Why Are You Being Fierce with Me? 

Half a month passed like this. 

Aside from the occasional encounter with Lin Xu across the street—who never looked very friendly—the business at Tong Yao Hall was steadily improving. 

Some patients who had long been ill and only recovered after taking medicine from Tong Yao Hall even went out of their way to thank Chen Miansheng with gifts like eggs and meat. 

Of course, Chen Miansheng wouldn’t accept them, but every time his little orange cat laid eyes on the meat, her eyes would light up longingly, unable to hide her desire. 

At such moments, Chen Miansheng would secretly chuckle and call her a “little glutton” in his mind. He’d have Gu Wu politely decline the gifts, then lean down to give the little cat’s head a rub and coax her in a low voice, “Don’t feel bad. I’ll buy some for you on the way home.” 

What he didn’t say out loud was, “Little Orange has been eating more and more lately.” But since the little cat was in such a rare good mood, Chen Miansheng glanced at her increasingly round body for a few seconds, thought better of it, and kept that comment to himself. 

As dusk deepened, most of the customers at Tong Yao Hall had already left. 

Ah Chu and Gu Wu were tidying up the used items when a plainly dressed man peeked into the shop from the entrance before stepping inside. 

Ah Chu instinctively looked up. “Welcome, sir—” 

But the moment he recognized who it was, he stopped mid-sentence. 

Dongfeng Town wasn’t very big, and since everyone ran medicine shops, Ah Chu, as one of Tong Yao Hall’s assistants, naturally recognized the man—Tu Xuan, the shopkeeper of another medicine shop in town, Bai Shan Hall. 

Though Ah Chu hadn’t interacted with him much, that didn’t stop him from disliking the man. 

Bai Shan Hall had a reputation for charging steep prices—nearly double that of Tong Yao Hall. If not for the price competition from Tong Yao Hall, Bai Shan Hall might have monopolized the town’s business by now. 

Logically, cheaper medicine should attract more customers. Yet, perhaps due to Chen Miansheng’s presence, Bai Shan Hall had remained the more popular choice in town for some time. 

As for Tu Xuan, he was a textbook businessman—always smiling, but in a way so obviously fake that it left people uncomfortable. 

Fei Yan had never met Tu Xuan before. Nestled in Chen Miansheng’s arms, the little cat blinked blankly at the unfamiliar face. 

Tu Xuan didn’t even spare Ah Chu a glance as he walked straight up to Chen Miansheng and said, “Shopkeeper Chen, business at your Tong Yao Hall has been booming lately.” 

Although Chen Miansheng couldn’t hear him, Tu Xuan had a strong presence. Chen Miansheng looked up from his book and gave Tu Xuan a mild, silent glance. 

Seeing this, Tu Xuan smirked and said mockingly, “Ah, I forgot. Shopkeeper Chen is deaf—can’t hear a word I’m saying. What’s the point in even talking to you?” His tone was light, but anyone could hear the strong note of mockery behind his words. 

Gu Wu’s face immediately darkened. But since Chen Miansheng had told him not to get into arguments over such things, he reluctantly held back and only relayed the more neutral part of Tu Xuan’s message to Chen Miansheng. 

Before Chen Miansheng could respond, the little orange cat in his arms suddenly shot out with a whoosh. Her sharp claws extended from her paw pads, aiming straight for Tu Xuan’s face without the slightest hesitation. 

Startled, Tu Xuan barely managed to dodge. But before he could catch his breath, the orange cat puffed up like a tiny ball of fury, growling and hissing at him. She looked more like a fierce little leopard than a house cat. 

It all happened so fast. Aside from being shocked, Ah Chu and Gu Wu exchanged glances—this was the first time they genuinely felt the cat was worth keeping around. At least she did what they didn’t dare to. 

Tu Xuan never expected to be scared off by a not-yet-fully-grown cat. Knowing he couldn’t communicate with the deaf Chen Miansheng, he quickly turned to Gu Wu and Ah Chu for help. “What’s wrong with this cat? Aren’t you going to pull it away?” 

Gu Wu and Ah Chu put on troubled expressions and cleared their throats. “Shopkeeper Tu, sorry about this. That’s our shopkeeper’s cat—he spoils her dearly. We’re just helpers. How could we dare touch her?” 

Tu Xuan clenched his teeth, his face flushing red and pale in turns. He was terrified that next time he might not dodge fast enough and really get scratched. In the end, he had no choice but to turn back to Chen Miansheng. 

Even Chen Miansheng was slightly surprised. His little cat had shown temper toward strangers before, but not to this degree. The only other time she got this mad was when they passed a group of women at the market. 

The thought seemed to click in his mind. Chen Miansheng gave Tu Xuan a brief glance, as if suddenly understanding something, then shifted his gaze back to the orange cat and gently called, “Little Orange, come back.” 

Fei Yan didn’t listen at all. Her pupils narrowed into dangerous slits, and she was already planning where her next claw strike should land. 

So when Chen Miansheng reached out to grab the scruff of her neck, she instinctively swatted his hand away with her tail and turned to glare fiercely at him. 

Instead of getting angry, Chen Miansheng chuckled softly. He leaned in, eyes curving in amusement, and asked in a low voice, “Why are you being fierce with me, little one, hmm?” 

That final “hmm” was drawn out, low and lazy, with an almost teasing undertone. 

Fei Yan’s imposing air vanished instantly. She glanced at Chen Miansheng, then at Tu Xuan, her expression wavering with hesitation. 

Seeing this, Chen Miansheng opened his arms and tilted his head slightly, coaxing gently, “Come here, be good.” 

