Intruder
Intruder
"So?" Han Xing asked.
"Can you give the King Pharmacist the three decoctions and ask him to treat our little brother?" Han Zhigao asked.
Han Xing stared at his brother but didn't say anything.
"Brother?" Han Zhigao gently asked.
"Don't you think we need Dr. Wang anymore?" Han Xing asked.
"Who needs him if we have the King Pharmacist?" Han Zhigao asked.
"Don't we need Dr. Sang anymore?" Han Xing asked.
"Well, Dr. Sang is a fantastic doctor, but no one is better than the King Pharmacist," Han Zhigao said.
In Yunnan, the King Pharmacist had a good reputation. To people in Yunnan, he was capable of anything.
"Fine!" Han Xing nodded. He stared at his brother. "Have you ever considered that the King Pharmacist might not be able to cure our little brother?"
"How could that be possible?" Han Zhigao asked. "That Wang Yao is so young. How could he possibly be a better doctor than the King Pharmacist?"
"Yes, Brother, I don't think he could be a better doctor than the King Pharmacist," Han Zhiyu said.
"I don't agree with you," Han Xing said. "The Han family always keeps its word. Additionally, you should get a better idea of the King Pharmacist's rule. That old man is very weird."
Han Xing left the room. He didn't want to discuss this topic anymore with his brothers.
"What does our big brother mean?" Han Zhigao asked.
"Don't you see it?" Han Zhiyu asked. "He didn't agree with our proposal."
"I think it is a good idea," Han Zhigao said. "Our big brother is a nice guy, but he's sometimes too stubborn. What do you think?"
"I agree with you." Han Zhiyu nodded. He thought Han Zhigao's idea was practical. "Look, we need to know exactly what the King Pharmacist's rules are so we can come up with a plan."
"We want to keep our promise, but we really don't know if that young doctor can cure our brother," Han Zhigao said. "Besides, who will know if we keep our mouths shut? Both Wang Yao and Sang Guzi have left."
"OK. For now, we keep this to ourselves. Let's stop talking about it," Han Zhiyu said.
Wang Yao took a direct flight to Dao. It was dark by the time he arrived. The Han brothers had booked the best hotel for him in the city. He slept well in the hotel. A car came to pick him up in the morning to take him to Lianshan.
Several patients were already waiting outside Wang Yao's clinic.
"Is he away? When will he come back?" one of the patients asked.
"It's hard to say," another patient said.
"Isn't he from the village? Should go to his house to ask," a patient asked.
"No, you can't go to this house. He hates people disturbing his parents," another patient said. "I heard that from one of the villagers. Can't you read the sign on the door?"
"What can we do?" a patient asked. "We came all the way here."
"Let's wait for another hour. If he still doesn't show up, we'll come back tomorrow," another patient said.
They waited for one hour, but Wang Yao didn't show up.
"Let's go," one of the patients said.
"What sort of clinic is this?" a middle-aged man complained.
"Stop complaining. I'm the one you should blame. I brought you guys here," another man said.
It was normal for these men to be unhappy. After all, they had come all the way to the clinic but didn't get to see the doctor. It was a waste of time.
Thirty minutes after they left, Wang Yao arrived home.
"Dad, Mom, I'm back," Wang Yao said. Zhang Xiuying was busy cooking lunch.
"Have you had lunch?" Zhang Xiuying asked.
"Not yet," Wang Yao said.
"Drink some water and rest. Lunch will be ready soon," Zhang Xiuying said.
Since her son was home, Zhang Xiuying cooked two more dishes. Before long, she finished cooking. "Lunch is ready."
"Where is Dad?" Wang Yao asked.
"Someone invited him for lunch. It's just us," Zhang Xiuying said. "How was everything going in Dali?"
"Not bad," Wang Yao said.
"Did you cure the patient?" Zhang Xiuying asked.
