After getting into the car, Bai Mu Ning immediately regretted it. He shouldn’t have gotten in; he should’ve run away.
The air pressure inside the car was heavy. Wen Jing gripped the steering wheel with one hand, staring straight ahead. No one knew what he was thinking, but his expression was grim, and his furrowed brows looked as if they could crush a fly.
He was probably in a bad mood—his little sister was still missing.
Under such circumstances, Bai Mu Ning didn’t dare to speak, afraid he’d become cannon fodder and be burned alive by Wen Jing’s anger.
Bai Mu Ning kept his lips tightly pressed together, sitting obediently against the soft backrest without saying a word.
He didn’t even dare to move his hands around, only resting them on his legs.
The employer had said that he liked youthful, energetic, well-behaved, and cute boys.
Due to his unresolved kidney deficiency, youthful energy wasn’t convincing enough, so he could only take the cute and obedient route.
After enduring the posture for a while, Bai Mu Ning felt a bit tired and kept wanting to lean back comfortably.
The warm air blew for a while, making Bai Mu Ning’s headache worse. His whole body felt as if it had been drained of strength, and he couldn’t maintain his obedient appearance anymore, slumping limply like a puddle of mud, his breathing growing heavier.
As expected, today wasn’t a good day to strike up a conversation. The effects of the medicine that Li Anche had given him had worn off, and he was starting to feel sickly again.
He didn’t know where Wen Jing was taking him, but right now, he couldn’t care less.
Half-asleep, he didn’t know how long he’d been out when he vaguely heard someone calling his name. However, his eyelids felt too heavy to open—he just wanted to sleep.
He was too tired and needed a good rest. Just let him sleep a little longer!
Not that long, just five more minutes.
Bai Mu Ning thought he must’ve mumbled out loud; otherwise, why didn’t anyone wake him up?
The car door opened from the outside, and cold wind rushed in. The previously warm environment instantly turned into an icy, frigid space, making Bai Mu Ning shiver uncontrollably, almost wanting to curl up into a ball.
The seatbelt buckle clicked open, and suddenly his body felt weightless. He thought he must have ascended to immortality—how else could he be floating?
It was so cold. Bai Mu Ning hunched his shoulders and buried his head, the bitter scent of herbal medicine lingering at the tip of his nose. This time, it didn’t seem as unpleasant.
Before long, the environment became warm again, and this time, voices sounded beside his ear.
“Old Wen, weren’t you going to catch your sister? Why did you bring back a little guy?”
“Where did you pick him up? He’s pretty cute, but his face is really red—is he running a fever?”
Wen Jing remained indifferent, not stopping as he replied, “Picked him up outside.”
“Then you better tell me the exact location so I can pick one up and raise him too.”
Do you think he’s a stray cat or dog?
After that, Bai Mu Ning couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he wanted to defend himself—he wasn’t picked up from outside; he had come of his own accord.
—add
Bai Mu Ning slept quite well, but he had no idea who lacked moral integrity and took advantage of his sleep to knead and press him like dough. His back was pushed around, and every acupoint was massaged. If his body weren’t naturally resilient, he would have been completely flattened.
Later, the bad guy didn’t just stop at that; they escalated and started pricking him with needles.
The thin, long needles pierced his skin without drawing blood, but they still hurt. One prick after another—this was more ruthless than even Rong Mama.[1]
Eventually, the pain woke Bai Mu Ning up.
Wen—Rong Mama—Jing held a needle and asked, “How do you feel?”
Bai Mu Ning hissed in pain. Seeing Wen Jing holding the needle, it felt like a silent threat. He swallowed his complaints and changed his response, “Pretty good.”
Though honestly, he was in so much pain he wanted to hit someone.
Wen Jing put away the thin needle and said to Bai Mu Ning, “Since you’re fine, you can put your clothes on and leave.”
If not for Wen Jing’s reminder, Bai Mu Ning wouldn’t have noticed that his shirt was gone.
