Chapter 75

Chapter 75

Li Hao was touched by Shi Xuan. He used to think Shi Xuan was cold and unfriendly, but after getting to know him, he realized he was actually quite nice. Knowing that Dr. Wu had arrived, Shi Xuan wanted Li Hao to make a good impression on Dr. Wu as a diligent student and quickly return to his seat.

Li Hao quickly scrambled back to his seat, straightening his back and stretching his neck as far as he could, with his arms crossed, like a first-grader.

The homeroom teacher scanned the empty seats and thought, "Wu Heng, you can sit..."

Wu Heng gestured toward the empty seat next to Shi Xuan and said, "Teacher, I'll sit there."

The teacher felt a warmth in her heart and her impression of Wu Heng improved even more.

Wu Heng was just an auditor, not a regular student. The primary consideration was not to disrupt the other students. The senior year classroom was the most crowded, with books piled up on and under the desks. Sitting in the back would minimize disruption.

Most importantly, the seat next to Shi Xuan was always empty. Whether male or female, classmates avoided contact with him. His seat was by the window in the very last row, quite far back.

With the teacher's nod, Wu Heng headed toward Shi Xuan, a touch of smugness in his voice as he said:

"Hello, Shi Xuan."

Didn’t see that coming, did you? He actually came to audit the class.

Wu Heng had kept it under wraps. He was curious about how Shi Xuan would react when he saw him auditing the class.

Shi Xuan’s eyes stayed locked on Wu Heng, watching him walk from the podium all the way to his seat. His usually cold eyes lit up with unmistakable brightness. The thirty or so classmates in the room almost all noticed how Shi Xuan was staring at him.

Wu Heng felt a little uneasy under his stare. It’s just... quietly becoming his desk mate, right? Why is he so happy about it?

When Shi Xuan pulled the chair out for him, he slightly lowered his eyelids, hiding the gleam in his eyes.

Since he was a child, he had never had a desk mate. His classmates admired him but also feared him. Friendship was rare for him.

Compared to normal people, he lacked many things, but Wu Heng was slowly filling those gaps for him. Many of his "firsts" were all because of Wu Heng.

Wu Heng auditing the class was just a minor event. The teacher quickly got to the day’s lesson, reviewing the math test from the previous day. In senior year, there were no new lessons; it was all about revision and practice.

"Wu Heng, come and take a new test paper to look at," the teacher said, about to take a paper from the podium when she noticed Shi Xuan’s elbow move slightly, pushing the paper to the center. The teacher paused and then added, "Or you two can share one. Let’s start the review now."

Wu Heng skimmed through the test paper. It was flawless, with no corrections and all answers correct. He then moved his chair closer to Shi Xuan, close enough to catch the faint scent of yin energy on him.

Shi Xuan whispered, "Too far, can’t see."

Wu Heng: "?"

Wait, you’re not even nearsighted!

The class wrapped up quickly, and the teacher assigned a few more test papers before leaving the classroom. As soon as the teacher left, the classroom erupted into chatter.

Wang Pengzheng rushed over, whining, "Dr. Wu, oh no, Wu Heng, if Hei Tan can be reincarnated as a human in his next life, my Black Panther will soon be recorded in the Wang family genealogy. Does that mean it has a chance to become human too?"

Wang Pengzheng had been somewhat depressed ever since hearing about Hei Tan’s story, often fantasizing about his Black Panther godfather dying and so on.

Wu Heng answered bluntly, "It’s possible, but not guaranteed."

Black Panther had loyally saved its master and was recorded in the family genealogy, so Yanjun might indeed consider letting it reincarnate as a human. However, the merit required for an animal to reincarnate as a human was always stringent.

Wang Pengzheng said, "Then I’ll send it to police dog training school."

Wu Heng: "..."

Black Panther’s dutiful son.

The classmates gathered around again, asking about the masks and planning to buy some for their families to feel secure.

Shi Xuan watched as Wu Heng chatted and laughed with the classmates. It was the first time so many classmates dared to gather around his desk, leaving him looking somewhat dazed.

"Are you feeling unwell?" Wu Heng suddenly asked, staring at Shi Xuan.

Wu Heng noticed Shi Xuan rapidly releasing a lot of yin energy. He suddenly raised his hand, gently catching the yin energy in the air and shaping it into a fluffy, cool ball.

"Did the vaccine cause you problems?" He Yunxiao came over and asked.

