Chapter 390: Persuasion
Chapter 390: Chapter 390: Persuasion
"So, what happened over there?" Li Huan, who had stayed in the compartment as Su Qing had told her to, asked hurriedly as soon as she saw her return.
"An elderly person had a sudden medical emergency, but it’s been stabilized. They’ll probably take him to the hospital once we get to the station," Su Qing explained briefly.
"That’s a relief, that’s a relief." Li Huan nodded. "A medical emergency on a train is the most dangerous thing. If you can’t find a doctor, treatment gets delayed. It’s a good thing that elderly gentleman was so lucky."
"It’s getting late. We should get to sleep." Outside, the world was pitch-black, save for a few scattered lights in the distance. As the train sped through the countryside, the dark silhouettes of trees flashed past the window. The car had fallen silent, leaving only the rhythmic clatter of the wheels on the tracks.
"Okay." Li Huan nodded readily and quickly lay down, pulling the covers up snugly over her entire body. Only her small, fluffy-haired head peeked out as she grinned at Su Qing. "Qingqing, good night."
"Good night," Su Qing replied with a smile, and soon drifted off to sleep.
The night passed uneventfully.
Su Qing had thought yesterday’s incident was over and done with, but when she went to get hot water the next day, she ran into the medical student from the day before.
"Hey, I was looking for you! It’s such a coincidence running into you." The medical student’s eyes lit up when he saw Su Qing. "I’m He Wentao. What’s your name, Classmate?"
"My surname is Su." Su Qing nodded at He Wentao.
"Classmate Su," He Wentao said hurriedly. "About that pill you gave the elderly gentleman yesterday... may I ask which master of traditional medicine formulated it? If it’s convenient, could you give me their contact information?"
"It’s not convenient," Su Qing said, giving He Wentao a cool glance.
"Why not?" He Wentao pressed.
"He values his privacy," Su Qing said and turned to leave.
"Classmate Su." Seeing her leave, He Wentao hurried after her. "I don’t mean any harm! You know our country has just been through some difficult times. Many of our industries are lagging behind developed nations, especially medicine. We lost so many talented practitioners of traditional medicine during those years. That’s why we urgently need to rebuild. If that master has such an effective formula, he should be sharing it to benefit the masses, not hoarding it for himself! If this formula could be widely applied in clinical settings, countless patients could get the timely treatment they need."
"You’re overthinking it. A medicine like that can’t be mass-produced," Su Qing said flatly. ’For me, with my Fifth Rank superpower, creating a pill like that is effortless. But I can’t just tell people I whipped it up with my bare hands, can I? I have no desire to be dissected for research. And as for making it with traditional methods... to get this kind of effect, the herbs required would have to be incredibly old and rare.’
’In that case, how many people could possibly afford such an expensive pill?’
"How can you know if you don’t even try?" He Wentao said, refusing to back down. "Classmate Su, you need to have some compassion. You must realize that if this pill could be made available to the public, countless patients would receive timely treatment."
Upon hearing this, Su Qing stopped in her tracks and turned to face He Wentao. "Heh. You’re saying I have no compassion?"
"If you’ll forgive my bluntness," He Wentao pursed his lips, "although you did provide the medicine yesterday, Classmate Su, did you ever consider that in that situation, the patient’s family might not have had ten yuan to buy the pill? If they couldn’t pay, would you have withheld the medicine and just stood by and watched the patient die? So..."
"So, you think I should have provided the medicine for free. Is that it?" Su Qing asked, raising an eyebrow.
He Wentao was taken aback for a moment, then said, "Desperate times call for desperate measures. The situation was critical. You really should have..."
"Sorry, but I’m not some world-saving bodhisattva, nor am I the kind of saint who does good deeds with no expectation of reward. My philosophy is one of mutual agreement. I can choose to take a loss on my own terms, but I won’t be guilt-tripped into it. Besides, do you really think someone who can afford a sleeper ticket is going to be short ten yuan? Hah. If I were to charge the actual price for that pill, forget ten yuan. You couldn’t buy it for a hundred."
After speaking, Su Qing added coldly, "Do me a favor and stop following me. And forget about the formula. You’re not getting it."
"Hey, Classmate Su, wait!"
He Wentao took a few quick steps to follow, but when he saw Su Qing walking away quickly without any intention of stopping, he sighed and frowned, muttering to himself, ’Girls these days... how can they be so heartless? Unbelievable!’
For the next two days, He Wentao didn’t bother Su Qing again. As the train pulled into the station in Guang City, Li Huan chirped happily to Su Qing, "We’re here! We’re here! We’re in Guang City! Aaaah, I can’t wait to get to Xiangcheng! I’m so excited!"
Su Qing laughed. "This time in Xiangcheng, you just focus on shopping till you drop. I’m paying."
"Really?!" Li Huan’s eyes sparkled. "Qingqing, I love you to death! Let me give you a hug! What kind of angel sister are you? How did I get so lucky to have a sister like you?"
Li Huan laughed and threw her arms around Su Qing. Half amused, half exasperated, Su Qing lightly flicked Li Huan’s forehead. "Alright, alright, we’re at the station. Let’s grab our bags and get ready to disembark."
"You got it!"
Neither of them had packed much luggage—just some snacks, a change of clothes, and some toiletries. A small wicker suitcase each was more than enough. Su Qing was planning on buying new clothes for both herself and Li Huan once they got to Xiangcheng. After all, they needed to dress more formally for Cheng Beilin’s wedding.
As Su Qing and Li Huan carried their wicker suitcases out of the station exit, they saw a man waving at them.
Su Qing recognized him. She had seen him before during an arrest mission in the mountains. He was one of Gu Xinsheng’s soldiers, a man named Li Jian Country.
"Brother Li." Su Qing waved back at Li Jian Country and greeted him with a smile.
"Classmate Su Qing, Classmate Li Huan." Li Jian Country jogged over, took the wicker suitcases from their hands, and smiled. "Come on, I’ll take you to the port of entry. Someone’s waiting there to take you across."
"Okay, thank you so much, Brother Li," Su Qing and Li Huan replied with bright smiles.
Li Jian Country led Su Qing and Li Huan out of the train station. Along the way, he greeted an acquaintance. At that same moment, He Wentao was also leaving the station. He was being picked up by his uncle, Ren Shuzhi, a professor at the Guang City University of Chinese Medicine. As it turned out, Ren Shuzhi was the very same acquaintance Li Jian Country had just greeted.
He Wentao saw the exchange as he came out. Walking up to Ren Shuzhi’s side, he immediately asked, "Uncle, that man who just greeted you... you know him well?"