The Self-Cultivation of a Reborn Massage Therapist

Chapter 37 Once
Grandpa Zhou felt healthier than ever before, and even the emptiness he felt after retiring had disappeared.

He knew very clearly what kind of old age he was about to face:

While others are queuing up early at the community hospital to buy common medications for elderly patients, he can walk his dog or bird; while others are suffering from various aches and pains and can't go anywhere, he can travel the world with his retirement pension... What kind of quality of life is this for the elderly?

Other people's medical expenses are their gym fees, equipment fees, and happiness taxes!

Not only Lao Zhou thought of this, but everyone else did too.

A rift suddenly appeared in the small group. The elderly men and women remained silent, exchanged wary glances, and quietly dispersed.

No one knows what they plan to do in the future, but Lao Zhou is certain that this small group will not grow to so many people again, because no one wants to create competitors for themselves out of thin air. No, they are not competitors, but life-or-death enemies that will affect their health and quality of life.

Zhao Xiaochui had no idea what kind of impact he had on the group of elderly men and women. After instructing Liu Li and Guo Guo to practice the Six-Character Mantra every day from 15 PM to 17 PM, he sent the two yawning women back to sleep.

As for him, he naturally went to the police station to enjoy breakfast personally cooked by the chef. Today there was fried liver with lots of oil and salt, which surprised Zhao Xiaochui. He quickly ran to the kitchen, nudged the chef's shoulder blades twice, and then happily ate his breakfast.

Before leaving, the chef openly packed him a meal, saying in a loud voice:
“From now on, just order another serving after you finish eating. Don’t bother going out to buy it. The neighbors all know about the child’s situation, so no one can say anything.”

Zhao Xiaochui turned around and saw that Director Qiao and the police officers on duty were eating with their heads down as if they hadn't heard anything, so he took the food with a grin.

The reason they didn't hit him before was because Zhao Xiaochui knew how to behave. In order to let him eat breakfast at the police station, the fat receptionist found a third-party agency and signed a contract with Zhao Xiaochui. The agency was a partner of the Chaoyang Branch and provided psychological counseling services. Zhao Xiaochui's compensation as the agency's 'logistics' staff was to eat breakfast for free.

Well, Chief Qiao and the chubby receptionist have used all sorts of messy social connections to the extreme, going through all sorts of trouble just to get him to eat free breakfast at the police station. Zhao Xiaochui doesn't even know how to complain.

However, he was happy to watch these two seasoned veterans of society play tricks on him, because their ways of doing things really broadened Zhao Xiaochui's horizons.

Originally, they were just trying to curry favor by letting Zhao Xiaochui have free breakfast, but in the end, the two of them ended up gaining a lot of favors from Zhao Xiaochui...

As Zhao Xiaochui passed by Director Qiao carrying a plastic bag, he casually took the list that Director Qiao had placed on the table. The list contained names of people who, after being screened by the chubby receptionist, would become Zhao Xiaochui's customers at an uncertain time.

…………

The alley where the police station is located is just around the corner from a massage parlor. My colleagues had already finished breakfast, and needless to say, it was free steamed buns, millet porridge, and homemade pickles.

And yet no one says the chubby receptionist is bad. She gets food and lodging, her salary is paid on time, and her commission is considered high for a chain store. Even after the chain is discontinued, her commission is increased based on her skill level. Is this a private business owner?

No, he's a philanthropist.

Da Qiao was mopping the floor, the chubby receptionist was yawning and standing on the scale, Zhao Xiaochui didn't go in, but went to the corner, where the child wasn't.

After thinking for a moment, he walked to the stairs next to him, climbed to the second floor, and Zhao Xiaochui saw the most original appearance of this tenement building.

The houses were packed together, without toilets or chimneys. Cooking required venting smoke through one's own window, which is why Zhao Xiaochui saw many blackened windows.

The passageway was cluttered with all sorts of debris, broken items, and discarded furniture.

Zhao Xiaochui saw the small figure on the worn-out sofa.

The child, whose face was flushed and who had no one to care for him, lay on the sofa, covered with a cardboard box and shivering.

Zhao Xiaochui placed the breakfast next to the child, touched his forehead, and his face darkened.

"Little Hammer." A voice called out from behind.

