28

So Su Fuling was certain: Tang Jing was definitely ill. If not for the makeup, she was sure the woman's complexion would look dreadful.

Sure enough, the moment she took her pulse, Su Fuling knew. A person's pulse never lies. The rate was slow, the beat feeble — a textbook mid-stage gastric condition.

Back in her hometown, she had seen plenty of cases like this. Many of the older generation had come through the lean years with ruined stomachs, starved half to death.

Tang Jing urged her along. 'Hey, I have to get to work.'

Su Fuling withdrew her hand. 'No matter how busy work gets, you still have to eat. I hear you're quite good at making money — surely you can afford a meal. Eat on time. Think about how awful it feels when your stomach acts up.'

Tang Jing instinctively pressed a hand over her stomach, then looked at Su Fuling in surprise. She had never told her father about this condition — she didn't want him to worry. No one knew. Even at the office, she took her medicine hiding in the bathroom, afraid the company would fire her for being sickly. No one knew... so this woman had actually seen through her!

Someone came downstairs heading to work, chatting loudly on the way down, filling the stairwell with noise.

At the sound of it, Tang Jing slipped away without thinking. She had no taste for dealings with the neighbors.

Su Fuling sighed and was about to leave when voices drifted down from upstairs. 'Let's go have a look later — free consultations. I want to get my old complaints checked out too.'

'Who knows if it's a scam. Free of charge — always feels like there's a catch. I just hope they don't try to sell us medicine.'

'What's there to be afraid of? If they push medicine, we walk.'

Hearing that, Su Fuling made herself scarce at once. No point inviting awkwardness.

She had barely reached the shop entrance when the queue stopped her cold.

People had been lining up since early morning. Sure enough, once the advertisement went out, the difference was plain to see.

Zhao Facao was standing at the door organizing everyone's registration. The moment he spotted Su Fuling, he rushed to claim credit. 'Master, you're here! Look at all these people I've brought in!'

At that form of address, everyone in the queue turned to look at Su Fuling, then cast a glance back at Zhao Facao's weathered face. The pairing struck them all as decidedly odd.

Su Fuling cleared her throat. 'During working hours, call me Doctor Su — it's more professional.'

Zhao Facao corrected himself at once. 'Doctor Su, look at how many people showed up today. You're going to have a busy morning.'

Su Fuling smiled and nodded. 'It's fine. Everyone has put their trust in us — we can't let them make the trip for nothing. Let me go get ready to start.'

Seeing how young Su Fuling was, a few people in the queue felt uncertain and quietly slipped away.

Zhao Facao watched them go and offered, 'They probably had other things to take care of.'

Su Fuling said, 'It's all right. Start sending people in.'

Zhao Facao hurried off to do so.

When He Li and the others arrived, they too were taken aback by the queue. How had so many people gathered at Doctor Su's door? How long would they have to wait?

But wait they must.

After registering with Zhao Facao, He Li stood to one side and watched Doctor Su see to her patients.

She really did look like a proper doctor.

'Do you cough more at night — tightness in the chest, a lot of phlegm?'

'Doctor, you're incredible — you got every single thing right.' The middle-aged patient stared in amazement.

Su Fuling said, 'This is chronic bronchitis. I'll write you a herbal prescription to try — it should clear the phlegm and ease the cough.'

The moment he saw the herbal formula Su Fuling had written, the middle-aged patient stood up. 'Oh, Doctor, never mind — I've already been to the hospital. They gave me medicine. I can't just go taking other things on top of that. I only came to have a casual look.'

Su Fuling nodded. 'In that case, you really shouldn't take anything else.'

He Li, watching from the side, could no longer hold her tongue. What did he mean, 'just a casual look'? Was he here to make fools of them? 'You've already seen a doctor — what are you doing here? You're not going to take Doctor Su's prescription, yet you're taking up a spot. Isn't that wasting everyone's time?'

Not wanting a quarrel, Su Fuling stepped in. 'Ms. He, morning consultations are free and there is no threshold for entry.'

He Li rushed to explain, 'I just didn't want him wasting everyone's time.'

The middle-aged patient snapped back, 'You mean wasting your time. It's free for everyone — what makes you so special?'

He Li said, 'Who said I'm here for free? I'm here for a check-up, and check-ups aren't free.'

At that, the middle-aged patient paused. 'A check-up? Here?'

He glanced around Su Fuling's shop, then noticed the sign advertising the twenty-one-item same-day health screening.

'...'

The others in the queue had spotted it too.

Su Fuling said gently, 'Ms. He, would you mind waiting a moment? Here we go strictly by order of arrival.'

Zhao Facao chimed in quickly, 'Ms. He, just wait a bit — don't hold up my master's work.'

He Li's face flushed and she stepped back.

The middle-aged patient, however, did not leave. He planted himself to one side. 'I want to see for myself whether you're really paying for a check-up.'

He Li: '...'

After all that commotion, the people behind her simply let He Li — the paying customer — go first, if only to stop her from making more remarks about those who weren't paying. They were genuinely curious whether she would actually hand over the money.

He Li didn't hesitate. She sat down together with Ding Lanhui, pulling her son along with her.

She slid sixty Hong Kong dollars across the counter.

This left the people in the queue even more bewildered.

Su Fuling noticed that Li Liang was dressed differently today — more carefully put together than usual, even wearing a suit.

But when she opened her scan, Su Fuling's brow furrowed.

Seeing that expression, He Li tensed up at once.

