Chapter 262: Life is Like Chess, We Are All Players

Chapter 262: Chapter 262: Life is Like Chess, We Are All Players

Wang Chenning understood the meaning behind Li Fuzhen’s words.

If he only managed a narrow victory against Pu Zhengyang, everyone would naturally think the old man’s medical skills were superior to Li Xizhuang’s.

And if Wang Chenning then defeated another famous doctor from South Korea, Jin Yaguang, the Sect Leader of the Korean medical faction, by a large margin, Pu Zhengyang’s loss would be a glorious one. It would further solidify his status as South Korea’s top doctor.

If Pu Zhengyang hoped for this outcome and Wang Chenning allowed it to happen, Pu Zhengyang would eventually realize that Wang Chenning had done him a favor. In that case, the old man should show his gratitude in some way.

When smart people talk, there’s no need to spell everything out. A hint is enough.

Seeing that Wang Chenning understood her, Li Fuzhen returned his smile.

When Zhao Xiao’an and Li Yanxian saw Wang Chenning and Li Fuzhen sharing a cryptic smile, they could tell some sort of scheme was afoot between them.

However, they were both tactful enough not to ask about it directly.

Lunchtime arrived quickly. The members of the Huaxia exchange delegation did not dine with the South Korean side; separate meal arrangements were made.

Li Fuzhen and Li Yanxian left the hotel for a while during lunch, saying they would be back in the afternoon.

Li Fuzhen said she wanted to witness a miracle with her own eyes.

Wang Chenning didn’t pay it much mind, only reminding Li Fuzhen not to forget her promise.

Li Fuzhen knew he was referring to the high-stakes bet. She told Wang Chenning not to worry, assuring him that her promise to him would definitely be kept.

Wang Chenning’s disciples, especially the female ones, were all happy that he had defeated the famous doctor from South Korea. But they no longer dared to treat him as casually as before; their reverence for him had grown.

This was because of his achievements today, as well as Zhao Xiao’an’s elevated status and the way Li Fuzhen treated him.

Two generations of Shanxing princesses treated Wang Chenning with courtesy, which invisibly elevated his own standing.

Zhao Xiao’an, a noble princess admired by thousands, was constantly sticking to Wang Chenning. This only served to highlight his excellence, making the other female disciples feel somewhat inadequate in comparison.

Although Zhao Xiao’an vaguely sensed a threat from Li Yanxian, she believed Wang Chenning would never consider marrying a foreigner, so she didn’t see Li Yanxian as a serious rival.

She was very satisfied with Wang Chenning’s performance today, and the results of the live stream also pleased her greatly. She was in a good mood.

However, the cryptic, riddle-like conversations between Wang Chenning and Li Fuzhen sparked her curiosity.

After lunch, as they were about to take a short rest, she quietly asked Wang Chenning, "Teacher Wang, I’m getting the feeling you’re playing some kind of grand game! Can you let me in on a little of it?"

"Life is like a game of chess. We are all players, but we are also pieces on the board. So, just go with the flow!" Wang Chenning replied with a grin. "With great power comes great responsibility. You have to have a dream, and it will definitely come true. Just be a dreamer with me!"

Then he leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Tonight, let’s have a good ’exchange.’ I’ll show you my true strength!"

His words made Zhao Xiao’an’s cheeks flush red. Flustered and angry, she pinched Wang Chenning and then fled, using the excuse of going to the restroom.

The afternoon competition against Pu Zhengyang was scheduled to start at 1:30 p.m. local time. Around 1:00, a staff member came to inform him that Pu Zhengyang had arrived with his grandson, Pu Zhiyun, to pay him a visit.

After the staff member showed the Pu family grandfather and grandson into the reception room, Wang Chenning got straight to the point. "Mr. Pu, may I ask why you’ve come to see me at this time?"

Pu Zhengyang didn’t bother with pleasantries either. "This morning, when we were discussing the terms of the competition, Mr. Wang didn’t mention what he wanted me to wager. Taking advantage of the lunch break, I, this old man, have come to ask what Mr. Wang desires."

Wang Chenning didn’t answer directly. Instead, he posed a question of his own: "Well, Mr. Pu, do you think you can win, or are you certain you will lose?"

Unexpectedly, Pu Zhengyang stood up and bowed. "I hope Mr. Wang will show mercy!"

Wang Chenning gave Pu Zhengyang a meaningful look, then glanced at Pu Zhiyun, who was sitting there with a bewildered expression. "If you lose, Mr. Pu, then have your grandson enter my tutelage and be at my disposal. How about it?"

"No way!" Pu Zhiyun jumped up in shock. "Grandpa, you can’t agree to that!"

After watching the morning’s competition between Wang Chenning and Li Xizhuang, Pu Zhiyun, who had once had absolute faith in his grandfather, couldn’t help but feel a pang of doubt.

He knew that based on the few skills Wang Chenning had revealed that morning, it wouldn’t be easy for his grandfather to defeat him completely.

This arrogant Huaxian really did have a few tricks up his sleeve; he wasn’t just some reckless fool.

But he never imagined Wang Chenning would actually demand him as the wager. The man was a lunatic.

What he expected even less was that his grandfather would actually agree.

"Alright!" Pu Zhengyang was all smiles when he agreed to Wang Chenning’s demand.

"Grandpa!" Pu Zhiyun said anxiously. "How can you agree to that?"

"At the very least, your grandpa doesn’t know the most authentic Taiyi Divine Needle, nor can he use the Qi Vortex Needle," Pu Zhengyang said with a chuckle. "Perhaps you don’t know about Mr. Wang’s newly accepted disciples. They are all from distinguished families. Their fathers or grandfathers hold positions in the world of traditional medicine no lower than my own. Think about it, why would they be willing to study under Mr. Wang?"

Pu Zhiyun hadn’t expected his grandfather to say that and was suddenly at a loss for words.

Pu Zhengyang didn’t linger at Wang Chenning’s place. Having gotten the assurance he wanted, he prepared to leave.

As he stood up to take his leave, something else occurred to him. He turned back to Wang Chenning and said, "If I lose, not only will I have Zhiyun enter your tutelage to be at your disposal, but I will also present you with a generous gift. Some years ago, I acquired a Ming Dynasty replica of an acupuncture bronze figure. While this figure is not as precious as the Song Dynasty originals, it is still a national treasure-level artifact. If you defeat me, this treasure is yours!"

"Thank you, Elder Pu!" Wang Chenning was overjoyed to hear this.

He knew the significance of the Song Dynasty acupuncture bronze figures. They were top-tier national treasures!

Although the Ming Dynasty acupuncture bronze figures were not as valuable as the Song Dynasty artifacts, they were still worth a fortune.

That old man Pu was quite generous after all.

At 1:30 in the afternoon, the second half of the exchange event officially began.

The main event of the afternoon was the medical skills competition between Wang Chenning and Pu Zhengyang.

Pu Zhengyang, of course, wasn’t going to repeat what others had done in the morning. He proposed a new method for the competition.

They would find two patients from the audience who needed treatment. After both doctors cross-diagnosed them, each would choose one patient to treat. The treatment would be performed using "blind needling."

In other words, they would be competing with their blind needling techniques on live subjects.

In addition to comparing the number of effective needles, they would also be judged on the therapeutic results.

Compared to the morning’s competition, the difficulty was naturally much higher, with many more unknown variables.

Many people present knew that Pu Zhengyang excelled at blind needling. When blindfolded, his ability to identify and locate acupuncture points was second to none.

Moreover, his experience far surpassed Wang Chenning’s.

’That old man Pu is pretty sly!’