"Uh, how about I move somewhere else?"
Lin Fan scratched his head, realizing the situation was awkward.
He opened his arms, intending to pick up Chen Wan'er again, but Tian Mengyao pushed him away.
"Don't touch my mom."
Tian Mengyao turned and glared at him fiercely.
"That..."
"What 'that'? Stay away from my mom."
Tian Mengyao blocked him, looking furious.
"It's time to remove the needles. Leaving them in too long isn't good."
Lin Fan nervously pointed at Chen Wan'er's foot.
Tian Mengyao glanced over and reluctantly moved aside. "Hurry up."
Five minutes later.
The three of them sat around the brazier.
Chen Wan'er's cheeks were still flushed. Under her daughter's persistent questioning, she slowly explained what had just happened.
Lin Fan felt a sense of relief, his reputation finally cleared.
"Mom~"
Tian Mengyao stomped her foot in anger.
She had imagined dozens of scenarios for Lin Fan meeting her parents, but she never expected her mother to suddenly, for some unknown reason, leap into Lin Fan's arms.
"You're blaming me now."
Chen Wan'er put on her shoes and socks, pulled down her pant legs, and regained her composure.
"Mengyao, if it weren't for the mess you caused, would your father have urgently sent me over?"
Chen Wan'er shot her daughter a resentful glare.
"But..."
Tian Mengyao was speechless. She thought, *But I didn't want you to embarrass yourself like this!*
"Is it wrong for me to test his medical skills? If you hadn't burst in, wouldn't I have almost fallen? Would he have come to help me?"
Chen Wan'er bombarded her with three questions.
Tian Mengyao was furious. "Look at the mess you've made!"
"What did I do?"
Chen Wan'er held her head high, looking defiant.
Lin Fan couldn't stand it anymore and tried to mediate. "Don't argue."
"Shut up!"
"What's it to you?"
The mother and daughter snapped back in unison.
Lin Fan deflated, too afraid to say another word.
The medical clinic fell silent for a moment.
Tian Mengyao turned her head and said to her mother, "Mom, you should go back. I've grown up, and you don't need to worry about my affairs anymore."
"What? Grown up and got a backbone, have you?"
Chen Wan'er was fuming.
She had abandoned her work and traveled a long distance, only to nearly lose her reputation trying to figure out Lin Fan's background. She had nowhere to turn.
"You say we don't need to worry, so we don't? Then why did you call your father yesterday?"
"I... I won't ask for your help anymore. You don't need to."
Tian Mengyao sulked.
"Easier said than done."
Chen Wan'er glanced at her daughter. "You are a piece of my flesh and blood. You will always be our daughter, and we will always take care of your affairs."
"You."
Chen Wan'er turned her head and looked at Lin Fan sternly.
"Ah, what about me?"
Lin Fan's heart skipped a beat.
"Name, age, family situation, political affiliation."
Tian Mengyao cried out in exasperation, "Mom~ Are you taking a census?"
"Of course, I have to."
Chen Wan'er said righteously, "Don't think I don't know what you're up to. Your father and I are not old yet, and we can still manage you."
In reality, Tian Yutang had already thoroughly investigated Lin Fan's identity and background. It wasn't his initiative that led to this; rather, Zhou Weiguo had sent him a detailed report on the Lin family's lineage the day after their last wine reception.
However, hearing was not as good as seeing. He also knew that his own identity was under constant scrutiny. No matter how anxious he was, he could only send his wife.
"I, I don't have any ulterior motives."
Tian Mengyao felt both shy and angry, unable to lift her head at her mother's words.
"Don't you have things to do at the village committee?"
Chen Wan'er stared intently at her daughter.
"Mom, are you trying to kick me out?"
Tian Mengyao reluctantly squirmed.
"Since you know, why aren't you leaving?"
"I..."
Tian Mengyao clenched her small fists, wanting to confront her mother.
"You don't want your father to make the trip himself, do you?"
Chen Wan'er's eyes were sharp.
Tian Mengyao looked wronged and could only cast a pleading gaze at Lin Fan.
Lin Fan returned an expression of helplessness. "It's no use looking at me. She's your mom. I can't just kick her out."
Tian Mengyao reluctantly stood up, saying with a lack of conviction, "Mom, I haven't been home in so long, don't you miss me?"
"I did, but now seeing you makes me angry. Go on!"
Chen Wan'er said irritably.
"Then I don't miss you either."
Tian Mengyao huffed, turned around, and bolted out the door.
Only Lin Fan and Chen Wan'er remained in the clinic.
Chen Wan'er turned her head, and Lin Fan felt a mountain pressing down on him.
"Auntie."
Lin Fan put on a fawning smile, unsure where to put his hands.
"Don't try to butter me up yet."
Chen Wan'er's expression was serious. "I asked you some questions just now. Please answer them truthfully, one by one."
She produced a small notebook from somewhere and then, as if by magic, took a pen from her pocket. She raised her head and looked sharply at Lin Fan.
Lin Fan felt a thousand tiny insects crawling on him. He hadn't felt this tormented even when he was taken to the police station.
"My name is Lin Fan..."
"My house was demolished and is being rebuilt. I live alone in the clinic."
Lin Fan pointed in the direction of Wangjia Village. "My sister-in-law is staying with friends in the neighboring village."
"Auntie, I have nothing else to say."
Lin Fan sat obediently on the small stool like a well-behaved elementary school student.
"Did you learn your medical skills from your grandfather? Why wasn't he well-known back then?"
Chen Wan'er adjusted her gold-rimmed glasses. The pen in her hand had already jotted down some key points.
"Hmm?"
Lin Fan was puzzled. *She even knows about my grandfather?*
He quickly recalled his earlier answers. Thankfully, he had spoken truthfully, omitting only those secrets that could not be revealed to outsiders, without any exaggeration or falsehood.
"Perhaps communication was inconvenient back then."
Lin Fan offered an irrefutable excuse.
Chen Wan'er nodded. In such a remote place, talent could easily be overlooked.
"A third-generation family of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners..."
Chen Wan'er weighed the matter in her mind. Lin Fan's family background wasn't bad, at least it was pure and clean.
Except that he was too poor.
"No, that needle you gave him..."
Chen Wan'er mimicked Lin Fan's motion of inserting the needle into the person's spine. "One wouldn't dare to perform such a procedure without a renowned master's tutelage and extensive clinical experience. Your grandfather passed away long ago, and your father also..."
Chen Wan'er stopped mid-sentence, realizing it was inappropriate, and quickly apologized. "I'm sorry."
"It's alright, it's all in the past."
Lin Fan smiled with acceptance. "Most of my medical skills come from studying medical books. When I was in school, I often read medical texts, and then I gradually practiced and figured things out on my own. I suppose I've gained some proficiency."
"You figured it out on your own?"
Chen Wan'er was greatly shocked. "You practiced on the villagers nearby?"
She couldn't help but picture the rough-and-tumble Lin Fan flipping through a few medical books and then going out to treat patients, resulting in...
Major medical malpractice!
As a doctor herself, the mere thought sent chills down her spine.
And Luofeng Village was remote, so perhaps such incidents would never be known to the outside world.
Thinking this, she looked at Lin Fan again as if he were a murderer.