Chapter 198
When He Deqiu came down, he saw two Audis and a man in a suit waiting for him. Seeing his arrival, that man said with a smile, "Principle He, nice to meet you. I'm President Cao's subordinate, and my surname is Mei. I'm here to fetch you for the meal as my boss, President He, has informed me that I must bring you along with me."
He Deqiu helplessly sighed. He knew that this must be Cao Bin's arrangement for fear that he might be lonely if he went alone. He turned to Ning Ru. "Call two more people to come with us." When he finished speaking, he turned to Su Tao and smiled. "Today's our first meeting, consider it like I'm trying to win your favor by using someone's treat. Why don't you accompany me for this meal?"
Su Tao had a casual character, to begin with, and seeing how sincere He Deqiu was, he smiled. "Teacher He, I will naturally heed your instructions." Either way, it's a good thing that he could have more interaction with this teacher of his.
He Deqiu had initially thought that Su Tao was a young man with character, but after their interaction, he realised that that wasn't the case. Thus, he had a more favorable opinion of the latter. When he saw Ning Ru bringing a few students down, he got Su Tao to sit together with him in a car, while his three other students sat in the other.
Ning Ru called two students along, a male and female. They're both He Deqiu's students in the Bachelor-Doctor Successive Program. They entered the School of TCM and took He Deqiu as their teacher right after their University Entrance Examination, and also had a good relationship with He Deqiu. At the same time, their skills weren't bad and they would often follow He Deqiu for outpatient calls. Although He Deqiu taught in the School of TCM, he had also been nurturing some potential and talented students, and their relationship was akin to that of a Master and Disciple in ancient times. The relationship between a teacher and students nowadays was just in class, and they wouldn't have any close relationship after class.
"Who is that young man together with teacher? He looks pretty young, and looks pretty handsome, too." Man Yu, who was sitting beside Ning Ru, asked out of curiosity.
The skinny youth sitting beside Man Yu was called Bian Bo. He looked displeased. He gently pushed his black-framed spectacles. "Stop being so smitten. I've seen his information. He's the biggest dark horse in this year's TCM Assembly. He defeated Wang Guofeng and obtained the Physician King title."
"Wow! Not only is he attractive, but he's also capable too!" Man Yu exaggeratedly wiped her mouth.
Taking a mouthful of breath, Bian Bo said in disdain, "I've heard from teacher that that fellow wants to be affiliated under teacher's name to get a résumé. So what if he's the Physician King? In this society, he still has to rely on academics."
Knitting her brows, Man Yu said, "Bian Bo, why are you so eccentric?"
Bian Bo snorted while tugging his chest and indignantly said, "I can't get used to others taking the shortcut. Was it easy for us to be teacher's students? But some people don't even need to work hard and easily got on the same track as us."
Ning Ru shook her head and reminded, "Bian Bo, you know Teacher He's character. So many people have tried to take the shortcut in the past years, but they were all rejected by him. Since Teacher He could accept Su Tao, that means that the latter must be capable. Furthermore, since he has obtained the Physician King's title, then there's no issue with his skill. It's just that he's unlike us, who sat through the examinations. Furthermore, you know that the University Entrance Examination has no relation to TCM."
Bian Bo snorted, "No matter what, I'm just unhappy at others taking the shortcut."
Ning Ru sighed, but did not continue speaking. After all, there's a reason to Bian Bo's animosity. Su Tao had, indeed, gone through a shortcut. As long as there's something unfair, there would be someone that would feel indignant and disregard the back story.
Although Su Tao had walked through the shortcut, did anyone know the hardship he has gone through behind the scenes? To train his medical skills, he had put in hard work unimaginable to others. The reason why He Deqiu was willing to accept this was because he knew that Su Tao was capable. Furthermore, their relationship was complicated. Although he had accepted Su Tao as his student, it's actually a disguise to absorb new blood. Having the new generation Physician King join the Qiongjin Medical University's School of TCM was something that would shake the entire TCM Industry.
Any university would consider the person's outstanding ability for special enrollment, and Su Tao's enrollment in the School of TCM had actually been through the discussion of the university's management. They have all decided to make an exemption for Su Tao and allow him to buff up his résumé. They knew the benefits that they could receive by having Su Tao as their student, and this was a win-win situation for both parties.
Naturally, as a student, how could Bian Bo think from the management's point-of-view?
