Me! A high-ranking official!

He put his phone back in his pocket and took a deep breath.

fortunately!

Luckily, there's the treasure bowl!

The Rejuvenating Pill costs 20 million.

He currently earns over 370,000 yuan a day, and it will take him at most two months to save enough for one dose of medicine. From infection to onset, syphilis takes at least a week, and sometimes three to four weeks. In terms of time, he can barely make it.

But Zhou Qingyan knew none of this. She didn't know he had a treasure bowl, nor did she know he possessed the Rejuvenating Pill, a cure for two incurable diseases. In her mind, being allergic to both penicillin and doxycycline meant that the path to syphilis was completely blocked, leaving her only able to watch helplessly as the disease manifested, as sores grew, rotted, and disfigured her body, and as her career and life were ruined.

Alone in a foreign land, on her first day in office, the eyes of the entire county were on her. She had no relatives or anyone she could confide in. The only one who knew her secret was that bastard who infected her with the disease.

The fact that Zhou Qingyan didn't have someone kill him shows she had great self-control.

He took out his phone and glanced at the last few messages in the group chat.

Xiao Chen: Anyway, Secretary Zhou is out of danger now and is resting in the ward. The county has issued a strict order that no one is allowed to go to the hospital to disturb him, not even to visit him.

Liu Peng: Alright, alright, stop asking around. We'll keep this to ourselves and not spread it around. Let's disperse.

The group chat gradually quieted down.

He put his phone away, turned around, and walked back the way he came; he needed to go to the county hospital.

Regardless of whether Zhou Qingyan wanted to see him or not, he had to tell her that he had other ways, not to claim credit or to make her grateful, but to stop her from making trouble anymore.

She almost died from penicillin, and she almost died from doxycycline. If she doesn't give up and tries a third or fourth type of blocking drug, who knows what else might happen? The side effects of those alternatives are getting worse and worse, and the risk of allergies is getting higher and higher. Her body, which has just been through two near-death experiences, can't withstand a third round of torture.

The county hospital is located at the junction of the new and old urban areas, not far from Xihai Square, about a ten-minute walk away.

Zhao Jianguo entered the hospital gate, passed through the outpatient building, and walked towards the inpatient department. The county hospital was not large; the inpatient department was a single six-story building, with the wards for cadres on the fifth floor.

He went up to the fifth floor. The corridor was quiet, with the smell of disinfectant mixed with an indescribable medicinal smell. The floor was covered with beige rubber flooring, and walking on it made almost no sound.

The VIP ward was at the end of the corridor. It was a suite with a chair by the door. A young man was sitting there, legs crossed, looking down at his phone.

Zhao Jianguo knew him.

Du Long, a newly recruited civil servant in the county party committee office this year, has been on the job for less than two months. He just graduated from university and still has a youthful innocence on his face. The young man is not short, but he is as thin as a bamboo pole. His suit hangs loosely on him, with the cuffs rolled up twice, clearly borrowed or bought temporarily, and doesn't fit him well.

He wasn't surprised at all that the county party committee office had sent him to be Zhou Qingyan's temporary secretary.

The first thing the new secretary does upon taking office is to appoint a secretary. However, the position of secretary is too sensitive. The secretary is always by the leader's side and knows everything about the leader's schedule, habits, and interpersonal relationships. Who to appoint or not to appoint directly affects whether the leader can gain a foothold in the county.

The county government may not look big, but it is full of factions and backstabbing. In the county party committee office, government office, and various bureaus and commissions, it is impossible for the new secretary to figure out who is behind whom. If he rashly appoints an old hand, he may be planting a time bomb in his own backyard.

Therefore, when a new leader takes office, he will usually be assigned a temporary secretary. Young people like Du Long, who have just been recruited, are the most suitable. They have no background, no factional labels, and are a clean blank slate.

If the temporary secretary is quick-witted and diligent, even if she doesn't meet the leader's requirements immediately, the leader is willing to spend time training her. After all, she is someone he personally trained, so he trusts her. If she does a good job, becoming a permanent employee will be a natural thing.

But Du Long is clearly not that kind of person.

Zhao Jianguo stood at the corner of the corridor, watching him. Du Long scrolled through his phone for a while, then couldn't sit still any longer. He stood up, circled around the chair twice, then sat down again. After a few minutes, he stood up again, took out his cigarette case, looked around, and walked towards the stairwell at the other end of the corridor.

Seeing this, he couldn't help but shake his head.

