Chapter 420: Chapter 154: Return to Maternal Home_3
She paused, then said, "It’s very fragrant."
Du Changqing had been watching her closely and, seeing her praise the dish, proudly boasted, "Nonsense, the stuff made at home is, of course, better than whatever they cook up at the Medical Officer Institute. I’ve always said, not everything is available in the Imperial City!"
Ah Cheng pursed his lips and, with a gesture of disbelief, poured a bowl of green plum soup and pushed it in front of Lu Tong, then looked up curiously and asked, "Doctor Lu, tell us what the Hanlin Medical Institute is like. Are the beds there comfortable? What do you all eat every day? What kind of incense do the officials use? And are there any entertaining stories to hear?"
Du Changqing slapped him on the head, "All you think about is fun!"
Ah Cheng covered his head and glared at him, "Owner, Uncle Miao said hitting someone on the head will stunt their growth!"
The curiosity of children is ever-present, and Lu Tong smiled and patiently answered each question.
Once the conversation ended, everyone nodded, and just as Lu Tong was about to ask about how the Renxin Medical Hall had been doing lately, Du Changqing puffed out his chest and started talking.
"...it’s been really good, of course. Even though you weren’t here, the medical hall was bustling every day as usual, and the new medicine Old Miao made using your recipe sold so well, I’ve got more revenue than I can be bothered to keep track of in the accounts."
"...A few days ago, the roof was leaking, so we had it fixed, and it made me realize the shop is quite old and the space for the medicines quite cramped. I’m thinking of putting up some money to expand next door. You’re back just in time to help me see how much we should expand, right?"
"...Old Miao? He’s impressive these days, his age makes him look rather intimidating, to tell you the truth, and the number of people coming to see him has surpassed even when you were here. Just shows that even an old tree can enjoy a second spring."
"Yin Zheng, well, let’s not talk about her. She eats at my expense, lives at my expense, and still has such a temper. If she speaks at all, it’s often with reluctance, and if she weren’t your person, I would have taught her a lesson long ago, to show her what respect for the owner means."
"...Ah Cheng’s gotten older after the new year, and with Yin Zheng teaching him literacy and such, I figure why not follow Scholar Wu’s path and let him go to school. Maybe he’ll pass the exams, and then I’d have a son who’s an official to honor me and enjoy some peace and tranquility..."
"Anyway, everything is as usual. We can’t get rich, but we won’t starve either. If you can’t stand working at the Medical Officer Institute anymore, you can always come back. Considering our old friendship, I’d give you a job as a Resident Doctor..."
He rambled on and on.
In the midst of this were the interjections by Ah Cheng and the retorts from Miao’s Prescriptions, or the sarcastic remarks from Yin Zheng, creating a noisy yet comforting atmosphere like the warm ray of sunlight that shines down on people’s heads in the springtime.
The meal lasted a long time.
Du Changqing was also the first to collapse drunk.
Ah Cheng, helping the young master, went home early to avoid a repeat of the New Year’s incident where he ended up vomiting all over the place. Miao Liangfang wanted to talk more with Lu Tong, but as there were people waiting for a consultation at the front of the shop, he couldn’t delay and had to see the patients—without Huichuntang, the only medical hall on West Street became quite precious.
Lu Tong and Yin Zheng tidied the remnants of their meal in the courtyard, then sat down to rest for a while. As the sun began to set, the plum tree swayed with the evening breeze, casting a rosy hue over the rooftop, enveloping the entire small yard.
Night was about to fall.
Yin Zheng sat with Lu Tong in the courtyard until Miao Liangfang came and urged them to close up as it was getting dark; he asked Yin Zheng to check the medicinal materials left over from the day. Yin Zheng then went ahead.
Only Lu Tong was left in the courtyard.
The evening glow of the sunset faded as the day’s light dimmed, but the sky began to shine with a slender crescent moon, hanging thinly over the treetops, glowing faintly or dimming with the gathering and dispersing clouds.
Lu Tong sat with her eyes downcast.
She had spent several months at the Medical Officer Institute, treating patients and making medicines, whether picking red fragrant tufts or applying needles to Jin Xianrong, yet her heart had always remained still as dead water.
But as soon as she entered the Renxin Medical Hall, it seemed that the stagnant water also received a breath of life, a different kind of silence, as if a kite in the endless sky had found a thin thread connecting it to the earthly realm, invisible and intangible, yet tethered to each other.
Footsteps sounded from behind.
Yin Zheng lifted the felt curtain, and the wind from outside slipped through the gap. She walked under the plum tree in the courtyard and lit the red silk lantern hanging from the branch, casting a golden-red glow across the small yard.
