Chapter 118 - 117

Chapter 118: Chapter 117

From 1:30 PM to just past 6:00 in the evening, Yu Zhiming performed physicals for a total of fifty people at Ning’an Hospital, including Gu Qingran and Hua Si Fan.

His biggest discovery wasn’t Gu Qingran’s absent vas deferens, but a fifty-one-year-old man’s suspected case of nasopharyngeal cancer.

Yu Zhiming’s keen hearing picked up on some strange, uncoordinated qualities in the man’s breathing and speech, prompting him to conduct a detailed examination of his nasopharyngeal region.

And sure enough, he found a problem...

Finally finishing his day’s work at Ning’an Hospital, Yu Zhiming stepped out of the examination room to find his Fourth Sister and Gu Qingning waiting for him.

"I... Vice Dean Gu is in a meeting and can’t get away..."

Gu Qingning said with a stiff expression and a cool tone, "I’m here to take you to dinner. I’ll also be responsible for driving you and Sister Xiang Wan home."

Yu Zhiming saw the blush on her face and knew she’d been having a good couple of days.

"Are we going to Tingfeng Tower again?"

Gu Qingning waved a dismissive hand. "I’m so sick of that place. I’ll take you somewhere else, somewhere good..."

Gu Qingning drove Yu Zhiming and his Fourth Sister to a small beef hot pot restaurant.

Apparently, the restaurant’s beef was all butchered fresh the same day.

Yu Zhiming wasn’t sure if it was *really* butchered fresh.

In any case, the beef the server brought to the table looked incredibly fresh, not like it had been frozen.

However, Yu Zhiming’s professional eye determined that the beef had been separated from a living animal for at least twelve hours.

But then again, after a quick swish in the small pot of broth and a dip in the restaurant’s self-proclaimed secret sauce, the flavor was still exquisitely sweet and savory. It whetted Yu Zhiming’s appetite completely...

"Yu Zhiming, after we eat, let’s go to karaoke or a bar."

In response to Gu Qingning’s invitation, Yu Zhiming shook his head vigorously and refused outright. "Nope! Karaoke and bars are too chaotic and loud for me."

"You can go to karaoke with my sister."

Gu Qingning snorted, her face full of disdain. "Fine, don’t go. It’s not like I really wanted to take you, anyway."

"Sister Xiang Wan, should we go, just the two of us?"

When Yu Zhiming saw his Fourth Sister glance his way, he said, "Go on, Sis. You should have fun when you can. I have to go home and work on a paper tonight, so I don’t need you to look after me."

He couldn’t help but add a warning, "But don’t drink too much!"

With his blessing, a happy Yu Xiangwan said, "Qingning, let’s go sing tonight!"

"And just so we’re clear, it’s my treat this time!"

Gu Qingning was happy too. "Great! You don’t mind if I invite a couple more friends, do you?"

Yu Xiangwan chuckled. "Not at all. For karaoke, the more the merrier..."

Gu Qingning remembered something and turned back to Yu Zhiming.

"Hey, since your hearing is so incredible, let me ask you something. Can you tell the numbers on dice just by listening, like in the movies?"

"The numbers?" Yu Zhiming didn’t understand at first.

Gu Qingning explained, "Yeah, the numbers on dice. You know, for the dice games they always play at bars and karaoke."

Yu Zhiming shook his head. "I don’t know. I’ve never tried."

Gu Qingning’s eyes lit up. "Your hearing is practically superhuman! You can hear the condition of someone’s internal organs right through their skin, as clearly as if you could see them."

"So hearing the numbers on a few dice through a dice cup... theoretically, that should be no problem, right?"

Gu Qingning grew excited and declared, "Yu Zhiming, I’ll take you with me and we can clean house..."

Yu Zhiming cut her off with a serious expression. "Gu Qingning, that’s not going to happen. I don’t gamble."

Gu Qingning quickly explained, "Yu Zhiming, you’ve got it wrong! It’s not gambling, it’s just a game."

"I want to make those guys get on the floor and bark like dogs."

Yu Zhiming shut her down again. "Not even as a game."

