âHey, didnât Dr. Wang already say that you are not sick?â the young asked. âItâs just because youâre not careful and donât pay attention to your skin. You will be fine if you pay more attention to it in the future.â
âWell, I feel relieved after coming to get it checked,â the woman said. The stone hanging in her heart could finally land.
âCome on, get in the car.â
The mother and son happily left.
âCheerful are the normal citizens like us today!â Jia Zizai was humming a little song at home.
âLook at you. You are so happy.â
âOf course I am happy. This matter is worth celebrating!â
âIt is indeed worth celebrating.â
âHey, you canât tell others the pithy formula that I have taught you!â
âI got it. You have already repeated it four times. Besides, who can I pass it on to? I am with you every day.â
Jia Zizai happily smoked a cigarette.
âSirâs accomplishments are so high that he already has the three of us as disciples,â Hu Mei said. âWhat about his medical skills? As far as I know, Senior Pan only studies Western medicine.â In her opinion, as their master, Wang Yao was highly accomplished, unpredictable, and mysterious. He also said that he was a doctor and medical skills were his core practice. The martial arts cultivation was secondary. He had profound medical skills. Yet, he only a Western medicine doctor as a disciple. It was quite puzzling.
âI think that perhaps Sir has not found the right person yet,â Jia Zizai said.
In the clinic...
âYou are?â Wang Yao looked at the old man sitting in front of him.
The old man was in his 60s. He had a slight hunchback but a good spirit and complexion. He did not speak for a long time after he came inside. He just sat there and stared at Wang Yao.
âSir, what ails you?â
âAh, I am not sick,â the old man said. âWho are you? Why am I here?â
Wang Yao rubbed his forehead.
âSir, this is my place. It is a clinic. I am a doctor, and I treat patients.â
âA doctor? Doctor Huang, do you have magic fingers?â the old man seriously asked.
Wang Yao had encountered a wonderfully weird old man.
The old man in front of him was suffering from amnesia, and he was very sick. Wang Yao was curious as to how the old man was able to find his clinic.
âWhat is your name, Sir?â
âAbout that...â The old man scratched his head. âI remember my name is Li Xiuyuan.â
âDo you remember where you live?â
âWell, I canât quite remember.â The old man scratched his head.
âWhy are you here?â
âHmm, let me think about it,â the old man said.
Wang Yao thought, It would be strange if you could remember it!
âWell, I canât remember.â
Sure enough.
He had forgotten his name, home address, and, of course, he would naturally forget about his family.
Wang Yao realized that he had encountered a big problem. This old man could not keep staying in his clinic like this, could he?
âCould you take a look and see if you have any contact information in your pockets?â
âThatâs right, let me take a look.â
The old man began to rummage his pockets. He managed to find a piece of paper with his name on it. The old manâs surname was Li, but it was not Li Xiuyuan. It was Li Aiguo, a very distinctive name of the times. There was also a contact number on the paper. Wang Yao hurriedly used the landline to call it. An anxious sounding woman answered.
âYes, his name is Li Aiguo. He is at my place,â Wang Yao said.
âYou donât have to worry. Yes, itâs the clinic. OK, Iâll wait for you.â
âSir, please wait here. Donât go anywhere. Your daughter will come to pick you up in a moment.â
âAh, alright,â the old man said.
âHow did you find me?â Wang Yao asked. The cline was in a remote location. Judging from the old manâs clothes, he was not likely an old man from a nearby village. He was probably from the county town, which was dozens of miles away. Putting aside the fact that the old manâs brain was not in a good state, even if he were an ordinary old man who had never come there before, he would have quite some trouble finding the place.
âWell, how did I get here? Let me think.â The old man began to rummage through his pockets. He finally found another piece of paper. On it was written the name and location of Wang Yaoâs clinic. It was written there for a reason.
âDid you come by taxi?â
âYes, I have some impressions of that. It was probably by taxi.â
âSir, what is your name again?â
âLi Aiguo. This child, didnât I just say that?â the old man replied.
âWell, you did.â Wang Yao looked at his watch and took note of the time.
âMay I pour you a cup of tea, Sir?â
âSure, thank you.â
âSir, do you normally like to drink tea?â
The old man thought about it and said, âYes, I like the taste.â
After listening, Wang Yao wrote down something in the book.
âHow many children do you have?â
âOne son and two daughters. The son is not very obedient. Thank God for the two daughters,â the old man said after thinking.
âDo you live with your daughter?â
âWell, yes.â The old man nodded.
Wang Yao continued to jot down notes in his notebook. It seemed that the old man had not forgotten everything, but he had selectively lost his memory, which was interesting.
Wang Yao talked with the old man and looked at the time. About 30 minutes had passed.
âSir, what is your name again?â
âLi Xiuyuan. Didnât you just ask that?â
Huh?
Wang Yao wrote down the time.
âHow many children do you have?â
âTwo sons and a daughter. The sons are not obedient, but the daughter is very good.â
Something is wrong!
Wang Yao crossed out what he had just jotted down.
It was not selective amnesia.
âDo you live at your daughterâs house?â
âNo, at my sonâs house.â
This was a mess. It was all a mess.
âSir, let me check your pulse,â Wang Yao said.
âSure, check my pulse,â the old man happily said.
Wang Yao reached out and checked the old manâs pulse.
The problem is quite serious.
The manâs problem was in his head. His brain had begun to degenerate and atrophy. That was also the direct cause of his memory decline.
Creak! The outside door opened. A woman rushed inside.
âDad, why are you here?â the woman asked. âYou have made me so worried.â
âDr. Wang, I am so sorry!â
âIt is alright. He is seriously ill,â Wang Yao said.
âAh, it is indeed serious. I have been to many places. I heard that you have treatment methods for all kinds of difficult and miscellaneous diseases, so I thought of coming here. I asked for a detailed address and wrote it down. However, I did not expect my father would come here by himself. It scared me.â
âDr. Wang, since we are all here, could you take a look at my father?â
âBefore you arrived, I already took a look at him and realized that the old manâs memory loss is due to the deterioration of brain function,â Wang Yao said.
âWell, thatâs what the other hospitals said when we went there for examination,â the woman said. âDo you think it can be treated? Even if it can be delayed for a while, it would be good.â
The other doctors had said it was just amnesia now, but the next step might affect other body functions, such as actions, speaking, and defecation. If the disease further developed, one of the most common situations would be incontinence.
âWell, I can try, but the treatment will be very expensive,â Wang Yao said.
This old manâs situation was the degradation of his body function, focused on the brain. He could use drugs to prevent the degradation of those functions and even reverse it to a certain extent.
âExpensive? How expensive?â the woman asked.
âA dose of medicine will be tens of thousands.â
âAh?â The woman was stunned. âSo expensive!â
âYes.â
âWe will go back and think about it.â
âOK, have a safe journey back.â
âOh, noted.â
âWho are you?â The old man suddenly turned his head and looked at his daughter.
âDad, I am your daughter.â
âOh, where is this?â
âThe clinic.â
âWell, I do have a little impression of it.â
âWait, Miss, your father likes drinking very much, right?â Wang Yao suddenly thought of something.
âYes, he used to drink like life depended on it. After he got this disease, he quit.â
âAlright, I see.â
The woman left the hospital with her father.
âDad, donât come out on your own in the future. I was worried sick.â