Mu Jinyu stood in a corner of the room, watching with indifferent eyes as everyone greeted Doctor Edward with all sorts of flattering words.
Originally, when everyone rose against him, he was ready to speak with facts, to cure the Xu family elder with a few needles and then leave with a sweep of his sleeves.
After all, he was a Divine Doctor with medical ethics. No matter how angry he was, since he had taken the money, he definitely intended to get the job done.
But looking at the situation now, it seemed the family might have invited another doctor, so he decided to observe for the time being.
If that foreigner could cure the Xu family elder, he would be pleased not to have to make a move.
He had received the money anyway, and no matter who took action, as long as the Xu family elder's life was saved, he would not refund it.
As Mu Jinyu coldly observed and thoughts raced through his mind,
A girl in a white dress, unlike the rest who had gone to meet Doctor Edward, quietly came to Mu Jinyu's side and comforted him softly, saying,
"Don't take it to heart with them. They are also concerned about grandpa's condition, that's why they spoke recklessly and said those unpleasant words."
Mu Jinyu, upon hearing the girl's tender comfort, glanced her way and showed a hint of a smile, saying, "I won't stoop to the level of fools."
Upon hearing this, the girl also felt somewhat speechless.
Mu Jinyu was quite interested in her and asked, "What's your name?"
The girl hesitated, then whispered, "My name is Xu Qingya."
While the two were talking, Lin Yuying, seeing her eldest son had finally brought the foreign expert, had no inclination to bother with Mu Jinyu and lacked the patience for pleasantries. She got straight to the point and asked,
"Doctor Edward, you've finally arrived. How much longer can my husband live?"
"Let me examine him."
Edward simply responded with a sentence and signaled his assistant to bring out various medical equipment, then began examining the bedridden Xu Tianzheng.
The room instantly became very quiet; no one dared to make a sound, afraid of disturbing Professor Edward's examination.
Xu Qingya didn't dare either. Seeing Mu Jinyu looked like he was about to continue speaking to her, she quickly put her hand over Mu Jinyu's mouth.
Xu Qingya's hand was very soft, carrying a faint scent of Qingya, but Mu Jinyu did not like being silenced by others, even by a beautiful woman.
Therefore, he frowned and pulled away Xu Qingya's hand.
Then, seeing Xu Qingya poised to cover his mouth again, Mu Jinyu could only helplessly shake his head to indicate that he wouldn't speak.
Only then did Xu Qingya relax, and afterward, feeling the moisture in her palm, she couldn't help feeling a bit peculiar about her actions just now.
It was not known how much time passed when Edward let out a sigh, "Ah, it's too late to discover..."
At these words, everyone's heart sank.
Could it be that Xu Tianzheng's ALS, even for the renowned international expert Professor Edward, was incurable?!
"Doctor, is there really no way?"
Lin Yuying looked at Edward with pleading eyes.
Edward shook his head and replied, "If it was at the onset of the disease when it was only muscle atrophy and a general weakness of the body, I would have some confidence. But the patient has been delayed too long, and now he is suffering from respiratory failure, too. I don't have much I can do, except to perform a tracheotomy surgery on the patient to extend his life for a bit longer."
ALS is such a fatal disease, and it has been declared incurable by hospitals around the world. Once diagnosed, the life expectancy of a patient is about three to five years.
Of course, about ten percent of patients can live more than five years, and five percent can survive for about twenty years.
The most famous patient, Stephen Hawking, belongs to that rarest category. He lived for a full fifty years after being diagnosed with ALS.
But even so, he wasn't much different from a living vegetable.
In the early stages, ALS presents symptoms like weakness, muscle twitching, and fatigue, which are easily confused with other diseases, so it's often overlooked,
Gradually leading to a progression to full-body muscle atrophy, swallowing difficulties, and speech impairment, until at last respiratory failure sets in, requiring the opening of the trachea and the use of a ventilator.
When Xu Tianzheng first developed ALS, he didn't take it seriously, thinking it was just due to old age and decline. It wasn't until he could no longer bear it and even breathing became difficult that his family discovered it.
"Is there no hope? How can grandpa, such a good person, really only live a while longer in a wheelchair?"
"Why is heaven so cruel!"
As Edward clearly stated that Xu Tianzheng was untreatable, and to breathe normally he needed to have his trachea cut for a ventilator, some younger members of the Xu family couldn't help but sob out loud.
But at that moment, a detached voice suddenly jarred the air.
"No way to treat him? If you don't have the ability, then step aside and let me do it. Don't waste my time."
Everyone stiffened, and following the voice, they saw the speaker was none other than Mu Jinyu, who had not yet been sent away.
He looked indifferent, his eyes holding a mix of disdain and disappointment as he stared bluntly at Edward as if he were looking down on him.
"What are you blabbering about, you young rascal? Apologize to Professor Edward right now!"
"Damn it, I was just about to make you refund our money and get lost, and you have the gall to be so arrogant. Today if I don't break your legs, my name isn't Xu!"
