Chapter 555: Learning Medicine

Xiaomei glared and said, "Liu Guangtian, you little bastard, full of bad intentions, get out of here right now!"

Liu Guangtian glared back at her fiercely, then turned and ran out of the room.

Seeing this, Yan Jiefang wanted to slip away too, but was grabbed by Xiaomei and pulled back.

"Jiefang, wait a moment, I still have a few things to ask you!"

Yan Jiefang stood still, picking at the dirt under his fingernails somewhat uncomfortably.

Xiaomei walked up to him, reached out to hook her arm around his neck, and lowered her voice: "Jiefang, behind my back, what else has Xu Damao said to you all?"

Yan Jiefang grinned: "Nothing much."

In the end, he didn't dare to offend Xu Damao.

Xiaomei huffed: "Let me tell you the truth. Xu Damao keeps saying that the person behind him wants fifty percent, but in reality, he only gives that person ten percent, and the remaining forty percent all goes into his own pocket. Think about it, you're the one doing the real work, and Liu Guangtian is just a lookout, yet you only get twenty-five percent—isn't that a rip-off?"

Upon hearing this, Yan Jiefang's eyes widened: "Is that grandson Xu Damao really that greedy? He swallows forty percent without doing any work?"

Xiaomei nodded: "As for this matter, one is willing to beat and the other is willing to suffer, so you can't really blame anyone. But I'm telling you the truth today because I don't treat you like an outsider. You're not like Liu Guangtian, who is a wolf cub that can never be tamed; you're different. Even though you have your own schemes, you still know a bit about gratitude. You don't need to be afraid of Xu Damao. I won't do anything to him; I only want to deal with that woman. Think carefully: if Xu Damao marries a powerful and influential woman, will he still take you guys out to play?"

Yan Jiefang scratched his hair, feeling that what Xiaomei said made sense, so he stammered: "Brother Damao... he always says it's impossible to marry you, saying your background isn't very good..."

Xiaomei's expression didn't change upon hearing this; she just said calmly: "Go and track that woman named Zhang Baofang and figure out her routine for me. I won't treat you badly." As she spoke, she took out ten yuan and handed it over.

Yan Jiefang feigned a refusal, then quickly stuffed the money into his pocket under Xiaomei's firm gaze: "Sister Xiaomei, I have to get out of here quickly, otherwise that kid Liu Guangtian will surely think we talked about some secret and go tell on us to Xu Damao later."

"Remember," Xiaomei urged, "act fast!"

"No problem!" Yan Jiefang said, then ran out of the courtyard in a flash.

Just as he rushed out of the courtyard, Liu Guangtian, who was hiding by the door, stuck out his foot and tripped him, causing him to fall hard onto the ground.

Yan Jiefang scrambled up to chase him, but Liu Guangtian had already taken off running.

The two of them ran one after the other until they reached the depths of an alley, where they leaned against a wall and panted heavily.

Liu Guangtian tilted his head and smiled maliciously: "Yan Jiefang, did Xiaomei seduce you?"

"You're a fucking asshole!" Yan Jiefang cursed, "Sister Xiaomei was absolutely right!"

Liu Guangtian spat: "You spineless thing, you believe whatever a woman says."

Yan Jiefang suddenly said seriously: "Sister Xiaomei said that if Xu Damao really finds someone powerful and influential, we won't be able to keep doing this line of work in the future."

Hearing this, Liu Guangtian raised his hand to wipe away his sweat. Although his brain wasn't very sharp, he took these words to heart. After a long while, he muttered: "That makes sense... then tell me, what should we do next?"

Yan Jiefang leaned in closer: "I'll tell you something, can you keep your mouth shut?"

"Get lost! Who's the one who's always been the traitor? My mouth is tight as a drum!"

"Xu Damao says his friend takes fifty percent, but actually he swallows forty percent himself and only gives the other person ten percent," Yan Jiefang whispered.

Liu Guangtian sneered: "You think you're so smart! You can't even see through this? Is Xu Damao a saint? Providing us with information without taking a penny for himself. How much he skims is his own ability." His eyes rolled: "Let's hide more for ourselves from now on."

The stifled feeling in Yan Jiefang's chest suddenly dissipated a little.

