the local residents, and the other was called Lefu Hospital, which served the residents. Later, because the treatment efficiency was too low, the Medical Affairs Department split and reorganized them into the current medical clinics, so that they could compete with each other."

"But if we don't charge fees and rely solely on government funding, won't the efficiency just keep decreasing?"

"Hmm?" Jiang Chuan was taken aback for a moment, but finally nodded. "That makes sense. At first, the higher-ups only looked at the cure rate. But then the medical institutions found that the cure rate would drop when the number of patients increased, so they started to deliberately extend the treatment period and then discharge the patients all at once when it came time to do the statistics and settlement."

"Later, the indicators were changed, and patient numbers, satisfaction scores, and cost control were added. But with this change, doctors became burnt out because of the heavy workload and low rewards, and gradually, they started to treat patients perfunctorily and turn them away from patients."

"So you're not planning to make any changes?"

"They've been saying they'd change it for a while now. According to the higher-ups, it's going to be changed into three core medical stations and dozens or even hundreds of mobile medical points. The core stations will be responsible for treating serious cases, while the mobile points will handle minor injuries and common illnesses, and also screen for serious patients to send over."

Jiang Chuan didn't seem to have much hope for this approach.

"The core medical stations will continue to use the current free medical care model, but the mobile medical points below will be changed to a combination of paid and free services."

He paused, then explained in more detail, "Simply put, the medicine is free, but the medical services are charged. Each mobile medical station has a fixed quota of medicines, and once the monthly supply is used up, that's it. The service fees collected can be used to develop their own medical stations, train new staff, purchase equipment, and so on."

"There is also a scoring system based on indicators such as patient satisfaction and cure rate. A higher score can upgrade the level of the medical center. The higher the level, the more drug quota you can get, and you can also apply for more funding."

Are medical clinics competing with each other?
Upon hearing this, Cheng Ye immediately recognized the obvious drawbacks of this model.

While the core medical stations provide a safety net for critically ill patients, the medical points only have room for patients with mild symptoms.

However, there are differences even among mild cases.

With paid treatment and limited medications, will medical clinics only accept patients they are certain to cure, or those who can afford higher fees, in order to earn more revenue and higher ratings?

"Furthermore, medical stations need to be claimed by the community to be established; I don't know what the higher-ups are trying to achieve by changing this system."

"claim?"

Cheng Ye was slightly taken aback, vaguely grasping the thread of the idealists' reform buffer zone.

Both community management and this system of claiming medical points seem to be pushing the buffer zone to an extreme.

However, this clue had not yet been fully untangled, and as the car came to a steady stop in front of the outpatient department, it was temporarily stored in his mind.

"We've arrived. I'll help you with the hospital admission procedures."

"It's troublesome."

It's good to have a tacit understanding. After testing each other, Jiang Chuan stopped putting on a show.

Otherwise, we'd have to take him to see a bunch of doctors, do all the tests and analyses, before we can finally decide on hospitalization.

After waiting for about four or five minutes, Jiang Chuan came out with an envelope and handed it over.

Cheng Ye glanced down at the envelope. It said "5th Floor, Room 505, Inpatient Department" on the front. He opened it and found several receipts and a card inside.

"Prosecutor Cheng, this card serves as both your room key and your payment card. While medical expenses are covered, meals and the use of certain facilities will incur charges, which can be paid for using this card and will be covered by the checkpoint."

hiss.

Having experienced the convenience of privilege once again, Cheng Ye felt nothing but感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a feeling of mixed emotions, including regret and awe).

Idealists have indeed elevated the status of prosecutors to an unparalleled level. If they hadn't embarked on the path of vying for power and profit, there might actually be prosecutors working for these privileges now.

"Inspector Cheng, if you need a vehicle, just contact the checkpoint's official WeChat account." "Okay, thank you."

After seeing off Da Jinbei, the two walked one after the other towards the inpatient building.

The building has an elevator, which looks very old, but it still functions normally.

