As soon as Lin Yu finished speaking, the eerie crying sound came from the clinic again.
Jiang Yan and the young couple panicked. The child, who had just calmed down, suddenly began crying violently again, her face twisted in pain as she clawed at the young woman.
"Director Jiang, please, take a look! What's happening?" the young woman pleaded anxiously, gripping her daughter's hands.
Jiang Yan's face turned pale as she patted the child's back, trying to soothe her, her mind in turmoil. The child had been fine just moments ago—why had she suddenly relapsed?
Then, the child abruptly stopped crying. Her body began convulsing violently, her eyes rolling back, foam bubbling from her mouth, her chest heaving as if she were suffocating.
Jiang Yan's expression grew even more panicked. She quickly laid the child on the bed and began performing CPR, pressing down on her chest with both hands.
The bespectacled doctor nearby was too terrified to even breathe. If this situation turned fatal, he'd likely be implicated too.
"Director Jiang, please, save my daughter!" The young woman, seeing her daughter's face grow paler by the second, collapsed to the floor, wailing.
"You quack! Do you even know how to treat patients?!" The young man, who had been calm earlier, suddenly erupted in fury. "If anything happens to my daughter, I swear I'll make you pay with your life!"
Sweat poured down Jiang Yan's forehead as she continued chest compressions and rescue breaths, but nothing worked. The child's eyes remained shut, her face turning blue, her body motionless—her life slipping away.
Jiang Yan's hands trembled uncontrollably. In all her years as a doctor, she had never encountered anything like this.
"I'll kill you!"
As the child's breathing grew weaker, the young man completely lost control and lunged at Jiang Yan.
The bespectacled doctor mustered his courage to intervene but was no match—the young man kicked him into a corner, then swung a slap at Jiang Yan's head.
Jiang Yan flinched, bracing herself for the blow.
But the slap never landed. She looked up to see the man's wrist caught in a firm grip.
Lin Yu had stepped in front of her.
"Violence won't solve anything," Lin Yu said calmly, pushing the man's hand away.
"That quack killed my daughter!" the young man roared, his eyes bloodshot like a wild beast.
"With me here, your daughter won't die," Lin Yu declared firmly.
Jiang Yan stared at him, momentarily stunned. For some inexplicable reason, she felt a strange sense of… safety?
No, that couldn't be. How could this useless good-for-nothing make her feel that way?
"Fine, then you treat her! If she dies, I'll kill all of you!" the man bellowed hysterically.
Ignoring him, Lin Yu turned and checked the little girl's pulse.
"What are you doing? You don't know how to treat anyone!" Jiang Yan grabbed his arm, hissing under her breath.
"I never told you, but I've secretly read some of your medical books. I know a little," Lin Yu lied smoothly.
"Nonsense! You can't learn medicine just by skimming books!" Jiang Yan snapped, already pulling out her phone to call 120—though she knew that by the time they arrived, it might be too late.
While she spoke, Lin Yu had already lifted the girl by her feet, holding her upside down. He formed his right hand into a hollow shape and lightly patted her back twice.
"What the hell are you doing?!" the young man roared.
Before his voice faded, the unconscious child suddenly coughed twice, spitting out a thick, dark phlegm, then began crying again—though weakly, her voice hoarse and strange from the lack of oxygen.
Lin Yu turned her upright and pressed his thumb against a point on her neck. Instantly, her breathing smoothed out.
But the girl continued to wail, clawing at Lin Yu with a frenzied hatred, her expression twisted.
Lin Yu didn't dodge. Instead, he stared into her eyes, his gaze deep and intense, burning like fire.
This was the "Soul-Shattering Technique" from his family's ancient mystical arts. At higher levels, a single glance could obliterate weaker wandering spirits.
Lin Yu was now certain: the girl was possessed by something like him—a lingering spirit. But unlike him, this one was malicious, determined to kill its host.
Though his current abilities were limited, the moment the girl met his gaze, her cries ceased. Her eyes flashed with terror.
Then she struggled violently, breaking free from Lin Yu's hold and darting to her mother, clinging to her neck.
"Mommy, I'm better now. Let's go home," she said sweetly.
Overjoyed, the couple hugged their daughter, tears streaming down their faces.
Jiang Yan let out a sigh of relief, chastising herself for not realizing the child had been choking on phlegm.
Then she glared at Lin Yu. This idiot had no medical training—how dare he act like a hero? He'd gotten lucky this time, but if the girl had died, he'd have been held responsible too.
Still, she felt a flicker of gratitude. In the past, he'd always hidden behind her in crises. Today, for once, he'd stood up for her. Maybe that head injury had changed him.
"Your daughter is stable for now, but this was only a temporary fix. To cure her completely, she'll need acupuncture," Lin Yu said, watching the girl intently.
"No! Mommy, I don't want needles! I'm fine now!" The girl shrank back, eyeing Lin Yu fearfully.
