Late at night, an old storefront.
Suddenly, a pig-slaughter-like scream erupted.
The sound was extremely sharp, almost echoing down half the street.
The surrounding neighbors heard it but remained completely still, as if they were already accustomed to it.
Inside Lin Fusheng’s Clinic.
At this moment, a group of battered and bloody thugs were gathered.
Due to the lack of beds, these people were either sitting on chairs or simply lying on the ground, moaning and groaning.
Most had dislocated joints or minor fractures, a few had knife wounds that had already been bandaged.
One of the men who had taken off his shirt, revealing a fierce tattoo on his back, screamed in pain during treatment.
Lin Fusheng, wearing reading glasses, quickly let go and patiently comforted:
"Brother Fei, I was already being very gentle, you need to bear with it a bit."
Saying this, he once again pressed down on his shoulder joint, trying to find the right position to exert force.
Brother Fei couldn’t help but scream in pain again:
"Master Lin, are you getting old? Your skills are declining, it wasn’t this painful the last time I came for bone setting?"
Last time? It was less than two weeks ago...
Lin Fusheng internally criticized, helplessly shaking his head:
"Since you guys are so afraid of pain, let my apprentice do the bone setting instead, he’s young enough."
Hearing this, the thugs still complained:
"Your apprentice? Is he competent enough in medical skills?"
"When did you take an apprentice, what’s his name? Is he also from Old Factory Street?"
"If his skills aren’t good enough, we might lose our tempers, you know!"
Amidst the clamor, a clear voice suddenly rang out, entering everyone’s ears.
From behind a wooden screen in the back room, a young man came out with a smile, rubbing his freshly washed hands.
Brother Fei and the others turned their heads to look, all staring with their mouths agape.
The entire room fell silent in an instant.
This young man was Fang Cheng, who had come to help out at the clinic.
Watching the "expert" approaching him, Brother Fei’s expression was a mix of shock and disbelief.
"Don’t worry, my medical skills were personally taught by Master Lin, you need to trust me."
Fang Cheng, imitating an angel in white, revealed a professional smile and softly comforted him.
Brother Fei, however, had a mournful face, saying:
"Can I choose not to believe?"
This was Fang Cheng’s first time personally attempting to perform bone setting on a patient.
He couldn’t give up so easily and admit failure.
"Master Lin, these patients are too nervous."
Seeing this, Fang Cheng then turned to Lin Fusheng:
"I suggest we play a song, it should help alleviate their mood."
Lin Fusheng nodded in agreement.
He casually turned on an old record player, then went back to the room to pour a cup of tea to refresh himself.
The forlorn and mournful sound of a Chinese opera immediately filled the room.
"When the lover enjoys himself, the beloved is broken-hearted, only the moon knows of my grievances..."
This was an opera singing style, plaintive and tremulous.
It was difficult for young people to appreciate.
Fang Cheng felt it was not bad, and began to relax as he started bone setting for his first patient.
Perhaps because he couldn’t find the right position, several attempts to adjust were unsuccessful.
The patient’s piercing screams blended with the lamenting, mournful opera.
This made all the thugs in the room feel a chill rising from the soles of their feet, stiffening their entire bodies.
Watching the boss being tortured, they couldn’t help but empathize, with cold sweat on their foreheads.
Finally, a clear and pleasant sound of a joint popping back into place was heard.
Fang Cheng let out a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his brow.
"It’s done, the first success."
Master Lin came over with tea at this moment, smiling and asked:
"How is it, how is the craftsmanship of my new apprentice?"
At this moment, Brother Fei was sitting in the chair with a relieved expression like he had survived a disaster.
Receiving praise from the patients gave Fang Cheng a great sense of achievement.
He rubbed his hands and turned to look at the others.
Despite Fang Cheng’s friendly smile, the gang members couldn’t help feeling a chill down their spine.
No one spoke or raised their hand.
Seeing this, Fang Cheng nodded with a smile and walked towards the next chosen victim, sorry, patient.
However, they shouldn’t be discouraged.
As Fang Cheng’s technique gradually became more skilled, the later patients actually suffered less.
Bone Setting is a traditional medical practice with a long history, aimed at accelerating the recovery of normal shape and function of bones for fractures and dislocations.
The main techniques include pushing, pulling, pressing, and holding.
While busy at work, two prompt messages suddenly appeared in the air:
[You have practiced Bone Setting technique, successfully mastering a medical skill]
[Skill unlocked: Bone Setting lv0 (0/100)]
Looking at the pale blue screen that only he could see, the corners of Fang Cheng’s mouth slightly curled up.
How could he not be exhilarated and motivated by mastering a skill that could be used to treat himself?
He then threw himself even more passionately into this great work of saving lives and helping the injured.
These gangsters were indeed fortunate tonight.
Injuries were treated effectively one after another.
The groans and whimpers decreased significantly, and they even started chatting and occasionally swearing.
From their conversations, Fang Cheng learned the reason why Brother Fei and the others were in such a sorry state.
It turns out that recently, the underworld in East Capital has been somewhat unstable.
A newly emerging group called "Red Tiger Gang", known for their bold and ruthless actions, was growing at an alarming rate.
Even some well-established major groups kept a respectful distance and dared not confront them.
Even the Poison Snake Gang where Ma Donghe belonged was absorbed, and it was said that Ma Donghe himself was seriously injured.
Ah Fei and his group were just a small gang of a few dozen people, making a living under a larger gang.
Usually, they were just looking after the place, but tonight they encountered members of the Red Tiger Gang sweeping the area and were beaten innocently.
They were now discussing the possibility of switching sides to the Red Tiger Gang if the situation turned sour.
Fang Cheng and Master Lin worked together, performing Bone Setting, massage, applying injury medicine, and soon all the injured were treated.
As these uninvited guests left one after another, the clinic regained its tranquility.
It was already past 10 pm.
Fang Cheng didn’t go home immediately but helped clean up and tidy up the tables and chairs.
The shop maintained an old-school style from the ’50s and ’60s.
The furniture was all dark-toned solid wood, already showing signs of wear.
In the middle was a long table carved with dragons and phoenixes, on which a shrine was placed, burning incense.
After Lin Fusheng replenished the incense in the shrine, he prepared to close up the shop.
He turned to Fang Cheng and explained:
"In our profession, we often deal with various societal drifters and criminals."
"Ah Cheng, you have good talent. Learn well, avoid meddling in unnecessary matters, and master more skills, you can’t go wrong."
Fang Cheng nodded earnestly in agreement.
He came to this Lin Fusheng’s Clinic with the aim of mastering medical skills, voluntarily offering his help.
Now that he has successfully unlocked the "Bone Setting" skill.
Perhaps in the future, he could also learn other medical arts from Master Lin, like acupuncture and massage.