He stepped forward and knelt before Qin Long with a thud.
"Young Master Qin, I was blind to the fact that you are the Medical Immortal of our time!" he exclaimed. "I hope a person of your stature can forgive the transgressions of a lesser man!"
Nalan Yu's sudden change in attitude left everyone utterly dumbfounded. The entire crowd was baffled. After all, Nalan Yu was a paramount figure in traditional Chinese medicine, an elder of great renown. Rumor had it that countless powerful families treated him with the utmost respect, never daring to show the slightest disrespect.
Yet now, he was kneeling and admitting his mistake to a man with a lame leg? It was utterly perplexing.
"It's of no concern," Qin Long said, waving a hand dismissively.
"Medical Immortal Qin, you are truly magnanimous," Nalan Yu said. "I wish to follow you, Young Master Qin, and serve you faithfully. Would you permit it?"
Hearing this, the members of the Zhao family felt their jaws drop once again. Qin Long was only in his early twenties, yet he could become Nalan Yu's master? This was too unbelievable.
But Nalan Yu remained on the ground, pleading with the utmost sincerity. Having been obsessed with traditional medicine and acupuncture his entire life, he naturally revered those with superior skill.
"I do not take servants," Qin Long stated, waving his hand to stop him.
"Young Master Qin, please reconsider…" Nalan Yu pleaded, his heart unwilling to let go. He had just witnessed the legendary Taiyi Jiuyang Needle technique.
"Old Master Nalan, are you trying to check on Xiaotong's recovery now?!" Li Hong demanded, anger flashing in his eyes.
"Check my ass!" Nalan Yu roared back. "If Young Master Qin can't cure Miss Tang's illness, then there is no one else in this world who can save her."
Nalan Yu's furious outburst made Li Hong's face flush with shame. The Zhao family members beside them also heard the unspoken message in his words—his faith was absolute.
If Qin Long couldn't cure her, she was incurable.
This demonstrated Nalan Yu's absolute certainty in Qin Long's medical abilities; his skills had to be nothing short of extraordinary.
"Thank you for your help, Young Master Qin," Zhao Ruoying said, looking at him and bowing sincerely.
"It was a small matter." Qin Long waved his hand again with a faint smile. "For a full recovery, Miss Tang will require one more acupuncture session. I will return in three days," he instructed after a moment of thought.
"Of course! Then we'll be counting on you, Young Master Qin!" Zhao Ruoying's face lit up with a smile as she nodded respectfully.
「The Tang Courtyard」
Zhao Ruoying personally drove Qin Long to the gate. Not daring to even step inside, she immediately drove off.
The moment he was home, Tang Xuewu rushed over and bombarded him with questions.
"Why did Madame Zhao want to see you?"
Qin Long didn't intend to hide it. "I went to give her daughter acupuncture."
Before he could finish, Tang Xuewu cut in. "A-Long, now you're even lying to me. The you I used to know would never lie or deceive anyone."
She simply couldn't believe that Qin Long knew anything about acupuncture.
Qin Long could only spread his hands helplessly and say no more.
"If you were really some great acupuncture master, why haven't you fixed your own leg?"
Hearing this, Qin Long paused to think before speaking slowly. "My leg will recover soon. I was ambushed back then. My bones will take a week to heal, but my meridians will take longer."
Tang Xuewu rolled her eyes at him. "Over the years, I've taken you to see countless famous doctors and specialists. None of them could do anything. They all concluded it was a lifelong disability."
She shook her head in resignation, assuming he was just saying things to keep her from feeling sad.
"That's because their expertise is limited."
Though he had been simple-minded for three years, his memories were clear. He had engraved Tang Xuewu's kindness deep in his heart.
"Alright, alright, come have some water," she said, her beautiful eyes reddening. "In any case, getting to know someone as influential as Madame Zhao is a good thing." She sighed and turned away, her voice suddenly gentle.
"A-Long, it would have been so much better if you hadn't regained your memory. That way, you wouldn't have to listen to their harsh words. Most importantly… I could have kept you by my side and taken care of you forever."
After speaking, Tang Xuewu slowly walked toward her room.
Qin Long watched her desolate, retreating figure, his expression turning ice-cold.
Xuewu, from this day forward, I will make the Tang Family revere you. Because of you, they will prosper. A look of grim determination hardened his face.
"Did that idiot cripple beg you to keep taking care of him?" Zhang Meilan's roar echoed out the moment Tang Xuewu entered her room.
"He didn't," Tang Xuewu retorted angrily. "And don't you dare call him an idiot cripple!"
"Ha! You wretched girl, how dare you talk back to me for a good-for-nothing, disabled fool! Idiot cripple, stupid dog, crippled dog, and a poor wretch to boot! Surely you don't believe your grandmother, that dead old crone, when she says he's some kind of True Dragon prodigy? I had Young Master Wang look into him. He's just a charlatan who tried to swindle people in the army, got his leg broken, and was thrown out! Other than his ragged clothes, does he have anything of value? Oh, right, that tattered old card. It couldn't even be recognized! The bank teller said that type of card was discontinued ages ago. Even if there was money on it, all the fees would have drained it by now! What on earth do you see in him, Xuewu? His act as a charlatan, or the fact that he's penniless?"
Zhang Meilan's tirade grew more intense, showing no regard for Qin Long's feelings.
"I'm not talking to you. Get out. I have to be up early for work tomorrow."
Zhang Meilan finally left, though she still looked as if she hadn't had her fill.
Nearby, Qin Long opened his suitcase and took out the worn black card. He picked it up with some difficulty and examined it closely. The pattern on the battered card was indiscernible, clearly showing its age. It should have been phased out long ago.
But there's something odd about this thing…
He grabbed a nearby lighter, heated the card for a moment, and then gave it a forceful tug. In an instant, a golden card was revealed from within. It was adorned with patterns of shimmering golden dragons, and it glowed with a dazzling light, as if golden dragons were swimming across its surface.
The Peerless Golden Dragon Card.
Only eighty of these existed in the entire world. Obtaining one was exceptionally difficult, and its holders were invariably extraordinary individuals.
Once, Qin Long was the commander of the Southern Heavenly Dragon Army, a Nine-Star War Dragon who led a million soldiers. He was a dragon among men.
A Peerless Heavenly Dragon. How powerful was that? To him, money was just a string of numbers. His power, too, had reached a pinnacle.
But that was all in the past. Qin Long gazed at the distant sky with a sense of loss.
He had once led the million-strong Heavenly Dragon Army in battle for seven days and seven nights, reclaiming thousands of miles of territory. It was safe to say his power and wealth had reached their absolute peak. How tragic, how pitiful. Now, he was barely surviving in the small city of Jiangzhong, his right leg crippled.
But what does it matter? I am a Heavenly Dragon. I cannot be destroyed.
He then began to diligently massage his leg, starting a self-treatment with the Golden Needle. He had to cure his disabled right leg as soon as possible. He couldn't contact Xiao Lingyue now, but he was confident that he would be fully recovered by the next time they met.
「The Next Day」
「The Zhao Family Villa in Jiangzhong」
Li Hong arrived at Tang Xiaotong's room bright and early. Zhao Ruoying was already there, hovering by her daughter's side, unwilling to leave her for a second.
Li Hong was eagerly anticipating the moment Qin Long made a fool of himself. After all, even old Master Nalan Yu had knelt to this kid, and even Auntie Zhao had called him a Medical Immortal.
Haha, if Tang Xiaotong's condition hasn't improved, I'll laugh my head off.