The carefree life of Yang Shuisheng, the village miracle doctor

Led by Zhang Fugui with trepidation, the two of them made their way through a maze of turns and soon arrived at the alley where Aunt Chen's house was located.

The alley was lined with low, old houses. Zhang Fugui stopped in front of one of them and whispered, "This...this is it, Aunt Chen's house."

Yang Shuisheng nodded, gesturing for him to step forward.

Zhang Fugui took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and pushed open the door to go inside.

It was a small courtyard, piled with some odds and ends. A woman with a kind face but shrewd eyes was busy cooking at the stove in the corner of the courtyard. The pot was sizzling and the aroma was filling the air.

"Hey! Fugui? What brings you here?" Aunt Chen looked up and saw Zhang Fugui, her face immediately lighting up with a warm smile. She continued cooking, greeting him familiarly, "Have you had lunch yet?"

"If you haven't eaten yet, that's perfect. My food will be ready soon, let's eat together."

Zhang Fugui forced a stiff smile, waved his hand, and said in a hoarse voice, "No... no need, Aunt Chen, I've already eaten."

"Hey! Why are you being so polite with your aunt? You can have some more after you've eaten. And this is..." Aunt Chen's gaze passed over Zhang Fugui and landed on Yang Shuisheng, who followed in afterward, and a look of doubt appeared on her face.

Yang Shuisheng was young, energetic, and neatly dressed; he didn't look like someone from this area.

"He...he is..." Zhang Fugui stammered, looking at Aunt Chen, then at Yang Shuisheng who was expressionless beside him, his mouth opened and closed, not knowing how to introduce him.

They said they came to cause trouble? He wouldn't dare.

Should I just make up an identity? I'm afraid Yang Shuisheng won't be satisfied.

"Aunt Chen, right?"

Just as he was stammering, Yang Shuisheng stepped forward, a gentle smile on his face, nodded to Aunt Chen, and said, "Hello, I am Fugui's distant cousin, surnamed Yang."

"I came to town today to take care of some business, and I thought I'd drop by to see him."

"Cousin?"

Aunt Chen paused for a moment, carefully examined Yang Shuisheng for a few moments, then looked at Zhang Fugui with a questioning look in her eyes.

Zhang Fugui felt a chill run down his spine under Aunt Chen's gaze, but he could only grit his teeth and continue, following Yang Shuisheng's lead: "Um... yes, he's a distant cousin."

"Oh! So it's Fugui's cousin. Then he's family."

"Come in and sit down! Come in and sit down." As soon as Aunt Chen heard that he was family, the doubt on her face disappeared and her enthusiasm grew even stronger. She quickly put down the spatula, wiped her hands on her apron, and was about to invite Yang Shuisheng into the house. "Look at you, you didn't even tell me you were coming."

"Perfect timing! We'll have lunch here at your place, Auntie! Don't be shy."

"Fugui, you really are something, not even telling me your cousin was coming."

As she spoke, she reached out to grab Yang Shuisheng's arm.

Yang Shuisheng didn't dodge, letting her pull him along, his face still bearing that harmless smile. He didn't refuse, but gave Zhang Fugui a meaningful look.

Zhang Fugui felt uneasy under Yang Shuisheng's gaze, and sweat began to bead on his forehead again.

He felt like he was being roasted over a fire, unable to decide whether to stay or leave.

The more enthusiastic Aunt Chen was, the more pressure he felt.

"Brother Yang, I've found the person for you..."

While Aunt Chen turned to go into the main room to get a stool and bowls, Zhang Fugui could no longer hold back. He approached Yang Shuisheng and pleaded in a very low voice, almost crying, "Look, Aunt Chen is here too. I really have things to do at the factory. Can I go first?"

All he wanted to do was escape this suffocating place immediately and get as far away from Yang Shuisheng as possible.

"Walk?"

Yang Shuisheng turned his head, looked at him calmly, and said in a composed voice, "The matter isn't resolved yet, how can you leave?"

"What else needs to be resolved?" Zhang Fugui asked anxiously, his voice rising slightly before quickly lowering it again. "You've seen Aunt Chen yourself. She's the one who spread the rumors. Why don't you just talk to her? It has nothing to do with me anymore."

"It has nothing to do with you?" Yang Shuisheng said with a half-smile. "The rumors started because of you and your wife. The idea came from Aunt Chen, but the words came out of your wife's mouth."

"You think you can just pack up and leave now, pushing all the work onto Aunt Chen?"

"Brother Zhang, you've got a pretty shrewd plan."

"Then... what do you want me to do?"

Zhang Fugui's face turned ugly after hearing what he said, but fear made him disregard his pride. He gritted his teeth and said, "Tell me! As long as I can do it, I... I will do my best."

"Can you let me go once you're done?"

He couldn't bear the mental torment any longer and just wanted to get rid of Yang Shuisheng as soon as possible.

"Fine, since you're so eager to leave, I won't make things difficult for you."

Yang Shuisheng sneered inwardly as he watched him so eager to escape.

He thought for a moment and then offered his terms: "You only need to do one thing: go in and make things clear to Aunt Chen."

"Tell her that Xu Xiuxia's gossip was fabricated and spread by her, and let her clarify to the neighbors herself, publicly apologize, and say that those words were all nonsense and had nothing to do with Xu Xiuxia or anyone else."

"If she agrees and does it, you can leave immediately, how about it?"

"What!" Upon hearing this, Zhang Fugui's face turned deathly pale, and he shook his head frantically. "No! This is absolutely not allowed."

"Brother Yang, you're trying to kill me!"

"You want me to go and tell Aunt Chen about this?"

"Wouldn't that be tantamount to utterly offending her?"

"How am I supposed to live in town after this? We're neighbors, we see each other all the time!"

"Go and say it yourself. Anyway, I've already brought you to the person, my mission is complete, and the rest is none of my business."

As he spoke, as if he had made up his mind, he turned around and walked out, intending to just leave and give up entirely.

In his opinion, Yang Shuisheng couldn't possibly do anything to Aunt Chen at her house, could he?

"Fine, you can go now."

However, Yang Shuisheng did not reach out to stop him, nor did he even move his feet. He simply stood there, watching Zhang Fugui's hurried figure walk towards the courtyard gate, and spoke in a calm tone. His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached Zhang Fugui's ears.

"After I finish talking with Aunt Chen, I'll go to your house and have a good talk with your wife."

"See if she feels the same way you do, that it's none of her business."

Zhang Fugui's steps froze as if nailed to the ground at the courtyard gate.

He had his back to Yang Shuisheng, and his body was trembling slightly.

Go find his wife?

With Li Guihua's fiery temper, who knows what kind of trouble she might cause.

Moreover, given the fierce way Yang Shuisheng had held the razor to his face in the barbershop just now, he had no doubt that Yang Shuisheng was capable of doing such a thing.

"You...you're going too far."

He turned around with difficulty, his face drained of color, and looked at Yang Shuisheng, his voice filled with anger and a hint of struggle: "If you dare to come to my house and cause trouble for my wife, I will call the police! Let the police officers judge this and see who is really lawless."

"Call the police?" Yang Shuisheng raised an eyebrow slightly, as if he had heard something amusing, but his tone remained unchanged. "Sure, go ahead and call."

"However, when the police arrive, I might not be the only one there."

"I'll invite Brother Tiger and a few of his guys from his shop to your house for a visit, and we can also talk to the police to see if they believe your and your wife's side of the story, or what Brother Tiger and the others have to say."