Li Shuang said with a smile, "If you want to open a clinic in the village, the guys and I can lend a hand from time to time. How about we get a piece of this clinic? What do you think?"
So that's how he got the title of village bully. Wang Jian finally understood.
These days, no one helps you without expecting something in return, but someone as shameless as Li Shuang was definitely in the minority. Looking at this good-for-nothing who loitered around and yet lived so comfortably, he had certainly lined his pockets this way many times before.
But he had come back to open a clinic because he wanted to practice medicine without too many restrictions. If he really let Li Shuang take a share, he might as well have come home just to eat shit.
Wang Jian just laughed and said his goodbyes. If this kept up, trouble was inevitable.
Seeing Wang Jian leave, Li Shuang didn't say much. Liu Zi and Huang Mao, however, looked displeased. Liu Zi spoke up first, "Brother Shuang, that kid didn't give us any face at all."
Huang Mao chimed in, "Exactly. Nothing happens in this village without our say-so. He's clearly asking for trouble."
"Don't get your hopes up," Li Shuang said, his smile still in place. "He can open that clinic even if we try to stop him. If my dad and the others hear about this, they'd probably be ecstatic to have him set up shop here as soon as possible."
"Here?"
Liu Zi and Huang Mao were confused until Li Shuang pointed at the room they were in. Realization dawned on them. "Shit! He wants to take our entertainment room? That bastard… I'm gonna kill him!"
"Hey!"
Li Shuang stopped Huang Mao, who was only putting on an act. "If you really had what it takes to kill him, you wouldn't still be stuck here just pretending."
Li Shuang rolled his eyes, looking down on the fool before him. But because his eyes were so small, the other two didn't notice.
Liu Zi understood the situation. "Looks like we'll have to give up this place. But we can't let the kid have it easy. If we just hand it over without getting anything in return, we'll lose face."
When you were in this line of work, face was everything. Though thugs didn't necessarily need dignity, you still had to maintain standing among your peers. If they couldn't even control their own village, it would be humiliating to admit it to outsiders.
"Heh, but if he thinks he can get it that easily, he's far too naive."
After Li Shuang finished speaking, his smile vanished, and his expression became unreadable as he was lost in thought.
After leaving the village committee building, Wang Jian didn't go directly to the village chief. His encounter with Li Shuang had changed the nature of the problem. Li Shuang's audacity to act so recklessly in the village was partly because he had the village chief's backing. The village had developed so well over the years largely because the village chief was proactive in launching new ventures. Wang Jian had heard stories while he was away at school about how the village chief often went out to find projects to bring back to the village. The village's courier point, for instance, was his doing. The man was anything but simple.
But when it came to Li Shuang, the village chief's attitude was one of indulgence. The two of them, one working in the shadows and one in the light, had made a killing in the village. The only four-story villa in the entire village was the one the village chief's family had built.
That villa was in no way inferior to those in the big cities, and nestled against the mountain and by the water, it was perhaps even more comfortable overall.
Wang Jian pursed his lips. Even if he went to the village chief by himself, he probably couldn't bypass Li Shuang. He might really have to hand over a cut.
Wang Jian was speechless. It seemed no matter which way he turned, he would have to find another path entirely. He originally thought opening a clinic back home would be simple. Instead, he'd hit a wall at every turn. Forget the clinic; he hadn't even seen a shadow of it.
But setting the location issue aside for now, the main reason Wang Jian wanted to open a small clinic here was the village's mountain range... For a student of Chinese medicine like him, it was a veritable treasure trove.
Many families in the village gathered medicinal herbs from the mountains, and there were even specialized shops in the town and city that bought herbs from this area. This was what had truly caught Wang Jian's interest.
After several years of guidance from the old Chinese medicine doctor, his knowledge of medicinal ingredients was extraordinary. This was the perfect opportunity to scout the mountain. Later, he could come up periodically to gather herbs. Whether he sold them or used them for his practice, it would be extremely beneficial.
With that thought, Wang Jian headed directly for the mountains. He decided to look for some herbs first. He still had to eat, after all. If the clinic plan fell through, he could at least sell herbs to get by.
He wasn't heading up the mountain aimlessly. Wang Jian had run all over these trails as a child. The herbs he didn't recognize back then were all familiar to him now. Relying on memory, he had a good idea of which direction to go. The shape and medicinal properties of herbs determined their growing regions.
