Healing Doctor

Chapter 777 Doing as One Pleases Without Overstepping the Limits

Ji Xiang guessed many possibilities, but he rejected each one.

Ji Xiang was particularly curious as to why Lin Jiuze's father was being referred to as a family disgrace. He could never understand why Lin Jiuze's father was being called a family disgrace.

However, Lin Jiu said that his father was a senior scientist and would never exaggerate.

Ji Xiang knew that the young people who were sent to study in the Soviet Union back then were the elite of that generation.

Even if half a lifetime of hard work goes down the drain, the retirement benefits provided by the state will certainly be good, so there's no chance of any family scandals.

At most, I'll go to square dancing and chat with old ladies. I'm already this old, what else can I do?

In Ji Xiang's mind, none of this mattered.

A leading figure in the medical field, over seventy years old, was swept into the hospital, and everyone gave him a thumbs up, praising his remarkable health and vitality.

Therefore, Ji Xiang believes that Lin Jiu is overthinking things and making things too complicated.

Even if there were dramatic disputes over family property, it wouldn't matter at all to Lin Jiuze, a professor who had received a position in MIT.

A single academic presentation abroad can cost tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. How could Lin Jiu possibly be short of that?

After getting off the plane, Ji Xiang didn't go to the hotel with Deng Chaohong, Zhao Zhe, and Tang Yan. Instead, he got into a ride-hailing car with Lin Jiu.

Lin Jiu had a gloomy face, and it was clear that he was not in a good mood.

Ji Xiang didn't dare to ask.

Perhaps Lin Jiuze's father is a dark scientist who has been tinkering with some kind of black technology in recent years.

He was utterly ruthless, which is why Lin Jiuze was always unhappy, and Ji Xiang could even vaguely sense Lin Jiuze's aversion to his father.

Ride-hailing drivers are different from drivers in Beijing; they are silent and polite, and there is no idle chatter about anything and everything.

The route became increasingly bizarre, and finally the car stopped in front of a glittering... massage parlor.

After getting off the car, Ji Xiang looked completely bewildered.

Of all the speculations, Ji Xiang believes that the most likely one is that Lin Jiuze's father is a dark scientist.

But whose scientists would conduct research in a massage parlor or foot massage parlor?

What's going on? Could it be that Lin Jiuze's father is still as virile as ever?

He looked around; it was a commercial street with no residential buildings nearby.

The last guess also came to nothing.

"Here," Lin Jiu said helplessly.

"here?"

"Yeah, my dad just kills time here every day," Lin Jiu said helplessly.

"!!!"

"Ugh."

This time, Ji Xiang finally understood why Lin Jiu was so unhappy.

Who would be happy if their father didn't go home every day and instead stayed in a foot massage parlor, bathhouse, or massage parlor?

Out of habit, Ji Xiang felt a chill run down his spine when he thought about his own father living here every day.

Having arrived here, Lin Jiu acted decisively, without further hesitation, and went straight in.

Ji Xiang followed behind Lin Jiuze, full of curiosity.

"Looking for Uncle Lin," Lin Jiu said directly as he walked in.

The front desk manager looked at Ji Xiang, then heard another person's voice in his ear, which startled him so much that he shuddered.

But when he heard about Uncle Lin, his face lit up with a smile.

"Uncle Lin is giving me a foot massage."

"I am his son, take me there."

"Okay, this way please."

The manager walked ahead with a polite bow, while Lin Jiu followed behind him with a gloomy expression. Ji Xiang sized up Lin Jiu.

Every family has its own set of problems; that saying is so true.

But why does this old man have so much energy? Could it be that ternary systems can modify the human body? Or is it...?

Ji Xiang was thinking about all sorts of random things and didn't even realize that he looked exactly like Shen Lang.

Upon arriving at a private room, just as the manager was about to knock, Lin Jiu pushed the door open.

Ji Xiang has extremely high agility and excellent eyesight. He even activated Eagle Eye immediately and found a good vantage point to look inside.

But I didn't see anything inappropriate for children. I only saw an elderly man with white hair lying in a massage chair, reading a newspaper and chatting with the female masseuse who was giving him a foot massage.

