Elixir Supplier

“I didn’t mean it,” Dr. Li said after a while.

“What happened between you two? Why was he suddenly upset?” His wife had heard the argument between her husband and Dr. Chen. She came out of the room and saw her husband standing at the door.

“Nothing!” Dr. Li shook his head. “What a stubborn person!” He looked at the unfinished chess game.

Rook, knight and cannon. It was a combination for attacking. He did lose the game.

“Let’s have dinner,” he said.

“Are you confused? You just had dinner,” his wife said.

“Well, let’s drink tea then,” Dr. Li said.

“Your tea is on the table,” his wife said.

“Well, I don’t want to drink tea now. I’ll listen to the radio!” Dr. Li grumpily went into his bedroom.

“You two are both in your 70s. How come you still act like kids?” His wife shook her head. She sighed and then cleared the table in the courtyard.

…

Wang Zecheng’s father slept the whole afternoon. When he finally awoke, he felt that his pain had reduced. He was also no longer that tired. He felt much more comfortable.

“The herbs are so magical,” the old man said. I wonder where Zecheng got those herbs?

In a different room of the house, Wang Zecheng’s wife was setting up the table. “I’ve cooked dinner. Can you check if Dad has woken up? He’s been sleeping the whole afternoon.”

“OK.” Wang Zecheng tiptoed to his father’s room and found his father had woken up. He was not sure if it was an illusion, but his father appeared to be better.

“Dad, you are awake! How do you feel?” Wang Zecheng asked.

“I feel good. My belly is no longer that painful, and I feel less weak. The herbs really worked well. Where did you get them?” the old man asked.

“They really worked?” Wang Zecheng asked.

“Of course! Why would I lie to you?” the old man asked.

“Oh, that’s good. I got the herbs from Wang Yao,” Wang Zecheng said.

“I see. He’s such a good doctor,” the old man said.

“Yes, yes,” Wang Zecheng said. The price is also impressive. One formula costs $10,000. He didn’t tell his father how much he paid for those herbs. His father didn’t need to know. He even regretted having told his wife about it.

“I’ll get you some water. Dinner is ready. Drink some water before dinner,” Wang Zecheng said.

“OK,” the old man said.

He took a sip of the water and then got out of the bed.

Wang Zecheng’s wife brought the dishes to the old man’s room. Everyone had dinner inside the room.

“When will Haoyuan come back?” the old man asked.

“Let him stay at grandma’s place for a few more days. He enjoys being there,” said Zecheng said. Kids could be really noisy. His son might disturb the old man.

“Hmm, I haven’t seen him for a long while,” said the old man, who missed his grandson.

In fact, Wang Zecheng took his son to his parents-in-law’s place after he had realized that he had treated his father terribly. Haoyuan was only 5 years old and very playful. He was noisy all the time and wanted to play with his grandpa. It took too much energy to play with a young child, which was not good for the old man’s health. Therefore, Wang Zecheng sent his son away.

“I can pick him up tomorrow if you really miss him,” Wang Zecheng said.

“OK. He can stay here for a few days,” the old man said.

Often, grandparents were close to their grandchildren. It was no wonder the old man missed his grandson. It was common sense.

“Let’s eat,” Wang Zecheng said.

Wang Zecheng’s wife only cooked some light dishes for dinner, which was recommended by Wang Yao. The old man needed to be on a light diet because he was still very weak. He couldn’t digest oily dishes such as fried fish or meat. Meat would only burden his stomach.

The old man had a walk after dinner to help with digestion. He then watched TV with his son and daughter-in-law for a while.

“Dad, it’s time for you to take the decoction.” Wang Zecheng took out the decoction brewed by Wang Yao and heated it. He poured the decoction into a small bowl.

“How much does the decoction cost?” the old man asked.

“It’s not expensive, just a couple of hundreds. After all, we are from the same village,” Wang Zecheng calmly said.

His wife had a weird facial expression for one second. A couple of hundreds? Not expensive? Are you kidding me? We are from the same village. Even if the decoction works, he shouldn’t have charged us so much! Of course, she wouldn’t say these words in front of the old man.

“A couple of hundreds is not cheap, either,” the old man said. He had been a thrifty person all his life. A couple hundred dollars was considered expensive for him. If he knew the decoction costed $10,000, he probably wouldn’t be able to sleep again or allow his son to buy him more of it.

The old man didn’t go back to his bedroom until 8 p.m. Then, Wang Zecheng and his wife started to discuss future treatment for the old man.

“The decoction works. I need to get more for Dad,” Wang Zecheng said.

“But, one decoction costs so much. How many more decoctions does he need?” his wife asked. It would be a lie if she said she didn’t care about the money. They had saved some money. However, they planned to use the money as deposit for an apartment in the town center.

