Chapter Four: The Tiger

Jiang An slowly got out of bed, walked over, and opened the door. The scene before him was rather amusing.

Outside the door sat a filthy little yellow-gray dog. The moment it saw Jiang An, its tail wagged wildly in excitement. Then, with a fawning expression, it nudged a meaty bone—origin unknown—toward him with its nose. After that, it sat back on its haunches, raised its front paws in an almost human fashion, and kept making obeisance, its big eyes full of cleverness and devotion.

To the puppy, a meaty bone was the greatest treasure in the world, and it could offer it up to the man before it without hesitation.

Indeed, this was the stray dog whose intelligence Jiang An had awakened on a whim earlier that day. Somehow, it had managed to track him all the way here, eager to repay his kindness.

This made Jiang An, who had witnessed countless dark deeds in the world of cultivation, sigh softly. Sometimes, even a dog has more loyalty than a person; once a dog recognizes its master, its devotion never wavers.

“Little fellow, I didn’t expect you’d actually find your way here, and you didn’t come empty-handed either! My efforts to awaken your intelligence weren’t wasted. Very well, from now on, you’ll stay with me. If you agree, nod your head.” Amused, Jiang An crouched down and spoke to the puppy. The little dog was overjoyed, nodding vigorously and letting out a few soft barks, its manner utterly endearing.

“Haha, how interesting. Come, let me give you a bath!” Without caring about the filth, Jiang An scooped the puppy up in his arms, saying, “To think that a dignified Immortal King of the human race would be washing a little dog—your fortune must be extraordinary indeed!”

What is cultivation, after all? It’s not about turning everyone into emotionless, detached gods who are all cast from the same mold. Quite the opposite: in the final two stages of cultivation, before ascending in the Karmic Fruit stage to the Creation stage, the first barrier is to overcome the ‘Know Myself Obstruction’—to understand one’s own heart and recognize what kind of person one truly is.

Jiang An had already advanced to the Creation stage before leaving the Immortal Realm, so he had naturally passed through the ‘Know Myself Obstruction’ and returned to his original self—what people now call “staying true to one’s heart.” He had grown up in an orphanage, yet remained cheerful, confident, tenacious, and resilient; otherwise, he would have succumbed to despair long ago. Of course, he had once been lost and confused, but had ultimately found himself again, cultivating to the very end.

So, mingling among mortals and bathing a puppy presented no burden for Jiang An. He carefully scrubbed the little dog for a good twenty minutes, revealing a skinny pet.

The puppy was an ordinary Chinese rural dog, mostly yellow, with a white belly. On its little yellow head, a few black tufts of fur on its forehead formed a faint, blurred character that resembled “King.” Thus, the puppy’s name was decided.

“Tiger! From now on, your name is Tiger—don’t let me down!” Jiang An exercised his right as master, dried Tiger off, and then instructed, “From now on, you must behave—no relieving yourself indoors, no chewing things up, and if you go out to play, remember to come home. If you understand, nod your head.”

With the intelligence of a four- or five-year-old child, Tiger understood perfectly. He nodded repeatedly and licked his master’s hand in affirmation. Jiang An was quite satisfied, thinking that if he ever concocted a Voice Transformation Pill, Tiger would be able to speak and might just scare people to death. But that was only a thought—Voice Transformation Grass was rare even in the Immortal Realm, and probably didn’t exist on Earth.

After that, Jiang An took Tiger downstairs to a nearby 24-hour convenience store, bought some ham and dog food, and filled Tiger’s belly. Jiang An himself had no appetite, but when Tiger saw his master not eating, he refused to eat as well, so Jiang An had to nibble on some snacks.

That night, Jiang An meditated while Tiger lay beside his feet, occasionally glancing up at his unmoving master, contented and happy.

The next morning—

“It’s been so long since I wore Earthly clothes, it does feel a bit strange,” Jiang An mused, standing before the mirror adjusting his jeans and shirt. He turned his head and called, “Tiger, bring me those shoes!”

As soon as he spoke, a yellow blur darted over. Tiger dragged a pair of leather shoes—almost as heavy as himself—over to his master and nudged Jiang An’s leg with his head. Jiang An patted his head, slipped on the shoes, and found them a bit large, but they would do.

After a while, the immortal in Taoist robes from yesterday was gone, replaced by a tall, handsome young urbanite. As for his water- and fire-proof, blade-resistant Taoist robe, Jiang An had put it away.

Ding dong, ding dong.

At that moment, the doorbell rang. Jiang An listened carefully; even from several meters away, he could tell it was Zhang Xue from her breathing. He said to Tiger, “I have to go out. Stay home today. There’s food if you’re hungry. If you need the bathroom, use the toilet and remember to flush.”

Tiger obediently agreed, and Jiang An left smiling to open the door.

Sure enough, Zhang Xue stood outside, dressed beautifully today. When she saw Jiang An, she smiled, “Good morning, Teacher Jiang. The director asked me to take you to the hospital. The patient you saved has woken up and insists on seeing you immediately.”

