Chapter 453: Intensification
After hanging up the phone, Mrs. Qin was so anxious that she was sweating profusely.
Huo Tiexia comforted her, "Mrs. Qin, don't worry. Mr. Qin is a blessed man and is sure to be fine. Divine Doctor Lu is a famous physician in the Provincial City. As long as he arrives, he'll surely cure Mr. Qin."
"Yes, he will, he definitely will!" Mrs. Qin nodded vigorously, wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes.
Next, everyone fell into an anxious wait. Only Xu Zhen and Huo Gang were sweating profusely, and whenever their eyes met, they could both see the panic in each other's gaze.
About ten minutes later, Divine Doctor Lu, his hair a shock of white, hurried over.
"Make way!"
Without time to greet anyone, Divine Doctor Lu shooed away the onlookers and immediately rushed to Mr. Qin's side with his medical bag.
"Divine Doctor Lu, you must save my father! The Qin Family is willing to pay any price!" the young lady pleaded, her face a mask of desperation.
Divine Doctor Lu nodded. "Miss Qin, rest assured, I will do my utmost."
With that, Divine Doctor Lu immediately began to check Mr. Qin's pulse.
A few minutes later, Divine Doctor Lu was stunned.
"How is this possible? There are no signs of the medicine being absorbed into the body?"
He then looked at the dregs in the mortar, pinched a bit between his fingers, and tasted it.
SLAP!
The next moment, Divine Doctor Lu slammed his hand on the table and roared, "There's something wrong with this medicine!"
Upon hearing this, Mrs. Qin and Miss Qin were dumbfounded.
Miss Qin glared at Huo Tiexia. "Grandpa Huo, when has my Qin Family ever wronged yours? Every time the Huo Family came to our auction house, my father gave you the greatest discounts. Yet you dare to deceive me with fake medicine?"
The members of the Huo Family were collectively dumbfounded. Faced with Miss Qin's condemnation, Huo Tiexia's old face turned beet red.
"Miss Qin, don't be hasty. This must be a misunderstanding!" With that, Huo Tiexia turned and glared at Xu Zhen. "Speak! What exactly happened!?"
"I... I..." Seeing that the truth was out, Xu Zhen was terrified. He stammered, unable to form a complete sentence.
Everyone suddenly remembered what Zhao Dong had said.
The faces of the Huo Family members turned ashen. So, what Zhao Dong said was actually true!?
However, before Huo Tiexia could explode in anger...
SPURT!
Mr. Qin, who had been on the verge of unconsciousness, suddenly spat a mouthful of black blood. His eyes rolled back, and he fainted completely.
"Dad!"
"Qin!"
Mrs. Qin and Miss Qin were terrified, shouting as they rushed toward him.
"Don't move the patient!"
Divine Doctor Lu hastily reprimanded them, then grabbed Mr. Qin's wrist to take his pulse again.
"This is bad. All medicine is inherently toxic to some degree. This fake herb lacks any Spiritual Energy, which means its toxins weren't neutralized. It has poisoned Mr. Qin!"
"Mr. Qin was already deficient in vital energy. A poison like this is enough to kill him!"
The crowd gasped in alarm.
SLAP!
A resounding smack landed squarely on Xu Zhen's face.
"You bastard! Look what you've done!" Huo Tiexia was livid, looking as if he wanted to tear Xu Zhen to shreds.
Knocked to the ground, Xu Zhen covered his face, not daring to look up.
"Quiet! Everyone, be quiet!" Miss Qin said urgently. "The priority isn't assigning blame, it's curing my father!"
Saying this, she grabbed Divine Doctor Lu's arm, pleading, "Divine Doctor Lu, you have to save my father, I'm begging you..."
"I'm sorry..." Divine Doctor Lu said bitterly. "I can remove the toxins, but his vital energy must be replenished immediately. If not, not even a deity could save Mr. Qin..."
BOOM!
The words struck like a clap of thunder.
Miss Qin collapsed to the ground, tears streaming uncontrollably from her eyes.
"Oh, Qin... Qin... Wake up! You can't just leave your daughter and me behind! Please, wake up..." Mrs. Qin wailed.
A deathly silence fell. The members of the Huo Family were overwhelmed with guilt. If not for their fake medicine, Mr. Qin would never have ended up in this state.
"Mr. Zhao! Mr. Zhao!"
At that moment, the equally stunned Huo Hongyan had a realization and shouted, "Since Mr. Zhao could tell at a glance that the medicine was fake, perhaps he has a way!"
"Nonsense!" Huo Tiexia roared. "Even Divine Doctor Lu is helpless! What can a young whelp like him do?"
"Grandfather! Mr. Qin is on the verge of death! Even if it's a desperate measure, it's still better than no hope at all! If Mr. Qin really dies, his death will be on the Huo Family's hands!"
"This..." Huo Tiexia hesitated. After a moment's thought, he gritted his teeth and said, "Go and bring Zhao Dong back! Quickly!"
"Yes!" Huo Hongyan cried, hurriedly rushing outside.
At the doorway, Zhao Dong was just about to get into a taxi when he saw Huo Hongyan running out.
"Mr. Zhao, please wait! Wait!" Huo Hongyan gasped, running up to Zhao Dong and blocking him from getting into the car.
"Is there anything else?" Zhao Dong asked, his expression sour.
"I'm sorry... You... you were right. The herbs were fake!" Huo Hongyan said, her face filled with guilt.
"I, Zhao Dong, do not lie." Zhao Dong waved his hand dismissively and tried to get into the car again.
Huo Hongyan quickly blocked the car door with her body, unconcerned that they were pressed tightly together.
"Mr. Zhao, you can't leave!"
"Mr. Qin took the fake medicine and his condition is critical! You have a way to save him, don't you?"
"Of course there's a way to save him," Zhao Dong said coldly. "But why should I?"
He wasn't a saint who would save just anyone. Besides, after the Huo Family had treated him with such disdain, why should he go looking for trouble?
"Mr. Qin's family owns an auction house, and they have many treasures!" Huo Hongyan said desperately. "If you save him, he'll surely reward you with a great treasure!"
A great treasure? Those two words were enough to tempt Zhao Dong.
But recalling the Huo Family's ugly behavior just moments ago, Zhao Dong still shook his head. "Sorry, that's not persuasive enough."
"The favor I owed you is repaid. Now please, stop blocking my way." With that, Zhao Dong pushed Huo Hongyan aside and tried to leave.
Huo Hongyan grew frantic. Acting on pure instinct, she threw her arms around Zhao Dong.
"Mr. Zhao, please don't go! I'm begging you, don't leave!"
"Even if you're upset with the Huo Family, can't you do it for my sake? Please, just this once!"
"Mr. Qin is innocent! This only happened because he trusted that bastard Xu Zhen! I can't just stand by and watch him die! Please, I'm begging you!"
Huo Hongyan clung to Zhao Dong, sobbing uncontrollably.
Ultimately, Zhao Dong's heart softened.
After all, what man could remain hard-hearted while being clung to and sobbed on by such a beautiful woman? Of course, the promise of a great treasure also played a part.
With this in mind, Zhao Dong sighed. "Alright, I'll go save Mr. Qin. Now, can you please let go of me?"
"Really!?" Huo Hongyan quickly looked up, her eyes full of joy.
"Of course, it's true," Zhao Dong nodded reluctantly.
"That's wonderful! Let's go, quickly!" Huo Hongyan grabbed Zhao Dong's hand and began running back.