Tang Yanran felt the warmth of Chen Wanli's palm, and an inexplicable panic washed over her, making her swallow back the words that were right on the tip of her tongue.
Chen Wanli followed Song Siming toward the emergency room.
Zhang Debiao and Liu Bing wore grim expressions.
"Brother-in-law, what should we do?" Liu Bing asked, his face a mess of panic.
Zhang Debiao spat. "What? Did you actually think a madman could cure illnesses?"
"Ah, right. If he can't save Mr. Song, the two of them will be in even deeper trouble!" Liu Bing nodded repeatedly.
The two of them hurried after the others toward the emergency room.
Inside the emergency room, the moment Chen Wanli stepped through the doors, he pressed both hands straight onto Song Jiaojiao's chest and said unhurriedly, "Go get me a pack of acupuncture needles!"
A flash of displeasure crossed Song Siming's face. *Damn bastard, if he can't cure her, I'll chop off those hands of his!*
The doctors present all thought he had lost his mind. A lunatic acting as a doctor, and using acupuncture on top of that?
It was utterly absurd! Not even the most nonsensical slapstick movies could dream up a scene this outrageous.
Li Jiang muttered, "Using acupuncture for a wandering soul syndrome? This..."
Chen Wanli flashed a grin. "Wandering soul syndrome? The old man got it wrong. This is spirit-loss syndrome!"
"Spirit-loss syndrome?"
While they were speaking, a young nurse rushed over with the acupuncture needles.
Without offering any explanation, Chen Wanli took the needles and expertly pierced Baihui at the crown of Song Jiaojiao's head, followed by Sishenchong and Shangxing.
As he inserted the needles, he used his vital energy to lock onto Song Jiaojiao's dispersing soul, guiding it back to where it belonged.
The exact moment Chen Wanli withdrew the needles, Song Jiaojiao's heartbeat began to normalize, and her breathing steadied.
"There's hope!"
"She's breathing!"
"Her condition has stabilized!"
A moment later, Song Jiaojiao slowly opened her eyes, looking around the room in a daze as tears streamed down the corners of them.
The doctors in the room stared at Chen Wanli in sheer astonishment.
Li Jiang scratched his head, completely baffled. Just those few utterly unremarkable needles, and he had actually brought her back from the brink?
Song Siming's eyes turned red. He hurriedly rubbed his face to regain his composure.
Tang Yanran wore a look of utter shock. Watching Chen Wanli's unruffled demeanor, she felt a momentary sense of unreality. Was this really the useless lunatic she knew?
"Her life has been pulled back from the gates of death, but stagnation of liver-qi, disharmony between the spleen and stomach, and blood stasis have led to severe melancholy syndrome. She will still need careful recuperation!" Chen Wanli stated calmly.
Li Jiang nodded. "Depression is diagnosed in Traditional Chinese Medicine as melancholy syndrome, but treating it is extremely complicated!"
Song Siming asked, "Does the little divine doctor know of a way?"
"I do, yes!" Chen Wanli arched a brow. He could cure it, but it was troublesome.
Song Siming was a businessman. In his eyes, academic degrees and certificates meant nothing; a cat that caught mice was a good cat, regardless of its color!
Besides, he had heard of and seen plenty of wandering miracle doctors.
Chen Wanli had already earned his trust through sheer competence.
Hearing that Chen Wanli could cure her without a moment's hesitation, he blurted out, "Name your price—any conditions!"
"Acupuncture twice a week, supplemented with herbal decoctions. Melancholy syndrome stems from emotional blockages, so it can only be cured slowly!" Chen Wanli said.
"Good, good! Once Jiaojiao is discharged, twice a week, and I'll have someone pick you up!" Song Siming feared refusal.
Just as Chen Wanli was about to nod, Tang Yanran gave him a fierce pinch in the waist.
Pulling off a fluke cure on Song Jiaojiao this time was already a miracle of ancestral proportions!
And now he wanted to treat Song Jiaojiao's depression too!
Severe depression was not something easily cured!
So many wealthy and famous people—lacking neither money, fame, nor access to top doctors—had still fallen to this illness...
Chen Wanli could only curl his lip and say, "We'll talk about it later!"
Song Siming, however, assumed Chen Wanli was carefully weighing his words because the previous promise hadn't been fulfilled yet. He immediately instructed the bodyguards outside the door:
"Take Zhang Debiao and Liu Bing to the Disciplinary Inspection Commission right now, and tell them that I, Song Siming, am reporting them both by name for breaking the law and violating discipline!"