“Good morning. Let’s go, then,” Jiang An replied, moving to close the door, but Zhang Xue hesitated, embarrassed, “Um, Teacher Jiang, I suddenly need to use the restroom. May I use yours?”

Better not—can’t have you sharing a toilet with my dog. Jiang An replied calmly, “I think the bathroom here is out of order. Can you wait a bit and use the public restroom downstairs?”

“All right, let’s go then.”

Soon, they had breakfast together and drove to the hospital while chatting.

Room 902 in the intensive care unit was where the patient stayed. Outside, a dozen people lined up, awaiting their turn to visit. Zhang Xue led Jiang An in, ignoring the crowd, and entered the room. Inside were only three people: Yang Hanmin, the tall, ailing elder, and a gray-haired woman peeling fruit.

“Xiao Jiang, you’re here. Let me introduce you—this is Xu Guohao, whom you saved yesterday, and his wife, Mrs. Wang Xiuying,” Yang Hanmin introduced them.

The tall old man immediately sat up in bed, grasped Jiang An’s hand, and said gratefully, “Comrade Jiang, thank you for saving this old man’s life! How could I ever repay you?”

“Yes, it’s all thanks to this good child. Without you, Old Xu would have been in real danger! Such a great kindness can’t be repaid with words—if you ever need anything, just ask us. We must repay you,” Mrs. Wang echoed.

Being called a “good child” at over a thousand years old—Jiang An didn’t know what to make of it, but he smiled faintly. “You flatter me. Healing the sick is a doctor’s duty. Old Xu, you should lie down and rest.”

“If saving lives is your duty, then repaying kindness is ours,” insisted the couple.

They would not let Jiang An go, insisting on chatting and asking about his background. Naturally, Jiang An provided the same watertight details as he had to Yang Hanmin yesterday.

“Xiao Jiang, since you’ve decided to work with Old Yang, I won’t press further. I trust him. But let me say this: if anyone ever tries to harm you, I’ll risk my old life to protect you. There are no cowards in the Xu family!” Old Xu declared, his tone so serious and resolute that Jiang An was a bit puzzled. Was someone really out to get him? He hadn’t offended anyone.

Yang Hanmin could only smile wryly—Old Xu’s stubbornness! He regretted mentioning the feud between the Jiang and Li-Liu families.

After a while, Old Xu tired from talking and needed to rest. The three took their leave. Not long after leaving the room, Yang Hanmin patted Jiang An’s shoulder and said, “Young man, think three times before you act. Remember my words. Zhang Xue, stay with Jiang today. I have matters to attend to.”

Watching Yang Hanmin’s departing figure, Jiang An sensed something—was someone really targeting him? It shouldn’t be, but it didn’t matter. In the face of absolute strength, no plot, intrigue, or even power could stand against him!

“Teacher Jiang, have you offended someone?” Zhang Xue noticed something as well. “But don’t worry. Besides our director, his eldest son is the deputy chief of the city’s Public Security Bureau, and Old Xu’s son is the district chief of Donghua. You know, Lincheng is the provincial capital of Dongfang Province—a district chief here is more influential than a mayor in a smaller city. With them backing you, you have nothing to fear.”

So it was the district chief’s father in the hospital—that explained all the visitors. But did Jiang An need anyone’s protection?

Jiang An smiled without answering and followed Zhang Xue as she gave him a tour of the hospital.

Afternoon, fourth floor classroom, Dongda Medical College.

Ten minutes before class, the lecture hall—which could seat over a hundred—was already packed, noisy with both male and female students.

“I thought Professor Zhao was on a six-month leave—why are we having class again?”

“Haha, you don’t get it. My sources say a new teacher is filling in.”

“A new teacher? Male or female? Young or old?”

“Hmm, no idea. I heard the director brought in a visiting professor, but no one’s seen them. But since they’re teaching acupuncture, that ancient art, they’re probably another middle-aged man like Professor Zhao.”

“Who cares who it is? As long as it’s class, we get credit!”

“Bookworm!”

“You kidding me?”

“My god, you’re killing me with that straight face.”

“Honestly, I’m just here for the credits. Sorry, but some of us have other motives.”

“What motives?”

“Don’t tell me you’re clueless! It’s for the Four Beauties, of course!”

“Dude, open your eyes to the world—the Qing Dynasty ended long ago! Why do you think half this room—wolves and jackals—signed up for acupuncture? Certainly not for the subject!”

“Exactly! They say beauty is food for the soul. With the Four Beauties around, you don’t need to eat all day—just feast your eyes. And even if they don’t show up, there are still several pretty girls in the class. Heh heh.”

“Dream on! As if you could ever win any of them over.”

“There you go again, jinxing it. Almost time for class, but the Four Beauties aren’t here yet!”

“Maybe they’re just running late. Better not skip today—I gave up gaming time for this.”

Just then, the bell rang. The classroom fell silent. Footsteps approached from the hallway, stopping at the door. Someone pushed the door open and entered, and all eyes instantly turned toward the newcomer.