Upon reaching the fifth floor, Cheng Ye stopped in his tracks as soon as he stepped out of the elevator.

Not far away, some people saw him appear and froze on the spot.

interesting.

He turned to look at Jiang Chuan, who still had a smile on his face, without any change in expression.

Want to see my attitude towards Westerners?

Cheng Ye smiled and walked over confidently, but to his surprise, Garcia also smiled and even spoke first:
"Prosecutor Cheng, you're here to be admitted to the hospital too?"

"Yes, I got a little injured and need to stay here for a while to recover."

"That's great! I'm feeling really bored living alone. We can keep each other company."

In their brief exchange, the two spoke as familiarly as old friends, without the slightest hint of awkwardness.

Even when Cheng Ye used his card to swipe the door of the next room, Garcia's smile remained unchanged.

Those who rise to power by siding with certain factions are indeed shrewd.

In the past, Cheng Ye might have been more wary of someone who seemed to be hiding a knife behind a smile.

But right now, it's just a roadside stall. In a while, we'll gather the four powers and replenish our strength.

If you dare to jump, I'll kick you to death!
"This environment is really nice. I didn't expect it to look so ordinary from the outside, but be so big inside!"

The door opened, and Cheng Ye stepped into the room.

He had expected it to be an ordinary hospital room, similar to the tenement building where he lived, but the reality was quite the opposite.

This ward actually has a living room, a bathroom, and then a bedroom with a 1.8-meter-long bed by the window.

Sunlight streamed onto the pristine white bedding, and a small yellow flower sat on the bedside table.

It's somewhat disorienting, as if you've returned to the modern era.

"This is a private ward specially prepared for prosecutors. If you need anything, just press the button by the bed."

Jiang Chuan smiled as he carried the luggage in, introducing the books one by one and placing them in the storage cabinet beside the bed.

Suddenly, when I picked up one of the books, an envelope fell out.

"Prosecutor Cheng, there seems to be a letter for you here?"

"is it?"

Cheng Ye paused for a moment, then took the envelope.

The envelope was addressed in large characters: 'To Cheng Ye, from Xia Dong.'

Is it Uncle Dong?
He turned to look at the remaining books and vaguely saw that there were some books with something tucked inside.

"Okay, you can put these books here, I'll arrange them myself later."

"Okay, if there's nothing else, I'll head back now. I have some things to take care of at the station."

"Okay."

Cheng Ye nodded and took out his defense communication device from his waist. "Want to leave a number?"

"mine?"

Jiang Chuan paused for a moment, then laughed and said, "998899, my number is easy to remember."

"It's indeed easy to remember. Let's keep in touch."

After saving the number to the phone book, Cheng Ye waved his hand, and Jiang Chuan quickly retreated, gently closing the door behind him.

Standing by the window, I watched him quickly get into the waiting van by the roadside, and the car drove out of sight.

Cheng Ye then sat down on the bed, let out a long sigh, and picked up the letter left by Uncle Dong.

Without real strength to back up one's own forces, participating in factional struggles is indeed like walking on thin ice.

But now, he only waited to see how Ding Yishan would react after hearing these things.

The envelope was opened, revealing several thick pages of paper inside.

"Luckily, I brought all the books upstairs that night. If I had forgotten, the letter would probably have been soaked and ruined!"

Uncle Dong didn't hand the letter directly to him; instead, he hid it here.

Cheng Ye was curious, so he turned to the first page and read it word by word.

[Cheng Ye, by the time you read this letter, I'll have already left Happiness City quite a distance. It's a pity that, although everyone advised me to formally say goodbye to you, I ultimately held back. For many, driving a truck to another province is a near-death experience, but for me, Xia Dong, the captain of the Green Dragon team from the class of 02, it's nothing, haha!]

[I'm a braggart, and you've probably gotten used to it after spending these past two months together. But what you don't know is that I'm actually a complete coward. I'm full of ambition at night, but I immediately back down the moment dawn breaks. Many years ago, when I chose to retire early, everyone in the team thought I foresaw the infection wave that winter, but that wasn't the case at all. I was just scared, terrified of dying, and scared out of my wits by the fusion.]