Although he was a grown man, being stripped by a stranger still made him feel uncomfortable. What made it worse was that he had to thank the person afterward.
Reluctantly, Bai Mu Ning expressed his gratitude. Wen Jing responded with a faint “Mm” and walked out without another word.
So cold, so heartless—not a single unnecessary word. No matter what, they had a doctor-patient relationship. Would it hurt to be a bit warmer toward the patient?
Patients also need emotional support from doctors.
Bai Mu Ning found his clothes by the bedside, got dressed, and prepared to leave.
However, he didn’t know what was wrong with him. It was as if he were half-paralyzed. The moment his feet touched the ground and he tried to stand, he found that he couldn’t get up. His legs were numb and sore, and it took him a while to regain feeling.
I’m afraid that Wen Jing’s stabbing had messed me up.
That man was wicked. It was definitely possible.
Step by step, Bai Mu Ning moved downstairs, noticing that the person at the cashier’s counter had changed. The familiar young lady from before was gone, replaced by a male doctor in a white coat.
Bai Mu Ning had seen his photo on the Sanwen Hall introduction wall. This person was named Chen Haonan, also a traditional Chinese medicine doctor like Wen Jing.
However, he held an additional title as the person in charge of Sanwen Hall, essentially the boss.
His personality was completely different from Wen Jing’s. Wen Jing pretended to be kind but was actually indifferent, while this person looked like the sociable, talkative type.
How did these two polar opposites end up together?
“Little Kid, how was Dr. Wen’s acupuncture experience? Let me tell you, the massage and acupuncture just now were both personally done by Dr. Wen. It shows how much he values you.”
Little Kid—what an annoying term. Where was he little?
This person was really good at lying. How did Wen Jing value him at all?
Even if he wasn’t satisfied, he still had to put on a polite front. Bai Mu Ning smiled and said, “It was great. Dr. Wen is really skilled.”
“How much is it?” Bai Mu Ning didn’t think Wen Jing would be so kind as to waive the fee, so he decided to take the initiative.
Chen Haonan printed the bill and handed it to Bai Mu Ning, saying, “Did you come to our place for treatment last week? You look familiar.”
Bai Mu Ning responded with a hum, but then was shocked by the amount on the bill, 1,508 yuan. So expensive.
“Did you know him before?” Chen Haonan continued asking, but Bai Mu Ning didn’t pay attention to him.
Looking at the bill in disbelief, Bai Mu Ning asked, “Can I ask why it’s so expensive? Did I break some laws of heaven?”
The bill listed all the charges: massage, acupuncture, bed fee, and Chinese medicine fee.
Last time Bai Mu Ning came for a consultation, it cost a little over 200. Now it was more than a thousand—he couldn’t accept this price.
Chen Haonan chuckled and said, “Our charges are transparent and absolutely reasonable. Besides, Dr. Wen is our top doctor, so you’ve already received a discount. Are you paying by WeChat or Alipay?”
Was that really the correct way to use the term top doctor?
Chen Haonan’s sly smile made him look exactly like a cunning merchant.
Bai Mu Ning finally understood why Wen Jing insisted on taking responsibility for him—it was all just a setup to rip him off.
They were all bad people.
How could they just scam money like that?
Bai Mu Ning had barely been to a hospital before, and he had no idea about the charges for traditional Chinese medicine treatments. He could only grit his teeth and make one last attempt, “Can I use health insurance?”
“Can’t oh, this is a private clinic.”
Alright, his heart died.
Bai Mu Ning took out his phone to scan the code and enter the amount, feeling like he was about to cry—there went his entire month’s living expenses.
He pitifully asked, “Can I use health insurance for heartache?”
Chen Haonan handed him the freshly brewed medicine and chuckled, “That’s not covered either, but you’re an interesting little kid.”
Bai Mu Ning felt even worse because his balance was insufficient—he had forgotten that he had used the money to repay his student loan.
Bai Mu Ning didn’t have the funds to attend university, so with the help of community workers, he had applied for a student loan of several thousand yuan, which he had recently paid off.
