Small Town Remedy: Who Is Behind the Drama

Small Town Remedy (小城良方, Xiaocheng Liangfang) is made by Ningmeng Pictures (柠萌影视), a Hong Kong-listed studio, with iQIYI as co-producer. The director is Zhang Xiaobo (张晓波) and the writer is Nie Chengshuai (聂成帅). The chief producer is Su Xiao (苏晓) and the producer is Xia Jie (夏杰). The series is adapted from the novel Fei Dao (飞刀, "Flying Knife") by Liu Sanshu (刘三叔).

Douban, the Chinese film and TV database, lists Zhang Xiaobo and Ningmeng together on two earlier series: Sanshi Er Yi (三十而已, 2020) and Xiao Shede (小舍得, 2021). This is not their first project together.

On October 16, when the premiere date was announced, the official billing changed. Until then the show's account named only Ningmeng and iQIYI. From that day the line reads "produced by CCTV and Ningmeng, co-produced by iQIYI," with CCTV first. Ningmeng's stock exchange filing the same day used the same wording. The drama airs on CCTV-8 in a prime-time slot from October 21, two episodes a night, with iQIYI as the exclusive streaming home. No reason for the change has been given.

Two labels are attached to the show. Officially it is a xiaocheng shenghuo "liao" yu ju (小城生活「疗」愈剧, "small-town life 'healing' drama"); the character for "healing" is put in quotation marks. Separately, the state broadcaster group CMG's 2026 slate, as reported by CCTV.com on January 9, listed it alongside two other series, Yisheng Rongyu (《医生荣誉》, "Doctor's Honor") and Wenxin 2 (《问心2》), as dramas that "focus on the medical industry." One viewer on Weibo wrote that it is "not purely a medical drama" but a life drama whose lead happens to be a doctor.

We found no public interviews with the director or writer about this show, and no press conference. The episode count has not been announced officially. Whether the medical side or the small-town side leads will be clearer once episodes air.

Sources: Small Town Remedy official Weibo (September 23, October 16 and 20, 2026); Caiwen News (October 16, 2026); CCTV.com (January 9, 2026); Douban credits.