This time, Wang Jian started by walking along the paths near the base of the mountain, just to scout things out. However, he ran into trouble almost as soon as he set foot on the trail.
As he walked deeper along the mountain path, nearing the summit, he heard a faint moaning—the sound of someone who was ill and weak. He cut through the underbrush and soon saw a middle-aged man lying on the ground next to a scattered bamboo basket and herbs. The herbs were clearly aged, and the gathering technique was highly skilled.
The man was dressed in a Tang suit. Though middle-aged, his hair was already streaked with white. His eyes were shut tight, his brows were deeply furrowed, and he was clutching his chest over his heart. His lips were turning purple. A quick glance was all Wang Jian needed to make an initial diagnosis: the man was having a heart attack.
If he hadn't brought his silver needles with him, he would have been helpless.
To confirm his diagnosis, Wang Jian began the final step of the four traditional diagnostic methods: taking the pulse.
This man was no simple character; the herbs he'd gathered were all specifically for his condition. Though not a cure, they were meant to manage it—perfect for an emergency like this.
His assessment complete, Wang Jian immediately took out a needle.
He used just one. After inserting it, he didn't rush, instead feeling for the right response from the acupoint.
Within moments, the patient's expression had improved significantly, and his body, which had been curled in pain, began to relax. With heart problems, once you get through the initial crisis, the worst is usually over. At least for now, he was out of immediate danger.
But Wang Jian didn't stop. Only when he saw the purple tinge fade from the patient's lips did he truly relax.
"Sir!" he called out. "Are you alright?"
Seeing the man open his eyes, Wang Jian quickly shifted to support his upper body. "I was gathering herbs on the mountain when I found you collapsed here. It was an emergency, so I used a needle first. How are you feeling now?"
"You... you saved me?" the man asked weakly after letting out a few shuddering breaths. As he spoke, he looked at the silver needle still in his body with astonishment and remarked, "You're a practitioner of Chinese medicine?"
Since Wang Jian mentioned gathering herbs and knew Acupuncture, his guess was almost certainly correct.
Wang Jian nodded. "Sir, you're out of immediate danger, but your body is still very weak. These herbs happen to form a prescription. I can brew them into a medicinal soup for you, and you should feel much better after drinking it. If you don't mind, please come down the mountain with me. I'm from Paigou Village below; I just returned from working out of town."
Wang Jian pointed to the herbs in the basket. The man's eyes widened in renewed surprise. It was one thing to be skilled in Acupuncture, but to also recognize this particular herbal prescription was truly remarkable.
"Young man, what's your name?" the man asked as Wang Jian helped him to his feet. He didn't forget to introduce himself. "I'm Cai Xing. If it weren't for you today, I would have died right here. I'll never forget that you saved my life."
"There's no need for that, Mr. Cai. I became a doctor to save people, not for rewards," Wang Jian said with a smile. "A man in your condition shouldn't be doing strenuous activity. Why did you come up the mountain to gather herbs by yourself? Where are the younger members of your family?"
"Hah!" Cai Xing gave a bitter smile at the question. "I know, but my family members were all out of town, so I had to come myself. I didn't realize the main road was blocked until I got to the base of the mountain, so I had no choice but to climb."
Wang Jian shook his head in disapproval. "Even so, it's still reckless to come up here alone. There are plenty of people in the village below who'd be willing to earn some money. You don't look like you're short on cash, so why didn't you hire someone to help?"
He was being rather talkative, a common trait among new doctors who felt compelled to lecture their patients, regardless of their age or status.
"Hahaha." Cai Xing was feeling much better, and his mood brightened. He laughed and said, "You have a point, but these herbs are not easy to find. Even the Pharmacists in my shop might not recognize them, let alone the villagers. Paying them to find the herbs would be less effective than doing it myself. It's a shame... I'm getting old. My body just isn't what it used to be."
Filled with curiosity about Wang Jian, Cai Xing casually asked, "Which hospital do you work at?"
"Ah..." Wang Jian briefly explained his situation, which made Cai Xing's eyes light up. "No wonder your Medical Skills are so advanced! So you're from a major hospital! But since you've come back, have you found a place to open your clinic?"