Chapter 523: Chapter 186 Recognizing Each Other_2
After speaking, Chong Jixun made a gesture of salute and returned the white jade to its box, before walking ahead himself.
As he walked, he muttered to himself. Although the quality of this white jade looked fine, Ji Xun was, after all, a son of a noble family; why did he seem like someone who had never seen the world?
It was utterly baffling.
When he reached the pharmaceutical room, all the rooms were empty, except for the last one where there was a hint of noise. Duan Xiaoyan followed the sound and, looking through the window, saw Lu Tong busily working in front of the medicine stove, so he knocked on the window.
Lu Tong looked up, saw him, and was slightly astonished. She put down her palm-leaf fan and walked to the door, asking, "Young Master Duan, what brings you here?"
Duan Xiaoyan took a zitan wood box from his bosom and handed it to her with a grin, "Last time, Zhizi broke Doctor Lu’s jade pendant, and my father found an artisan to help fix it. It’s said to have been repaired yesterday. I’ve looked at it, and you can’t even see a crack, it just took a bit longer. But it’s worth it, right?"
Lu Tong looked down at the purple wooden box in her hands.
The hunt at Huangmao Hill had been long past, and these days she had been preoccupied with the "big fire" at Fengle Building, almost forgetting about this item.
She hadn’t expected it to be returned at this time.
Seeing that she had taken the box, Duan Xiaoyan felt at ease, merely saying, "Now that I’ve delivered the item, I’ll be on my way." After taking a few steps, he trotted back and whispered to Lu Tong.
"The Marshal has been inundated with public duties lately and sometimes isn’t at the Palace Marshal’s Mansion. If Doctor Lu encounters any trouble, or if someone at the Medical Officer Institute bullies you, come find me at the Palace Marshal’s Mansion."
"I can still be of some help."
Lu Tong nodded, "Thank you."
"No need to thank me," said Duan Xiaoyan with a wave of his hand, "You’re a friend of my father, so you’re a friend of the Palace Marshal’s Mansion. It’s only right to help. Alright, get back inside. The sun is strong outside, beware the summer heat."
Having said this, he left cheerfully.
It was only when Duan Xiaoyan’s figure was no longer visible from the outside that Lu Tong returned inside.
She placed the wooden box on the table, and after a moment of thought, she reached out and opened it.
The white jade lay inside the box, cool to the touch. The pendant was smooth, showing no signs of ever having been shattered. Lu Tong was a bit surprised.
It seemed that the craftsman Pei Yunmeng had found was indeed skillful, having restored it as if it were just like before. She wondered how many silver coins it had cost.
She looked down at it for a while, just about to put the jade pendant away when there was a sudden knock at the door.
The doors of the pharmaceutical room were not easy to lock and could only be left ajar. At this time of day, no one would come except for Lin Danqing.
Lu Tong put the box down and turned to inquire, but the door was pushed open from the outside.
The man stood at the door, dignified and elegant in appearance.
"Doctor Ji?"
Seeing the visitor clearly, Lu Tong couldn’t help but be startled.
Ji Xun seldom spent time in the Medical Officer Institute, and bumping into him was always a coincidence.
The young man stepped into the room, "Are you concocting a new medicine?"
"No, just thinking of modifying an old prescription," Lu Tong responded. While she spoke, her hands moved subtly behind her back, attempting to quietly close the wooden box that had been placed on the table and was left open.
However, a hand reached out from the side, quick and agile, picking up the round jade from the box before she could.
Lu Tong stiffened.
Ji Xun had picked up the piece of jade.
On the stove in the room, the medicine jar ’gurgled’ with white foam, sending up steaming vapors that made the already hot summer air feel even more stifling.
Yet the dense greenery by the window was quietly cool, its glossy tender leaves reminiscent of Su Nan’s spring levee where new willows sway, equally vibrant with life.
Ji Xun examined the round jade in his hand intently, his slender fingertips gently tracing the meticulous engravings on the jade. When they came to the High Scholar Playing Zither’s strings, his expression paused for a moment before revealing a touch of emotion.
He once had a flawless, beautiful jade piece.
That jade was a birthday gift from his mother. While the quality of the jade was good, it was not considered extraordinary. What made it special was the High Scholar Playing Zither Picture carved upon it by the master artist, Master Nangong.
He cherished this piece of jade, always wearing it by his side. Later, when his sisters were playing with it, they accidentally dropped it and scraped it against a rock, causing the ’zither’ of the High Scholar to be marred with a flaw.
Regretful, his mother lamented the damage, so Ji Xun took a carving knife and extended the scratch at the flawed spot. The High Scholar originally played a seven-stringed zither, which thus became an "eight-stringed" one.
This extra string was both a defect and a mark, unique in the world.
Now, this circular jade pendant, in which the High Scholar was depicted smiling while lightly stroking the zither strings, had one carving that was less refined and smooth, noticeably coarser compared to the others, yet Ji Xun recognized it immediately.
He had carved that string with his own hands.
This was indeed his jade pendant.