Uncle Zhong looked at Xie Zirui, a flash of surprise crossing his face before he turned to Chen Feiyu and said, "Young man, your skills are quite impressive. But do me a favor, will you?"
As soon as he said this, everyone was stunned, especially Xie Yongguo, who was shocked beyond measure.
Could it be that Xie Zirui's sudden paralysis was caused by Chen Feiyu?
Was this for real, or was it some sort of fantasy?
"Looks like you've got some eye for talent, too." Chen Feiyu glanced sideways at Uncle Zhong, then walked right up to Xie Zirui, swiftly retrieved and stored his silver needles, and said coolly, "Get up. Remember to clean up your mouth from now on, or you really will end up the fool you're talking about."
Xie Zirui immediately sprang to his feet in anger, then cried out in shock, "Damn it, I'm actually cured!"
An uproar instantly erupted among the crowd, and even the way people looked at Chen Feiyu changed completely.
Han Muqing breathed a sigh of relief, a quiet wave of joy washing over her.
Uncle Zhong smiled and said, "Zirui, why aren't you thanking him? If he hadn't held back, you'd have been paralyzed for the rest of your life."
"Uncle Zhong, are you sure you're not joking? How could a little con artist like him be this powerful? It's probably just a coincidence." Xie Zirui flatly refused to believe in Chen Feiyu.
Chen Feiyu shook his head internally, cursed him as a moron in his heart, and turned away, refusing to pay him any more mind.
Suddenly, the door to an adjacent bedroom was pushed open, and a middle-aged doctor in a white lab coat walked out.
Unable to spare any attention for Chen Feiyu, Xie Yongguo immediately stood up and walked over anxiously, asking, "Dr. Hu, how is my father?"
Dr. Hu shook his head, sighed, and said, "To be honest, the situation is not optimistic."
The expressions of the Xie family members changed instantly.
Even Xie Yongguo, accustomed as he was to the unpredictable storms of life, couldn't help turning pale as earth.
Han Muqing's expression also turned grim as she muttered to herself, "Dr. Hu is a top-tier neurosurgery expert nationwide. If even he can't do anything, doesn't that mean there's no hope left?"
Chen Feiyu shook his head and said, "Not necessarily. Experts aren't authorities. Just because he can't cure it doesn't mean others have no way."
His voice wasn't low, and everyone turned to look at him.
Hu Wenguang's face sank as he frowned and demanded, "Who are you?"
Chapter 15: A Wager
Chen Feiyu smiled and said, "What a coincidence. I'm a doctor, too, and a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine at that."
Hu Wenguang scoffed with disdain, "Traditional Chinese medicine is long obsolete and simply incomparable to scientifically systematic Western medicine. Look at how young you are—you've merely picked up some backward, dross medical techniques, yet you dare to show off out here. Young people nowadays really haven't a shred of humility."
Xie Yongguo and the others nodded secretly. Traditional Chinese medicine was empirical medicine, after all, and naturally couldn't compare to scientific modern medicine.
Chen Feiyu said with contempt, "And you call yourself an expert? Your perspective is shockingly narrow-minded. Based on that view alone, I dare say you don't understand traditional medicine at all."
Hu Wenguang was furious and exasperated. "Ridiculous! I am good friends with Liang Bonan, a leading master of traditional Chinese medicine, and even he wouldn't dare say such a thing. Which Chinese medicine academy did you graduate from to dare question me?"
Chen Feiyu shook his head. "I never went to a Chinese medicine academy, but I know that traditional Chinese medicine is profound and vast. Only charlatans and name-seekers would ever doubt its therapeutic efficacy."
These words were practically pointing a finger at Hu Wenguang's nose and cursing him.
As a top-tier domestic expert, who didn't treat Hu Wenguang with the utmost courtesy whenever they met?
Infuriated, he snapped, "So young, yet so arrogant! Since that's the case, do you dare make a bet with me? If you can't cure Elder Xie, you'll immediately kneel and kowtow in apology."
Chen Feiyu smiled playfully. "Very well. If I lose, not only will I kowtow and apologize, but I'll also cut off my own arm. What if you lose?"
Everyone gasped in unison, never expecting Chen Feiyu to be so ruthless to himself.
