The five-and-a-half-year-old baby doctor comes to the city to cure those who refuse to listen.

The doors of Jishetang creaked open slowly amidst the watchful eyes of the crowd.

A threshold about half a person's height stood across the entrance, with two heavily armed soldiers standing guard on either side, their faces expressionless.

Wang Dequan cleared his throat, stood inside the threshold, holding a brand-new account book in his hand, and spoke in a loud voice like a gong at the street corner.

"The auspicious hour has arrived! The Jishetang Longevity Banquet is now open!"

The dense crowd outside the door stirred and jostled to push forward.

"Don't push! Everyone, don't push!"

"I have a gift! I brought a gift!"

A wealthy merchant dressed in a silk Tang suit finally managed to squeeze to the front and bowed and scraped to Wang Dequan.

"Manager Wang, this is a small gift I prepared for the venerable Physician Lin!"

Two bodyguards behind him struggled to carry up a large box, which they opened with a "snap," revealing neatly stacked gold bars inside.

Wang Dequan didn't even lift his eyelids, and just scribbled something on the account book with a brush.

"The Zhang family is to send one hundred catties of gold."

He paused, then looked up and waved his hand expressionlessly.

"Get him out."

The two soldiers stepped forward, each grabbing one of the wealthy businessman's arms, and dragged him out of the crowd like a dead dog.

The wealthy merchant screamed like a pig being slaughtered: "Why! I gave him gold!"

Wang Dequan snorted coldly, his voice echoing throughout the entire venue.

"The young master has given an order! No gold, silver, or other worldly goods will be accepted! Anyone trying to bribe us again will have their legs broken and be thrown out!"

The entire room quickly fell silent.

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines as they watched the wealthy businessman, who had been thrown to a street corner and was now clutching his gold bars and weeping.

This Jishetang is for real!

"Next!"

The crowd parted automatically, and an elderly man with gray hair, supported by his family, walked up shakily carrying a sandalwood box.

"Qian Tongren, Old Qian!"

"He's here too!"

Old Qian walked to the threshold, respectfully opened the wooden box, and a rich medicinal fragrance instantly filled the air.

Inside the box lay an old ginseng root, as thick as an adult's arm, with a shape remarkably similar to a human.

"A single wild ginseng plant, five hundred years old! The legendary physician He Lin has rejuvenated himself and lives to the heavens!"

Wang Dequan leaned forward, took a sniff, his eyes lit up, and he wrote a heavy note on the ledger.

"The Qian family is gifting us a 500-year-old wild ginseng!"

He closed the ledger and bowed to Mr. Qian.

"Mr. Qian, please take a seat!"

Mr. Qian was so excited that his face turned red. With the help of his family, he carefully stepped over the high threshold and was led by the waiter to the best seats in the courtyard.

This completely drove the people outside crazy.

So, the rules really were true!

It turns out that only the truly precious can step through this door!

"The Li family has presented us with a pair of Ming Dynasty blue-and-white porcelain vases! Please take a seat!"

"The Sun family presents a family heirloom, a Hetian jade ruyi! Please take a seat!"

"The Zhao family is giving away... a painting by a famous contemporary painter? What the hell? Throw it out!"

The bigwigs who usually make the ground tremble with a stomp of their feet in Beijing are now like primary school students waiting for their homework to be checked, nervously queuing up with their precious possessions in hand.

Those who were allowed in were beaming with pride and held their heads high.

Those who were driven away looked ashen-faced, wishing they could disappear into the ground.

The inner hall of Jishetang.

Chu Chen was sitting in the armchair that belonged to Lin Jianguo, his two short legs dangling in mid-air, swinging back and forth, while he was munching on an apple.

Lin Jianguo stood beside him, his hands trembling as he looked at the mountain of rare treasures piled up in the courtyard.

"Chen'er...this...this is too much..."

He had never seen anything like this in his entire life.

Those rare and precious materials that he could only dream of getting in normal times were now being sent to his home as if they were free.

Chu Chen took a bite of apple and said indistinctly, "Grandpa, don't get excited, we need to keep things in order."

He tossed the apple core aside and clapped his hands.

"Look, we've gathered all the medicinal herbs to save Mom!"

He jumped off the chair, walked over to Lin Jianguo, and patted his arm like an adult.

"Grandpa, let me teach you another word."

"This is called 'letting some get rich first to help others get rich later'."

