From Evil Sect Leader to Doctor-Chapter 304 - 279: Unfriendly Visitors

Xu Chunliang waited for twenty minutes before Zheng Peian finally came over to wash his hands and sighed, "Recently, there have been so many patients. It used to be said that after the restructuring, patients would all go to public hospitals. But now it seems that's not the case. Most people don't care if it's public or private; they're only concerned about getting well."

Xu Chunliang said, "Maybe they don't even know, or maybe it's a flash in the pan?"

Zheng Peian laughed heartily, "You're part of Changxing too, can't you say something nice?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Don't be blindly optimistic. Every hospital has been doing well recently, not just our Changxing."

Zheng Peian asked, "Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be home with Elder Xu?" He still didn't know about Elder Xu's exoneration.

Xu Chunliang explained the progress of the situation to him, and Zheng Peian was overjoyed, "That's great! I knew Elder Xu was innocent. I'll get off work early, head to the market to buy some good food, and we'll celebrate tonight." Celebrating was just one reason; the main reason was that Xu Jiawen had returned, and he couldn't miss this rare opportunity to meet.

Xu Chunliang said, "We should celebrate. By the way, my dad is back."

"Jiaxuan? He actually knows how to come back!" Zheng Peian didn't have a good impression of Xu Jiaxuan either.

Xu Chunliang said, "Why don't you go and chase him away?"

Zheng Peian laughed, "As an outsider, how could I dare?"

"Don't say that. My grandpa has long considered you part of the family."

Zheng Peian was more concerned about Xu Jiawen's opinion and whispered, "Does your aunt think so too?"

Xu Chunliang saw through his ulterior motives, patted his shoulder, and said, "The revolution has not yet succeeded; comrades still need to work hard. Anyway, you've passed both my and grandpa's tests. How things progress from here is entirely up to you."

Zheng Peian, a little excited, said, "No problem, I'll definitely give it my all and will not disappoint the organization's expectations."

Xu Chunliang said, "Hasn't Renhe Hall taken you in?"

Zheng Peian told Xu Chunliang that although Renhe Hall had contracted the Traditional Chinese Medicine clinic, it didn't include acupuncture and physiotherapy. Perhaps they thought this part wasn't very profitable and weren't interested. Now, the Chinese medicine center they formed mainly focuses on consultation and prescriptions, the most profitable areas.

He was now responsible for those parts, which involved hard work and low fees that people didn't care for.

The current director of the Traditional Chinese Medicine department, Zhu Mingyuan, now served as the director of the center. He was initially wary of Zheng Peian—two tigers cannot live on one mountain—so naturally, he didn't want Zheng Peian to join the center.

Zheng Peian was also dissatisfied with Zhu Mingyuan. The Traditional Chinese Medicine department was now split into two; he handled the unprofitable acupuncture and physiotherapy and was unwilling to meddle in the center's muddier waters.

Now, Zhu Mingyuan's income had significantly increased. It's said that his monthly personal income exceeded twenty thousand.

Zheng Peian regretted that if he could have contracted the Traditional Chinese Medicine department back then, it would be him having the last laugh.

The Renhe Hall's reputation still worked wonders. Since its arrival at Changxing, the number of patients at the Traditional Chinese Medicine outpatient department had doubled. It's said that the sales of plasters reached tens of thousands per month—three hundred boxes daily, six patches per box, priced at forty-eight, meaning sales of just plasters could reach half a million a month.

Zheng Peian couldn't help but feel that if Elder Xu had stepped in back then, he would have hoped to take over the Traditional Chinese Medicine department. Huichun Hall's plasters were no worse than Renhe Hall's.

Xu Chunliang thought to himself that Renhe Hall stole Huichun Hall's plasters. His grandfather didn't mind, but he couldn't let it go. Huichun Hall's troubles were probably due to Renhe Hall's scheming behind the scenes, even if it wasn't directly by Renhe Hall; it certainly had something to do with them.

It's better to mistakenly execute a thousand than to let one go. If someone messes with him, they're in trouble; if they mess with his grandpa, they're in deep trouble.

While the two were chatting, Zhu Mingyuan came over with the contractor, Zhou Yisheng. Zhou Yisheng was the representative of the capital, and Renhe Hall was family-managed. Zhou Yisheng was a distant nephew of the founder, Zhou Renhe.

As the saying goes, when one person finds success, even their pets do well. After getting rich, Zhou Renhe led a group of people from his hometown onto the road of wealth, taking care of his hometown folks that way.

After Renhe Hall contracted the Traditional Chinese Medicine department in Changxing, business boomed. Zhou Yisheng felt that the original clinics couldn't meet their demand. Now that the hospital's second-phase construction had just begun, there were no extra clinics for them, so he brainstormed with Zhu Mingyuan about taking over the acupuncture and physiotherapy section.

The acupuncture and physiotherapy department currently had one large and one small clinic, totaling fifteen bed positions.

They came in under the guise of a visit and found Xu Chunliang there.

Feeling guilty, Zhu Mingyuan explained to Zheng Peian that Boss Zhou wanted to observe and learn. Some people are naturally bad liars, and Zhu Mingyuan was one of them. When he lied, his face turned red first.

Zheng Peian could tell immediately that these two were up to no good. What was there to observe and learn in his place? It was almost certain they were after his clinic.

Pretending to be sincere, Zhou Yisheng asked, "Director Zheng, how many patients do you have every day now?"

Without enthusiasm, Zheng Peian said, "The outpatient records are available. You can check them."

Zhu Mingyuan said, "It's just three o'clock, and there are no patients."

