âYoung Master Chen, do you know anything about Chinese medicine?â Ye Aotian asked.
âI donât, but these three esteemed gentlemen certainly do. Do you? Whereâs your team?â Chen Fan played dumb, slipping into his role.
Standing near the door, Ling Yuyan watched the scene with keen interest.
Ye Aotian chuckled. âDo you think everyoneâs as clueless as you? Chinese medicineâIâm proficient in it myself.â
Chen Fan chuckled dryly. âPrince William, are you really going to trust someone so young to needle your butler? Do you truly believe heâs fit for it?â
Although William was friends with Ye Aotian, this situation made him a bit nervous. He looked at Ye Aotian and asked, âAre you confident?â
âAbsolutely. Itâs just a case of a brain hemorrhage. Treating it without brain surgery isnât difficult.â
Insanely arrogant. One of the elderly practitioners beside Chen Fan spoke up. âSuch audacity from a mere child! Human life cannot be guaranteed so flippantly! And what if something goes wrong?â
Chen Fan thought. Anyone who reads novels knows that when the elder says such a line, theyâre bound to get slapped in the face. Chen Fan had been worried heâd struggle to slip into character, but this outburst by the elderly practitioner made him gleeful.
On the sidelines, Jin Lan massaged her temples.
Ye Aotian shot back, âYou stubborn old fools never understand that thereâs always someone better out there.â
âVery well, go ahead then. If it doesnât work, we wonât be responsible for the aftermath.â
Chen Fan turned to William and said, âPrince William, if Ye Aotian fails, causing irreparable harm, we wonât be able to intervene. The full responsibility will lie with Ye Aotian.â
âResponsibility?â William looked over at Ye Aotian.
âMy life is on the line here. Of course, Iâm willing to take responsibility.â
Anna scoffed, âWho cares about your pathetic life? The butler is family to us. Who are you? Do you have any real assurance?â
William glanced at Annaâs face. âSister, what happened to your face?â
âItâs nothing. I tripped. No big deal.â
Anna had started to dislike Ye Aotian. She didnât even know why. If she didnât know the plot, she might have seen him as just another flirt. But knowing the story and seeing Ye Aotianâs true nature, she only found him increasingly fake.
Now, with both sides using the same plan, whoever treated the patient first would steal the spotlight.
Ye Aotian turned to Princess Anna, âI donât know why youâre so hostile towards me. I think there must be a misunderstanding. I genuinely want to save this person.â
Actually, Ye Aotian was feeling irritated too.
Looking at it that way, it all made sense. Maybe he just hadnât been assertive enough when he flirted with her. William had mentioned she was a bit of a basket case.
Chen Fan had no idea of Ye Aotianâs inner thoughts, but if he did, he would have awarded him âBest Protagonist.â This was the ultimate self-conquest strategy. Top marks for delusion.
Annaâs resistance left Ye Aotian perplexed. He said, âIn that case, you go first. What if something goes wrong?â
It definitely
go wrong, and if they donât kill the old man, itâd be a miracle. But in the current situation, there was no choice but to keep going.
Chen Fan signaled to the elderly practitioners and said, âGo ahead and treat him. If anything goes wrong, Iâll take responsibility.â
The three elderly practitioners nodded, positioned themselves around the patient, and began identifying acupuncture points. Chen Fan stepped out to the corridor, casually lighting a cigarette.
Hospitals may not allow smoking, but he was the villain. Villains, after all, have no regard for manners.
There were quite a few spectators, including Lin Qingyue, which surprised Chen Fan.
Zhu Yeqing, reading the diary, was full of disdain.
After reading it, Lin Qingyue instantly understood. Her father had recently been facing health problems, specifically with his kidneys. If Ye Aotian saved this patient, heâd undoubtedly become popular in Qincheng, and the family would likely reach out to him.
Chen Fan, stepping out of the bathroom, noticed Lin Qingyue but chose to ignore her. He expected sheâd go into the room to watch Ye Aotianâs grandstanding, but instead, she was still waiting for him by the door.
âWhat are you waiting for? Arenât you going to watch your boyfriend?â
âThe other day, it was Xiao Lan, not me. Why do you always think itâs me?â
âDoes it matter? Without your encouragement, would Xiao Lan have dared to go after Ye Aotian? Are you still acting in front of me? You donât need to anymore. Ye Aotianâs wealthy now and capable; you two can be together.â
âI ⦠Chen Fan, youâre being unreasonable.â
âHow am I unreasonable? Isnât your Lin family interested in Ye Aotian lately? Iâve heard your family frequents his bar.â
âThose are just relatives, not me.â
Chen Fan wasnât interested in listening. He had to play his part.
In the room, the three elderly practitioners looked frustrated as there were no signs of the patient waking up. They stepped aside.
Ye Aotian mocked, âMy turn? Itâs truly laughable. A group of old fossils trying to act like theyâre something theyâre not?â
Standing at the door, Chen Fan feigned anger and sneered, âA bunch of useless fools.â
But inside, he was thrilled.
He resolved to reward each of them with a villa.
Still, he kept a scowl on his face, glaring at Ye Aotian.
âThese three masters couldnât do anything, and you think you can? Donât kill him, or you wonât be able to bear the responsibility.â
Ye Aotian smirked devilishly.
Chen Fan watched, almost wanting to grab a megaphone and shout,
Ye Aotian declared, âIâll use your treatment plan to save this person. Watch and learn what a real difference in skill looks like.â