The physician Ming opened his mouth, unsure how to describe his current feelings. He stared blankly at his father, having only appeared in the news twice with Brother Xiao. And now, they had been seen?
"Don't be surprised," his father said. "For us, every evening's News Broadcast is a fixed family ritual. They're the same."
Ming the physician pondered, recalling that it had indeed always been like this at home.
"What's more, one of those times was an interview with you."
He knew it!
Ming the physician remembered that time when Brother Xiao was in a bad mood and didn't want to be interviewed, so they ended up interviewing him instead.
His name had been known to everyone across the country then.
Ning Dabao.
He didn't know if this name had been given to him by his father or by Muqi, but he felt a sense of shame. That's why, later, he had everyone call him by his moniker, Ming the physician.
It wasn't that he lacked confidence, it was just that the name always made him feel like someone was calling his baby name, which was quite embarrassing.
"Then..."
"If nothing unexpected happens, they should be paying us a visit soon," his father stated.
Hearing this, Ning Dabao—Ming the physician felt that things were not going well for him. He looked at the rice wine on the table, wondering if he could avoid facing those people if he drank too much.
With that thought, he picked up a bowl of wine.
It was at that very moment that Uncle Seven emerged from the kitchen, walking out and saying, "Brother, the people from over there have arrived."
"They're here?"
"They're here?!"
Father and son spoke in unison. The difference was that the father's voice was remarkably calm, having already prepared himself. Ming the physician's voice, however, sounded flustered.
He wished he were in a place like Bei Jiang with Brother Xiao, facing countless enemies, living a life of bloodshed and sleepless nights. He knew that even now, he had never had any excessive emotional attachments to any woman, and in his subconscious actions and words, he tended to view women as a completely different species, avoiding them.
The woman who had been physically closest to him in recent years was probably the one from the Nangong family.
"Xiao Bao, what are you panicking about?" Uncle Seven said, his eyes seemingly lighting up as he spoke of that young lady. "Let me tell you, that girl has grown up to be very beautiful now. Girls change a lot from eighteen onwards!"
"Didn't she go to university?" Ming the physician asked, perplexed. "Doesn't she have her own boyfriend? Now that she's attending school and experiencing a normal life, how could she not have a boyfriend?"
"Actually..." his father said, "to ensure the engagement, her father sent her to an all-girls university. There are no male students there."
"?"
Ming the physician stared blankly at his father, then at Uncle Seven.
"That's right. The Shi family is indeed commendable, always upholding promises as their family motto. This is truly admirable!"
Uncle Seven also chimed in with praise, not sparing any compliments.
Ming the physician felt that the world was somewhat absurd, and the most absurd thing was probably the prominent families in the few mountains around him.
Sending someone to an all-girls university, ensuring she had no male classmates. They really did have a way!
So, they were dead set on him and that girl getting together?
No, he would do his best to break off this engagement, no matter what.