Fei Yan didn’t respond right away. She swayed her tail, turned her head, and gave Tu Xuan a fierce glare. 

Tu Xuan flinched, thinking the cat was about to pounce again—but then, to his surprise, the orange cat abruptly turned around and leapt straight into Chen Miansheng’s arms. She immediately reverted to a soft and well-behaved demeanor, even lazily turning her head to lick the fur on her neck. 

Tu Xuan: “?” 

“This cat has two faces?” 

After taking the little orange cat into his arms, Chen Miansheng placed a hand on her back and gently smoothed her fur over and over again. Only after the little orange cat had completely calmed down did he slowly lift his gaze. 

“Shopkeeper Tu, what brings you here today?” 

Tu Xuan swallowed and snapped back to his senses at the sound of his voice. His attitude toward Chen Miansheng visibly softened. “Naturally, I have an important matter to discuss with you.” 

Halfway through his sentence, he glanced around and lowered his voice deliberately. “Is there perhaps a quieter place we could talk?” 

Gu Wu relayed the words truthfully to Chen Miansheng. 

Chen Miansheng lowered his gaze in silence for two seconds, then stood up and walked toward the backyard with the orange cat in his arms. “This way, Shopkeeper Tu.” 

Tu Xuan followed closely behind. When he saw the orange tail peeking out behind Chen Miansheng, he still felt a lingering fear. 

He gritted his teeth and thought to himself that he must find a chance to deal with that cat someday. 

There was a small pavilion in the backyard of the medicine hall, with a stone table inside. Back when business was still bleak, Chen Miansheng liked to sit there and read or enjoy tea. 

Even though things had gotten busier lately, he had still instructed Ah Chu to clean the place daily, making it a fairly suitable spot for private conversation. 

Chen Miansheng led Tu Xuan to sit opposite him. Gu Wu stood by his side, responsible for translating their conversation. 

“Shopkeeper Tu, please speak your mind,” said Chen Miansheng. 

Tu Xuan replied, “You must have already noticed that many of the people coming here recently to get medicine had previously taken prescriptions elsewhere but were never cured.” 

Chen Miansheng glanced at Gu Wu’s signing and gave a nonchalant hum. “And why does Shopkeeper Tu bring this up now?” 

Tu Xuan replied, “Don’t you want to know the reason behind it?” 

Chen Miansheng looked up and countered, “You know?” 

Tu Xuan’s smile widened, a smug expression surfacing on his face. 

“Of course I do. I don’t mind being honest with you—it’s because I already made arrangements with Doctor Qu from the west side of town. When he prescribed medicines, he made minor alterations to the prescription so that the patients wouldn’t fully recover. That way, they’d keep returning to buy more medicine over time.” 

As he spoke, Tu Xuan narrowed his beady eyes slightly and rubbed his fingers together, making a money gesture. 

“And among the few medicine halls in Dongfeng Town, my Bai Shan Hall is closest to Doctor Qu’s clinic. So most patients would naturally come to my medicine hall to fill their prescriptions, allowing us to make quite a bit more money.” 

The moment Tu Xuan finished speaking, Fei Yan could no longer hold back her temper and was ready to pounce on him again. 

No wonder many of the prescriptions patients brought to Tong Yao Hall were flawed—turns out it wasn’t about whether the doctors were skilled or not, but rather some dirty trick pulled by Tu Xuan and this Doctor Qu just to make money. 

To sacrifice patients’ well-being for profit—Fei Yan wouldn’t have dared imagine something like that. So when she first grew suspicious, this kind of possibility had never even crossed her mind. 

What made it worse was that Tu Xuan could talk about it with such detached amusement, as if it didn’t concern him at all. She really couldn’t tell what kind of heart this man had. 

Seeing the little orange cat about to leap out again, Chen Miansheng swiftly grabbed her by the scruff of her neck. After watching Gu Wu finish signing, his gaze darkened slightly. 

Chen Miansheng had always come across as polite, gentle, and composed. But now, with the corners of his eyes slightly lowered and his gaze settling on Tu Xuan, he radiated an undeniable sense of authority. 

Having been with him for a long time, Gu Wu could tell at a glance—his young master was truly angry this time. 

Yet instead of answering Tu Xuan immediately, Chen Miansheng first leaned down and softly coaxed the little orange cat by her ear. “Be good, Little Orange. I’ll take care of it. No need to get worked up, alright?” 

Fei Yan was still fuming when she suddenly heard those words. She turned to meet his deep gaze, and—almost magically—her anger subsided. 

Knowing Chen Miansheng, there was no way he’d be on the same side as someone like Tu Xuan. But for Tu Xuan to show up so confidently meant he was prepared for any consequences and likely wasn’t afraid of being exposed. 

She didn’t know how Chen Miansheng planned to handle this. 

But since he said he would, she chose to trust him. 

Sensing that the orange cat had calmed down, Chen Miansheng gave a barely noticeable smile. Then he quickly composed himself and looked at Tu Xuan.  

“So, Shopkeeper Tu, why are you telling me all this?” 

Tu Xuan glanced warily at the orange cat to confirm it wouldn’t attack again before saying, “I’m here to propose a partnership, of course.” 

“There’s one thing I’ve never understood: technically, even when those patients come to your Tong Yao Hall and get their medicine, the prescription hasn’t changed. So how is it that their conditions improve?” 

As he spoke, a sly gleam flashed in his eyes. 

“Could it be that you’ve hired some top-notch doctor at your Tong Yao Hall?”