Volume 1 Chapter 18: Miracle Doctor Su Miao, The Last Hope
The wild matsutake mushrooms had been delivered.
She had met the person.
She had even managed to get a free dinner.
If she didn’t leave now, her intentions would be as obvious as Sima Zhao’s ambition—known to all.
But for now, she was still the lovestruck fool deeply infatuated with Mu Tingyun. She couldn’t let anyone detect her ulterior motives toward Song Jingcheng.
This matter had to be taken slowly.
If Mu Tingyun was a venomous snake, then Song Jingcheng was an endless swamp. This swamp could give rise to boundless lotus flowers, but it could also breed countless venomous snakes.
He was even more difficult and troublesome to deal with than Mu Tingyun.
If Shen He wanted to borrow his seed, she had to plan carefully and strategize in detail.
As soon as the meal was over, Shen He stood up and politely took her leave: “Little Uncle, thank you for your hospitality. It’s getting late, so I’ll head back now.”
Song Jingcheng gestured toward the kitchen, “Uncle Ma, see Miss Shen off.”
“No need, I drove here.”
“Then escort the young lady to the parking lot.” Song Jingcheng elegantly wiped his mouth, giving Shen He no chance to refuse before heading upstairs.
Ma Kai still had half a cigarette left. Hearing this, he extinguished the butt and quickly walked to the dining room to escort Shen He out.
When they reached the wetland park parking lot, Shen He prepared to get into her car.
Remembering something, she suddenly turned back and asked Ma Kai: “Uncle Ma, does the calming incense Little Uncle uses have any side effects?”
Ma Kai was somewhat surprised by the question.
Seeing only concern in the young lady’s eyes, with no ulterior motives, he replied: “The calming incense is made from Chinese medicinal herbs. While it has many benefits, it also has some side effects.”
“Although Mr. Song can sleep for two or three hours with the calming incense, it has caused a loss of appetite as a side effect.”
“But there’s no other way; this is already the incense with the fewest side effects. Without medicinal assistance, Mr. Song can hardly sleep at all.”
Nodding, Shen He said nothing more and got straight into her car.
Watching Shen He’s car drive away, Ma Kai finally returned.
He went directly to the third floor.
Song Jingcheng had just finished bathing and was sitting in his study in a robe, handling documents. Hearing Ma Kai enter, he didn’t look up.
Ma Kai walked to the desk, standing respectfully as he reported: “Miss Shen has already left. Before she left, she asked whether the calming incense had any side effects.”
“I told her about how the incense affects your appetite.”
Hearing this, Song Jingcheng was unusually puzzled.
He looked up at Ma Kai and asked: “What do you think this little girl’s intention was in asking about this?”
Ma Kai shook his head honestly: “I’m not sure. Besides, I’m not very familiar with Miss Shen.”
Song Jingcheng gazed out the floor-to-ceiling window.
From here, he could see the scenic wetland lake in the distance, its waters shimmering golden under the sunset.
But in Song Jingcheng’s mind, Shen He’s lively and bright cat-like eyes appeared.
“This little girl is restless,” Song Jingcheng concluded.
Ma Kai rubbed his nose and said: “I actually think Miss Shen is quite nice. That wild matsutake is exceptionally rare. Instead of sending it to the Mu family to curry favor with her future father-in-law, she gave it to you, sir. That kind of thoughtfulness is rare.”
Song Jingcheng thought for a moment and added: “Unwarranted kindness is either deceit or theft.”
Ma Kai: “…”
“Sir, do you not like this Miss Shen?” Mr. Song was a gentleman who rarely commented on young women.
But he clearly had some reservations about this Miss Shen.
Song Jingcheng offered no explanation.
He bent down to open the storage cabinet beneath the desk, retrieved a toy sports car model from inside, and placed it on the office desk. He then told Ma Kai, "This is my birthday gift for Ma Shang. Remember to take it home with you tonight."
Ma Shang was Ma Kai's son, an eight-year-old boy whom Song Jingcheng had watched grow up.
Ma Kai happily accepted the gift. "Thank you, Mr. Song. When the opportunity arises, I'll have Ma Shang come personally to thank you."
"He's welcome to visit."
"By the way," Song Jingcheng glanced at the bodhi bead bracelet on his wrist and casually mentioned, "Any leads on Mr. Su Miao's address?"
Mr. Su Miao was a legendary miracle doctor.
He was the honorary dean of the National Medical Hall and had made numerous contributions to traditional Chinese medicine.
His name appeared in the acknowledgments of several medical books published by the National Medical Hall, and he had received multiple national-level honorary medals.
However, to this day, no one knew how old he was, where he lived, or what he looked like.
He was too low-profile, never appearing in public, and only communicated with the National Medical Hall through the most ancient method of anonymous letters, sending messages unilaterally.
Each of his letters brought new surprises to the field of traditional Chinese medicine.
To this day, the awards he had received were still stored in the exhibition hall of the National Medical Hall, waiting for Mr. Su Miao to step forward and claim them.
Song Jingcheng had seen many doctors for his illness, but each one had been at a loss.
Mr. Su Miao of the National Medical Hall had become Song Jingcheng's last hope.
Hearing this, Ma Kai frowned, shaking his head in shame. "Mr. Su Miao is too low-profile. I haven't managed to track down any traces of him yet."
Upon hearing this news, Song Jingcheng wasn't disheartened.
"If someone intentionally hides their whereabouts, it's not easy for us to investigate. Finding him would be a stroke of luck. Not finding him would simply mean it's my fate."
When Song Jingcheng first fell ill, he had fought against fate as well.
But the power of the disease was simply too formidable. No matter how strong his willpower, he could only bow to the pain.
The next day, early morning.
Shen He arrived at the studio and had just taken her laptop out of her briefcase when the office door was pushed open.
Before the person even entered, a teasing voice drifted in: "Well, well, our Boss Shen still remembers she has work to do?"
Shen He looked up and saw Jun Lin.
Jun Lin, known in the circle as Princess Jun, the Golden Patron Jun.
Young, wealthy, and an extreme judge of appearances.
Two years ago, Jun Lin planned to select a business partner from the talent-filled architecture department of A University. Among his many requirements, the top priority was:
The partner must possess absolute beauty.
In Jun Lin's words, being a corporate drone was already exhausting enough—couldn't he at least find a beautiful mascot as a partner to lift his spirits?
Thus, the beautiful mascot Shen He stood out from the crowd and became Jun Lin's partner.
Seeing Jun Lin, Shen He felt a sense of disorientation.
For Jun Lin, she and Shen He had only been apart for two short days. For Shen He, however, it felt like a very long time since she had last seen Jun Lin.
In her previous life, under Mu Tingyun's psychological manipulation, Shen He had taken the initiative to propose dissolving their partnership to Jun Lin during the wedding preparations.
Jun Lin had pointed at her nose and scolded her harshly, then shut down the business the very next day, taking all the company employees back to Jingdu to resume his old career.
Jun Lin was the youngest son of the Jun family in Jingdu, with a powerful family background. Even after returning to Jingdu, he continued to thrive.
The next time Shen He saw Jun Lin was at her own funeral.
Jun Lin, who had always dressed flamboyantly, appeared at her funeral that day in a black suit, holding a white chrysanthemum.
He placed the white chrysanthemum in the empty coffin and said sorrowfully, "Shen He, my wife was a martial arts champion. She passed away four years ago, so she must have become a boss by now."
"When you go down there, go find her."
"Her name is Xiao Jianhong. Just mention my name, Jun Lin, and she'll definitely take care of you."
After that, Shen He never saw Jun Lin again and rarely heard his name mentioned by Mu Tingyun.