"..."
Hui'er couldn't decide this herself. Sword Master Zheng Renyi sitting by the door opened his eyes. He narrowed his eyes, staring at those documents and felt they should be genuine.
Zheng Renyi stood up to walk in. But Huang Zihuan, who sensed this group through secondary authority, appeared first.
"Hello. Is there anything I can help you with?"
The elderly butler asked so politely that the two men behind tensed slightly. But their leader-maintained composure and asked back:
"Are you the owner here?"
He asked uncertainly.
It seemed the report he received wasn't very detailed, Huang Zihuan thought. Looking at how unprepared they came like this, they were likely to be actual officials.
If they were scam gangs or hired by rival businesses, there's no way they'd have this uncertain attitude.
Huang Zihuan had anticipated this before starting clinic construction. Setting such outrageous prices would definitely be investigated by relevant agencies. If this was just a scam place that couldn't really treat, fine. But here was a place Bai Fanxian wanted to create and it could treat diseases untreatable elsewhere, like cultivation-related illnesses and deadly poisons.
Therefore, in just two days, its reputation spread far. It became known nationwide. This could be seen from how many people traveled far today wanting to be patients at this clinic. Just that they only accepted ten patients daily was enough to create jealousy for those doing similar business.
So Huang Zihuan guessed those who reported were probably the latter.
Or people dissatisfied at not being chosen as one of today's ten treatment slots.
He calculated mentally, then smiled and answered back:
"Could I see your official badges first?"
His question - if these three were really scammers, they'd have to make a fuss and posture to divert attention. On the contrary, all three opened their bags and gave their badges for the elderly butler to see. Plus showed no abnormal attitude on their faces like Huang Zihuan's request was reasonable.
Genuine.
Huang Zihuan nodded and handed all three badges back. He smiled politely again.
"My lady is working. How about you come inside first?"
The three looked at each other. Their work rarely got welcomed this easily. Normally, if they didn't have doors slammed in their faces, there'd be big quarrels with having to call police for help.
So they felt a bit better about this place. Their leader nodded gratefully and followed inside.
"Get home safely, Granny. I can only see you off this far."
Hui'er herself felt uneasy. She said goodbye to her and was about to follow in.
"...Can Granny help with anything?"
The old woman stopped Hui'er first. She looked at this place filled with power and miracles. After just going through treatment herself, how could she not tell what was real or fake?
Plus she was starting to like this clinic.
"It's fine! Thank you for worrying."
Hui'er declined considerately. Hearing that, the old woman didn't hold her back. But after Hui'er disappeared from sight, she took out her mobile phone to call someone...
Inside the clinic. The moment three officials in white uniforms walked in, it created shock for the other half of patients sitting waiting for their turn.
They watched and talked among themselves.
"What are those officials doing here?"
"...Could this place have something illegal?"
They whispered but because it was an enclosed space, it wasn't strange that it reached those officials' ears.
"Nothing's wrong. We just have a small business matter with the owner here. Won't bother you."
Their leader smiled to reassure patients. But his two subordinates looked at their leader with disbelieving faces.
Since when was their leader this kind?
"...They haven't done anything wrong. Plus they're fully cooperating. We have no reason to trouble them."
He knew what both thought and explained.
Huang Zihuan brought all three to sit and wait on the sofa. Before shortly Hui'er brought tea to serve.
"Do children work here?"
He narrowed his eyes while looking at three children walking around in the clinic. Huang Zihuan who knew what he thought showed a professional smile and answered:
"They don't work here. They're the owner's grandchildren. When free, they help with small tasks."
Huang Zihuan's answer could cover this point precisely. This country itself had laws about child labor. But it'd be different immediately if that child was a grandchild.
Because it'd be normal to see children helping parents' work, right?
Especially if some homes opened restaurants. Seeing tiny children running to collect money or serving water taking orders instead was almost normal.
He nodded. Truth was this matter wasn't that strict. And with his long work experience in this field, he could tell. The children's clean, neat dressing looked good. The fabrics cutting those outfits were expensive fabrics. All three's skin glowed like receiving care. Just this he could guess the raising conditions they received.
Might even eat better and live better than adults like them.
"...Heard someone wanted to see me?"
There was a woman's voice both quiet and clear. Bai Fanxian who finished refining medicine for the latest patient excused herself, leaving Wu Jia to handle that patient's joy alone in the examination room.
The three officials startled slightly when suddenly beside them appeared a woman with beautiful figure and face. She walked over and sat opposite them, opening the topic without delay.
"Are you the owner of this place?"
"Yes."