"..." Outside the door, Zhang Debiao and Liu Bing collapsed straight to the floor.
"Ahem, young brother, if there's a chance, I'd still like to consult with you on a few things!" Li Jiang said with an awkward smile.
"We can exchange pointers if the opportunity arises!" Chen Wanli smiled faintly.
Li Jiang nodded repeatedly, his impression of Chen Wanli growing increasingly favorable. Unfazed and genuinely skilled, he himself hadn't been able to manage that at Chen Wanli's age!
Tang Yanran couldn't bear to watch any longer. *Exchange pointers with Li Jiang? Li Jiang is a grandmaster of Traditional Chinese Medicine!*
Relying on a few unorthodox medical books to spout nonsense everywhere was just digging his own grave.
She grabbed Chen Wanli by the arm and dragged him outward.
...
...
...
"Let's go, come home with me right now!" As soon as they stepped outside, Tang Yanran pulled Chen Wanli toward home.
Song Siming's mind raced, and he immediately instructed his bodyguard, "Go, drive my car from the parking lot and present it to Mr. Chen!"
The bodyguard was stunned. That was a Rolls-Royce that had just been delivered today; driving it to the airport to pick up Song Siming had been its very maiden voyage.
The bodyguard hurried out in pursuit, but Chen Wanli was already nowhere to be seen, leaving him with no choice but to return empty-handed and sheepish.
Song Siming was about to blow his top when Li Jiang chuckled. "You'll see each other again!"
...
Although Tang Yanran's car had been hit, the damage was merely cosmetic and didn't affect its drivability.
"Get in!" After retrieving the car, Tang Yanran unceremoniously pushed Chen Wanli inside.
The car sped along the road, Tang Yanran's peripheral vision constantly darting toward Chen Wanli.
The current Chen Wanli felt entirely foreign to her.
Or rather, Chen Wanli had always been foreign to her.
When Chen Wanli had first been brought into the Tang Family, he was a mentally impaired lunatic who had lost his wits.
The information Tang Yanran had gathered about Chen Wanli at the time could be summed up in just a few sparse, utterly mundane sentences.
A senior college student, right on the verge of graduation, whose family suffered a sudden catastrophe when his parents were accidentally murdered by a roving gang of home-invading robbers.
Losing both parents overnight, Chen Wanli couldn't handle the blow and developed a mental illness.
During the three years of their marriage, Tang Yanran had mostly treated Chen Wanli as a fool while looking after him.
Yet this fool had suddenly transformed into a confident and composed young man.
Watching him protect her, watching him stand unfazed before the billionaire Song Siming, and conversing fluently with a grandmaster of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
The complex emotions born from such a stark contrast couldn't be explained away in just a few words.
Before long, the car pulled to a stop beneath a well-known local restaurant.
Inside the car, Tang Yanran hurriedly reapplied her makeup, instantly lending an extra touch of allure to her already delicate features.
Chen Wanli watched, somewhat entranced. *What an absolute siren!*
"Are there a lot of people at my uncle's birthday banquet?" Chen Wanli asked abruptly.
Tang Yanran pursed her lips. "It's not a major milestone birthday, so they didn't invite too many people. If you don't want to go, you don't have to!"
Chen Wanli gave a self-deprecating chuckle. "Afraid I'll embarrass you?"
"No!" Tang Yanran's expression shifted slightly, though she offered no explanation.
"As for our marriage, I know you were forced into it against your will. If you want a divorce, I agree to it."
Chen Wanli thought for a moment before speaking.
Though he had no complaints about Tang Yanran—she was beautiful, and willing to marry him to honor her father's promise while taking care of him for three whole years; such a woman was impossible to find even with a lantern—
He wouldn't force someone against their will either.
With a cold face, Tang Yanran directly pulled open the car door and stepped out.
Chen Wanli had no idea what that was supposed to mean.
Yet Tang Yanran didn't walk away; she simply stood at the entrance of the restaurant, clearly waiting for him.
*A woman's heart is truly hard to fathom!*
With a wry smile, Chen Wanli got out of the car and followed her inside.
The two of them were led to a large private dining room on the second floor, where two large round tables were packed with relatives and friends.