The female technician was a little confused when Lin Jiuze came in, but the old man could see Lin Jiuze directly.

"Jiuze, when did you get back? Why didn't you tell me beforehand?"

"Dad, why are you still..." Lin Jiu said angrily.

"Sit down," the old man said with a smile, then looked at Ji Xiang.

"Hmm? This young man... he looks familiar." The old man's eyes narrowed unconsciously.

Ji Xiang felt that his gaze was like two knives.

It's truly rare to see someone in their seventies with such sharp eyes and such boundless energy.

"Uncle, hello." Ji Xiang bowed deeply and respectfully.

"You...you..." The old man put down the newspaper, reached out and tapped his head, as if he was trying to remember.

"My name is Ji Xiang, you can just call me Xiao Ji."

"Ji Xiang? Who is Ji Yongchang to you?"

"He is my father." Ji Xiang was taken aback, but still answered respectfully.

"Oh, no wonder, the son-in-law of the Qian family. No wonder he looks so familiar." The old man said with a smile, "Come, Xiao Ji, sit here."

"Dad!" Lin Jiu frowned.

Lin Jiu, who usually had a detached expression and looked as if he had suffered a brain hemorrhage, displayed a wide range of emotions when facing his father, his displeasure evident in his expression.

"Uncle, hello." Ji Xiang didn't seem to mind. Instead of sitting directly on the sofa next to the old man, he chuckled and pulled up a small stool to sit down next to him.

The old man glanced at Ji Xiang, then at Lin Jiuze, and asked, "Want to get a foot massage together?"

"Just a moment, let me chat with you for a bit first," Ji Xiang said with a smile.

"oh."

"You're living a really carefree life, old man."

Lin Jiu felt Ji Xiang grabbing his collar and slapping him across the face, making a loud slapping sound.

"Jiu thinks I'm always being indecent."

"Well, that's called doing whatever you want without overstepping the bounds. I think Dr. Lin is wrong," Ji Xiang said. "My dad always said that when he was young, there were many rules and restrictions, and he never reached the point of doing whatever he wanted. I didn't understand before, but after seeing you, I think I know what it means."

"Hahaha." The old man laughed, pointing at Lin Jiuze, "Look at Xiao Ji, and then look at you."

"..." Lin Jiu remained silent.

"Why did you suddenly come back?"

"Uncle, we're back for surgery, a minor Achilles tendon rupture surgery, nothing serious," Ji Xiang said nonchalantly. "What about you eating here?"

"They'll give me an extra portion at the cafeteria," the old woman said. "I can just eat whatever I want. If anyone's craving something, I'll go to the market and buy some seafood to cook at home. The girls are all very skillful; their seafood dishes taste pretty good."

"It tastes better than what you get in restaurants," Ji Xiang said with a hint of envy. "Sitting in a recliner, with all the women in the kitchen and living room, it's really lively."

"You like to join in the fun too? Your dad's a rather aloof guy."

"I don't like it. When I get home every day, I just chat with my dad occasionally. He doesn't even say a hundred words a day," Ji Xiang said softly. "A few months ago, when I went to the market to buy groceries, I saw someone with a dog tied up. It looked like they had picked it up and were going to kill it for meat, so my dad bought the dog."

"Now that the dog is destroying things at home, it's become much more lively. My dad said the other day that he's planning to move to the countryside for a few days while I'm not home."

"What's on that side?"

"When I went to see it last time, there were many sheep. The leader was a four-month-old lamb wearing a bell that rang very clearly. There were also two Border Collies. Every day, the Border Collies lead the cattle and sheep out to graze, which is very convenient and doesn't require much attention."

"I also want to go to the countryside, but I can't bear to leave here." Lin Jiuze's father smiled slightly. "Don't listen to us, just put in a little more effort."

"Yes," the foot massage therapist replied.

"It doesn't matter, it's the same wherever I am," Ji Xiang said calmly.

The old man glanced at Ji Xiang, looked him up and down, and said, "You and your father don't look alike when you were young."

"That's what my mom said too," Ji Xiang said with a smile. "But my dad says we're alike at heart."

"Dad, do you know each other?" Lin Jiu asked in surprise.

