Chapter 138 - Used To Be Warmates

“Jun Bro- Professor Guan and I met once at Newchina.” Lin Yi explained with a laugh. “We were talking about medicine...... Ah, that’s right, there were a couple of things regarding the medicinal properties for some of the prescription’s ingredients I wasn’t sure of, and I didn’t remember to bring any medical books with me. So I went to a bookstore.”

“So the two of you know each other already- I won’t have to introduce you guys then.” Huaijun let out a breath of relief after having completed the task. They’d get along easier if they knew one another.

Huaijun was pretty unaffected by what Lin Yi had said, but Xuemin was only sent into further surprise upon hearing the words! He’d assumed that Lin Yi had to be from a hidden family of doctors with a couple of ancient, lost recipes in his hands, seeing how young the lad was and all...

But the kid was doing research at a bookstore to have a prescription made for Huaijun! It was something Xuemin was not expecting- it would mean that Lin Yi had written the recipe himself instead of using an existing one, and that, in turn, proved loud and clear the level of comprehension in Eastern medicine Lin Yi had already accomplished.

Yet... To not have a clear enough understanding of the ingredients he was using, to the point where he’d needed to go do research at a bookstore... Wasn’t it a bit too daring for the guy to make a prescription for a patient just like that? And Huaijun just believed it as well, even using the medicine- what kind of relationship did the two have?

Xuemin may have been old, but he was able to tell that it was no simple bond connecting the two through the slightest of behavioural actions, and attitudes. How far that depth went, however, was beyond Xuemin’s conjecture abilities.

Just the effects the medicine had had on Huaijun was enough to stun Xuemin- it seemed that Lin Yi had made the recipe with his own abilities instead of relying on a family recipe. It was a fact by now that the kid was good, that the meeting was well worth the wait.

“I apologize.” Xuemin shook his head, a little embarrassed as he spoke. “I’d even suggested that you apply to my university of medicine... none of our teachers would’ve been able to mentor you- it’d be more appropriate for you to be teaching us!”

“Haha, you exaggerate, Professor Guan.” Lin Yi said politely. “It’s just a little something more isolated from the world, I’m no Eastern medicine specialist, after all......”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“What? You’re not an Eastern doctor?” Xuemin couldn’t believe what he was hearing- was the kid starting to put on airs after he praised him like that? Specialists scratched their heads at Huaijun’s condition, and the kid was telling him he’d cured him on a whim, with no effort whatsoever? That he wasn’t an Eastern medicine specialist?

One look at Lin Yi’s honest face, however, and Xuemin recalled the humble way the kid had acted back at the Newchina bookstore... Xuemin didn’t doubt his words anymore, at that point.

“Yeah. I’m a twelfth grader right now.” Lin Yi said, scratching his head. “Well, Huaijun knows about my background... right?”

Huaijun felt quite helpless when Lin Yi turned his head to him. Dude, I can’t just tell Guan Xuemin about your stuff when you’re keeping quiet about it yourself......

“Ah......” Lin Yi decided then that he needn’t hide his past too much in front of Xuemin. After all, it’d been Guan Xuemin who’d taken care of Huaijun all this time, and it’d only be natural for him to know about the cause of Huaijun’s injury, along with the work he’d been doing. He wouldn’t have been able to get Huaijun the best medicine without details like that. His past with Huaijun was just a small part of their lives, too, and there was no harm in telling Xuemin about that. “You see, professor- Huaijun and I were warmates.”

“Warmates......” Xuemin’s face changed instantly upon hearing the words. He was aware of what Huaijun’s old occupation was, so Lin Yi claiming that he was the guy’s warmate......

He took a closer look at Lin Yi- the guy couldn’t have been older than twenty, and he’d even said so himself that he was a twelfth grader...... Huaijun’s warmate? It was only natural for a statement like that to sound a little ridiculous......

But it also explained why Huaijun was so trusting of Lin Yi’s medicine. Even without the knowledge of Lin Yi’s medical genius, it wouldn’t have been a surprise for the guy to entrust his life to a guy he’d fought with in the warfields. After all, the bonds that formed in a setting like that were quite extraordinary.

What Xuemin couldn’t quite wrap his head around, however, was Lin Yi’s current status as a twelfth grader. He decided to not prod any further into it- there had to be some sort of confidential information involved.

“So you were warmates with Yang...... Ah, pardon me for keeping you all at the door. Come in, come in.” Xuemin said, realizing suddenly that they were still at the door. He’d never have made a basic mistake like this if he weren’t so stunned, especially not with the kind of status he had.

“It’s okay.” Lin Yi said with a smile. “You’re being too polite, professor- Jun Bro wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for your efforts. I should be the one thanking you, so please- you’re my elder, after all.”

“Age is of little importance- what matters is the learnings we’ve acquired.” Xuemin said with a wave of his hand. “I’m an old man, and I know that much- you’re a better doctor than me, making you the expert, the teacher. It’d be uncomfortable for me to follow that rule. Yang’s elders are quite close with me, as well, and it was only natural that I treated him with the utmost of my abilities.”

“That’s different, professor. Jun Bro’s my man- it’s no less than customary for me to express my gratitude.” Lin Yi said as he walked in the villa and into the living room behind Xuemin.

“Hm?” Xuemin paused at the words. “Your man?”

Xuemin was old, but he still paid attentive attention to the news on the internet... His heart chilled a little upon hearing Lin Yi call Huaijun ‘his man’... Were the two of them... together? Yet Huaijun didn’t look like that kind of man, and neither did Lin Yi......

Xuemin’s confused expression informed the two immediately of Lin Yi’s phrasing- Huaijun understood what Lin Yi meant by ‘my man’, but the same couldn’t be said for Xuemin, who was an outsider to that part of their lives. He smiled bitterly as he explained to the doctor. “Grandpa Guan, Lin Yi was my team’s captain back in the day, well known to the other teams for his protective nature over us... So we’re all technically his ‘men’ and ‘women’......”

“Ah? Mister Lin was your captain, was he?” Xuemin was surprised, but it seemed that Lin Yi was speaking the truth about not being a medicine specialist. He’d have to be extraordinarily good at other fields to call himself Huaijun’s captain!

After all, Huaijun’s team was a suicide squad... Suicide squad, as in a team of high survivability soldiers all unafraid of death. To hold the role of captain over a squad like that... It was apparent that there was much more to Lin Yi than merely his medical prowess.