Chapter 141 — A Little Fondness?

Wei Zhao's friendliness toward Guan Xuewen, though partly born of gratitude, was not without its own purpose. When he had first heard about that Divine Doctor Kang, he had not given it much thought, but after what Kang Xiaofeng had said yesterday, Wei Zhao's mind had begun to stir.

Selling medicine — now there was a trade with obscene profits. Wei Zhao had no shortage of formulas in hand, but he had no great stretch of time to devote to such a venture, and he was only one man; with nothing but prescriptions and no partner to work with, it would be very hard to get off the ground.

In truth, the best partner Wei Zhao could have among those around him ought to have been Gu Pengzhan. The Gu Group was famous throughout the country; it was only that the group was having a bit of internal trouble at the moment, and even Gu Pengzhan himself had not sorted it out. Wei Zhao had no wish to partner with a group in such a state — if the secret formula leaked out then, it would be bad for everyone.

That aside, Guan Xuewen was the best choice. First of all, there was Guan Xuewen's renown in the domestic world of traditional Chinese medicine. Dr. Guan's fame was in no way inferior to that of Divine Doctor Kang. The reason Divine Doctor Kang was called Divine Doctor Kang rested entirely on his wound medicine — one miraculous nostrum had been enough to lift him to the heights of a divine physician. And though the Divine Doctor Kang Pharmaceutical Group also produced other medicines and medical devices, none of them stood out; they were, at best, ordinary, and the formulas they used were all common recipes for prepared Chinese medicines, nothing special.

Guan Xuewen, by contrast, was a genuinely world-renowned expert in traditional Chinese medicine. If the name "Dr. Guan" were put forward, it would likely fare no worse than "Divine Doctor Kang." But if Wei Zhao went into business himself and put out the name "Divine Doctor Lin," there was no telling whether anyone would accept it; many might even regard it with suspicion and ask, what Divine Doctor Lin is this? Could it be something cribbed from Divine Doctor Kang?

With Guan Xuewen, no such doubts would arise, for the man was a divine doctor to begin with, and calling him "Dr. Guan" was entirely reasonable.

So today Wei Zhao had made a preliminary acquaintance with Guan Xuewen and found him to be an upright and dependable man. He would sound him out a few more times; if all went well, Wei Zhao intended to work with him — first give him a few of the ordinary formulas he had on hand, have him produce and trial-market them, and see how the results turned out before saying more.

A man has to stand tall on his own two feet — he can't live off a woman forever, can he? True, the commission he drew from Gu Pengzhan was legitimate and aboveboard, but spending every day playing house with the young miss was hardly a proper way to live.

Of course, Wei Zhao was still in the assessment stage, and from what he had seen so far, Guan Xuewen's character was quite good. It was plain that Guan Xuewen was a man truly obsessed with Chinese medicine, not much enamored of money or power. If Wei Zhao handed him the secret formulas and then withdrew behind the scenes, that would be a fine arrangement — but he did not yet know what Guan Xuewen's children were like, whether they were greedy for wealth. If their character proved wanting, then Wei Zhao would have no choice but to abandon the notion of cooperating with Guan Xuewen.

……………………

Tang Zhi was thoroughly depressed today — truly, thoroughly depressed. Waking up this morning, she had been thrown into such a fluster by Wei Zhao that she had forgotten even her proper business. She still had to go to his class to get the formula from him. Much as she dreaded going, her mother had already agreed to it, so she had no choice but, after the first period let out, to leave the classroom reluctantly and make her way toward the Senior Three, Class Five room.

Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu had gone out during the break for a breath of air, and the first thing they saw head-on was Tang Zhi. Gu Mengyao knew her — she was one of the school beauties of No. 1 High, ranked alongside herself and little Shu, though she enjoyed somewhat more popularity than the two of them, and was hailed as the beauty of the common folk.

Gu Mengyao, however, did not mind such things in the least. Whether she was popular or not was no concern of hers; she had no interest in those boys anyway, and it was all the better if they left her alone.

Tang Zhi was surprised too — she had not expected to run into the school's two other great beauties, Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu. She knew no one in Senior Three, Class Five; apart from Wei Zhao, all she had heard of was Zhong Yongliang's ill repute. So now, seeing Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu, she decided to ask them for a favor...

"Hello, might I trouble you with something?" Though Tang Zhi was named alongside Gu Mengyao, that was only the judgment of the outside world. In truth, before a daughter of heaven like Gu Mengyao, Tang Zhi still felt considerable pressure. Gu Mengyao was a princess among mortals, while she... was merely a poor girl — a rather pretty poor girl.

"Oh? What is it?" Toward Tang Zhi, Gu Mengyao actually felt a certain goodwill. They were both beauties, after all, and pleasing to look at. Gu Mengyao herself was already exceptional in looks, so she would hardly go about doing the sort of neurotic things that jealous women do over another's beauty.

Seeing that Gu Mengyao had answered her so amiably, Tang Zhi breathed a sigh of relief. So Gu Mengyao was not as lofty and unapproachable as the rumors made her out to be...

"Could you help me find... Wei Zhao, from your class?" Tang Zhi gritted her teeth and spoke Wei Zhao's name, a little shy. Here she was, a girl, going of her own accord to another class to look for a boy — it was more than a little awkward.

"Wei Zhao?" Gu Mengyao looked at the somewhat "bashful" Tang Zhi, and for some reason a sudden discomfort rose in her heart. What was her relationship with Wei Zhao? How was it that the moment that creature Wei Zhao set foot in school, he had already entangled himself with Tang Zhi, the beauty of the common folk?

Was Qiu Lingshan not enough? Or that tall girl from the commercial street? Now Tang Zhi as well?

In fact, Gu Mengyao had misunderstood. Tang Zhi's shyness was not the sort of shyness she imagined, but something closer to shy indignation.

Hearing Gu Mengyao's question, Tang Zhi hurriedly nodded.

"I don't know him." Gu Mengyao herself did not know what had come over her; the moment those three words left her mouth, she paid Tang Zhi no further heed and turned to walk away...

"Ah?" Tang Zhi stared after Gu Mengyao in bewilderment. What was going on? She had been perfectly fine a moment ago — how had she suddenly gotten angry?

Shen Yushu shrugged at Tang Zhi and gave her a look that said there was nothing she could do, then hurried after Gu Mengyao. "Yao Yao, what's wrong? Are you jealous?"

"Jealous? I'm not jealous." Gu Mengyao pursed her lips. Jealous? How could she possibly be jealous? Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous. Ha. And yet... it really did hurt inside. It was like something that was plainly hers being coveted by someone else.

"Hehe, Sister Yao Yao, have you started to like Brother Arrow Brand?" Shen Yushu asked in a small voice.

"I have not," Gu Mengyao said firmly.

"Even a tiny little bit? Yes or no?" Shen Yushu pressed on.

"No, I haven't. Xiaoshu, why are you so nosy?" Gu Mengyao said anxiously. "Say another word and I won't talk to you anymore."

"Hehe, then I won't say anything. Talk to me instead..." Shen Yushu shut her mouth, stole a glance at Gu Mengyao, and sighed inwardly. Sister Yao Yao really did seem a little smitten?