He nodded: "Guangtian, Sister Xiaomei wants us to find out the background of that woman named Zhang Baofang. You have to help me with this; I can't do it alone."

Liu Guangtian was silent for a moment, then gave a heavy "Hmm": "If Xu Damao really washes his hands of this, the two of us will be left starving. At the very least, we have to wait until we've saved enough money to get married."

In the evening, Liu Guangqi rode his brand-new Phoenix Brand Bicycle and waited at the gate of The High School Affiliated to Normal University.

This bike was bought for him by his father, Liu Haizhong, after he returned from Guangzhou.

Over the past two years, Liu Haizhong had worked hard at the Lingnan Tractor Factory, often working overtime, and with the decent salary He Yuzhu paid him, he had actually saved over a thousand yuan.

The first thing he did when he got home was to compensate his eldest son by buying him a Phoenix Brand Bicycle.

Liu Guangtian didn't take the middle school entrance exam last year and had returned to school to repeat the year.

Under Liu Xiuzhen's persuasion, he switched to taking the high school entrance exam this year.

The two were very close now; after school, Liu Guangqi would always accompany Liu Xiuzhen to study traditional Chinese medicine.

At first, he only went to accompany Liu Xiuzhen, but later, he started learning from this old doctor as well. His purpose for learning medicine wasn't pure; his only goal was to take revenge on Xu Damao.

Liu Xiuzhen was wearing a floral dress and rode a Phoenix Brand Bicycle out of the school gate.

She gave Liu Guangqi a sweet smile and said softly: "The teacher ran over time today. Let's go quickly, don't keep the old gentleman waiting."

The two bicycles sped along one after the other, becoming a bright sight outside the old palace walls with their red bricks and tiles.

Nanchizi Street, Derentang Medical Hall.

The medical hall had been open for many years, and the walls were covered with silk banners sent by patients.

The old doctor in the hall, Zhang Baoli, was sixty-nine years old this year; he had practiced medicine his whole life but had never taken on a proper Apprentice.

Liu Xiuzhen was the first disciple he had accepted, simply because Liu Xiuzhen's father had saved his life years ago.

As soon as Liu Xiuzhen and Liu Guangqi entered, they quickly changed into white coats.

Zhang Baoli glanced up, his tone deepening: "Why are you here so late today?"

"The English teacher started talking about the test papers right before class ended, which delayed us a bit," Liu Xiuzhen complained in a low voice.

Zhang Baoli didn't ask further; he pointed to the acupuncture chart on the wall and said slowly: "A man having no children is not due to fate, but to the exhaustion of kidney Qi and the closing of the essence gate. Once the needle is inserted and the Qi flows, the essence will naturally be produced, and children will naturally come."

After he finished speaking, he pointed to the side: "Guangqi, lie down. Today, let Xiuzhen practice needling on you."

Liu Guangqi was startled, his body stiffening: "Siqiang, this... won't you poke me and cause damage?"

"No ambition," Zhang Baoli huffed, "When we were young, we all practiced on our fellow apprentices like this. With me watching by the bed, nothing will go wrong."

Liu Guangqi was still a bit uneasy and asked casually: "Siqiang, I'm not afraid of other places, I'm just afraid... that after being needled, I won't be able to have children. Who will take care of me in my old age?"

Zhang Baoli was amused by him: "You're so young, yet you're already worrying about old age."

"You don't know, our courtyard is different from other places; it seems everyone is calculating about old age. Many people start planning for it before they're even thirty," Liu Guangqi said with a bitter face.

"Nonsense, where in the world are there such people? Don't listen to rumors. If you ask me, relying on others for old age is not as practical as keeping your own body healthy."

"You're right," Liu Guangqi said quickly, "If I really get old and no one cares for me, I'll just find a Rope and hang myself; it'll only take a minute."

Zhang Baoli didn't respond to this unlucky remark, but simply pointed to the acupoints on Liu Guangqi's body and ordered in a deep voice:

"Xiuzhen, insert the needle."

Liu Xiuzhen held her breath and focused, holding the needle as she approached.

Guangqi lay on the bed, eyes unblinking, staring fixedly at the technique she used to apply the needle.