Chapter 241: Meeting

Chapter 241 The Visit

After returning to Beijing, Ye Changning only stayed one day before taking off again.

That day was spent wrapping up the commission payments at Rende Pharmacy.

The payment he received was a pretty penny, and Ye Changning felt this gig was worth keeping.

Once his official matters were handled, he hit the road south right away to keep working hard.

After seeing Ye Changning off, Ye Xiaoxiao hung around at Rende Pharmacy for a bit. She hadn’t expected that the first person to track her down upon returning to Beijing would be Qiao Yunhu.

“Do you need something from me?”

Since Ye Xiaoxiao was at Rende Pharmacy at the time, Qiao Yunhu had no trouble finding her.

Qiao Yunhu cut to the chase: “I heard you’re skilled in acupuncture. I’d like you to take a look at my grandma.”

For a family like the Qiaos, they usually got free medical care. The fact that they came to Ye Xiaoxiao under such circumstances meant grandma was really sick.

Not life-or-death, but it was likely difficult to treat.

Ye Xiaoxiao first asked, “What are Grandma’s symptoms? I can take a look first.”

Qiao Yunhu replied, “She has too much mucus at night and can’t sleep well.”

For the elderly, this was particularly dangerous—mucus blockage could choke her in her sleep.

Ye Xiaoxiao didn’t think it was that bad, but she needed to determine the root cause of the excessive mucus.

“Let’s head over now. I have time.”

Ye Xiaoxiao wasted no time, and her actions were efficient.

Qiao Yunhu brought her back to his place.

The Qiao family also lived in the government housing complex, though it was some distance from the Lu family’s residence.

Upon entering, nobody was in the living room.

Qiao Yunhu said, “My grandmother is in the bedroom. I’ll call her out. Please have a seat.”

Ye Xiaoxiao sat down.

Grandma Qiao was now seventy years old—tiny but feisty, though she was a little short of breath when speaking.

Qiao Yunhu explained that the old lady had come down with this around New Year's. After several days of medication with no improvement, they decided to try traditional Chinese medicine.

Ye Xiaoxiao first took grandma’s pulse.

“It’s not serious. I’ll do the needle treatment on a few points first, then prescribe a mucus-clearing herbal brew. She’ll be right as rain in three days.”

She found it odd that such a simple ailment had stumped the doctors.

What Ye Xiaoxiao didn’t realize was that the medicine she was learning now was built on master techniques. Ordinary hospital doctors certainly didn’t possess her level of skill.

Having spent most of her time studying and not venturing out much, she lacked a deeper understanding of her own abilities.

Ye Xiaoxiao did the needle treatment on Grandma Qiao at several points before withdrawing the needles.

It seemed almost magical, but it worked instantly—the old lady spoke much more easily.

Qiao Yunhu also studied Western medicine, but he knew he couldn't match Ye Xiaoxiao's skill.

Perhaps it was the difference between traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine, but it was enough to make Qiao Yunhu admire Ye Xiaoxiao.

The old lady wanted Ye Xiaoxiao to stay for dinner.

“No need, Grandma. Just rest well. I should get going,” Ye Xiaoxiao replied.

“I'll see you out,” Qiao Yunhu said.

“Want to come back to Rende Pharmacy with me? We’ll pick up the medicine for Grandma,” Ye Xiaoxiao asked.

“Sure,” Qiao Yunhu replied.

“You could already practice on your own,” Qiao Yunhu added. “Your medical skills are really something.”

“Oh, hardly. There’s still so much for me to learn,” Ye Xiaoxiao demurred.

In her past life, Ye Xiaoxiao had specialized in Western medicine, accumulating over a decade of reading and systematic study in school. After being reborn, she wasn’t some genius—just someone who had built up knowledge over time.

Qiao Yunhu walked Ye Xiaoxiao back to Rende Pharmacy, then took the medicine home.

Ye Xiaoxiao stayed at Rende Pharmacy until 3 p.m., taking care of all the backed-up work.