Zheng Peian said, "Old Zhu, you're aware of the situation here. Before I returned, weren't you basically free in the afternoons?"

Zhu Mingyuan felt a bit awkward, coughed, and said, "The past is the past. Now the patient visits have increased quite a bit. Just talking about our side, it's hard to have any downtime during consultation hours."

Xu Chunliang said, "Director Zhu, where is your side exactly? When did you get transferred, how come I didn't know?"

Zhu Mingyuan realized he had misspoken, laughed awkwardly, and said, "Xiaoxu, you're usually at the branch hospital, so you're not aware of the recent situation at our hospital."

Xu Chunliang said, "This boss is...?"

Zhu Mingyuan introduced them to each other, and Zhou Yisheng proactively extended his hand, "Oh, you're the Dean Xu from the branch hospital, I've heard so much about you."

Xu Chunliang shook his hand with a slight force, making Zhou Yisheng nearly cry out from the pain. This kid's grip was too strong.

Xu Chunliang said, "Actually, I come from a Traditional Chinese Medicine background as well."

"…Is that so…" Zhou Yisheng wanted to withdraw his hand, but Xu Chunliang's grip was like an iron clamp, making it impossible.

Xu Chunliang said, "Huichun Hall was opened by my family. Didn't Director Zhu tell you?"

Zhou Yisheng's face changed, cold sweat as large as soybeans appeared on his forehead. As he grimaced in pain, Xu Chunliang released his grip, intentionally saying, "Boss Zhou doesn't look well. Should I check your pulse, see if there's anything wrong with your health?"

In his mind, Zhou Yisheng cursed through Xu Chunliang's ancestors for eighteen generations, thinking, 'Isn't my face supposed to look bad because of the pain.'

Xu Chunliang said to Zhu Mingyuan, "Director Zhu, doesn't Boss Zhou look off to you?"

Zhu Mingyuan, who was present the whole time, obviously knew what was happening. He wasn't in a position to expose Xu Chunliang, so he chuckled and said, "Xiaoxu, have you received your physician's certification?", subtly implying that Xu Chunliang didn't have the credentials to practice medicine.

Xu Chunliang said, "Pale face, sweating forehead, rapid breathing, and dim eyes; Boss Zhou is showing typical signs of kidney deficiencies."

Zheng Peian almost burst into laughter but suppressed it, thinking, 'This kid is really wicked, the kidney deficiency isn't because of you squeezing.'

Zhou Yisheng's face grew darker; only now did the pain in his hand slightly subside. He snorted, "Huichun Hall, never heard of it."

Xu Chunliang said, "Then you must be really uninformed. Who doesn't know about Huichun Hall being the number one famous brand in Dongzhou's Traditional Chinese Medicine community?"

Zhou Yisheng smirked, "Then I really am uninformed." He felt a bit flustered by this young man.

Xu Chunliang said, "I've heard of Renhe Hall, Renhe Hall has a great reputation."

Zhou Yisheng said with some pride, "It's decent; both our online and physical outlets have a good reputation."

Xu Chunliang said, "I heard you sell quack remedies."

Zhou Yisheng angrily said, "What do you mean?"

Xu Chunliang laughed, "It's nothing, I just meant your quack remedies sell well." Zhou Yisheng's face turned red with anger, "You should watch your mouth, young man."

Seeing the situation deteriorating, Zhu Mingyuan quickly persuaded Zhou Yisheng to leave. He wasn't worried about Xu Chunliang; he feared Zhou Yisheng might suffer losses. Xu Chunliang is someone who dared to hit Tang Tianyi, the cherished son of the chairman of Huayuan Group. Zhou Yisheng is merely someone contracted to run a department. If things got ugly, Xu Chunliang might just rush over and punch him right there.

Zhu Mingyuan realized that many times having a strong arm can negate the need for any reasoning.

After Zhu Mingyuan managed to persuade Zhou Yisheng to leave, Zhou Yisheng still felt indignant and said, "What's he so arrogant about anyway? A young guy doesn't even know how to respect elders."

Zhu Mingyuan laughed, "That's just how he is, a bit hot-tempered. You don't need to stoop to his level."

"He squeezed my hand, and it's still hurting," Zhou Yisheng said.

Zhu Mingyuan said, "Boss Zhou, just calm down."

Zhou Yisheng said, "I don't believe no one can deal with him in Changxing."

That day when Xu Jiawen recounted the rivalry between Renhe Hall and Huichun Hall, Zheng Peian was present too. He later inquired about it and found out that the founder of Renhe Hall was indeed named Zhou Renhe. But no one knew whether Zhou Renhe was the same person Xu Jiawen was referring to. However, one thing was certain; Zhou Renhe currently leads a reclusive life, rarely appearing in public, and basically no longer sees patients.

Judging from Xu Chunliang's attitude towards Zhou Yisheng just now, Zheng Peian knew that this kid regarded Renhe Hall as an enemy. After Zhou Yisheng left, Zheng Peian said, "This Zhou Yisheng came here through Pei Lin's connections. Aren't you afraid of offending the future wife of the hospital dean?"

Xu Chunliang said, "I don't bother you unless you bother me."

"Did Zhou Yisheng offend you?" Zheng Peian asked.

Xu Chunliang said, "The plasters from Renhe Hall were stolen from our Huichun Hall." He explained this part of history, making Zheng Peian realize that Zhou Renhe was truly Xu Changshan's senior apprentice brother. Thus, the feud between the two families had been long established.

Zheng Peian said, "Nowadays, everything emphasizes evidence. You currently can't prove that the old man's plasters were supplied by Renhe Hall."