Chapter 148: Something's Wrong with Him
The wily old man wearing a bamboo hat was none other than Yun Bahe.
He had just stubbornly refused the proposal of the old steward, Uncle Yun, in the tavern and slipped out on his own.
After buying a bamboo hat and concealing his powerful fighting spirit, he nonchalantly made his way to the front of the Little Ci'en Hall's free clinic spot.
With a Martial Realm cultivation reaching the levels of Yun Bahe, a Martial Saint, he had already attained the state of return to simplicity.
He could easily restrain his entire aura, making himself appear no different from an ordinary person.
To prevent Yun Sheng from recognizing him, Yun Bahe especially covered himself with the bamboo hat and even used the Bone Shrinking Technique to alter his physique somewhat.
Now walking on the street, even if the old Steward caught a glimpse of him, he might not be able to recognize him.
Sure enough, someone in the shop stopped him; a plump lad even assisted him to the clinic spot as if he were an elderly man.
"Since that's the case, then take a look and see whether I am truly ill or not," Yun Bahe extended his hand towards Yun Sheng.
In his heart, he muttered, little girl, you better not fool around with me.
"Although I am of this age, my body is still very robust. Just last year at the Medicine Emperor Pavilion, the Imperial Doctor also said my constitution is not inferior to that of any ordinary middle-aged man."
Yun Bahe's inner thoughts, of course, were unheard by Yun Sheng.
Yun Sheng also wanted to give a good reception to the rare patient, hoping to start the day's free clinic on a high note.
Who would have thought that as soon as the elder's hand was extended towards her, Yun Sheng's delicate brows involuntarily knit into a frown.
This pair of hands?
The hands Yun Sheng saw did not resemble those of an old man.
Though the elder's posture seemed somewhat hunched, his hands at a glance belonged to a martial artist, with calluses in the palms and solid muscles on the arms.
The moment she touched his pulse, the strong throb of his heartbeat immediately came through.
What's more, Yun Sheng could faintly feel a continuous stream of Inner Strength within the elder's body.
This Inner Strength even seemed deeper and unfathomable than what she felt when treating her second uncle, Yun Canglang.
An elder with a higher cultivation than her second uncle Yun Canglang?
It was as if Yun Sheng had suddenly understood something.
After a long while, Yun Sheng released her hand.
The elder seemed to be getting impatient, "Have you detected any illnesses?"
"The elder's body is not bad, just a few minor issues. I will prescribe some medicine for you. Have someone brew it and take it every morning and evening," Yun Sheng said with a smile, ready to write the prescription.
"Wait!" Yun Bahe originally only wanted to create a good start for Yun Sheng's free clinic by pretending to be a patient, but who knew the fake consultation would actually lead to real prescriptions.
This couldn't be allowed; what ailments could Yun Bahe possibly have? Even now, he could still eat three large bowls of rice in one meal, down a jar of wine and five or six catties of beef in one go, and is even stronger than the young soldiers of Great Zhou City, as robust as a young bull.
This ignorant little girl, styling herself a Mongolian quack doctor, must be doing it on purpose, claiming that there's something wrong with his health.
In a surge of excitement, Yun Bahe snatched the brush from Yun Sheng's hand, and with that snatch, the bamboo handle of the brush immediately crumbled in his grip.
Gu Feng and Huang Que, among others nearby, became alert at once, encircling Yun Bahe defensively.
"Girl, don't you try to fool anyone. I'll have you know, I'm in fine health, even the Imperial Physician from the Medicine Emperor Pavilion has said as much. Yet here you are, saying I need medicine; misleading people like this is not right," Yun Bahe, being an upright man, was already biased against Yun Sheng. Even though she was his granddaughter, he couldn't let her abuse the name of a doctor to deceive others.
"Elder, the Imperial Physician says you're not sick because your constitution is stronger than that of most people. If one is not careful, they wouldn't notice the potential issues with your health. Don't be hasty, let me ask you a few questions first. If my questions are wrong, you can outright call me a quack and accuse me of tricking people. But if I'm right, you should obediently go home and follow my prescription," Yun Sheng had already confirmed that this bamboo-hatted old man was, without a doubt, Yun Bahe.
With his fiery temper, like a fuse ready to ignite, and his level of cultivation, there was no one else in all of Yujing City but Yun Bahe himself.
Seeing Yun Sheng's calm and unhurried demeanor, Yun Bahe also began to half-believe her.
"Alright then, speak. If you're wrong, don't blame me for smashing the signboard of your clinic," Yun Bahe sat back down.
Gu Feng and the others, who were watching the scene, also realized that this old man under the bamboo hat, who looked like any other elder, was no ordinary person.
The tone he used to question Yun Sheng was clearly that of someone with high authority.
They feared that his identity was no simple matter, perhaps even someone sent by the Medicine Emperor Pavilion to cause trouble.
Gu Feng was now filled with regret, wishing he could chop off his own hands for not thinking straight when he brought this calamity upon them.
"I'll ask you, do you often feel a dull pain on the right side of your abdomen, two fingers' breadth from the top, and experience swelling around your ankles during the transition from summer to fall?" Yun Sheng cast a casual glance at the elder, seemingly oblivious to her companions' concerns.
Click.
Yun Bahe's grey beard trembled ever so slightly. The symptoms that the little girl had just described were indeed present in him.
But how did she know? Did she recognize his identity, or was it Cang Lang who told her?
No, that can't be. Aside from the steward and his younger daughter, Yun Cangxue, not even Cang Lang knew of his ailments.
Moreover, how could she have known of his conditions just from taking his pulse?
Yun Bahe's silence.
"Exactly that! Elder... My good brother, don't you complain of those issues at times, just as the young doctor described? Young doctor, go on and tell us, what is the ailment?" Yun Bahe nearly choked on his own blood when he heard this uninvited interloper, who happened to be the old steward Uncle Yun.
Having been left behind by Yun Bahe earlier, Uncle Yun couldn't find his master anywhere and was worried about his young mistress's free clinic, so he started looking around.
He just happened to notice a suspicious-looking elder approaching his young mistress's free clinic stall.
While Uncle Yun was pondering the identity of the elder, Yun Bahe crushed Yun Sheng's brush in his hand, revealing his identity to Uncle Yun.
At this point, Uncle Yun couldn't help but laugh and cry at his master's actions, thinking: Oh master, can you be any more insincere?
"You... why are you butting in? I don't have any ailments. It's just the occasional discomfort," Yun Bahe said, his face under the bamboo hat flushing red as if he'd drunk ten jugs of white liquor.
"Both of you, stop arguing. The ailment this elder has is called alcoholic liver," Yun Sheng looked at Uncle Yun, who was continuously winking at her, and with a sigh of resignation in her heart.