Pi Ruan

The two of them were chatting when the fat man returned, carrying several bags full of groceries.

The young man named Pi Ruan clearly froze when he saw the fat man. After Jiang Cheng calmly explained that he was a friend, Pi Ruan's face instantly lit up with the warmth of someone meeting an old acquaintance in a foreign land. The fat man had no idea how to handle it.

"Hello." Pi Ruan grabbed the fat man's free hand. "I'm Pi Ruan. Nice to meet you."

A puzzled look crossed the fat man's face. He glanced at Jiang Cheng, but Jiang Cheng's expression was always unreadable, so he had no choice but to look back at the young man in front of him. With a conflicted, regretful expression, he said, "Hey, brother. I feel for you, being so young and coming down with something like this, but I'm not a doctor. There's no point telling me."

Pi Ruan's hand froze in midair.

The fat man suddenly remembered he had to hurry and make the ribs, so he excused himself and slipped into the kitchen, where he got busy with a clatter.

Jiang Cheng didn't seize the awkward moment to make a big deal of it. He simply gestured for Pi Ruan to sit down and asked, "How has your girlfriend been acting lately?"

At the mention of his girlfriend, Pi Ruan sighed. "About the same as before, only worse. She's always doubting that I'm sincere with her and thinking I'm seeing someone else."

At that, Pi Ruan suddenly grew agitated. He craned his neck and said, "But you know me, Doctor Jiang. How could I ever be that kind of person!"

"Mm." Jiang Cheng took out a blue-covered notebook and wrote a few lines in it, then nodded. "I know."

Pi Ruan then started pouring out his grievances, listing everything he had done for his girlfriend since they got together, only to be met with her lack of understanding.

When he got to the emotional parts, tears began streaming down his face.

The fat man washed his hands and came out of the kitchen.

Pi Ruan was still speaking passionately. Jiang Cheng showed little empathy, only chiming in now and then. Most of the time, he simply listened.

Curious about Jiang Cheng's work, the fat man pulled up a chair and sat nearby to watch.

When he heard how much Pi Ruan had done, yet his girlfriend still suspected him, the fat man couldn't hold back. But before he could offer any comfort, he met Jiang Cheng's gaze.

The fat man silently swallowed the words that had been on the tip of his tongue.

"Doctor Jiang," Pi Ruan said at last, exhausted from talking. He rubbed his brow and spoke in a weary voice. "That's more or less the whole story. In short, my girlfriend suspects I had ulterior motives for getting together with her—that I'm after something else."

Jiang Cheng closed the notebook and clipped his fountain pen onto it.

"Doctor Jiang, please come up with a treatment plan for my girlfriend's current condition as soon as possible. Sorry for the trouble."

Jiang Cheng nodded. "It's my job."

Pi Ruan left with a sigh.

As soon as he was out the door, the fat man leaned in. "Doc, this guy seems decent. Sure, he has a little problem with impotence, but he's clearly devoted to his girlfriend. I really don't get why she's so convinced he has ulterior motives."

Jiang Cheng opened a drawer and put the notebook inside. Then he looked up. "Is that what you think?"

The fat man blinked, seeming not to understand what Jiang Cheng meant. All he could say was, "What are you getting at?"

Jiang Cheng gestured for the fat man to be quiet. A few seconds later, the door opened again, and Pi Ruan strode in. With an apologetic expression, he said, "Doctor Jiang, my memory's terrible. I nearly forgot the most important thing. My girlfriend's turning eighty on the day after tomorrow. You have to come!"

Jiang Cheng replied unhurriedly, "Congratulations. I'll be there."

Satisfied with the answer, Pi Ruan left.

The fat man's mouth fell open in an O.

Once the door opened, the fat man noticed a young woman dressed like a secretary standing outside. She wore a white blouse, a black pencil skirt, and black-rimmed glasses—intellectual yet alluring.

As soon as Pi Ruan stepped out, he habitually slipped his left arm around the woman's waist. The two of them left together, laughing and chatting.

The fat man silently picked up the pieces of his shattered worldview, but found that he couldn't put it back together.

Jiang Cheng tidied some documents on the desk and slotted several of them into the case-file rack in order. When he turned around, he found the fat man still staring blankly out the door.

A blue supercar roared away.

"What are you looking at?" Jiang Cheng asked.

The fat man suddenly said, "I don't want to work hard anymore. His happiness seems so pure."

Jiang Cheng thought for a moment, then turned and walked back to the case-file rack. He pulled out several folders marked with red sticky notes.

He opened one, then turned to face the fat man, tucking the others under his arm. "Zhao Guiqin," he read aloud. "Entrepreneur. She owns nine villas, more luxury cars than you can count, and assets worth over a hundred million. Eighty-nine years old." He looked up at the fat man. "Currently single."

The fat man's lips quivered, as though he wanted to say something but didn't know how.

Jiang Cheng looked enlightened, then picked out another folder from beneath his arm. "Liu Niuma. Landlady. She owns dozens of apartments, is seventy-seven, and is also single." He set the folder down and advised him earnestly, "Don't let her age fool you. She's seriously ill, and she has no children."

The fat man took a deep breath and said resolutely, "I think I'm still young. I can give it another shot and work hard."

Jiang Cheng clicked his tongue a few times and regretfully put the documents away.

Following Jiang Cheng, the fat man asked in confusion, "How did you get their information? Are they your patients?"

"More or less," Jiang Cheng said.

"What are they sick with?"

Jiang Cheng looked at the fat man and enunciated each word. "Lonely and aching for company at night."

The fat man shivered. Then, as if something had suddenly dawned on him, he widened his eyes and asked, "So that brother, Pi Ruan—was it you who introduced him to his girlfriend?"

Jiang Cheng touched his nose, looking rather embarrassed. "It's my duty as a doctor. Seeing long-missed smiles bloom on their faces makes me genuinely happy too."

Fat man: "...Be honest with me. How much kickback did you get from that rich lady?"

Jiang Cheng ignored him and went upstairs by himself, acting mysterious as he busied himself with who knew what.