Soon, the taxi pulled up at Yongcheng First People's Hospital.
During the ride, Chen Muye had been trying to probe Grandpa Li, hoping to find out if he was really the long-lost great-grandson. But Grandpa Li kept telling him to mind his own business and just do as he was told. Chen Muye had no choice but to clam up.
Grandpa Li led him straight into the hospital. Without stopping to register, they took the elevator up to the fifteenth floor and stopped in front of a door marked "Chief Physician."
*Knock, knock, knock!*
Grandpa Li rapped on the door forcefully.
"Please, come in."
A deep, resonant voice drifted from inside.
Grandpa Li pushed the door open and led Chen Muye straight in. A middle-aged man sat at the desk, wearing a white lab coat. He had a side-parted hairstyle and was wearing glasses, busy looking over a stack of reports.
Chen Muye glanced at the nameplate on the desk. It read: *Chief Physician: Li Wenrui.*
Upon seeing Li Tiangang, Li Wenrui immediately put down the reports and stood up. "Grandpa! What are you doing here? Why didn't you let me know in advance so I could have come to pick you up?"
Li Tiangang waved his hand, his expression solemn. "Wenrui, I need a favor."
"Oh, Grandpa! Don't say that. If Big Brother or the others heard you, they’d come and beat me up! Just tell me what it is; your grandson will handle it for you!"
Li Tiangang pointed at Chen Muye. "Heal him."
Li Wenrui looked at Chen Muye, confused. "Young man, what kind of illness do you have?"
Chen Muye smiled. "Stage four lung cancer."
Li Wenrui froze. He looked at his grandfather, then back at Chen Muye. *Are the two of you playing a prank on me?* But seeing his grandfather's serious expression, he quickly pulled up chairs for them to sit.
Li Tiangang refused to sit, his face tight. "Wenrui, just tell me: are you going to help or not?"
Li Wenrui sighed internally. It wasn't a matter of whether he wanted to help. "Grandpa, sit down first. I need to understand this young man's condition before I can give you an answer."
"Fine, understand it then."
"Right, please, have a seat."
Li Tiangang remained standing. Li Wenrui knew there was no point arguing; that was the old man's temper. He turned to Chen Muye. "Young man, what's your name?"
"Hello, sir. I'm Chen Muye."
At the mention of the name, Li Wenrui felt a flicker of recognition. It sounded like the same name his niece had asked him to look into a couple of days ago. He asked, "Did you come to this hospital for a check-up two days ago?"
Chen Muye nodded. "Yes."
Li Wenrui sat back at his computer and pulled up Chen Muye's medical records. After reading them, he turned to his grandfather with a look of extreme distress.
Seeing this, Li Tiangang immediately grew impatient. "What is that look for?"
Li Wenrui looked at Chen Muye, wanting to consult him first. "Young man, you don't mind if I discuss your condition, do you?"
"It's fine," Chen Muye replied coolly.
Li Wenrui turned his gaze back to Li Tiangang, whispering cautiously, "Grandpa, it's not that I don't want to help him, but he’s already in the terminal stage. Based on the current rate of metastasis, he has three months to live at most. You’re putting me in an impossible..."
Before he could finish, Li Tiangang cut him off. "Cut the crap! Just tell me, will you help or not?"
"Grandpa, you're making this very difficult for me!"
"Hah! If it weren't difficult, why would I be asking you?"
*If the King of Hell has already signed his death warrant, asking me won't do any good,* Li Wenrui thought. But he dared not defy Li Tiangang, and he pulled a face that looked worse than a sob.
Chen Muye, seeing this, gave Grandpa Li a nudge. "Grandpa, I know where I stand with this illness. Please don't give Chief Physician Li such a hard time."
Li Tiangang looked at Chen Muye, clearly unwilling to give up, then turned his gaze back to Li Wenrui. "No. You will treat young Chen today, whether you like it or not! If you can't cure him, I'm striking you from the family register!"
The threat made Li Wenrui's legs go weak. He quickly begged for mercy. "Grandpa! Don't do that!"
"Do you think I'm joking?" Li Tiangang said, his expression grave.
Li Wenrui was terrified. Although his grandfather had doted on him as a child, he hadn't been spared the rod, and even as an adult, he'd had his share of scoldings. When his grandfather made that face, he was never joking. But this was terminal lung cancer! How could it be something he could just fix on command?
"Grandpa, don't rush. Let me... let me think of a solution."
"Fine. I'll stay right here while you think."
Helpless, Li Wenrui left the office to make some calls.
Inside the office, Chen Muye turned to Grandpa Li. "Grandpa, there’s really no need to treat this illness."
From the way Li Wenrui addressed him, it was clear he was the old man's grandson. Chen Muye didn't want the old man to have family drama because of him. Besides, he had the system now; he wasn't afraid of cancer. As long as it wasn't an accident, he wasn't afraid of any disease. A little lung cancer was nothing compared to the incurable diseases he was now immune to.
Li Tiangang patted Chen Muye on the shoulder and sighed, his expression sincere. "Chen, I want to take you on as my apprentice."
Chen Muye's eyes lit up, but before he could accept, Li Tiangang continued, "On the condition that we cure your illness first."
Li Tiangang’s logic was clear. As far as he was concerned, Chen Muye only had three months left. Even if Chen Muye were a martial arts genius, what use was it if he died in three months? He wanted someone to carry on the martial arts the old Taoist had taught him, not just add another name to his roster of students.
Chen Muye didn't give up, though. He laughed, "Grandpa, I'm not going anywhere for a while. Why don't you take me as your student now? If I die, you can just pretend I was never your student, and you won't have to be sad." ...*Anyway, I'm not actually going to die.*
Li Tiangang couldn't help but laugh. "You've got a great attitude, kid. But the reason I want to cure you first is that there’s something more important."
"Something more important?"
Li Tiangang nodded.
Chen Muye thought to himself: *What could be more important? For a man of his age, nothing matters more than the younger generation.*
*Does he want me to marry Li Shujin? Grandpa, you really are a legend! You’ve got a keen eye, seeing right away that Li Shujin and I are a match made in heaven.*
Taking the leap, Chen Muye spoke up. "Grandpa, I'm willing!"
"What? Willing to do what?" Li Tiangang looked confused.
Chen Muye grinned. "Anything you ask, I'm willing to do. Even if you want me to marry Shujin, I'm willing."
Li Tiangang's face fell instantly. "Get out of here! Who said anything about you marrying Xiaojin?"
"Oh? Not that? What is this important thing you were talking about then?"
Li Tiangang shot him a cold, sharp look. "Ha! You're young, but you've got guts. If anyone else had said that, I’d have knocked a few of their teeth out."
Chen Muye shrank back, instinctively covering his mouth. "Grandpa, I’m just joking. Please don't hit me."
Li Tiangang was amused by his reaction. "You brat. If you get cured and complete the task I give you, then marriage to Xiaojin isn't entirely impossible."
*Oh? Is there a chance?*
"Grandpa, tell me, what is it? If you tell me to go east, I won't go west; if you tell me to chase the dogs, I won't go chasing..."
Grandpa Li didn't catch the drift and just added, "Let's talk after you're cured."