With a look of disgust at the ever-changing expression of Zheng Youzhi, Zheng Youen nodded without hesitation:
"Doctor Chen, my mother is rushing over from Shenwu City. If you can get rid of her body odor later, she'll be able to put Zheng Youzhi in his place without needing my father's help!"
"I'll be looking forward to it."
Chen Xiao said, already rummaging through his belongings to prepare the eight herbs for the Ba Ni Tang, not even glancing at Zheng Youzhi.
Zheng Youen finally breathed a sigh of relief, quickly and coldly signaling the troublesome Zheng Youzhi to scram.
Fleeing in a disheveled state, the bodyguard named Zhang Long said with a mournful face, "Young Master Zheng, will Vice Chairman Zheng and Professor Pan really cut off your financial support?"
Zhao Hu said worriedly, his face full of anxiety, "If we lose the support of Vice Chairman Zheng and Professor Pan, there's no way we can secure Porsche's dealership contract for next year."
Gradually calming down from his anger and fear, Zheng Youzhi sneered with disdain, "I am the only male heir of the Zheng family. Even my uncle is counting on me to carry on the family line, so how could they not spend money on me? Moreover, that bastard surnamed Chen is just a good-for-nothing. I'd rather die than believe he can cure the body odor of Pan Haitang and Zheng Youen!"
Glancing at Ji Shitang rapidly receding in the rearview mirror, he paused and added fiercely, "A'Long, A'Hu, you two keep a close eye on that Chen fellow these few days. Find a suitable opportunity, and I'll cripple him myself!"
...
Not long after Zheng Youzhi's car left, the nimble Chen Xiao put the eight seemingly ordinary herbs into the pot. He then lit the old-fashioned wood-fired stove and heated a pot of water more than enough for a bath. Once the water boiled, he threw in dozens of various Chinese herbs to simmer, while the mysterious, wordless golden formula in his mind operated at lightning speed.
Noticing Zheng Youen following him like a shadow, watching with curiosity, Chen Xiao didn't stand on ceremony. He pointed to a consultation room in the inner area and said, "Miss Youen, please clean the bathtub inside."
"Ah?"
Zheng Youen clearly froze, her mind a blank. Then, she suddenly blushed, her expression nervous. "Dr. Chen, are you... are you asking me to take a... a bath together? Isn't that a bit too fast? My mother... my mother is probably arriving soon, maybe... maybe another day?"
Fearing Chen Xiao might force her, she instinctively took a few steps back as she spoke.
His hand trembling slightly as he prepared the medicine, Chen Xiao explained with a wry smile, "Although Ba Ni Tang has an immediate effect on body odor, it cannot change the genetic predisposition; it only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. If you don't want your descendants to also be carriers of the hereditary body odor gene, I suggest you take a medicinal bath."
Noticing the nervousness in Zheng Youen's eyes, he paused and then stated directly, "Of course, the choice is ultimately yours. After all, I will need to perform acupuncture on you during the bath to promote the absorption of the medicine."
"A medicinal bath can change hereditary body odor genes?"
Zheng Youen thought of her deceased grandmother and her mother, who was rushing over, both suffering from hereditary body odor, a torment that even threatened to continue to her own descendants. She could no longer care about anything else and eagerly nodded, "I'm willing!"
As she spoke, she, who had been pampered since childhood and never done housework, began to clean the old bathtub passed down from Chen Xiao's grandfather, which was rarely used throughout the year. Her heart was full of anticipation and she was full of vigor.
However, when she saw Chen Xiao pouring the entire pot of milky white, faintly fragrant, boiling medicinal soup into the bathtub, Zheng Youen knew that she would have to get into the tub naked, with Chen Xiao performing acupuncture beside her. She gradually became uneasy.
As a doctor, Chen Xiao was accustomed to the embarrassment of female patients facing male doctors during medical treatment. Understandingly, he went out to give her space. "I'll go out and sterilize the needles first. When the water temperature is right, call me when you're ready."
"Thank you!"
Looking at Chen Xiao's tall and slender retreating figure, Zheng Youen sincerely thanked him.
After a full ten minutes passed, when the water temperature was almost right, she finally hesitantly shed her modest clothing and entered the bathtub. She crouched down, hugging herself as much as possible, so that the milky white medicinal soup almost submerged her below her shoulders. Then, she nervously called out softly towards the closed door, "Dr. Chen, I... I'm ready."
"Knock, knock, knock—"
Chen Xiao first knocked politely on the door, then entered with his needle bag.
At this moment, the consultation room was filled with the aroma of medicine and mist. Only Zheng Youen's shoulders and above were visible in the bathtub, her cheeks flushed, as beautiful as a mermaid.
Chen Xiao's hand trembled slightly as he inserted the needle into the water, causing noticeable ripples, but he still pretended to be calm. "Ahem... this ancient medicinal bath formula has a great reputation. It's called the Nine Apertures Exquisite Formula, supplemented with acupuncture therapy. It not only changes inferior genes but also has the miraculous effect of long-lasting fragrance. Please try to release your hands. My first needle will be inserted into the Tanzhong acupoint on your chest..."
Zheng Youen, who had been covering her chest with her hands, was startled and quickly let go, causing water to splash all over Chen Xiao's face.