His father-in-law, Tang Dapeng, and mother-in-law, Zhang Yuehong, were seated at one of the round tables. Upon seeing Chen Wanli, Zhang Yuehong's expression instantly darkened.
Tang Yanran led Chen Wanli around to greet the elders at each table. Not knowing any of these relatives, Chen Wanli could only mimic her actions, looking somewhat dazed and foolish.
A chorus of mocking gazes swept over from the group of relatives, who completely ignored Chen Wanli.
Tang Dapeng smiled genially and waved, gesturing for Chen Wanli to sit next to him.
Tang Yanran followed and sat beside her mother, Zhang Yuehong.
The host seat at this table belonged to the uncle and aunt's family. While the uncle was ostensibly the guest of honor today, the one glowing with health and vitality as he poured drinks was actually his son-in-law, Han Feihu.
Han Feihu was around thirty years old, plump in appearance, and his speech and mannerisms instantly marked him as a man of the business world.
"Thank you, family and friends, for attending my father-in-law's birthday banquet. Let me drain this cup first as a toast!"
With that, Han Feihu raised his glass and downed it in one go, putting on a very generous and hearty display.
"Brother Han, your business is booming these days—if you get the chance, you'll have to pull the rest of us up with you!"
"Yeah, I heard that engineering project you did earlier was actually for the billionaire Song Family!"
"To think you've done business with the richest man—even the crumbs falling through the Song Family's fingers would be enough for us to live on for generations!"
"When you make it big in the future, don't forget us poor relatives!"
"Ha! I'm just a country bumpkin doing construction, making a bit of hard-earned money. You guys are just flattering me!"
Though Han Feihu said this, the smugness in his eyes and brows was unmistakable.
Most of the people present were wage earners; aside from Han Feihu, only Tang Dapeng could be considered a businessman.
However, the Tang Family business was herb cultivation, and furthermore, Tang Dapeng was a kind-hearted man running it jointly with his brothers and male relatives, meaning the profits trickling down to him couldn't compare to a major magnate.
The crowd launched into yet another round of lavish flattery toward Han Feihu.
The uncle and aunt beamed with radiant smiles. A son-in-law was like a half-son, and a capable son-in-law gave them plenty of face.
The aunt, in particular, had never gotten along with Zhang Yuehong back when they were sister-in-laws.
In the past, Zhang Yuehong used to constantly brag about how pretty her daughter was and how she would marry into high society to slight her. Yet in the end, her daughter married a lunatic.
Conversely, her own daughter and son-in-law had both looks and money. The aunt's triumphant gaze kept casting smug, sidelong glances over.
Zhang Yuehong was so angry her face turned green. Lowering her voice, she complained to Tang Yanran, "Bragging like there's no tomorrow—he just took on a landscaping project for one of the Song Family's housing developments. Forget the billionaire Song, I doubt he's even laid eyes on the project manager more than a few times, yet he dares to brag like this without even fearing the wind will split his tongue."
With a headache, Tang Yanran rubbed her temples and kept silent.
Tang Dapeng piled several pieces of braised pork onto Chen Wanli's plate.
Chen Wanli ate the food piece by piece.
Seeing the behavior of the three family members, Zhang Yuehong grew even angrier, and her gaze toward Chen Wanli became increasingly intolerable.
Han Feihu was showing off, but Chen Wanli—forget about amounting to anything—even if his madness had cleared up, it would be a miracle worth burning incense for the whole family.
This disparity made her feel like she had just swallowed a lemon, her heart completely soured!
Seeing Zhang Yuehong's discomfort, the aunt, Liu Xuefeng, offered a triumphant smile.
"Sister, Wanli's illness is a real headache! He can't even find a regular job; nobody dares employ him!"
"Still, Feihu is in construction and doesn't mind that sort of thing. Should we have him come work for Feihu? Otherwise, having you guys support him forever isn't a solution either!"
"Mom, it's not that I want to disrespect your wishes, but this simply won't do. Our construction sites have strict regulations these days—we can't take anyone with a mental condition!" Han Feihu said with an apologetic smile.
"Oh, so he's not even qualified to be a manual laborer, then!" Liu Xuefeng dragged out her words, dripping with sarcasm.
Seeing Chen Wanli subjected to such humiliation, Tang Yanran said with displeasure, "Wanli's illness has already been cured."
"Cured?"
The crowd present was half-skeptical, still mostly suspecting that Tang Yanran was just putting up a stubborn front.
