Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

“I’m not a master in Kung Fu yet, and I don’t know how to teach people Kung Fu,” said Wang Yao. “But I know someone who has been practicing Kung Fu for over 20 years. The person is currently in Lianshan.”

“Really? Can you introduce me to him?” asked Wei Hai eagerly.

“What a coincidence! I’m about to meet him. Let me ask him first. I actually learned Kung Fu from him,” said Wang Yao.

“Great! Can I go with you?” said Wei Hai. He was really bored at the tea shop. He didn’t have friends in Lianshan other than Wang Yao and Wang Mingbao. Li Maoshuang was just an acquaintance. He wanted to go out, but no place actually attracted him. He wished he could hang out with several friends to play cards or Mahjong.

“He came here to see me. His son is ill. Let me ask him first,” said Wang Yao.

“Okay,” said Wei Hai.

“You can continue to drink green tea, but don’t drink too much, especially before and after you take the decoction,” said Wang Yao.

“Sure,” said Wei Hai.

By the time Wang Yao had finished the treatment session with Wei Hai, it was lunchtime.

“Shall we have lunch together?” asked Wang Yao after he had checked the time.

“Sure, sounds great!” said Wei Hai.

Wang Yao asked Wang Mingbao and Li Maoshuang, who had been resting at home, to join him and Wei Hai for lunch. They went to a restaurant nearby that served healthy food. They’ve been there once, and Wang Yao was quite happy with the food there.

Wang Mingbao was in his store when he received the call from Wang Yao. He arrived at Wei Hai’s tea shop shortly. Li Maoshuang arrived after ten minutes. He looked quite healthy. Obviously, he had been resting well.

“You look good!” said Wang Yao.

“Of course. I went to Wudang mountain about two weeks ago and stayed there for a few days. While I was there, I learned some ways to enhance my health from the Taoist priests. They were really effective. I think you should also visit there. Of course, Dr. Wang doesn’t need to go,” said Li Maoshuang.

“Did you go there by yourself?” asked Wang Mingbao with a smile.

“Yes, I was going to take my wife with me, but she had to look after our kid at home. So, I decided to take a look there myself first. I plan to take my wife and kid to Wudang mountain during the summer school holiday. We are going to live on the mountain for some time to get away from the heat!” said Li Maoshuang.

“Sounds like a good plan!” said Wei Hai.

The dishes were served soon after they had arrived at the restaurant. They were chatting while eating.

“So what has Mr. Tian being doing?” asked Wang Mingbao.

“He contracted a big area on the hill. He is building a resort style hotel for both leisure and business purposes,” said Wang Yao.

“Right, the name of the resort is called Bailu Lake Hotel. I went to see the place several weeks ago. It looks good,” said Wang Mingbao.

The dishes were nice. They didn’t order any wine; they only talked about what they had been doing lately. It was a simple friend get-together. They were all very happy after lunch.

“I found my current lifestyle to be really good,” said Li Maoshuang out of the blue.

“Right.” Wei Hai nodded, unsure of whether it was because he agreed with Li Maoshuang or thought about it himself.

“Mingbao, don’t work too much. There are things in life more important than money,” said Li Maoshuang.

Both Wei Hai and Li Maoshuang changed their views of life after getting sick.

“I just want to work hard for a few more years. After a few years, I’ll follow your lifestyle,” said Wang Mingbao with a smile.

One’s view of life was related to one’s experience and age. It wouldn’t change easily just because of a few words from a friend.

They all went to Wei Hai’s tea shop after lunch. They stayed at the tea shop and listened to a few old songs while having a few cups of green tea. They chatted about how they felt about life, and then they all went back to their own lives.

Wang Yao drove to Zhou Xiong’s apartment.1 2

Zhou Wukang’s left arm was no longer swelling when Wang Yao saw him again. Part of the skin of his arm became supple again. Although it was just a very small proportion of the skin, it indicated that Zhou Wukang was getting better. It was a sign of dead wood becoming alive.

“Hi, Kang, how do you feel?” Wang Yao didn’t check Zhou Wukang’s pulse immediately. He wanted to know how Zhou Wukang was feeling first.

A patient’s feelings often send very important messages to the doctor.

“I feel better in my left arm, and my body has become lighter and easier to move,” said Zhou Wukang.

“Good to know. Let me take a look,” said Wang Yao.

Wang Yao sat down to check Zhou Wukang’s pulse. According to his pulse, his left arm did get better; Even a small proportion of meridians which were blocked initially had been unblocked by Wang Yao.

“Do you still have any of the decoction left?” asked Wang Yao.

“Yes, we’ve still got some left. I just gave him a small cup of it,” said Zhou Xiong.

“Let me massage your arm again,” said Wang Yao.

