Chapter 526: Chapter 187 Jasmine_2
Lu Tong felt the same way.
When she looked at her again, there was a touch more of sympathy in her eyes.
Lu Tong noticed that expression.
Her hand tightened around the teacup as she lowered her head and took a sip of the tea in her hand.
The tea was medicinal, fragrant and bitter, its strong medicinal smell causing one to frown.
Perhaps it was because she had been drinking too much Sweet Syrup lately, she was not quite accustomed to such a bitter taste. Oddly enough, she suddenly missed the cold White Lotus Dew that Pei Yunmeng had handed her outside the window on a windy summer night.
It was sweeter than this.
As she drank her tea, her rolled-up sleeve fluttered, revealing a faint red mark on her elbow.
Ji Xun’s gaze paused.
After a moment, he frowned and said, "Why hasn’t your wound healed yet?"
Lu Tong was startled.
"Immortal Jade Skin Ointment is quite effective in scar removal, whether it’s from cuts, sword wounds, burns, or scalds. Once you apply this ointment, the scars fade quickly. Why is yours still visible after more than a month?"
Having spoken, he reached out toward Lu Tong’s wrist, "Let me see."
Lu Tong drew back.
Instinctively, she reached out, lowered her sleeve, and covered the faintly red mark.
Ji Xun was puzzled, "You..."
She quickly said, "I didn’t use it."
"What?"
Lu Tong steadied herself, regained her composure, and said, "Jade Skin Ointment is precious, I couldn’t bear to use it, so these days I’ve just been applying ordinary ointment to the wound. The Jade Skin Ointment Doctor Ji gave me has been put away."
Ji Xun frowned as he stared at her, shook his head disapprovingly after a while.
"Medicine is an inanimate object and not as precious as a living person. Though your injury is not fatal, if the scar remains for too long, it might not be removable in the future. You should apply it in time."
He stood up, pulled open a wooden drawer behind him on the bookshelf, and took out two new jars of Jade Skin Ointment and placed them in front of Lu Tong.
Lu Tong said, "Doctor Ji..."
The Jade Skin Ointment was precious; the nobles in the palace could only get one jar, and yet he was generous, giving away two jars at once.
"This medicine was made by me," said Ji Xun. "It is not precious to me. You can take it and use it. If it runs out, I’ll have Zhu Ling send you more."
He looked toward the Xiao Medicine Boy preparing the medicine outside.
The Xiao Medicine Boy quickly nodded his head.
Lu Tong stared at him, Ji Xun’s gaze was firm. After a long stalemate, she could only lower her head and reluctantly accept it.
...
After leaving Ji Xun’s medicine room, Lu Tong let out a slight breath of relief.
Returning the White Jade to its rightful owner, she had settled an old matter and should have felt relieved, but for some reason, her recognition by Ji Xun did not bring the pleasure she had imagined.
It was heavy.
Strangely, despite meeting Pei Yunmeng again after many years, her moment of realization was just a brief surprise, and she accepted it as if it were only natural. Yet speaking with Ji Xun always kept her on edge, never daring to relax for a moment, her feelings even more complicated.
Perhaps it was because Pei Yunmeng had already seen her most genuine and malicious side, making her unguarded. But Ji Xun...
Lu Tong gripped the strap of her medical box tightly.
In Ji Xun’s eyes, she was just a poor, tragic orphan who had been bullied and had struggled through hardships to get to the Medical Officer Institute.
Maintaining a facade of a kind and honest person to accept someone’s sympathy and charity always left one feeling somewhat uneasy.
Turning the corner and returning to her dormitory, Lin Danqing was sitting at the window fanning himself.
Seeing her come in, Lin Danqing rose from his bamboo lounge chair and said, "Chief Physician asked to deliver a prescription to Mingxian Temple. There’s nothing to do this afternoon in the institute, so come with me." He leaned in close to Lu Tong’s ear and whispered, "It’s a good chance to go to Qiaomen and buy some sweet melons to eat."
Lu Tong agreed, set her medical box on the table, then opened the wooden cabinet door and put the two new jars of Immortal Jade Skin Ointment inside.
Small as they were, the porcelain jars felt heavy in hand.
Lu Tong looked down at them and sighed in her heart.
In the past, Pei Yunmeng would often call her "creditor," and now she somewhat understood Pei Yunmeng’s feelings.
Owing someone a favor truly felt worse than being owed.
...
Pei Yunmeng, whom Lu Tong had just thought of, was currently unaware of her emotions at this moment.
In the small room, half a figure was hidden behind a screen, slightly leaning over, writing characters on a piece of silk paper on the table.
The handwriting was bold and unrestrained, as though guided by the heart, which was nothing less than the poem "The Quails Scamper."
The quails scamper, the magpies stretch. The man who lacks goodness, I take as my brother!
The magpies stretch, the quails scamper. The man who lacks goodness, I take as my lord!
When Pei Yunmeng walked in, Prince Ning Yuan Lang had just finished the last stroke. Seeing him approach, Yuan Lang set aside his brush, looked up, and smiled at him.
Pei Yunmeng nodded and greeted, "Your Highness."
The late emperor had a total of five princes.
The former Crown Prince Yuan Xi, the second-in-line is now Emperor Liang Ming, and Prince Ning Yuan Lang is the youngest.
Yuan Lang was not the son of the late emperor’s Empress, but just a common palace maiden from Huanhua Court. Yuan Lang’s mother passed away when he was very young. The late emperor pitied him for losing his mother at a young age and raised him at the Empress’s side.