"I've met his father twice. He was a prodigy. If you could catch up to half of Ji Yongchang's level, that would be great," the old man said leisurely.

"Dr. Lin is very capable."

"How did you two meet?" The old man sat halfway in the massage chair, soaking his feet and getting a massage, while Ji Xiang chatted with him.

Looking at this bizarre scene, Lin Jiu felt a strange and inexplicable emotion rise in his heart.

My father is getting older and more irresponsible, spending all his time in places like this.

It is said that the girls had real guests, and he was sitting outside keeping watch.

A few years ago, I was swept up in the scandal along with others, and they even called my cell phone while I was studying in the United States. It was incredibly embarrassing.

This father, who could be described with countless negative terms like disgraceful, shameful, and disrespectful to elders, was portrayed by Ji Xiang as someone who did whatever he wanted without overstepping the bounds of propriety.

When did Ji Xiang start flattering people?

Damn it!

Lin Jiu looked at Ji Xiang, feeling dazed.

He even had the illusion that Ji Xiang was his father's youngest and most favored son.

Ji Xiang and the old man chatted idly, but the topic had already drifted to the other side of the world.

"I met an old patient at the hospital who said he could suck people's lifespan. Tsk tsk, what kind of nonsense is that?"

Listening to Ji Xiang's story, Lin Jiu quietly found a small stool and sat down.

This foot bath is clearly different from other foot baths.

In most foot baths, the curtains are drawn tightly, with only the dim light from the television, but this room was bathed in excellent sunlight.

The setting sun shone in, casting its glow on Ji Xiang's face. He chatted with his grandfather with great enthusiasm, which gave Lin Jiu a feeling that was hard to describe.

"The patient's family is really bold to freeze the old man's body in a freezer. What do you think?"

"It's not uncommon," Lin Jiuze's father replied calmly. "It's just that the investigations are stricter now. There was a colleague who passed away and continued to collect his pension for over ten years before it was discovered. It's not an exaggeration to say that this kind of swindling of pensions is like draining someone's lifespan. Originally, this money should have belonged to someone else, tsk tsk."

"There are all sorts of messy things happening in hospitals, I've encountered them before..."

Ji Xiang seemed possessed by Zhao Zhe, becoming incredibly talkative. He sat happily on a small stool, chatting aimlessly with Lin Jiuze's father.

It's like being at a roadside inn, where a few ounces of strong liquor have been downed, and the burly driver of the cart is spouting nonsense.

Lin Jiuze felt that many things were completely unreliable.

The idea that it absorbs people's lifespan is clearly nonsense.

But his own father was particularly fond of this, and chatted happily with Ji Xiang.

After a 90-minute foot bath and drying his feet, Lin Jiuze's father waved his hand, "I'm not doing it today. I'm going out to eat with the kids."

"Uncle, your child is so good-looking."

Lin Jiuze's father glanced at Lin Jiuze, chuckled, and patted Ji Xiang's head. "He's still young. In a couple of years, when he's weathered a bit more and has a more manly air, he'll look even better!"

"Looks good..." Ji Xiang sighed inwardly; he couldn't accept being told that.

But it doesn't matter.

"I can stay here all day, it's very comfortable." Lin Jiuze's father walked out of the foot massage parlor with his hands behind his back.

"Yes!" Ji Xiang said eagerly, "My classmate said there's an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor at West China Hospital who showed them moxibustion wounds during class."

"Oh? You got burned during moxibustion?" Lin Jiuze's father asked curiously.

"No, no, no, it's because I've done moxibustion my whole life. There's a big dent in the Zusanli acupoint," Ji Xiang added. "There are big dents on both Zusanli acupoints. Uncle, do you think the acupoints might have been burned away?"

Lin Jiuze's father shook his head, indicating that he did not know.

"I don't know either, but I heard that the old gentleman was over eighty years old and had a booming voice," Ji Xiang said enviously. "I'm thinking that when I'm past my prime, I'll also do moxibustion every day."

"But seeing you today, soaking your feet and getting a foot massage is quite nice. Are the girls strong?"

"You can choose the one with the most strength!" Lin Jiuze's father began to share his experience.

Lin Jiu listened from the back, completely confused.

