"Who the hell are you—"

  The thug turned around, ready to curse, but when he saw the figure behind him, his body trembled violently, almost collapsing to the ground.

  "Xie... Xie Shu..."

  A brand-new black Audi A6L was parked by the roadside, bearing official city license plates. The person who had arrived was none other than Xie Changfeng, the top leader of Qinghai City!

  "What did you just say? Acting according to the law? Which law allows you to act like this?" Xie Changfeng said coldly.

  In truth, Xie Changfeng hadn’t been there long, but he had overheard the conversation between Lin Yu and the thug, and it had ignited his fury.

  Under his governance over the past few years, Qinghai had developed in an orderly manner. He never expected such irresponsible behavior still existed.

  "Xie Shu, I... I..." The thug’s face twisted in panic. Why was he so unlucky as to run into Xie Changfeng?

  "If I recall correctly, your district’s leader is Sun Mingzhan, right?" Xie Changfeng glanced at the thug’s uniform and said coldly, "Tomorrow, tell him to come to my office in person!"

  Given the urgency of the situation, Xie Changfeng didn’t have time to delve deeper. He planned to settle the score with Sun Mingzhan tomorrow.

  "Yes, yes, yes..."

  The thug nodded repeatedly in agreement.

  "All the damages here will be covered by your district. Now, get out of my sight!" Xie Changfeng frowned and commanded sternly.

  The thug and his men didn’t dare utter another word, scrambling into their cars and fleeing.

  "Thank you, Leader!"

  "A righteous official!"

  "The Leader stands up for the people!"

  The surrounding small restaurant owners, shocked and moved by Xie Changfeng’s sudden appearance, expressed their gratitude.

  "You’re too kind. As a public servant, it’s my duty to serve the people. I assure you all that I will order the relevant departments to conduct self-inspections and self-criticisms to prevent such incidents from happening again," Xie Changfeng declared with righteousness.

  If not for picking up Lin Yu, he might never have known the hardships faced by ordinary citizens. He silently resolved to visit the grassroots more often in the future.

  "Xiao He, let’s go."

  Xie Changfeng quickly invited Lin Yu to leave. His brother-in-law was still waiting at home.

  "Jiarong, you go ahead. I’ll clean up here," Qin Xiulan said with a smile, never imagining that her godson would be so remarkable as to be personally picked up by the city’s top leader.

  The surrounding restaurant owners were also envious, congratulating Qin Xiulan on having such a capable godson.

  On the way to Xie Changfeng’s home, Xie Changfeng briefed Lin Yu on his brother-in-law’s condition.

  The illness was a common case of muscle atrophy, with some collapse in the muscles of the back and neck. However, the strange part was that whenever he sweated, his shoulders and back would ache unbearably. Additionally, his hands could only press against his ribs, as if tied down by ropes—he couldn’t open them or lift them. Any forced movement of his arms caused excruciating pain in his tendons and bones.

  Over the past six months, Xie Changfeng’s brother-in-law had sought treatment at hospitals near his hometown, consulting both Western and traditional Chinese doctors, but to no avail. So, Xie Changfeng invited him to Qinghai, hoping Elder Song could treat him. Instead, Elder Song recommended Lin Yu.

  "Xiao He, have you ever encountered this kind of illness before? Are you confident?" Xie Changfeng asked.

  "To be honest, I’ve never seen such a strange condition before. As for whether I can treat it, I’ll need to examine him first," Lin Yu answered truthfully. The symptoms did sound quite peculiar.

  "Alright, let’s take a look first," Xie Changfeng nodded, thinking that if all else failed, Elder Song was still their backup.

  Xie Changfeng lived in a government-assigned residential compound for officials. Since he wasn’t a local, he didn’t own property here.

  The apartment was modestly sized, simply decorated, but spotlessly clean, giving off a comfortable vibe upon entering.

