Chapter 18 To Be Quiet

• Naomi said, "Yeah, right. There's no way that's true. I bet it's just an allergy reaction, Mr. Firby."
• Right then, the black mark doubled in size. Naomi shut up, and her husband couldn't even describe how shocked he was.
• Eddie held Cole's hand tightly, begging, "You have to save me, mate. Please."
• "That's why I came," Cole spoke to Eddie. Then, he told Eddie to sit in his chair as he whipped out his needles. Cole brought his needles everywhere.
• Needles? He's a physician, eh? Just then, Naomi was reminded of something. "I think you should get it checked at the hospital, Mr. Firby. Perhaps it's just a normal wound. Dr. Calhoun can help, I'm sure. You don't want your condition to get worse."
• "One more word and you're out of here! Goddammit, you're annoying!" Eddie was positively incensed. This b*tch never stops talking. Damn it. "I'm counting on you, Cole."
• Cole nodded. He told Eddie to lie down and poked away at some of his acupoints. Slowly but surely, the black mark started to fade.
• Eddie's lackey shouted excitedly, "Look! It's fading!"
• Eddie looked down. To his surprise, he also felt the pressure on his shoulders disappear, and the pain was going away as well.
• Meanwhile, Cosmo was in disbelief. He thought Cole was a hack, but he was proven horribly wrong.
• A relieved Eddie thanked, "Thanks, man. It feels a lot better now."
• Cole felt the power of merit flowing into his cinnabar field, and a refreshing sensation coursed through his body. Oh, I'm at Level Four Qi Cultivator now. The Dragon Doctor's Art of Benefitting Mankind would produce merit every time he saved a patient and raise his cultivation.
• At that moment, Naomi realized something was amiss and shouted, "Hey, that's not right. Mr. Firby, he is a scam. I know traditional medicine. He poked your GV24 point. It's known for curing common conditions. This is just an allergy reaction. He's not even a doctor!" She added, "I can do as much myself!" I'm not going to let him get away with this. Eddie mustn't have any respect for him. He mustn't!
• Eddie was about to fly into a rage, but Cole was faster. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Cosmo. "Mr. Yates, you almost drowned when you were a kid, am I correct?"
• The question came as a surprise to Cosmo. "How did you know?"
• Wait! How did he know?
• Similarly shocked was his wife. "Wait, is that actually true?" If it weren't for Cosmo being her husband, she would've thought he was on Cole's side. Not even she knew of that incident.
• Cole smiled. "I noticed it the moment you came in."
• "Yeah, you pretty much hit the bullseye. I came from a poor family and was the eldest of my siblings. I had to raise a whole family, so I fished in the local river and sold my catch. Once, I fell into the river by accident and almost died." He sighed. Every time he talked about that episode, he thought it was a miracle he survived.
• Cole smiled. "That experience practically ruined your body. Since then, things have changed forever for you. Remember to stay warm and bask in a lot of sunlight. By the way, that accident left you sterile, and you're going to end up paralyzed in about a decade or two. Look out for yourself."
• A deafening silence swooped down on the room.
• Naomi was the first to return to her senses as she pointed at Cole angrily and yelled, "What are you talking about, Stuart? Let's go, honey. We can't trust this man. He's a hack." She tried to take her husband away.
• However, Cosmo shoved her away. "Shut the f*ck up!"
• He turned his attention to Cole and asked, "A-Am I really sterile?" The news came as a shock to him.
• "Yeah. You got varicocele from that accident. It restricts your blood flow and stops your seminal duct from sending any sperm out. That's why you're sterile." Cole took a cup of tea and sipped on it. "You can always arrange a checkup if you want a definitive answer. Also, don't tell your wife when you're going to do it. Don't want her tampering with anything, after all."
• Eddie snickered. "Hey, man. Cole saw right through your condition with a single glance. You'd have to be pretty stupid not to believe him."
• Eddie's lackeys gave Cosmo a look of pity.
• Meanwhile, Cosmo remained silent and turned his attention to his wife. He was full of murderous intent and no longer smiling. Instead, his eyes were filled with fury.
• Naomi kneeled before him. "Honey, listen to me. Silas is your son."
• "We'll know after the checkup. For your sake, you'd better not be lying," hissed Cosmo. With that, he dragged his wife out by her hair.
• Once they were gone, Eddie whipped out a black card and a Phoenix Token. Then, he respectfully handed them to Cole.
• "This is my corporation's Phoenix Token, and the other is a Prime Pass. The Phoenix Token gives you a one hundred percent discount for all services and items in the corporation's stores. Also, you'll have access to part of the treasury. If you need some muscles, we can also give them to you. Oh, the card's PIN code is 888-888. Use it to buy anything you want. Everything is on me!"
• "Oh, but I can't have these."
• "Ah, what's money between brothers? You saved my life, mate. Take them. I can't demand your services only to give you nothing in return."
• Well, if he insists. Cole had no choice but to take the offer. "Thank you, Mr. Firby."
• "That's my line, you know."
• After that, Cole returned to the hospital. The moment he stepped into the ward, Anna leaped into his arms.
• "He didn't hit you, did he?"
• "I saved his life. Why would he hit me?" Cole smiled.
• "You saved his life? What is going on? Tell me the truth."
• "Well, he was down with a bit of an odd disease. I ran into him, so I saved his life."
• "You never told me you were a doctor, though. How did this happen?" She shot him a look of suspicion. For some reason, the hospital's staff had been very respectful of her husband. What was more, they even called him a miracle doctor. He's not a doctor, though!
• "It's a long story. Remember how you'd turn on the TV for me every day before you went to work?"
• Anna nodded. In case he got bored, she would turn on the TV for him every day before she left for work.
• "There's a show called Physician's Grove, and they air it every day. I watched it for three years and learned a bit of something from it. Well, a lot of something. The hospital's director said that I had talent and hired me. I'm making several grand every month now," he lied. He didn't tell his wife about the secret manual he had. That's something straight out of an Eastern fantasy novel. I should keep it a secret.
• "Really?" She stared into his eyes, trying to see if he was lying.
• She had seen the same show a few times before. Gabriel even showed up a few times and showed off his skills. It was why she worked hard; she wanted to earn enough money to hire Gabriel for her once-crippled husband.
• Cole nodded. "Yeah. I'm telling the truth."
• "Okay, fine. However, promise me you won't do anything reckless next time."
• "Of course. I'm not stupid. I don't do reckless stuff." He smiled. When his wife let her guard down, he stole a little kiss.
• It made her blush. "Oh, what are you doing? What if someone sees us?"
• "Who cares? You're my wife." A smile curled his lips. "We should go around and look for some houses tomorrow. We can't stay in the hospital forever, you know."
• "Sure, honey. By the way, since you love traditional medicine that much, why don't you ask Dr. Howard to mentor you?"
• "I'll… think about it," answered Cole.
• Gabriel came just in time to overhear their conversation. He had some questions for Cole, but once he heard Anna's suggestion, the veteran physician quickly kneeled on the ground. "Me, his mentor? Gods, lady, have mercy on me."