chapter 21 The old man's crisis

"Luca Zhang, I don't welcome you here. I don't care whose son you are. Causing a scene at my birthday celebration. Now, you better get out of here, or else don't blame me for not being polite!"
As the elderly man finished speaking, all the guests at the table stood up, giving Luca Zhang a stern, watchful look.
Hearing the elderly man's words, Luca Zhang nodded slowly and walked away from his seat. When he reached an open space, he muttered resentfully, "You old stubborn fool, threatening me, huh? Relying on numbers, huh? Remember this!" Afterward, he shot a venomous glance at William Lin.
The guests in attendance heard Luca Zhang's words and immediately grabbed chairs and other objects to chase after him.
It's a good thing Luca Zhang was fleet-footed; otherwise, he might have ended up badly hurt today.
However, William Lin saw a different side of Luca Zhang.
During the daytime, Luca Zhang's face had only shown the traits of a troublemaker. But just now, William Lin saw the face of a dangerous man, a forehead marked with blood and eyes filled with a murderous aura.
The ancestral records clearly warned against provoking individuals with such a face, as they were believed to bring calamity.
A cold flash passed through William Lin's eyes, realizing that he couldn't sleep tonight; physician, heal thyself. His mother and Susan had no issues with their faces, so it must be up to him.
The elderly man's face couldn't be discerned due to the bright stars on his birthday, and William Lin didn't know his fate either. Otherwise, he could've consulted a fortune teller to be on the safe side.
William Lin sank into deep thought until all the guests returned to their seats, and he finally snapped back to reality when he heard the emcee say, "So, let's temporarily set aside this matter and proceed with the birthday celebration!"
One by one, the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the elderly man stepped forward to offer their birthday wishes.
Just as they were about to finish their birthday greetings, William Lin stood up and said, "Grandpa, I've learned a set of Chinese massage techniques in Jiang City, and I'd like to give you a massage today. Can I have a few minutes of your time?"
Seeing that everyone looked puzzled, William Lin continued, "I believe this massage technique is quite effective. I've already tried it on my mother, and she felt great afterward. I hope Grandpa can give me a chance to show my filial piety."
William Lin's mother quickly added, "What William says is true. I felt really good after the massage."
One of the elderly man's sons glanced at William Lin and then said to the elderly man, "Dad, why don't we give William this chance to show his filial piety?"
The elderly man nodded with a smile and said, "Well, then, I'll enjoy William's filial piety."
Upon hearing the elderly man's agreement, William Lin hurriedly approached the stage.
However, after careful consideration, William Lin felt that something was amiss. To be on the safe side, he decided to examine the elderly man's bone structure.
William Lin went up to the stage and first used his spiritual energy to massage the elderly man's back, infusing his internal organs with vitality and rejuvenating them.
The elderly man immediately felt an indescribable sense of comfort upon William Lin's touch and praised, "William, you're considerate. This massage technique is indeed excellent."
After finishing the back massage, William Lin moved to the elderly man's left hand to perform a bone examination.
As soon as he touched the elderly man's hand, William Lin had a sudden realization.
From examining the structure of the elderly man's bones, he discovered that the elderly man had a life-threatening crisis in his fate. This crisis was destined to occur on the day of his 90th birthday. If he could safely overcome this crisis, he would likely live to be a hundred years old without any major calamities.
This revelation clarified everything. It seemed that the threat of Luca Zhang against the elderly man was related to this impending crisis.
Although William Lin now knew that the elderly man was in danger, he patiently continued the massage. In no time, he had completed the massage on both of the elderly man's hands and stepped down from the stage, not wanting to further delay the guests' mealtime.
The grand celebration lasted for three hours, symbolizing the elderly man's 90th birthday, a special and revered milestone.
After the feast, the guests started to disperse, each returning to their respective homes.
On the way home, Susan and William Lin's mother chatted and laughed. Suddenly, William Lin spoke up, "Mom, Grandpa is in danger tonight, and I want to go check on him."
After thinking for a while, William Lin couldn't come up with a good excuse, so he decided to be direct.
"What?!" William Lin's mother turned to look at him in bewilderment, thinking she might have misheard.
"I said, Grandpa is in danger tonight, and I want to go check on him," William Lin repeated.
William Lin's mother quickly placed her hand on William Lin's forehead, then on her own, muttering, "He doesn't have a fever either."
Susan watched this series of actions and couldn't help but suppress her laughter, while William Lin had a perplexed expression.
"Mom, I'm not lying to you!" William Lin said urgently. Although he had limited interaction with the elderly man, he remembered that the elderly man had treated his father kindly in the past. Based on this alone, William Lin felt compelled to help the elderly man overcome this crisis.
Seeing William Lin's growing anxiety, Susan quickly chimed in, "Aunt, William is quite accurate with these things. He saved my life once before."
Susan then recounted in detail the previous life-threatening situation and William Lin's rescue.
"Why don't you let William go and check on him?" she suggested.
After listening to Susan's explanation, William Lin's mother began to see the logic in the situation. She nodded her head and allowed William Lin to go.
Upon hearing this, William Lin hurried back. After he had examined the elderly man's bone structure, he infused spiritual energy into the elderly man's body, feeling a growing connection with the elderly man. Just moments ago, this connection had intensified, causing William Lin to feel increasingly uneasy. This was why he was so anxious to check on the elderly man.
William Lin's mother looked at her son's anxious demeanor and shook her head helplessly. She turned to Susan and said, "My son always acts too impatiently! You'll have to bear with him in the future!"
Susan blushed immediately upon hearing this direct remark. It was quite clear what William Lin's mother meant. Susan quickly responded, "Aunt, we really are just friends."
"We're friends now, but who knows about the future!" William Lin's mother replied with a smile, noticing Susan's reaction.
Meanwhile, on his way back to the celebration, William Lin happened to run into Samuel Zhao's mother.
She grabbed William Lin's arm and said with a remorseful expression, "William, I'm truly sorry. In the next life, I'll be your servant to make it up to you. Please forgive my son, Samuel Zhao!"
William Lin's connection with the elderly man was growing more intense by the moment, and he was in a hurry. He gently removed Samuel Zhao's mother's hand and said, "I really have an urgent matter to attend to. We can discuss Samuel's matter later."
After pushing her hand away, William Lin continued on his way to the celebration.
Samuel Zhao's mother watched William Lin as he ran off, and her remorseful expression quickly turned into disgust.
"Ugh!"
She spat on the ground, then muttered in resentment, "You're truly ungrateful. I lowered myself to apologize to you, and you don't even appreciate it. I think you're too busy looking for your next life!"
With that, she spat on the ground again and continued on her way in the direction William Lin had gone.

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