Walking to the entrance of the Institute, she saw a black Hongqi car parked by the roadside. That was the car her father drove, the one Yang Ping usually sat in. She paused for a moment, thinking of walking away, when the car door opened and Yang Ping stepped out.

"Sisi?" He saw her, "What are you doing here?"

She said, "Passing by, just having a look."

Yang Ping smiled and said, "Perfect timing, I’m going to visit a little patient in the ward, would you like to come with me?"

She hesitated for a moment, then nodded vigorously, "Okay!"

Following Yang Ping into the ward building, her emotions were somewhat complicated.

She was very familiar with this place. Those corridors, those wards, those doctors and nurses coming and going, all were exactly as she remembered. The smell of disinfectant in the air, the occasional cries from the corridor, the busy figures at the nurse’s station, and that indescribable mix of hope and despair—she was familiar with every bit of it.

She thought about the days she lived here in the past. Those long nights, those times of pain that made sleep impossible, those afternoons staring dazedly out the window. At that time she didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, didn’t know if she could survive. But she knew there was someone who was constantly thinking of ways to help her.

Yang Ping opened the door to a ward.

Inside lay a girl, looking a few years younger than Sisi, about seven or eight years old, skinny and small, with a somewhat pale complexion. Sitting by the bed was a woman, presumably the girl’s mother, with eyes red from crying.

Yang Ping walked over and sat by the bed, asking the girl gently, "How are you feeling today?"

The girl said, "I’m okay." Her voice was very soft and somewhat weak.

Yang Ping examined her, looked at her arm, listened to her breathing, and then checked the medical records at the bedside. He then stood up and said a few things to the girl’s mother in a low voice that Sisi couldn’t hear.

A few minutes later, they came out of the ward.

Leaving the ward, Sisi couldn’t help but ask, "Professor Yang, what illness does she have?"

Yang Ping was silent for a while, then said, "The same illness you had before."

Sisi was stunned.

She turned around and looked at the door that had already closed. Through the glass on the door, she could faintly see the girl lying on the bed, and the mother sitting beside her, head lowered.

A feeling surged in her heart, one that was hard to describe.

The little girl was going through everything she had experienced back then. The pain, the fear, the fear of not knowing what tomorrow would bring. The mother was enduring everything her own mother had endured back then. The tears, the helplessness, the despair of wanting to suffer for her child but being powerless to do so.

Yang Ping said, "We’re using K Therapy for her, it’s been two months already. The effect is quite good, but we still need to observe more."

Sisi asked, "Will she get better?"

Yang Ping looked at her, his eyes very gentle and resolute. He said, "She will, just like you."

Sisi suddenly felt like crying.

Coming out of the ward building, she stood at the entrance, looking at the crowd coming and going. There were doctors walking by hastily, nurses pushing wheelchairs, family members carrying lunch boxes, and patients slowly moving with crutches. Everyone had their own story, their own difficulties, their own hopes.

She suddenly felt her heart was full of strength.

That girl would get better, just like her.

And she herself would study hard, get into the best high school, enter the best medical school, and then come back here to become Yang Ping’s student.

By then, she too would stand in front of the children, bend down, look into their eyes, and say, "Don’t be afraid, we’ll find a way."

She took a deep breath and walked towards home.

Sunlight shone on her, warm and soothing.

She remembered a long time ago, that little girl lying in the hospital bed, looking through the window at the light from the Institute, thinking: When I get better, I must repay Professor Yang.

It’s about becoming someone like him.

That is probably the best way to repay.