Merchant and doctor

Chapter 2279 The Hall of Elegance
The medicine-making process using the medicine cauldron did indeed yield many remarkable results. Taking advantage of the momentum, Bian Mu consulted with Cai Huaixin and, whenever time allowed after get off work, arranged to meet with Dian Shuhua in a small laboratory near the Little White Building. They repeatedly conducted the relevant experiments. Dian Shuhua's skills in all aspects were not yet at Bian Mu's level, so he just followed along, doing odd jobs and taking notes.

Because of the previous incident where the assignment of interns was blocked, Cai Huaixin was quite dissatisfied with Bian Mu. However, he was somewhat shrewd and suppressed his negative emotions without showing them. Instead, he gave Bian Mu the green light to use the laboratory. Whenever Bian Mu had any needs, he would arrange them properly in the first instance. As a result, Bian Mu felt quite embarrassed.

That evening, Bian Mu saw the last female patient and her family off. Before he could even settle into the chair by the window, his phone rang.

The call came from Dr. Zhang.

"There's a pretty important academic seminar tomorrow morning, would it be convenient for you to come over?" Dr. Zhang spoke quite frankly on the phone, which was much better than Dr. Fang, who was at the same level.

"Me?! I have no job or position, isn't that a bit inappropriate?" On the other end of the phone, Bian Mu was clearly planning to politely decline!
Tomorrow is Saturday, and Bian Mu will have to go out for half a day of outpatient clinic in the morning, mainly to see old patients and finish up their last diagnoses. With the Chinese New Year approaching, Bian Mu is determined to work harder to reduce their symptoms further so they can have a happy holiday.

The Year of the Horse (Bingwu year) is auspicious for stability and peace! Bian Mu sincerely hopes everyone has a happy and prosperous New Year.

Professor Mi repeatedly urged Bian Mu to actively participate in important events in the academic circle, and repeatedly warned Bian Mu not to think that he was carefree and indifferent just because he was still young. In Professor Mi's view, times have changed, and some things can never be made up for once they are missed. Back then, their generation of medical workers suffered a lot of losses because of this. The old lady hoped that Bian Mu would walk a more stable path in the future, which was of great importance to both her and Bian Mu.

Bian Mu knew that Professor Mi's reminder was very timely, but whenever he was in close contact with Dr. Fang and the others, he couldn't help but feel a strange sense of repulsion. He just couldn't get close to them anyway. Perhaps, this kind of thing was just bad luck?
"The level is quite high. Experts and professors from Beiqi and Nanjin are not people we can easily contact. This is a rare opportunity, so please consider it carefully?" Dr. Zhang emphasized again on the other end of the phone.

"Well... but the online and offline clinics for tomorrow morning have already been arranged. Some of the patients are quite old, and I don't want to disappoint them. I can't compare to you guys; I rely entirely on my clients for a living, and I can't easily offend them. It's not easy for me to make a living!" With a hint of playing the victim, Bian Mu appeared quite embarrassed, but in reality, she was simply refusing.

High-ranking? That's a matter for their specific circle. Bian Mu considers himself to be relatively inexperienced in all aspects, and there's really no point in sitting quietly on the sidelines for a whole morning in such a setting.

"I see... How about... we change the outpatient clinic to the afternoon? Inviting you to the meeting wasn't just my idea. Also, don't mind me! You're the only one in the whole province with a similar status and age, so... it's best to overcome your personal difficulties. Otherwise, in the future... there will be some things that we won't be able to face." The last few sentences sounded like the truth. If Bian Mu didn't give Dr. Fang some face, he might just close the door to local academia, and it wouldn't be so easy to reopen it later.

Doctors on the front lines of clinical practice often have few taboos. They earn a living through hard work and don't have to worry about anyone's attitude. If things don't go well here, they can simply move to another place to continue their medical practice. Dr. Fang and his colleagues are different. They have to be mindful of many things. They may seem glamorous on the surface, but sometimes their lives are quite awkward.

Tempering her momentarily, and also considering Professor Mi's repeated warnings, Bian Mu dared not go too far.

"Indeed! After a long week, I'd like to rest here for a morning at your esteemed place. I can also listen to the teachings of renowned masters in person. Thank you, Director Fang!"

"Eh?! You're giving me face. I know what I'm doing. I'm already on my way as a student. The official invitation will be delivered soon. Please check it."

"You're too kind. Just have someone pick me up at the entrance of the venue tomorrow."

"We dare not be the slightest bit negligent towards these representatives of young talents, hehe... See you tomorrow!"

"You're so kind... You go ahead and do your thing, we'll talk later!" With that, Bian Mu hung up the phone.

Bian Mu genuinely didn't want to cause trouble, and he would avoid saying a single word more when contacting this kind of person.

The Teaching and Research Center of Lijin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine is a 29-story modern scientific research building with hexagonal symmetry. Its exterior looks like an academic tower, soaring into the clouds and appearing extremely majestic and imposing.

At 9:16 a.m., Bian Mu arrived at the registration area ahead of time, clutching the invitation letter.

Wow! The parking lot was full of nice cars. Bian Mu couldn't help but feel glad that he had parked his car in a paid parking lot on the street beforehand; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to drive in at all.

There were so many people, and each one of them looked very distinguished. I guess there were quite a few academic teachers from all over the country who came. In the crowd, Bian Mu suddenly seemed as inconspicuous as a comma.

Dr. Fang waved to Bian Mu from afar, indicating that he should go find a seat first. He was busy entertaining guests who had come from out of town and didn't have time to exchange pleasantries with him at the moment.

Bian Mu waved back and followed a few younger-looking attendees along the wall into the first-floor lobby.

The venue was set on the 11th floor of the roadshow center. There were people queuing in front of all six double elevators. Bian Muxin was quite surprised. What level of academic conference was this? Why was it so big?

Bian Mu glanced around and couldn't see a single familiar face, which made him feel somewhat strange.

In his opinion, although he was busy practicing medicine on the streets every day to make a living, he knew at least some well-known figures in the medical field in Lijin. Why didn't he see any of them today?!

They arrived at the 11th floor, and everyone behaved very politely, deferring to each other quietly. To be honest, Bian Mu quite enjoyed this elegant atmosphere, feeling as if he had truly entered a refined setting.

……

Bian Mu was always self-aware, so he deliberately chose the most inconspicuous seat, a little to the back and to the side. The invitation had already been taken away by the staff at the registration desk. There were no assigned seats here, so he could just sit there and listen. If it was interesting, he could stay a little longer; if he didn't find it interesting, he could leave at any time.

I still have to go out for outpatient clinics in the afternoon, so it would be nice to find a teahouse on the street to have a pot of tea and rest for a while.

Bian Mu was sitting there lost in thought when a well-dressed young woman came up to him and said a few polite words: "Mr. Bian, right? Teacher Xi would like to invite you to take a seat in the front row."

"Me? My surname is indeed Bian, but... it's just one character, 'Mu.' Are you sure you haven't mistaken me for someone else?!" Feeling a little strange, Bian Mu replied with a smile.

"That's right, it's you! The teachers have been looking for you for ages, and they guessed you might be sitting around here, so... this way, please!"

Feeling slightly bewildered, Bian Mu nodded slightly to the woman, and without saying much, slowly got up and followed the young lady to the front row seats.