"That vaccine might be problematic. Xie Zhi also started acting strangely after getting it," Wang Dong said. "She even started speaking in a dialect I couldn’t understand. Hmm... It sounded a lot like the local dialect from Dr. Wu’s region."

Xie Zhi was that female celebrity student. Wang Dong had chased after her to give her a medicinal talisman, only to find her speaking in a foreign dialect and acting like a different person.

Wang Dong had hoped to impress her, but after giving her the talisman, nothing changed. He could only awkwardly retreat.

"Her situation is normal," Wu Heng said, feeling Shi Xuan’s slightly warm forehead. "Can you skip the evening self-study session?"

As an auditor, Wu Heng could leave anytime, but Shi Xuan wasn’t so sure.

He Yunxiao helped him get leave, and as Wu Heng led Shi Xuan toward the well, he complained, "I told you earlier, maybe you shouldn’t have taken that vaccine."

Shi Xuan lowered his eyes and whispered, "I’m not feeling well. Can you help me, my friend?"

Wu Heng had never seen Shi Xuan like this. He lifted Shi Xuan’s arm and reached for his backpack.

Shi Xuan leaned heavily on Wu Heng but tugged at the backpack, saying, "You help me; I’ll carry the backpack myself."

Wu Heng glanced at Shi Xuan’s slightly raised lips, thinking his condition wasn’t too bad.

They quickly returned to Nan Nuo Village via the well. In winter, it got dark early. When they returned to Chengde Medical Hall, Wu Heng was surprised to find it closed, with a sign reading, "Out for a house call."

Eugene often went on house calls, but it was unusual for him to be out this late.

Wu Heng opened the door and took Shi Xuan to the guest room. As Shi Xuan lay down, Wu Heng noticed his skin turning redder.

Wu Heng knelt by the bed, leaned in, and unbuttoned Shi Xuan’s shirt, revealing his slightly red collarbone.

He saw yin energy leaking from Shi Xuan’s body like a punctured water balloon.

Wu Heng gathered the overflowing yin energy, shaping it into fluffy balls and placing them on Shi Xuan’s head.

"Tsk, these yin energy balls could feed a whole pack of fierce ghosts."

"I’ll make some medicine to replenish your yin energy," Wu Heng said, seeing this wasn’t working.

Just as he stood up, Shi Xuan suddenly reached out and grabbed his wrist, "No need, it’s fine."

Wu Heng sat back down on the edge of the bed, his hand landing on Shi Xuan’s chest due to inertia. The strong heartbeat startled Wu Heng, and he quickly pulled his hand back.

Shi Xuan was used to it. Since he was a child, his father would often invite Taoist priests to try to expel all the yin energy from his body. He would feel uncomfortable for a couple of days, but then his body would become a source of yin energy again, and it would return to normal in no time, with even more yin energy.

Wu Heng couldn’t help but say, "What am I, a shaman doctor, supposed to do? Just watch like this?"

He wasn’t even allowed to prescribe medicine. His profession didn’t allow it.

Shi Xuan closed his eyes and gently held Wu Heng’s wrist, feeling his pulse, and said softly, "Can you just sit and stay with me?"

Wu Heng looked a bit uneasy. Even as good brothers, is this how they should be? Wu Heng glanced at Shi Xuan, who frowned in discomfort, and couldn't help but be impressed by the Xuanmen sect's experts who had truly collaborated with the nation to develop an effective vaccine.

The wind chime hanging on the wooden window frame moved without wind, its long, distant chime resembling a call from afar, calling the soul back... calling the soul back...

Shi Xuan's eyes snapped open, and he started gasping for air.

Wu Heng's face shifted in surprise, and he couldn't help but laugh in disbelief, "Is this actually a soul summoning?"

It was likely the Taoist priest Shi Xuan had hired attempting to summon the soul back home on the seventh day.

Wu Heng thought there were way too many amateurs in this field. Summoning a soul like this? Seriously? It was no different from forcibly extracting Shi Xuan's soul from his body. What kind of nonsense was this?

His father was right; Shi Xuan was always meddling in things, and none of his actions were useful. Shi Xuan would've been fine without this ritual. But if the soul were truly summoned back, Shi Xuan might really become a wandering ghost.

Wu Heng acted without hesitation. He immediately grabbed Shi Xuan's left hand, and their fingers intertwined tightly. Shi Xuan tightened his grip immediately, allowing Wu Heng's spiritual energy to flow through his body and firmly anchor his soul, leaving him utterly absorbed.