Xie Zirui mocked, "Moron! The old man's condition is that severe, and he actually dares to bet. He's simply courting death!"
Hu Wenguang's eyes lit up. He had brought this on himself, after all. "Fine! If I lose, not only will I apologize to you, but I will also publicly admit that Western medicine is inferior to traditional Chinese medicine."
"It's a deal!" Chen Feiyu said with a calm smile, looking as if victory was already in his grasp.
Led by Xie Yongguo, Chen Feiyu arrived at Xie Anxiang's sickbed to find an elderly man unconscious on the bed. His face was pale and his eye sockets deeply sunken—one could tell at a glance that his days were numbered.
Chen Feiyu frowned and asked, "By the way, what illness does the old man have again?"
At these words, everyone almost collapsed to the ground.
Damn it, he didn't even know what the illness was, yet he dared to make a bet with Hu Wenguang! Why was this kid so reckless?
With a muffled "pfft," Xie Xingxuan almost burst out laughing, but instantly realizing the inappropriateness of the setting, she hurriedly forced it back.
Han Muqing was startled. How could she have forgotten to tell Chen Feiyu such crucial information? They were really finished this time.
Hu Wenguang said triumphantly, "Brain cancer, and in the late stages at that. Well? Can you cure this disease?"
For the first time, a solemn expression appeared on Chen Feiyu's face. He took a deep breath and said, "I'm going to begin treatment. The arts of traditional Chinese medicine are not passed on to outsiders; everyone unrelated should step outside."
Hu Wenguang's expression shifted before he sneered, "I'd just like to see what tricks you can possibly pull off."
After everyone left, Chen Feiyu examined Xie Anxiang's condition and found it deeply discouraging. The tumor inside the brain was already quite large and was pressing against the nerves; no wonder surgery was out of the question.
However, that didn't mean Chen Feiyu was completely helpless.
He took out a yellow box from his pocket containing nine silver needles of varying lengths and thicknesses. If a connoisseur of traditional Chinese medicine were present, they would undoubtedly be shocked beyond measure.
Above are the Nine Heavens!
Below are the Nine Provinces!
A human has Nine Apertures!
Medicine has the Nine Needles!
The *Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon* records: "The Nine Needles—small enough that there is no interior, large enough that there is no exterior; vague and boundless, flowing infinitely, aligning with the Heavenly Dao, human affairs, and the changes of the four seasons."
What Chen Feiyu had studied was precisely the "Nine Needles of Tianxing," which legend said had been passed down by the Yellow Emperor, Xuanyuan. When mastered to the highest realm, all nine needles deployed together could revive yang and reshape bones with unfathomable subtlety.
Therefore, Volume 4 of the *Collected Gems of Acupuncture and Moxibustion* also recorded the "Nine Needles Yang-Revival Chant," though unfortunately it had long been lost to history.
It was purely by chance that Chen Feiyu had found half of the surviving remnant text of the "Nine Needles of Tianxing" among his master's collection of books.
Because of this, Chen Feiyu had currently only mastered the third needle, but treating Xie Anxiang's brain cancer still wasn't a major problem.
Gathering his focus and calming his mind, Chen Feiyu held a silver needle between his fingers and drove it straight into Xie Anxiang's Baihui acupoint.
In the practice of acupuncture, supplement the deficient and drain the excess; the crux of deficiency and excess lies in the wonder of the Nine Needles.
Chen Feiyu drove the silver needles into the acupoints in Elder Xie Anxiang's brain, channeling his internal qi through the needles to slowly stimulate the tumor in the brain, causing it to gradually dissolve before being discharged.
While the method sounded simple, putting it into practice was overwhelmingly difficult, demanding that the practitioner possess profound cultivation.
It was no exaggeration to say that under the heavens, Chen Feiyu was the only person capable of treating Xie Anxiang.
Had anyone been standing nearby, they would have seen a layer of cyan-colored qi shrouding the silver needles, emitting a faint glow as Xie Anxiang's complexion gradually began to grow ruddy.
Chapter 16: Han Muqing's Gratitude
The Xie family members waited together outside the room. As time ticked by, the triumphant look in Hu Wenguang's eyes grew increasingly intense. He sneered, "It's been nearly an hour. Could Chen Feiyu be hiding inside because he doesn't dare come out? Cutting off his own arm is a minor matter, but delaying Elder Xie's condition—that's the real crisis. Head Xie, you'd better watch out."