"Stop talking nonsense!" Jiang Yan hissed, yanking him aside. This fool needed to quit while he was ahead. Did he really think he was a doctor now?
The young man shot Lin Yu a cold look, devoid of gratitude. "Let you treat her again? I'd be signing my daughter's death warrant."
"If anything happens after you leave, don't blame me for not warning you," Lin Yu said, frowning. He'd just saved their daughter's life, and this was their attitude?
"Who the hell are you cursing?!" The man sprang up, fists clenched. His wife quickly pulled him back.
Glaring, the man picked up his daughter and stormed out, tossing over his shoulder, "My brother-in-law is the deputy director of the Health Bureau. This clinic is finished."
The young woman glanced at Jiang Yan but said nothing before following.
Jiang Yan's heart ached. They'd been so grateful when she'd treated their child before. Now, over one mishap, they'd turned into enemies.
"People's loyalties change like the weather. Don't take it to heart," Lin Yu said softly, sensing her thoughts.
"Next time, keep your mouth shut about things you don't understand!"
Jiang Yan wasn't having it. She shot him a cold look and walked away.
"Lucky bastard," muttered the bespectacled doctor, who'd been kicked earlier. He straightened his clothes and sneered at Lin Yu.
What kind of people worked here? He'd just helped them, and this was the thanks he got?
Lin Yu sighed. Sometimes, he wished he could die again—maybe his next host would be less pathetic.
---
The young couple sped home with their daughter. The man ranted nonstop, swearing this wasn't over, while his wife quietly suggested letting it go—Director Jiang had helped them before.
"Director my ass! I told you we should've gone to the People's Hospital! You almost got Xinxin killed!" the man spat. "And that idiot husband of hers—how dare he curse our daughter? If he hadn't gotten lucky, I'd have slapped him senseless!"
He immediately called his brother-in-law, the deputy health director, and exaggerated the incident.
His wife, Sun Min, stayed silent. She hadn't expected a simple cold to turn so dire.
Her husband, Wu Jianguo, came from privilege—his father, Wu Jinyuan, had been the city's Health Bureau director before retiring two years ago. Thanks to his father's influence, his brother-in-law had gotten his position. One call from him, and Hua'an Clinic would be shut down.
At home, Wu Jinyuan and his wife were frantic. Their granddaughter was their pride and joy.
When the couple returned with the child, the grandparents rushed over, checking her temperature and sighing in relief—she seemed fine.
But before they could celebrate, the girl's eyes rolled back. Her body convulsed violently again, her chest heaving as she struggled to breathe.
Terrified, the family rushed her to Qinghai People's Hospital.
As the child was wheeled into the ER, Wu Jianguo cursed Jiang Yan, blaming her for his daughter's condition.
Wu Jinyuan's face darkened, his eyes fixed on the ER doors. He trusted his granddaughter would pull through—the attending physician was Li Haoming, the hospital's deputy director and a nationally renowned internist.
In all of Qinghai, only a handful could command his personal attention.
But less than a minute later, Li Haoming burst out, sweating profusely. "Elder Wu, I've never seen anything like this. The child… she might not make it."
Sun Min and her mother-in-law collapsed onto the bench, sobbing.
"Impossible!" Wu Jianguo grabbed Li Haoming's collar. "If my daughter dies, you're finished as deputy director!"
"Jianguo!" Wu Jinyuan barked. Suppressing his grief, he asked, "Is there really no hope?"
Li Haoming shook his head gravely. "At best, we can keep her alive for another hour."
His meaning was clear: even transferring her to a Beijing hospital now would be futile.
Wu Jinyuan knew that if Li Haoming was stumped, no one else could help.
"Dad, I know how to save Xinxin!"
Wu Jianguo, heartbroken, described how Lin Yu had treated his daughter at the clinic.
Li Haoming rushed back in and tried the method—holding the girl upside down and patting her back—but nothing happened.
"That's impossible!" Wu Jianguo's face drained of color, sweat pouring down his face.
Sun Min remembered Lin Yu's warning that the girl wasn't fully cured. She hurriedly explained everything to her father-in-law and Li Haoming.
"Elder Wu, I suggest bringing that young man here. He might have a solution," Li Haoming said, grasping at straws.
Sun Min hesitated, then quietly revealed Wu Jianguo's earlier confrontation with Lin Yu.
"Fool! I taught you to stay composed!"
Wu Jinyuan kicked his son hard. "We're going to apologize—now!"
Without another word, the former bureau director sprinted out, his son scrambling after him.
---
Back at the clinic, Jiang Yan was busy with patients while Lin Yu lounged in a chair, flipping through a magazine. Nurses and doctors shot him disdainful looks.
What kind of man lazed around while his wife worked herself to the bone?
Suddenly, a white van screeched to a halt outside, its side emblazoned with "Health Inspection."
Several men in health bureau uniforms stepped out, led by Deng Chengbin—Wu Jianguo's brother-in-law.
"Search the place," Deng ordered coldly. "Thoroughly."