What "burning with desire"? More like burning with immorality! Filled with disdain for Chang Le, Shen Xingkong left the classroom and headed towards the office building to find Professor Shi.
Standing in front of Professor Shi's office door, Shen Xingkong respectfully knocked twice.
*Knock, knock!*
“Is that Shen Xingkong? Come in,” came the gentle voice of Professor Shi from inside.
Shen Xingkong pushed open the door and entered the office, seeing Professor Shi sitting behind his desk, seemingly reading a medical journal. It’s only proper to be polite when meeting a teacher, especially a revered elder like Professor Shi, who was respected by everyone in the school. Shen Xingkong gave him a courteous bow.
“Hello, Professor.”
“Ha ha, no need to be so formal. Come, have a seat!” Professor Shi took off his reading glasses and smiled, motioning for Shen Xingkong to sit down in front of him. “So, how are you feeling? Have you recovered?”
“I was fine yesterday. Professor, why did you want to see me?” Shen Xingkong was hungry and eager to go eat. If you go to the cafeteria late at the medical school, you'd be lucky to get even soup.
“Oh, it’s nothing much. Someone asked me to give you a gift.” Professor Shi opened a drawer in his desk, took out a gift box, and slid it across the desk to Shen Xingkong.
“A gift?” Shen Xingkong was a bit surprised. He took the gift box and opened it in front of Professor Shi. Inside was an exquisitely crafted sheepskin scroll.
This sheepskin scroll was different from the one Shen Xingkong had in his waist pouch. In fact, it was different from any needle kit scroll he had ever seen. The sheepskin itself was as smooth as silk and had a bronze sheen with intricate, mysterious patterns on it. Shen Xingkong unrolled the scroll, and the sunlight streaming in through the window reflected off it, casting a golden glow so bright that it made him squint.
Gold needles—these were literally gold needles, each one made of pure silver and plated with 24-karat gold. The ends of the needles were intricately crafted into the shape of three-legged golden toads, an artisan’s touch that was far beyond the skills of ordinary people. And this set of gold needles wasn’t something that an average doctor could afford. Being a knowledgeable person, Shen Xingkong estimated that this set was worth at least 30,000 yuan.
“This…” Shen Xingkong’s mind went blank. He couldn’t think of anyone who would give him such an expensive gift, especially something as valuable as this set of needles.
“Ha ha ha… Do you remember the old Chen from the Biological Research Institute? This is a small token of his appreciation. The last time you used the golden needles to draw out toxins for him, the results were incredible. Since then, he hasn’t had a single recurrence of his migraines and has been as energetic as a young man. He even goes to the gym to play tennis now!” Professor Shi laughed as he explained the origin of the gold needles.
“Chief Engineer Chen’s health is what matters most. I just happened to be lucky that it worked,” Shen Xingkong said humbly while quickly stuffing the set of gold needles into his waist pouch.
At this point, even a robber would have a hard time prying the needles out of Shen Xingkong's hands.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
As he watched Shen Xingkong put away the needles, the smile on Professor Shi's face slowly faded. He took a sip of tea from the cup on his desk, then looked at Shen Xingkong with a serious expression.
“Shen Xingkong, I have another idea…”
“What idea?” Shen Xingkong adopted a posture of rapt attention.
“I want you to intern at our medical school’s affiliated hospital. What do you think?”
“Ah?” Shen Xingkong was momentarily stunned, thinking he hadn’t heard correctly. “Professor, what did you say?”
“I said I want you to intern at the medical school’s affiliated hospital. Shen Xingkong, the amazing medical techniques passed down to you by Master Shouyin should be put into practice somewhere. I can tell that you haven’t fully grasped the essence of what he taught you yet, and you’re not very skilled at applying it. Only by interacting with patients can you become a true master of medicine and bring benefits to many patients. I believe Master Shouyin would want you to do the same,” Professor Shi explained earnestly, expressing his thoughts to Shen Xingkong.
“But… I’m only a second-year student, and I don’t have a medical license…” Shen Xingkong began to wonder if the old professor had lost his mind.
“Being in your second year doesn’t matter. As for the medical license, yes, that’s a bit of a hassle. But at the medical school’s affiliated hospital, you can practice under my supervision as my assistant and student, which would allow you to treat patients,” Professor Shi said, having already considered all the details for Shen Xingkong.
Shen Xingkong felt a bit overwhelmed. To be able to become Professor Shi’s personal student and even his assistant at the affiliated hospital was a dream come true for any student at the medical school. The fact that such a huge opportunity had fallen into his lap was entirely due to “Master Shouyin.”
However, Shen Xingkong had his own plans. Ever since he gained his supernatural ability, he had wanted to carve out his own path as a man in the world, to achieve something great. If he were to intern at the affiliated hospital and eventually work there, his dreams of accomplishing something significant would be stifled, leaving him feeling trapped in a dead-end job with no room for personal growth.
Seeing Shen Xingkong’s hesitation, Professor Shi thought he lacked confidence in himself.
“Ha ha!” Professor Shi stood up, laughing, and patted Shen Xingkong on the shoulder. “When I was your age, I was just like you—afraid to treat patients, fearing that I might make things worse. But think about it: How can you reach a thousand miles without taking small steps first? You don’t want to give up on becoming a doctor, do you? If you want to be a doctor, you must go through the process of hands-on practice. And now, with me watching over you, you won’t make any mistakes.”
“Well… okay… thank you, Professor,” Shen Xingkong finally nodded reluctantly after much thought, agreeing to Professor Shi’s arrangement.
Professor Shi’s reasoning wasn’t without merit. Shen Xingkong had only had his supernatural ability for a little over a week, and he was still in the process of figuring out how to use the Golden Needles. Especially since he had little knowledge of basic Chinese medicine, relying only on the few things he had crammed into his head from the TCM Acupoint Compendium in the past few days. Having a place to practice and verify his skills could indeed be beneficial.
Someday, when he becomes powerful enough… ha ha, who could stop him if he wanted to hijack a spaceship and fly to the moon? Besides, interning at the affiliated hospital didn’t mean he was bound to a job there. He could come and go as he pleased, leaving him with plenty of time to pursue his own interests.
“Great, I’ll be waiting for you at the hospital tomorrow,” Professor Shi said with satisfaction, feeling a strong sense of accomplishment at the thought of nurturing a talented young man like Shen Xingkong.
Shen Xingkong stood up to say goodbye to Professor Shi, then headed to the cafeteria for lunch. Luckily, there was still some food left, not just the dregs. As he ate his tomato and scrambled eggs with rice, Shen Xingkong felt no taste in his mouth at all; he knew he needed to rethink his future plans.
In the afternoon, during class, Shen Xingkong told Chang Le about Professor Shi’s invitation for him to intern at the affiliated hospital. Chang Le was utterly astonished, staring at Shen Xingkong as if he were an alien from another planet. There were a few excellent students in their class, like Li Yingni, but how did such a huge opportunity fall into Shen Xingkong's lap?