Chen Wanli didn't say much and simply smiled.
Tang Dapeng didn't take it too seriously either, smoothing things over with a laugh. "Well, then today truly is a great day! My eldest brother-in-law is having a birthday, and my son-in-law is cured of his illness!"
"Come, come, let's all have a drink to celebrate!"
Zhang Yuehong was so furious she gritted her teeth. Tang Dapeng and his wishy-washy temper were infuriating.
Han Feihu curled his lip into a smirk. "Well, if his illness is cured, he needs to work even more! As a man, supporting the family is a duty, right, Wanli?"
Chen Wanli gave a perfunctory nod.
"We're basically brothers-in-law, so I'll help where I can! Since your illness is cured, doing manual labor definitely isn't suitable for you anymore."
"I have a construction site in Northern Myanmar that's lacking a person in charge. Brother, would you like to consider it? You can easily make five hundred thousand a year!"
Han Feihu spoke with grand swagger, wearing the exact expression of someone doing a relative a favor purely out of familial kindness.
Tang Dapeng furrowed his brow, but before he could speak, Chen Wanli narrowed his eyes and smiled.
"I've heard that place is pretty chaotic. A lot of people are lured there with high salaries just to have their kidneys harvested. Brother-in-law, you aren't planning to take me there and sell me, are you?"
...
...
...
As soon as those words left his mouth, the crowd finally believed that Chen Wanli's illness really was cured—his tongue was quite sharp!
Tang Dapeng was filled with pleasant surprise, grabbing Chen Wanli's hand and holding onto it for a long while without letting go.
Zhang Yuehong was momentarily pleased as well, but immediately felt it was meaningless; even if his illness was cured, he still couldn't compare to someone else's wealthy son-in-law!
Chen Wanli realized that this father-in-law of his was truly sincere toward him.
Han Feihu's face darkened, and the aunt, Liu Xuefeng, chimed in sarcastically, "What kind of nonsense is that? Your brother-in-law bought a car worth over eight hundred thousand just like that—to sell you, how much are you even worth?"
Chen Wanli shrugged. "I'm worth quite a bit. Two kidneys plus a heart, that has to be worth eight to ten million at least! Who knows if brother-in-law might see money and lose his mind?"
"Feihu makes millions just on a casual project!"
"Mom, why are you arguing with a lunatic?"
"Wanli is just being ignorant talking like that!"
"Who else besides family would give you such a great opportunity?"
"Too lazy to put in any effort, and a coward to boot! Now that his illness is cured, he probably won't amount to anything in the future either!"
The relatives chimed in all at once with overlapping criticisms.
Tang Yanran's face turned icy. Every single word from these people felt like a slap to her face.
Still, considering it was her own uncle's birthday banquet, she exercised utmost restraint to keep her anger from boiling over.
Zhang Yuehong was so mad her face turned ashen; had Tang Dapeng not held her back, she would have stood up and started cursing.
A flash of annoyance crossed Tang Dapeng's face, but he calmed down and said, "Our Tang Family can still afford to feed one person, so there's no need to trouble anyone else!"
Han Feihu laughed heartily. "Fine, fine, fine! My mistake for meddling! But brother, I offered you a kind-hearted opportunity, and you being a coward is one thing, but talking to me like that means you owe me an apology, right?"
Chen Wanli was angry. He had spared them too much grief just to save face for his parents-in-law, but this Han Feihu was pushing his luck and showing a complete lack of self-awareness.
Right at that moment, the door to the private room was suddenly kicked open from the outside, and seven or eight burly men swarmed straight in.
Han Feihu flew into a rage, opening his mouth to curse, "Who the hell..."
Before he could finish the sentence, he took a heavy slap across the face!
"You the hell have money to act like a big shot, but no money to pay your debts?"
The moment Han Feihu recognized the newcomer, his legs turned to jelly instantly. Gone was his previous arrogance as he stammered, "S-San, Third Brother..."
"Grandson, nobody in this Nanbin City dares to owe me, He Laosan, money and not pay it back!"
A burly man with a braided queue and a fierce, scarred face strode forward and delivered another flurry of slaps across Han Feihu's face.
The aunt, Liu Xuefeng, was terrified, putting on a brave front as she blurted out, "Don't mess around! Our family's Feihu isn't someone you can just push around!"
