The Invincible Doctor from the Mountains

Chapter 2

Half a month had passed since the incident, and there had been no contact with the woman whose face and features he hadn't been able to make out. For the past fifteen days, Allen had been searching for Leah, but unfortunately, there was still no news. Sometimes Allen felt quite frustrated: Damn it, I finally save a woman, shouldn't I at least get a little thank-you money? But that night, the weather just wouldn't cooperate—no stars, no moonlight, not a single glimmer of light. The night was pitch black, out in the suburbs in the middle of nowhere, and he simply couldn't see what the woman looked like. On top of that, she had left in a hurry, with only a few half-hearted words of thanks. Fifteen days had passed. Where was he supposed to find her to ask for a reward?Allen stood in the square of Morning Side Park in Silver Bay City, watching the scantily clad beauties passing by in the summer heat—a scene he would never have seen in the mountains. His eyes were feasting, but unfortunately, he didn't have much mental space to enjoy it.He squatted on the ground, wearing simple jeans, a T-shirt, and canvas shoes, staring blankly at the few bottles of potion he had placed in front of him. After most of the day, he hadn't sold a single bottle.He had been in Silver Bay City for half a month, his money was almost gone, and there was still no sign of Leah. Hank had said that if he didn't find Leah within a month, she would die. Half a month had already passed, and Allen really didn't know if he could find her.Fifteen days ago, he was still living in the mountains with Hank, never having ventured out of the mountains. Then, one night, Leah came home covered in blood. No matter what Hank or he asked, she wouldn't answer. The next morning, when Allen woke up, Leah was already gone.Hank told him that Leah had been poisoned with something even he couldn't cure—she didn't want to burden Hank or Allen, so she had left on her own. So this time, Hank had made up his mind and sent Allen down the mountain, with the task of finding Leah within a month at all costs and bringing her back to Misty Ridge, where there might still be a chance to save her.For half a month, he had worked odd jobs while searching for Leah, supporting himself with whatever work he could find.Now his money was gone. Allen was out of options, so he had no choice but to mix some simple potions to sell for a little money to get through the next half month. But of course, the city folks didn't recognize good quality. He hadn't sold a single potion all day and had gotten plenty of dirty looks. Most of the people who passed by had harsh words for him:"Unbelievable. A kid this young out here scamming people. 'Cure for every ailment'—do you really think magic potions exist?""Twenty thousand? Ridiculous! I wouldn't pay two hundred for this mystery stuff.""Where did this country kid come from? Does he really think city people are all rich idiots? What a joke!"And so on. Allen was helpless—he still needed to eat, after all. The price of twenty thousand had already dropped to two hundred. If anyone was willing to pay two hundred, he would sell."There are so many people here, my poor dog doesn't even have room to move." Two beautiful women approached. They were about the same height. One had a cool, slightly arrogant demeanor, while the other was more like a sunny girl-next-door, holding a dog in her arms.The cool beauty pursed her lips: "Susan, how about we go home? It's too crowded here.""Cousin, the villa is big and has a garden, but the dog doesn't want to stay there. The vet said he just got over being sick and needs to be taken out." Susan Montgomery had just arrived and wasn't about to go back immediately.Isabella Montgomery looked helpless—fine, let her do what she wants. Her cousin had come all the way to Silver Bay City; she had to take her around."Hey, this beggar looks so pitiful. He's selling potions." Susan, holding her dog, stopped in front of Allen and looked at him.Seriously, I'm not a beggar, okay? Have you ever seen such a handsome beggar? What's wrong with this lady's eyes? "Miss, would you like to buy some potion? Whether it's for an animal or a person, if they're sick, this potion will cure them for sure. Only two hundred bucks. No cheating. Want a bottle?"Susan shook her head: "No. But you look so pitiful, so I'll give you two hundred dollars anyway." Susan took out two bills and handed them to Allen.Isabella, seeing her cousin's sympathy overflowing, snatched the money away: "You silly girl, this area is full of professional beggars. They're all scammers. Do you have too much money?"Susan wasn't swayed: "Cousin, it's fate. It's only two hundred dollars." Susan took the money back and handed it to Allen.Allen took the money and stood up: "Miss, this is a real emergency. I won't take your money for nothing. Here." He gave her a bottle of potion: "Until we meet again." Allen turned and left with the money.Susan didn't know whether to laugh or cry—what was that all about? Even beggars have such attitude these days."Throw that away, Susan. It's a scam."Susan agreed verbally, but looking at the delicate little bottle, she couldn't bear to throw it away. She secretly put it in her bag....With two hundred dollars, he could barely pay the rent, leaving almost nothing left. Back in the run-down Old Ironport District, his landlord, a fat woman whose shape