Bai Fanxian nodded without hesitation. She received tea the close butler brewed and sipped once. Her manner had no worry at all.
"We work directly under the Ministry of Public Health. We were contacted that your clinic charges excessive fees. And uses supernatural miracles to deceive people."
The official opened the report he received and read it to Bai Fanxian again.
Bai Fanxian raised her eyebrows surprisingly. "What should I do?"
"So we'd like permission to investigate whether you really charge excessive fees... normally what's your service fee?"
"Ten million yuan..."
*Whoosh!*
The elderly butler watched the three officials choke on tea while contemplating. Their reactions further confirmed that they just received orders to investigate. Plus it looked like a sudden investigation. They didn't even have preparation time.
Huang Zihuan cut off his assumptions one by one. When seeing his lady, all three showed no abnormal attitudes. Just reactions when men meet beautiful women.
It meant they should be just ordinary people. Plus it looked like they'd never seen Bai Fanxian before. Huang Zihuan understood this well. If people were from different circles, not knowing each other wasn't strange.
Like asking an auntie who only watches evening dramas if she knows that world-level singer who just released a new hit song topping charts? Of course the auntie would say she doesn't know.
He sighed. He looked at the three officials with sympathy. They were just blind officials who had to do their duty. And might be affected if this didn't end well.
"Uh... you're joking, right?"
One asked unbelievingly. But Bai Fanxian still had a calm manner. She sipped tea quietly without thinking to explain further.
That made another official have to get up and ask patients sitting waiting in the room. And soon he walked back with a strange expression.
"...Sir. That person spoke truly. Every patient said the same - minimum treatment fee is ten million yuan."
Though he said it himself, he still felt he heard wrong.
"So they weren't deceived or coerced?"
The lead official nodded. He gulped while thinking this matter would be troublesome.
If this was scam deception, that's another matter. But here the owner stated prices beforehand. It was those patients who walked in asking for treatment. How could he hold Bai Fanxian responsible?
"Then we'd like to see the treatment process. There are reports that you..."
"Thank you! Doctor, thank you so much!"
Before he finished speaking, the examination room door opened with a bang. A patient walked out with a smile filling his face. Importantly, he pushed a wheelchair out himself. Though a bit wobbly, he was still happy.
"Take care of your knee... be more careful when training."
Wu Jia followed out to see him off. This patient injured his knee from a mistake training techniques two years ago, making him unable to walk again. Damage from these techniques mostly confused current hospitals and doctors. He was unable to walk until today.
His face was emotional. He turned to Bai Fanxian and quickly walked over stumblingly to show deep gratitude.
"Grandmaster Bai! Thank you for the pill!"
He was in this circle and knew Bai Fanxian well. Before this, he was just slightly interested. But now he'd fully converted himself into one of the Alchemy Empress's fan club.
"...Mm."
Bai Fanxian just glanced. She raised a finger. Pure qi visible to naked eyes shot from her fingertip. They went straight to that man's knee. And before he could steady himself, he realized warm waves spreading throughout his leg.
The pill he just took was still working. Bai Fanxian just used the Eternal Myriad Heavens power in her body to accelerate its effectiveness another level. Plus she could reorganize his once-chaotic qi back to where it should be.
At first he didn't understand. But when he moved his leg, he found the inconvenient movement earlier completely disappeared.
He tried jumping and hopping around. No matter how he moved, they moved like normal legs. Carelessly he tripped and fell forward. But still got up himself and laughed like crazy.
"Thank you! Thank you!"
The three officials watched the departing man paying with wide eyes. They were just talking about supernatural miracles when this woman demonstrated abilities like an immortal.
"...That is..."
Before they recovered from shock, the phone vibrated. He quickly lifted it to answer immediately seeing the prominent number displayed on screen.
"Yes! Minister."
He trembled while speaking. He didn't think his big boss would personally call him like this. For a field worker like him, it wasn't often he'd talk with superiors personally.
"...The Vice Minister ordered me to come... Yes. Understood."
He nodded while showing respectful attitude unknowingly.
"I'll return immediately!... Yes, right now."
He talked a few more sentences then hung up. He looked at Bai Fanxian with slight fear. He couldn't figure out who besides this woman would have power to make his big boss move.
They hurriedly excused themselves back. Anyone could see how much they wanted to quickly leave.
Bai Fanxian, on the other hand, should be the one surprised at how their attitude changed almost one hundred eighty degrees like this.
But right then at the door, the same old woman who just left opened the door coming in. In her hand she carried a large cake box.
"Granny brought snacks back... do the children want to eat together?"
"..."