"Shut your mouth!" Han Muqing glared at him, though inwardly she didn't have much confidence either.
When she first invited Chen Feiyu, she had simply been holding onto a try-anything attitude. Who could have imagined the situation would turn this grim? Had she known, she never would have brought him along.
Xie Zirui chimed in, "Sister Qing, I think Dr. Hu makes sense. The old man doesn't have an ordinary illness. Unless Chen Feiyu started studying medicine from inside his mother's womb, there's no way he can cure him."
Suddenly, the door to the room was pushed open. Chen Feiyu slowly stepped out and smiled, "What is this, you're all waiting at the door for me—are you planning to recruit me as your live-in son-in-law? Let me make it clear first: I won't take anyone uglier than Sister Qing."
Xie Xingxuan was the princess of the Xie family. Talking about recruiting a live-in son-in-law—wasn't that flirting with her? Her face immediately flushed red with shame, and she felt a surge of secret annoyance.
Hu Wenguang sneered, "You've delayed Elder Xie's condition, yet you still dare to come out? Cut off your own arm and kowtow in apology to the Xie family; maybe you can still save your pathetic life."
Chen Feiyu looked astonished. "I wondered what dog was barking wildly out here—turns out it's you, you quack. Why on earth would I cut off my own arm?"
"Still putting on a front at a time like this? Have you forgotten our bet? If you couldn't cure Elder Xie, you were to cut off your own arm. So many people heard it," Hu Wenguang said smugly.
With a dark expression, Xie Yongguo said, "Dr. Hu makes sense. Chen Feiyu, I ask you—have you cured my father?"
Chen Feiyu rubbed his nose and smiled. "Strictly speaking, I haven't cured him just yet."
Han Muqing's face instantly turned ashen white, despair welling up in her eyes.
Uncle Zhong also sighed inwardly, slowly shaking his head as a look of disappointment washed over him, and he prepared to leave.
Hu Wenguang burst into loud laughter, excitedly declaring, "In that case, hurry up and cut off your arm yourself. Do it."
"Wait." Chen Feiyu sneered, "I haven't completely cured Elder Xie yet simply because his illness was deeply rooted and impossible to heal in a single session. However, I have already alleviated his condition; a few more treatments and he will make a full recovery."
"What did you say?"
Incredulous, the crowd was practically petrified on the spot.
The old man was in the late stages of brain cancer, a case even top domestic experts couldn't handle, where surviving a few extra years would already be a miracle—and yet Chen Feiyu was confident he could achieve a full recovery?
Uncle Zhong's steps came to an abrupt halt, and he whipped his head around to stare at Chen Feiyu in shock.
Surprised and delighted, Han Muqing asked, "You... are you telling the truth?"
Xie Yongguo said in a deep voice, "Chen Feiyu, this is no joking matter. Lying in front of me, Xie Yongguo, carries grave consequences."
Chen Feiyu rolled his eyes, stepped aside from the doorway, and said, "You people are truly strange. Instead of standing around talking nonsense to question me, why don't you go inside and take a look? Won't you know whether it's true or false then?"
The moment those words fell, a figure rushed in at lightning speed—it was none other than Uncle Zhong.
Immediately following, a voice filled with joyful excitement rang out from inside the room: "Old Xie, you... you're really awake?"
Shocked and overjoyed, Xie Yongguo and the others hurried inside, only to find, just as Chen Feiyu had said, that Elder Xie was leaning against the head of the bed with a smile on his face, his complexion vastly improved.
Xie Yongguo asked with pleasant surprise, "Dad, how is your body feeling?"
Xie Anxiang smiled. "Thanks to my young friend Chen Feiyu, I've managed to claw my way back from the gates of death. He truly is a man of great skill."
Hu Wenguang's face instantly turned the color of dirt, and he almost fell backward onto his rear, muttering, "Impossible, impossible... Late-stage brain cancer, where even surgery is out of the question—how could backward traditional Chinese medicine cure it? This absolutely cannot be real..."
Though Han Muqing hadn't gone inside, she had heard Xie Anxiang's voice. Overwhelmed with joy, she rushed over and threw her arms around Chen Feiyu, shouting excitedly like a little girl, "Feiyu, I never imagined you'd be this amazing! When you were locked in there for so long without coming out, you scared me to death."