For a soldier, losing courage means death is near. So I had no choice but to retire and go back to the buffer zone to find the safest thing to do. I never expected to run into you, a kid who had just left the buffer zone.

Please forgive my disrespect. Everyone else treats prosecutors with great respect, but I lived in your grandfather's era. Back then, we and the prosecutors were comrades-in-arms, and there was never any distinction between high and low. Although I often want to call you "Sir," the words just won't come out. After all, your dad used to call me "Brother Dong," hehe.

[Getting back to the point, thank you so much for your applause that day. It reminded me that I'm not some nobody worthless trash. But I'm even more grateful to you for helping me regain my lost spirit. Do you remember when you first left the inner city? You were terrified back then. You came to my shop every afternoon, and I had to comfort you for a while before you calmed down.]

[But you've grown up so fast, like a shooting star streaking across the night sky, dazzling and brilliant. Looking at you, Uncle Dong sees a reflection of himself back then. Honestly, I was just as dazzling back then (I'm not bragging). From you, I slowly regained my confidence. If a kid can stand firm, how can I, Xia Dong, not face my inner demons?]

"I'm leaving, with a large convoy of nearly three hundred people. All the members of the Winter Squad are coming with me, including the woman I love most. Even if I die, it'll be worth it! But I can't leave my belongings to anyone else. The shop deeds and transfer certificates are tucked inside the book; take them and register them, then they're yours. Of course, these things might not be useful to you; you can give them away as a favor. Uncle Dong really has nothing to thank you for, just this much. Please don't find it offensive."

"Oh, right, there's also Old Sun from the property management office. That old geezer comes to my shop every few days complaining that your apartment's electricity usage is abnormal. Others use a few dozen kilowatt-hours a month at most, but you use over a thousand. He's going to report you when the free period ends (he doesn't know you're an inspector). I thought about it, and before I left, I took care of Old Sun for you, including resetting your meter (I reset the whole building's meter, don't worry). Uncle Dong is old, but he's still quick and efficient; he'll handle it cleanly and won't implicate you."

"Well, don't think Uncle Dong is ruthless. That old man Sun is no good. Over the years, he's used his connections at the Production Bureau to bully men and women, and he's repeatedly forced me to sell the shop at half price, threatening me with his connections. I've disliked him for a long time, and this time I'm finally settling a score."

That's about it, Cheng Ye. I'm so excited right now because my beloved woman is sitting on my lap as I write this to you. We're still got it! Haha!

"I hope I come back alive. I'll definitely bring you some good things that Happiness City doesn't have."

Xia Dong, stay!

It is 800 kilometers away from Happiness City.

The rain was pouring down, but the camp, consisting of more than a dozen trucks, was in chaos.

Infected creatures with giant starfish-like growths on their heads wreaked havoc in the camp, chasing humans into a frenzy of escape.

Occasionally, someone would fire back, but with little effect. They were completely unaware of the rule that it takes three fatal wounds to die, and simply assumed that the infected were immune to bullets.

Even more troublesome is that a huge intermediate-level fusion entity is entrenched in the center of the camp.

It swayed between the trucks, and with each strike, it randomly grabbed a human, accompanied by screams of agony.

But just then, a light shone from a distance, and a head popped out of the car window shouting:

"Make way! Make way!"

Under the astonished gaze of the crowd, a truck sped towards them like an arrow and crashed hard into the intermediate fusion body.

The immense impact nearly crushed half of the fusion's body, yet its ferocity remained undiminished, with its remaining limbs still flailing wildly.

"Damn, I used so much force, how are you still alive?"

The figure peeked out again, this time holding a shotgun.

Bang, bang.

One shot after another was fired, and spent cartridge cases fell to the ground one after another.

The fusion entity, trapped under the truck, tried to struggle but couldn't move the massive steel behemoth weighing over ten tons. It could only watch helplessly as the figure pressed the muzzle of a gun towards it.

