Village Doctor's Women-Chapter 242 - 236 Extra--’A Doctor’s Benevolence

"Speaking of my master, that’s a long story," Wang Jian muttered. Seeing Xu Qian’s curious face, he had no choice but to narrate the tale.

...

That year was Wang Jian’s sophomore summer break, and also the second year he had been studying medicine under Xu Changqing.

According to Xu Changqing’s original plan, Wang Jian was supposed to continue studying Medical Skills with him that summer. There was still a long way to go before he could practice medicine independently.

However, Wang Jian’s talent exceeded his master’s expectations. With just one year of training, his mastery of Qi Cultivation had reached the level Xu Changqing had set for completing his apprenticeship.

Faced with such a talented apprentice, Xu Changqing felt both joy and worry. He was delighted that this school of Ancient Medical Skills would have a successor and that his own Qi Cultivation methods would be passed down. However, he worried that if he let Wang Jian leave his tutelage so soon, both Wang Jian’s mindset and his handling of patients might lead to significant errors.

It was for this reason that Xu Changqing made a decision he remains grateful for to this day: he decided to take Wang Jian out to practice medicine. They would travel far and wide, forging a medical path to the heavens.

Their first destination was in Capital City itself—the Film and TV Park.

It was a place Wang Jian would never have guessed, a place full of dreams, and yet, a place of squalor.

The place Xu Changqing took him was neither a film set nor a scenic spot, but a long, seldom-visited corridor.

From the outside, the corridor looked quite ordinary, except that it was somewhat dim and poorly lit. But as soon as Wang Jian and Xu Changqing stepped inside, they were greeted by the strong smell of urine, mingled with sweat and other foul odors.

These smells mixed together were extremely unpleasant and nauseating.

Before he could ask Xu Changqing what was special about this place, he heard the sound of people snoring.

Ahead, he saw several figures lying scattered about...

He had never imagined that in this day and age, in Capital City of all places—and at the Film and TV Park, no less—there would still be beggars.

This was Wang Jian’s first visit. Even though he had always been taught about the compassionate heart of a healer, he couldn’t help frowning and feeling a sense of resistance.

"Why come here?" he asked.

"Why?" Xu Changqing saw the change on Wang Jian’s face but wasn’t surprised. Anyone living a normal life would have the same reaction upon entering this place. In Xu Changqing’s eyes, he was already quite satisfied that Wang Jian hadn’t run off at the sight and smell, and had instead asked a question. "They are sick," Xu Changqing stated simply.

Sick? If they’re sick, then of course they need to be treated. Wang Jian immediately understood his master’s intention. He had been brought here for one simple purpose: to treat these people. Understanding was one thing, but acting on it was another. His nose had already gone numb. These people seemed to be using this place as both a house and a toilet. The thought alone was distressing. If he hadn’t seen this with his own eyes, he could never have imagined people living like this. Even beggars on the street knew to pick a relatively better place to lie down, not here.

There were about six people inside, clearly having adapted to the environment. They were sleeping very soundly, their snores resonating continuously.

"How about it?" Xu Changqing smiled as he looked at Wang Jian. The more conflicted Wang Jian felt, the more delighted Xu Changqing became. "Can you treat them?"

Wang Jian didn’t respond. Seeing the mocking look on his master’s face, he steeled himself. He walked straight into the group of people and began to take their pulses to diagnose them.

Even as he drew closer and smelled the stench of bodies that seemed unwashed for months, Wang Jian did not stop.

The first person had no serious issues, at most a bit of gastrointestinal discomfort. In their environment, that was hardly considered an illness.

Wang Jian moved on to the next person, completely unaware of the odd expression on Xu Changqing’s face behind him.

The second person had some joint problems. Wang Jian took out the silver needles he carried, sterilized them with fire, and then began to perform acupuncture. After finishing with the needles, he began to massage the man, ignoring the foul smell.

From the moment he started taking the first person’s pulse, the others who were sleeping had all woken up.

Watching Wang Jian’s movements, they were somewhat puzzled.

It wasn’t until Wang Jian began inserting the needles that they realized this stranger who had walked in might be a doctor.

The man with the joint problems distinctly felt the pain leave his body, replaced by a warmth where he had been massaged.

He immediately became excited, opening his mouth and making grateful, inarticulate sounds toward Wang Jian.

It was only then that Wang Jian realized the man was mute.

When he looked at the others, he found their conditions were similar. Each had some disability or another.

Long after he and Xu Changqing had left the corridor, Wang Jian remained in a daze. He felt an indescribable oppression in his heart, a pent-up energy with no outlet.

"How do you feel?" Xu Changqing finally asked, his expression unreadable.

"Me?" Wang Jian paused before speaking somberly. "I couldn’t cure them. My abilities are still insufficient. Master, were you trying to teach me that a healer must have a compassionate heart, and that we must treat and save people no matter how dirty they are?" 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

...

Watching his disciple’s unprecedented seriousness, Xu Changqing burst out laughing, not caring about the sideways glances from passing film crews. He laughed for a good while before pulling Wang Jian out of the Film and TV Park.

On the way back, Xu Changqing finally told Wang Jian what he found so funny.

"I was just letting you face reality."

Xu Changqing explained, "I laughed because you failed to see their true illness, and I also laughed because you saw their physical ailments. I laughed because you couldn’t cure them, and I also laughed because you did."

...

"What does that mean?" Xu Qian, who had been listening to Wang Jian’s story, asked with a completely confused expression. "I don’t get it. I’m totally lost."

"Hahahaha." Seeing Xu Qian’s bewildered face, Wang Jian laughed. He had felt much the same way until his master explained everything.

"My master meant he laughed because I didn’t see they were suffering from the ’sickness of poverty,’ yet he also laughed because I did see their physical ailments. At the same time, he laughed because I couldn’t cure their sickness of the heart, yet also because I did cure the sicknesses that were, in fact, curable."

Even after Wang Jian explained, Xu Qian still rolled her eyes.

Wang Jian patted her on the back and continued, "Actually, for those people, their minor physical problems aren’t their real sickness. What truly plagues them are their congenital disabilities, which I certainly can’t cure—I’m not a god. What keeps them trapped in a place like that, unable to afford treatment for their other illnesses, is one word: poverty. And that’s a sickness I can’t cure either."