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nTranslator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

nHe Qisheng left in disappointment. When he was down the hill, he turned to look at the hill and sighed. He knew that if the young man was willing, based on his capabilities, he could become the honored guest of high ranking officials and nobles. It was a pity that he did not possess such ambition. However, this trip was not without some gain, at the very least he could tell that the young man’s strange rules had started to loosen.

nShortly after He Qisheng left, another person came up the hill.

n“Eh, when did you plant so many trees?” Wang Mingbao was taken aback upon seeing the newly planted trees on the hill.

n“During the past few days. Come inside and have a seat.”

nWhen inside the cottage, Wang Mingbao skipped formalities and dove straight into the reason for making this visit.

n“My old man at home has been drinking quite heavily recently and is not feeling well. Do you have any medicine that could help condition his body?”

n“Is he taking any other medication?” Wang Yao queried while making tea.

n“He’s taken some western medicine, and the effects are alright. It’s just that he has a dull pain in his stomach. I am a little worried, so here I am, checking to see if you have any other way to help,” Wang Mingbao said.

n“Where is your dad now?” Wang Yao asked after hearing Wang Mingbao.

n“In town.”

n“I happen to be free now, shall I go take a look and then let’s see what to do next?” Wang Yao suggested.

n“Okay.”

nHe went down the hill with Wang Mingbao and went to the town’s mayor office where Wang Mingbao’s father was having a meeting. They had to wait for a bit; both of them waited in his office.

n“Seems your dad has been busy lately?” Wang Yao questioned.

n“He is. There are plans for two roads to route through the town, so he has been busy with this project.”

nThe two of them waited for around 20 minutes before Wang Mingbao’s father came back to the office after his meeting ended.

n“Yao, why are you here?” Seeing Wang Yao, Wang Mingbao’s father was astonished, but he was also beaming.

n“Quick, have a seat.” He personally poured Wang Yao a cup of water.

nThis demonstration of familiarity gave the staff that accompanied him into the office a shock, as they had never seen the mayor behave so politely with the younger generation before. Furthermore, the mayor had been very authoritative lately; they could not help but stare at Wang Yao even more than usual.

nWho was this young man?

n“Mayor, what about this afternoon’s meeting?”

n“I’ll come back later,” Wang Mingbao’s father told the staff who waited in the office.

n“Okay, I will go out now.” The staff left quietly and closed the door on his way out.

n“How is your father’s health?” Wang Mingbao’s father’s tone was genial.

n“Not bad,” Wang Yao smiled and said. “Mingbao mentioned that you are not feeling well recently. I came here to take a look.”

n“You specially came here for such a small matter? It’s alright; I am much better already.”

n“Since we are already here, let him take a look?” Wang Mingbao interjected.

n“Yes,” Wang Yao agreed.

n“Okay, you can have a look.”

nWang Yao felt his pulse.

nThe pulse condition felt feeble. The stomach and liver were damaged due to excessive drinking; his breaths were hurried, short gasps. His body was heaty, and he looked exhausted, likely due to busyness at work, unstable daily life and insufficient rest. Fortunately, this was not too big of an issue. Mingbao’s father’s voice was resonant, had vigor and although he was obviously exhausted, his eyes were bright and still had energy. In summary, his body was still healthy.

n“Nothing major,” Wang Yao commented after the examination. “Two points you need to take note of.”

n“Go ahead,” Wang Mingbao’s father smiled and said.

n“First, limit your drinking and avoid excessive drinking. Second, remember to rest; do not overwork. Additionally, let me make you a formula.”

n“Okay, I will try my best to take note of these two points. Thank you.” He laughed and patted Wang Yao’s shoulders.

nWang Yao heard him and smiled. He knew that for a man in his position, socialization was inevitable. It would be impossible to quit. It was unheard of for a person in official circles to not drink, but an appropriate limit of drinking should be do-able, and it was also possible to decline certain drinking invitations.

nPeople say it was great to have power and influence. However, this was not necessarily the case. Having power and influence was like mounting on a tiger—once on it, one had no command over it.

n“Uncle Wang, I’ll go now. You carry on.”

nSince the matter was done, Wang Mingbao’s father being the mayor had a lot of publicity matters to handle. He did not stay and left quickly.

nWang Mingbao’s father saw them off all the way downstairs and only left when he saw them get in the car.

n“My god, who are those two people for the mayor to personally see them all the way till downstairs?” The staff at the mayor’s office who observed the scene were surprised and were secretly discussing animatedly.

n“I recognize one of them—he’s the mayor’s son. The other person, I don’t know.”

n“Definitely someone of status, otherwise he would not have personally seen him off. He must be the son of an official.”

n“Yes, wealthy and respectable.”

nWhile the mayor’s office was wondering about Wang Yao’s status, he had already gone back to the village with Wang Mingbao. “I will go back to prepare a decoction for your dad. When it’s done, I’ll let you know, and you can come collect it.”

n“Okay, I’ll go home now.”

nWang Yao went up the hill alone.

nWoof, woof, woof. While still at the foot of the hill, he heard the rapid barks of his dog.

