"Yao'er." Grandpa Lin Huanhua carefully examined his healthy and sunny grandson, nodding repeatedly, his eyes sparkling. "Not bad, not bad."
Lin Huanhua is almost seventy years old. He has less white hair than his wife. He has an oval face, big eyes, and not particularly thick eyebrows. He looks very refined and elegant, which, combined with his old face, gives people a sense of otherworldly grace.
Lin Yao's maternal uncle inherited his appearance from his maternal grandfather. Lin Yao, on the other hand, inherited it from his mother, Lin Hongmei. This is what people commonly refer to as "the nephew resembling the uncle," which is said to be a sign of good fortune. However, this good fortune is also considered "late blooming," as he and his family suffered a lot in the first twenty years of his life.
"My Yao'er looks just like his uncle, they're practically identical, the most handsome man in the Lin family," Lin Huanhua joked, trying to ease the somber atmosphere.
Lin Hongmei led her father, Lin Hongmei, towards the parking lot, while Luo Jimin went to help his mother-in-law. The luggage was handled by Ge Yong and the others. Even Yi An, a top-level expert at the Earthly Realm, became a temporary porter with the tacit approval of the Grand Elder Yi Potian.
"That's right, my Yao'er looks just like Hongqi, exactly like Hongqi when she was young." Grandma, who was walking slowly, pulled Lin Yao and continued to praise him. She had been looking forward to seeing this image for many years. Before Lin Yao's body recovered, he was not handsome at all, he could barely be considered a person, and his appearance did not need any evaluation.
After giving my grandparents two super "Life-Giving Pills" each, they regained their health. Before they could even enjoy family time again, Yi Fei, who had just started his new job, arrived, so we had to say goodbye to the two elders for now.
Fortunately, the elderly couple had originally planned to stay in Chengdu for a while, so their time together wouldn't be cut short. They understood their children and grandchildren's work even more and urged Lin Yao to set off on his journey as soon as possible.
Yi Fei took a temporary leave to come to Chengdu to see Lin Yao in order to pick him up and take him to Beijing, because the number three leader wanted to see him.
The No. 3 leader is one of the most beloved leaders among the people. His current reputation and public image are comparable to that of the beloved Premier at the founding of the People's Republic of China. Before Yi Fei was transferred from Zhongnanhai, he served as the No. 3 leader's bodyguard. Therefore, the fact that Yi Fei was directly arranged to pick up the person during this meeting shows the leader's goodwill.
Floods, droughts, earthquakes, and all sorts of major national and livelihood events—the figure of the No. 3 leader can always be seen. This elderly man is always at the forefront at the first moment. No matter how dangerous the front line is, he never shirks his duty, leading the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation in the fight against all kinds of natural disasters and difficulties.
Lin Yao greatly admired this national leader who enjoyed a very high reputation among the people and was even revered by many. Naturally, he was very happy to be summoned or invited. So, after hearing about the situation from Yi Fei, he immediately set off for Beijing.
*****
"Hello, I'll call you Xiao Lin." The leader greeted him warmly and extended his arm to shake hands with Lin Yao.
The old man's warm smile and sincere attitude made Lin Yao like him at first sight. He thought to himself that the eyes of the masses are indeed discerning, and only a selfless and open-minded person can win the support and love of the people.
"Hello, Commander (let's just call you that to avoid censorship)!" Lin Yao's hand was firm. "It's an honor to meet you, and I'm very excited right now."
The leader laughed heartily, very cheerful and straightforward, "I am honored to hear you speak like this. Strictly speaking, it is our reality that we have not cared enough for the retired veterans, otherwise we would not have waited until today to discover your talent."
Lin Yao smiled slightly but didn't reply. He knew what the leader meant; he had already discussed this with Yi Fei on the way to Beijing, so he naturally understood the meaning behind those words.
If Lin Yao hadn't been so high-profile in taking on overseas orders, the higher-ups wouldn't have found him so quickly. This was different from his initial assessment. He really hadn't expected that his identity would be exposed by being brought back from abroad and gradually discovered in China.
In the few times he had acted in China, Situ Hao had introduced mostly businessmen. General Xia and Duan Hanyuan were both retired cadres. The only one still in office, Shang Wenge, and Song Chengxuan, who sought Lin Yao's help to treat his father, were not people who liked to gossip. Therefore, Lin Yao's identity as an angel was miraculously successfully concealed, which is why the leader said what he did just now.
"Come, Lin, sit down and have some tea. I don't know if you'll like it. I see that many young people these days don't like drinking tea." The leader kindly pulled Lin Yao to sit down, speaking very casually.
"Commander, I like drinking tea." Lin Yao smiled, feeling a sense of peace in the presence of this old man, and he no longer had the occasional irritability that sometimes arose in his mind. "When I was a child, I often studied and lived alone. My grandmother, who took care of me, always had a lot of housework to do but wouldn't let me lift a finger. So I started to learn how to drink tea and read some basic introductions to tea culture. Although I've drunk a lot of tea and have some understanding of tea culture, I can only be considered an ordinary person. I just like to drink ordinary pre-Qingming tea, haha."
Lin Yao spoke without restraint, because the leader gave him a very kind and gentle impression, like a friendly old man next door. It was as if he wasn't in a reception room in Zhongnanhai, but rather chatting casually on the sofa at his neighbor's house.
"Haha." The leader laughed. "Me too. Actually, I can't really taste much of the flavors of tea, and I can't distinguish between good tea and ordinary tea. Although I know the prices of some teas, I personally prefer to drink ordinary pre-Qingming tea because it tastes better, just like life, not the so-called pure fragrance of those famous teas."