Su Fuling took the pulses of all three. Ding Lanhui still needed to continue with the calming herbal formula she had prescribed before — nothing else wrong with her. He Li's constitution was excellent. Li Liang's only issue remained his wound. So was Li Liang about to run into trouble again?

Su Fuling turned to Li Liang. 'What are you planning to do today?'

Li Liang said, 'Ah, the big boss's birthday is today. Brother Shan is taking me to broaden my horizons.'

Su Fuling said, 'Your color isn't good today. Whatever you do, be careful.'

Li Liang said, 'Ah — does that mean I'm going to have bad luck?'

The onlookers behind him were baffled. What on earth was going on? Wasn't this a medical consultation? Why did it feel more like fortune-telling?

He Li asked urgently, 'Doctor Su, what's the situation? What should we do to avoid it?'

Su Fuling said, 'Best if he doesn't go at all.'

'That won't do — I need to broaden my horizons,' Li Liang said.

He Li smacked him on the head. 'What horizons? Do you want your mum to worry herself sick over you?'

Li Liang wrestled with it, then nodded. 'All right, I won't go then.' Chen Shan mattered, but listening to Mum and Doctor Su mattered more.

Hearing Li Liang say that, Su Fuling looked at him again.

Sure enough, the marker had shifted. It really did seem connected to that banquet.

Thinking of how Chen Shan was Chen Shasha's brother, she added a word of warning. 'Either way, remind the people around you — best to skip the drinking.'

Li Liang's eyes went wide. 'Does that mean...'

'Shh. Drinking harms the body. Young people need to look after themselves too. Cutting back on alcohol is never wrong,' Su Fuling said.

He Li said quickly, 'Just do what Doctor Su says.'

Then she turned a pained look on Su Fuling. 'Doctor Su, do you think he's been running on bad luck? He keeps running into this sort of thing.'

Su Fuling said, 'Did he not get injured before?'

He Li: '...Well, I suppose he did.' He had indeed been getting hurt every few days back then, but he always hid it from her — she only found out once the wounds had healed.

Su Fuling said, 'So it has nothing to do with luck. It has to do with his line of work.'

In that world, not getting hurt would be the miracle. The day Chen Shasha had brought people in for treatment, Su Fuling had already seen it — these people were never going to live quiet lives.

Li Liang, hearing Doctor Su's words, looked as though the sky had fallen. He had a feeling his mum was about to make him change careers. 'Mum, please...'

He Li shot him a look. 'Come on, stop bothering Doctor Su.'

The three of them hurried out — partly not to hold up Doctor Su, partly because they needed to go warn Chen Shan.

Once they left, the remaining people in the queue began asking about the health screening.

Just taking the pulse — and they charged twenty dollars for that? The process was even simpler than the free consultation.

'Doctor, your check-up is so simple — why is it so expensive?' asked Auntie Ah, who had just sat down.

Zhao Facao thought to himself: if you knew what it could do, you'd think it was a bargain.

Su Fuling said, 'That one is for detecting hidden conditions. Some people feel perfectly healthy and don't need a consultation — they can use that to check for things lurking beneath the surface. It's also about making sure medical resources aren't wasted, and keeping the free slots available for those who truly need them.'

'And people are actually willing to pay for that?' Auntie Ah found it hard to believe.

Su Fuling smiled. 'Some people take their health very seriously. Auntie Ah, what's been bothering you?'

Auntie Ah's mind was still turning over the logic of it all. Hearing Su Fuling's question, she answered on instinct, 'Toothache.' As she said it, she pressed a hand to her cheek.

Su Fuling listened, then began taking Auntie Ah's pulse.

'It's eczema.'

'Don't tell me I have to take medicine for that too,' Auntie Ah said, already reluctant to continue.

Su Fuling said, 'If Auntie Ah would rather not take medicine, I can mix a cream to relieve the itching. But without medicine to treat the root cause, it will come back. I'd wager it's already come back on you several times before.'

'You really are a proper doctor,' Auntie Ah said, astonished.

Su Fuling: '...'

Zhao Facao said, 'Of course my master is a real doctor — otherwise how could she be treating people?'

Auntie Ah said, 'She just looks about the same age as my granddaughter, that's all.'

Su Fuling said, 'Auntie Ah, you know best yourself whether the diagnosis is accurate.'

Auntie Ah said, 'It's very accurate. Still, I'd rather not take medicine — just write me the cream for now.'

Su Fuling wrote her the prescription for the cream. Even though it was only a topical remedy, she explained clearly what each ingredient was for.

Hearing it laid out like that, the patient understood exactly why she needed this particular medicine. The bystanders who had gathered around found themselves, quite without meaning to, feeling a measure of trust in Su Fuling. She really was a proper doctor — every medicine she prescribed had a clear reason behind it.

'After three o'clock, Auntie Ah, come back to pick up the cream.'

Auntie Ah now turned a little coy. 'You might as well write me the oral medicine too. You do seem to know what you're doing.'

Su Fuling heard that and smiled. She wrote out the herbal formula quickly, explaining each ingredient just as carefully as before.

Some of the passersby who had stopped to watch out of curiosity found themselves drawn in as Su Fuling explained the pharmacology behind the prescription. They ended up staying right where they were, listening on.

Watching the crowd at the door grow thicker by the minute, Zhao Facao looked back at Su Fuling and felt a genuine admiration for her composure.

He himself could never have had the patience for all that. But it was working, he had to admit.

Four Directions Society, Yau Ma Tei Hall.

Li Liang arrived at the hall and went straight to find Chen Shan.

Chen Shan had also made a special effort with his appearance today, his hair swept back in a slick pompadour.