  Three people were seated on the sofa—a middle-aged couple who appeared only slightly younger than Xie Changfeng, and another woman in her fifties. The man’s hands were tightly pressed against his ribs, immobile, his expression filled with pain.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  The woman, fair-skinned and gentle-looking, bore some resemblance to the man. She stood up when she saw Lin Yu and smiled. "You must be Xiao He. Thank you for coming all this way."

  "Auntie, hello. It’s no trouble at all," Lin Yu replied politely, guessing that this must be Xie Changfeng’s wife.

  Xie Changfeng then introduced everyone: his wife, Yang Yan; his brother-in-law, Yang Kun; and Yang Kun’s wife, Tao Yueping.

  Yang Kun and his wife greeted Lin Yu warmly, though their eyes betrayed some doubt. Their brother-in-law had said he was bringing a "divine doctor" to treat them, but the man who arrived was so young.

  Even if they knew little about traditional Chinese medicine, they understood that it was a vast and complex field, and true mastery usually came only in middle age. How reliable could a young man like Lin Yu be?

  Still, since Xie Changfeng had brought him, they didn’t dare question it.

  In truth, Xie Changfeng himself wasn’t entirely confident. It was only because Elder Song had strongly recommended Lin Yu that he was willing to give him a try.

  "Uncle Yang, let me take your pulse first."

  Lin Yu sat down beside Yang Kun and carefully checked his pulse. He found that Yang Kun’s pulse was deep and slow—a sign of "soft convulsions," a type of Taiyang disease.

  Though the symptoms were complex, they could be cured with consistent medication.

  "Well, Xiao He?"

  Xie Changfeng asked anxiously as Lin Yu withdrew his hand.

  He had promised his brother-in-law and his wife that Qinghai would definitely cure him. If Lin Yu failed, it would reflect poorly on both Xie Changfeng and Qinghai itself.

  "It’s not a big problem. I’ll perform acupuncture on Brother Yang to relax his muscles and promote blood circulation, then prescribe a herbal formula. If he takes it for about ten doses, he’ll recover fully," Lin Yu said confidently.

  "Wonderful!" Xie Changfeng was thrilled and immediately asked Yang Yan to fetch the acupuncture needles.

  Just then, Yang Yan’s phone rang. Xie Changfeng had to get the needles himself.

  Lin Yu smiled wryly. It seemed he ought to carry his own set of needles in the future. Relying on others to prepare them made him seem unprofessional.

  Yang Kun and Tao Yueping were also uneasy. Was this really a doctor? He didn’t even bring his own needles.

  Just as Lin Yu was about to begin the acupuncture, Yang Yan hurried over and said, "Xiao He, could you wait a moment? My nephew just called and asked you to hold off until he arrives."

  "Chenming is coming back?" Tao Yueping asked in surprise. "I thought he was busy?"

  "Your son is worried about his father. He canceled an event in Beijing and flew back. He’s on his way from the airport now," Yang Yan explained with a smile.

  "That’s perfect! He can meet Xiao He. Xiao He, have you heard of my nephew, Yang Chenming?" Xie Changfeng asked proudly.

  "Yang Chenming? The big celebrity?" Lin Yu thought for a moment.

  "Haha, exactly! Young people like you must have heard his songs, right?" Xie Changfeng laughed.

  "Of course. My wife is actually a big fan of his."

  Lin Yu chuckled, finding it quite a coincidence. Yang Chenming was a wildly popular and talented singer. Now in his thirties, he had been famous for nearly a decade, with his songs consistently topping music charts.

  Jiang Yan was one of his devoted fans. She had loved his music since high school and still listened to it regularly.

  Lin Yu had even considered taking Jiang Yan to one of Yang Chenming’s concerts if he ever performed in Qinghai. Who would’ve thought he’d end up treating the singer’s father?

  If he could get an autographed photo for Jiang Yan, she’d be overjoyed.

  The thought brought a smile to Lin Yu’s face.

