CHAPTER 130: 130 TAKES PLEASURE IN OTHERS’ MISFORTUNE

However, Du Yihai’s appearance today seemed a bit worn-out.

His usually slick, shiny hair was uncombed and had turned largely white, while his leather shoes were covered in a layer of dirt, looking filthy.

Du Yihai entered the room very politely, his back slightly hunched. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes and offered them to Du Heng and Liang Fuman. "Xiao Heng, Old Liang, have a cigarette."

"I don’t smoke, and our Health Clinic is a smoke-free Hospital." Du Heng refused indifferently.

Liang Fuman also waved his hand to reject the offer; he and Du Yihai, though from the same village, didn’t get along well.

Unfazed by the awkwardness, Du Yihai maintained his smile and said, "My apologies, I forgot. Hospitals don’t allow smoking."

Du Heng didn’t engage further and instead asked, "Are you here to see a doctor?" He then straightened the pulse pillow on the table.

Regardless of his personal feelings, if someone came seeking medical help, he would treat them properly.

To Du Heng’s surprise, Du Yihai waved his hand, his smile almost deferential. "Xiao Heng, your grand aunt is celebrating her 88th birthday this Sunday. We’re preparing a big celebration at home, and I’m here to invite you."

Du Heng was taken aback. He’d never expected to reach a point where people would personally come to his door to invite him.

There was a time when, forget invitations, even if close relatives had something going on, they wouldn’t bother calling; they’d just have someone pass on a message.

Du Heng laughed, a genuine laugh, feeling a sense of pride and exhilaration.

But he wasn’t the kind of person to become arrogant with success, so he just gave a slight smile and said, "Why invite me? You should ask my brother about this. He’s the one who makes decisions for our family."

Du Yihai grinned. "I already invited your brother, and now I’m here to invite you."

"You’re too polite. I’m just a junior. You could have just asked someone to pass on the message or had Fei give me a call. Making a special trip like this... you’re giving me too much credit."

"That won’t do. You’re the Dean of the Health Clinic now. It wouldn’t look right to just have someone relay the message. Others would laugh."

Dean? Well, well, I have status now.

However, as Du Heng looked at the somewhat deferential Du Yihai before him, he still felt that something was off; this wasn’t his usual style.

Couldn’t quite figure it out.

But, since his grand aunt was having a big birthday celebration, and a grand one at that, as her grandnephew, he definitely had to go.

"Alright, I’ll be there on Sunday. By the way, it’s at your home, right?"

"Yes, yes, at home." Du Yihai seemed relieved. "Well, you two get back to work. I’ll be going then."

Watching Du Yihai’s retreating figure, Liang Fuman’s previously uncomfortable expression took on a somewhat mocking tone.

Before Du Heng could ask, he said directly, "Do you think Du Yihai has changed?"

"Yes, a bit. It feels kind of strange."

"His son was arrested!"

There was a strong sense of schadenfreude in Liang Fuman’s tone.

He then told Du Heng a story that left him wide-eyed.

Du Huang was doing well and was rich. As his younger follower, Du Teng also got to enjoy some of the benefits and live an easy life.

However, Du Teng didn’t choose to better himself. Instead, he spent his days loafing around with the wrong crowd and became a good-for-nothing.

On the night of May 1st, Du Teng and some of his disreputable friends were loitering outside a nightclub.

They saw a young woman with three men walking towards the nightclub. The woman was dressed a bit scantily, which brought out their thuggish side. They started whistling and making lewd comments at her.

Little did they know, one of the three men was the young woman’s husband. He immediately became displeased and got into a conflict with Du Teng and his group.

Even though Du Teng’s group had one more person, the three men still taught them a lesson. Frustrated, they started calling for backup.

They waited from 9 p.m. until midnight. When the three men came out, they pounced on them and gave them a savage beating.

Du Huang, the big brother in their group, arrived a bit late because he was held up.

When he arrived, he saw a group of people circled around someone on the ground, not attacking. His ’big brother’ bravado flared up. He pushed through the crowd and saw a person lying on the ground with a hammer nearby. He picked up the hammer and struck down hard twice, feeling incredibly bold.

Then the police arrived, and it was discovered that the person on the ground was already dead.

Regardless of who dealt the fatal blow, Du Teng was the main instigator; he’d started the whole affair. He was arrested immediately.

