954 Exquisite

"Hold on for a minute." Zheng Weijun called Wang Yao right in front of President Pan.

"Hello, Master, it's me, Weijun." The way he addressed Wang Yao piqued the other president's interest. Such a respectful manner of speaking was usually only reserved for interactions between an elder and a younger person, or between a person of lower status and a superior. It was rare to see such an attitude elsewhere.

"Alright, noted."

"Would you be available in the afternoon? Could we make a trip to your place after we're done with lunch?"

"No problem."

President Pan smiled. He really wanted to meet the man who prompted the likes of someone from the Zheng family, who had always held themselves in high regard, to behave in such a respectful manner and addressed someone using such a title. He wanted to know just what kind of person that doctor was.

President Pan smiled and said, "I'd really like to meet the man you talked to so humbly,"

"You'll see once you meet him," Zheng Weijun said.

They took a break after lunch and drank some tea. They waited until all the stink of booze and smoke were gone before heading to the village in a car.

"Here?" President Pan was rather surprised after arriving in the village.

"This is this place," Zheng Weijun said with a smile. "Everyone who comes here and meets the master for the first time gets surprised."

They parked the car on the southside of the village. A building, which stood out from the rest of the buildings around it, was right before their eyes. It had black roofing tiles and white walls. It was a southern style construction.

"It's quite an exquisite building."

"That's the master's clinic."

President Pan eyed the wooden plaque at the door for a while.

"This is interesting."

Zheng Weijun knocked on the door. They didn't enter until both men heard, "Come in," from the inside.

They went inside the clinic. Despite being winter, the compound did not look withered. Lush, green bamboo greeted the guests.

"The compound looks even more exquisite," President Pan said. He was impressed.

Judging from the house and compound alone, one could have easily determined that the person who lived there was anything but ordinary. It was not the extravagance that just came from dumping a lot of money into it. There was an elegance that permeated the whole place.

The two men went inside the house. They saw Wang Yao sitting at a chair. He was holding a book in his hand.

"Master."

"Come, have a seat," Wang Yao said with a smile.

President Pan was immediately dumbfounded. He stared at Wang Yao with surprised eyes before turning around to look at Zheng Weijun.

"So, is this the man?"

"He is the master that I talked about," Zheng Weijun cheerfully replied.

Deep down, he thought, He looks so young!

"Master, this is President Pan."

"Greetings, Master, my name is Pan Jiayou."

"It's nice to meet you. My name is Wang Yao. I'm a medicine man."

"Medicine man?" Pan Jiayou was dumbfounded hearing that. It was the first he had heard the term being used. It reminded him of a character, Huang Yaoshi the Eastern Heretic, from the famous wuxia works written by Jin Yong, a renowned novelist.

"Tell me about your mother's illness," Wang Yao said.

"Oh, alright."

Pan Jiayou illustrated his mother's illness in detail to Wang Yao. He tried to remember every bit of information that he could. It was a testament to how attentive he was to his mother.

"I've learned enough about her conditions," Wang Yao said. "I could treat her. Please bring her here on your next trip."

"I will. Thank you very much," Pan Jiayou replied.

They didn't stay at the clinic for long before leaving.

"Is Dr. Wang really that good?"

"He-he, I could tell that you still have doubts about it, which is normal. When you bring your mother here for treatment, I guarantee that all those doubts will be thrown out of the window. You'll know that I'm telling the truth. Oh right, do remember to make an appointment several days before you come. The master might be out for errands."

"Will do."

Zheng Weijun looked outside the window and said, "Actually, there are quite a lot of people who come all the way from Jing."

"People seek treatment here all the way from Jing?"

"Indeed," Zheng Weijun replied.

"By the way, he was the one who cured all of the illnesses that plagued me," Zheng Weijun said. "Once you've experienced it yourself, you'll only be able to tell how good he is."

"Well, I best get home and get ready. I'll bring my mother here to see him before the year is over."

"Right. I guarantee that she will get cured!"

Pan Jiayou smiled for a bit. He felt as if the man before him had somehow brainwashed him given how the man seemed to be almost blindly worship and trust Dr. Wang.