"Commander, I know about your gossip now." Lin Yao became even more audacious, no longer paying attention to the precision of his words, even using the word "gossip."
"Alright then, let me know any gossip you have, so I don't suffer any losses." The commander looked at Lin Yao in a very amiable manner. "If I didn't know about someone as talented as you, that would be a dereliction of duty on our part."
Lin Yao felt even more relieved and confessed directly, "I've been keeping it a secret all along, afraid that people would have their eyes on it, so it's not your fault, it's my problem."
The leader smiled. "What? Why are you afraid of being targeted?"
“It’s never good to be targeted. Our family doesn’t want to get involved with too many people or too many relationships. We just want to be ordinary people. It’s troublesome to be targeted.”
"Oh?" The leader's smile faded slightly, though the corners of his mouth remained upturned, and his gaze was serious. "I heard there are many conditions for letting you treat the illness. Why did you set these conditions?"
"I'm afraid to save bad people, or rather, I'm afraid to save those immoral people." Lin Yao thought that since he had already started talking, he might as well just say it directly. Anyway, everyone could see it. It didn't matter if he treated his principles as pure personality. "In my opinion, helping an immoral person is indirectly harming many good people, so I won't help them. I will not aid and abet evil."
“I see…” The leader paused slightly, staring into Lin Yao’s eyes as he continued, “I know about some of the things you and Minhong Pharmaceutical have done. I can understand your and your family’s thoughts, but such behavior is out of step with the general situation.”
"If you haven't fulfilled your duty as a doctor to save lives, do you expect to inquire about someone's character and background before they're in a crisis?" the leader said eloquently. "The actions of Minhong Pharmaceutical are also not commendable. After all, these social responsibilities do not lie with the company, but with the Party and the government."
"Commander, actually, the world won't be greatly affected by the absence of me and my family's Minhong, so there's no need to place your hopes on us. Just pretend we're not doctors or a pharmaceutical company." Lin Yao's expression also became very serious. At this moment, he still hoped to gain the commander's understanding, or even approval.
"Saving lives isn't something I do blindly. I won't treat every patient I see like other doctors do. Just pretend I'm not a doctor. I might lend a hand in a crisis, but I'll never easily cure them. I'll only let them hold on until the ambulance arrives." Lin Yao smiled slightly. "Besides, even if I were willing to treat and save lives unconditionally, how much of a difference could I make? There will never be a shortage of patients in this world. My personal abilities are far too limited."
"The same goes for Minhong. We're not in it for the money; in fact, we've been operating at a loss so far. But we hope to help more people. We don't care whether this social responsibility belongs to the company or not. We just want to contribute our share and make society a better place, even if it only affects a small number of people. But Minhong will not pay attention to those who are immoral or disrespectful."
The commander's expression turned grim. Hearing Lin Yao's words confirmed his previous analysis and guesses. After a long while, he finally looked up and stared at Lin Yao. "You're not here to heal people, but to heal the world?"
"Yes, sir," Lin Yao replied decisively, thinking to himself that they wanted to heal the world.
"It's a great ideal, and I hope you can make even greater contributions. However, you should consider various aspects when dealing with things and not go down one path to the end. Otherwise, there will be no room for maneuver, and it will not have a positive impact on society."
"Thank you for your understanding, Prime Minister." Lin Yao sincerely bowed, a gesture that was not entirely polite.
“Your personal medical skills have attracted attention from all sides, including governments around the world and some groups and forces. From now on, you must pay special attention to your personal safety.” The leader suddenly steered the topic to the issue of security. “I know you have connections with the Yi family in Yanji. Under normal circumstances, your safety can be guaranteed, but you must not let your guard down. It would be even better if you could come and work in Zhongnanhai.”
"Thank you for your concern, sir." Lin Yao declined with a smile. "We will definitely pay attention to safety. As for the matter of finally coming here to work, I already told Mr. Hao Lunli last time. I really don't want to restrict myself. If you need anything, just let me know and I will definitely come."
“But I heard that you are only willing to help leaders with their illnesses, while there are many people who need your help. This scope is too narrow.”
"Sir, I am not just a doctor. I also research and invent medicines. Minhong's medicines are all invented by me. Of course, I will also form an expert team to conduct research and development in the future, but I will not help more people treat their illnesses." Lin Yao resolutely refused.
"So it's okay to treat foreigners for money? Your unequal terms will cause some people in China to have opinions and criticisms." The leader's tone remained calm, like an elder discussing their work with a younger person.
"Commander, you should also know that I only help foreigners with their medical treatments for money, to raise money to support Minhong's cause. In my opinion, Minhong's cause is the important thing, and treating one or two people is nothing."
"Furthermore, I also have conditions for patients from abroad. I will not treat anyone who opposes our country or has made any actions or remarks that are detrimental to our country. There are many patients from abroad, and many of them are wealthy. In fact, there are many options available to me."
The leader remained silent for a moment, looking intently at Lin Yao before continuing, "Now that you have an international reputation, some countries have even tried to apply for you to go abroad for medical treatment. What are your thoughts on this?"
Lin Yao was taken aback, wondering how this could have happened. Was he to be used as a condition for handling diplomatic relations?
"I'm sorry, sir." Lin Yao's expression was very serious after making the decision. "I have no plans to go abroad to treat patients. In fact, I will make a choice beforehand for patients coming to the country. So I will not follow anyone's arrangements. For example, I do not plan to treat Japanese people, and I will also consider the situation of people from other countries."