Cao Bin hosted the meal in a classy restaurant, the Jade East Pavilion. This was a restaurant that served Huanan dishes, which looked interesting and appealing from the outside. The interior of the restaurant was also done with a classic touch and a fragrance permeated the air. When everyone entered the hall, they saw Cao Bin playing poker with a few others. When Cao Bin noticed He Deqiu's arrival, he instantly stood up and smiled. "Professor He, you're finally here. I tried to invite you several times, but you've rejected all of them. Thus, I could only resort to such a brute way of forcing you over. Please don't get angry with me."
He Deqiu cupped his hands and smiled. "Why would I? I have to thank President Cao for your invitation. It's mainly because I've been caught up with work and running between the university and hospital, so please understand." As a modest and low-profile person, He Deqiu's words were also mild and appropriate.
Cao Bin waved his hand towards the few who were playing poker. "Since Professor He is here, let's stop playing. Let's move over to the table and chat for a bit. We still have to wait for a friend, and he's also an important guest that I've invited."
Roughly an hour later, Cao Bin knitted his brows and made a call. A ringtone rang out from the door, and a middle-aged man in his forties walked in, waving his hand towards Cao Bin with a smile. "I'm sorry for being late."
Cao Bin stood up, shook his hands with the man and smiled. "Station Head Zou, I'm honored that you can make it, despite being swamped with work." When he finished speaking, he guided Zou Haichao to the table and introduced, "This is the famous Divine Physician, Principle He of Qiongjin Medical University's School of TCM, and they're his students. Principle He, this is the Station Head of our Huainan Satellite TV Channel."
He Deqiu sighed. He knew that the motive for this meal wasn't just as simple as expressing gratitude.
When Zou Haichao sat down, Cao Bin smiled with his eyes narrowed. "Shall we get started?"
Zou Haichao waved his hand and faintly said, "Let's wait for a bit. I still have a colleague from the station coming over as well."
"Let's wait, then." Cao Bin swiftly responded with a smile.
Zou Haichao shrugged and bitterly smiled. "There's no other choice, and you have to wait for this person. After all, she's responsible for the program that you're going to sponsor to promote your new estate."
Joy flickered in Cao Bin's eyes as he responded, "Station Head Zou, you're really formidable. I tried to invite her in private, but she never gave me a chance."
Zou Haichao waved his hand and smiled. "You inviting her in private is considered harassment, whereas my invitation to her now is work-related, so it's different."
Cao Bin awkwardly smiled. "Your words make sense."
Roughly ten-odd minutes later, a slender woman walked in, wearing black clothes and a black purse. Her heels were at least ten-odd centimeters high, and her face was small with a slim 'V' shape. With just a glance, Su Tao could instantly tell that she had undergone plastic surgery.
Cao Bin immediately stood up and smiled. "Producer Ni."
Right now, all the media in the country was currently undergoing a reformation, and that was the same for the television stations. Thus, producers held high authority, and their status was akin to a General Manager of a Program Designing Company with authority to dismiss and approve programs, especially those popular programs. Even the Television Station's Station Head couldn't treat them lightly. Ni Tong was a gold-plated producer in Huainan Television Station's Satellite Channel, and she's responsible for a program called the Celebrity Lifestyle with high ratings.
When she sat down, she waved her hand towards the attendant and smiled. "Let's start with the alcohol."
The attendant was stunned, since appetizers had just started, but Ni Tong wanted to start drinking already? However, the attendant still went with Ni Tong's instructions and filled up everyone's glass.
Ni Tong looked apologetic and said, "Brother Cao, sorry about that but I have important guests to entertain, and they're just next door. Thus, I can only drink one glass with you before I have to go next door to greet them."
An awkward expression appeared on Cao Bin's face as he smiled. "It's fine. You get busy, then."
After Ni Tong cleared her glass, she stood up and left without giving Cao Bin or Zou Haichao any face. The two of them were smart people, and despite being furious in their hearts, they still suppressed their anger and chatted happily with everyone.
Su Tao felt a little bored, so he found an excuse to visit the washroom to get some fresh air. As he was walking along the corridor, he heard Ni Tong's voice coming from a room, so he turned his gaze to that direction. He saw a familiar silhouette sitting in a corner. She held onto her phone and did not talk to others, looking isolated, when compared to those around her.
It's her?
Su Tao sighed before he continued towards the washroom's door. When he pushed the door, a wave of alcohol blew over and a robust man was supporting a middle-aged man. The latter vomited before saying, "Little Ding, today's fun, but there's someone that didn't give me any face today."
Little Ding swiftly smiled, "Mr. Nitta, she has just recently joined our program's team. She's a newcomer, so she's not familiar with things."
Taking the napkin from Little Ding's hand, the middle-aged man wiped his mouth and furrowed his brows. "If she isn't familiar, then she needs to be taught."