"Ah, I wonder which idiot keeps calling," Li Se sighed and hung up the phone.
As soon as he hung up, Guan Zhongtang heard the "busy tone." He looked confused, wondering why he had been hung up on again. Out of curiosity, he dialed again, and Li Se's phone rang once more.
At this, Guan Zhongtang seemed to realize something and looked sharply at Li Se.
Li Se raised his phone, a half-smile on his face.
Zhao Ba, standing beside them, suppressed his laughter. He thought Guan Zhongtang was a fool. He had called so many times, didn't he realize Li Se was the president of the Chinese Medicine Association?
Before Guan Zhongtang could speak, Chen Shufen's anger flared. She yelled at Li Se, "Connect the call, I want to see which idiot keeps calling! And today, you won't leave here unscathed!"
"Fine, let's see who this idiot is who keeps calling," Li Se said as he answered the call, even turning on the speakerphone.
Guan Zhongtang's end was connected. A little cold sweat beaded on his forehead as he tentatively called out, "Hello?"
Immediately, a "hello" came from Li Se's phone.
"What an idiot, always calling, only knowing how to say 'hello'..." Chen Shufen cursed, but she stopped mid-sentence, turning her head to look at Guan Zhongtang.
At that moment, the air seemed to fall silent.
Guan Zhongtang felt his face flush with embarrassment. Had he just called himself an idiot too?
"You... you are the president of the Chinese Medicine Association?" Jing Nianqiao reacted quickly, immediately discerning Li Se's identity.
"Sister-in-law, Nianqiao, I've told you before, Little Li's medical skills are absolutely superb. If there's anyone in this world who can treat Big Brother, it's definitely Little Li!" Zhao Ba said confidently.
Chen Shufen's expression softened somewhat. She had a very poor opinion of Zhao Ba and consequently didn't quite believe Li Se. But now that she knew he was the president of the Chinese Medicine Association, she felt a bit ashamed and apologized, "It was my fault earlier. Could you please treat my husband?"
Jing Nianqiao grabbed Li Se's hand and said, "Please, save my father!"
"Little Li, I hope you won't take offense at them, this mother and daughter," Zhao Ba added.
Li Se nodded and walked to the bedside, glancing at Guan Zhongtang. "Move aside, will you?"
Guan Zhongtang didn't dare to delay and immediately moved aside. He felt utterly ashamed, having mocked the very president. Furthermore, he had been the one to remove the needles earlier. He said with some remorse, "Alas, this old man is ashamed."
This time, Li Se produced the Thirteen Needles of Ghost Valley and naturally employed the acupuncture technique of the Thirteen Needles of Ghost Valley.
Guan Zhongtang, being an old Chinese medicine practitioner, recognized Li Se's acupuncture technique at a glance and exclaimed in surprise, "It's the Thirteen Needles of Ghost Valley! And this set of silver needles is also from the Thirteen Needles of Ghost Valley. I never thought I would witness such a marvelous acupuncture technique in my lifetime. I have no regrets!"
After a session of acupuncture using the Thirteen Needles of Ghost Valley, Li Se quickly withdrew the needles. He then wrote out a prescription and handed it to Chen Shufen, "With this prescription, three doses will be enough for a full recovery!"
"Thank you, President!" Chen Shufen said gratefully.
"May I have a look?" Guan Zhongtang asked.
"What, do you think there's a problem with this prescription?" Chen Shufen asked with a frown.
Guan Zhongtang chuckled wryly, "Of course, there's no problem with a prescription from the President. I just want to learn."
Chen Shufen then handed the prescription to Guan Zhongtang.
"Radix Rehmanniae 15g, Radix Paeoniae Rubra 15g, Ligusticum Wallichii 9g, Flos Carthami 9g, Acorus Gramineus 15g, Poria Cocos 9g, Coptis Chinensis 3g, Caulis Salviae Miltiorrhizae 9g... Wonderful! If I had prescribed it, I would have omitted several herbs. Adding these few herbs can enhance the efficacy of the medicine, making it most suitable for treating cerebral congestion." Guan Zhongtang was filled with admiration.
The thought of his constant sarcastic remarks towards Li Se earlier made Guan Zhongtang's face flush again. He said somewhat sheepishly, "President, I was too arrogant just now."
"The starting point is always for the patient's sake. But in the future, don't dismiss someone's medical skills based solely on their age. Also, your medical skills are still lacking. If Elder Huang or Elder Hua were here, they would surely recognize the ingenuity of those silver needles," Li Se said indifferently.
"Alas, the President is right. Compared to Elder Huang and the others, my medical skills are indeed far inferior," Guan Zhongtang sighed softly.
Studying Chinese medicine isn't about becoming more skilled just because one is old. Even among old TCM practitioners, there are significant differences in their skills. Undeniably, Guan Zhongtang had some ability, but he was still far from Elder Huang's level, let alone comparable to Li Se.
About half an hour later, Jing Shan had basically recovered to normal. He held Li Se's hand and said gratefully, "Miracle Doctor Li, thank you. Thank you so much. I, Jing Shan, will never forget this kindness!"
"Big Brother!" Zhao Ba looked at Jing Shan, his eyes turning red.
"No need to call me Big Brother anymore. I have retired. For the rest of my life, I only wish to be with my wife and daughters," Jing Shan said emotionally. After this serious illness and recovery, he had come to understand many things. Power and wealth were but fleeting illusions in his eyes; his family was the most important.
Seeing that Zhao Ba seemed to have many things he wanted to say to Jing Shan, Li Se didn't intrude. He then took his leave. As he walked out, his thoughts naturally turned to Fang Xiuxiu. By this time, she should have mostly recovered.
Upon returning, Li Se drove to the hotel, but Fang Xiuxiu was no longer there.
For some reason, Li Se felt a pang of disappointment. Just as he was about to leave.
"Li Se?"
A pleasant voice sounded.
Li Se turned his head and saw Fang Xiuxiu standing behind him. He looked surprised, "You haven't left?"
"I knew you would come back, so I was waiting for you," Fang Xiuxiu said. Seeing Li Se, a scene from earlier flashed through her mind, and her pretty face felt hot. After a moment of shyness, she said, "Thank you for today."
"No need for thanks. We're from the same school. But why were you at that place?" Li Se asked, puzzled.
In his impression, Fang Xiuxiu had always been a very quiet and well-behaved girl, as if places like KTVs and bars would never intersect with her.
"This..." Fang Xiuxiu hesitated and shook her head. "Let's not talk about it. To thank you, let me treat you to a meal."
Li Se didn't refuse. After all, who would refuse an invitation from a beautiful woman?
They went to a roadside stall, and two bowls of beef noodles were served. Fang Xiuxiu said somewhat sheepishly, "I can only afford to treat you to a meal here. I can't afford more expensive places."
"It's alright, I like eating at roadside stalls," Li Se said sincerely. In fact, he had been to many high-end restaurants during this period, but what he still savored were the snacks from roadside stalls.
As they were eating their beef noodles, a table next to them was occupied by a few slovenly young men. Upon seeing Fang Xiuxiu's lovely appearance, they couldn't help but swallow their saliva.
"Brother Qiang, look, that chick is so hot," these young men were all stirring with desire.
Brother Qiang put down his chopsticks and grinned, "Watch me."
He walked towards Li Se's table and said with a chuckle, "Beauty, let's get acquainted. Everyone calls me Brother Qiang. How about being my girlfriend?"