She was the one who had brought Chen Feiyu here. If he had ruined Elder Xie's condition, even with the eldest young master of the Xie family shielding her, she would have been impossible to absolve of blame. The pressure she had been under was immense.
Now, seeing that Elder Xie's condition had drastically improved and there was even hope of a complete recovery—all thanks to Chen Feiyu—not only did her pressure vanish entirely, but her heart surged with excitement.
With a fragrant and delicate beauty held full in his arms, a look of intoxication appeared on Chen Feiyu's face. Unable to resist, he wrapped his arms around Han Muqing's slender waist, gave her a stealthy squeeze, and chuckled softly, "Strictly speaking, Elder Xie woke up after just a quarter of an hour. The rest of the time, the two of us were just chatting. I really didn't expect you to worry so much."
"What did you say? You cured him in a quarter of an hour?" Han Muqing almost passed out. So many famous doctors and experts had been completely helpless, yet in Chen Feiyu's hands it had been this simple? Just how miraculous was his medical skill?
It seemed she had truly stumbled upon a treasure by pure accident.
Han Muqing thought this with surging excitement.
Chapter 17: Summer Insects Cannot Speak of Ice
Suddenly, Han Muqing realized she and Chen Feiyu were holding each other in such an intimate embrace. This was the first time she had ever been this close to a member of the opposite sex. Her pretty face flushed red, and she immediately put some distance between them.
"Ahem, Chen Feiyu, my grandfather is inviting you in." Xie Xingxuan walked over, her beautiful eyes examining Chen Feiyu with curiosity, as if she wanted to see straight through him.
So someone had seen them! A burning sensation instantly flared across Han Muqing's face, and her heart began to flutter wildly like a frightened fawn.
Chen Feiyu smiled and nodded, walking inside.
Xie Anxiang's eyes lit up. He beckoned with a smile and said, "Young Friend Chen, come sit over here."
Everyone present was instantly moved.
Among those in the room, only Uncle Zhong was seated on the hospital bed; the rest, including Xie Yongguo, were standing off to the side without the slightest qualification to sit.
Now that Xie Anxiang was inviting Chen Feiyu to sit right beside him, the implications behind this gesture ran deep.
Many people in the room were already scheming in their hearts, and the way they looked at Chen Feiyu changed entirely.
Han Muqing was even happier. Unconsciously, she had already placed Chen Feiyu on the same side as herself.
Yet unexpectedly, Chen Feiyu simply shook his head and smiled, "Wait a moment. Before that, I have other business to attend to."
Everyone widened their eyes in disbelief.
Elder Xie Anxiang was a military heavyweight, a man of immense power and high authority who was accustomed to absolute obedience and whose word was law.
To win Elder Xie's favor was enough to walk sideways through Mingji City—it was an opportunity countless people prayed for.
Yet Chen Feiyu dared to reject the old man's face in public. How utterly ignorant of appreciation he was.
More than a few people secretly shook their heads. When youth tasted early success, it was inevitable that they would lose all sense of the immensity of heaven and earth.
Originally, everyone assumed that even if Elder Xie wasn't angry, he certainly wouldn't be pleased. Instead, Xie Anxiang merely smiled and said courteously, "Very well. Whatever business you have, handle it first. I'll wait."
The crowd gasped in unison.
In all of Mingji City, who could make Xie Anxiang wait?
In all of Mingji City, who was worth letting Xie Anxiang wait for?
Chen Feiyu.
At that moment, many people etched this name deep into their hearts.
Among them, Hu Wenguang was suffering the most.
This unknown nobody named Chen Feiyu had actually cured late-stage brain cancer, and he had done it using traditional Chinese medicine, which Hu Wenguang despised the most.
Had he not witnessed it with his own eyes, he would never have believed it—no, even now, his heart stubbornly refused to accept it.
His eyes darted around, looking for a chance to slip away quietly while everyone was distracted, so as to avoid the public humiliation of apologizing.
"Dr. Hu, esteemed Expert Hu—what's this? Lost the bet and now you want to run?"
Suddenly, smiling, Chen Feiyu walked right up in front of Hu Wenguang.
