Chapter 59: Being Used

Hearing this, Tang Xiaorou understood.

This woman was here to cause trouble.  With a cold expression, she withdrew her hand and looked directly at Tang Hongmei, saying, “Please understand one thing: you didn’t go on the blind date.”

Tang Hongmei retorted shrilly, “I didn’t not go! I just got the time wrong; I was just late. Who knew you had already gone on a blind date with Commander Shen and gotten your marriage certificate?”

Tang Xiaorou looked at Tang Hongmei with a smirk. “That’s only going to fool others. Do you think I’ll believe you?”

The pulse she just took was strong and steady, clearly indicating pregnancy. This woman must have been with another man, which is why she didn’t go on the blind date. Now that she and that man have probably broken up, she’s thinking of Shen Huaixu, wanting to find someone to take over.  What a clever plan.

“I’m not lying! You’re the one who stepped in and stole Commander Shen.”

Tang Hongmei felt a burning resentment every time she thought of the easy life of wealth she had lost to Tang Xiaorou. Her gaze towards Tang Xiaorou was full of hatred. But she also had a bit of cunning; otherwise, she wouldn’t have thought of finding a way out for herself and hooking up with the village’s educated youth.

“Everyone, come and look! This woman is my fellow villager. She grew up in the countryside and learned some superficial medical knowledge, and now she’s practicing medicine at the pharmacy.

Don’t be fooled by her, or your illness might get worse!” Tang Hongmei shouted loudly, quickly attracting the attention of those around her.

Xinglin Pharmacy was an old pharmacy in this area. It closed during the difficult years and only reopened recently. So, neighbors who needed medicine would come here.  Therefore, there were quite a few people at this time.

“Old Yu, is this true or false? Is this young girl the new doctor the pharmacy hired? She doesn’t seem very capable. She’s so young, does she know how to diagnose illnesses?”

“Exactly, Old Yu. Your medical skills are so good, you’re more than enough to treat us. Why did you hire someone else?”

“At first, I thought this young girl was Old Yu’s new apprentice, but she’s actually the resident doctor. Old Yu, you’ve made a mistake this time.”

Hearing the gossip around her, Old Yu was so angry he was fuming.

“What nonsense are you talking about? Doctor Tang’s medical skills are excellent! Don’t listen to this little girl’s nonsense!” He angrily looked at Tang Hongmei. “I’m telling you, falsely accusing someone is a crime. You better think carefully before you speak.”

Tang Hongmei was startled, but remembering that Tang Xiaorou was from Qingshan Village near Ning City, she wasn’t afraid anymore.

“What I said is true!  Does your pharmacy not allow people to tell the truth?”

“Oh… you little brat!”

Old Yu felt that the past two days had been unlucky. Why was everyone causing trouble for Tang Xiaorou? Just as he was about to say something else, Old Lady Kong came over.

She stood in front of Tang Xiaorou and pointed at Tang Hongmei’s nose and scolded, “Where did this vicious woman come from? Doctor Tang clearly has excellent medical skills, yet you’re slandering her here. What are you up to?”

Old Lady Kong was the woman who had come to see Tang Xiaorou for a gynecological problem the day she arrived. Her medicine was finished, and she was planning to come back today for a follow-up, but she encountered this.

“Old Lady Kong, you know Doctor Tang?”

Everyone was neighbors, so they naturally knew Old Lady Kong. Seeing her defending Tang Xiaorou, they curiously asked.

“Of course, I know Doctor Tang. A few days ago, I just saw her for my illness. The prescription she gave me was very effective.

I drank it for a day, and I immediately felt better. I came here today to see her again and ask if I should continue taking the medicine.”

Seeing that someone had actually come to see Tang Xiaorou for treatment, Tang Hongmei subconsciously thought it was a plant.

“Did you take Tang Xiaorou’s bribe, so you’re speaking up for her? Do you know you’re harming others?”

Hearing this, Old Lady Kong’s eyes widened in anger. “I think you’re the one who took someone’s bribe and deliberately came to cause trouble!”

“I didn’t! What I said is the truth.”

“Humph… I, an old woman, never tell lies. Everyone here knows me and knows my character.  But you, a stranger, are constantly opposing Xinglin Pharmacy. You definitely have ulterior motives.”

Old Yu also suspected that Tang Hongmei had bad intentions. He turned to Tang Xiaorou and said, “Doctor Tang, show everyone your license. You clearly have a license to practice medicine, but this little girl is slandering you. She wanted to cause trouble from the start.”

He was glad the exam was moved up; otherwise, he might have really been caught in a trap by this little girl today.

Tang Xiaorou took out the license she had just received yesterday and showed it to everyone with a smile. Then she looked at the pale-faced Tang Hongmei and said, “See? I have a license to practice medicine, and my medical skills are perfectly fine.

So what you said was pure slander. For behavior like yours, you could be taken away by the police for education.”

Only then did Tang Hongmei truly become afraid.

“I… I didn’t know you had a license before. I was just concerned about everyone’s safety. You can’t arrest me.” In the end, she cautiously looked around and ran out.

Tang Xiaorou was the first to move out of the way. Seeing Old Lady Kong trying to stop Tang Hongmei, she quickly winked at her.

Old Lady Kong understood and stepped aside.

After Tang Hongmei ran away, Old Lady Kong couldn’t help but ask, “Doctor Tang, why didn’t you stop her? She slandered you like that.”

“That woman was pregnant. If something happened to her here, we might be in trouble.”

Hearing this, Old Lady Kong felt a chill down her spine.

“It’s a good thing we didn’t stop her. Otherwise, if something happened, she would blame it on us.”

Old Yu still felt unconvinced. “That little girl has bad intentions. Letting her off so easily is too cheap for her.”

Tang Xiaorou smiled and said, “Don’t worry, Old Yu. She can’t escape.” Since Tang Hongmei appeared here, she must have come to see her brother. She should be living in the family housing area now.

Seeing Tang Xiaorou say this, Old Yu didn’t say anything more, and instead greeted the others. “Everyone is here to get medicine, right? Come, come, line up over here.”

Old Lady Kong then approached Tang Xiaorou.

“Doctor Tang, please take another look at me. Should I continue taking the medicine?”

“Okay, Madam, let’s sit over here.”

As for Tang Hongmei, who had run out of Xinglin Pharmacy, she became angrier and angrier. If it weren’t for Zhang Wanyu telling her those things, she wouldn’t have come to cause trouble for Tang Xiaorou. 

The worst part was that everything she said was false.

Tang Hongmei wasn’t stupid. She gradually realized that she had been used by Zhang Wanyu. Thinking of this, she went to find her.

“Zhang Wanyu, you lied to me!”