Bai Shui's long face darkened further, his expression becoming increasingly grim. He suddenly spoke up, "Talking is one thing, but can you really just mess around with acupuncture? How old is she? Has she ever performed acupuncture on anyone before? Are you really comfortable letting her stick needles into Dad?"
As he spoke, the Old Lady began to hesitate. Indeed, could the Fat Girl really do it?
"How about letting Doctor Xu perform the acupuncture?" the Old Lady asked, seeking Doctor Xu's opinion.
Doctor Xu shook his head. "I am ashamed to say that I don't know this specific needling technique. I cannot do it."
"Mother, listen to that! Even Doctor Xu doesn't know it, so how can the Fat Girl? Do you really believe her?"
Bai Shui's voice was filled with utter contempt. "If something goes wrong while she's needling him, who will take responsibility? Their family is unfilial and doesn't care if Dad lives or dies, but we can't be like that. I think she’s planned this all along—if something happens to her grandfather, she can observe the three-year mourning period and won't have to marry Wang Han."
Those words were truly vicious!
"Second Brother, you've gone too far. First, you said my daughter couldn't treat illnesses, cursing her at every turn. Now that it’s proven she can, you say she wants to harm our father. Are you afraid of losing the bet, or do you just treat us as enemies? Besides, you shouldn't put a curse on Dad like that."
Bai Tian sniffled, his eyes turning red. "I know I’m useless. I accept that you blame me for being a burden to the family, but you can't target my daughter like this. My daughter loves her grandfather and wants him to get better soon."
The Old Lady's heart ached seeing him like this. "My dear boy, don't say that. It's because I didn't take good care of you back then, which is why you've been frail since birth. It’s my fault."
Here we go again… "Dear boy"… Bai Banxia couldn't help but shudder, but then she saw her father surreptitiously wink at her.
Wow, Dad is impressive. He plays the 'White Lotus' act so smoothly.
Doctor Xu also choked on a mouthful of tea, coughing a few times.
"Sigh, some people didn't care about Grandpa's condition from the start. They just kept targeting and mocking me. Now, fearing they'll lose the bet, they're trying to stop me from treating him. Where is the filial piety in that?" Bai Banxia shook her head helplessly, intentionally putting on a look of deep distress.
"You…" Bai Shui's eyes were nearly spitting fire.
"Enough!" The Old Master spoke up, interrupting him. "Let Banxia treat me."
The Old Master rarely spoke, but whenever he did, it was usually the final word. The Old Lady opened her mouth to speak, but ultimately closed it again.
"Dad!" Bai Shui was unwilling to let it go, but the Old Master began coughing again.
Bai Banxia ignored Bai Shui—he was nothing more than a clown. When she treated patients, she was focused and single-minded, not bothering to spare a glance for someone like him.
She walked over and pressed several acupoints on the Old Master's back. His coughing stopped, and his breathing became much smoother.
Doctor Xu's eyes lit up. He went over and asked about the points one by one. Bai Banxia didn't hold anything back and explained them to him. Doctor Xu nodded repeatedly, looking like a humble student.
Finally, the medicinal soup was ready. Zhang Lingzhi had even thoughtfully used cold water to bring down the temperature so it could be consumed immediately.
Bai Banxia looked at her mother. Her mother wasn't actually stupid; in modern terms, she just had a low EQ.
The Old Master took the bowl and drained it in one gulp. Then, following Bai Banxia's instructions, he sat cross-legged on the edge of the kangs.
"Didn't he just drink the medicine? Shouldn't we wait a bit?" the Old Lady asked worriedly.
Bai Banxia ignored her, taking out Doctor Xu's silver needles and sterilizing them over a flame before inserting them one by one. Though the Old Lady was dissatisfied, she grew tense and didn't dare speak again.
"Such rapid needling?" Doctor Xu asked in surprise. He immediately regretted it; he shouldn't have disturbed someone while they were treating a patient, but he truly couldn't help himself.
"My master said that for needling to be like a god, one must pursue a seamless, single flow." Bai Banxia was actually grumbling inwardly. If it weren't for her being so fat right now and her fingers being less than nimble, she would have been even faster.
Before long, Bai Banxia had finished inserting the nine needles.
"Dad, get a basin," she said to her father.
Bai Tian acknowledged her and ran out, returning with a wooden basin which he held in front of the Old Master.
"Daughter, I've got it ready."
Bai Banxia nodded to him and suddenly flicked a silver needle with her finger.
Hum…
Doctor Xu thought he heard an extremely faint humming sound. The nine silver needles actually began to vibrate slightly.
"This… this…" His face turned red with excitement. "A divine skill! A divine skill!"
The others were further away and lacked his powers of observation, so they didn't understand why Doctor Xu was so excited. Suddenly, the Old Master let out a violent cough, and a mouthful of breath along with the medicinal juice surged out of his mouth.
The medicinal soup wasn't meant to take effect in the stomach; it was targeted at the bone fragments and the throat. Naturally, once it was swallowed, they could proceed to the next step of acupuncture.
Acupuncture was the key to this treatment. Bai Banxia's unique needling technique had to be combined with that final burst of Moxibustion Qi to force the medicine and the bone fragment out together.
"Look, there really is a bone fragment!" Bai Tian shouted. He carried the wooden basin over to show the Old Lady, then circled the room to show everyone else.
Finally, he held it in front of Bai Shui. Bai Shui's face was so dark it looked like it might drip water, but he couldn't look away. He was so angry that his back teeth ground together with a creaking sound.
"Second Brother, what's wrong? Look at how dangerous this sharp bone fragment was. Dad is finally fine now; you should be happy." As Bai Tian spoke, he thrust the basin closer to Bai Shui's face, nearly shoving it under his nose.
With a loud thud, Bai Shui could no longer endure it. He shoved the basin away, and it hit the floor with a dull thud.
Everyone froze. Bai Shui lunged toward his wife and delivered a heavy slap to her face.
"I'll beat you to death, you wasteful woman! So it was you who harmed Dad!" He cursed as he rained blows down upon Mrs. Xu's head and face.
Mrs. Xu began to cry. "I really didn't know, I really didn't know."
Beside them, Sanlang saw his mother being beaten but didn't help, acting as if it had nothing to do with him.
Bai Banxia wanted to go and stop Bai Shui, but her legs went weak and her head began to swim. If her mother hadn't been beside her to support her, she would have collapsed onto the floor.
Using Moxibustion Qi was extremely taxing. She hadn't expected her current body to be so weak that she nearly fainted.
"Stop!" She bit the tip of her tongue, forcing herself to regain some clarity. "There are often bone fragments when chopping chicken. It was just an accident; it has nothing to do with Second Aunt."
Bai Shui glared at her sinisterly. "I'm hitting my own wife, what's it to you? Now you're acting like the 'good person'."
One of Mrs. Xu's eyes was bruised and swollen. She looked at Bai Banxia through her tears, her eyes filled with pain and resentment.
Bai Banxia felt a pang in her chest. Although it wasn't her intention, seeing her second aunt being beaten made her feel uneasy.
If her second uncle could beat his wife like this in public, he surely did it even more in private. No wonder her predecessor had witnessed it.
What a piece of domestic-abusing trash!