92 – Quack

"Ma, why are you working for that weird clinic? It's the holiday, is he forcing you to work?" Fan Geng, a young man wearing loose and baggy tees, complained. Who was going to cook food for the household? His dad's cooking was crap and he could barely cook himself.

"Whatcha mean weird?" Zuiba retorted with her country dialect and hand to her hip. She had lost some weight from cancer treatment, which was an odd benefit and much to her delight. "Doctor Li is my lifesaver. And unlike someone I know, he's a hard worker, you don't see him complaining."

"Peh! He's probably a con artist. What sort of doctor provides free medical service to the neighbor?"

"That's why you're not in the advertisement! He's not charging, but he gets a lot of red envelopes. Obviously, the cheap one won't pay, but do you really think the people on Caoben are cheapo like you are!? The people who want to pay, pay more than enough to cover those cheapos."

"What ma, it's being thrifty! Do you know what that means?"

"Thrifty, whatever? You still have a long way to work before you can finish paying all your loans."

"But ma, even when I pay you, you spend it all away on those random and useless live shopping junk!"

"Why are you yelling at me for? I like to buy things online, but what about you! You and your gaming obsession."

"What's wrong with gaming! Gaming is great for training eye-hand coordination!"

"Really? You even try out for that e-sport thing, how is that working!?"

Fang Geng sighed and sniffled at his own inadequacy. He took a year off after high school to try his luck at e-sport. The team where he did his training never gave him a contract and he was forced to abandon his dream and live in the monotony of college life. "Why is life so unfair!?" He wanted to have good hand speed, he wanted to have superpowers, and he wanted to be wealthy enough where he didn't have to worry about work. But alas, he had to work.

During their argument, Zuiba's husband and Fan Geng's father barely moved an inch. He knew his son and wife's habits and constant constant need to bicker and argue. "Honey, it's time to leave," he gently reminded his wife.

"Ah! You're right," Zuiba looked at the time and rushed out of the door.

Fan Geng didn't like that his mother was going to work for a strange doctor, so he decided to take a look himself. He had enough medical knowledge, so he could confront the scammer. He left the house an hour after Zuiba to scope out the front of the Dong Xuan Clinic.

In front, he could only see his mom and her friend in the front. The doctor was nowhere to be seen. His mom told him that the doctor was as good-looking as a movie star. Fan Geng sneered in his heart, like he was going to believe a word from that woman. He slipped to the back area, attempting to look casual with his dark clothing, shades, and face masker. He looked around for something to help him scale the stone wall. Seeing a nearby waste bin, he climbed on top and into a small courtyard.

Nothing looked unusual so far, just a small well. Fan Geng looked at the well in distaste, remembering what had happened in the shop. He wondered if the new owner had any hidden secrets. The door to the back room was opened, so he stealthily walked to the edge of the door, peeking inside. Seeing that everything was clear, Fan Geng noticed there was a stair leading up to the second floor. Sneaking his way up, he reached the top hallway. The first room was a workroom with microscopes, notes, and books everywhere. His only hope was the other room.

He entered the bedroom and let out a disappointed sigh. It was a nicely decorated bedroom, but it was very normal, no skeletons anywhere, not even in the toilet room. After the disappointment, he heard a sound coming from the front courtyard and dropped to the floor. It sounded like there were people heading to the back room downstairs. He crawled to the stair again and looked down. Finally, he saw the doctor bringing in a pretty patient.

"Oh Doctor Li! They say you're still single, are you seeing anyone right now?" The female patient asked.

"Tsk, he's not that good looking," Fan Geng thought. He even had a scar, he must be some shady doctor from the triad.

"Miss, are you here for a health consultation?" Li Yun ignored her question and sat across from the woman. "You're not from the neighborhood, so it's 500 yuan."

"Seriously! This scammer," Fan Geng thought. Even the most famous private hospital would charge 200 yuan for a consultation.

"Oh, 500 yuan is fine," the woman replied, giving Li Yun her hand.

Li Yun touched her wrist briefly. She didn't have a serious illness, so Li Yun wrote a simple regime of exercise and diet.

"Doctor, I have a lot of headaches at work, what do you think is a good way to cure it?" she asked.

"Do you work in an office as a clerk?" asked Li Yun.

"Ah yes, I've been working for a few years."

"Did you have a bad breakup recently?"

"Ah, yes, how did you know?"

Li Yun guessed this woman suffered from boredom and liked to cause drama. It was likely she cheated on her boyfriend and he dumped her. He had meant flirty women and patients before, and he could spot a narcissist when he sees one.

"Miss, there isn't really a way to treat your illness," Li Yun finally said. "It's only something you can treat yourself, but I don't think you will be able to do it in a while."

"You can't just use acupuncture?"

"No."

"But what about my headache?"

"Are you feeling any right now?"

She shook her head.

"Then you're fine," Li Yun said, looking at the time. "Miss, my next appointment is up."

"But you haven't cured anything."

"Miss, you really don't have any physical illness to begin with. You can go to a hospital for a checkup and they will tell you the same thing."

It didn't look like the woman wanted to leave. "I'm not leaving until you properly check me."

"Miss, you can leave via the back door or the front. If I see that you are still here when the next patient arrives, I'm going to contact your workplace and ask them whether they know you cheated on your boyfriend."

The woman's face fell as though it was melting. "You!?" She didn't understand how he knew about her personal life.

Li Yun didn't know for sure, he had simply guessed. It was her reaction that confirmed it. Women like her contracted illnesses they made up in her head. It was possible she was suffering from headaches, but it stemmed from her wanting attention from others. It was a mild case of Munchausen syndrome and narcissism. There was truly no cure for it. It was dependent on the person. Maybe when she encountered a truly life-threatening illness will she be able to be cured. It wasn't something Li Yun could cure, and he didn't care for people who didn't want to be cured.

"Miss, I suggest you pay your fees on the app as you leave," Li Yun repeated one last time.

Li Yun didn't let her respond and walked toward the front of the shop. The woman looked angry, but she didn't want the people at work to know what she did to her boyfriend. Everyone thought she was just a cute and lovely girl.

Fan Geng's face looked confused. Not only was the doctor a quack, but he was also evil! He saw the woman rushing out the back door and he took the opportunity to leave the premise. Back at home, and he looked up Li Yun on the internet. There was an incident with a bomber and a very weird video at the Magic City station.

"No way this is real!" Fan Geng saw the other comments.

Many people also thought the video was fake. It was impossible to perform an atherectomy without any sort of imaging. He had to warn his mother about this quack.