Putting away his phone, Bai Mu Ning took out the cash Li Li had given him.
Li Li had been going through a divorce recently, making her sensitive about money, so she had given cash instead.
She was generous—not only did she pay the 200 yuan for his mouth substitute service, but she also tipped him an extra 4,000. It was just enough to cover the medical bill; otherwise, he would have been embarrassed.
Handing the money to Chen Haonan, the latter gave him 20 yuan as change from the cashier.
Only then did Bai Mu Ning carry the bag of medicine outside to wait for the bus.
It was mid-afternoon, and he was the only one at the bus stop. His stomach growled loudly from hunger.
His phone vibrated, showing an incoming call from Li Anche.
Once the call connected, Li Anche’s concerned voice came through, “Ning ah, how are you? Is everything done? When are you coming back?”
There were four people in the dorm, but only Li Anche truly cared about him.
Bai Mu Ning had come to study in Jingnan all by himself, and Li Anche was his only friend.
The other two had already planned to move out, and the only reason Li Anche hadn’t moved back home was that he didn’t want Bai Mu Ning to be bored alone.
After all, no matter how comfortable the dorm was, it couldn’t compare to home. Bai Mu Ning was genuinely grateful to Li Anche for staying with him.
Being cared for felt really nice, and Bai Mu Ning’s heart softened a little. “It’s done. I’ll be back soon.”
Li Anche said, “Where are you now? Don’t be reluctant to take a taxi, I’ll reimburse you. Hurry up and take a taxi back. Don’t take the bus when you’re sick.”
“I know.”
However, Bai Mu Ning couldn’t bear to take a taxi, nor did he feel comfortable asking for Li Anche’s money.
As a good brother, Li Anche was always reliable, even bringing meat from home to share with Bai Mu Ning from time to time.
Bai Mu Ning was well aware of his kindness, which was why he didn’t take it for granted.
Given his financial situation, he couldn’t repay Li Anche anytime soon, so he tried not to trouble him too much.
“Mn, I got it. I’ll take a taxi back right away.” To ease Li Anche’s doubts, he quickly changed the topic, “An An, guess what? I went to see a traditional Chinese medicine doctor. I’m fine now.”
“Mu Ning, you’ve been really into traditional Chinese medicine lately. Is that clinic any good? How are the charges?”
“It’s okay, but the fees are a bit high,” Bai Mu Ning complained. “The massage, acupuncture, and medicine cost me 1,500. Oh my god, do you think I ran into a shady clinic?”
Li Anche, being more experienced, said, “No way, that’s too expensive. Was it some kind of golden needles? My mom goes to a traditional Chinese medicine doctor too, and even the priciest acupuncture costs around 200 at most. Yours is really overpriced.”
After hearing that, Bai Mu Ning was even more convinced that he’d been scammed. “I must’ve run into a crooked traditional Chinese medicine doctor. That guy looks decent on the surface, but how could he learn to scam people out of money? I’m never going back to him.”
“Damn con artist. I should go demand an explanation.”
It was one thing to deceive people, but taking their money was another. This was Bai Mu Ning’s bottom line.
After hanging up, Bai Mu Ning turned his head and saw Wen Jing standing nearby, quietly staring at him. He had no idea how long Wen Jing had been there or how much he had overheard.
But judging from Wen Jing’s tightly pressed lips, it was clear that he had been standing there for quite a while, heard everything, and wasn’t pleased at all with how Bai Mu Ning had spoken.
Getting caught badmouthing someone behind their back was truly embarrassing.
Mom, today must’ve been a day possessed by the god of misfortune—everything was going wrong.
[1] A notorious character from the classic Chinese TV drama “My Fair Princess”. In the series, Rong Mama is a ruthless and scheming palace maid who serves the antagonist, Empress Dowager. She is infamous for torturing one of the main characters, Ziwei, by pricking her with long needles—a scene that left a lasting impression on many viewers.