Open a Clinic to Cultivate Myself

Chapter 78 I Am Your Reward
Ning Tao waited longingly for an answer, but the sick woman pulled her husband aside and muttered something.

“Do you think that young man is a liar?” the woman asked with an anxious look on her face.

The man cast a furtive glance at Ning Tao, who was standing nearby waiting, and answered in a hushed voice, “Hush, keep it down, or he will hear you.”

“Oh,” said the woman.

“I don’t think he’s a liar,” the man stated. “We don’t have any money. What can he get from us? I think he looks like a fool…”

In fact, Ning Tao heard the conversation between the couple, but when he heard the man say he was like a “fool”, he did not feel uncomfortable in his heart. He just smiled and accepted it.

There were still many poor people like this couple in this country. They had no skills, no connection to help them find a job to support their families, and still lived on the farm. For people who were healthy, their lives could be barely maintained, but when someone in the family fell ill, a poor family might fall apart. As a natural go-between of good and evil, the owner of the Sky Clinic, curing the sickness and saving the patients was his first duty, and punishing the evil and upholding the good were also his job. As long as he met someone who was in need, he would help him. Otherwise, if he only punished the evil but did not uphold the good, what kind of go-between of good and evil was he?

Ring, ring…

His ringtone suddenly sounded.

Ning Tao took out his phone, and took a look at the screen. It was Jiang Hao. He answered the phone and said, “Jiang Hao, it’s Ning Tao. How are you?”

“I’m not good at all.” Jiang Hao’s voice came from the phone.

Ning Tao asked solicitously, “What’s wrong with you? Has something happened, or are you not feeling well?”

“Brother Congjun called me and I learned what a mess you’ve done for Zhao Wushuang. And you were back last night. Why didn’t you call me and ask me to pick you up at the airport?” Jiang Hao sounded quite unhappy.

These questions were a headache for Ning Tao. “I came back too late last night, and I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“What about Zhao Wushuang?”

Ning Tao smiled and replied, “It’s over, so please don’t ask anymore.”

“All right. You’re not going to call me if I don’t call you, are you?”

Ning Tao didn’t know how to answer.

“Where is it now? I’ll pick you up and let’s have lunch together.” Jiang Hao’s tone changed.

Ning Tao took one look at the poor couple and said, “Sorry, I have a patient now, so I can’t join you for lunch. How about dinner? Let’s have dinner this evening. I’ll treat you a big meal.”

“All right, I’ll see you this evening.” Jiang Hao added, “But first, I’m not going to the Sunshine Orphanage. Last time you invited me to dinner, but you took me to the Sunshine Orphanage. Eva’s grave face really made me full.”

“Haha.” Ning Tao smiled awkwardly.

“How could you laugh?”

“All right, I’ll call you tonight.” Ning Tao hung up.

Then the unhappy couple came towards him.

The man hesitated for a moment, plucked up his courage and said, “Young man, you said you are a doctor, can you prove it?”

Ning Tao smiled and said, “Sure.” He then put the small medicine chest on the parterre, opened it, and took out the ledger of bamboo slips from inside to hand it to the woman, saying, “Please help me take it, and I’ll find my certificate for your husband.”

The woman stretched out her hand to take over the ledger of bamboo slips without hesitation.

Ning Tao found the medical license from the medicine chest and handed it to the man.

The man took Ning Tao’s medical license and read it off and on, “Medi…cal… li… ce…”

Ning Tao smiled and said, “Sir, it’s a medical license. Believe me, I won’t lie to you. Look, if you don’t believe me, I’m going to the bank right now and get 100,000 yuan. How about you keep the 100,000 yuan and we talk about the treatment later?”

“No, no, no,” the woman quickly refused. “We should have paid you for my treatment. How could we ask for your money? I know, young man, you are a good-hearted man. We believe you, it’s just… We only have 12 yuan. Why don’t we give you the 12 yuan and you treat me?”