"Sister Xia," Zhao Xiaochui replied with a smile. The woman was a neighbor of the massage parlor and a regular customer, but she wasn't a die-hard fan of Zhao Xiaochui; she was fine with whoever massaged her.

Thanks to Zhao Xiaochui's guidance, his colleagues' skills improved rapidly, and this person clearly felt that a 60-minute massage was more cost-effective.

"The Women's Federation just came with a community doctor and gave the child his medicine," Sister Xia kindly reminded him. "His father and stepmother are two scoundrels, you..."

Sister Xia hesitated, clearly indicating that she was not one to speak ill of others.

Zhao Xiaochui nodded, thanked Sister Xia, withdrew his hand from the child's forehead, and turned to go downstairs.

Walking across from the massage parlor, Zhao Xiaochui found the public green space already planted with various crops by long-time residents. He picked a few mint leaves before returning to the massage parlor.

Zhao Xiaochui handed Director Qiao's list to the plump receptionist. Just as she was about to say something, she watched as the receptionist glanced around, and seeing that Zhao Xiaochui was alone, brazenly pulled out a device.
Police mobile terminal...

The third-generation police mobile terminal!
Then came a bunch of random operations involving iris scans and palm vein scans, clearly an attempt to elevate user privileges. After that, the chubby receptionist started circling names on the list.

"What does this mean?" "The number of second-class merit awards, whoever has more, ranks higher."

"..."

Zhao Xiaochui shook his head, not wanting to get involved in these matters anymore, and headed towards the kitchen.

"Little hammer."

Zhao Xiaochui stopped.

“If,” the chubby receptionist hesitated, looking at the young man, but still said, “I mean if you don’t want to stay here anymore and want a better future, just tell me, and we’ll hand you over to the state directly. All that talk about five-year or three-year paths is a joke. You’ll get your certificate right away and rise to the top in one step.”

"..." Zhao Xiaochui scratched his head, looked at the madwoman, muttered "crazy," and then turned and left.

Fat Sister: "..."

Entering the kitchen, Zhao Xiaochui washed the mint leaves, simmered them over low heat for five minutes, let them dry, poured them into a bowl, and then returned to the child's side with the bowl in hand.

It was rush hour, and with plenty of time before work, Zhao Xiaochui decided to replace his reading time with practical experience.
This was my first time giving a pediatric massage in two lifetimes.

Seeing him squatting beside the child with a bowl in his hand, the neighbors who were heading out to work all stopped and quietly watched Zhao Xiaochui.

The child is not a good child. He steals, breaks the neighbor's window, and swears a lot at such a young age. He has a long list of bad deeds, but he is only five years old, so it is not the child's fault.

The parents were in the house behind the child, burned like this, why wouldn't they let the child in? Isn't this abuse? Isn't this a crime? Why didn't the Women's Federation bring the police?
Zhao Xiaochui couldn't understand it, but he knew that scoundrels had many ways to act like scoundrels. In his previous life, he had seen so many debt collectors, and none of them were scoundrels. They operated in a gray area, and the law could do nothing about them.

Zhao Xiaochui lifted the child's sleeve, revealing his dirty arm, and observed it for a moment.

The original skin color of the arms was completely gone, leaving only a greasy mess.

In the chaos, Zhao Xiaochui seemed to see a stubborn figure in the cramped corner of the dormitory.

The yellowed copy of "Pediatric Massage" lay open on the edge of the bed, its pages curled and the blank spaces covered with dense notes.

His fingers hovered over the acupoint chart, his fingertips stroking the paper.

The figure stood in the circle of light from the desk lamp, with only two hands, a book, and a stubborn shadow.

He had dreamed that one day, these hands could restore the warmth of a child's body...

…………

Zhao Xiaochui's eyes cleared, and he began to move.

Massage medium: 2% peppermint water.

Push flat with your thumb.

Pediatric massage has unique acupoints.

Milky Way water.

Zhao Xiaochui controlled the flow rate of the heat to the gentlest level, but soon he felt the temperature of the child's arm rise rapidly.

He reached his left hand inside the child's clothes and touched under his armpit, then quickly released his right hand when he felt the temperature drop.

Then, dip both thumbs into the mint water.

Push flat with both thumbs.

The Six-Character Formula combines heat flow.

Specific acupoints for pediatric massage.

Open the Heavenly Gate.

(End of this chapter)