Forced to Marry a Female Billionaire CEO-Chapter 598 - The Start is Red

No one had expected that Wong Gang, who had arrived so menacingly, was only there to pay his debt.

After their initial shock, everyone fell silent, staring at Wong Gang with a single thought.

Then why were you so aggressive just now?

"Mr. Wong, so... you just came to pay us back?" Wang Qiya asked, faltering.

"Yeah, what else would I be here for?" Wong Gang said, shrinking back as he saw everyone's stunned expressions. He had been frightened by them, too.

"It's nothing," Xu Ke said, stepping forward with a dry cough. "We thought... you had a medical problem and came for a consultation."

At his words, everyone's faces froze. Wang Wu awkwardly drew back his hand.

To be honest, when he saw Wong Gang reaching into his pocket, his first instinct was that the man might have a gun. If it weren't for the fact that he was outnumbered, he would have blasted Wong Gang's head apart with a single punch from afar.

"How could that be possible?" Wong Gang was taken aback, then chuckled. "I'm as healthy as an ox... I'm just here to pay you! This is the consultation fee. Please, take it!"

He pushed the six hundred yuan forward.

"Mr. Wong, we agreed from the start that we wouldn't charge you a consultation fee," Wang Qiya said.

"We won't take it. Besides, didn't you say you were out of money?" Xu Yi added, quickly pushing the money back as it was slid toward her.

Moreover, both Xu Yi and Wang Qiya looked suspicious. When Wong Gang had come with the banner and money that morning, he had only brought two hundred yuan. Now, he was suddenly producing six hundred. How could he have gotten money in a single afternoon?

"I don't have any money!" Wong Gang said, hastily grabbing the young man in the suit. "But he does!" he exclaimed excitedly.

Xu Ke raised an eyebrow, looking at the young man who had been standing silently to the side with a smile. The rest of the group also turned to the young man, looking just as confused.

"Who is he?" Xu Yi asked instinctively.

"He's Lin Huiyang, the manager of the nearby Haidong Pharmacy," Wong Gang introduced excitedly. "At noon today, I was eating by the roadside with a few of the guys who also work at Longcha when Manager Lin came over and asked if we knew of any medical halls or clinics in the area."

"He said that if we could recommend a decent place, he'd pay a four-hundred-yuan referral fee for each one."

"So, I brought Manager Lin here. I figured I could use this four hundred yuan to pay you the consultation fee."

Lin Huiyang stepped forward with a slight smile. "Hello, everyone. I am Lin Huiyang, manager of the Longcha branch of Haidong Pharmacy. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Please, don't be alarmed. I mean no harm. To be frank, I'm here on business," he continued. "I was recently appointed manager of the Longcha branch and need to boost performance to meet my KPIs. However, most of the nearby hospitals already have regular suppliers. That's why I asked Mr. Wong to help me find some local clinics."

It was only then that everyone understood. So that's what this was all about.

"And them," Wong Gang said, laughing foolishly, "they're all my coworkers from a nearby construction site. I told them to come get checked out, saying this place was cheap and the doctor was highly skilled."

Xu Ke had posted the fee schedule early that morning. Consultations were only ten yuan, with herbal medicine being a separate charge. Three years ago, when he came down from the mountain, his master had advised him that his consultation fees should be on par with a regular doctor's registration fee.

Everyone looked outside. Seven or eight men and a boy of about seven or eight had gotten out of the van.

"Oh—so that's what this is!" everyone finally exclaimed in unison.

Wong Gang wasn't there to cause trouble at all. He had come to pay his debt and bring them new customers. They had completely misunderstood him!

"Alright, Divine Doctor," Wong Gang said with a grin, clearly on their side now, "I still have deliveries to make, so I'll leave the money here. The patients are outside... and don't forget to bargain hard with this new manager."

Wang Qiya gave a forced smile. "Yes... but Mr. Wong, you should take your money. We really can't accept it."

"Huh? No way!" Wong Gang, who had been about to leave, stopped in his tracks and tried to refuse.