“I can’t take your money,” Ning Tao said. “You…”

But before he could finish, the woman interrupted, “If you don’t take our money, I won’t ask you to see me.”

Ning Tao gave a wry smile and said, “All right, I’ll take your money and treat you. Please give me that bamboo slip.”

The woman returned Ning Tao the ledger of bamboo slips.

Ning Tao opened the ledger, which read, “Liu Shufen, born on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month in the forty-four year in a cycle of sixty years, a good person with small merits of 392, equal to 39 points of merits of good intention; being a vegetarian and chanting sutras for 18 years, single-minded to do good, and accumulating 9 points of merits of good intention; In total, she owns 48 points of merits of good intention. A prescription for merit of good intention would help him to be rid of her illness.”

Glancing at the contents of the ledger, Ning Tao was not only moved, but also a little excited. 48 points of merits of good intention was a big business for him. According to the ledger of bamboo slips, the woman had been poor all her life and had done 32 small acts of kindness. She was a truly kind person.

A good act would be well rewarded.

And she would obtain her reward today.

Ning Tao secretly made a plan.

The man carefully took out some crumpled bills from his trouser pocket, handed them to Ning Tao, and asked, “Can you really cure my wife?”

Ning Tao pushed the money back, laughing, and said, “Sir, you can give me the money when I cure your wife; if I can’t cure her, I won’t take your money.”

“Well, it’s just a matter of time,” said the man, putting away the crumpled bills. This was all he and his wife have, and before Ning Tao cured his wife, he really didn’t want to give the money to Ning Tao.

“By the way, Sir, could you tell me your name, please?” Ning Tao changed the subject.

“My name is Wu Gui, which means not expensive.”

Then Ning Tao asked the woman’s name, pretending he didn’t know her name. After chatting for a small while, he called a taxi and told the driver to go to Garden Street. On the way, he asked the driver to stop when they passed a China Construction Bank, and then entered the bank.

“What Doctor Ning going to the bank for?” Wu Gui muttered curiously.

Liu Shufen did not speak, but looked at the bank door, a little distracted.

10 minutes later Ning Tao came out of the bank, got in the car and said to the driver, “Let’s go.”

The car started and continued heading for Garden Street.

When they got to the archway of Garden Street, Ning Tao got out of the car and said to Wu Gui, “Uncle Wu, I have a prescription. You find a pharmacy across the street and buy the medicine according to this prescription, and I’ll take Aunt Liu to my clinic. When you get the medicine, I’ll add my secret medicine to it.”

“That…” Wu Gui looked very embarrassed.

Ning Tao put a prescription and a bill of 100 into Wu Gui’s hand and said, “Uncle Wu, take it. Go and buy the medicine for your wife.”

Wu Gui refused, “How can I take your money? No, I can’t take your money.”

“Who has not had trouble in life? Please take it. Go and buy the medicine for your wife. It’s urgent to cure her. If she dies, it’s no use regretting,” Ning Tao persuaded.

Tears welled up in Wu Gui’s eyes and his voice broke. “I…”

“Aunt Liu, let’s go to my clinic. Come with me,” Ning Tao said.

Liu Shufen’s vigilance was completely dissipated and she followed Ning Tao immediately.

Across the deserted Garden Street, Ning Tao led Liu Shufen to the Sky Clinic at the end of the street. He opened the door, turned to Liu Shufen and said, “Aunt Liu, come in.”

Liu Shufen followed Ning Tao into the clinic. When she entered, the door closed, but there was no wind.

The moment the door closed, the good-evil tripod put on a smile. The black and white energy of good and evil returned to the tripod, while a cloud of smoke rose from the tripod. This seemed to be a disguise for the good-evil tripod. It disguised itself as a huge incense burner.

“Your clinic is weird.” Liu Shufen looked around the clinic, finding everything here was new to her.

“Aunt Liu,” Ning Tao began, “let me get this straight. You are a good person; you do well all your life. You haven’t done something big, but have done 392 small good things. You eat vegetarian and recite sutras. You’re single-minded to be good. Good will be rewarded, and I am your good reward.”

