Chapter 249: All Depends on Imagination
While Ning Xiyue focused intently on the silver needles in her hands, Taotao’s parents stood quietly at the door, nervously holding each other’s hands. Their eyes were anxious and full of concern as they closely watched the slender needles in Taotao’s hands, silently hoping for a good outcome.
Sister Li’s eyes were brimming with tears, her palms sweating. She felt deeply guilty, wishing she could take Taotao’s place and endure the suffering herself.
Her poor child had to endure such hardships at such a young age. It was entirely their fault as parents—they had been incompetent.
All they hoped for was that under Ning Xiyue’s treatment, Taotao could regain his health and become a normal child again. As long as Taotao grew up safely and happily, living every day well, they would do anything.
Seeing Ning Xiyue treat him so professionally and confident in her skills, Sister Li and Director Huang temporarily pinned all their hopes on her.
Ning Xiyue, carrying their expectations, immersed herself completely in the task, treating everyone around her as if they were invisible, fully absorbed in what she was doing.
Even the system’s little turtle floated in mid-air, watching carefully, not daring to interrupt, its tiny green-bean-sized eyes filled with admiration.
This was the first time the host had independently performed such a large-scale acupuncture procedure on a real person, and it went quite well. Its judgment had always been sharp; whoever the host chose, they would handle tasks with composure and always treat them seriously.
Ning Xiyue thought: “I have to be serious.”
This time, the acupuncture couldn’t be as casual as when she treated Ning Xiaoxiao. She hadn’t yet reached the stage where she could randomly insert needles and expect a good result. Precision was required: strength, timing, number of rotations, technique—all had to be controlled.
It was not only a mental challenge but also physically demanding.
By the end, Ning Xiyue was sweating profusely, her tank top soaked through, while Taotao had fallen asleep peacefully in front of her—so soundly that she couldn’t help but envy him!
Even though she had practiced many times in the space with the trial medicine robot and had reached a level of mastery, performing a full session still left her exhausted, mentally and physically drained.
After removing the needles from Taotao, Ning Xiyue’s hands trembled slightly.
She finally understood why the acupuncture she signed up for came with massage knowledge. It wasn’t just for the patient—it was crucial for her own recovery.
Without massaging afterward, her hands would likely be ruined; tomorrow her fingers and wrists would feel alien to her.
This acupuncture consumed more energy than anything else she had ever done.
Wait—since it consumed mental energy, it could lead to hair loss. If she healed Taotao completely, she feared she wouldn’t be able to keep her thick, shiny black hair; a lot of it would surely fall out.
Ning Xiyue recalled how, in her past life, hospital directors and experienced doctors were either bald or had thinning hair. Over time, they became trusted figures in the eyes of patients, and the most obvious feature was their lack of hair.
No! She couldn’t let herself become a bald girl.
Instinctively, Ning Xiyue touched her long, thick, black braid. She had finally grown hair that could advertise shampoo—she had to protect it. She’d need to research hair care when she returned.
While thinking this, she cleaned and stored the silver needles. Meanwhile, Taotao’s father anxiously asked from behind: “Comrade Xiyue, is it done now?”
“Not yet, wait a little longer. Almost done.”
Ning Xiyue replied while massaging Taotao and giving a glance to Comrade Li.
Comrade Li immediately understood. He reached into his pocket for the “Bone-Setting and Tendon-Rebuilding Powder,” recalled what Ning Xiyue had said on the train, and fetched an empty bowl with water. He poured a small portion of the powder into the bowl and stirred it into a thick paste.
The remaining powder was repackaged and set aside.
Director Huang looked puzzled: “A Feng, what are you doing? What’s in that?”
“Xū… you know.”
Comrade Li raised his hand, pointed to the ceiling, and mysteriously said nothing more. Seeing Director Huang nod seriously a few times, he resumed stirring the medicine.
The meaning was entirely left to the imagination of Director Huang and his wife.
Director Huang looked at the ceiling, nodded as if he suddenly understood, his expression showing realization and gratitude. He clasped his hands and said, “Understood, thank you.”
Ning Xiyue thought: What kind of answer is that? Just one vague statement and a few gestures, and Huang is moved to tears? This must be the legendary method of giving someone a starting point, and the rest relies entirely on their imagination. Impressive, Comrade Li.
She decided to remember this trick for the future—convenient when she didn’t want to explain something.
After stirring the paste evenly, Comrade Li brought it to Ning Xiyue and handed her the remaining powder, sincerely saying:
“Use this to apply and bandage him. This is top-quality medicine; it will be very helpful for Taotao’s recovery.”
“Let me see.”
Ning Xiyue pretended to inspect the unused powder, then smelled a bit of the paste, and nodded: “Good, we’ll use this.”
She sincerely looked at Taotao’s parents: “I think this medicine is good, even better than what I prepared. You can apply it to Taotao every day.”
“Alright, alright.”
Director Huang had no other thoughts, nodding repeatedly, looking at the medicine with full trust.
Ning Xiyue guessed what he was imagining: that this was secret medicine provided by higher authorities, extremely effective, and still restricted in knowledge.
Both Comrade Li and Director Huang came from influential families and knew each other’s backgrounds. Director Huang surely thought Comrade Li had used his connections to obtain the medicine, which is why he agreed to let Taotao use it.
Imagination really is convenient.
Ning Xiyue applied the ointment to Taotao’s hands and feet, using massage techniques to promote absorption. She then applied the remaining paste to the affected areas and wrapped them in gauze.
“All done. This session of acupuncture is complete.”
“Comrade Xiyue, how many acupuncture sessions will Taotao need to recover?” Director Huang asked eagerly.
“That depends on Taotao’s condition. Don’t worry. You should see effects in about a week, and the final result in roughly two months. As parents, your role now is to accompany Taotao and help him recover psychologically. I will check on him once every five days.”
She pointed at the medicine powder on the table: “Remember to apply a bit of this to his wounds daily.”
“Understood. Thank you so much, Comrade Xiyue.” Sister Li held the powder, expressing her gratitude repeatedly.
“Comrade Xiyue, may I ask something? We were planning to discharge today and take Taotao to the hospital in Jing City. The discharge procedures are done, and the hospital there is ready.”
Director Huang spoke politely:
“Now that A Feng brought you to treat Taotao, I see he likes you, and you can help him physically and psychologically. I’m thinking of continuing treatment here for a week, combining it with your care, and then deciding whether to take him to Jing City based on his condition. Is that okay?”
Director Huang trusted the person A Feng brought, but since this involved his son’s health, he had to be cautious. He only had this one son, who had suffered so much, but he didn’t want to give up Ning Xiyue’s treatment either. So he proposed this compromise.
“That’s fine.”
Ning Xiyue replied immediately. She wasn’t upset; if she were Taotao’s parent, she would make the same choice. The child’s health comes first; a responsible parent should think this way.
“If we trusted her too easily and skipped the hospital in Jing City, that would be unfair to Taotao,” she thought.
“Thank you for understanding,” Director Huang said, stepping forward to shake hands.
Ning Xiyue greeted them and took her leave: “Alright, I’ll head out first.”
The couple smiled and nodded, seeing Ning Xiyue and Comrade Li out.
Ning Xiyue walked ahead, Comrade Li behind. As they exited the room, Director Huang whispered to Comrade Li:
“Old Li, give me a hint—who exactly is this Comrade Ning that you personally vouched for her?”
Director Huang knew his childhood friend well. He wasn’t one to give guarantees lightly, unless he trusted someone or something completely.
