After being separated from my family, I became a darling of the military region thanks to my medical

In Dean Zhou's office, the clock on the wall pointed to eleven o'clock.

Ma Zhigang gripped the black handset of the landline, his fingers forcefully turning the dial, the rattling sound particularly loud in the quiet room. The operator transferred him twice, and with a piercing electrical static, the phone to the director's office of the provincial design institute was finally connected.

"Who is it?" came Dean Sun's heavily nasal voice from the other end of the phone.

"Dean, it's me, Xiao Ma." Ma Zhigang lowered his voice, his tone revealing a fearless determination.

"Ma Zhigang! You little brat, you actually know how to call back!" Upon hearing this voice, Dean Sun erupted on the other end of the phone, spitting so loudly the receiver buzzed. "You took two days off saying you were attending a comrade's wedding, and it's been five days now! Not a trace of you! Who wrote that structural assessment report for the Hongxing Reservoir on your desk? Do you even want to keep this job?"

Ma Zhigang held the receiver ten centimeters away, waiting for the roaring on the other end to subside slightly before forcing himself to speak: "Dean, I'm doing some urgent work at the Beicheng Military Region General Hospital these past few days. I'm calling you now to ask for another month's leave. I need to go to a remote mountain village in Qingyun County to build a bridge."

There was a sudden silence on the other end of the phone. A full three seconds of silence followed, then Dean Sun's voice was icy cold: "Repairing a makeshift bridge? A month? Ma Zhigang, you've really grown some guts. Skipping work to take on private jobs. Fine! You don't need to ask for leave anymore. Tomorrow I'll have the logistics department move your desk out and treat it as dismissal! Our design institute is too small to accommodate a big shot like you!"

"Dean, please don't rush to fire me!" Ma Zhigang stamped his feet anxiously, quickly pulling out his trump card, "That bridge isn't a private job; we're not charging a penny. This bridge is being built in Heishan Village, Qingyun County. That's Dr. Ye Zhen's hometown! The bridge is being built to solve the village's transportation problems and the children's need to cross the river to get to school!"

"Which Ye Zhen?" Dean Sun asked impatiently.

"And who is this Ye Zhen! The one featured on the front page of the People's Daily last week, the female doctor who created a miracle in heart surgery in China!" Ma Zhigang, afraid he wouldn't believe him, embellished the story rapidly, "You didn't see the spectacle this morning. Vice Minister Li of the Ministry of Health personally came in a Hongqi car to cut the ribbon for Dr. Ye's interventional center, and directors from more than ten top-tier hospitals across the country lined up to be her assistants! Dr. Ye is a 'national surgical treasure' praised by the state! Now, her hometown folks are blocked by a river, and this bridge of mine is to relieve this heroic doctor of her worries!"

A loud slamming sound came from the other end of the phone, like a drawer being pulled open, followed by heavy breathing.

In the early 1980s, unit leaders had a keener sense for political direction and propaganda models than hunting dogs. Dean Sun quickly pieced together these pieces of information and astutely spotted a shocking oversight.

Countless units in the province were scrambling to capitalize on Ye Zhen's popularity; even the director of the provincial hospital boasted for days about sending several visiting doctors there. Now, solving practical problems for the hometown of a nationally recognized role model—what a huge political asset that is!

"You kid... how far along is the bridge construction now? Has the local government paid for it?" Dean Sun's tone changed completely, filled with uncontrollable excitement.

"As soon as the blueprints were finalized, two poor villages in the area pooled together a few truckloads of stones," Ma Zhigang answered truthfully.

"Great! Excellent!" Dean Sun slapped his thigh. "Xiao Ma, listen up! You're not skipping work now; you're on a political mission from the provincial design institute to support the construction at the grassroots level! This bridge can't have the village pay for the design and technical guidance fees. Our provincial institute will cover it all!"

Ma Zhigang was taken aback by this sudden turn of events: "Huh? You've approved my leave?"

"What leave?! This is a business trip!" Dean Sun was pacing excitedly on the other end of the phone, his mind racing with ideas. "This is a great story about the close bond between the military and the people, building a bridge of unity. Once this bridge is completed, I'll take reporters from the provincial newspaper to interview them. I've already thought of the title for the front-page article—'Our Provincial Design Institute Designs Bridges for Comrade Ye Zhen's Hometown Free of Charge, Bringing Technology to the Countryside and Warming Hearts'! As long as this article is published, our institute is guaranteed to win the provincial advanced collective award at the end of the year!"

Ma Zhigang clicked his tongue in amazement, and had to admire the old man's quick reaction.

"Xiao Ma, you're to stay in Heishan Village for the entire month!" Dean Sun began issuing his orders. "I won't deduct your salary; I'll give you the highest allowance for official rural service—1.5 yuan a day—plus two jin of national grain coupons. But there's one condition: you must build this bridge to be sturdy and beautiful. After it's finished, erect a stone tablet at the bridgehead, inscribed with the name of our provincial design institute. If there's even the slightest quality problem that damages the institute's reputation, I'll skin you alive!"

Holding the receiver, Ma Zhigang was overjoyed and repeatedly assured them, "Don't worry! If even a single brick of this bridge collapses, I'll put my head on top of it!"

After hanging up the phone, Ma Zhigang strode out of the reception room like a victorious rooster.

In the open space in front of the office building, Gu Zheng and Ye Zhen were whispering to each other. Seeing Ma Zhigang's expression, Gu Zheng scoffed, "What? So happy about being fired? Need me to write you a letter of recommendation for your job placement?"

Ma Zhigang stepped forward and vividly recounted the events of the phone call from beginning to end.

Gu Zheng, with a cigarette between his fingers, mocked him without any politeness: "Look at you, so pathetic. You'd be sold off for a dollar and fifty cents a day. But your old dean is a cunning fox, trying to get something for nothing by taking advantage of my wife. He's got a way to make his fortune in the north of the city."

Ye Zhen, however, didn't find it offensive. A mutually beneficial arrangement—this was the most stable form of cooperation. The provincial design institute wanted recognition, and Heishan Village wanted a bridge. Ma Zhigang went down to supervise the construction with a salary; his food, clothing, and other necessities were guaranteed, which motivated him to work even harder.

She looked at Ma Zhigang and said earnestly, "Engineer Ma, conditions in Heishan Village and Dahe Village are tough. You'll have to work hard for the next month. Once the bridge is built, the children in both villages won't have to wade across the river anymore. I thank you on behalf of my fellow villagers back home."

This thank you carried too much weight. Ma Zhigang scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly: "Sister-in-law, you're being too polite. I'm just a rough man, I may not be good at much, but I guarantee I can fit these stones together perfectly."

Ye Zhen turned her head and glanced at the man next to her.

Gu Zheng understood immediately. He turned around, took two bottles of Moutai liquor wrapped in newspaper from the trunk of the Jeep, and forcibly stuffed them into Ma Zhigang's arms.

"When you get to the village, hand him over to my older brother Ye Cheng. Just say I sent you to oversee things. Those bastards in the village, who would dare disobey your orders? Just kick them out of the quarry." Gu Zheng patted Ma Zhigang on the shoulder. "Xiao Wang has already gone to get the military pickup truck; he'll take you there directly."