“Are you… Are you an immortal?” Liu Shufen asked, looking surprised.

Ning Tao smiled and said, “It doesn’t matter who I am. What matters is that you’re a good person. We met in the vast sea of humanity, it is a chance encounter, but it is also the fate of god.”

“I… I see… You are sent to save me by Bodhisattva, aren’t you?” Liu Shufen looked solemn, trying to go down on her knees.

Ning Tao hurriedly grabbed her and stopped her from kneeling. “Aunt Liu, please don’t do this. Let’s talk about treating you first, or Uncle Wu will be worried if he can’t find you.”

“Treating me…” Liu Shufen was a little dazed. No one knew what she was thinking.

“Aunt Liu, I’ll give you a prescription. You need to sign it. Then all the good deeds you have done in your life will be wiped away, and your illness will be cured. Will you sign it?” Ning Tao asked.

Liu Shufen nodded and replied, “Yes, I will.”

Even ants fought for survival, let alone human beings? Her child was still in college, and she certainly didn’t want to leave the world without them. She wanted to see her child start a family and have grandchildren. She had many wishes unfulfilled. If these wishes were to be granted in exchange for her good deeds, she would nod without hesitation.

Ning Tao quickly wrote up the prescription pact for merits of good intention and handed Liu Shufen the pen.

Liu Shufen scrawled her name on the prescription pact and virtues. Like her husband, she had little education, only knew a few Chinese characters, and could only write her own name.

Ning Tao took out a Fine Primary Elixir made by himself, put it on Liu Shufen’s hand, and said, “Aunt Liu, take this pill.”

Liu Shufen stared at the pill in her hand for a few seconds before she came to her senses and ate the Fine Primary Elixir.

Om!

The good-evil tripod issued a hum, and the smoke poured out like the tide, and enveloped Liu Shufen in a moment.

Ning Tao woke up his eyes and made them enter the state of looking, but he still couldn’t see what was happening in the smoke. “I’ll unlock your secret one day!” he said to himself.

20 or 30 seconds later, the smoke went out.

Liu Shufen fell flat to the ground.

Ning Tao hastened to grab her and put her on his back. He also carried a bag in his hand when he went out. Out of the clinic, he carried Liu Shufen to the inside of the archway, put her down, and put the bag on Liu Shufen’s body. When he saw Wu Gui coming this way, he left quickly.

Wu Gui walked over the archway and saw Liu Shufen lying on the ground. He hurried forward and helped Liu Shufen sit up, and called her a few times, but she didn’t respond. He quickly pinched Liu Shufen’s philtrum.

Liu Shufen groaned and came to life. At the sight of Wu Gui, she paused for a moment before asking, “Why am I here?”

“Where is Doctor Ning?” Wu Gui inquired.

In a trance, Liu Shufen asked back, “Doctor Ning? What are you talking about? Are you dizzy with hunger?”

Wu Gui was surprised. “Huh? He walked such a long way with us. Don’t you remember?”

“You are weird.” Liu Shufen struggled to get up from the ground and the bag fell off her.

Several bundles of money rolled out of the bag.

The couple was stunned…

In a corner of Garden Street, a smile appeared on Ning Tao’s lips. The money in that bag was 20,000 yuan in cash which he had deliberately withdrawn from the bank. He intended to give them 10,000 yuan, but when he entered the bank, he remembered that the poor couple had a college student to support. As a result, he temporarily decided on the spur of the moment to give them an extra 10,000 yuan.

“All her merits of good intention have been wiped out because of this illness. This is not fair to Aunt Liu at all; I will give her a fair. Maybe that’s what I’m doing as a go-between of good and evil,” Ning Tao told himself in the heart.

At the foot of the archway, Liu Shufen and her husband suddenly knelt on the ground and chanted in unison, “Thank you, Bodhisattva! Thank you, Bodhisattva…”

Ning Tao smiled, shook his head, and turned to leave.