"I can’t play with dice. It’s a rule my father gave me—a very, very strict one."

"He wanted me to nip any bad habits in the bud, so I wouldn’t eventually give in to temptation and use my abilities to step into an abyss, one foot at a time."

"Gamblers never come to a good end."

Yu Xiangwan confirmed this. "Qingning, our dad really did warn Fifth Brother about this, strictly forbidding him from ever getting involved with gambling."

"He even told all of us sisters to supervise him. He said if we caught him, we were to break his legs—and he meant it, no excuses."

Gu Qingning couldn’t help but purse her lips, her tone dripping with scorn. "You’re all adults. You still listen to everything your parents say?"

"It’s just a game, not actual gambling."

Yu Zhiming said, without a trace of embarrassment, "If what my parents say is right, then of course I should listen."

He paused for a moment before explaining further. "It’s mainly because my situation is a bit unique. My father worries that someone with ulterior motives could tempt me down the wrong path and cause huge problems."

"So my parents decided it was best to nip the problem in the bud and have me avoid it entirely."

"Say, Gu Qingning, you wouldn’t be one of those people with ulterior motives trying to tempt me, would you?"

Gu Qingning immediately flew into a rage.

She shot to her feet, planting her hands on the table. Her chest heaved as she demanded imposingly, "Yu Zhiming, what’s that supposed to mean?"

"Are you accusing me?"

"Am I that kind of insidious, petty person?"

Yu Xiangwan quickly intervened. "Qingning, don’t lower yourself to his level. He’s just blunt and sometimes speaks without thinking. He definitely didn’t mean to accuse you of anything."

"Here, let’s eat..."

Persuaded by Yu Xiangwan, Gu Qingning huffily sat back down and started to eat.

With every piece of beef she swished in the pot, she’d shoot a glare at Yu Zhiming, as if it weren’t beef she was cooking, but a piece of his own flesh!

The atmosphere in the private room grew a little tense, but that didn’t stop Yu Zhiming from enjoying his meal.

Seeing Gu Qingning’s pouty, puffed-up expression, Yu Zhiming was, in fact, feeling quite pleased with himself...

Although Yu Zhiming’s group was eating in a private room, the soundproofing was rather poor, and sounds from outside still filtered in.

Especially for someone with Yu Zhiming’s hypersensitive hearing.

However, Yu Zhiming had been intentionally or unintentionally treating the cacophony, which sounded like the din of a busy marketplace, as mere background noise.

But one phrase successfully caught his attention.

"An Obedience Potion?"

’Is that the legendary stuff from the internet?’

Then, a man’s voice from the hallway outside the room reached Yu Zhiming’s ears.

"That’s the one!"

"The effect isn’t as wild as people online claim. It just heightens a person’s desires and makes them a little groggy, that’s all."

"When we’re almost finished eating, slip it into her wine or her soup."

Then, the hesitant voice of the woman from before spoke up. "Is that really a good idea? I already asked her."

"She made it clear she’s not into him."

"Not into him, but she still came out to eat with us?"

The man’s voice was now clearly tinged with anger.

"Is she really that dumb, or just playing dumb? Does she not get why we keep asking her out?"

"Stop making excuses for her. Just remember to put this stuff in her soup or wine. I can’t let my friend strike out again tonight."

Then, Yu Zhiming heard the two speakers enter the third private room to the right.

’Great. I’ve stumbled into another mess.’

Yu Zhiming was genuinely frustrated.

He felt like he had some kind of "Conan" constitution—wherever he went, something bad was bound to happen.

But now that he had, he couldn’t just pretend he hadn’t heard anything.

Yu Zhiming picked up his phone and started composing a text message.

He clearly detailed where he was eating, what he had overheard, and which private room the two people were in, then sent it all to his police officer friend, Jin Feng.

A moment later, Yu Zhiming received a reply.

"Got it! I’ve already forwarded the info to my colleagues at the local precinct in your area!"

After seeing the message, Yu Zhiming stopped worrying about it.

He went back to happily eating his hot pot, savoring the food along with the sight of Gu Qingning’s angry expression...