Chapter 118 — A Master Physician

When the middle-aged man saw his wife kick up such a fuss, his lungs nearly burst with rage. He had gone to such lengths to find a specialist who could treat his father's illness, and now her shouting had offended Guan Xuewen beyond repair. Was Guan Xuewen an ordinary doctor? And double the consultation fee—did the man lack money?

The middle-aged man hopped about in fury, drew back his arm, and slapped the woman across the face: "Huiru, shut your mouth!"

Huiru was stunned by the blow. She clutched her cheek and stared blankly at her husband, but he paid her no mind. He hurried forward to chase after Guan Xuewen: "Elder Guan, please don't stoop to a woman's level. Don't be angry—surely we can talk this over..."

This middle-aged couple was the same pair Wei Zhao had encountered in the commercial district. The man was Liu Tianyi, and the woman was Wu Huiru.

Guan Xuewen had only been somewhat annoyed. Hearing Liu Tianyi's words, he thought there was sense in them—there was no need for him to lower himself to a shrew's level. The patient came first. So he halted his steps and turned back.

"I'll stay here. Tianyi, you and the others go back to Yanjing," Elder Liu spoke up. He did not so much as glance at Huiru; clearly he was deeply disappointed in his daughter-in-law as well.

"Father, you by yourself..." Liu Tianyi looked at him with concern.

"It's nothing. You go back and attend to your work. An old man like me could use a bit of leisure—call it a vacation. In a little while, rent me a place nearby; I'll stay right here, close to Professor Guan, and the surroundings are pleasant too." Elder Liu smiled and waved his hand.

"This... very well." Liu Tianyi knew that once his father made up his mind, no one could change it—he could only carry it out. He took out his phone and dialed a number: "Principal Zhang? This is Liu Tianyi. My father has decided to stay at the university. Could you arrange a residence for me close to Elder Guan's home... Good, I'll wait for your word."

Yang Huaijun had been standing to one side, quietly speculating about the identities of the old man and the middle-aged couple. Now, hearing the call the middle-aged man made, he marveled inwardly. This Principal Zhang was surely the president of Songshan Medical and Pharmaceutical University, and a single phone call from Liu Tianyi could get him to arrange a house near Guan Xuewen's. That was no small matter.

After all, everyone who lived in this villa district was of dean-level status, and the area around Guan Xuewen's home was an upscale villa quarter in particular. Unless one had special standing, the principal would hardly go out of his way to find him a house.

Having settled Elder Liu's affairs, Guan Xuewen turned to Yang Huaijun: "Yang, you're here. Have a seat for now. Once things are wrapped up here, we'll talk. You can watch some TV or go online for a bit, whatever you like."

"All right, Grandpa Guan. Don't mind me—go ahead with your business." Yang Huaijun was already quite familiar with Guan Xuewen and stood on no ceremony. He sat down by the television, flipped to a random channel, and began watching.

Guan Xuewen, for his part, laid out the treatment plan for Elder Liu: the acupuncture would begin tomorrow. Liu Tianyi then made ready to take his father and leave.

"By the way, Elder Guan, do you happen to know a young doctor who is very skilled at massage and manipulation? He must be a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine as well, no?" Liu Tianyi suddenly thought of Wei Zhao. In his view, Wei Zhao's massage and manipulation techniques were superb; if combined with acupuncture, the results ought to be even more pronounced.

Wei Zhao's miraculous manipulation, which had brought him back from the brink, was still fresh in Liu Tianyi's memory. Truly, as the saying went, ambition does not depend on age.

"Very skilled at massage and manipulation?" Guan Xuewen was slightly taken aback. "You mean Chinese medical massage?"

"I believe so..." Liu Tianyi nodded. "The day before yesterday, when we came and were strolling in the commercial district, my father suddenly fell ill—and we had no medicine on hand. At the critical moment, a doctor gave my father a massage and manipulation treatment, and he recovered very quickly..."

"Massage? He cured angina pectoris with massage alone?" Guan Xuewen was even more astonished. He knew that traditional Chinese medicine was a wondrous discipline—truly one where you learn until the day you die. Though he already enjoyed great renown at home and abroad, Guan Xuewen was well aware that he had only glimpsed the threshold of Chinese medicine's profound depths; he was still far from mastery.

But he knew even better that angina pectoris could not be resolved by massage alone. Acupuncture might have a chance of bringing it under control—not a great chance, but a hope nonetheless. Even he himself would resort to Western medicine for emergency treatment, and only after the patient stabilized would he use acupuncture to keep the condition in check...

"Yes, he just massaged him a couple of times, and my father gradually recovered..." Seeing Guan Xuewen's astonished expression, Liu Tianyi felt a chill in his heart. Though he knew nothing of Chinese medicine, Guan Xuewen's face told him just how miraculous that doctor's skill had been that day—even Guan Xuewen could scarcely believe it.

"How is that possible..." Guan Xuewen furrowed his brow. "Massage and manipulation, with such wondrous effects? Did he use no other means?"

"None. I was right there beside him, and he only happened to be passing by. If he hadn't known the girl who was driving... I doubt he would have bothered to intervene..." At this point, Liu Tianyi flushed with embarrassment and shot his wife a venomous glare. If not for the Wu family, he would have divorced this wife long ago—she was utterly humiliating, a wholly unreasonable shrew. He had no idea what kind of upbringing she'd had.

Fortunately, Guan Xuewen cared about nothing beyond the massage itself. Hearing Liu Tianyi's words, he sank into thought. "Traditional Chinese medicine is vast and profound. I once read in a medical text that in ancient times, qigong combined with massage was used to treat illness, and it could indeed produce such effects—but that art has long since been lost... I cannot be certain whether the man you describe knows such techniques..."

"Oh? If that's the case, then wouldn't that man be truly remarkable?" Liu Tianyi felt some regret. Had he known earlier that the young fellow possessed such wondrous medical skill, how could he have let him go? Even if he had to beg, he would have asked whether there was hope of curing his father's illness. But he hadn't known at the time. Alas...

"If everything you have said is true, then this man's medical skill is likely above my own... But when did such a formidable physician of traditional Chinese medicine arrive in Songshan City? How is it that I know nothing of him?" Guan Xuewen searched his memory with all his might for any such accomplished hand among the people he knew, but to his regret, there was not only no one—he had not even heard of such a person...

"A young fellow of about twenty, somewhat lean, though his bearing was most proper..." Liu Tianyi carefully recalled Wei Zhao's appearance and manner at the time.