Wang Yao followed the meridians and acupuncture points in Zhou Wukang’s arm to massage repeatedly. He neither massaged Zhou Wukang’s arm too hard nor too soft. After a while, Zhou Wukang’s left arm became very red.

“How do you feel?” asked Wang Yao.

“I feel warm in my arm, and it’s a bit painful,” said Zhou Wukang.

“Okay, let’s call it a day,” said Wang Yao.

“Thank you, Uncle Wang,” said Zhou Wukang.

“Please have a cup of tea, Dr. Wang.” Zhou Xiong made Wang Yao a cup of tea.

He had a big smile on his face as his son was slowly starting to get better after so many years of treatment. His son’s illness had become his biggest concern.

“By the way, I want to ask you something,” said Wang Yao.

“Go ahead,” said Zhou Xiong.

“Well, I have a friend who hasn’t been well lately. He wanted to learn Kung Fu. I don’t think I’m good enough to teach him, so I thought about you,” said Wang Yao.

“I see, that’s not a problem; I can teach him,” said Zhou Xiong.

“Great! I’ll let him know. Would you like to have dinner together with me and my friend today?” asked Wang Yao.

“Sure, but it has to be my treat. You choose the place,” said Zhou Xiong.

“Okay,” said Wang Yao with a smile.

He then called Wei Hai and drove Zhou Xiong and his son to Wei Hai’s tea shop.

“Hello, please come in and take a seat.” Wei Hai was very pleased to see Wang Yao, Zhou Xiong, and Zhou Wukang. He liked listening to music and watching TV by himself in the shop. He also liked to have tea and chat with friends, but of the two he preferred to be with his friends.

Some patients preferred to stay quiet. Some patients preferred to be with people.

“This is the Kung Fu master I mentioned this morning. His name is Zhou Xiong,” said Wang Yao.

“I’m no master, please don’t call me that.” Zhou Xiong shook his hand with a smile. “I just practiced Kung Fu for a few years.”

“This is Wei Hai, the owner of this tea shop. He runs the tea shop,” said Wang Yao.

“How do you do?” said Zhou Xiong.

“Nice to meet you,” said Wei Hai.

After introducing Zhou Xiong to Wei Hai, Wang Yao told Zhou Xiong briefly of Wei Hai’s health condition. Given his current health condition, he was unable to exercise too vigorously.

“Given your condition, you can only practice Tai Chi at this stage,” said Zhou Xiong with a smile.

“What a coincidence! Tai Chi is what I wanted to learn,” said Wei Hai.

“Okay, I’ll teach you Tai Chi then,” said Zhou Xiong. “I’ll start with something basic. The only thing is there is not enough space here.

“Don’t worry, we can go upstairs,” said Wei Hai.

They all went upstairs. Wei Hai’s tea shop had two stories. There was a big living room upstairs and a master bedroom.

“This place is good,” said Zhou Xiong.

Then, Zhou Xiong started to teach Wei Hai the basic movements of Tai Chi. Wei Hai’s ability to learn was much poorer than Wang Yao. He learned the movements very slowly. There was a huge difference between Wei Hai and Wang Yao. Fortunately, Zhou Xiong was very patient. He took his time teaching Wei Hai.

Time passed by quickly. It was dark outside already.

“Let’s take a break,” said Zhou Xiong. Although Zhou Xiong just taught Wei Hai a few simple postures and movements of Tai Chi, Wei Hai was exhausted and sweating as he was too weak.

“Okay, let me take a break.”

Wei Hai sat on the sofa breathing hard.

“You are still very weak. There’s no hurry; take it easy,” said Zhou Xiong.

“Sure,” said Wei Hai after drinking some water.

“Gentle exercise can increase your blood circulation, so it’s good for your health,” said Zhou Xiong.

After Wei Hai had rested, Wang Yao gathered a few friends to have dinner together. Tian Yuantu happened to be available as well, so he joined them. Wang Yao picked a nicer place today. He decided to have dinner at Shenghua hotel. After all, they were a big group of people, and Shenghua hotel was close to Wei Hai’s tea shop.

The last time Wang Yao met Tian Yuantu was just a few weeks ago. Today, Tian Yuantu looked tired and had lost some weight.

“Yuantu, you don’t look well, have you been very busy lately?” asked Wang Yao.

“Yes, I’ve been really busy. I’m considering listing my company on the stock market and working on a number of new projects. So I’ve got a lot to worry about lately,” said Tian Yuantu.

“You need to take it easy, don’t overwork as I did,” said Wei Hai.

“Don’t worry about me, I don’t drink or smoke, and I have my health checked regularly,” said Tian Yuantu with a smile.

They ordered a lot of dishes, but the taste was average.

This time, old friends and new friends gathered together to chat and eat. They temporarily put all the worries and concerns behind them and had a great time.