027 Enhanced Tactile Sensitivity in the Fingers (Please follow and recommend!!)

Chen Anquan’s social media circle had already exploded... It had only been a few dozen minutes since the meteor shower, but videos from around the globe were already circulating online, sparking heated discussion among netizens.

“It looks like the meteor shower in my hometown is about to be exposed too!”

Chen Anquan didn’t believe he was the only one who witnessed the meteor shower over Aobei Mountain. Even if he was the only person in Aobei Village who recorded a video, the surrounding towns and villages could see it as well, and others might have captured it too.

He had no intention of hiding it; rather, he thought it best to be the first to share the meteor shower from his own home.

“The first meteor shower I’ve ever experienced back home—it feels like a dream, so beautiful... making a wish...”

Chen Anquan posted his thoughts, along with the freshly recorded video, to his social media feed.

“Back to sword practice!”

Just then, his phone rang.

It was Yin Miao-miao calling.

Yin Miao-miao was a colleague of Chen Anquan’s at the County People’s Hospital, a tall, alluring obstetrician of the same age as Chen Anquan, who had already become an attending physician.

“Dr. Yin, it’s been a while.”

A few seconds of silence passed, as if she’d noticed how much Chen Anquan had changed, and then a gentle, feminine voice came through, “Yes, it really has. Are you still living in the county these days?”

“I’ve moved back to my hometown.”

He didn’t know Yin Miao-miao very well—just the usual greetings when passing each other or sitting together during meetings, nothing more.

“I just saw the video you posted. Are you sure you filmed it at your home?”

“Yes!”

“That’s strange...”

She seemed to fall into thought, then continued after a long pause, “Do you know if anyone else recorded a video?”

“I’m not sure about that. It’s nearly midnight now. There’s no nightlife out here in the countryside—people go to bed early, or watch TV and play on their phones.”

“Oh, all right. Then, could I come visit you in a few days?”

“Come here?” Chen Anquan was a little surprised.

Was Yin Miao-miao acting on a whim?

She was well-liked at the hospital, gentle in nature, and had plenty of suitors, though he’d never heard of her having a boyfriend.

“Yes, is that a problem? Won’t you welcome me?”

“Of course, you’re welcome.”

“I’ll come by when I’m less busy in a few days. Don’t delete the video from your phone, okay?”

“Understood.”

After hanging up, Chen Anquan felt even more bewildered by Yin Miao-miao’s sudden interest.

Two almost-strangers, suddenly in contact right after a global meteor shower—there must be something else going on that he didn’t yet know.

“Anquan, Anquan... come here quickly!”

At that moment, his second uncle called out from behind.

His uncle wore a white tank top that had long since yellowed, a pair of faded grey long johns, and a pair of battered slippers. He strode over with a hint of urgency in his tone.

“What’s wrong, Uncle?”

“Er-Tiao can’t move his neck. He’s at my house. Can you take a look?”

Aobei Village had a custom: people of the same generation called each other by nicknames rather than given names.

Chen Anquan agreed and followed his uncle along the path by the pond to his house.

Inside, a stocky, short middle-aged man sat on a bench, his neck twisted to the side, looking just like one of those tilted-head profile pictures that had been popular a few years back.

As soon as Chen Anquan entered, he began to ask about the man's condition, “Uncle Er-Tiao, how did you hurt your neck?”

Er-Tiao, his head still askew and cheeks flushed, hurriedly responded, “You must be Anquan. I heard from your uncle that you fixed his back with a massage. Now my neck won’t move—could you help me out?”

The words were all flattery and had nothing to do with his medical history.

Chen Anquan had to repeat his question.

“Uncle Er-Tiao, when did the pain start, and what caused it?”

“Oh, ha...” The short, chubby man frowned, eyes squeezed shut in pain. He took a few deep breaths before cursing, “Damn it! It was that blasted meteor shower. I’d just come out of the latrine and saw it. I kept staring, and when it ended, my neck wouldn’t move!”

“I see.”

Chen Anquan had an idea of the cause and moved behind Er-Tiao, placing his hands on the man’s neck to examine him.

It was deep into the night now, and only Chen Anquan, his uncle, and Er-Tiao remained in the main room. The others had long since gone to bed.

Ten minutes passed.

“I can move it again?”

Er-Tiao stood up, grinning from ear to ear, hands on either side of his jaw as he tried turning his head left and right...

Testing it out...

Chen Anquan stood quietly behind, watching Er-Tiao’s delighted expression.

After confirming again and again that his neck was fine, Er-Tiao turned to Chen Anquan, smiling broadly. “Anquan, how much do I owe you?”

“Nothing.”

The smile on Er-Tiao’s face faded a little. He patted Chen Anquan’s shoulder. “Anquan, you can’t just do it for free. You spent so much time and money learning medicine—you have to charge something.”

“That’s right, Anquan. At least accept a token, otherwise people will feel awkward when they see you,” his uncle quickly added.

Chen Anquan thought this made sense. Sometimes, rural folk valued relationships and reciprocity even more than those in the city. If they felt indebted, they might even avoid you out of embarrassment.

The problem was, a treatment like this at the hospital would cost at least three hundred yuan. If he quoted that, he’d probably frighten them.

Just now, while massaging Er-Tiao's neck, Chen Anquan had noticed his own sense of touch had grown much sharper; he was able to analyze the internal issue by feeling the landmarks on the neck bones.

To an outsider, diagnosing a problem with just your hands and no scans might sound implausible, but Chen Anquan had truly pinpointed the issue this way.

Otherwise, he couldn’t have solved it so quickly.

“One hundred.”

“One hundred?” His uncle questioned, “Isn’t that a bit... expensive?”

But Er-Tiao waved him off, “Not at all. When I had my knee treated at the county hospital, the doctor gave me two shots and it cost seven or eight hundred.”

“The hospital really is ruthless!” his uncle exclaimed.

“Haha, otherwise how would hospital doctors earn such high salaries?” Er-Tiao laughed heartily, then pulled a wad of folded bills from his waistband. “Here’s one hundred yuan. Thank you, Anquan.”