"No. I only stayed for three days. It will take some time to treat the patient," Wang Yao replied. "By the way, has anyone come to our house in the last few days?"
"No, and no one went to Nanshan Hill either," Zhang Xiuying said.
"Good," Wang Yao said.
Wang Yao went to Nanshan Hill after lunch. San Xian came down to welcome him. He happily wagged his tail.
"Hi, San Xian, you put on weight again," Wang Yao said.
Woof! Woof! Woof!
"Ha-ha! Is everything alright here?" Wang Yao asked.
Woof!
"No? What's wrong?" Wang Yao could tell something was abnormal by the way San Xian barked.
Wang Yao sped up and rushed to his herbal field. He came to San Xian's dog house. "Is this what you were barking about?"
There was a small wild rabbit inside the dog house.
"Where did you find it?" Wang Yao asked.
San Xian barked toward the back of the hill.
"What? Do you want to eat rabbit with soy sauce?" Wang Yao asked with a smile. "Hey, why are you looking at me like that? Do you want me to raise it?"
Woof!
"Wow! You are such a nice dog!" Wang Yao patted San Xian's head. "Does Da Xia know about it?"
Dogs didn't like eating rabbits, but rabbits were an eagle's favorite food.
"Fine, I'll take it home. We can't have a rabbit here," Wang Yao said. "Animals like rabbits will eat up all my herbs."
Woof!
Wang Yao put the rabbit aside and walked around the herbal field. Before long, he had walked around the entire hill.
Hmm? After Wang Yao had reached the top of the hill, he found several trees at the foot of hill down south had been cut. He followed the path down to take a closer look. He found several old jujube trees had been removed.
The south end of Nanshan Hill was very steep. It was irregular and shaped like an arc. Further up was a small hill. People rarely went there because it was so isolated.
Wang Yao had stayed on Nanshan Hill for several years. He knew that even the shepherds didn't go there because it was too steep. One time, a person fell off the hill and broke his leg.
Who came here? Was it someone from the village? Wang Yao wondered.
According to the original contract, this place belonged to him.
If someone came here, they will probably be able to reach the north side of the hill.
Wang Yao was a bit worried. "San Xian!" His voice flew to the top of the hill and went down into the herbal field.
A moment later, San Xian, who was as big as a calf, ran from the top of the hill. San Xian was several feet closer with one jump. He looked like a small lion from a distance.
"Has anyone been here?" Wang Yao asked.
San Xian sniffed around and barked.
"From which direction?" Wang Yao asked.
The dog sniffed around and led the way. Wang Yao followed him. There was no footpath on this side of the hill. Initially, there had been a few small paths. Since no one came around, those small paths had disappeared. Wang Yao didn't understand why anyone would come there for a couple of jujube trees.
San Xian stopped in front of a cliff. There were some marks on the ground.
"What is this? Honeycomb?" Wang Yao asked.
He looked up at the cliff and found what was left of a honeycomb about 20 feet high. He looked back at the location where the jujube trees were. It was not hard to spot the honeycomb from that location.
Did someone come to grab the honeycomb, find the jujube trees by accident, and cut the trees?
"Go on, San Xian," Wang Yao said.
San Xian continued to lead the way. They quickly reached the west side of the hill. They continued to walk north for about an hour. They eventually went back to Wang Yao's village. San Xian stopped at the door of a house.
Is the person from our village? Wang Yao was surprised.
"Hi, Yao." A villager passed by and greeted Wang Yao. The way the villager looked at San Xian was strange. "Is that a dog? It looks like a small lion!"
"Hi, Uncle," Wang Yao said.
"Is this the place?" Wang Yao asked San Xian.
Woof! San Xian barked.
"Good, let's go." Wang Yao walked away.
Creak! The door of the house suddenly opened. A man came out of the house. He was in his 40s and had a beard.
"Hello, Yao, are you looking for me?" the man asked.
"Hello, Uncle," Wang Yao said. This man is also his elder.