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

nWhen he returned home, it was already close to dusk. That day, apart from the annoying matter, he had done nothing else.

n“How’s Senior Jianrong?” when he was home, his mother asked concernedly.

n“Mom, how did you know?” Wang Yao heard her. He was surprised; he had told no one in the family and only talked about his own matters.

n“I heard it from the villagers,” Zhang Xiuying replied. The village was like that. A matter would spread like wildfire, let alone big news like this.

nOn one hand, Wang Fenghua’s family had a good reputation in the village. On the other hand, Wang Jianrong’s family, specifically his son’s reputation in the village was lousy. In fact, he was shameless. When people in the village heard of the matter, they went to Wang Yao’s home and told his mother.

n“Nothing much. Some check-ups were done today, and no problems were discovered. He’s hospitalized now,” Wang Yao commented.

n“Since there’s nothing wrong, why was he hospitalized?” Zhang Xiuying heard his words and was shocked.

n“They were worried and wanted to have him hospitalized for further observation,” said Wang Yao.

n“Why don’t you take me and your father to see him tomorrow?”

n“There’s no need,” Wang Yao said. At the moment he was quite disgusted by this family. If his parents were to visit, it would give them further credence, and they would probably behave more shamelessly and anger his parents.

nZhang Xiuying heard him and did not say anything. She lowered her head, thinking.

n“Mom, you don’t need to worry about this; I will handle it. Don’t listen to what they say,” Wang Yao reassured her.

nAfter dinner, Wang Yao went up to Nanshan hill. The dog bounded up to greet him from afar, wagging its tail happily.

n“You’ve brought me a lot of trouble today, do you know that?”

nWoof, woof, woof!

n“Why did you bite that ox?”

nThe dog cocked its head, as though considering the meaning of Wang Yao’s question.

n“That ox!” Wang Yao pointed to the place where the incident happened during the day.

nWoof. The dog seemed to understand Wang Yao’s words. It turned to face the place where the incident happened during the day and ran towards it. It indicated to its master that it wanted him to follow. Wang Yao saw the dog and followed it. He knew that the dog he reared had great intelligence and would not display aggressive behavior without reason. Something he did not know must have happened.

nThe dog stood underneath a tree, raised its head and howled. Wang Yao discovered that the not-too-tall tree’s leaves showed signs of being chewed. It was likely that during the day, the ox had accidentally stumbled upon this place and chewed on the tree’s leaves. The dog had discovered the ox and consequently caused the incident to happen.

n“Well done!” Wang Yao was lost in thought momentarily and then gently patted the dog’s head as a gesture of commendation.

nNow that Wang Yao knew the cause of the incident, he turned and went into the cottage. He took out the stool, nursed a cup of tea and sat outside the cottage, looking up at the sky. The dog laid quietly by his side, also gazing at the sky.

nSitting outside for quite some time, Wang Yao got up and entered the cottage. Before entering, he said goodbye to his two old friends.

n“Good night, San Xian. Good night, Da Xia.”

nIn a short moment, the low hum of scripture recitals was heard coming from the cottage. In the dim light of the night, there appeared to be a mysterious rhythm hidden in the recital.

nThe next day, when it was still dark, Wang Yao woke up and began his busy day. He watered the licorice roots in the herbal field first, repeatedly circled the newly planted trees and then went uphill. This time he was not alone; by his side was his dog.

nOn Nanshan hill, in the area where the raised rock stood, Wang Yao sat cross-legged. The dog quietly crouched nearby, raising its head to look at its master. This was not the first time the dog had come to this place.

nWang Yao closed his eyes in concentration. His body’s Qi circulated like a stream, and his body didn’t move as he heaved slightly.

nThe hill breeze blew periodically, causing the tree leaves on the hill to rustle noisily.

nShortly after the sun rose, Wang Yao opened his eyes, ending the day’s breathing exercise.

n“Almost.” He let out a gentle sigh.

nHe went down the hill. This day, he would make a trip to the city to see Zhou Xiong’s son and to buy two sets of herbs to prepare a decoction for Wang Mingbao’s father.

n…

nIn Lianshan county, inside the county hospital.

nThe old man who was hospitalized the night before was having his body checked, with the help of his son and daughter.

nThey had just completed the NMG, mainly to examine the head and there was nothing wrong. They were now queuing to do an ultrasound. With that, the whole set of checks were completed. Up to this point, the old man’s body was normal, apart from slightly higher blood pressure and blood fat levels.

n“After the checks, get me discharged,” the old man said.

nHe realized that even though he was dragged down by the fleeing ox, it was just a fall, nothing major. They were of the same village after all; he did not want the matter to blow up. He recognized that his son and daughter’s behavior was too much. Moreover, since there was nothing wrong with him—why stay in the hospital? It was not auspicious, and the old man, being very old, was still very superstitious.

n“We know, Father. Once the checks are complete, we’ll get you discharged. But we can’t put this matter to rest,” his son remarked.