Ji Xiang is really good at talking, and if you didn't know his exact age, you would never guess that he is just a young doctor in his early twenties who has just graduated.

Ji Xiang knew all sorts of messy and trivial matters like the back of his hand, and he chatted quite congenially with his father.

Passing by the small shop at the entrance, Lin Jiuze's father packed up a few dishes, which Ji Xiang happily carried home.

A bottle of Red Star Erguotou was set up on a small table, and Ji Xiang handed the old man a cigarette.

"Hehe, your dad rarely drinks."

"I rarely drink, and I only keep the cigarettes to communicate with patients' families. We had a good chat today, hey," Ji Xiang said with a smile.

Lin Jiu was even somewhat dazed. He couldn't tell whether Ji Xiang was genuinely having a good chat with his old man or just trying to flatter him.

However, to be honest, flattering one's own father doesn't seem to be of much use.

A "shameless old man" who only knows how to spend his days in a foot massage parlor—even he feels a little ashamed to admit it.

"Your father is one of the few ruthless people I've ever met." Lin Jiuze's father started drinking and eating, and began to comment on Ji Yongchang.

"My temper is much better now."

"Another thing is that I met a young man when I was hospitalized for a physical examination a few years ago."

Ji Xiang habitually pricked up his ears to listen to the gossip about Lin Jiuze's father.

"His mother is a patient, suffering from acute kidney failure. They said hospitalization and treatment would cost 100,000 to 200,000 yuan," Lin Jiuze's father recounted. "His family is poor; they don't have that much money. I ask you, what would you do if you were in this situation?"

Lin Jiuze's father looked at Ji Xiang.

Ji Xiang scratched his head. "Uncle, I don't know."

"That's true. Born with a silver spoon in their mouth, they probably don't know that even a hero can be brought down by a penny. It's really tough when you don't have money."

Ji Xiang recalled his father painstakingly sorting out small bills in the cold wind, and how he himself had gone to the cafeteria to buy his father something delicious but had dropped it on the ground and been ridiculed by his classmates.

It's really tough when you don't have money.

However, Ji Xiang did not refute Lin Jiuze's father's words, but instead listened attentively as the old man drank and gossiped.

"That young man worked in a factory. He put his right hand into the machine and crushed his little finger."

"!!!"

"It's an illegal factory. There's no need for labor arbitration. The boss can only pay to avoid trouble. He paid 8 yuan to resolve the problem."

"The young man told me he felt really sorry for the boss."

"Your dad was much ruthless than him when he was young."

Ji Xiang secretly wrote down Lin Jiuze's father's words. Of course, he only remembered the ruthless man who crushed his little finger to treat his mother's illness. He didn't care at all about his father's ruthlessness when he was young.

"I've encountered similar things too." Ji Xiang continued talking about Lin Jiuze's father's topic, and the stories he had encountered in this world of empathy were quite interesting to recount at this moment.

"Uncle, do you know about BDSM?" Ji Xiang asked with great interest after taking a sip of his drink.

Lin Jiu frowned slightly.

Why is Ji Xiang bringing this up? I never expected that Ji Xiang, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, would be involved in such a shrewd scheme.

"I've heard the girls talk about it," Lin Jiuze's father said with a smile. "So, you like this too?"

"No, I saw a girl in the emergency room who was beaten up pretty badly," Ji Xiang gossiped. "Later, I heard them talking about it, and the girl was crying and cursing at the same time."

"Saying that white-collar workers in big cities are not human because they wear suits and ties, pretending to be S in the BDSM community, when in fact they have no such fetishes at all."

"Work pressure is high, I need to de-stress, so I hang out in the local BDSM community, find a submissive after get off work and beat her up while yelling at her—'Do you have any strategic thinking? Do you even know what 'consumption downgrade' means?!'"

"If you don't even know the business model or how to manage chaos, how can you create a closed loop in the industry chain?"

"In short, they're always using the slang and jargon that's common in the workplace these days. Sometimes they'll start crying in the middle of a fight, and they'll cry even more bitterly than M."

"Hahaha." Lin Jiuze's father laughed loudly, looking up at the sky.

Lin Jiu was dumbfounded as he listened to Ji Xiang's nonsense.

This is completely irrelevant.

