The doctor frowned slightly and let out a soft sigh. "This scar is several years old now," he said. "It’s certainly been a long time. Surgery could help it improve, but a complete recovery is out of the question."

"I’m not having surgery," Su Qing said immediately after the doctor finished. ’I have my Wood Ability. I can heal the scar myself. There’s no need for surgery.’

"Dear, you have to take every chance you get." Seeing Su Qing refuse surgery so quickly, Fu Yuzhen assumed it was about the cost. "Don’t worry about the fee," she said hastily.

Su Qing quickly replied, "Aunt Fu, the doctor himself said it might not work. Besides, I’m scared of surgery. Let’s just drop it."

"But..." Fu Yuzhen started to say, but the doctor hesitated for a moment before speaking up. "My mentor once gave me a traditional Chinese folk remedy, a topical treatment for scars. If you’re against surgery, you could give this formula a try. The only thing is, some of the herbs required need to be quite mature, and they must be wild-grown. I’m afraid they’ll be difficult to find."

Hearing this, Su Qing’s eyes brightened. "Doctor, could you write down that formula for me? As for the herbs, I can look for them in the mountains. My home is right next to Baihua Mountain."

"I can give you the formula, but you’re a young girl. Don’t go deep into the mountains by yourself. It would be better to try and buy them from a Medicine Gatherer." The doctor wrote down the formula, noting the required age for each herb. He handed the paper to Su Qing. "You can buy some of these at a pharmacy, but you’ll have to search for the others. Whether or not you can gather all the herbs on this list will come down to luck. If you manage it, there’s a more than eighty percent chance your scar can heal completely."

"Really?" Fu Yuzhen was overjoyed to hear this. She quickly glanced at the formula and was stunned. Good heavens! Several of the herbs had to be at least fifty years old, and wild-grown on top of that. They would be incredibly difficult to find.

Still, just for the chance of healing the scar, Fu Yuzhen decided she would do her best to help Su Qing find them. ’No matter what, this scar has to be treated,’ she thought. ’Even if it only fades a little, she might be able to cover it with some makeup in the future.’

As they left the doctor’s office, Fu Yuzhen was about to invite Su Qing home for a meal when they suddenly heard shouting from another office up ahead. "You doctors! Do you have any professional ethics? My son is in agony, and you have the nerve to say it’s a psychological problem? You’ve gone too far!"

"BOO HOO HOO... I hurt... my whole body hurts... the pain is killing me!"

Su Qing raised an eyebrow. ’Well, well, well, if it isn’t the father-son duo, Su Shengli and Su Lihui. So they came to the county hospital for a check-up. Too bad for them, no matter how many tests they run, they won’t find anything wrong. The wound healed long ago; it’s just pure, simple pain.’

"Is someone causing a scene?" Fu Yuzhen didn’t recognize the voices as Su Shengli and his son. The doorway to that office was completely mobbed with onlookers, forming a thick crowd. She couldn’t see the people making the commotion at all, only hear them. Since she hadn’t been in Xiyuan County for the last few years and wasn’t familiar with the Old Su Family, she naturally didn’t recognize their voices.

Su Qing whispered, "Aunt Fu, let’s go see."

"Oh, you. Still love watching a commotion, just like when you were little," Fu Yuzhen said with a laugh. She then actually led Su Qing over to watch the spectacle. She didn’t try to push into the crowd, though, afraid that Su Qing might get jostled. Besides, Su Qing was carrying a basket on her back, which would make it hard to squeeze through anyway.

Just then, Su Shengli was still furiously berating the doctor.

A doctor spoke up. "Sir, please calm down. We’ve already given your son a comprehensive examination. The results show that there is indeed nothing wrong. The boy is in very good health."

"If that’s true, then why is my son in so much pain?" Clearly, Su Shengli wasn’t buying it.

"Well..." The doctor was getting frustrated too. ’We really couldn’t find anything at all. The kid’s as strong as a bull calf, and all his tests came back normal. To be honest, aside from a psychological issue where he’s subconsciously causing his own pain, I can’t think of any other possibility.’ "Why don’t you try the hospital in the city? Their equipment is more advanced, and the doctors are more experienced than us here at the county hospital. Or... you could take your son to see the psychiatry department."

"What!" Su Shengli exploded with rage. "Are you saying my son is crazy? You bunch of quacks!" 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"No, no, you’ve misunderstood. A psychiatric evaluation doesn’t mean someone is crazy," the doctor explained hastily. "It’s just to see if there might be a psychosomatic cause for the pain. As I said, there are no issues with his physical health."

"I don’t care! You said my son is crazy! You’re all just a bunch of quacks!" Su Shengli fumed.

"Sir, stop twisting my words," the doctor said, now angry himself. "When did I ever say your son was crazy?"

"You just did!"

The two went back and forth, unable to agree. The surrounding crowd watched with great interest. Some said Su Shengli was being unreasonable, while others felt the doctor’s choice of words was poor. Everyone had their own take. Soon, the commotion attracted the attention of the county hospital’s administration.

Seeing the large crowd, a hospital administrator had security disperse the onlookers before leading Su Shengli and his son away to handle the matter.

With the show over, Fu Yuzhen and Su Qing started walking out of the hospital. "In this situation, both sides are at fault," Fu Yuzhen commented. "One is being completely unreasonable, and the other was too blunt."

Su Qing pursed her lips. "That was my third uncle and my cousin. Just yesterday, my grandma and the others tried to use Su Lihui’s ’pain’ as an excuse to extort money from me."

"What!" Fu Yuzhen was instantly furious. "That was your third uncle and cousin? No wonder they were so unreasonable! No one from that Old Su Family is any good. Hmph! I see what’s going on. They’re trying to get a medical report from the doctor so they can come and shake you down again, aren’t they? Qingqing, don’t you be afraid. If they come looking for trouble again, you come find me in the county."

"Okay, thank you, Aunt Fu," Su Qing said with a smile. "They won’t dare. The brigade leader already warned them yesterday."

"That’s good." Fu Yuzhen glanced at the sky. "Come on, come to my house for lunch. You can head back this afternoon. I remember you loved fish when you were little, and I happen to have some at home. I’ll make you some braised fish."

"I can’t today, Aunt Fu," Su Qing said quickly. "I’ll visit next time I have a chance. I have to get back and take care of some things."

Since Su Qing insisted, Fu Yuzhen could only say, "All right, then. I’ll come see you in a couple of days."

"Okay." Su Qing nodded with a grin. She quickly pulled a pack of fruit candies from her basket and pressed it into Fu Yuzhen’s hand. "Aunt Fu, give these to Youming and You Shan for a little treat. I’m off now!"

And with that, she ran off.

Pan Youming and Pan Youshan were Fu Yuzhen’s two sons. Having no daughter of her own, Fu Yuzhen was genuinely fond of Su Qing and loved her dearly.

Fu Yuzhen couldn’t catch her. Looking down at the paper packet in her hand, she sighed with a smile. "That girl..."