At that moment, not far away, a black-clad Zhou Yi Yi was glaring angrily at Xu Ke.

She had just arrived at the restaurant when she overheard someone mention her grandfather. To her shock, that person was Xu Ke.

In fact, the night before, Wang Qiya had already suggested to Zhou Yi Yi that they ask Xu Ke to treat him. Wang Qiya knew Xu Ke's medical skills were brilliant and wanted to give him a chance. She even considered bringing up the incident that had occurred in front of the hospital.

But before Wang Qiya could mention it, Zhou Yi Yi immediately refused.

She already harbored a strong dislike for Xu Ke. If it weren't for the fact that he was Wong Qifu's man, and her inability to intervene in the Wang Family's affairs, she would have pushed Wang Qiya to kick him out of the Wang Family long ago.

Even though the Wang Family treated Xu Ke so well, he still managed to have shady dealings with the Ye Family.

If Xu Ke were to come to the Zhou Family... Zhou Yi Yi didn't dare to even imagine what would happen.

"Miss Zhou…" Zhang Qiming's expression changed. He had visited Elder Master Zhou at their home before, so he naturally recognized her.

"Dr. Zhang." Zhou Yi Yi nodded before greeting Wang Wu. "Uncle Wu."

Yet, she still pointedly ignored Xu Ke.

Wang Wu nodded without saying anything.

Meanwhile, Zhang Qiming hurriedly stood up and tried to smooth things over. "Miss Zhou, please… Mister Xu's medical skills are extremely high. While he may not be on par with Elder Master Zhou's top-tier expertise, he could still offer some new perspectives on his illness. I see no harm in letting Mister Xu give it a try…"

Zhang Qiming already wanted to take Xu Ke as his mentor and inwardly believed him to be the best in the world. However, to avoid making Zhou Yi Yi uncomfortable with such boasts, he chose to subtly praise Elder Master Zhou instead.

However, Zhou Yi Yi wasn't buying it. "Dr. Zhang, we appreciate your kindness and the effort you've gone to, but what use are great medical skills when the person has a corrupt character? I think we'll pass!"

After she spoke, Zhang Qiming's expression became even more troubled, and he couldn't help but glance at Xu Ke.

If Zhou Yi Yi was this prejudiced against Xu Ke, then any hope of him entering the Zhou household was completely dashed.

At this thought, Zhang Qiming decided to try again. "Miss Zhou, you may not know this, but Mister Xu was recently at the hospital and…"

He planned to sway her by recounting the miraculous story of how Mister Xu had used acupuncture to revive Xiao Jie from the brink of death.

"Enough." Zhou Yi Yi cut him off coldly. "I will not let him set foot in our home. Period. There's no need to persuade me further."

Zhang Qiming was choked speechless.

Wang Wu observed Zhou Yi Yi's behavior and shook his head repeatedly. Mister Xu had shown her kindness just last night, yet this was how she behaved. Wang Wu, who had watched her grow up, was very disappointed. His disappointment wasn't just due to her ingratitude, but also her lack of basic critical thinking. Zhou Yi Yi was so infuriated because there were signs of Xu Ke colluding with Ye Chong.

But… if she just stopped to think for a moment… If Wang Wu himself, Wong Qifu, and Wang Qiya all knew about Mister Xu's shady dealings with Ye Chong and had taken no action, wouldn't the implications be self-evident?

Just then, Xu Ke stood up and looked at Zhang Qiming. "Dr. Zhang, that's enough."

Zhang Qiming let out a sigh.

Xu Ke then turned to Zhou Yi Yi. "Miss Zhou, if the Zhou Family doesn't welcome me, I won't impose. So, could you please not disturb our meal?"

He couldn't be bothered to clear up her misunderstanding. As long as she didn't disturb his meal, he was fine!

But this made Zhou Yi Yi even more defiant, her brows knitting together sharply. "What did you say?! When did I disturb you?"

"Exactly what I said. If your education level prevents you from understanding, I can repeat myself," Xu Ke said flatly.

Zhou Yi Yi's face instantly flushed with rage; Xu Ke's words were too infuriating.

"You…" Zhou Yi Yi pointed a trembling finger at Xu Ke.

"Please leave." Xu Ke sat back down, ignoring her.

Zhou Yi Yi stuttered "You… you… you…" for a long time but couldn't manage to form a complete sentence. Finally, she gave up, turning to leave with a cold snort.

Yesterday evening, standing behind Xu Ke and watching him confront the Ye Family had felt so satisfying. But now that his sharp-tongued remarks were aimed at her, Zhou Yi Yi finally understood what real pain felt like. She had wanted to toss out a harsh parting shot, but considering Xu Ke would likely fire back with a biting retort, she ultimately chose to back down.

So what if you're good with words and can out-talk me? Because of a single word from me, you'll never be able to step through the Zhou Family's door.

Thinking this, Zhou Yi Yi's mood improved considerably.

「」

After Zhou Yi Yi was gone, Zhang Qiming couldn't help but ask, "Mister Xu, was there some kind of incident between you and Miss Zhou?"

"We had a bit of friction before, so we developed some bad blood," Xu Ke said with a smile.

Zhang Qiming sighed upon hearing this. "I see. Well, that's going to make visiting the Zhou Family quite troublesome."

"It's fine. I was only asking. If they don't want me there, I'm certainly not going to beg," Xu Ke said.

"Exactly!" Zhang Qiming nodded in agreement. "It's not good for a doctor to be overly enthusiastic. It can make suspicious people even more wary. Besides, it seems Elder Master Zhou has been having some problems these last couple of days, so he can't be seen right now anyway. Let's just wait and see."

Xu Ke nodded. "Okay."

Since that was the situation, he wasn't in a hurry to pay a visit. There was no need to rush.

Zhang Qiming added, "However, the reward Elder Master Zhou is offering for a cure is incredibly tempting. If an opportunity arises, we should still try for it."

At his words, Xu Ke was taken aback. "What reward?"

He remembered that Zhang Qiming was passionate about medicine and indifferent to fame and fortune. What could possibly tempt a man like that?

But while Xu Ke was surprised, Zhang Qiming was even more stunned.

"Mister Xu, you don't know what the reward is?"

"I don't."

"Then why did you want to go?" Zhang Qiming asked, dumbfounded. "If someone treated me with such contempt, there's no way I'd go to the Zhou Family just to be disrespected like that."

At this, Xu Ke couldn't help but chuckle. Zhang Qiming really was as straightforward as ever, with no hidden intentions.

"A friend asked me to take a look, which is why I wanted to ask you about Elder Master Zhou's condition," Xu Ke said with a smile, hiding his true intentions.

"I see." Zhang Qiming nodded. "The reward offered by the Zhou Family is quite simple: you can choose any three treasures from the family's collection. This could be shares in the Zhou Family Corporation that don't affect the Family Head's control, cash, aged and rare medicinal herbs, medical equipment, or even the Zhou Family's medical techniques… anything is possible! To be honest, I'm quite covetous of their medical techniques," he added, lowering his voice on the last sentence as if afraid of being overheard.

Xu Ke's pupils suddenly shrank. "I see."

To be able to choose freely from the treasures accumulated by the Zhou Family over many years… the offer was frighteningly generous!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.