Chapter 59

Zhao Facai was so happy that he naturally forgot all about going to find Zhang Lei. His mind was entirely occupied with how to move when the time came.

It wasn't until closing time that Su Fuling walked out of the shop and noticed someone sitting under a tree outside, leaning against it, silently watching the Medical Clinic. When he saw Su Fuling come out, he turned his head and got up to leave.

As he stood up, Su Fuling was startled by his appearance—his body was bloated. Then she recognized him; his condition had worsened.

Su Fuling called out, 'Mr. Zhang Lei?'

Zhang Lei paused, turned back, and looked at her. 'Su... Doctor Su.'

Su Fuling said, 'Are you here to see a doctor?'

'I just came to watch the excitement,' Zhang Lei said, turning his head away, not wanting to meet Su Fuling's eyes.

Zhao Facai heard Su Fuling talking to someone and immediately ran out. Seeing Zhang Lei, he realized, 'Ah, Master, I went to persuade him to come for treatment at noon. I forgot all about it.' Then he said to Zhang Lei, 'I told you to come early. Why did you only come now? My master is off duty.'

Zhang Lei's face turned red.

Su Fuling said, 'Do you want to see a doctor? If you do, I'll work overtime.'

Zhang Lei nodded stiffly.

Su Fuling went back into the shop, and Zhao Facai quickly brought out the pulse pillow for her. While working, he scolded Zhang Lei, 'You had all afternoon free at home. Why didn't you come earlier?'

Zhang Lei didn't answer. He didn't know what to say. Could he say that his family couldn't afford it, that he was afraid of being unable to pay after the consultation and then being disappointed?

Su Fuling said, 'Uncle Afa, keep quiet.'

Seeing Zhao Facai being scolded, Chen Shasha, who was about to leave, found it amusing. She thought this old guy was really strange—he had always been good at flattering, but today he was overdoing it, giving her goosebumps. He was really trying too hard.

The shop quieted down, and Su Fuling carefully took Zhang Lei's pulse. Recently, she had been learning about pulse patterns from videos. Although she only heard descriptions, because she had studied pulse diagnosis before and had diagnosed patients, she could understand what the pulse patterns described in the videos were like. Moreover, she had previously thought about treating Zhang Lei, so when she studied, she specifically researched Liver Disease, and now she naturally understood the condition better. It wasn't like the first time she took Zhang Lei's pulse, when she was completely in the dark.

The patient's main pulse characteristics were deep, rough, and wiry, like a light knife scraping bamboo. This alone couldn't determine the illness; she also needed to look at the accompanying pulse features. Su Fuling felt carefully and found that the pulse at the left wrist's chi position was deep, thin, weak, and powerless—this indicated kidney yang deficiency.

The kidneys are the mother of the liver. When kidney yang is deficient, it naturally causes the liver function to lose its normal regulation.

After carefully feeling the pulse, Su Fuling memorized it, ensuring she could recognize it immediately next time. Then she examined Zhang Lei's tongue and abdomen.

Based on all the findings, she formed a preliminary conclusion. But that wasn't enough. Su Fuling then asked Zhang Lei about his usual symptoms.

Zhang Lei was losing confidence. He felt that since the doctor was asking so many questions, maybe she couldn't cure him.

His mood grew increasingly negative.

On the contrary, Su Fuling became more confident. Although the disease was at a middle stage, it wasn't incurable—just troublesome. Because in the tutorial she was studying, there were many cases of such difficult and serious illnesses. So Su Fuling actually found a similar condition in the tutorial.

However, each person requires a different prescription. To prescribe medicine, she needed to understand the patient's situation. For example, the previous patient, Elder Wen, had received treatment before, which had affected his liver. When she prescribed medicine, she had to include corresponding drugs to neutralize the effects, to avoid further liver damage.

To be safe, Su Fuling activated today's detection function.

[Patient Name: Zhang Lei; Gender: Male

Age: 35

Main Condition: Decompensated Liver Cirrhosis Edema

Symptoms: Mid-stage Liver Cirrhosis With Ascites, pain in both ribs, enlarged liver and spleen, tenderness, abdominal distension and ascites.

Predicted Progression: Increased abdominal fluid accumulation]

Su Fuling carefully read the description—it matched what she already knew. Fortunately, although Zhang Lei's condition had been delayed, it hadn't been worsened by improper treatment. Otherwise, she might not have been so confident.

Zhang Lei saw that she had been examining him for so long and looked serious, so he said, 'I just came to watch the excitement. If it can't be treated, forget it. I wasn't planning to get treatment anyway.'

Su Fuling said, 'If you don't get treatment now, it will be even harder later. When you truly regret it, no one can save you.'

Hearing this, Zhang Lei was stunned, and then his forced composure finally collapsed. '...If it can't be cured, then forget it. I'm just a burden alive anyway. Not only do I suffer, but I also drag down my family.'

