Chapter 92

On the other end of the phone, a man's voice said, "Wait there, I'll send someone to pick you up." Then he hung up.

Xu Mo looked at Ding Jian, momentarily at a loss, as he had no interest in Ding Jian's proposal. Han Ying, however, took the business card for him and smiled at Ding Jian, "Thank you, but unfortunately, we don't have any business cards to give you."

Ding Jian smiled, "No problem. Whenever your boyfriend changes his mind, just give me a call."

At this moment, the little girl's father said to her mother, "Let's get ready, they'll be here soon. Don't worry too much, once we see Li Heling, your illness will be cured."

The little girl's mother nodded, looking much more relaxed.

Upon hearing this, Han Ying suddenly turned her head and looked at the little girl's father, "You said... the doctor you're looking for is Li Heling?"

The little girl's father forced a smile, "Who else could it be?"

Han Ying asked curiously, "Li Heling lives here? I mean... did he move his clinic to this forest? Wasn't he in the capital before? How did he end up here?"

The little girl's father replied, "You didn't know?"

Han Ying nodded, having been searching for the night-blooming cereus for the past few years, she had been cut off from news and indeed didn't know many things.

The little girl's father continued, "What you're talking about happened a few years ago. He moved here afterward. As for why, I don't know. Some say he offended a powerful figure in the capital and moved here to avoid trouble; others say he made enough money and moved here to retire; still others say he himself is suffering from a strange illness and moved here to recuperate. There are many theories, but no one knows for sure."

Han Ying thought for a moment and then asked, "Was the person who called you just now Li Heling himself?"

The little girl's father shook his head, "How could it be? He's so busy, how could he personally call me? Besides, what status do I have compared to him? It was his assistant."

Han Ying asked, "You said... they'll be here soon?"

"Yes," the little girl's father looked at her curiously.

Han Ying thanked him and turned to Xu Mo, "Xu, I want to meet Li Heling."

Xu Mo knew what she was planning but still asked, "Are you going to ask him about the medicine formula?"

Han Ying nodded, "Once Li Heling's people arrive, I'll go with them. You... wait for me here. I'll come back as soon as I get the information."

The little girl's father interjected, "It won't be that easy to see him."

"Why?" Han Ying turned to look at him, puzzled.

The little girl's father explained, "This old man is famous and has strict rules. He won't see anyone without thoroughly investigating their identity. Even if you go now, his assistant will need to investigate you, and it might take a few days to see him. Besides... he'll probably treat my wife first, and only then will he have time to deal with your matter."

Han Ying asked curiously, "I'm not here to be treated, just to ask a question. Is it really that complicated?" She frowned, remembering that when she and her ex-husband met Li Heling before, it wasn't this complicated.

The little girl's father replied, "It's the same."

Han Ying said, "Oh," looking slightly disappointed.

Xu Mo smiled, "Don't worry, it might take a while, but I'll go with you and meet this legendary doctor."

Han Ying looked at him deeply and said, "Thank you!"

The little girl's father glanced at the two of them, his lips moving as if he wanted to say something but held back.

About half an hour later, they heard the sound of a car engine outside. The little girl's father was delighted, "They must be here to pick us up. Let's go."

He helped the little girl's mother up and walked towards the door, with the little girl hopping along beside them.

Xu Mo and Han Ying also stood up and walked to the door. As they pushed it open, they saw a snowmobile parked in the snow outside.

The driver was a man in his thirties, tall and sturdy, seemingly a bodyguard as well. He got out of the car, glanced at the little girl's family, and asked, "Who is Guo Lin?"

The little girl's father raised his hand, "It's me, I'm Guo Lin."

The driver gave him a quick once-over and said, "Get in the car."

Han Ying suddenly said, "Brother, I need to see Doctor Li. Can I go with you?"

The driver turned to look at her, "You want to see Doctor Li?"

Han Ying nodded and continued, "Can I go with them?" referring to the little girl's family.

