Chapter 350: Making Inquiries

Arriving at a restaurant, Liu Mingzhang ushered them to a table.

Li Yang had now become the center of attention, so all eyes were on him.

This made Li Yang a little embarrassed. He gave a dry laugh and said, “I didn’t expect to meet so many esteemed seniors here. It’s a pleasure.”

The men laughed.

‘This young Divine Doctor seems to have a pretty good temper, much better than how he treated Zhang Qiang earlier.’

“Young man…” Divine Doctor Du hesitated for a moment before speaking. “May I ask who your master is?”

Seniority was an important concept in traditional Chinese medicine. There were grandmasters of national renown, and many practitioners would proudly declare themselves the disciple of one such master.

This put Li Yang in an awkward position, as he wasn’t anyone’s disciple.

After a moment of thought, Li Yang replied, “My master… he prefers to remain unknown, so…”

“I understand!” Divine Doctor Du said, looking a little apologetic. ‘He must be the disciple of a true heavyweight. Masters like that often have their quirks, like preferring to stay out of the limelight.’

“To be so young, yet possess such brilliant medical skills… it’s truly breathtaking!” another old doctor said with a smile. “Chairman Liu has really opened our eyes this time. If not for him, we would never have known such a tendon-restoring technique even existed.”

“Indeed!” another Divine Doctor chimed in.

Li Yang thought for a moment before saying, “Dr. Liu, would you mind if I taught this secret technique to everyone here?”

Liu Mingzhang was taken aback for a second, then burst out laughing. “Of course I don’t mind! If I were the only one who knew it, I’d be worked to death once word got out.”

“Really?” Divine Doctor Du and the others all shot to their feet, practically trembling with excitement.

‘They couldn’t believe Li Yang was so generous, that he was actually willing to teach them.’

Li Yang nodded. “Yes. It’s a good deed that helps others. Every person who learns this can save several more from such pain. I’ll have to trouble Dr. Liu to explain it to everyone.”

“No problem!” Liu Mingzhang was not a stingy man, so he immediately nodded. “Rest assured, I will teach the technique to them.”

Everyone was overjoyed at the news. Learning this technique would be a tremendous boon.

“How magnanimous!” Divine Doctor Du exclaimed to Li Yang. “Most people guard their secret family techniques jealously, but you’re not like that at all.”

Li Yang smiled and replied, “It’s nothing, really. All of you are renowned Divine Doctors in this area. If more people know the technique, it will only bring more good to the public.”

“That’s easy to say, but few would actually do it…” someone remarked.

The others nodded in agreement.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Li Yang began to subtly probe for information.

“All of you are esteemed seniors, famous physicians and Divine Doctors. Compared to you, I’m nothing!” Li Yang said with a self-deprecating shake of his head. “And since you’re all based near the provincial capital, you must have met many people and seen all sorts of illnesses, right?”

This flattery greatly pleased the old Divine Doctors.

Flattery will get you anywhere!

“That’s quite true!” Liu Mingzhang laughed as well. “Many of us here have met our fair share of important figures. Within our provincial capital, we’ve probably met almost all of them.”

“Chairman Liu, you’re exaggerating a bit!” Divine Doctor Du said, shaking his head with a smile. “If we’re talking about a truly formidable figure, it has to be Chairman Cao of our Traditional Chinese Medicine Association. Now he’s someone who has truly seen it all. Compared to him, what are we?”

“That’s right. Not only does Chairman Cao run Xinglin Hall, the largest pharmacy in the entire province, but he’s also the chairman of the association and a renowned physician… In the provincial capital, if anyone of real importance falls ill, he’s usually the one they call,” another old doctor added.

“Well, what can you do? The man’s medical skills are simply better than ours, and he’s far more well-connected!”

“Indeed!”

The others nodded continuously, their expressions a mixture of admiration and a hint of dejection.

‘Divine Doctor Cao?’

Li Yang asked with a smile, “Is this Divine Doctor Cao really that incredible? Does everyone in the entire city go to him for treatment?”

“Incredible is an understatement!” Liu Mingzhang said with a laugh. “Brother Cao’s medical skills are superb, and we all greatly admire him. It’s true that many people of status and influence in the provincial capital prefer to seek him out for treatment. But everyone… that’s impossible, of course. The Xia Family, for instance. I hear they don’t work with Brother Cao.”

‘The Xia Family?’

Li Yang’s heart skipped a beat, but his expression remained unchanged. “Work with? What do you mean by that?”

“Prominent clans like that all have arrangements with masters of traditional Chinese medicine. If any health issues arise, the doctors make house calls. Many of the great families work with Divine Doctor Cao these days, which makes the Xia Family rather strange. They don’t have an arrangement with him…”

“I heard they work with some other Divine Doctor from out of town,” someone said mysteriously.

“What Divine Doctor?” Li Yang asked, his curiosity piqued.

“I can’t say for sure…” that doctor replied with a helpless shrug. “It’s always been a secret. The Xia Family seems to have a policy of never working with us local doctors… It’s a mystery.”