Lin Jianguo looked bewildered: "What? Get rich first? Get rich later?"

Chu Chen shook his head, giving him a "you're hopeless" look, and climbed back onto the armchair to swing his legs.

In the crowd, an inconspicuous old man in a long black robe silently watched all of this.

His gaze did not linger on the rare treasures, but was fixed on the Nine Dragon Cauldron that was faintly visible in the backyard.

Such a strong spiritual aura.

This cauldron is no ordinary object.

His gaze then turned to the child sitting in the hall with his legs crossed.

To be able to set up such a spirit-gathering array, triggering a dragon's roar, and to get so many old foxes to willingly reveal their wealth.

This little thing... is more interesting than that cauldron.

The old man smirked, his eyes revealing greed and murderous intent.

An hour later, the courtyard was filled with guests who were allowed to enter.

Wang Dequan closed the thick account book, walked to the front of the hall, and bowed to Chu Chen.

"Young master, all the congratulatory gifts have been recorded."

Chu Chen nodded, jumped off the armchair, and walked to the temporary platform erected in the center of the courtyard.

He was too short, so the waiter quickly brought him a high stool.

Chu Chen climbed onto the stool, picked up the gavel on the table—a celadon teacup—and slammed it down on the table.

The crisp sound instantly silenced the entire courtyard.

All eyes were on the five-year-old child.

"Everyone."

Chu Chen cleared his throat, and his childish voice clearly reached everyone's ears.

"Welcome to my fishpond."

The people below looked at each other in bewilderment. A fishpond? What does that mean?

Chu Chen didn't explain, but waved to the waiter next to him.

The waiter immediately brought over a tray with ten small white jade cups, each about the size of a thumb, containing a few drops of emerald green liquid that shimmered with an unusual luster in the sunlight.

"This is today's appetizer."

Chu Chen pointed to the liquids.

"I call it the Water of Immortality."

"The Elixir of Immortality?"

"Will drinking this grant immortality?"

The crowd below stirred, their eyes turning red.

"What good things are you thinking?" Chu Chen smirked. "Drinking it will only make you three to five years younger, cure your backache and weak legs, and allow you to have sex seven times a night... cough, anyway, that's the gist of it."

Everyone's breathing quickened as they listened.

Looking three to five years younger! What's the difference between that and an elixir of immortality!

"Today, these ten cups will be auctioned off," Chu Chen said, swinging his legs. "The highest bidder wins."

"How much? I'll offer 100,000 silver dollars!" A coal mine owner immediately stood up.

"I'll offer two hundred thousand!"

Chu Chen looked at them as if they were idiots and shook his head.

"Vulgar."

He held up one finger.

"Let's not talk about money today."

"The first cup of immortality water."

Chu Chen picked up a glass and swirled it in the sunlight.

Starting price.

He paused, his gaze sweeping across the room, and spoke slowly and deliberately.

"One piece, no less than a bronze artifact from the Shang Dynasty."

"..."

The entire courtyard was completely silent.

Everyone thought they had misheard.

A piece of bronze from the Shang Dynasty? In exchange for such a small sip of water?

This isn't an auction, this is robbery!

While everyone was stunned, Qian Bancheng, who was sitting in the front row and was just able to walk, suddenly stood up, his voice hoarse with excitement.

"I'll offer! My family happens to have a four-ram square zun from the late Shang Dynasty, which my grandfather salvaged from a prince's tomb! Absolutely authentic!"

"Whoosh—"

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

That's a national treasure!

"You bastard surnamed Qian! You're fucking insane!"

"Qian Bancheng, don't go too far!"

Before anyone could react, a tall, thin old man stood up from another corner. He was a prominent figure in the antique business in Beijing.

"The Four-Sheep Bronze Zun is nothing! I have a complete set of Western Zhou Dynasty chime bells in my storeroom! Although there are some fragments, they can still be put together and played!"

"I! I possess a pair of dragon and phoenix jade discs from the Warring States period! They are treasures passed down through my family for eighteen generations!"

"Get out of here, all of you! I unearthed a sword belonging to King Goujian of Yue!"

The situation instantly spiraled out of control.

Those usually impeccably dressed, elegant VIPs were now red-faced and visibly angry, like middle-aged women scrambling for cabbage at a market, completely shedding their pretenses for that so-called "elixir of immortality."

Chu Chen sat on a high stool, swinging his legs, looking at the group of crazy people below with a smile on his face.

The fish have taken the bait.