"He has indeed grown a lot during this period."

Wang Jian acknowledged the change in Chairman Kang.

Xu Qian couldn't help but laugh. "You don't seem proud at all. He's about to formally become your disciple, you know. Shouldn't a master be happy when his apprentice is so capable?"

Wang Jian snorted. "This is nothing. He's only just reached the threshold. If I get this happy now, what am I supposed to do later on?"

"Hahaha," Xu Qian heard the implication in his words and laughed. "It seems you have high expectations of him!"

Wang Jian pursed his lips but didn't refute her.

If he didn't have expectations for Chairman Kang, why would he have agreed to take him as a disciple in the first place?

Unlike Peng Pingan, who possessed a natural gift, Chairman Kang's initiation into their school of medical skills held a different significance.

Peng Pingan was naturally suited to learn qi cultivation; it would be a waste of his talent not to study the teachings of Xu Changqing and Wang Jian. But Chairman Kang, who entered this path with a background in Chinese medicine, had helped Wang Jian and the others solve a major problem.

In the past, Xu Changqing had worried about the legacy of their school, lamenting that ordinary people were simply unable to grasp the basics, making it nearly impossible to learn their superior medical techniques. This made their skills exceptionally rare. If he hadn't met Wang Jian, Xu Changqing might have carried that regret for the rest of his life.

As for Wang Jian, he hadn't deliberately taught Chairman Kang anything about qi cultivation. It was a happy accident, one that opened up an entirely new path for their legacy to be passed down. If Chairman Kang managed to forge his own unique way forward, the responsibility of carrying on their school of medical skills might very well fall to him.

This was something Peng Pingan couldn't provide, so naturally, Wang Jian saw Chairman Kang in a different light. However, that alone wasn't enough for Wang Jian to treat him with special favor.

Wang Jian watched his sister-in-law's back as she prepared the vegetables and sighed inwardly. His thoughts drifted. Even he didn't know how long these peaceful days could last.

He had entrusted the clinic to Chairman Kang not only because of Chairman Kang's abilities but also because circumstances had forced his hand.

But he couldn't bring himself to tell Xu Qian, so he kept these thoughts to himself.

He was simply stealing a moment of calm before the storm.

Thinking of this, Wang Jian closed his eyes again, humming a little tune and swaying gently like an old man.

Seeing this, Xu Qian just smiled and didn't bother him further.

One feigned sleep while the other prepared vegetables. For a moment, the world seemed to fall quiet.

...

In stark contrast to the tranquility of the small mountain village, the City Hospital was receiving an extremely unusual patient.

"Director Zhao, is it true?"

Zhao Zhe, an emergency medicine expert at the City Hospital, stood tensely before Hospital President Liu Defu.

After hearing Zhao Zhe's report, Liu Defu's expression changed dramatically. "Director Zhao, this is no joking matter," he asked hastily. "Can you stand by that statement?"

"President, I've worked at this hospital for many years. You should know what kind of person I am." Zhao Zhe's face was grim, his eyes betraying a panic that stemmed from the situation itself, not the president's question. "I confirmed it repeatedly before coming to report this to you."

Hearing this, Liu Defu felt his vision go dark, and his chronic high blood pressure nearly sent him reeling. He had only asked because he knew what kind of man Zhao Zhe was, desperately hoping to be told it was all just a joke.

Unfortunately, seeing the serious look on Zhao Zhe's face, he began to panic as well.

He had no choice but to panic. Zhao Zhe had just reported a case of an unknown infectious disease, and there were already fatalities. Who wouldn't panic in a situation like this? Why did our Shanghai City have to go through something like this? Liu Defu felt his throat tighten, his breathing growing ragged.

But before he could ask anything else, Zhao Zhe shared another piece of information that made him even more anxious.

"New cases have already emerged among the patients we brought in. We've set up isolation in the emergency room, but I can't be sure of the extent of the contagion. I think we need to seal off the entire emergency room."

Liu Defu was speechless for a moment. He took a sharp breath, knowing there was no room for hesitation.

"Director Zhao, if you're certain, then proceed according to regulations. Remember to report to the Epidemic Control Center first. As for our hospital, we must get this under control. We absolutely cannot let it spread."

As he finished, Liu Defu grabbed Zhao Zhe's hand, his tone pleading. "This is the most important thing. If what you're saying is true, we have to get this unknown virus under control."

Fearing that Zhao Zhe hadn't done enough, he pressed on, "Ensure proper isolation protocols are in place. The medical staff who've had contact with the patients must be the first to be checked for infection."

He rattled off several instructions, and even Zhao Zhe could see the president was panicking.

It wasn't surprising. Not only was the strange virus potentially fatal, but if the situation blew up, he would lose his position as president.

However, looking at it from another angle, this situation wasn't entirely a crisis. Zhao Zhe knew that if their hospital could get this under control, the benefits would be immense.

Seeing the president had lost his composure, Zhao Zhe deliberately reminded him, "You're right, President. I've already arranged for that. But our emergency department can't handle this alone. We'll likely need assistance from the directors of other departments."

Liu Defu wasn't surprised. Theirs was just an ordinary tertiary-grade city hospital. In the emergency department, besides Zhao Zhe who had some genuine skill, the other doctors were only at the resident level. It was no exaggeration to say the department served as the hospital's transit station.

"I'll call and make the arrangements now," Liu Defu nodded decisively. "You get back to the emergency room and handle everything according to the emergency plan."

Zhao Zhe acknowledged the order and left. Although a hint of panic still lingered on his face, a flicker of excitement was now visible.

Liu Defu, however, felt his legs go weak as he slumped into his chair. He took a deep breath before picking up the phone to coordinate everything.

Message after message flew out over the phone lines.

The City Hospital transformed into a machine, rapidly mobilizing to address the crisis in the emergency department.

Neither Liu Defu nor Zhao Zhe could have imagined that this scenario was not exclusive to Shanghai City; the same thing was happening elsewhere in the province.

...

Meanwhile, Wang Jian was still listening to the preparations of the Kang and Peng families, completely oblivious to events in the outside world.

The affliction seemed to have no effect on the area near the mountain village; none of the patients who came to the clinic exhibited any strange symptoms.

The guests invited to the apprenticeship feast were already landing at the provincial capital and beginning their journey to the village.

Aside from a few staff at hospitals and disease control centers who had detected the suspicious new illness, no one else realized an unknown danger was spreading across the country.