As the sound of the wind chime gradually weakened, Wu Heng tried to pull his hand away, but Shi Xuan's fingers held on tightly, unwilling to let go. However, before Wu Heng could speak, Shi Xuan's fingertips gently brushed over Wu Heng's palm and then softly released his hand.

His palm tingled, his heart racing.

Wu Heng looked at his burning palm and emphasized, "I was just helping you out, bro."

Shi Xuan smirked, squinting slightly, "Alright. I'm sick, so good brother, please indulge me."

Wu Heng: "..."

Wu Heng felt like he was talking to a wall, and he was even deeply immersed in this illness.

Back at the Shi family estate...

Shi Xuan stood anxiously next to the priest, watching as the priest continuously shook the bell and chanted incantations. After the chanting stopped, Shi Xuan urgently asked, "Has Shi Xuan's soul returned?"

Seeing the priest shake his head solemnly, Shi Xuan's heart turned cold. Had he really lost his heir, as the butler warned?

The butler was heartbroken. He hadn't expected Shi Xuan to really be gone!

With the last child Wu Su cared for gone, the butler no longer held back and said, "In that case, my son's collar is probably lost as well. After the young master's funeral, please allow me to resign and return to my hometown."

Although there was no body of Shi Xuan, setting up a memorial wouldn't be hard. It was a pity that his son Wu Heng's collar was completely lost.

Shi Xuan's eyes darkened with suspicion as he watched the butler quickly leave to prepare the mourning hall. Knowing so many secrets of the Shi family, did the butler really think he could leave unscathed?

"Dr. Wu? Dr. Wu, are you home?!" A frantic shout suddenly came from outside the window.

*

Wu Heng immediately let go of Shi Xuan's hand and got up to look out the window. The person shouting was none other than Su Chenyu, the school heartthrob, who was currently traveling in Nanluo Village.

Su Chenyu had thought Wu Heng wasn't home when he saw Chengde Medical Hall closed early, but noticing a faint light in one of the second-floor bedrooms, he tentatively called out a few times. To his surprise, Wu Heng was indeed home.

Su Chenyu looked up at Wu Heng and said anxiously, "Dr. Wu, you need to hurry and check this out. It seems like your apprentice has killed someone while treating them!"

Wu Heng's expression changed slightly. Su Chenyu must be talking about Eugene! Eugene had gone out for a house call and hadn't returned yet.

Wu Heng immediately turned around and saw Shi Xuan getting up from the bed, saying, "I'll go with you."

Wu Heng looked at Shi Xuan in shock as his vitality seemed to be rapidly recovering, "?"

Wait, who gets better this fast?

Wu Heng didn’t have time to gripe about Shi Xuan and immediately went downstairs, stepping out of Chengde Medical Hall.

Su Chenyu was waiting outside and said, "I don’t know all the specifics, but your buddy Zhou Yi told me to rush back and let you know that Eugene is in Wuwa Village."

Zhou Yi used to be a boarding student, but after being possessed by Yang Xing, he applied to commute, riding his electric scooter to and from school every day. He likely just got home from school.

Wu Heng and the others quickly arrived at Wuwa Village, only to find a huge crowd gathered around, including many tourists.

A voice rang out, "Dr. Wu’s here!"

The crowd quickly parted for Wu Heng. Shi Xuan noticed tourists filming with their phones and took out the cloth mask Wu Heng had hand-sewn for him, putting it on. He also pulled up the hood of his jacket.

Eugene’s medical kit was spilled across the ground, and he was kneeling beside the patient, performing CPR.

Wu Heng looked at the young man lying on the ground, his face pale as death. His clothing clearly identified him as a villager from the Eighteen Villages, not a tourist.

Su Chenyu, a med student, saw that Eugene was running out of strength and immediately rolled up his sleeves, saying, "I’ll take it from here."

Exhausted, Eugene slumped to the ground, staring at the lifeless, grayish body in front of him, terrified and on edge.

"Is he gone? He’s gone, isn’t he? I’ve seen people die before; they turn pale instantly, and there’s no bringing them back," a tourist whispered in horror.

"They’ve been trying to resuscitate him for a while now, and the ambulance is still on the way. It’s looking grim. How did he die? He looks only seventeen or eighteen. Too young to die."

A tourist murmured, "Some folks online have already talked about not being drawn to Wu Heng’s rural Nuo festival too early because the facilities aren’t fully prepared. These primitive minority villages don’t have the medical resources."

