Huang Shanshan’s pretty face instantly turned cold. “What, is this how you usually coax girls?”
Li Se hadn’t expected Huang Shanshan to suddenly get angry. He quickly explained, “That’s a false accusation. I really haven’t. I’ve only said these things to you.”
“Oh.” Huang Shanshan responded calmly.
“You don’t like hearing it?” Li Se looked at her.
“I don’t know.” Huang Shanshan actually quite liked hearing it, but she felt that Li Se seemed to say such things to more than just her, so she was a little upset.
Li Se was somewhat puzzled. Did she want to hear it or not?
“I have something else to do, I’m leaving now.” Huang Shanshan didn’t say anything more, turned, and left.
“I’ll see you off,” Li Se called out from behind her.
After seeing Huang Shanshan back to the Chinese medicine shop, Li Se had driven only a short distance before stopping his car. He got out and looked at a black sedan following behind him.
“You’ve been following me all this way. Get out,” Li Se said calmly.
A man in a suit got out of the car and walked up to Li Se, saying quite politely, “Mr. Li, our boss would like to see you.”
“Who is your boss?” Li Se asked.
“Our boss is one of the shareholders of the First Hospital. He’s looking for you mainly to discuss Wang Xiang’s matter,” the man in the suit said.
Li Se narrowed his eyes. “Alright, lead the way. I’ll follow behind.”
Both parties got back into their cars. One in front, the other behind, they traveled for about ten minutes before Li Se arrived at a tea house.
“Please come in!”
A tall woman in a qipao led Li Se to a private room. The room was decorated with many flowers and plants, and in the center was a wooden table for making tea.
Two people were already seated inside. One was Wang Xiang, and the other was a man with a square face, dressed in casual clothes, fiddling with tea leaves in his hand. When he saw Li Se enter, he smiled slightly. “Mr. Li, you are indeed young and promising. To possess such medical skills at such a young age, your future is bright.”
Li Se sat down, remaining silent.
“Allow me to introduce myself. I am one of the shareholders of the First Hospital, Chen Pengfei. I am older than you, so you can call me Uncle Chen,” the square-faced man introduced himself with a smile.
“And what is your relationship with Wang Xiang?” Li Se asked with a chuckle.
“He’s my nephew,” Wang Xiang replied this time. He looked at Li Se and said, “Li Se, let’s not beat around the bush. I know we’ve been at odds recently, but we don’t have any deep enmity between us. At most, I took credit for your work this time. I know this is my fault, my mistake, and I was momentarily blinded by profit.”
Li Se seemed to understand their purpose in seeking him out immediately. He said, “So?”
“Young man, don’t be in such a hurry.” Chen Pengfei poured Li Se a cup of tea. “Tell me, this tea, is it brewed with boiling water or warm water? The two are completely different. Tea brewed with warm water is calm and peaceful, without intensity or dynamism. You can’t see the unfurled leaves, nor smell the delicate fragrance. It’s bland and unremarkable. But tea brewed with boiling water, through repeated tumbling and surging, releases bursts of fragrant aroma.”
“Sorry, I don’t know tea,” Li Se said calmly.
“It’s okay not to know tea, but you must understand profit,” Chen Pengfei said with a smile. “Mr. Li, I know your medical skills are extraordinary, you can even cure the mandrake poison, truly unparalleled medical skills! However, there’s something I’d like to ask of you here.”
“Ask me?” Li Se found it somewhat amusing. “You, a prominent boss, and I, just a common doctor. What could you possibly need to ask of me? Or perhaps, you’re not feeling well?”
“Li Se, can you speak properly?” Wang Xiang said, somewhat annoyed.
“Wang Xiang, say one less word,” Chen Pengfei chided lightly. He then slowly picked up his teacup, took a sip, his face filled with rapture, and then looked at Li Se, saying, “No one is omnipotent, and you are not an ordinary doctor. The First Hospital now has a very high evaluation of you. The shareholders have even voted to have you affiliated with the First Hospital.”
“Boss Chen, just say what you have to say,” Li Se frowned. Chen Pengfei’s tendency to speak in circles was truly exhausting.
Chen Pengfei said, “You have a very promising future. In this future, I can give you a pair of wings, as long as you let Wang Xiang go.”
“I let him go?” Li Se scoffed. “Wang Xiang is a director at the hospital, and I’m just a barefoot doctor. It would be good enough if he didn’t come looking for trouble, let alone for me to let him go?”
“Mr. Li, to be blunt, my nephew was indeed blinded by profit this time and took credit for your work. People make mistakes. As long as you let him go, I can give you a sum of money and have you affiliated with the hospital, enjoying the highest honors.”
As he said this, Chen Pengfei observed Li Se’s expression and continued, “There’s no need to go against profit. What you need to do is very simple: don’t appear at the First Hospital for a while. Regarding the outside rumors, just choose to remain silent. As for the mandrake poison matter, I will arrange for it to be handled, and the credit for curing the mandrake poison will still go to Wang Xiang. With your abilities, claiming this credit wouldn’t amount to much. What do you think?”
Wang Xiang looked at Li Se, smugly saying, “Li Se, this is not a disadvantage for you at all. You gaining credit for curing the mandrake poison wouldn’t be of much use, you wouldn’t gain any benefits from it. But it’s different for me.”
“Now quite a few people know that you didn’t actually cure it, right?” Li Se asked curiously. “How are you going to operate to have all the credit attributed to you?”
“You don’t need to worry about that. You take the money, we take the credit. A win-win situation!” Chen Pengfei said with a faint smile.
“It seems you haven’t investigated me thoroughly enough,” Li Se said, shaking his head.
“What do you mean?” Chen Pengfei asked, confused.
Li Se shrugged his shoulders. “I genuinely don’t lack money now. I wouldn’t even look at tens of millions, and you probably can’t come up with hundreds of millions. So, let’s forget it.”
“You think the price I’m offering will be too low?” Chen Pengfei frowned.
Li Se had already stood up. He glanced at Chen Pengfei, then looked at Wang Xiang, and said coldly, “Wang Xiang, I wanted to tell you this a long time ago: take off your white coat and don’t set foot in a hospital again, because you are not fit to be a doctor!”