Interlude: The Father’s Tale Part III

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Barely a week after Liu Jianguo talked with the young man from the Xiao Sect, members of the Xiao Sect were dispatched all over the city. They went to every major marketplace, every plaza, and even to those who lived outside the city walls. Their words varied sometimes, but the message they delivered was the same.

Any doctor who wished to test his skills was free to knock on their gates.

Naturally, this had sent the entirety of Eastern Port City into a frenzy. The city buzzed with conversation and even Liu Jianguo, who preferred to keep to himself, could not escape it. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind now. It might have started out as a rumor, but it was now an undeniable fact.

Xiao Zheng was not well.

For the Xiao Sect to call upon the doctors of the city like they had done was unthinkable. The Xiao Sect was the strongest Sect in Eastern Port City. They already had some of the best doctors in the city working for them and could afford the services of someone like Doctor Wu. There was no need for them to bother with all the other nameless, lesser doctors of Eastern Port City.

Those doctors were for the common people. They weren’t worthy of meeting the eyes of anyone in the Xiao Sect. That was something everyone in the city understood.

If they were calling all doctors in the city, it was because they had no other options.

In other words, they had already called on all the best doctors in the city, and that hadn’t worked.

All that was left for the Xiao Sect was to rely on the chance that someone in the city might be able to help. For the dozens of doctors working in the city, it was without a doubt a one in a million chance. If they managed to heal whatever ailed Xiao Zheng, their fortunes would change overnight.

However, as far as anyone knew, no one had gone to the Xiao Sect yet. Even though it was the offer of a lifetime, no one had dared to answer the call. The reason why was obvious.

What would happen to them if they failed?

If they were to go to Xiao Sect only to come up short, wouldn’t that mean they had just wasted the Xiao Sect’s time?

The Xiao Sect’s gratitude was sure to be something beyond their wildest dreams.

The Xiao Sect’s wrath was sure to be something beyond their darkest nightmares.

That was why for the weeks that followed the announcement, the doctors of Eastern Port City carefully considered their odds. It was a decision that would likely affect the rest of their lives. Thus, it needed to be taken with utmost care.

When their patients asked if they would go to the Xiao Sect to try their luck, they laughed and tried to play it off while fiercely weighing the odds inside their minds.

However, Liu Jianguo’s case was different.

“I still say Doctor Liu should go!”

The young man from the Xiao Sect who had become a regular at his clinic crossed his arms as Liu Jianguo examined him. This time he wasn’t there due to any injury or illness. The young man had just come for a check-up.

It was the second time in as many weeks that he had done so.

His real reasons for visiting Liu Jianguo were dreadfully transparent. He was trying to encourage the doctor to take up the Xiao Sect’s challenge. Although the fact hadn’t been officially confirmed, the young man made no effort to hide it was Xiao Zheng who needed medical help.

“If someone like me were to show up at the Xiao Sect’s doorstep, I would only be offending them,” Liu Jianguo said. It was not the first time he used this argument. “Besides, how could someone with my skills be of any use to the Patriarch of the Xiao Sect? Such a thing cannot possibly be.”

That part was a lie.

Liu Jianguo’s case was far different from that of the other doctors in the city. They were hesitant to approach the Xiao Sect because they feared failure. Liu Jianguo, however, did not fear failure.

Liu Jianguo didn’t fear failure because he knew he’d succeed.

If he went to see Xiao Zheng, there was no doubt in his mind that he would figure out what was wrong with him. At the very least, he’d be able to identify his condition. Although whether Xiao Zheng could be healed or not would largely depend on the medicine required and the resources available to the Xiao Sect.

However, how would he be able to explain it?

If a cripple like him were to succeed where the best doctors in the city had failed, how would he be able to play it off? Such a thing would draw unwanted attention. The glory and riches other doctors wanted would become nothing but shackles around his neck. His reputation would grow beyond his ability to manage and would surely draw the envy and enmity of many.

Liu Jianguo’s mind flashed to Liu Jin resting in his crib, and he felt his gut wrench.

He could not afford to attract the wrong kind of attention. He felt sorry for Xiao Zheng, but his was not a life he could save. Not if he wanted his son to live a happy life.

“If angering the Xiao Sect is what Doctor Liu is worried about, then this one will go with him and protect him,” the young man from the Xiao Sect said, lightly bumping his chest with his fist. “This one is an Inner Disciple of the Xiao Sect. If this one were to bring Doctor Liu there, then he’d not need to fear the Xiao Sect punishing him. It’d be my responsibility.”

If he did that and Liu Jianguo managed to heal Xiao Zheng, it’d be the same as claiming credit for Xiao Zheng’s recovery. However…

“If you do that and the Xiao Sect is angered by my presence, you would be the one to receive the punishment.”

If Xiao Zheng’s condition was as critical as Liu Jianguo theorized, then the Xiao Sect should be feeling quite pressured. They were holding on to the hope that a miracle doctor would appear before them.

Imagine then, how they would feel if a cripple like Liu Jianguo were to show up at their doorstep?

If this young man were to bring him before the Elders, it’d be like spitting on their faces. There was no way the young man hadn’t realized this. Indeed, his silence and solemn face told the whole story.

“Why is it that you are so insistent on this? Why are you willing to risk so much?”

The young man before him was an Inner Disciple with a promising future ahead of him. He might even eventually become a Core Disciple. There was no need for him to risk everything to try to heal Xiao Zheng. As long as he kept his head down, he had nothing to fear.

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“Well,” the young man ducked his head. “Doctor Liu may laugh at this, but… I do not wish for the city to fall into chaos.”

Liu Jianguo looked at the young man carefully.

“Explain.”

“Well,” the young man didn’t seem to know where to look so his gaze strayed to the floor. “I was thinking about this when the rumors about Patriarch Xiao Zheng’s illness first started. When it comes down to it, the main reason behind the Xiao Sect’s superiority in Eastern Port City is because only Patriarch Xiao Zheng is in the Emperor Realm.”

The young man nodded as he spoke, utterly certain of the truth in his words. Indeed, he wasn’t wrong.

“The Yun Sect is widely known as the number two Sect in the city, but there is not really much of a difference in the quality of our cultivators. Their Inner Disciples are not much different from our Inner Disciples. Their Core Disciples are not much different from our Core Disciples. Their Elders are not much different from our Elders. Well, perhaps we might be a shade stronger, but this one is a little biased in saying that. In the end, it cannot be denied that Patriarch Xiao Zheng’s powers are truly what cements the Xiao Sect’s superiority.”

The young man’s face only grew more severe as he spoke, a far cry from how he usually was.

“That was why this one started thinking: What would happen if Patriarch Xiao Zheng were to die? Things may be quiet for a while, but the Yun Sect would no doubt try to seize the opportunity to turn the tables on us and become the number one Sect in Eastern Port City.”

Liu Jianguo nodded. That was only natural. It was the same reason why the young man had come to him at first instead of going to the healers of the Xiao Sect. One could not afford to show weakness because those around you will surely pounce on it like hungry dogs.

The good doctor was, unfortunately, starting to see what the young man feared and why he was willing to risk his own skin.

“If that were to happen, the Xiao Sect would surely not stand by and let it happen. The Xiao Sect would try its best to stay as the number one Sect. In such a situation, it wouldn’t take long for violence to erupt. It wouldn’t be like the minor squabbles between Sects this one has been part of. It would end up being a large conflict that can’t be solved without much blood. This one was thinking things like that.”

Liu Jianguo raised an eyebrow. “And you think a cripple like me can stop it?”