Mu Jinyu shook his head, saying, "I can tell that you are serious. You truly wish to acquire superior medical skills and to better treat patients, to prevent many from dying needlessly because of your own helplessness, to choose only to close their eyes and wait for death. You want to benefit society, and to be honest, your attitude truly moves me. But I really cannot teach you..."
Mu Jinyu was not holding a grudge against Shen Changchun's previous attitude, nor was he using it as an excuse on purpose. He simply had no way to teach Shen Changchun anything because Shen's age was indeed too great. It was essentially impossible for him to learn Jinyu's medical skills.
His medical skills were tied to a specific cultivation method he possessed. Without the True Qi cultivated from that method, it was impossible to perform such miraculous healing.
Therefore, even though he was deeply moved by Shen Changchun's attitude, he still could not teach him.
If it were his granddaughter Shen Shuyao, although her age was also somewhat advanced, there was still a slim chance that she could learn his cultivation method.
But as for Shen Changchun, there was truly no way.
The bystanders in the ward were dumbfounded upon hearing Mu Jinyu's refusal.
Originally, they thought it incredible enough that Shen Changchun had knelt to Mu Jinyu, seeking to apprentice himself to learn medicine. But now, Jinyu's refusal was even more unbelievable to them.
Good heavens, did he know whom he was refusing?
That was a figure comparable to Mount Tai and the Big Dipper in Jiangnan's medical community!
If Shen Changchun became his apprentice, once word got out, it might deeply damage Changchun's reputation, but for Jinyu, it would tremendously elevate his own status, making him instantly famous throughout Jiangnan Province.
In time, countless wealthy individuals suffering from incurable diseases would flock to him with hefty sums of money.
He would become the most sought-after Young Divine Doctor in Jiangnan.
Yet he actually...
refused such immediate recognition, status, and wealth.
"This..." Shen Changchun too was staring at Mu Jinyu in disbelief.
He thought that Mu Jinyu was still holding a grudge over his earlier haughty attitude that came with age.
Therefore, he did not wish to accept him.
Or perhaps, did he think that Changchun had ulterior motives, intending to learn under him only to take revenge after mastering his medical skills?!
But he really did not harbor the latter notion.
Initially, when Jinyu accused him of trading on his old age and condemned him as a crumbling edifice destined to fall, he was indeed angry. But on second thought, Jinyu's words were not without merit.
When he first saw Mu Jinyu appear, he did indeed look at him through the eyes of prejudice, with arrogance born of being a veteran, dismissing his medical skills based on his own years of experience in medicine before Jinyu had even made a move to prove himself.
If it were someone else, they would be angry too. All the more so since Mu Jinyu was a Divine Doctor.
So, if he was in the wrong, then apologizing was the right thing to do.
His apology and request to be an apprentice were not meant to curry favor insincerely, only to learn Jinyu's medical skills and then turn back to deal with him.
In fact, if it were any other issue, his own stubborn and prideful nature probably would not have allowed him to lower his face to apologize to Mu Jinyu.
But the skill Jinyu displayed in medicine was simply too shocking for him, making him eager to learn it immediately.
To allow his own stagnant medical skills to reach higher levels.
This urgent desire was not for fame, nor for status, nor for money.
But it was for himself, so that when countless patients with terminal illnesses looked at him eagerly, longing for a cure, he wouldn't have to shake his head helplessly, but instead could nod and tell them, "I can save you!"
However...
Now all of this had drifted away from him with Mu Jinyu's shake of the head!
Shen Changchun looked at Mu Jinyu with disbelief and asked urgently, "Why? Can you tell me why? I truly want to learn your miraculous medical skills, and I have no ulterior motives. As long as you teach me, I will agree to any condition."
He earnestly said, "If it's money, I can give you all I have, including my house; if it's status, I can find a way to make you a professor at Jiangnan Provincial Medical College; as for women, I can introduce you to some of the most beautiful women in Jiangnan, even my granddaughter… She's beautiful too, you saw her, right? I can introduce her to you as well..."
Towards the end, Shen Changchun's words became somewhat incoherent, revealing his excitement and urgency.
"Grandfather, what nonsense are you speaking?!"
Meanwhile, Shen Shuyao, upon hearing her grandfather's words becoming more and more outrageous and turning the conversation towards herself, blushed, stamped her foot lightly, and gave Shen Changchun a reproachful look, her tone annoyed and embarrassed.
After speaking, she couldn't help but steal a glance at Mu Jinyu, seeing his face was as fine as jade, his beauty rivaling that of Pan An, unmatched in poise and elegance, causing her heart to beat furiously, as if a panicked fawn was hidden inside.
Shen Changchun, however, didn't indulge his granddaughter's coquettish behavior and looked straight at Mu Jinyu with a pleading gaze, similar to those of his patients diagnosed with incurable diseases, who displayed a look of despair mixed with a last glimmer of hope after he had declared them beyond help.
They hoped he would say there was still a chance for them to be saved.
And now, he was hoping Mu Jinyu would say, he agreed.
Mu Jinyu met Shen Changchun's beseeching gaze and felt a mix of emotions, finally shaking his head and saying, "I'm sorry, I really can't teach you. Honestly, it's not that I'm purposely making it difficult for you, but to learn my medical skills one must meet very stringent criteria, being young and in good health, to have even a slight chance of learning."
These words were somewhat cruel, and after hearing them, Shen Changchun's face turned pale, his body trembled, and he nearly fell.
He looked at the ground with a bewildered expression, a wave of despair washing over him.
Previously, he thought the older one got in Chinese medicine, the more valued they became. He had doubted and looked down on Mu Jinyu because of his youth.
But now, Mu Jinyu had told him that his miraculous life-saving medical skills couldn't be learned by an older person; they were meant for the young.
If this was true, what an irony that would be!
Yet, from Mu Jinyu's sympathetic gaze, he realized that what Mu Jinyu said was indeed the truth.
Shen Changchun let out a bitter smile, stared at his wrinkled hands that were covered with age spots and mumbled, "The irony of fate, the irony of fate..."
Mu Jinyu, seeing him deeply affected, shook his head slightly and sighed, saying, "I'm truly sorry to have disappointed you."
After speaking, he didn't know what else to say or how to console him, shook his head slightly, and decided it was better to leave.
But seeing him about to leave, an idea suddenly struck Shen Changchun, and he quickly said, "Divine Doctor Mu, since you won't take me as your apprentice and your requirements are for someone young, surely my granddaughter fits your criteria, doesn't she?"
"Grandfather, what are you saying? I don't want to become his apprentice at all!" Shen Shuyao, hearing Shen Changchun's words, was a bit stunned, and after recovering, she stamped her foot again and spoke in annoyance.
Mu Jinyu then took a careful look at Shen Shuyao.
He hadn't paid much attention to her before, but now upon closer inspection, she was indeed very beautiful, with skin as smooth as porcelain, her features like a painting, a delicate mouth and nose, and a graceful demeanor that was characteristic of a Jiangnan woman.
She must be around twenty-two or twenty-three years old.
To have such a beautiful lady as his apprentice?!
Mu Jinyu felt that this was quite exciting.