Dream Guide

The event at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts ended late at night in the Pacific Time Zone. The streets of Los Angeles are filled with the cheerful laughter of couples who have just returned from the Hollywood Bowl, while in the dark corners you can always see swaying drunks and heavily made-up prostitutes.

It’s a moment of romance and sordidness, the perfect time for lovers’ trysts and drug deals.

After leaving Beverly Hills, Hou Biao stared nervously at the road ahead, listening to the safety warnings coming from his headphones.

A drunk man rushed out and threw himself on the front of the Cadillac driven by Hou Biao. Hou Biao did not brake and kept his hands firmly on the steering wheel. The front of the car knocked the drunk man away with a bang. The car body only shook slightly and continued to drive forward smoothly.

Two men in black jumped out of the night and dragged the drunk man who was hit by a car on the side of the road into the shadows of the street corner. These are people sent by gangs in Los Angeles. Without them, Hou Biao's journey would never have been so easy.

Mei Yiqiu was indeed tired. When he returned to the presidential suite of the Hilton Hotel, he soaked himself in the jacuzzi. The dense aroma of roses reminded him of his pipe. He misjudged the comfort of the bathtub in the presidential suite and thought he would be out soon, so the pipe was casually placed on the table outside.

He heard a knock on the door, and Mei Ziqing called out: "Professor, are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" the professor said lazily, "I just miss my pipe a little!"

Not long after, Mei Ziqing opened the bathroom door, came in holding a pipe that had been refilled with tobacco, put the matches and pipe together on the table beside the bathtub, and said with a smile:

"I thought you were asleep! You have never taken such a long bath!"

When Mei Yiqiu saw the pipe, he cheered up, wiped his hands with a towel, put the pipe into his mouth, and said:

"It's so boring! I've never been so tired. The thoughts of these rich people and politicians are more elusive than the position of electrons!"

The professor struck a match, put the flame into the mouth of his pipe, and took a pleasant puff.

Mei Ziqing walked behind the professor, squatted down, put her hands on his shoulders, and kneaded them gently.

The professor snorted softly and exhaled a long puff of white smoke: "It's comfortable!" I don't know whether he meant that the cigarette was comfortable to smoke or that the plum blossoms were comfortable to hold.

Mei Ziqing smiled and said: "Teacher, get up and I'll help you massage it. You're really tired!"

"Oh?" Mei Yiqiu suddenly remembered that this was his student, not the masseur he invited, and he quickly waved his hand and said, "Forget it, you're tired too, no need."

"Teacher, do you think my method is unprofessional?"

"No, that's not what your hands are supposed to be doing."

"But you are my teacher, and it is a student's honor to do things for the teacher. As long as the teacher is willing, the students can do anything..."

Mei Yiqiu suddenly interrupted her rudely: "Stop talking, no matter who I am, your hands should not do this! The hands of scientists are precious, noble, and irreplaceable! You should use them to hold Live in the stars, stir atoms, and dispel the dark clouds of the universe that obscure our eyes, not use it to massage a bad old man!"

Mei Ziqing had never seen a professor so rude before, and was frightened and at a loss: "Professor...I..."

Mei Yiqiu waved his hand: "I may be too tired... you can go out first." He felt that his shoulders were indeed a little sore, so he added, "If you want to give me a massage, find a more professional person. , Oh, it’s best to be a man. Also, it’s best to know a little bit about Chinese medicine, oh, it’s best to be able to do cupping, I may have smoked too much!”

Mei Ziqing asked in confusion: "What is the relationship between smoking and cupping?"

Mei Yiqiu said: "The lungs control the fur, and cupping can clear the turbid qi in the lungs... Oh, you don't need to understand this. There are specialties in the art. Don't learn from me, an old man. You have to learn a little bit of everything. If I specialize in one thing, ,Maybe……"

He glanced at the ceiling, sighed, and said no more.

Mei Ziqing left, and not long after, Hou Biao came in and asked, "Professor, did you call the doctor?"

"Doctor? Oh, yes, are you here so soon?" Mei Yiqiu felt that he had indeed soaked for a long time, so he stood up from the bathtub and asked while putting on his bathrobe, "Is it a boy or a girl?" Yes? Do you know cupping and acupuncture?"

Hou Biao said: "Man, I don't know if he can do cupping. I need to verify his origin to ensure your safety."

Mei Yiqiu said: "Don't be so nervous. In the worst case, you can just stand on the side. I just want to do a massage and cupping."

Hou Biao said: "Professor, you can't let down your guard. Today's art exhibition is obviously a conspiracy. Why don't you let me check them?"

Mei Yiqiu had already heard what Hou Biao said about what happened at the art exhibition: "There is nothing to find out. These paintings are Ronald Cohen's private collection. Since Cohen did not show up, he naturally took precautions. We don't need to fight with them. If you fight head-on, you will easily fall into passivity. Professor Qingmu and Professor Su are not here, and our strength is too weak. You, me, Ziqing..."

Hou Biao said: "There are also people from the Chinese gangs in Los Angeles."

"Oh yes, I should go and thank them." Mei Yiqiu got dressed and walked out of the bathroom, "Please help me make arrangements. Before I go back, I have to pay a visit to Mr. Wolfe. Oh, listen Say he is unwell, then meet his son Laughing Wolf.”

Hou Biao took note of the professor's instructions, then opened the door for him and accompanied the professor to the bedroom, where Mei Ziqing was waiting.

At this time, the subordinate's voice came from the earphone: "The person has verified it, and there is no problem with the background."

Hou Biao nodded towards Mei Ziqing, and Mei Ziqing asked the professor: "Shall we invite that Chinese medicine doctor in now?"

Mei Yiqiu said: "Okay, let him in. Oh, how did you find him so quickly?"

Mei Ziqing said: "It was recommended by my friend in Los Angeles. Although he is Japanese, he likes Chinese medicine very much and often goes for massage and acupuncture."

Mei Yiqiu nodded and said, "I hope your Japanese friend and I have the same understanding of Chinese medicine."

Mei Ziqing smiled and said, "You will know after you try it."

After she finished speaking, she walked out and brought in the doctor who was waiting in the living room outside.

This man was in his thirties or forties. He walked in and stood there smiling. The weathered look on his face showed that he was an experienced man. His hair is cut very short, and a few traces of white can be seen on his temples. Wearing a crisp cashmere windbreaker and a very clean scarf around his neck, he generally looks energetic and friendly, giving people a sense of stability and trust.

He said: "Hello, professor, I have long admired your name!"

Mei Yiqiu said: "I'm glad to meet you. Where did you learn Chinese medicine? What do you know?"

The man said: "To be honest, sir, I am self-taught."

"Self-taught?" The professor was a little surprised, but he also admired it. "Few people are willing to admit that they are self-taught. They usually say that they were inherited from a famous old Chinese medicine doctor, or simply that they were passed down from their ancestors."

"Yes, sir." The man's answer was simple, as reliable as his appearance.

"Then what do you do originally and why do you want to study Chinese medicine?"

"I am a surgeon and graduated from Erasmus University in Rotterdam. I studied Chinese medicine to verify that different methods and concepts can achieve the same goal in scientific practice."

"What's the effect?"

"Very good, sir."

"Okay, my intuition tells me that you are more reliable than those guys who claim to have been practicing medicine for generations and have wonderful rejuvenation skills." Mei Yiqiu knocked on his pipe, "What's your name?"

"My name is Huang Liang, sir."