“I’ll buy whatever Dad requires as long as he can get better,” Wang Zecheng said.

“OK, you decide.” Compared to Wang Zecheng, who used to be a really terrible person, his wife was a reasonable and nice woman.

“I’ll go to Yao’s clinic tomorrow,” Wang Zecheng said.

The next day, Pan Jun went to Wang Yao’s clinic around 9 am. He brought several bags of various fruits. “Morning, Teacher.”

“Morning. Don’t bring anything next time,” Wang Yao said. “You don’t work today?”

“No,” Pan Jun said.

“OK, let’s start,” Wang Yao said.

He continued to teach Pan Jun massage techniques. He explained the theory first and then gave Pan Jun a massage. He wanted Pan Jun to feel it.

“Do you have problems with your shoulder?” Wang Yao asked.

“Yes,” Pan Jun said.

“That’s because you sit in front of the computer for too long. Your muscles are stiff. Feel my hands,” Wang Yao said.

He rubbed, pressed, and rolled his hand on Pan Jun’s shoulder. Pan Jun immediately felt nice and warm in his shoulder. He felt very comfortable.

“Fantastic work, Teacher,” Pan Jun said.

“Focus,” Wang Yao said.

While he was busy teaching Pan Jun, a person came into the clinic.

“Hello, Dr. Wang.” It was Wang Zecheng.

“Hello, please come in,” Wang Yao said.

Wang Zecheng walked into the room.

“Zecheng, sit down please,” Wang Yao said.

“OK, thanks,” Wang Zecheng said.

“Just give me a moment,” Wang Yao said to Pan Jun.

Pan Jun went and sat in the corner.

“Well…” Wang Zecheng took a glance at Pan Jun.

“Teacher, I’ll have a walk outside,” Pan Jun said.

“OK,” Wang Yao said. He turned to Wang Zecheng after Pan Jun left and asked, “How can I help you?”

“Well, I’ve given Dad your decoction. It worked really well,” Wang Zecheng said.

“Of course,” Wang Yao calmly said. The way he brewed his decoction was passed from generation to generation over thousands of years. Plus, it had the effect of licorice roots. Of course it worked well.

“But can you charge a bit less?” Wang Zecheng asked.

“I’m sorry, no. The decoction will save your dad’s life. Will you put a price on human life?” Wang Yao asked.

“I see. Can I ask how many more decoctions my dad needs?” Wang Zecheng asked.

“As long as you want your dad to be alive, he needs to continue to take it,” Wang Yao said.

“What?” Wang Zecheng was in shock.

Wang Yao had made it clear that there was no end to taking the decoction. The old man had to continue to take the decoction to survive. He needed to take one decoction every three days. He needed 10 decoctions in a month. It would cost Wang Zecheng $100,000. If he wanted his dad to live for six months, he would have to pay $600,00 and then $1.2 million for one year. He would have to extend his dad’s life expectancy with a large amount of money.

Wang Zecheng didn’t know how to respond. He again asked, “You can’t charge less?”

“I’m sorry.” Wang Yao shook his head. He looked at Wang Zecheng quietly.

“Well!” Wang Zecheng clenched his teeth. “I’ll pay.”

“This is the rest of the money for that decoction.” He gave Wang Yao $5,000 in cash.

Wang Yao smiled. “You’ve changed.”

“What?” Wang Zecheng asked with surprise.

“Nothing, you can go home now.” Wang Yao waved at Wang Zecheng.

“OK.” Wang Zecheng left the clinic grumpily.

It would be a lie if Wang Zecheng said he was not upset. He couldn’t understand why Wang Yao, a fellow villager, could be so greedy and charge him so much money for one decoction.

I’ll go talk to his parents if I have to, Wang Zecheng thought.

“Teacher, he seems to be upset.” Pan Jun walked into the room.

“That’s understandable,” Wang Yao said with a smile.

“They think because we are from the same village, I shouldn’t have charged him so much. Actually, I’ve already given him a heavy discount,” Wang Yao said.

“I see,” Pan Jun said.

He knew Wang Yao’s decoctions costed a lot, but they were extremely effective. He had heard a number of people commenting on Wang Yao’s decoctions.

“They are just too ignorant,” Pan Jun said. He knew clearly that given Wang Yao’s medical skills, people would kill to come to see Wang Yao. Money was nothing comparing to a person’s life.

“Well, let’s continue,” Wang Yao said.

Wang Zecheng rushed back home angrily. He took a few deep breath and rubbed his face. He didn’t enter the house until he calmed down.

His father was resting in the courtyard and enjoying the sunshine. His body had stopped aching after he had taken the decoction the previous night. He had enjoyed a wonderful sleep. He didn’t even wake up in the middle of the night. He hadn’t had a good sleep for a long time.