He Laosan took a step forward, marched right up to the aunt, unhurriedly picked up a braised pork knuckle, took two bites out of it, and tossed it away casually, sending the tableware on the table clattering loudly.
"Bah... what kind of taste is this?!" He spat a mouthful of fat right onto the aunt's face, sneering, "Fifth Master Huang showed him mercy by lending him three million at bank interest rates, and he defaults on it. Instead of telling him to pay up, you're sitting here claiming he's not someone to be trifled with?"
"Trying to scare me, are you?" The flesh on He Laosan's face twitched as he dealt two backhanded slaps across Liu Xuefeng's face.
"Not someone to be trifled with? Damn it, I'll beat you right along with him, and you can ask this Han Feihu of yours if he dares let out even a squeak of a fart!"
Han Feihu was paralyzed with fear, utterly unable to move and too terrified to utter a single syllable.
Liu Xuefeng burst out crying with a wail.
Everyone seated at the table was just ordinary working folk—when had they ever witnessed such a scene before?
Frozen in place, they sat stiffly in their seats, too scared to make a single move.
Chen Wanli had no intention of intervening. A regular loan at bank interest rates—if you borrow it and refuse to pay, getting beaten for it was only right!
Zhang Yuehong turned pale with fright.
Tang Dapeng furrowed his brow and couldn't help speaking up. "If you're here to collect a debt, collect the debt—there's no need to resort to violence!"
He Laosan snatched up a wine bottle and hurled it straight at Tang Dapeng. "Old bastard, daring to stick your nose into this..."
Seeing the wine bottle hurtling through the air, Tang Yanran's face drained of color, and the rest of the room fell dead silent with fear.
Yet the instant the bottle was about to strike, a fair, slender hand intercepted it.
Chen Wanli caught the wine bottle, his gaze turning icy. He couldn't control what happened to others, but nobody laid a finger on Tang Dapeng.
"Smash this wine bottle against your own forehead, and then get the hell out of here! I'll spare you then!" Chen Wanli said calmly, setting the wine bottle down right in front of He Laosan.
Everyone froze in absolute shock.
Was this some landlord's foolish son who had no idea how dangerous the world was?
Daring to talk like that right now—either he was completely reckless or downright simple-minded!
*He really is still a lunatic after all!*
He Laosan laughed out of sheer anger. "Do you even know who I am, trying to act like a big shot in front of me?"
"Nope!" Chen Wanli shook his head.
"I'm Fifth Master Huang's man!" A mixture of viciousness and arrogance washed over He Laosan's face, as if he were naming some grand, untouchable figure.
"Who the hell is Fifth Master Huang?" Chen Wanli genuinely had no idea.
He Laosan laughed again. To not even know Fifth Master Huang's name meant this was just some small fry daring to pick a fight with him.
Han Feihu trembled all over with terror. "Wanli, don't act like a fool! Nearly eight or nine out of every ten earthwork projects in Nanbin City belong to Fifth Master Huang!"
While other things might be unclear, once the title of the earthwork industry's tyrant was dropped, everyone understood immediately.
The earthwork business was notoriously lucrative, fiercely competitive, and the one who monopolized it was invariably a heavyweight boss connected to both the underworld and the police.
Hearing this, Tang Dapeng shook his head at Chen Wanli.
Seeing that everyone was terrified, He Laosan grinned smugly, pointing a finger first at Tang Dapeng and then sweeping it toward Tang Yanran:
"Realized you're scared now, huh? Kneel down and kowtow to me right now, or else today I'll cripple this old geezer and have my way with this little doll, and you won't even be able to let out a fart!"
Anger flickered within Chen Wanli's eyes. Back when his parents died untimely deaths, he had been a student studying away from home, left to hear only the tragic news and mourn in vain.
After three years of bitter cultivation, he was now determined to protect the people he cared about and live life on his own terms.
Never mind an earthwork boss like Fifth Master Huang—even the King of Hell himself wouldn't make him cower.
Without another word, Chen Wanli stood up, snatched the wine bottle, and lunged forward.
The very next second, the wine bottle smashed right into He Laosan's head.
Fresh blood streamed down He Laosan's scarred, fleshy face.
Chen Wanli didn't stop his momentum, still gripping the jagged half of the bottle in his hand.
With a backhand motion, he thrust it straight toward He Laosan's chest.
That ferocious surge of momentum caught He Laosan completely off guard and terrified him to the core!
*The fierce fear the reckless!*