nEh?

nHe raised his head, following the sound and saw that under a tree, San Xian was nervously confronting an ox.

n“You beast, get lost!” Aside, an elderly man who was herding his ox used a stick to intimidate the dog.

nThe dog’s fur had stood up on-end, and he gave a deep, wolf-like howl.

nCaw! A sharp cry rang out, and an eagle swooped down from the sky and pierced the ox’s eyes with its claws.

n“Oh my god!” the old man saw the scene cried out in alarm.

nFresh blood splattered onto the ground. The eagle’s sharp claw left multiple bloody grooves on the ox’s head, deep enough to see the bone and almost dug out one of the ox’s eyes.

nMoo! The ox was pained and turned to run. A crash resulted as it dragged the old man who was pulling it on a rope and the old man fell to the ground.

nAiyah! The old man cried. It was a heavy fall.

nWhat?!

nUpon coming up the hill, Wang Yao saw the situation and was stunned.

nThe dog on the ground and the eagle in the sky did not intend to let the ox go and wanted to continue to chase it.

n“Stop it!” Wang Yao berated.

nThe dog stopped and came to Wang Yao’s side, shaking its tail. The eagle suddenly shrunk itself, circled a few times before flying to perch on a branch of a tree not far in the distance.

n“Look at what you did!” Wang Yao stared at the dog and swiftly walked to the fallen old man who was still shrieking in pain.

nLooking at him, he realized that he knew the old man. In the village, he was an extremely senior elder, and regarding age, he should address him as “Senior.”

n“Aiyah, my hip!” the old man was on the ground moaning.

n“Let me take a look.”

nWang Yao bent down and examined the old man thoroughly and confirmed that the old man had some scratches on the skin and not much else.

n“Senior, your body, is hale and hearty, no problem,” Wang Yao commented.

n“You say I have no issue and I should believe you? Are you a doctor?” the old man supported himself and sat up, rebuking him.

n“If not, I’ll take you to the hospital to take a look?”

n“To the hospital, county hospital,” the old man said.

n“Okay!” Wang Yao’s face was still smiling. He supported the old man down the hill, and the old man asked his family—his son and daughter—to accompany him. Wang Yao drove them all to the county hospital.

n“Yao, it’s not that I want to scold you, how could you have done this?” on the car, the old man’s son who barely knew what transpired before, chastised Wang Yao. He was smoking, filling the entire car with choking smog.

n“That’s right, our old man is already so old!” his sister chimed in.

nWang Yao did not say a word and quietly drove to the county hospital.

nOnce in the hospital, Wang Yao took a queue number for the old man. They did a series of check-ups, X-rays, CT scans, an ECG, and whatever that could be done—they did a full set. The conclusion was that the old man had no issues with his body; the most serious injury was a soft tissue abrasion on his arm.

nDespite that, the old man’s son and daughter harassed the doctor, fearing that they had missed something or made a mistake. In the end, the doctor suggested that they hospitalize the old man for further observation. Hence, the filial son and daughter had their father hospitalized, with the hospitalization fees fully paid for by Wang Yao.

n“See, my father is hospitalized. Come with me to get some stuff from my home?” the middle-aged man’s words were as such, but the tone left no room for negotiation.

n“Sure!” Wang Yao calmly replied.

nUpon returning to the village and taking the necessary items from his home, they returned to the county hospital.

n“I’ll leave now. Call me if there’s anything,” seeing that the old man was hospitalized, Wang Yao said and attempted to leave.

n“Eh? Leave some money behind. What if the hospitalization fees are not enough?” The old man’s son stepped forward and grabbed him.

n“It’s enough!” Wang Yao’s tone was cold. He shook the man off his arm and the old man’s son, feeling great strength emanating from Wang Yao, took two steps back.

n“Huh? Why’s this person like that?” the middle-aged man remarked after Wang Yao had left.

n“I have already done all the checks—there’s no problem so why hospitalize me?” after Wang Yao left, the old man asked discontentedly.

n“Father, let me tell you, if you don’t get hospitalized, some injuries can’t be detected. Since we don’t have to spend a single cent, you don’t have to worry. Didn’t he earn a lot from planting herbs? Let’s do a thorough check. If all else fails, we can go to Haiqu city; the doctors over there are more advanced,” the middle-aged man said.

n“We’re all from the same village, don’t blow up the matter!” the old man commented.

n“It’s not our fault; we have a reason. Why should we be afraid?” his son said indignantly. “Tomorrow let’s do an ultrasound, an NMR—let’s do a full body check-up!”

nAfter exiting the hospital, Wang Yao was irate. It was the first time in a long time that he was so vexed.

nFrom the time he saw the old man’s son and daughter up until this point, the two person’s speech and mannerisms infuriated him. They were annoying, and their countenance was repulsive. They may be from the same village, but even if they were strangers, the words they spewed were extremely offensive. Besides, to the old man’s injury, Wang Yao did not once mention that he would not take responsibility.

nThese people’s actions made him think of a phrase that became popular in recent years—”deliberate provocation.”

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