"If you’re not dealing with a rare illness, maybe skip this place for vacation? The medical conditions here are too poor; even their own villagers can’t be saved in emergencies."

"Little Heng, you made it?!" Eugene saw Wu Heng approaching and was so overwhelmed with emotion that he grabbed Wu Heng’s hand, tears in his eyes. "What do I do? I’ve killed someone. It’s all because I’m not skilled enough in medicine. Now I’ve ruined Chengde Medical Hall’s reputation, implicated my master, and you, Little Heng."

Eugene was completely panicked. Thinking about how Chengde Medical Hall had finally gained recognition under Wu Heng’s leadership, only to be ruined by him, and even the village’s tourism economy would suffer, Eugene felt like he should just end it all to make up for it.

Wu Heng looked at the patient on the ground and gently patted Eugene’s hand to comfort him.

"What’s his condition?"

Before Eugene could answer, a couple in traditional garb, sobbing and wailing, cried out, "Our son was working in the vegetable field today when he suddenly felt unwell. It was probably just a cold from being chilled by the wind last night, but this fraud killed our healthy boy! This is the apprentice of Chengde Medical Hall, the student of Dr. Wu?!"

Eugene was indeed Dr. Wu’s apprentice, but not all netizens and tourists knew this. Hearing this, some began to have doubts.

No one doubted Wu Heng’s shamanic skills; he was a truly capable shaman.

But... his apprentice didn’t seem up to par.

There were rumors that some masters would deliberately hold back some knowledge when teaching their apprentices. Did Dr. Wu hold back when teaching his apprentice?

From this angle, Dr. Wu seemed a little... shady.

Wu Heng asked, "Where’s Chen Zhao?"

"Dr. Chen is at the inpatient department... oh no, at your second uncle’s guesthouse seeing patients," Zhou Yi said, carrying his backpack. He then leaned closer to Wu Heng and whispered, "I remember this person; he used to be in the same school as me, but he only finished the first year of high school. His parents wouldn’t let him continue studying."

Some local families still held onto the traditional preference for sons over daughters. If a poor family had both a son and a daughter of school age, they would usually have the daughter drop out to work or get married. But according to Zhou Yi, this family only had one son.

Meanwhile, Eugene was still crying, "From today on, I am no longer part of Chengde Medical Hall. This incident has nothing to do with the medical hall."

Shi Xuan took out his phone and checked. By then, some clickbait accounts had already posted stories, and a hot topic titled "#Chengde Medical Hall Medical Accident#" was trending on Weibo.

Following that were other trending topics like "#Chengde Medical Hall Suspected of Killing a Patient#" and "#Dr. Wu’s Apprentice#."

"Got any pics from the scene? Was there really a medical mishap? Did Wu Heng kill someone? Holy cow!"

"Some folks actually buy into these online shamans. I knew he’d have an accident sooner or later when I saw how popular he was."

"Here we go again. It was the apprentice at the medical hall who killed someone, not Wu Heng himself! He was giving shots at Jiaming No.1 Middle School this morning."

"So did Chengde Medical Hall really kill someone? Is this news true?"

Rumors were flying all over the internet, and someone snapped a pic of the corpse and posted it online, though it got taken down fast.

When Village Chief Zhou Dagui showed up and saw the cold body, his heart sank.

Now, Nan Nuo Village is totally linked to Chengde Medical Hall. If Chengde Medical Hall tanks, Nan Nuo Village is in for a rough patch.

"Doc Wu, give us something!" a tourist blurted out.

Wu Heng stepped forward to let Su Chenyu take a break. He checked the patient’s pulse—gone—and the body was stiff. He said simply:

"Dead."

The crowd went wild. Someone had indeed died.

Wu Heng suddenly laughed and said, "But he can still be brought back."

In the crowd, a gray shadow lurked. Wu Heng gave the shadow a cold look and muttered in the language of the dead: 'Xie Zhi, why haven’t you returned to your body yet?'

The soul stared hard at the stiff body on the ground, his face tense, his toes gripping the ground, unwilling to move, as if he wasn’t too pleased with his body.

He didn’t want to go back.

'Doc, I... I’m not ready to go back yet. Don’t sweat it, I won’t let my folks shake you down. I’ll come back within the seven-day wake,' Xie Zhi quickly explained, meeting Wu Heng’s cold gaze.

In Nan Nuo Village, the dead get a seven-day wake. Only when Lai Jun died, old lady Lai demanded a quick burial, breaking the custom.