In the end, Xu Ke had to forcefully shove the money back into his hands, and only then did Wong Gang leave in a hurry, alerted by a notification that his delivery was about to be late.

After Wong Gang left, the construction workers filed in one by one, looking around curiously.

Xu Ke smiled and turned to Lin Huiyang. "Manager Lin, if you wouldn't mind waiting a moment, I need to tend to my patients."

"No problem," Lin Huiyang nodded with a smile.

Xu Ke then stepped forward. "Everyone, please form a line."

The clinic's renovations were essentially complete. Except for the herbs not yet being stocked in the cabinets, it was ready to open at any time. So, even though Xu Ke hadn't planned to officially open yet, he wouldn't turn away any patients who showed up.

"Okay... Doctor, is it true what Wong Gang said? Only ten yuan?"

"That's right. I'll write you a prescription, and you can either buy the herbs here or elsewhere," Xu Ke said with a smile.

"Then that's settled!" the man at the front of the line nodded excitedly. "Last time, I saw you expose that rich woman's body odor with just a single sentence, so I knew you were the real deal. But I was worried you'd be really expensive once you opened for business..."

"I never expected it to be so affordable. This is great!"

At these words, Xu Ke froze. "Body odor?"

Who? Who had body odor? 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"The time with Ghost Elder..." Chen Haiming whispered, leaning in to clarify.

Xu Ke immediately understood. During the ruckus caused by the Ghost Elder duo, a middle-aged woman had been stirring up trouble until Xu Ke shut her down by bluntly pointing out that her husband was likely cheating on her.

He'd never imagined that the worker in front of him had also been in the crowd that day. A lingering fear pricked at Xu Ke's heart. He'd assumed the crowd watching the clinic that day had all been hired by the Ghost Elder duo. It never occurred to him that some were actual bystanders. Fortunately, most of them had drifted away by the time the Ghost Elder duo attacked, so they didn't see him get punched. Otherwise, the incident would have definitely made the news.

"Alright, let's get started," Xu Ke said with an awkward but polite smile, gesturing for the man to sit.

The man sat down excitedly. At that moment, someone in the back muttered, "I thought they said it was a beautiful female doctor?"

His words made everyone pause before they all turned to look at Wang Qiya. Her face flushed crimson, and she quickly waved her hands. "No, no, no, I'm not any divine doctor."

"He is," she said, pointing at Xu Ke.

The crowd couldn't help but laugh.

Xu Ke beckoned Wang Qiya over. "You join in. I can't be the only one earning the consultation fee."

"Huh?"

"Come here! It's a good chance to see what you've learned."

Only then did Wang Qiya hurry over and begin to help.

***

After a busy while, the group of men left in high spirits. Xu Ke had accurately diagnosed their ailments with just a few words, resolving their problems for an affordable price. How could they not be thrilled? Seeing their reactions, Xu Ke could already imagine how they would spread the word for him.

Everyone on his team was happy as well. They hadn't earned much, but it was an auspicious start.

However, one person was thoroughly dejected.

When will I ever be as good as you? Wang Qiya lamented inwardly.

"Don't be so down..." Xu Yi said, unable to suppress a smile as she finished preparing the herbs.

The group had originally come for the "divine female doctor" Wang Qiya that Wong Gang had told them about. But after Xu Ke treated the first patient, everyone was so astounded that they all demanded to be seen by him instead. After all, his ability to diagnose what someone had eaten wrong the previous night in just a few moments was simply terrifying. At that point, who cared about a beautiful divine doctor?

This turn of events left Wang Qiya feeling extremely frustrated.

For the moment, Xu Ke paid no mind to the crestfallen Wang Qiya and walked over to Lin Huiyang, who had been waiting patiently.

"Manager Lin, my apologies for the long wait."

Lin Huiyang stood up, his smile carrying a well-practiced insincerity. "No worries! I just had the opportunity to witness Doctor Xu's astonishing medical skills firsthand. It was truly an eye-opener!"

Hearing this, Xu Ke's expression grew subtle. "Good. Now we can talk."

"Let's talk inside."

Lin Huiyang nodded, a faint smile touching his lips.