It was a slow day. She had just returned yesterday and had already seen her mentor.

At present, Lu Hanchuan didn’t know she was back in the capital, so Ye Xiaoxiao decided to reach out to him first.

As long as he wasn’t on a mission, it was pretty easy to meet Lu Hanchuan.

Ye Xiaoxiao drove to the army base where Lu Hanchuan was stationed.

She couldn’t enter directly. As soon as her car pulled up to the gate, someone came over to stop her.

“I’m here to see Lu Hanchuan. Could you let him know?”

The procedure for visitors wasn’t complicated these days. After a quick inquiry at the sentry post, they could quickly contact the person.

The sentry looked at Ye Xiaoxiao. “Lu Hanchuan, the regiment commander?”

“Yes,” Ye Xiaoxiao nodded.

The sentry immediately turned to make a phone call.

Lu Hanchuan was at the base today. He’d only taken one day off on New Year’s Day before returning to duty.

People rarely came to see him at the base—most people just called if they needed something.

Lu Hanchuan guessed it was Ye Xiaoxiao.

Even so, he was still surprised to see her.

“You’re back? Why didn’t you give me a heads-up?”

“There were many of us this time. No need to come get me,” Ye Xiaoxiao replied.

“Do you have to go back?” Ye Xiaoxiao asked Lu Hanchuan.

Lu Hanchuan: "I didn't get permission to leave."

So he had to go back.

Ye Xiaoxiao hadn’t planned to get Lu Hanchuan to stay out today; she just wanted to see him.

"I just wanted to say a few words to you. You can go back now."

Lu Hanchuan chuckled lightly: "No need to rush back."

Ye Xiaoxiao glanced at the sentries at the post—there wasn’t much they could do here anyway.

"I just feel a bit cold. If you’re going back, I should head home too."

Not exactly the best day for sweet talk.

Though Beijing wasn’t as cold as White Stone Village, winter still bit hard.

Lu Hanchuan told Xiao Xiao, "Go back, take it easy on your way, no need to rush. I’ll come see you tomorrow."

Ye Xiaoxiao waved: "Alright, then I’m off."

Their meeting lasted only about ten minutes, but by the time she headed home, Ye Xiaoxiao was already feeling lighter.

Indeed, she had just missed Lu Hanchuan.

When Lu Hanchuan returned, someone was waiting for him.

Liu Zhengwei, seeing Lu Hanchuan’s grinning like an idiot, teased, "Who did you just go out to meet? You look so happy."

Lu Hanchuan: "Good news puts you in good spirits. You wouldn’t understand."

Liu Zhengwei didn’t know about Lu Hanchuan’s girlfriend and found it odd. "Are you seeing someone? No wonder the Colonel didn’t drag you to the Chinese New Year singles mixer this year. You’re usually the prime target every year."

Lu Hanchuan: "Yes, I have a girlfriend."

Hearing his admission, Liu Zhengwei grew even more excited.

"When are you getting married? When can I drink at your wedding?"

Lu Hanchuan glared at Liu Zhengwei. If the man weren’t a few years older, he’d have been tempted to deck him.

Seeing Lu Hanchuan’s silence, Liu Zhengwei needled him, "Have you submitted a marriage report to command yet? You should hurry—you’re not spring chicken anymore."

Lu Hanchuan: "..."

It wasn't that he didn't want to hurry, he thought!

Lu Hanchuan was waiting until Xiao Xiao graduated. He hadn’t rushed her, giving her space.

...

The next day, Lu Hanchuan was up early to visit Xiao Xiao.

Before he could leave, he received a call from Han Xing.

"Brother Lu, have you seen the document issued by the Bureau of Land Management?"

Lu Hanchuan: "No."

Han Xing was practically shouting on the other end, "Zhanggong Mountain has really been designated as a public cemetery! Zero heads-up about this before. Everyone in our circle's freaking out right at New Year's."

With this document released, ongoing projects would definitely be affected.

"Talk later. Cut the shouting."