It’s not rare to hear about folks 'waking up' at their own wake. Some people are in a state of suspended animation, so they can still come back.

So coming back to life within seven days isn’t too shocking.

'The soul can’t stay out of the body for long, and the village just held a rural exorcism ceremony, which is bad for the soul. Return now!'

Despite Wu Heng’s warning, the soul just stood there, stubbornly ignoring him.

'Lai Yin Chai!' Wu Heng silently recited a summoning spell, and a slight yin wind stirred, lifting the dead leaves on the ground.

Lai Yin Chai, lantern in hand, zipped over. Before he could even greet Wu Heng, he was drawn to the soul in front of him and brought his dead face close.

Fresh meat!

He held his nose and escorted the blackened soul to the underworld, arranging the dog properly, then rushed back to Hezipo Town. To Lai Yin Chai’s dismay—

The old couple he’d been waiting for had indeed passed away, but they’d already been taken by other yin emissaries.

After snagging a dog and missing two humans, Lai Yin Chai was feeling a bit down when Wu Heng called him again. As soon as he arrived, he saw a soul standing there like a block of wood, and a stiff body on the ground.

Huh? Another one!

Without a second thought, Lai Yin Chai whipped out his soul-hook from the lantern, snagging the soul before anyone else could. That’s the style of Nan Nuo Village’s bully!

The living soul was horrified by the yin emissary's actions, wailing non-stop: 'Ahhh, don't!'

Isn't the yin emissary supposed to check the details before grabbing someone? Why jump straight to pulling out his gear?

The living soul was genuinely scared of the yin emissary and bolted straight for the body on the ground.

The moment the soul re-entered the body, Lai Yin Chai hurled his soul-catching rope, but it missed its mark.

The young man on the ground slowly, reluctantly opened his eyes, and his body began to breathe evenly.

Lai Yin Chai: '?'

Where’s his target? Is this a soul that’s not supposed to die yet?

Strange, souls that suddenly leave their bodies are usually eager to return, like those student ghosts lingering at the school earlier. But this soul just stood by its body, making no move to return, so Lai Yin Chai assumed it was a ghost whose time was up and didn’t bother to ask more questions.

Lai Yin Chai immediately looked at Dr. Wu, who laughed and said, 'I didn't say this was a new quota for you.'

Dr. Wu glanced at the guy on the ground and asked, 'You’re awake, right?'

The young man averted his eyes from Dr. Wu, pushed himself up slowly from the ground, and mumbled, 'Yes.'

The tourists were completely stunned. They witnessed the pale young man on the ground sit up, his body filling back up with blood, and his deathly pale complexion gradually turning rosy.

Anyone who’s seen a corpse knows you can’t fake that look; it’s very different from that of a living person.

So... is this... a resurrection?

'Wow, Dr. Wu’s got some serious skills! Just now, he said to bring him back to life, and he actually did it?!' The tourists around were completely floored.

This was out in the open, with everyone watching. Dr. Wu barely did anything, and yet the guy came back to life? If Dr. Wu couldn’t pull it off, no one else there stood a chance.

The tourists were shocked and looked at Dr. Wu as if he exuded a divine aura.

'This isn’t a shaman; this is a deity, right?'

Dr. Wu pulled up You Jin, who was crying uncontrollably, and looking at the finally arrived ambulance, coldly said to the family, 'You can go for a check-up. If there are any issues, you can come to my clinic later.'

Zhou Yi quickly picked up the scattered medicines and put them back into the medicine box. Afraid that You Jin would be pointed at, he had You Jin sit on his electric scooter and took him back to Nan Nuo Village first.

Amidst the exclamations, the crowd gradually dispersed.

Lai Yin Chai looked at the tall figure walking beside Dr. Wu, constantly leaking yin energy, and couldn’t help but catch up and ask, 'Is he really not a hidden benefit? The yin energy is so strong.'

Dr. Wu: 'Does he look like he’s about to die with that energetic appearance?'

Lai Yin Chai was slightly disappointed, feeling that Dr. Wu’s words made sense. This person was energetic, robust like... hmm?

Shi Xuan suddenly leaned on Dr. Wu’s shoulder and whispered, 'After taking that vaccine, I feel a bit uncomfortable again.'

Dr. Wu stared at Shi Xuan, scrutinizing him: '?'

Wait, does your illness adjust freely? Can you switch states instantly?

Get sick when you say, get well when you say?