Chapter 438: Chapter 160 Dark Clouds and Light-vented Bulbul_2
This was the letter Pei Yunmeng gave her when she left today.
Pei Yunmeng said it contained a prescription.
A prescription...
Suddenly, Lu Tong remembered the night at the Hanlin Medical Institute. She had sneaked into the medicine store, holding a medical record in her hand. She couldn’t see the records clearly before being blindfolded by someone, but the place he was flipping through at that time...
The lamplight burned quietly as Lu Tong cast her eyes down.
Let it be; whatever he intended to do, it was none of her concern. It was all just a transaction, after all.
She bowed her head and opened the letter in her hands.
...
The lamps inside the Capital Marshal’s Mansion were brighter than usual, staying lit later into the night.
In the half-bright, gently-breezing night, the lush green banana plants by the window started to fill with the intermittent chirping of insects.
When Xiao Zhufeng returned to the Marshal’s Mansion, it was already deep into the night.
An unusual quiet surrounded the mansion; amidst the heavy darkness, only this place emitted a serene, dim yellow light.
He pushed the door open and entered. Inside, a young man sat at a desk, reviewing a stack of military documents. A pile nearly half his height reached his side, almost swamping him.
Xiao Zhufeng asked, "Why haven’t you gone back yet?"
It was past midnight; the mansion, except for the guards, should have been empty at this hour.
Pei Yunmeng didn’t even lift his head: "I haven’t finished reviewing the documents."
Xiao Zhufeng stepped back, leaned against the door frame with his arms crossed, and drawled, "Spending your day accompanying a lady on a leisurely mountain outing, then burning the midnight oil over military documents at night, you truly are devoted."
Pei Yunmeng’s pen halted, and he looked up at him: "What do you mean?"
Xiao Zhufeng’s face remained cold, like an eternal iceberg, but his tone dripped with sarcasm.
"Going personally to Mangming Township ensures that the Qi Family would hesitate to act even if they noticed. Isn’t that devotion?"
Pei Yunmeng sneered: "Am I that kind-hearted?"
Xiao Zhufeng nodded: "I’d like to know too." He stared at the young man across the table, "Lu Tong dealing with the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion has nothing to do with you. Why do you insist on meddling? Are you looking for trouble?"
This tone was somewhat aggressive, preventing Pei Yunmeng from continuing his writing.
He finally put down his pen, thought for a moment, and then said, "I want to retrieve something, and I need someone to remove the obstacles in my way."
"She’s the most suitable person for the job."
"Is that so?" Xiao Zhufeng said meaningfully: "But it looks to me like you’re the fool clearing the path for others, doing it thanklessly."
Pei Yunmeng: "..."
A strange silence fell in the room for a moment.
He scoffed, not continuing on this topic, but casually mentioned, "The medical case records found by the Medical Officer Institute, I’ve shown them to Lu Tong."
"Are you insane?"
"Her medical skills are much better than those useless ones at the Medical Officer Institute. Maybe she’ll notice something amiss."
Xiao Zhufeng frowned: "Aren’t you afraid she’ll leak secrets?"
Pei Yunmeng flipped a page of the document, "She’s very trustworthy."
"Says who? Who vouches for her?" Xiao Zhufeng disagreed. "If there’s trouble, will you take responsibility?"
"Fine. I vouch for her."
He picked up his pen again, his tone unconcerned: "If there’s trouble, I’ll take responsibility."
...
The three-day break flashed by in an instant.
Miao Liangfang muttered that Lu Tong hadn’t been back long before having to return to the Medical Officer Institute. Ah Cheng and Du Changqing had already put bags of dried fruit snacks onto the horse carriage. Yin Zheng also took the chance to stuff a basket full of Light-vented eggs, even though Lu Tong repeatedly said that the Medical Officer Institute didn’t have an extra kitchen to cook these things.
When Lu Tong returned to the Medical Officer Institute with a carriage full of local produce and piled up the tables and cupboards of the lodge with apples, loquats, and apricots, even Lin Danqing couldn’t help but exclaim.
"Younger Sister Lu, I thought I brought back a lot from home, but I didn’t realize you would be just as much." She picked up a clean loquat, peeled it, took a bite, and said, "So sweet!"
Lu Tong smiled: "There’s more in the cupboard."
"Then I won’t stand on ceremony with you," Lin Danqing dragged a small basket of loquats closer to herself, snacking and laughing as she said, "You know, you seem much happier after your trip home. Since your arrival at the institute, I’ve never seen you this cheerful."
Her words were no exaggeration.
Since Lu Tong had entered the Medical Officer Institute, she always seemed reserved and indifferent. Yet after this break, even though she was generally the same, it felt like her smiles were more genuine, as though something good had happened.
Lin Danqing sighed: "Indeed, the joy of life all comes from breaks. It’s just too short; three days are not enough, it should be at least ten."
Lu Tong was about to respond when she heard Lin Danqing continue: "With so many people in the Medical Officer Institute, it’s just during the breaks that we get some rest, and when we come back, there’s a pile of things waiting. It’s as if the institute can’t function without us. I’ve just returned today, and Chief Physician Chang was asking if you’ve come back, saying that Vice Minister Gold from the Ministry of Revenue has been pressing several times already..."
"Vice Minister Gold?"