chapter 17 It's all the fault of the dentures

"Mr. Liu, I'm really sorry. The last twenty bottles of Five-Star Maotai in our store were all bought by the guests in Room 6. How about I switch a different kind of liquor for you?" "Switch? How can you switch? Can any other liquor match up to Five-Star Maotai? Talk to the people in Room 6, and ask them to let me have all the unopened bottles of Five-Star Maotai." "Uh... that's going to be difficult, Mr. Liu. Please don't make things hard for me, I am just a working girl here." Sam Wang, in the private room, hearing someone trying to snatch his Maotai, immediately got furious. He stormed out of the room and barked, "Who do you think you are? Why should I give you my liquor?" But as soon as he saw Mr. Liu, he froze. "Reed Liu, it's you?" "Sam Wang, why are you here? Are you hosting a dinner at Harmony Restaurant?" Turned out, Reed Liu was Sam Wang’s colleague. Sam Wang was the Purchasing Manager of Vastflight Group, and Reed Liu was the Business Manager. They were rivals and didn’t have a good relationship. "Sam Wang, I've invited some important guests who will be arriving soon. You've bought all the top-quality liquor in Harmony Restaurant. What am I supposed to serve my guests with?" Reed Liu, holding back his anger, proposed, "How about this? Give me those unopened bottles of Five-Star Maotai. I’ll pay you three times the market price." "Forget it. The money you offer isn't enough for me to care." "Sam Wang, the guests I've invited are people you can't afford to offend." Reed Liu spoke sternly, "If you don't let me have the good liquor, you'll definitely regret it." Sam Wang felt somewhat intimidated. But if Sam Wang gave the good liquor to Reed Liu, he would lose face. Just as the two were at an impasse, footsteps were heard. An impatient man said, "Reed Liu, what are you doing? I asked you to get some good wine, and you're still not done after all this time?" "Mr. Chen, you’ve come at the right time. Sam Wang bought all the good wine. I asked him to give some to me, but he flatly refused." Reed Liu glanced sideways at Sam Wang, seizing the opportunity to complain. "Mr... Mr. Chen." Sam Wang turned pale with fright. Turned out this Mr. Chen was Sam Wang’s big boss, Randall Chen, the Chairman of Vastflight Group. "Sam Wang, I'm hosting a dinner for my cousin's family tonight. I heard you bought all the good wine here. Can you let me have a few bottles? I’ll pay you." "Of course, I still have ten unopened bottles of Five-Star Maotai. I’ll give all these fine wines to Mr. Chen." After speaking, Sam Wang quickly signaled his friends and relatives. Upon realizing that the person wanting the wine was Sam Wang's big boss, his relatives and guests didn't dare to say much. At this moment, Randall Chen recognized Stanley Du, who was in the crowd. "Hey, Dr. Du, you're here too?" Randall Chen quickly walked up, grabbed Stanley Du's hands warmly, and said, "Last time, you saved my mother's life. I've always wanted to thank you." It turned out Randall Chen's mother was the elderly lady who suffered a severe reaction from a hefty dose of ibuprofen injected by Dinah Yang, nearly losing her life. If it weren't for Stanley Du’s intervention, Randall Chen's mother would have died. Sam Wang’s guests and relatives were all astounded. Everyone couldn't believe that Stanley Du, a poor doctor, had actually saved the mother of Chairman Chen! Just then, one of Randall Chen's sidekicks entered the private room, reporting, "Mr. Chen, Mr. Li and Ma’am Chen have arrived." Randall Chen quickly left the room. And then, everyone in Room 6 completely changed their attitude toward Stanley Du. "Stanley Du, so you're the one who saved Mr. Chen's mother. That's a great deed! Mr. Chen will be grateful to you for life." Sam Wang poured a drink for Stanley Du and then one for himself, raising his glass. He apologized, "We were ignorant just now and spoke out of turn. Please don't take it to heart. I substitute this drink for wine as my apology." After drinking his beverage in one gulp, he continued in a lowered voice, with a smile on his face, "I'm competing with Reed Liu for a vice-president position. Could you speak a few good words for me in front of Mr. Chen?" "Stanley Du, I and your future mother-in-law, Elen Zeng, have been close for many years. If you help Sam Wang with this, Auntie will surely not let you down," Giselle Zhang said, trying to curry favor. "Mother-in-law, should I help with this or not?" Stanley Du turned the decision over to Elen Zeng. Elen Zeng perked up, feeling very honored. She cleared her throat and said, "Stanley Du, if you can help, then help. But if you can't, don't force yourself." Right after she finished speaking, Randall Chen returned to Room 6 with a few people. "Auntie, cousin, this is Dr. Du. He's the one who cured my mother." "Thank you, young man, for saving my sister-in-law's life," said a woman in her sixties, Randall Chen's aunt. "Dr. Du, thank you for saving my aunt. My cousin has set up a table in Room 8. If you don't mind, I'd like to invite you for a few drinks," said a middle-aged man in his forties with a commanding presence, speaking kindly. He was Randall Chen's cousin, Michael Li, a real estate tycoon from the provincial city with a fortune of five to six billion yuan. He also had some properties in Ning City. This time he came to Ning City with his mother, to visit his aunt. "May I bring my family along?" "Of course. You are most welcome." Stanley Du and the Yang family followed Michael Li and the others to Room 8. In the middle of the private room, there was a large banquet table set up, big enough to seat twenty people. After everyone took their seats, they chatted awkwardly while waiting for the food to be served. Suddenly, Old Lady Chen's face showed a look of pain. "Grandma, what's wrong? Is it your old ailment acting up again?" Michael Li's nephew, Patrick Li, was the first to notice something was wrong with Old Lady Chen. She weakly nodded. "What's the old ailment with Ma’am Chen?" asked Stanley Du. "Intermittent tinnitus and headaches, for about six or seven years. My mom has been to many top hospitals, had X-rays, seen psychiatrists, but those famous doctors couldn't even diagnose her," sighed Michael Li. After observing Old Lady Chen for a few minutes, Stanley Du suddenly said, "Ma’am Chen, open your mouth." Old Lady Chen hesitated but then opened her mouth. "You have four dentures; three are made of copper alloy, and one is titanium alloy. Right?" "Right, right, right, Dr. Du, you're really something. You could tell at a glance what my dentures are made of," Old Lady Chen nodded repeatedly. "You've had these dentures for about ten years, haven't you?" "I've had the three copper alloy teeth for ten years. The titanium alloy tooth, for seven." "That's it," Stanley Du smiled, "You first wore the copper alloy teeth, then added the titanium alloy, and then you started experiencing tinnitus and headaches." "It seems... it seems that's the case." Old Lady Chen, coming to her senses, wondered, "Could it be that the cause of my headaches and tinnitus is my dentures?"