novelraw Chapter 349: The screams here are “eighteen bends”
Chapter 349: The screams here are “eighteen bends”
Chapter 349: The screams here are "eighteen bends"
Jiang Ci's technique was extremely professional, his fingers quickly moving over Teacher Yuan's lumbar spinous processes, sensing the subtle misalignment of each vertebra.
Teacher Yuan had originally thought Jiang Ci had only learned a few simple massage techniques.
Still trying to maintain the dignity of a senior, he forced a smile: "It's fine, Xiao Jiang, an old problem, I'll be okay after resting a bit..."
Before he could finish speaking.
Jiang Ci's fingers suddenly pressed down, a skillful force instantly penetrating through.
[Orthopedic Massage: Heart-Wrenching Pain (Medical Version)] effect, brazenly activated.
This pain was no simple flesh wound.
It pierced through muscle and fascia, striking directly at the bone seams, as if countless steel needles were churning deep within the soul.
"OW——!!!"
A shrill, utterly inhuman scream tore through the peaceful night of the mountain village.
A large flock of roosting birds in the forest was startled into flight with a flurry of flapping wings.
Xiao Wu was so scared that the enamel mug in his hand clattered to the ground, scalding tea spilling everywhere.
The VJ cameraman holding the camera jerked, nearly dropping the hundreds-of-thousands-worth piece of equipment onto the ground.
"Jiang Ci! Stop! Stop!"
"It's broken! My back is going to break!!"
Teacher Yuan was in so much pain that tears and snot streamed down his face, his old face wrinkled into a bitter gourd, struggling desperately on the bamboo couch, trying to escape the hand pressing on his back.
But Jiang Ci's hand strength was unbelievably great, steady like a vise, firmly holding Teacher Yuan's body in place.
His expression was impassive, his tone extremely calm.
"Don't move. This soft tissue is adhered, it needs to be loosened."
From the perspective of Xiao Wu and the staff who rushed over, this was no treatment; it was clearly a one-sided "torture session."
The usually gentle and harmless newly crowned Film Emperor had now transformed into an Asura, impassively "inflicting violence" upon the respected veteran artist.
And the respected Teacher Yuan, now utterly disheveled,
screaming continuously, tears streaming wildly, completely defenseless.
This torment lasted a full three minutes.
Jiang Ci finally released his hands, straightened up, and wiped the thin sweat from his temples.
Teacher Yuan on the bamboo couch lay sprawled, eyes vacant, his body still twitching involuntarily in intermittent spasms.
"Teacher Yuan! Teacher Yuan, are you alright!"
The accompanying doctor finally arrived, panting heavily, carrying the medical kit from down the mountain.
Seeing this scene, his soul almost flew out of fright, and he rushed forward to prepare for emergency treatment.
Just as the doctor was about to use the stethoscope, a sudden change occurred.
Teacher Yuan, who had been twitching moments before, suddenly leaped up from the bamboo couch.
He subconsciously twisted his waist.
Immediately after, his expression turned strange, as if he'd seen a ghost.
"Huh?"
Puzzled, he twisted again.
"It doesn't hurt?"
He tentatively bent over, his hands easily touching the ground.
"It really doesn't hurt!"
Teacher Yuan straightened up, looking at his own hands in disbelief.
He moved his waist again, even performing a difficult backward bend.
That old back that had troubled him for over a decade was now unbelievably flexible.
This enormous sense of contrast, of pain mixed with joy, left him completely stunned.
The accompanying doctor stepped forward, carefully examined him, and finally announced in shock,
Teacher Yuan's years of lumbar muscle strain and joint misalignment had actually been greatly alleviated,
even better than the effects of many physical therapy devices.
Instantly, everyone in the courtyard looked at Jiang Ci.
No longer seeing just a Film Emperor, their eyes were filled with awe.
Jiang Ci transformed from a "cold-faced executioner" into a "village miracle doctor."
The next second, no one knew who started it.
The VJ cameraman holding the camera was the first to rush forward, putting the camera on the ground, pointing to his own cervical spine, his face full of fawning.
"Teacher Jiang! Miracle doctor! My cervical spine, from carrying this machine every day, it's almost not my own anymore! Please, punish me! Please give me a massage!"
"And me! Teacher Jiang! My shoulders!"
"Director! The Director's back is bad! Quick, bring the Director over too!"
For the next hour, this "Clouds' Courtyard" that should have been a picture of tranquil days turned into a large-scale "screaming scene."
Xiao Wu was the first to be massaged, crying earth-shatteringly, calling for his dad and mom, hoarsely accusing Jiang Ci of being a devil.
Five minutes later, rubbing his reddened eyes, moving his incredibly relaxed shoulders, he sincerely praised Jiang Ci as an angel to the camera.
Even the Director was forcibly carried over by several staff members.
Pressed onto the bamboo couch, he let out a scream even more shrill than Teacher Yuan's, and swore he would never stay up late editing footage again.
Everyone went in crying and came out laughing.
In the courtyard, screams, wails, and words of thanks rose and fell, the scene extremely bizarre yet tinged with absurdity.
Because the commotion was simply too loud, the village dogs barked in unison.
Many villagers even thought the program crew was performing some strange exorcism ritual.
They gathered outside the courtyard wall holding their rice bowls, standing on tiptoe to secretly peek inside.
The Village Chief found the Director who was "supervising" outside the courtyard and patted his shoulder meaningfully.
"Director, Uncle knows you city folks know how to have fun."
He pointed towards the continuous wails coming from the courtyard.
"But, our village has simple, honest customs. Can you... keep the noise down a bit? People who don't know might think someone's slaughtering a pig and invited the whole village to watch."
After this ordeal, although everyone had been massaged to tears, their bodies gained incredible lightness and clarity.
The evening breeze blew through as everyone lay sprawled on bamboo chairs or stone slabs in the courtyard, sighing contentedly.
That feeling of bone-deep, clear comfort elevated everyone's admiration for Jiang Ci to its peak.
Late at night, quiet.
The guests and staff had all returned to their rooms to rest.
Late at night, a black entourage van, utterly out of place in the mountain village, silently stopped at the village entrance.
The door slid open, and a slightly plump man wearing a high-end custom suit stepped out.
He adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose; his amiable smile seemed somewhat discordant with the rustic night scene.
He was precisely the well-connected, influential Producer in the industry, Manager Li.
"Manager Li, it's all been verified. Jiang Ci is in that courtyard."
An assistant jogged to his side, handing him a tablet.
Manager Li didn't look at the tablet, just looked up at the dark window on the second floor of the small courtyard.
His smile unchanged, but his tone carried a hint of coldness:
"This Lin Wan, she's really hiding him like a precious treasure. Won't answer calls, won't reply to messages. Does she really think hiding in the mountains means I can't find him?"
He chuckled lightly, taking the S-Class idol script from the assistant's hand, tapping the cover lightly with his finger.
"It's good for young people to have a bit of pride, but they mustn't confuse what's a pastime with what's a future."
"This kind of pastoral, idyllic reality show is a place for retirement, not where a rising star like him should be staying."
Manager Li turned to look at the assistant, his smile meaningful: "Go tell the program crew, tomorrow morning, I want to see Jiang Ci."
"Say, I've come to deliver him a real 'future' that can propel him straight to the top."
"As for Lin Wan's side... once the rice is cooked, she'll naturally understand that an arm can't twist a thigh."