Du Huang, who had delivered the final two blows, was also arrested.

Of course, no one present escaped; all were captured. But Du Teng was the main instigator, and Du Huang had delivered the final two blows. Their cases were the most serious, marking them for heavy punishment.

Du Heng listened and remained speechless for a long time.

Pity? A little. Happy? Maybe a little of that too. His emotions were complicated.

But this had nothing to do with him; he’d just treat it as a story he’d heard.

However, as if something clicked, Du Heng muttered, "I was wondering. Grand Aunt has been staying at Du Fei’s place all this time, so why would *he* come to invite people? He’s never taken care of Grand Aunt for a single day."

Liang Fuman sneered. "A yellow weasel paying a New Year’s call to a chicken—it’s never with good intentions. You should know that. Besides, it’s fortunate your grand aunt is staying with Du Fei’s family. If she were at Du Yihai’s place, do you think he’d bother throwing a birthday celebration for the old lady?"

When Wu Buwei brought in the brewed medicine, Du Heng had Liang Fuman follow Wu Buwei back to the hospital room.

"After drinking the medicine, don’t run around. Go to the toilet as soon as you feel the urge."

"How long before it takes effect?"

Du Heng thought for a moment. "Within an hour."

Du Heng had given a slightly generous timeframe; Liang Fuman’s problem was actually resolved in forty minutes.

Seeing Liang Fuman run downstairs with a relieved expression specifically to thank him, Wu Buwei’s admiration for Du Heng climbed to a new level.

This time, it was not only admiration but also infinite gratitude.

「In the afternoon, it was time for acupuncture again. Wu Buwei performed the procedure while Du Heng supervised.」

However, this time, Du Heng became stricter, demanding not only accurate acupoints but also precise stimulation techniques.

Perhaps it was Du Heng’s strict requirements, or perhaps Wu Buwei was overly excited today; several elementary mistakes occurred during the needling process.

Just then, seeing the needle shaft slightly bent in the patient’s upper arm, Du Heng’s expression turned cold.

This was the first time Du Heng had looked at Wu Buwei so sternly, but Wu Buwei hadn’t noticed at all.

Seeing Wu Buwei still struggling to push the needle deeper, Du Heng couldn’t bear it any longer. "Stop. Stand aside."

Du Heng took the needle from Wu Buwei’s hand and pulled Wu Buwei back.

At that moment, Wu Buwei finally saw Du Heng’s icy expression, and his mind instantly cleared.

The needle had already stuck; why was I still trying to force it in? What on earth was I thinking?

Du Heng ignored him. He slowly twirled the needle that was stuck in the patient’s skin. "Sir, I didn’t realize your muscles were so firm. Our needle bent and still wouldn’t go in. Relax, that’s right, relax a bit."

While speaking, he used his other hand to gently pat the area around the acupoint to help the surrounding muscles relax.

After removing the stuck needle, Du Heng also took out the two needles that had been inserted previously.

"Sir, your muscles are a bit tense right now, making it difficult to insert the needles. Why don’t you rest for a bit? We’ll try again once you’re more relaxed."

Seeing the man nod, Du Heng picked up the needle tool kit and walked out.

Back in the office, Du Heng looked coldly at Wu Buwei. "Wu Buwei, tell me, what were you thinking just now?"

Wu Buwei glanced at Du Heng’s face and hung his head low. "I’m sorry, Senior Brother."

"Are you apologizing to me? You should be apologizing to that gentleman." Du Heng snorted coldly. "The needle tip had barely entered, and the shaft was already bent. Your insertion had become very sluggish, yet you kept trying to force it in. Don’t you realize how much discomfort that causes the patient?"

"I... I don’t know what I was thinking then. My mind just went blank."

"Blank? Can you afford to be blank when performing acupuncture? What if you make a mistake and the patient’s meridians suffer irreversible damage? What if, more seriously, you cripple them?"

Du Heng grew angrier as he spoke. "It’s fortunate this was the upper arm. What if you were needling the chest, abdomen, or head? You dare to go blank then? They could die on you in minutes!"

"I’m sorry," Wu Buwei said again, his head hanging low.

Du Heng wanted to continue scolding, but seeing Wu Buwei’s pitiful expression, he couldn’t bring himself to say more. He paced around the room in frustration.

After a long moment, Du Heng pointed to the practice room across from the office and said, "Don’t just stand there. Go clear your head."