Zhao Facai, standing nearby, felt a pang of sadness when he heard this.

Since Zhang Lei fell ill, not only had his family's situation worsened, but the neighbors also treated him differently. Especially recently, as his belly grew larger, he didn't even go out anymore.

Zhao Facai used to be indifferent to such matters, but now, perhaps because he had followed this master and seen many patients being treated, he unconsciously developed some sympathy... feeling that everyone had it hard...

Chen Shasha said, 'Hey, don't give up. Even for your family, you can't give up.'

Zhang Lei let out a bitter laugh. He didn't mention how people had changed since he got sick. He wouldn't hold it against them, after all, he really was a burden to his family.

Su Fuling said, 'It can be treated.'

'...'

Those soft words struck like a thunderbolt, leaving Zhang Lei's mind blank. But soon, he reacted, 'Is the treatment very expensive? If it's too expensive, forget it.'

Su Fuling said, 'I haven't treated this condition before. You're my first case. So during treatment, I'll conduct some research and ask you to cooperate in recording data. You'll also need to strictly follow medical advice. If you can do that, I'll cover your medication costs.'

Zhao Facai's jaw dropped. Free consultations and now covering medication costs? Chen Shasha's eyes widened, and she looked at Su Fuling with admiration. Suddenly, a childhood memory flashed through her mind—when she and her brother lived together, he had a fever one night. She wanted to take him to see a doctor, but when they knew she had no money, they refused to treat him. Her brother got through it on his own. That was a long time ago, but this scene brought it back, and her eyes suddenly felt hot.

Even Zhang Lei was silent for a long time, clenching his fists before saying, 'Is it really free? You're not tricking me? What's in it for you?'

'Because I want to improve,' Su Fuling said. 'For your condition, I can only try step by step. I can't guarantee when it will be cured. I might even ask you to try different prescriptions. Are you willing?'

Zhang Lei pressed his lips tightly, then his eyes reddened, and tears flowed. His voice trembled as he spoke incoherently, 'I... I'm willing. Doctor Su, I'm sorry. I used to suspect you were a fraud... I know you pity me... I... I know you came from the Mainland and don't have much money either... but I want to live. I don't want to wait to die. Doctor Su... I'll repay you in the future. When I get better, I'll pay you back, I promise...'

Su Fuling said, 'Enough. I just want to do medical research. Actually, many clinical studies are like this. Don't feel burdened. Just cooperate with me. Go home and rest today, get your mindset right, and come back tomorrow morning to take the medicine.'

Zhang Lei wiped his tears, stood up, took two steps, then turned around and bowed deeply to Su Fuling before leaving.

Su Fuling: '...'

Su Fuling didn't rush to write the prescription, so the Merit Points hadn't arrived yet. She wasn't in a hurry and decided to go home tonight to study how to formulate the prescription.

'Master, his treatment definitely won't be simple. It won't cost just a little money, right?'

Zhao Facai was worried about his master's wallet. He now had some knowledge of Chinese medicine, and the thing he understood best was that some herbs were really expensive.

And this was with the master not making any profit on the medicine.

Su Fuling said, 'Medical progress is priceless. Alright, I'll write the prescription tomorrow, and Shasha will go get the medicine tomorrow.'

Chen Shasha was Chen Shan's sister. When she went to the pharmacy to get medicine, the owner wouldn't dare to cheat.

Chen Shasha quickly nodded. 'I'll get the medicine right. Doctor Su... you're really kind.'

Su Fuling smiled. 'Thank Mr. Huang Bao. Otherwise, I would have the will but not the means.'

...

Huang Bao sneezed. He rubbed his nose and said to Chen Shan across from him, 'So you're saying Doctor Su... has special abilities?'

He thought Chen Shan called him over for something else, but it turned out... Doctor Su really had special methods!

Chen Shan looked at him and said, 'Wen Shu asked me to warn you: keep your men in line and don't offend Doctor Su. You're close to our Yau Ma Tei area, so it's easy for your people to run into her.'

Huang Bao immediately said, 'Got it. I've been trying hard to restrain my men lately. But it's not easy for everyone to change their temperaments.'

Chen Shan said, 'Anyway, you know what to do. These are troubled times. Don't cause trouble for the Sifang Association. The incense masters of the Harbor City branch have been tightening control over the association recently. According to Wen Shu, we need to adjust some of our businesses quickly. The same goes for your business there.'

Huang Bao rubbed his nose. 'Got it.'

When Huang Bao returned to the Tsim Sha Tsui Hall, he was still thinking about what Chen Shan had told him. So Doctor Su could not only read faces and know what he was thinking, but she could also... kill without a trace.