The driver didn't answer her but returned to the snowmobile, took out some forms from the storage compartment, and handed them to Han Ying, "Fill out these forms first. I'll come back for you later."

Han Ying had no choice but to take the forms. The driver waited for the little girl's family to get in the car, then got into the driver's seat and drove the snowmobile into the depths of the forest, leaving a long trail in the snow.

Xu Mo said, "Let's take a look at these forms and fill them out. Since the driver said he'll come back for you once you're done, he shouldn't be lying."

Han Ying nodded, and the two of them returned to the room.

Ding Jian, seeing them return, smiled, "So the unethical old man the kids were talking about is the legendary Doctor Li Heling. I've heard of him before; his medical skills are said to be truly miraculous, but I didn't know he moved here."

Xu Mo and Han Ying weren't in the mood to talk much and just responded with a few words. Han Ying found a pen in her travel bag and sat on a cushion to fill out the forms.

Xu Mo leaned over to look and couldn't help but curse under his breath.

The forms contained not only the usual information but also additional items, as the child selling goods had mentioned, such as occupation, company, position, annual household income, current savings, bank, account number, and an authorization for account balance inquiry.

Ding Jian peeked and couldn't help but curse, "I thought the kids were exaggerating when they said the old man was unethical, but he's really not just a little unethical. I thought they were exaggerating, but now that I see it with my own eyes, it's even worse. This old man is trying to drain people dry by making them fill out their account balances."

After a moment, he cursed again, "If you have a terminal illness, you can't just give up, and if you can't be treated elsewhere, you have to come to him. But this old man doesn't guarantee a cure... no wonder the kids said the old man is cursed to go to the eighteenth level of hell and be reborn as an animal. This is a light punishment for his actions."

Xu Mo nodded in agreement, thinking, "This old man is really good at making money. His treatment is like the kids selling goods here; it's a seller's market, not a buyer's market. They have a monopoly on the treatment, and since it's something people can't do without, they have the power to set the price. If anyone thinks his prices are too high, they can just not get treated here. The kids said, 'You can buy it or not, but this is the price.' Monopolies have this advantage. But with a terminal illness, as long as there's a glimmer of hope, who would give up?"

He thought, "But Han Ying isn't here to be treated; she just wants to ask a question. Why does she have to fill out these forms? Is it because only Li Heling can answer this question, so he charges for it like he does for treatment? Is the reason the same: 'You can ask or not, but this is the price'? If that's the case, this old man's ability to make money is truly unparalleled, unmatched by anyone in history."

Han Ying bent her legs and placed the forms on her knees, reading through them from beginning to end before filling them out carefully.

Xu Mo didn't want to pry into others' privacy, so he turned away and started talking to Ding Jian.

The forms were extensive, and it took Han Ying about an hour to fill them out.

After she finished, they waited for about half an hour, and the sound of a car engine was heard outside. The snowmobile finally returned.

Xu Mo and Han Ying took their luggage and went out. The same driver looked at Han Ying and asked, "Are the forms filled out?"

"Done," Han Ying said, handing the forms to him.

The driver took them, glanced over them, and put them away, then gestured for the two of them to get in the car, "Get in."

The two of them got into the car, and the driver started the engine and drove into the depths of the forest.

The car drove through the forest for about half an hour and arrived at an iron gate, which seemed to be the entrance to a large enclosed area, surrounded by iron fences.

Next to the iron gate was a small house. As the car approached the gate, it opened automatically, and two men, apparently guards, came out. They were tall and sturdy, like the driver.

The driver asked Xu Mo and Han Ying to get out of the car and take their luggage. The two guards thoroughly searched them and their luggage, confiscating a multi-tool knife from Xu Mo. After another thorough search, they found nothing else and let them in.

Beyond the fence was still a forest. The driver continued to drive the snowmobile through the iron gate, taking the two of them deeper into the forest.

After about ten minutes, they arrived at a simple courtyard with several rudimentary bamboo houses.

The driver asked the two of them to get out of the car, pointed to the courtyard, and told them to go in, then drove the snowmobile away.