n“What else do you want?”

n“He’s hurt someone—shouldn’t there be compensation?” the middle-aged man said.

n“Compensation? What compensation? We already did a complete check-up, spent a few thousand yuan—what other compensation do you want?!” The old man was unhappy.

n“Father, you don’t have to worry about this; just listen to me!” The middle-aged man’s voice was forceful. “I called him, and we’re still in the hospital. Why did he not come? What is the meaning of this?!” As he spoke, he picked up his phone and dialed a number.

nIn the village, as Wang Yao was preparing to go down the hill, the phone in his pocket rang. Taking a glance, he saw an unknown number.

n“Hello.”

n“Hey, Yao, it’s me. Aren’t you coming to visit us at the hospital?” On the phone, Wang Yao heard the voice that irritated him.

n“What is the matter? The money should be enough!” Wang Yao’s voice was cold.

n“Enough, but—”

nBefore the man on the phone could finish his sentence, Wang Yao hung up the phone, unwilling to speak further to a person of such conduct.

nDu, du.

n“Strange, what does he mean by this? Does he have manners?” The middle-aged man heard the phone’s tone go dead. He got riled up and wanted to call again.

n“Call later; it’s Father’s turn now.” The woman heard the queue number being called, and it was their turn.

nThe two accompanied the old man into the ultrasound room. The doctor looked at the list and examined the old man in great detail, taking more than ten minutes.

nWhen they took the ultrasound report to the doctor, the doctor’s brows furrowed.

n“You need to come for another check tomorrow; your father’s abdomen has a tumor.”

n“What?!” The middle-aged man and woman were shocked upon hearing the doctor.

n“Is it serious?”

n“This is hard to say; we need to check again. Best if we do a pathological section. Don’t discharge him yet,” the doctor replied.

nThe brother and sister went back to talk to the old man but did not tell him about the tumor, afraid that he would be worried. They merely said that the doctor wanted him to stay another two days for observation.

n“I feel just fine, why stay?” The old man was unwilling.

n“Since the doctor says to stay, just stay. It’s not like you need to spend money.” The middle-aged man’s tone became hard and unyielding.

nHearing his son’s tone, he no longer said anything and sat on the bed, seething.

nThe middle-aged man went out to question the doctor again. The doctor said that it happened that a relevant specialist would be visiting the hospital the next day and they could get him to take a look, but it would require additional fees.

n“We’ll pay, please help us to arrange an appointment.” The middle-aged man agreed since it was not his own money. The doctor heard him and agreed to make arrangements.

nWang Yao drove his car into Lianshan County and came to Zhou Xiong and son’s rental apartment.

nSeeing Zhou Wukang again, he could see that the child’s complexion had improved, his cheeks were ruddy and had luster, his voice had become clearer, and his eyes looked energetic. His eye bags had also lightened. His entire persona had become more cheerful, and he was willing to talk more.

nThe diagnosis was good; the child’s body had rapidly taken a turn for the better. Given his youth, once the symptoms had been eradicated, allowing for his youthful vitality to spring forth, there would be favorable results.

n“Let’s see your arm.”

nThis was the first time Wang Yao saw his arm since he started the treatment a month ago. It was very skinny, thin and dry like a twig. The skin was wrinkled, lackluster, and looked like a dead piece of wood. From the left arm, this condition extended all the way to the shoulder.

nWang Yao gently examined his arm. As he did so, he gently pressed or pinched it while asking how Zhou Wukang felt.

nIf the human body’s channels and collaterals could be compared to a river’s tributary, it would be the body’s means of transporting nutrients and other chemical processes. In this case, for the child before Wang Yao, his left arm’s river stream had already been silted and the river course blocked by mud and sediments. Water was unable to pass smoothly and so, naturally, it was unable to transport effectively. Although it was largely congested and unable to flow smoothly, a small part was still functioning. It was a semi-blocked condition.

n“How is it, Doctor Wang?” After Wang Yao’s examination, Zhou Xiong whispered.

n“I’d try.” Faced with this illness, Wang Yao did not have absolute confidence and could not only say that he would try.

nAfter staying at Zhou Xiong’s place for a while, Wang Yao departed and dropped by at the county hospital. The timing was right, apart from the old man in the ward, no one else was present.

n“Are you better?”

n“Much better.” Seeing Wang Yao, the old man felt awkward.

nSince the incident happened the day before, this young man from the village had already done the best he could. He took him to the hospital as fast as he could and even enabled him to do a complete check-up without him spending a single cent. This made the old man feel quite embarrassed.

n“That’s good. What did the doctor say?” To this old man, Wang Yao’s attitude was much better.

n“The doctor said I should stay hospitalized for another two days for observation.”

n“Okay, stay two more days then.”

nWang Yao did not stay long in the ward. He left the ward and went to the doctor’s office to enquire about the old man’s condition.

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