Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
âI apologize on behalf of my colleague for being so rude. Heâs just so desperate. I hope youâll forgive him.â This young man was much politer than the other guy.
âI think you should leave,â Wang Yao calmly said.
The window of the first car came down a bit. The people inside the car could clearly hear the conversation between Wang Yao and the young man.
âYou see, I came all the way here because I heard you are a good doctor. Weâve been waiting for you the whole morning. I know you are a kind person. Please speak with us,â the young man said with a smile.
âHmm.â The man sitting in the car nodded.
âIâve told you I am not going to see him. Please leave,â Wang Yao said.
âCan I ask why?â The director got out of the car.
âYouâve broken my rule. You are not supposed to go to my home,â Wang Yao said. âI made it very clear on the sign.â
Iâm currently away from the clinic. Please do not bother my family.
âIsnât that clear enough?â Wang Yao pointed to the sign.
âBut, you are here, not away,â the director said.
âI am considered away as long as I am not in the clinic. I am the one who decides whether I am away or not,â Wang Yao calmly said.
âHmm.â This director, who was in his 40s looked at Wang Yao. He thought the young doctor was rude. He wouldnât have come here if his friend hadnât highly recommended Wang Yao. There was nothing else in this isolated village worth coming for. He had not expected that Wang Yao would be such a weird person.
Wang Yao said no more. He turned around and walked back to Nanshan Hill.
âHey, you!â one of the general directorâs men shouted.
âWhatâs the point of coming to this place? Letâs go.â The director got back inside the car.
He didnât think it was worthwhile to get upset because of such a trivial thing. The car left the clinic. Wang Yao didnât look back. He continued to walk toward Nanshan Hill.
The car suddenly stopped in the middle of the village.
âSir?â one of his men asked.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âHow come he is here?â The director looked through the window and saw a familiar figure, who walking along the street. The person he saw was Lin Sitao.
âCan you ask that man to come here? Be polite,â the director said.
âSure,â one of his men said.
He got out of the car and walked toward Lin Sitao. He talked with Lin Sitao for a moment. Then, Lin Sitao came to the car.
âHello, Director Xu,â Lin Sitao said.
âItâs really you! How come you are here? Is Mr. Sun also here?â Director Xu asked.
âNo, just me,â Lin Sitao said.
âI see,â Director Xu said.
At that moment, Sun Yunsheng walked along. âUncle Lin.â
âThis is?â Director Xu looked at Sun Yunsheng, who looked a lot like Sun Zhengrong. âMr. Sunâs son?â
âYes, and you are?â Sun Yunsheng asked.
âThis is Director Xu from the Department of Transport,â Lin Sitao said.
âOh, hello, Director Xu,â Sun Yunsheng said.
âHello,â Director Xu said.
He was confused. He heard Sun Yunsheng suffered from a horrible disease and was about to die. He wondered how come Sun Yunsheng looked completely fine.
They chatted for a short while. Both parties didnât go into much details. Then, Director Xu drove out of the village.
âI suppose Director Xu came to see Dr. Wang,â Sun Yunsheng said.
âProbably,â Lin Sitao said as he glanced toward the south. âIâm afraid he didnât get to see Dr. Wang.â
âWhy?â Sun Yunsheng asked.
âI saw the sign on the door of the clinic when I was having a walk in the morning,â Lin Sitao said.
âGiven their characters, theyâve probably been to Dr. Wangâs house,â Sun Yunsheng said.
The people from the Department of Transport would probably keep a low profile when they were in the town, but they definitely wouldnât do the same in a small village.
âYou are right,â Lin Sitao said.
âIâm not sure if Director Xu will be upset,â Sun Yunsheng said.
âHe will,â Lin Sitao said.
âWill he cause trouble for Dr. Wang?â Sun Yunsheng asked.
âDr. Wang can handle him,â Lin Sitao said.
Wang Yao only needed to call Guo Sirou or Song Ruiping if he wanted to sort Director Xu out. Even Sun Zhengrong could help to deal with him.
Du Feng came to the clinic the next morning. He looked much better and had put on some weight.
âHow have you been recently?â Wang Yao asked.
âIâm very well, thank you,â Du Feng said. He hadnât taken the expensive medications for heart disease since he started to see Wang Yao. His body adjusted to the therapy very well. He felt better and better.
He even had a feeling that his heart was beating strong, unlike before when he had to rely on medication to keep his weak heart working.