The leader is lying inside, just revived, and needs to be by his side. But this guy is off smoking. What if the leader rings the bell and no one answers from inside or outside? What would happen then?

This guy is a greenhorn. He should be good at taking exams; no one who can pass the civil service exam is stupid. But his ability to handle tasks is far from adequate.

He silently labeled Du Long in his mind, and taking this opportunity, he quickly walked towards the cadre ward.

Du Long's figure disappeared into the stairwell, and the corridor was empty. He walked to the door of the ward and gently knocked twice on the door.

A weak voice came from inside, barely audible through the door, but clearly impatient.

"Come in."

He pushed open the door and went in. The ward was a private room, much larger than a regular ward. There was a bed by the window, and opposite it was a TV cabinet and a double sofa. The curtains were half drawn, and the afternoon sunlight shone in from the other half, drawing a line of light and shadow on the floor.

Zhou Qingyan was leaning against the bed with two pillows behind her back and a thin blanket covering her. She was wearing a blue and white striped hospital gown with the collar loose, revealing a section of her collarbone. Her hair was not tied up as it was during the day, but was loose and disheveled over her shoulders. Her face was pale and almost bloodless, her lips were dry and cracked, and there were dark circles under her eyes.

An IV needle was inserted into the back of his hand, connected to an IV bag on the shelf next to him.

When she saw that the person who came in was Zhao Jianguo, her pupils contracted sharply, her eyes widened instantly, filled with anger, hatred, and humiliation. Her eyes visibly reddened, her chest heaved violently, her lips trembled, and her voice was low and hoarse.

"Who sent you? Where's Du Long? How could he let you in!"

He quickly raised his hands in a reassuring gesture.

"Secretary Zhou, please don't get agitated. I have something very important to report to you about your condition. Please listen to me for just one sentence. I'll leave immediately after I finish and won't disturb you."

Zhou Qingyan stared intently at him, her chest heaving violently, her hands gripping the corner of the blanket tightly, her body trembling slightly, as if she was desperately trying to restrain something.

Zhao Jianguo saw the corner of her eye.

There was a tear stain that hadn't completely dried, stretching from the corner of her eye to her temple, leaving a faint sheen of moisture on her pale skin, and her eyelashes still held a trace of dampness that hadn't been wiped away.

You can tell at a glance that she had just been crying!

It felt like something had ripped out of his heart.

This woman was sent back to the emergency room less than half a day after leaving the ICU. She almost suffocated due to laryngeal edema, and her blood pressure dropped so low that her heart almost stopped. She was brought back to life by a group of people in a frantic rush. After waking up, no one around her could listen to a single truth from her. She could only lie alone in this ward and bear all the consequences by herself.

Anyone else would probably have collapsed by now.

He took a deep breath, lowered his voice, and spoke very quickly: "Secretary Zhou, I have a friend abroad who is a medical doctor. Their laboratory has a special drug that can prevent syphilis and AIDS. It can effectively prevent infection if taken within two months, and it is more effective than the existing prevention and control measures in China. I have already asked him for help, but because the drug is special, it needs to go through some procedures to get it from abroad, and it may take more than a month to get it."

He paused for a moment, looking into Zhou Qingyan's eyes: "You don't need to try any other medicines. I'll bring them to you as soon as I get them."

Zhou Qingyan's eyes changed. In that instant, Zhao Jianguo clearly saw that it was not gratitude or forgiveness, but the instinctive reaction of a drowning person who suddenly sees a piece of driftwood.

But then, Zhou Qingyan frowned, her gaze filled with scrutiny and suspicion as she stared at his face, as if trying to determine whether he was telling the truth or making up a lie to appease her.

He roughly knew what Zhou Qingyan was thinking. If such a drug existed, how could she not know about it? She was a division-level cadre who had worked at both the provincial and municipal levels. Her connections and information channels were unmatched by ordinary people. How could Zhao Jianguo, a mere clerk in the government office, possibly obtain something she had never even heard of?

Perhaps there was truly no other way. After a silence of about ten seconds, Zhou Qingyan finally asked, "Are you telling the truth?"

"Absolutely true," he said with certainty.

Zhou Qingyan stared at him for a few seconds, then looked away and gazed out the window: "I understand, you can go now."

Hearing Zhou Qingyan say this, a huge weight was lifted from his heart.

She didn't refuse, and not refusing means she agreed.

She was a smart woman; he didn't need to spell it out. Zhou Qingyan must have understood what he meant by "miracle drug."

