Turning Antagonist to Protagonist: He is Both Soft and Fierce-Chapter 259 - 254: Hostility from Song Tingfan

The next day, Lin Qiao and a few others got up early, took the donkey cart to town to see the doctor. The doctor examined each one in turn. Although the elderly weren’t in the best of health, they were still considered normal.

Lin Qiao, feeling quite fine herself, glanced at the man beside her who was about to pay with silver coins. Thinking that they were already there, she suggested, "Uncle, you should get checked too."

Song Tingfan looked at her and remained silent for a moment.

Probably because his "male pride" was hurt.

The doctor looked at the man in front of him, who was as sturdy as an ox, and chuckled, "He doesn’t need to be checked; he’s very robust."

"Just take a look, there might be something wrong inside." Lin Qiao was genuinely concerned about Song Tingfan. Some people may look strong on the outside but have undetected issues within.

Previously, a bodyguard of an actor suddenly died while walking. They said it was due to a health issue.

She had seen that bodyguard, who was even stronger than Song Tingfan, and was quite surprised when she heard the news.

The "weakness" she mentioned was misunderstood by others around them. The doctor suddenly realized and nodded, "Let me take a look."

This young fellow looks strong but is unexpectedly weak in certain matters.

But it wasn’t too strange. There was a man like that before who had to take several tonics to recover.

Song Tingfan’s face darkened slightly as he stiffly replied, "No, not weak."

The doctor, with a disapproving look, said, "There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Ignoring an ailment can lead to problems. Last time, there was a guy just like you who I also treated."

Lin Qiao hadn’t caught on yet and supported the doctor, "Uncle, just get checked, it’s no big deal."

Glancing at the woman’s concerned expression, Song Tingfan took a deep breath, then extended his hand.

The doctor checked his pulse for a while and frowned, not finding a constitution that seemed weak, and continued to check.

As the doctor prolonged the diagnosis, Lin Qiao couldn’t help but feel a rush of anxiety. Could there really be something wrong?

Every month there are military doctors to check the pulse, so Song Tingfan naturally knew he was fine, but at this moment, he felt inexplicably anxious.

Just as he was about to withdraw his hand, the doctor released him, shaking his head, "No problems found."

Upon hearing this, Lin Qiao breathed a sigh of relief, and just as she was about to say something, she heard the doctor continue, "Go back and try again. If it really doesn’t work, take some strengthening tonic."

Although that last sentence was spoken softly, she heard it completely.

She choked on her saliva, "Cough cough... I didn’t mean that, I meant if there was any problem with his health."

Regarding whether that was weak or not, how would she know, she didn’t... Cough cough, stop, stop...

Upon hearing this, the doctor felt a moment of awkwardness, waved his hand, "He has no problems, just a bit of excessive energy."

Lin Qiao: "..."

She looked toward the door, pretending she hadn’t heard that.

In the end, Song Tingfan paid with silver coins.

A group of people strolled for nearly half an hour. Lin Qiao didn’t plan to return with them. Since Song Tingfan was taking care of her family members, she felt at ease, "Uncle, you take grandma and the others back, I won’t be going back. I’ve made an appointment to meet someone about the shop tomorrow."

The shop had become a bit small. Often when there were too many customers, there wasn’t enough seating, and those who couldn’t wait would go to another place to eat.

Hearing this, Song Tingfan nodded, "Okay."

"Niu Niu, you stay here and help. We’ll go back by ourselves," Song Qin wanted to give the two more time together.

Song Rong took the items from Song Tingfan’s hand, "Yes, we’re not too comfortable with your sister-in-law being alone in town."

"No worries, there are people around, and I won’t go out at night."

"Let Niu Niu accompany you."

After a lot of persuasion, Song Qin and the other two insisted on taking the donkey cart back themselves, so Lin Qiao had to see them off to the cart.

On the way back to the shop, Lin Qiao remembered she hadn’t bought clothes for Song Tingfan, so she headed to the fabric store.

The fabric store had grown to half its size from three years ago, and ready-made clothes filled most of the shop.

Mrs. Liu Xu had opened a shop in the county, and she was rarely in town. She hired her nephew, Xu Hu, as the shopkeeper.

Xu Hu was seeing off a customer when he saw her arrive, and smiled, "Lady Song, my aunt was just talking about wanting to find you, and here you are."

After years of interaction, it was no longer as awkward as before.

In fact, the Fan’an Shop had been doing well. His parents saw how capable Widow Song was and finally relented, originally intending Mrs. Xu Liu to bring it up again.

Mrs. Xu Liu didn’t bring it up; she found it lacking back then, but now that she saw its potential, others might not think the same way about them anymore.

She had mentioned these things to Xu Hu, who understood, and the two of them just had to leave it to fate.

"Has the boss returned?"

Just as Lin Qiao spoke, Mrs. Xu Liu walked out from the back room, her bright green dress adding a plump air to her figure, "I’ve told you so many times, stop calling me boss, yet you still do. Are you saying the silver coins you invested were just gifts for me?"

When the county shop was short of money, she had pulled Lin Qiao in as a partner, with Lin Qiao holding a forty percent share.

Being familiar with Lin Qiao, her speech was more casual, jokingly saying, "Once a boss, always a boss. Can’t forget that."

"Yes, yes, you’re right. But call me that again, and I’ll have to hit you. Oh, and this is..." Mrs. Xu Liu glanced at Song Tingfan a few times, finding him somewhat unfamiliar yet somewhat familiar.

However, this fellow was quite handsome. Was he engaged?

See, it was no wonder she hadn’t recognized him at first; the transformation was significant. Lin Qiao explained, "My uncle, Tingfan, just returned from the borders."

Hearing that, Mrs. Xu Liu took a surprised look at the man in front of her. He was tall and handsome, without a trace of the gentle look he used to have.

The former Song Tingfan possessed some gentle features and youthful charm.

"So it’s Tingfan, and now he’s entirely a manly man."

Lin Qiao couldn’t help but laugh, "Careful, my uncle might get upset with you. He’s always been a manly man."

Mrs. Xu Liu chuckled, "Seems I misspoke. Don’t be mad, Tingfan."

Song Tingfan shook his head, his eyes glancing over as Xu Hu brought out two cups of tea, causing him to press his lips slightly together.

Xu Hu grinned and offered the cup to Lin Qiao, "Tea from East Forest Mountain, not bitter. If you like it, take some back later."

"Then I won’t hold back."

Lin Qiao laughed, reaching out to take it, only for someone else to take it first. She turned her head to see the man beside her raise the tea and drink it in one go. She paused, "Uncle, are you thirsty?"

"Yes, my throat feels uncomfortable."

Song Tingfan looked at Xu Hu and added, "Could we get another cup?"

He cleared his throat, making it seem like his throat was indeed uncomfortable. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Xu Hu naturally couldn’t refuse and handed him another cup, which Song Tingfan downed immediately, "Thank you." He returned the empty cup to Xu Hu afterward.

Xu Hu gave him a look, "You’re welcome."

The vinegar-scented "hostility" of Song Tingfan wasn’t lost on Mrs. Xu Liu. Giving Lin Qiao, who remained oblivious, a knowing look, she smiled warmly, "Hu Zi, you entertain Tingfan while we go inside to discuss matters."

After the two entered the back room, Mrs. Xu Liu closed the door, pulled Lin Qiao to the far end, and asked indirectly, "Has your uncle’s marriage been discussed yet?"