âLet me take a look at you,â Wang Yao said. He had a close look at Du Feng. âHmm, you are recovering well. I anticipate that youâll be fine after taking two more decoctions.â
âThatâs great!â Du Feng was thrilled.
âYou can fetch the decoctions tomorrow,â Wang Yao said.
âOK.â Du Feng left the clinic in a really good mood.
As soon as he had left the clinic, Sun Yunsheng came in.
âHello, Dr. Wang,â Sun Yunsheng said.
âPlease come in and take a seat. What can I help you with?â Wang Yao asked.
âDid a Director Xu come to your clinic yesterday?â Sun Yunsheng asked.
âI closed the clinic yesterday. But yes, someone came to see me. I asked him to leave. Why did you ask?â Wang Yao asked.
âYou asked him to leave?â Sun Yunsheng asked. I was right. Dr. Wang doesnât give a damn about those senior officers from the government department.
âDirector Xu holds a high position in the Department of Transport,â Sun Yunsheng said.
âYou mean he will hold grudge against me?â Wang Yao immediately got what Sun Yunsheng meant.
âItâs not a bad idea to be cautious,â Sun Yunsheng said.
Itâs an easy thing for someone like Director Xu to make someoneâs life hard. Although he was not in charge of the Health Department, he could ask the director of the Health Department to do him a favor.
âLet me know if you need my help,â Sun Yunsheng said.
âOK, thank you very much,â Wang Yao said.
Sun Yunsheng was very grateful for what Wang Yao had done for him. Friendship had started to build between them.
âYou are welcome,â Sun Yunsheng said.
âHave you been practicing Chinese boxing lately?â Wang Yao asked.
âYes, I just learned some basics from Uncle Lin,â Sun Yunsheng replied. He actually enjoyed practicing Chinese Kung Fu very much.
âThatâs a good thing. The flow of your Qi and blood has improved a lot,â Wang Yao said.
He and Sun Yunsheng chatted for a short while before Sun Yunsheng left.
Trouble? Wang Yao didnât think too much about Director Xu, but he needed to be mindful of the guy.
There were more patients in the afternoon. All the patients were from the village next door. Most of them had stomach problems.
People tended to eat and drink too much during Chinese New Year. They also tended to stay up late at night. Therefore, a lot of health problems occurred following Chinese New Year.
Wang Yaoâs treatment was to make recommendations on diet and provide massage therapy. He tried not to prescribe herbs. Two patients had stomach bleeding due to binge drinking.
âWhy didnât you come here sooner?â Wang Yao asked.
âI thought it was unlucky to see a doctor during Chinese New Year. However, I canât put up with the pain anymore,â a middle-aged male patient said.
His face was candle yellow, and his lips had turned purple.
âYouâve already had problems with your liver. Your health will be completely damaged if you continue to binge drink,â Wang Yao said.
âWell, I canât help it during Chinese New Year,â the male patient sadly said. He didnât want to drink on some occasions, but he couldnât resist in the end. The more he drank, the more uncomfortable he felt.
âFortunately, you came here today. Iâll prescribe you some herbs to take at home. You canât drink alcohol during the time you take herbs. If you donât get better, donât bother to come back,â Wang Yao said.
âSure, thank you,â the male patient said.
âYou are the same,â Wang Yao said to another patient in the cue. That patient was dehydrated from vomiting and diarrhea. It was all due to alcohol consumption.
âOK,OK,â the patient said. Then, Wang Yao took a close look at him.
âYou are even worse than him. How could you drink with an empty stomach?â Wang Yao asked.
âHow did you know?â the patient asked with surprise.
âThat is not the point. I need to prescribe two formulas for you. You canât drink alcohol from now on and should have a good meal routine,â Wang Yao said.
âSure, I will,â said the patient, who was in his 30s.
Wang Yao prescribed formulas for the two patients. He wrote down how to brew the herbal decoctions and precautions.
âTake your decoction on time. Remember, donât drink anymore,â Wang Yao said.
âSure,â the two patients said.
All the patients promised that they would follow Wang Yaoâs advice. However, most of them couldnât keep their promises.
Wang Yao was busy working the whole afternoon. He went through his notes after all the patients had left. All the patients coming in the afternoon had common conditions. Wang Yao treated them with common herbs, which he bought from a herb store. It was worthwhile to promote the treatment methods. He documented those cases in great details. He had a different notebook for more severe cases requiring licorice roots.