Following her was Miao Liangfang, "Xiao Lu."
He hesitated, his hand gripping the walking stick tightened and then loosened. Yin Zheng looked at Lu Tong, then at Miao Liangfang, and suddenly smiled, "There are some medicinal materials left in the kitchen. I’ll go tidy them up first, so we don’t have rats taking them at night."
With that, she took her lamp and walked away.
Miao Liangfang let out a sigh of relief and shuffled over to the stone table, taking a seat opposite Lu Tong.
"Mr. Miao."
Lu Tong looked towards Miao Liangfang.
Miao Liangfang looked somewhat different from the past.
When she left, Miao Liangfang had not yet formally taken up residence as a doctor at the medical hall, although Du Changqing had said he would practice medicine there. Miao Liangfang, excited as he was, did not lack trepidation. Several months had passed, and his beard had grown longer, washed clean and trimmed into the shape of a goatee. Wearing a wide-sleeve, large brown hemp garment, with the hemp binding up his hair bun, he no longer appeared stooped as before and instead possessed an air of openness.
He indeed looked like an experienced, temperamentally distinct old doctor.
Lu Tong then smiled and said, "Mr. Miao seems to be doing well lately."
Miao Liangfang also smiled, somewhat emotional, "Yes, quite well."
Years ago, when he was expelled from the Hanlin Medical Institute, he hadn’t dared to practice medicine for many years. He never expected that he would have an opportunity to treat people in his lifetime. The neighbors on West Street were unaware of his past. He practiced medicine in Du Changqing’s medical hall; sometimes, when the patients who came to see him were poor, he wouldn’t take their money. Du Changqing turned a blind eye to this.
Reflective it was, many years ago, he had earnestly wished to enter the Hanlin Medical Institute by passing the spring examinations, yet now, in his downcast and penniless state, he finally heeded the teachings of his ancestors—
"Do not overcharge, but accept what is offered. If the patient’s family is in dire poverty, do not take even a penny; this most clearly shows benevolence and honesty."
Fate plays with people.
Regathering his thoughts, Miao Liangfang looked at Lu Tong with a worried expression, "And you, Xiao Lu... After entering the Medical Institute, have you faced any difficulties?"
He knew all too well what kind of differential treatment a commoner medical worker would receive upon first entering the Medical Institute. He himself had once harbored resentment. How much more for someone as young and tender as Lu Tong.
"No," Lu Tong shook her head, "Everything at the Medical Institute is going smoothly, and nothing untoward has happened." She was silent for a moment before continuing, "It’s just that the matter I promised Mr. Miao, I still cannot fulfill now. Being new to the Medical Institute, it wouldn’t be wise to take risks."
The matter she was referring to was dealing with Cui Min.
Upon hearing this, Miao Liangfang waved his hands repeatedly and hurriedly said, "That’s exactly what I wanted to talk to you about. Such a task is too dangerous for a young woman. As for the past incident, the ’Miao’s Prescriptions’... I’m no longer insistent on it."
Perhaps when one’s life becomes stable and comfortable, gratitude to the heavens emerges, and feelings of "hatred" and "discontent" are greatly diluted. Now that he had found peace at Benevolent Heart Medical Hall, he had come to terms with much of his past. He thought, even though Cui Min had stolen "Miao’s Prescriptions" and turned them into "Cui’s Medical Theories," in the end, sharing those prescriptions with doctors around the world was beneficial to the people.
This kindness was immeasurable, so there was no need to dwell on who would receive eternal accolade.
And Lu Tong should not ruin her bright future for the sake of his personal vendetta.
Lu Tong remained silent.
After a while, she slowly spoke up, "The matter I promised Mr. Miao, I will carry it out, as it was the condition of our deal."
"Xiao Lu..."
"Actually, I’ve come back today to ask Mr. Miao something else," Lu Tong interrupted him.
Miao Liangfang was taken aback, "What is it?"
The entire West Street was plunged into deep nightfall, the wind coming from higher places, making the red silk lanterns hanging on the plum tree shake and sway, pulling at the messy shadows on the ground.
Lu Tong withdrew her gaze.
She said, "Mr. Miao served as an Envoy at the Medical Institute for many years; you must have seen all the medical records of various officials listed in the Institute’s medical library."
"I would like to ask Mr. Miao about Grand Preceptor Qi Qing’s legitimate son from the Qi Qing Residence, Qi Yutai..."
"Has there ever been a case of visual flaws, delusions, and cognitive disorder?"
Miao Liangfang was stunned.
All around was deadly quiet.