"Captain, you're not going to make it, but we still want to live. We're so sorry!"

boom!
Another shotgun shell was fired, and the intermediate fusion body's head tilted to the side. The instant death condition of seven fatal wounds was triggered, and it fell completely still.

Without the fusion entity stirring things up, the infected in the camp were quickly killed by the convoy members who had regained their senses.

After all, they drive large trucks and were well prepared to deal with infected individuals.

Moreover, the starfish infected are strangely mutated, but their combat ability is pitifully weak.

Half an hour later, the survivors gathered together.

Of the 276 people who set out, fewer than 140 remain.

But what's even more troublesome is that the captain and vice-captain of the Qiuyue team, one became a fusion body and the other was torn apart by the fusion body, leaving the entire team completely without its backbone.

Some people in the crowd were getting restless and wanted to suggest dividing up the supplies and breaking up the group.

The person who killed the fusion entity stepped forward first.

"There are only 12 vehicles, not enough to go around. The supplies won't be worth much if we take them back!"

“But if we keep going and go to Saskatchewan, these things can be exchanged for ten times, no, fifty times the profit.”

Xia Dong raised his arms and shouted, "You've already come out here to risk your lives, are you just going to slink back like this?"

"The captain is dead, what are we going to do if we don't go back?"

Someone in the crowd asked a question, and when their eyes met Xia Dong's, Xia Dong subtly gave a slight smile.

"I am Xia Dong, a level 02 Green Dragon Captain of the Blood Dragon Legion of Happiness City!"

He swept his gaze across the crowd and said, "Anyone who wants to come with me, come behind me, and I'll make sure you live the high life."

?

Is this a move to take over the Akizuki Racing Team?
Some people in the crowd muttered to themselves, their eyes scanning Xia Dong up and down.

But at that moment, Yunwei stepped forward, "This is my man. If you want to come with us, come here!"

"Is he Sister Yun's man? I don't trust anyone else, but I trust Sister Yun!"

As soon as he finished speaking, more than a dozen people stood up without hesitation and walked behind Xia Dong.

Seeing this, the others dared not hesitate any longer and got up to follow.

At this point, the team definitely needs a leader to stabilize the situation.

As for whether or not to actually follow Xia Dong, that depends on whether he has the ability. If he doesn't have the ability, we're not without legs, we can break up and leave at any time.

"Captain, this caravan... it's just going to become ours like this?"

As order gradually returned to the camp, members of the Winter Squad approached, their voices still filled with disbelief.

Before setting off, the group planned to drive trucks for two years to save up enough money to form their own fleet.

But to everyone's surprise, not long after leaving the city, they directly "took over" the Qiuyue Squad.

"That's normal. That's how it is when you're driving a truck. If you encounter infected creatures, it's not uncommon for the leader to change seven or eight times in one trip. The important thing is the people in the team. Boss Li also took over the caravan from the previous captain for free."

Yunwei smiled too, but what truly made her happy was not taking over the convoy, but Xia Dong's demeanor just now.

In a daze, the man who once shone like a shooting star seemed to have returned, even more composed and sharp than before.

"Yunwei is right. We didn't take on this caravan because of internal strife. With so many people watching, we can withstand inspections wherever we go. But this is still a good start!"

Xia Dong grinned. Come to think of it, his luck had never been bad since he decided to make a comeback.

Could it be that after lying low for so many years, his fortune is finally starting to accumulate and burst forth?

"After we finish the transaction, shall we go back to Happiness City?"

"Yes, of course I'll go back."

Xia Dong nodded emphatically, looking in the direction of Happiness City, "That's our root. No matter how long we're away, we have to come back."

"Besides, I still owe the captain a huge favor!"

　P.S.: Here comes the 7.2k-word chapter. With this, the first phase of this book, "Establishing a Foothold," has come to an end. Prosecutor Cheng is officially stepping into the vortex of power, and Uncle Dong is about to lead his caravan toward the stars and the sea!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)