Chapter 11: I'm Sorry, I Am a Medical Student

"The Old Poor Peasant's Will," "The Living Yama Shao Zhancheng," "The Various Sins of Landlords," "The Vampire Yang Zhanggao."

—No, these books are too thin.

"The Collected Works of Gorky," "Bettymir's Golden Bowl," "Little Things and Infectious Diseases."

—Ahem, these books are too thick.

Li Aiguo’s gaze swept slowly across the bookshelf. His hand, which had been extended to grab a book, could only scratch his head as it slid past the volumes.

If the books were too thick, the damn system wouldn't give extra skill points.

If the books were too thin, the damn system would definitely deduct skill points.

To maximize benefits, it was best to choose books of moderate thickness.

Li Aiguo was currently selecting books based on the thickness of the textbooks at home.

The books in the philosophy and history sections were all heavy tomes, so Li Aiguo turned and headed to the professional skills textbook section.

He had come to the right place this time.

Just after squeezing through the crowd, he found a copy of "A Collection of Stories on Production Struggles and Scientific Experiments" on the shelf.

Moderate thickness, just right.

Li Aiguo hugged the book to his chest and continued to look for his next target.

"The Land Surveyor," "Selected Short Works on Agricultural Cooperativization," "Selected Broadcast Songs."

Hey, this is pretty good, I'll take it.

Soon, Li Aiguo had seven or eight books in his arms.

His gaze turned to a book with a red cover in front of him; once he got this one, he would have enough to read for today.

He reached out, grabbed the book, and went to pull it back.

The book retracted.

He pulled back again.

It retracted.

Back.

Retract.

Pull.

Retract.

"Hey, I've invented a perpetual motion machine!"

Li Aiguo increased his strength.

The person on the other side seemed to give up.

He pulled the book out and hugged it to his chest, and a pair of beautiful eyes flashed through the gap in the bookshelf.

It was just that the look in those eyes seemed strange; it didn't contain anger, but rather...

Li Aiguo had once seen this kind of look before, but only when facing patients at the Sixth Psychiatric Hospital.

The person had escaped to the street, shouting and screaming for a while.

It’s just a book, is it necessary to look at me like I’m a lunatic?

In this era, there was no shortage of tough girls, and Li Aiguo was already prepared to have a friendly debate with the girl regarding the ownership of the book.

The girl flashed out from behind the bookshelf, looked Li Aiguo up and down, and frowned: "Comrade, I didn't expect you to read 'Chinese Female Pelvis' too?"

???

Li Aiguo looked down, and the gold-inlaid characters on the grayish-brown cover glittered in the sunlight.

"..."

He was silent for a moment, then raised his head to look the girl straight in the eye.

"I'm sorry, I'm a medical student."

"What a coincidence, I'm a medical student too, studying right next door at the Medical College. Which school are you from?" The girl's dark, round eyes widened.

"...I am a student with an interest in medicine."

Li Aiguo looked at the girl's fair, rosy cheeks and felt she looked a bit familiar, as if he had seen her before, but he couldn't remember where or who she was.

"..." The girl was silent.

She took a deep breath, reached out, and pursed her lips: "Hello, Comrade, my name is Ding Qiunan, a medical student. I'm currently interning at the Nanluoguxiang Street Hospital and I urgently need this book. Could you please let me have it first?"

Afraid that Li Aiguo wouldn't agree, she added: "Don't worry, I'm just looking up some information, it will only take two days."

Li Aiguo knew the Nanluoguxiang Street Hospital.

It was a community clinic with only three or four doctors, capable of treating nothing more than headaches and diarrhea.

Because it was convenient for residents to get reimbursed, it never lacked patients.

When he was a child, Li Aiguo had poor health and often got butt injections there.

However, he had never seen Ding Qiunan before; she might be new.

Wait, what did she just say her name was?

Ding Qiunan?

Li Aiguo’s eyes widened.

Isn't she the heroine of "Man is Steel, Rice is Iron"?

Li Aiguo subconsciously looked her over carefully. She was a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl, beautiful and elegant.

She was wearing a light red floral short-sleeved shirt, common for this era.

The short twin-tails hairstyle behind her head was very cute; she had a melon-seed face, delicate features, and bright, watery eyes. The blue Shilin cloth trousers on her lower body were tight, perfectly accentuating her good figure and exuding a youthful aura.

Right now, she was staring at him with those watery eyes.

"Hello, I'm Li Aiguo. You can take this book first."

For Li Aiguo, the content of the book wasn't important; the key was the thickness.

There were plenty of other books of similar thickness on the shelf.

After Li Aiguo handed the book to Ding Qiunan, he quickly found another book on the shelf—a blue cover, moderate thickness.

Ding Qiunan hugged the book to her chest and was about to thank Li Aiguo when her peripheral vision caught the book he had pulled out.

"Compendium of Veterinary Acupuncture..."

The corners of her mouth twitched slightly, and the words that had reached her lips were swallowed back down.

"People of the world, unite and oppose all imperialism! Comrade, I would like to borrow these books."

The female clerk looked at the thick stack of books on the table and frowned.

"Resolutely, thoroughly, and cleanly annihilate all invading enemies! Comrade, according to the regulations, you can only borrow three books at a time. Also, where is your library card?"

Li Aiguo was dumbfounded.

His predecessor had never borrowed a book in his life; he didn't have a library card at all.

"Can I get one here?"

"The processing fee is five jiao. Where is your letter of introduction?" The female clerk held out her hand.

"I need a letter of introduction to get a library card?" Li Aiguo was surprised.

The female clerk was a bit annoyed. Since he didn't even know common knowledge, she felt this person was just looking for trouble.

Her tone grew a bit heavier

"How novel. Without a letter of introduction, how do I know who you are or where you live?

If you borrow the books and don't return them, where are we supposed to find you?"

Li Aiguo understood a little.

In this era, there were no ID cards; the household registration pages that proved one's identity were kept in the archives of the neighborhood office.

To prove one's identity, one had to go to the street office to get a letter of introduction.

Fine, we won't borrow them today, is that okay?

Anyway, there were a few long benches in the bookstore where he could sit and read.

"Then can I read the books here?"

"Suit yourself, as long as you don't take them out."

After the female clerk finished speaking, she ignored Li Aiguo and lowered her head to knit a sweater.

Knitting a sweater in this season—it must be for a lover.

Li Aiguo curled his lips, grumbling to himself, and found a seat with his books.

"Skill point +1"

"Skill point +1"

"Skill point +1"

In the span of a morning, he finished seven books and gained 7 skill points.

Add points!

He manipulated the panel and added all 7 skill points to Steam Engine Operation Technology.

Steam Engine Operation Technology: 23↑30

A familiar sense of dizziness washed over his mind, and Li Aiguo narrowed his eyes slightly.

Internal structure of steam engines: A train driver who doesn't know how to repair a train is not a good driver.

This knowledge covered the internal structure of all trains currently on the market.

The system even thoughtfully marked the parts of the train prone to failure and the solutions for those faults.

It could be said that Li Aiguo was now on par with a first-grade mechanic.

Li Aiguo nodded with satisfaction.

Sure enough, those who rely on their own efforts can become superior to others in any world.

He closed the book and checked the time; there was half an hour left until noon.

He could grind one more low-value book.

Even a fly is meat; Li Aiguo was a down-to-earth person.

This time, he chose a few comic books; they would both grind points and help him relax.

(End of chapter)