He nodded immediately: "Secretary Zhou, I'll be going now. Please take care of yourself."

After saying that, he turned and walked to the door. He didn't open the door immediately, but first put his ear to the door and listened. There were no footsteps in the corridor. Du Long hadn't returned yet.

He gently opened the door, slipped out to the side, and closed the door behind him.

The corridor was empty, the smell of disinfectant mixed with the afternoon heat. From the stairwell, Du Long's voice could be faintly heard making a phone call, laughing and joking, chatting with someone.

He didn't linger any longer and quickly walked towards the elevator.

Squinting, I walked towards Ronghui Xiuyuan, my mind still replaying what had just happened.

Zhou Qingyan temporarily trusted him, so all he needed to do next was save money, enough to reach 20 million, and exchange it for the Rejuvenation Pill.

As I approached the entrance of the residential compound and was about to turn inside, I caught a glimpse of a familiar figure emerging from within.

Liu Peng!

Liu Peng, from the Cadre Section of the Organization Department of the County Party Committee, was admitted in the same batch as him. They both lived in Ronghui Xiuyuan. When they bought the house, they came to see it together. Later, they visited each other several times during the renovation.

Liu Peng was wearing a dark blue polo shirt, with a briefcase tucked under his arm. He was walking out with his head down. After a few steps, he looked up and his eyes met Zhao Jianguo's.

Liu Peng paused noticeably. In that instant, he clearly saw a hint of embarrassment flash across Liu Peng's face. It wasn't the normal reaction to seeing an acquaintance, but rather a kind of awkwardness of "How did we run into each other here?"

Liu Peng glanced to the side, as if considering whether to pretend he didn't see him and walk past, but their eyes had already met, and it was too late to pretend he didn't see him. He gave a dry laugh, a stiff smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, and waved his hand at him.

"Jianguo, you just got back from your trip?"

He looked at Liu Peng and gave a faint smile: "Mm."

"Okay, you go ahead and do your work. I have some things to do at work, so I'll be going now." After saying that, Liu Peng quickened his pace and walked past him, brushing past his shoulder.

He and Liu Peng were in the same batch of candidates who entered the system. That year, the county recruited twelve people, and the six of them were assigned to county-level government agencies. They were very close, formed a small group chat, drank, ate barbecue, and boasted together. Their relationship was like that of college roommates. When he got married, Liu Peng even came to the wedding banquet and gave him a 500 yuan gift.

But that's how personal relationships work in government agencies. When you're successful, you're surrounded by friends. When you're down on your luck, those friends run away faster than rabbits. And that's not the worst part. The worst part is that some people call you brother while stabbing you in the back. There are only a few promotion slots. If you don't step down, how will someone else come up?

He had seen through all of this long ago, especially after getting this disease, his temperament changed a lot, and he had a feeling that he was invincible because he had a terminal illness!

Back home, Zhao Jianguo closed the door, changed into slippers, and plopped down on the sofa.

There were dozens of unread messages on his WeChat icon. He clicked on them and, as usual, looked for the Hair Loss Front Alliance.

did not find.

He scrolled down and then up again, and sure enough, it was gone. The group chat had disappeared, as if it had never existed.

Zhao Jianguo was stunned for a moment, then opened Liu Peng's chat box. The system prompt clearly showed: You have been removed from the group chat by "Liu Peng".

Just now, two minutes after he met Liu Peng at the entrance of the residential area.

In other words, after Liu Peng greeted him and walked a few steps away, the first thing he did was take out his phone and kick him.

Zhao Jianguo stared at the system notification for a few seconds, then put his phone down.

Liu Peng was the group admin. His presence in the group meant there was a risk of the chat logs being leaked. If he were to screenshot the chat logs and post them online, all the comments criticizing the leaders, spreading rumors, and discussing Zhou Qingyan's illness would explode. Liu Peng, who worked in the Organization Department, was most afraid of this kind of thing, so he quickly kicked him out to clean things up.

Zhao Jianguo leaned back on the sofa, staring at the ceiling.

It's not Liu Peng's fault. If it were him, he probably would have done the same. After being in the system for so long, he's become used to this kind of thing. What really made him feel bored wasn't that Liu Peng kicked him out, but that he suddenly realized that in this county, apart from Liu Tao, he didn't seem to have a single real friend.

Those who drank together, worked overtime together, and cursed the boss together, in the end, they couldn't even find a place for him in a group chat.