He touched his neck, feeling incredibly lucky. If he had insisted on not letting that person go that day, even if he hadn't been killed by the Bomb, Doctor Su would have finished him off. And he would have died just as easily.

Although Chen Shan said the bank incident was just speculation, for Huang Bao, who had experienced Doctor Su's 'power,' there was no need to guess—anything was possible with Doctor Su.

After shuddering, the first thing Huang Bao did was order his men not to cause trouble in Yau Ma Tei, and even those living there should absolutely avoid the medical clinic and office run by the Su family.

The Longhu Association's Mong Kok Hall naturally got wind of this news quickly.

Ever since the Longhu Association was tricked by Wen Shu and all ended up in the police station, they had lost a lot of face. They had to let a few people go to jail to settle the matter. But they also lost a batch of weapons. And they were inexplicably dragged into Huang Bao's explosion case, leading to several police raids on their turf.

Now, the conflict with the Sifang Association was no longer just about business disputes; it had become a life-and-death struggle.

If the Sifang Association weren't so powerful, and if that old man Wen hadn't stayed to keep his people united against external threats, the Longhu Association would have already found an opportunity to raid the Sifang Association's turf. For now, they had to swallow their pride.

'Is it a relative of Huang Bao's?' asked Long San, the boss of the Longhu Association's Mong Kok Hall. The Longhu Association was a family-run enterprise; the leader was called the Dragon Head, and Long San was the third brother of the Dragon Head, hence called Long San.

His trusted Henchman said, 'It seems she treated Huang Bao, and Huang Bao even went to thank her with generous gifts.'

Long San said, 'That's really strange. That Huang Bao has never been a decent guy. Why would he thank a doctor?'

The Henchman said, 'Not just Huang Bao. I heard that Wen Laokeng also sought treatment from her. He's quite polite to that Doctor Su.'

'That is indeed strange. Such a skilled doctor, holed up in Yau Ma Tei? Go find out more. Don't rush, don't alert the enemy. Send someone to make contact.'

...

Su Fuling looked at the table full of feast dishes, a bit surprised. Her aunt had always been frugal.

'Eating so well today? What's the occasion?'

Zhou Huijuan smiled. 'I'm in a good mood.' She handed Su Fuling a bowl of sweet soup. 'Today, your friends took me to look at a shop. They even discussed the design and said the renovation wouldn't cost much. Everyone is so warm-hearted. I'm really confident about opening the shop now.'

Su Fuling then understood why—it was He Li and An Hui who had given her aunt confidence. Indeed, people of the same age communicate better. And those two were very business-savvy; their persuasion was certainly more effective than hers.

'A Ling, your patients are so warm-hearted. You treat them, and they're so grateful. They're also very kind to me,' Zhou Huijuan said with rare genuine happiness. 'That Mrs. Sun is really impressive—she's a boss's wife, helping Mr. Sun run the business and company. She didn't look down on me at all. And Ms. He wants to discuss cooperation with me and be friends.'

For Zhou Huijuan, who had always worked as a maid and been looked down upon by the upper class, the help from successful people like An Hui and He Li was more effective than any advice. These people said she would definitely succeed, so she must be able to succeed.

Su Fuling naturally knew why those people treated her aunt that way, but she didn't plan to say anything.

'Aunt, since it's settled, let's start work quickly.'

Zhou Huijuan nodded eagerly. 'Yes, construction starts tomorrow. Ms. An said it can be done in three days.'

Su Fuling was surprised. 'So fast?'

'Yes, the landlord said they want to help us open early so their other shops can be rented out sooner.'

Su Fuling: '...'

Seeing her aunt so happy, Su Fuling didn't say anything else. Sometimes, working hard outside was all about bringing happiness to the family, wasn't it?

'But Mrs. Sun was too polite. She wanted to give me jewelry,' Zhou Huijuan said. 'I didn't accept it. Taking things from others isn't good. A Ling, how much did you help them? Mrs. Sun said you saved her husband's life.'

Su Fuling almost choked. 'That's an exaggeration. It was just a minor illness. She scared herself. But Aunt, not accepting things is the right thing to do. It's fine to help each other, but we need to keep finances separate.' She would also tell those people next time not to do this in front of her family.

Zhou Huijuan said, 'Of course. A gift makes one beholden. I understand.'

She then looked at Su Jueming. 'A Ming, you too. Don't covet other people's things.'

Su Jueming said, 'Of course I won't.'

'Then why didn't you say a word just now?' Zhou Huijuan asked.

Su Jueming said, 'I was thinking about why my patients all dislike me. I just don't have that good medical skills. Oh, you don't know, it's not just these people who remember A Ling's kindness. Even Granny Sun and her kind now tell everyone how good A Ling is at prescribing medicine. Today, I saw her even poaching patients from the clinic across the street for A Ling.'

Su Fuling: '...' That kind of thing was really unnecessary.