"I'm a doctor with professional ethics, and I managed to hold back my laughter at the time. But afterwards, I saw my mom at her company's annual meeting, and the things she said there... hahaha."

As Ji Xiang spoke, he also laughed heartily.

"The bosses of major internet companies are like S in the BDSM community; it's really hard to say what's going on."

"You're quite an interesting child," Lin Jiuze's father said, sipping his drink. "The hospital is indeed a window into human nature. It's a pity you're probably the third or fourth generation of doctors from the end; we probably won't hear these kinds of gossips anymore."

"Hmm?" Ji Xiang was slightly taken aback. "Uncle, what do you mean? Doctors shouldn't disappear, right? Although the current medical environment isn't great, that's only temporary."

"More than 20 years ago, everyone said that artificial intelligence could not defeat humans. Then Deep Blue appeared and defeated Kasparov in a crushing defeat. Then, humans said that chess requires less calculation and Go relies on intuition, which is unique to humans and artificial intelligence should never get involved."

"But as you know," Lin Jiuze's father said, "Ke Jie is the most talented player I've ever seen. Note, the most!"

"Where is Elder Nie?"

"They can't compare to Ke Jie, and Lao Nie... not to mention that, Ke Jie lost to AlphaGo. Artificial intelligence hasn't even started to exert its power yet, and it's already reached a peak that humans can never touch."

"Sir, you mean...?"

"Do you think that artificial intelligence cannot be involved in the medical profession?" Lin Jiuze's father asked.

"No." Ji Xiang frowned, suddenly remembering Meng Qingfei using his phone to go online for differential diagnosis.

If, just suppose, there were such a machine!

Lin Jiuze's father's words suddenly awakened Ji Xiang.

Some thoughts that existed deep within my consciousness suddenly surfaced.

"Many years ago, I thought surgery would be the first to be replaced, but in fact, diagnosis has been replaced," Lin Jiuze's father said slowly. "However, it looks like it will be another 20 years."

"What about 20 years from now?"

"Look at the Go players today, that's the future of you doctors."

Ji Xiang wrote down Lin Jiuze's father's words, planning to go to the system operating room tonight to ask the system NPC.

"It's a pity that machines are cold and impersonal; they're not as interesting as a junior doctor like you."

As he spoke, Lin Jiuze's father turned his head and glanced at Lin Jiuze.

When it comes to coldness and strangeness, Lin Jiu is the first to be mentioned.

Ji Xiang smiled and said, "Uncle, the surgery and such haven't been scheduled yet."

"Not necessarily," Lin Jiu suddenly added. "Boston Tech has close ties with us. Surgical approach guidance appeared more than ten years ago, but it was time-consuming and labor-intensive back then. Now, it's more mature and sophisticated. Many doctors in Massachusetts use intelligent surgical approach guidance before surgery."

"From now on, everything will be machines," Lin Jiuze's father said. "But machines are incredibly boring, and it's rare to see such an interesting little guy like you."

"Let's have a drink." Lin Jiuze's father raised his glass, clinked it with Ji Xiang's glass happily, and looked at Lin Jiuze with dissatisfaction, "He's just a blockhead."

"I rarely talk to my dad when I go home," Ji Xiang said with a smile. "That's just how father and son are. The last time my dad had a serious talk with me was when I asked him about the ghost bed."

"That's still better than this piece of wood." Lin Jiuze's father looked at Lin Jiuze with dissatisfaction. "He can't stand it just because he's washing his feet."

"Washing your feet is a good habit. You can just squat there and chat with someone. It can also help to improve your circulation. It's a better way to kill time than other activities, and it's more comfortable."

Lin Jiu was utterly speechless at Ji Xiang's sycophancy.

But after Ji Xiang said that, Lin Jiu's previous thoughts about "family misfortune" faded a lot.

The old man ate his meal with great relish, thanks to Ji Xiang's attentive conversation.

It wasn't until after nine o'clock that Ji Xiang suggested the elderly man get some rest because it was getting late, and then he left.

"Dr. Ji Xiang, I never imagined you were this kind of person."

Lin Jiu saw Ji Xiang off, looked into Ji Xiang's eyes, and said in a deep voice.

(End of this chapter)