NOVEL WEB Episode 39 In Sync
The crowd immediately turned toward the door.
The first person they saw was a handsome young man, followed closely by a middle-aged man panting heavily.
“Hey, Doctor Zhao is back!”
“Oh, finally! Zhao Huanzhang has returned!”
The patients waiting in line were visibly excited.
Liu Sanquan, who had nearly hidden himself under the table, quickly stood up when he saw them. He shouted, “Doctor Gao, you’re back!”
Hearing Liu Sanquan’s shout, Li Shengli and Shen Congyun, who had been glaring at each other like roosters in a fight, instantly calmed down.
“D-Doctor Gao,” Li Shengli said awkwardly.
“Doctor Gao is back,” Shen Congyun also muttered, no longer putting on his stubborn and defiant look. He stood upright and smiled sheepishly.
The patients, packed into the clinic, looked bewildered. Why were the doctors acting so differently from them?
While the patients were eagerly greeting Zhao Huanzhang, the doctors ignored him and instead greeted the young man.
Everyone was staring at Gao-Yuan, whispering to one another.
“Yuan, you’re back,” Gao-Yuan’s mother finally relaxed, her anxiety dissipating.
Gao-Yuan glanced at his mother, gave her a reassuring nod, and then stepped inside.
Yang Degui, seeing Gao-Yuan’s return, pouted in disdain and turned his head away, though he was careful not to let Gao-Yuan notice his contempt.
Gao-Yuan walked toward Li Shengli and Shen Congyun, Zhao Huanzhang trailing behind him.
Without saying a word, Gao-Yuan simply furrowed his brows and stared at them.
Under his gaze, the two men grew increasingly uncomfortable.
Finally, Gao-Yuan sighed softly, shaking his head in disappointment.
That single action filled the two men with embarrassment. One was a soldier of the people, the other had promised to turn over a new leaf, yet here they were, quarreling instead of tending to the long line of patients.
Feeling ashamed, Li Shengli lowered his head and muttered, “Doctor Gao, I was wrong. I won’t argue anymore. I’ll get back to work now.”
Without another word, Li Shengli quickly returned to his seat.
Shen Congyun sneaked a glance at Gao-Yuan and, with an awkward smile, said, “Doctor Gao, I’ll leave this patient to you. I’ll go tend to the others right away.”
With that, Shen Congyun jogged back to his station.
As for Liu Sanquan, he didn’t dare delay either. He immediately resumed working.
Gao-Yuan hadn’t said a single word, but his mere presence had put an end to the bickering between the two.
Zhao Huanzhang let out a sigh of relief and shot a grateful glance at Gao-Yuan. Normally, he had no way of dealing with those two troublemakers. Despite being the head of the clinic, no one really respected him.
The patients, curious about the young man, continued to observe him. They didn’t know who he was, but they could tell he was someone important. Why else would the doctors be so afraid of him?
Even the villagers who were familiar with Gao-Yuan were taken aback.
Yang Degui, however, grew more frustrated, his lips pursed in annoyance.
Yang’s father, noticing Zhao Huanzhang had returned, quickly grabbed his arm and said, “Doctor Zhao, I’ve been waiting for you for so long. Many people in our village are sick, but they can’t make the long trek here. Can you please come to our village for a visit soon?”
“Huh?” Zhao Huanzhang, already overwhelmed by the crowd of patients, was caught off guard by the question. Unsure of how to respond, he instinctively turned to Gao-Yuan for advice. “Doctor Gao, what do you think?”
Yang’s father was also surprised. Why was Zhao Huanzhang asking this young man?
Yang Degui chimed in, “Doctor Zhao, why are you asking him? You’re the head of the clinic!”
Zhao Huanzhang blinked, only then realizing his mistake. “Oh, right.”
Yang Degui rolled his eyes. “What’s going on? You’d forget if I didn’t remind you?”
“Uh…” Zhao Huanzhang was also baffled. How had he become so accustomed to following Gao-Yuan’s lead?
Gao-Yuan stepped forward and said, “Uncle, why don’t you sit down for a bit? I’ll take a look at Uncle Wei’s condition first, and then we can discuss it.”
“Huh? Oh… okay…” Yang’s father hesitated for a moment, then glanced at Gao-Yuan’s mother. Seeing her equally stunned, he nodded and sat down.
Gao-Yuan turned his attention to Aunt Wei before looking at Uncle Wei. “How long has it been since the symptoms started?” he asked.
Aunt Wei replied, “Three days now. It started the night before last when he got caught in the rain. He’s had a fever ever since, and it’s only gotten worse today. Luckily, Degui and the village secretary were coming here, so they helped bring him along.”
Uncle Wei, looking both anxious and irritable, glanced at Zhao Huanzhang and said, “I feel awful. My head hurts, and my chest feels tight. Doctor Zhao, please check on me.”
Zhao Huanzhang looked confused. “Isn’t Doctor Gao treating you?”
Aunt Wei smiled apologetically at Gao-Yuan, then turned to Zhao Huanzhang. “Doctor Zhao, Gao-Yuan is still young. My husband is seriously ill, and the medicine he just took didn’t seem to help. We need you to take over.”
But Zhao Huanzhang responded, “Doctor Gao is very good at treating serious illnesses.”
“What?” Both Uncle and Aunt Wei were stunned.
At that moment, Li Shengli chimed in from his seat, “You shouldn’t underestimate Doctor Gao. Just a few days ago, a couple from Huo Township came here after walking all day with their dying child. Doctor Gao treated the kid, and in just half a day, the child was not only saved but fully recovered.”
Everyone stared in shock.
Zhao Huanzhang turned to Li Shengli. “He saved someone again?”
Li Shengli was just as surprised. “What? He saved another one?”
The previously bustling clinic fell into an eerie silence.
All eyes were now on Gao-Yuan.
Feeling disgruntled, Yang Degui sneered, “What’s this, a performance? One miracle after another, like it’s an everyday thing? You think you’re defying the King of Hell himself?”
His remark stirred the clinic back into a noisy uproar.
It wasn’t that they didn’t believe Li Shengli and Zhao Huanzhang. It was just that what they were describing sounded too far-fetched. Saving lives was no small feat, and yet they made it sound routine. Who could believe that?
“Is this true?” Aunt Wei asked Gao-Yuan cautiously.
Gao-Yuan smiled lightly and said, “It’s just treating an illness. Nothing to make a fuss about.”
Uncle and Aunt Wei looked at each other in astonishment.
Gao-Yuan then asked, “So, Uncle Wei, would you like Doctor Zhao to treat you, or shall I? If you want Doctor Zhao, I’ll move on to the other patients.”
“Huh?” Uncle Wei was still in a daze.
Aunt Wei hesitated and said, “Gao-Yuan, my husband’s illness is serious. Degui and the village secretary had to carry him all the way here. We don’t have a place to stay in town. How long will it take to treat him? He’s too sick to walk back.”
Gao-Yuan checked Uncle Wei briefly and said, “Don’t worry, it’s not that serious. One dose of medicine will do the trick. He’ll be able to walk back home shortly.”
“What?” Aunt Wei could hardly believe her ears.
Uncle Wei looked at Zhao Huanzhang again, his face filled with uncertainty.
Zhao Huanzhang, however, quickly waved his hands as if to ward off a snake. “Don’t look at me. Look at him. I can’t do what he does.”