The elder members of the Xu family looked displeased, and before they could speak, a few younger ones immediately burst into angry curses.
"Smack smack!!"
Mu Jinyu didn't tolerate their behavior, promptly slapped each of them with a resounding smack.
The two who were cursing were stupefied by the blows.
Then the scolding resumed:
"What the hell, you dare to hit someone!"
"Slap Slap!!"
Mu Jinyu slapped them hard across the face again.
"Show some respect when you speak, and stop spouting 'motherfucker' all the time!"
After delivering the lecture, Mu Jinyu pushed the two aside with an air of arrogance, and under the stunned gazes of the family members of the Xu family, strode directly to the bedside. Before anyone could react, he pulled out the Silver Needle and jabbed several needles into Xu Tianzheng's body in quick succession.
"What are you doing?!"
Lin Yuying snapped back to her senses and, furious, shoved Mu Jinyu away.
The others also reacted and surrounded him, preventing Mu Jinyu from getting another opportunity.
Pushed away by Lin Yuying, Mu Jinyu lost his chance to continue the treatment but didn't get irritated.
He looked at the angry crowd and said indifferently, "One more needle could have completely cured him, but since you pushed me away, the ten million yuan fee for my service has already been spent."
"What nonsense are you spouting? Who gave you permission to jab needles into my grandfather?!"
"Call the police right away, get him arrested! It's one thing to swindle money, but to dare hit someone and mess around, that's just outrageous!"
"What have you done to my father?!"
"..."
Mu Jinyu had no desire to argue with them because he knew they would surely beg him in the end. Chuckling lightly, he then said, "After my treatment, the old man will be able to move in about five minutes, no different from an ordinary person, but it will only last for seven days. After seven days, he'll be paralyzed again."
With that, Mu Jinyu glanced at Xu Zhiming and Lin Yuying, who were seething with anger, and smiled faintly, "When that time comes, if you still want to beg me to save a life, it won't be ten million yuan anymore, it will be nine hundred and ninety-nine million yuan!"
Having said that, Mu Jinyu turned around and was about to leave.
The family members of the Xu family were furious to the point of shaking, incensed that after causing chaos, he dared to leave so insolently.
With red eyes, Xu Zhiming shouted, "Security, security, catch this bizarre guy for me!"
The security guards, who were veterans from the special forces, had already realized something was amiss and were waiting nearby. Hearing Xu Zhiming's shout, they rushed to the second floor, and without a word, attempted to apprehend Mu Jinyu!
"Beat him to a pulp!"
"Fuck, daring to mess with our grandfather, show him no mercy!"
A few of the younger Xu family members started to clamor loudly upon seeing the security guards arrive.
"Bang Bang Bang!"
However.
What Xu Zhiming and all the family members of the Xu family didn't expect was.
The security guards, whom they paid a lot for, were easily knocked down by Mu Jinyu—it was like watching an adult beating up children.
The few younger Xu family members who had just been blabbering nonstop and those who had just been slapped by Mu Jinyu and were about to square up, were suddenly like ducks with their necks squeezed.
Their voices halted abruptly.
The scene went dead silent.
Everyone stared dumbfounded at the cool and collected Mu Jinyu, fear rushing to the crown of their heads!
After beating up the guards, Mu Jinyu chuckled and nonchalantly walked out of the room, leaving the Xu family.
The family members of the Xu family were silent for a long time.
Eventually, Xu Zhiming caught his breath and asked with a trembling voice, "Who... who is he exactly?!"
He was away requesting Professor Edward to come and save his father and was not aware of his mother sending his younger brother to invite the Divine Doctor.
Xu Zhixin swallowed hard, suppressing the fear in his heart, then informed Xu Zhiming about Mu Jinyu's background.
"This..."
Xu Zhiming's eyes widened, shocked that Mu Jinyu really had some skills, and upon recalling his background, suddenly felt that Mu Jinyu might indeed be able to save his father.
Just as a twinge of regret was forming in his heart, he heard an unusual noise coming from the bed behind him.
"Huff! Breath..."
Upon hearing these rapid breaths, everyone's faces stiffened and they immediately turned around to look.
To their astonishment, Xu Tianzheng, who had been like a vegetative person unable to move, actually... started to move after being jabbed by Mu Jinyu's needles.
He sat up in bed, ripped off the oxygen mask from his mouth, and began to breathe greedily.
This...
Xu Tianzheng, who was in the late stage of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and had been diagnosed with respiratory failure by many experts and professors, requiring a tracheotomy and a ventilator to live a little longer, was actually able to pull off his oxygen mask and breathe deeply on his own after being needled by Mu Jinyu for five minutes?
This was nothing short of a miracle!
After Xu Tianzheng took a few deep breaths, he turned his head to the dazed crowd and scolded angrily:
"You bunch of fools, that young man really is a Divine Doctor. Hurry up and find him for me. Otherwise, all of you get out of the Xu family!!"