could be described as "a vat from one angle, a barrel from another," was already waiting for him. When she saw Allen return, she raised her voice: "Allen, time to pay the rent."Whenever she had nothing to do, she liked to flirt with this country kid. If she could trade the rent for a little roughing up from her, she'd probably be more than happy—after all, the kid was so easy on the eyes.Every time he saw that woman waddling toward him, throwing a cheesy wink his way, Allen felt like he wouldn't need to eat for three days.He paid the landlord the hundred dollars for rent, went back to his few-square-meter room, changed clothes, and went out again.His only method of finding Leah was to search aimlessly, or at most use what little money he had to print flyers and hand them out in crowded places.As night fell and darkness descended, Silver Bay City lit up with its evening lights. Allen had found nothing and was trudging back dejectedly. Another day had passed, still no sign of Leah. Only fifteen days left—not long, not short, but they would fly by. If he didn't find her... ah... Allen couldn't help but sigh. No, he couldn't lose hope. He would definitely find her.He ate a bowl of noodles at a small roadside restaurant, then went to a crowded shopping mall, hoping to get lucky with the hundred or so flyers in his hand.The mall was indeed very crowded. On the second floor, people were everywhere. Allen handed out dozens of flyers. What really sucked was that many people took the flyers and promptly threw them in the trash—what kind of people were these? Those cost money to print! With no other choice, he had to fish them back out of the trash and continue handing them out."Stop right there! Thief, don't run!" A loud voice came from over there, followed by a running figure who darted past him and disappeared into the crowd. Before Allen could react, a woman crashed into him. Luckily, he had solid footing and managed to stay upright. He rubbed his chest and said, "Hey, are you rushing to your funeral?"A woman with long hair, delicate features, and slightly out of breath shot Allen a harsh glare: "What are you doing? Are you with the thief?"Sure enough, big cities are full of beautiful women. You run into them everywhere. Allen glanced at her and rolled his eyes: "What do you mean? The thief ran off a long time ago.""You're blocking my way. I think you are the thief's accomplice, waiting here to help him escape. Show me your ID." The woman reached out and asked for his ID."Hey... who are you? Why should I show you? Are you a cop?" Although Allen was from the countryside, he had watched TV dramas—he wasn't about to show his ID to just anyone, right? What a joke."You're right, I am a cop." The woman pulled out her badge and held it in front of Allen, raising her voice: "ID, now."Great, just my luck. She really is a cop. Allen hesitated, wondering whether to show his ID, when his nemesis arrived: "It's you?" Isabella ran over from over there, out of breath. Seeing Allen, she immediately understood everything: "I've seen this guy before. He scammed my cousin out of two hundred dollars. He's no good. He's a con artist."Officer Viola Shaw, upon hearing her best friend Isabella's words, looked Allen over again: "ID, now."Allen had no choice but to take out his ID and hand it to the policewoman, his expression cold and silent.Viola glanced at the ID, saw no issues, and handed it back to Allen: "I still think you're suspicious...""Officer, which of your eyes sees anything suspicious about me?" Running into an unreasonable woman was just his rotten luck."Viola, don't waste your breath on him. Arrest him," said Isabella, who had no good feelings toward this person she didn't like.Just then, two security guards from over there pushed a young man over: "We caught the thief."A slight smile curled at the corner of Allen's mouth: "Officer, anything else to say now?"Viola was stubborn: "It's your fault your clothes look so similar."Allen looked—and indeed, the thief was wearing clothes similar in color to his: jeans and a T-shirt, even about the same age."Alright, officer, my mistake. I'm sorry for dressing like a thief. It's my fault.""You..." Viola was so angry at Allen's sarcastic tone that she couldn't say a word.Isabella immediately stepped up to defend her: "So we made a mistake. It's not like we did anything to you."Allen hadn't liked this woman from the start, and the words slipped out: "Miss, if I stripped you n***d and didn't even say sorry, could I say 'it's not like I did anything to you'? Or if I casually called you a p********e, a woman in that line of work, and just said 'it's not like I did anything to you,' would that make everything okay?""You... you're the p********e!" Isabella was livid, her face turning green—this bastard would say anything in public."I couldn't be one even if I wanted to. But if you ever do get into that line of work, Miss, you must let me know. I'll be your first customer." Allen turned and walked away. A burst of laughter erupted from the surrounding crowd.Isabella, already furious, was now publicly humiliated by Allen's taunts. Without a word, she pulled Viola out of the crowd and quickly left the mall. When they reached the first floor, she finally calmed down a bit: "Bastard! No class! Don't let me see you again, bastard!" Isabella stomped her foot and cursed a few more times.Viola looked helpless and quickly tried to soothe her with kind words.