While they were having dinner, Wang Fenghua said, "The new year is around the corner. You need to head to Jing for a bit and look for Xiaoxue."

"Yeah, I'm thinking of going there in two days," Wang Yao said.

"Well, that's good to hear," Wang Fenghua said.

"Is Xiaoxue going to come during the new year?" Zheng Xiuying asked.

"She won't be here on New Year's Eve, but she'll definitely be here for the new year," Wang Yao replied with a smile.

"Nice, just nice!" Zhang Xiuying was delighted to hear that.

Wang Yao talked about the matter with Su Xiaoxue for the next two days. She was about to get her school break and thought of coming back before the new year. However, Wang Yao advised her against it and told her not to come. Right before the new year, everything and everyone seemed to be in a rush. There were simply too many people around, so he didn't think she needed to worry about getting tickets at such a busy time of year. It was best to just wait until things calmed down.

That was both his and his parents' idea.

In Nanhe County, thousands of miles away…

"It's going to be the new year soon, yet we still aren't seeing any new progress," Lu Xiufeng said. "It looks like we'll be stuck working on the cases."

"I've been thinking about the cases for the past two days," Yang Guanfeng said. "Everything Miao Tianchuan did was to set up Miao Xihe. He had no way of exacting his revenge in the Valley of Thousands of Medicine. His only option was to call upon external forces, more precisely, the power of the government, to take on Miao Xihe. With that in mind, I wonder if we could use Miao Xihe as bait."

"Use Miao Xihe as bait? What do you mean?" Lu Xiufeng was dumbfounded, but his eyes immediately lit up.

"Why didn't we think of that sooner?" He slapped his thigh.

"Great idea, partner, great idea indeed."

"Don't get so excited yet," Yang Guanfeng said. "That line of thought is more difficult than it seems. First, we need to get Miao Xihe to willingly cooperate with us, which will be difficult. The second point is more difficult. How do we use him to bait Miao Tianchuan out? Furthermore, we couldn't do so hurting any innocents in the process. All three cases before proved that Miao Tianchuan is ruthless and willing to cross any line. He's the kind of guy who would be willing to do anything. From what we know from the database, he also has another identity. He is a wanted criminal from Qi Province. This man might very well be proficient in firearms and explosive ordinance. It's something that could easily cause massive collateral damage."

"Well, let's think through it," Lu Xiufeng said. "I think the first point wouldn't be much of a problem. Miao Xihe will probably cooperate. Besides, he might be more eager than us to capture Miao Tianchuan. Although Miao Tianchuan is unable to threaten Miao Xihe's life outside, the former is still capable of throwing dirt at the latter. That must make it tough for Miao Xihe. As for poisons, if Miao Xihe was willing to cooperate with us, then it shouldn't be much of a problem. After all, he's an expert at curing poisons. The second point would need further consideration. If Miao Tianchuan was unable to kill Miao Xihe using poisons, then he would need to think about using other methods, such as a large-scale explosion."

"You're right about that."

"One more thing. How is Miao Chengtang doing?"

"He is doing fine. He has a friend in Tianjin, and he is thinking of getting a job after the new year."

"That is good. How about we visit him soon?"

"Sure."

The matter was settled. Miao Qingfeng and Miao Changhong came to say their goodbyes. They were about to return to the village because they needed to get on with the new year. The village held its traditional celebration in very high regard. It had been that way for hundreds of years.

"Alright, thank you for all you've done."

"You're being too kind. We were actually unable to be of much help this time."

"Not really. You've been of great help!" Yang Guanfeng anxiously added, "Just saving those dozen back then was quite a feat."

"We're thinking of visiting the village for a bit to express our gratitude. Please tell your elders when you return."

"Very well. You are welcome to our village anytime," Miao Qingfeng said.

The two men left He County that day.

On the road, Miao Qingfeng said to Miao Changhong, "They will probably make a trip to Tianjin. We'll be able to locate Miao Chengtang at that time."

"Well, we can't let him have fun."

In Tianjin, thousands of miles to the north…

Miao Chengtang had been sleeping well for the past two days. He looked a lot better than he did been back in He County.