The village chief's simple-minded son, Hanniū, drooled as he shuffled toward Xiao Yan, repeatedly calling her "new wife."

Xiao Yan suppressed her disgust and shifted away slightly, forcing a smile as she spoke to Yuelian. "Hanniū seems more aware now—he even knows about 'new wives.'"

Yuelian shook her head with a bitter smile. "He's twenty-three already. No girl is willing to marry him. Looks like he'll be a bachelor for life."

Xiao Yan said what she didn't mean: "You never know. Sometimes simple minds bring simple luck. I'm sure he'll find a wife someday."

Yuelian didn't respond, but she glanced at Xiao Yan a few more times.

She had never liked Xiao Yan—and probably most women in the village felt the same. Xiao Yan knew how to flirt and sweet-talk.

Back when she lived in the village, she'd gotten awfully close to both Yuelian's husband and the work-point recorder, sparking plenty of gossip.

Yuelian had been relieved when Xiao Yan finally left for the health clinic.

So this visit put her on guard. She wondered what Xiao Yan was really after.

Xiao Yan had hoped to have a proper talk with the village chief, but his drooling son made her too uncomfortable to stay. She left quickly after a few polite words.

The moment she was gone, Yuelian's face darkened. She turned to her husband. "Stay away from her. I don't want people talking. And where did that wife for Hanniū disappear to? We need to find her—otherwise that hundred yuan was wasted."

The village chief sighed helplessly. "Where would we even look? She was bought illegally. If anyone finds out, we could go to jail. I still have my position to think about. We've searched the town and nearby—no one's seen her. She's long gone. Forget it. We'll find another wife for Hanniū later."

Yuelian kept complaining, heartbroken over the money. "We shouldn't have paid upfront. We should've waited till after the wedding night. Who knows—maybe it was a scam. She probably had someone waiting to help her escape."

"Enough," the chief said sternly. "Drop it, or I'll lose my job. Just see if there's some lame or simple-minded girl in another village—we'll propose for Hanniū."

Hanniū, sitting to the side, pointed at the stool where Xiao Yan had been sitting. "Want this one. This wife. This wife smells good."

The chief smacked him lightly. "Don't even think about it. That's like a toad dreaming of eating swan meat."

Yuelian said nothing, but in her heart, she thought a flirt like Xiao Yan wasn't even good enough for her foolish son.......Lin Xiaoxiao was waiting for Xiao Yan to return—and screw up enough to get herself fired.

Three days later, Xiao Yan was back. Well-rested after five days off, she looked refreshed and relaxed. In her spare time, she still read her books, and she made a point of reporting her "ideological progress" to Director Chen.

She emphasized her work ethic and dedication to study so much that even Director Chen began to see her in a new light.

Lin Xiaoxiao watched coldly. Let her put on a show. The more she performs, the easier it is to slip up.

Perhaps it was fate—before Lin Xiaoxiao could even set a trap, Xiao Yan stumbled into one herself.

A patient arrived at the clinic with advanced stomach cancer. In unbearable pain, he begged for morphine.

Xiao Yan took the case. After a brief consultation, she prescribed a dose of morphine without hesitation. She sterilized a syringe and prepared to administer the injection.

At the time, controls on painkillers were lax. Even morphine was readily available in rural clinics.

Lin Xiaoxiao watched as Xiao Yan picked up the thickest needle with forceps. She felt compelled to speak up. "Morphine requires a fine needle. It's subcutaneous only—not intramuscular."

As much as she wanted Xiao Yan gone, she would never compromise a patient's safety.

Xiao Yan ignored her, stubbornly attaching the thick needle. She'd given injections before—who was Lin Xiaoxiao to lecture her?

After clearing the air from the syringe, she called the patient behind the curtain.

Lin Xiaoxiao frowned and stepped in. "Do you have any idea how damaging intramuscular morphine can be? This is irresponsible."

Xiao Yan's face turned cold. "Lin Xiaoxiao, don't think you're some expert just because you performed one surgery. I know what I'm doing. I don't need you interfering."

Lin Xiaoxiao took a step back to avoid being pushed. She laughed dryly. "Fine. As long as you're willing to take responsibility."

Without another word, she headed straight for Director Chen's office.

She couldn't stand by and let a patient suffer from negligence.

By the time Director Chen arrived, Xiao Yan had already administered the injection and was writing up the patient's notes. She paled when she saw Lin Xiaoxiao and the director together. Was there no end to Lin Xiaoxiao's tattling?

Director Chen didn't reprimand her in front of the patient. But after the man left, he turned to her sternly. "What were you thinking? You know morphine is subcutaneous. How could you make such a basic mistake?"

Xiao Yan stood up, shooting a resentful glance at Lin Xiaoxiao. "Director, this patient has late-stage gastric cancer. The pain is unbearable—he says he wants to die. Subcutaneous injections don't work for him anymore. That's why I chose intramuscular."

She handed him the patient's file. "Look—this is his treatment history here. It started with subcutaneous, but now he needs intramuscular. The pain is just too severe. I had no choice."

Then she added, "It's not that I don't know the rules. I was adapting to the patient's needs."

Director Chen flipped through the file, his face darkening. "Xiao Yan, this is reckless! You know how addictive morphine is. How could you keep prescribing it? If his condition is that serious, he should go to a city hospital—not rely on morphine for pain relief."

Lin Xiaoxiao was shocked. She hadn't realized how bold Xiao Yan had been. It also revealed major flaws in the clinic' drug management—many medications were handed out without oversight.

Xiao Yan was taken aback by his reaction. "I was following the symptoms. He's terminal—there's no hope of a cure. Morphine is the only thing that helps his pain. He can't afford city hospitals anyway."

Director Chen felt he was wasting his breath. "If something goes wrong, you won't be able to handle the consequences."

He threw the file down and stormed out, determined to tighten control over medication distribution. From now on, certain drugs would require his signature.

Xiao Yan's face flushed with anger. She still refused to admit she was wrong. She turned a cold glare toward Lin Xiaoxiao. "Happy now? Lin Xiaoxiao, don't push this too far."

Lin Xiaoxiao met her gaze coolly. "I just didn't want the patient to suffer more. Are you sure he wasn't already addicted? Do you realize how dangerous what you did was? You think you were saving him? You were harming him."

Xiao Yan froze. Her expression darkened, and her eyes glinted with something venomous.