Cold sweat instantly beaded on Hu Wenguang's forehead. He forced a dry laugh and said, "How could that be? I just wanted to go to the restroom."
"No need to rush to the restroom. Shouldn't you fulfill our wager now?" Chen Feiyu asked, giving him a side-long glance.
Many people looked at Hu Wenguang with playful expressions.
Especially Han Muqing. Hu Wenguang had been sneering and mocking earlier, and she had long since found him utterly repulsive. Seeing him cornered now, she felt a satisfaction so intense she could hardly describe it, the corners of her eyes practically smiling.
Hu Wenguang's face turned unsightly, and he said awkwardly, "Young man, say what you will, I am still an expert of some renown. Asking me to apologize in public... isn't this—isn't this forcing a man to do the impossible?"
"Ha, what a joke!" Chen Feiyu scoffed derisively. "When you told me to cut off my own arm earlier, wasn't that forcing a man to do the impossible? A gambler accepts the stake: apologize in public and admit that Western medicine is inferior to traditional Chinese medicine. If you don't even have this much sportsmanship, what kind of bullshit expert are you?"
Hu Wenguang cast a pleading look toward Xie Yongguo, only to find that Xie Yongguo acted as if he were blind and immediately turned his head away.
Hu Wenguang's expression shifted; he knew the Xie family had abandoned him.
Yet, as a renowned domestic neurosurgery expert, asking him to apologize in front of so many people was more painful than killing him. If this got out, how could he ever show his face in the medical community again?
Hu Wenguang stood frozen in place, hesitating, utterly unable to force the words out.
Chen Feiyu's expression gradually grew cold. Standing simply in front of Hu Wenguang, yet carrying a haughty and condescending aura, he said, "For thousands of years, traditional Chinese medicine has been profound and vast, producing generation after generation of renowned physicians who have treated the illnesses of countless common folk. It has merely fallen into a temporary trough; how can you call it backward medicine? Now, the terminal illness you couldn't cure has been cured by me—what do you have to say for yourself?
"Summer insects cannot speak of ice; well frogs cannot speak of the sea. In my view, within the world of medicine, you are narrow-minded yet arrogant, falling even lower than summer insects and well frogs. As a fellow doctor, I am truly ashamed to be counted among your peers.
"As the ancients said: 'Those whose learning does not span past and present, whose understanding does not connect heaven and humanity, whose talent does not approach the immortals, and whose hearts do not approach the Buddhas should at best till the fields and weave cloth for food and clothing; under no circumstances should they practice medicine to mislead the world.'
"With your level of insight, I advise you to go home and farm the fields so you don't keep killing people with your quackery!"
Chen Feiyu flicked his sleeve and turned around, too lazy to even cast another glance at Hu Wenguang.
The words were resounding, powerful, and carried an extraordinary presence. Hu Wenguang's face turned alternately blue and white, utterly incapable of fabricating a rebuttal.
A bizarre expression instantly swept across the crowd.
As an expert, though Hu Wenguang had failed to cure Elder Xie's terminal illness, his fame nationwide and his skill were beyond question. Yet such a seasoned expert had been lectured into speechless silence by Chen Feiyu.
Had they not seen it with their own eyes, it would have been truly unbelievable.
Chapter 18: Morons Are Beyond Curing
Xie Anxiang nodded to himself. This young man's medical skills were divine and his insights profound; his future achievements would undoubtedly be limitless.
He couldn't help elevating his evaluation of Chen Feiyu even further, deepening his resolve to forge a close relationship with him.
Han Muqing felt even more exhilarated. The more brilliantly Chen Feiyu performed, the more it proved her eye for talent, and she shared in the glory.
Xie Xingxuan was filled with curiosity toward Chen Feiyu. She couldn't fathom how someone at most twenty years old could possess such superb medical skills.
In the end, the only way she could explain it was by deciding Chen Feiyu was a once-in-a-century medical genius.
Hu Wenguang's expression shifted continuously. Finally, with a sigh, he scurried away in frustration and disgrace, fleeing like a stray dog.
Chen Feiyu didn't stop him. Afterward, he walked up to Xie Zirui, stared at him coldly, and said, "Are you convinced now?"
Xie Zirui's face changed. He involuntarily took two steps back and stammered, "You... what do you want?"