  After about half an hour, there was a knock at the door. Yang Yan hurried to open it.

  Standing outside was a man dressed in ultra-trendy attire—Yang Chenming himself.

  Lin Yu was surprised. The singer looked much younger than his age, appearing to be in his late twenties at most.

  But Yang Chenming hadn’t come alone. Beside him stood a tall, blond, big-nosed foreigner dragging a large suitcase emblazoned with a red cross.

  Oh? A fellow practitioner?

  Lin Yu studied the foreigner closely and suddenly realized he looked familiar. He had seen him in one of Jiang Yan’s medical journals—a renowned foreign neurologist.

  "Chenming, who is this?"

  The family was puzzled by the foreigner’s presence.

  "Ah, Aunt, Uncle, this is Dr. Kailuo, a neurologist I invited from Beijing," Yang Chenming quickly introduced the foreigner.

  "Hello."

  The foreigner’s Chinese was quite good, with only a slight accent, suggesting he had spent considerable time in China.

  "So, why did you invite Dr. Kailuo…?" Yang Yan asked hesitantly.

  They had already brought Lin Yu here. Now Yang Chenming had brought another doctor, which was rather awkward—as if they didn’t trust Lin Yu’s skills.

  Xie Changfeng’s expression also darkened. "Chenming, I told you I’d invited a traditional Chinese doctor."

  "Uncle, who still believes in traditional Chinese medicine these days? It’s outdated and useless," Yang Chenming said dismissively.

  Lin Yu frowned. He didn’t mind Yang Chenming seeking another doctor for his father—as long as the illness was cured, that was what mattered. But now Yang Chenming was disparaging traditional Chinese medicine, which irked him.

  "Yes, Mr. Xie. I have some understanding of your traditional Chinese medicine. It might work for minor ailments, but for neurological conditions like this, it’s largely ineffective," Kailuo added.

  "Oh? So Dr. Kailuo is saying traditional Chinese medicine is inferior to Western medicine?" Lin Yu couldn’t stay silent any longer and stood up, hands behind his back.

  "Sir, I mean no offense, but facts are facts," Kailuo replied matter-of-factly.

  "Before coming here, did Dr. Kailuo familiarize himself with Uncle Yang’s condition? Have you seen symptoms like this before?" Lin Yu asked.

  "I’ve never encountered such strange symptoms, but at its core, it’s still muscle spasms. I can inject him with our country’s latest BTXA treatment, and he should improve quickly," Kailuo said confidently.

  "His condition is far more complex than ordinary muscle spasms. His inability to open his arms is due to wind pathogens affecting the Taiyang meridian, lingering unresolved, transforming into heat and damaging the yin blood. No medicine other than traditional Chinese remedies can cure this."

  Lin Yu’s tone was calm, but his words were firm.

  "Hahaha…" Kailuo couldn’t help but laugh. "Sir, you’re quite humorous. If you don’t believe me, shall we make a bet?"

  "Oh? What kind of bet?" Lin Yu raised an eyebrow.

  "If my treatment fails to cure Mr. Yang, and you succeed with traditional Chinese medicine, I will publish an article in Beijing’s largest medical journal tomorrow, apologizing to traditional Chinese medicine and admitting defeat. How about that?" Kailuo proposed.

  "Hmm, that sounds acceptable," Lin Yu nodded, satisfied with the terms.

  "Of course, if you lose, you must bow to me and admit that traditional Chinese medicine is useless!" Kailuo’s eyes burned with challenge.

  "No, I won’t allow it!" Xie Changfeng slammed the table angrily.

  Traditional Chinese medicine was a national treasure of China. To declare it useless would be an insult to their heritage.

  Moreover, if Lin Yu bowed, it wouldn’t just be Lin Yu bowing to Kailuo—it would be traditional Chinese medicine bowing to Western medicine. And the spine bending wouldn’t be Lin Yu’s, but China’s!

  "I accept," Lin Yu said with a serene smile.