Chapter 452: Chapter 165 Ji Xun’s Questioning_2
Lu Tong had only heard about the autumn hunt from others, and said, "The hunting grounds must be very lively."
Jin Xianrong’s face immediately showed a hint of pride.
"Of course... only young and valiant men of Shengjing’s nobility can go to the hunting grounds, and some noble sons even bring falcons and hounds to aid in the hunt."
Jin Xianrong coughed lightly, striving to appear nonchalant, but perhaps due to his facial features, that nonchalance seemed tinged with the smug vanity of a petty person achieving some success, "The hunt might be grand, but the attire and equipment are quite particular. My riding outfit from the tailor isn’t finished yet, and I don’t know if it will fit right..."
He was eager to boast and hoped that Lu Tong would follow his lead and say something like, "Are you also going to the hunt?" so he could round off his bragging. However, upon hearing his words, Lu Tong simply nodded indifferently, "I see."
She did not pursue the matter further.
Jin Xianrong’s male pride failed to rebuild itself in front of her.
Lu Tong, not noticing the resentful and downcast look in his eyes, turned around as usual and set down her medical box, "It’s getting late, I should give the gentleman his acupuncture treatment now."
That day, after Lu Tong completed her medical examination of Jin Xianrong and returned from the Board of Rites Office to the Imperial Apothecary, and finished sorting out the backlog of preparations and medical records, it was already late.
The willow trees at the entrance of the Medical Officer Institute swayed chaotically in the evening breeze. Lu Tong, holding her medical box, left the pharmaceutical room intending to find some leftover food in the small kitchen. Just as she exited the hall, she saw someone standing under the willow tree by the door.
Ji Xun was standing under the tree.
Today, without the lively Xiao Medicine Boy who usually carried his lantern, he was without light. The last bit of sunlight had already set in the distance, and the moon had not yet completely risen; its faint outline reflecting in the pale blue night sky, casting a lonely, serene shadow under the tree.
Upon hearing footsteps, he turned around.
Lu Tong hesitated for a moment before approaching and saying, "Doctor Ji."
During her nearly six months at the Medical Officer Institute, she had exchanged fewer than ten sentences with Ji Xun, rarely seeing him. Ji Xun disliked gathering with the other medical officers in the institute, preferring to keep to himself. Most of the time, he wasn’t even at the institute—as an Imperial Physician, he frequently had to enter the palace.
He nodded, but instead of greeting her and walking away as usual, he looked at Lu Tong and said, "Did you go to administer treatment to Vice Minister Jin during the day?"
"Yes."
"I heard that Vice Minister Jin’s condition has improved and that he will recover soon."
A suspicion arose in Lu Tong’s mind.
Ji Xun was not someone who liked to inquire about others’ affairs, and his behavior today seemed to indicate a desire to engage her in idle conversation.
She cautiously replied, "A condition can change every day, I wouldn’t be so confident."
Ji Xun glanced at her upon hearing this.
The woman stood with her head slightly bowed, her tone respectful and tinged with an appropriately distant demeanor. She was very quiet, spending most of her time either treating patients or preparing medicines. With the bright and cheerful Lin Danqing around, she sometimes even appeared a bit dull.
But her actions did not match her outward compliance.
Ji Xun changed the topic: "Previously I saw you selecting herbs in the pharmacy and asked if you had used red fragrant silk grass, but you denied it."
Lu Tong’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing his calm voice.
"Why did you deny it?"
The moonlight brightened a bit through the clouds, but its luminance was still somewhat dim. The tree’s shadow hid the lantern, making his expression unclear.
Ji Xun looked at Lu Tong.
"You’re smart. Red fragrant silk grass is poisonous, and besides medical workers from the Imperial Apothecary, common medical officers cannot use it at will. Therefore, you only had medical worker He Xiu bring back some crushed leaves and broken branches of red fragrant silk grass, and such foliage won’t be recorded, used without anyone discovering."
"But you forgot that He Xiu came from poverty, and once the poisonous properties are removed, red fragrant silk grass can be used in medicine. Even those broken branches and crushed leaves could be exchanged for silver coins outside the Imperial Apothecary."
"You only asked He Xiu to provide a small amount of leaves, and the rest, too precious for He Xiu to discard, accumulated in his residence to be sold surreptitiously to the Shengjing Pharmacy during his days off."
"Doctor Lu," his voice held a staunch coldness, "do you still deny it?"
Lu Tong felt her heart tighten.
She had indeed asked He Xiu to help her retrieve some red fragrant silk grass branches to create the fragrance that had knocked out Qi Yutai at the Board of Rites Office that day.
But she had overlooked the fact that He Xiu’s impoverished background meant those red fragrant silk grass scraps, though they could only be exchanged for a small amount of silver, still represented money not to be idly thrown away to a commoner.
The scraps that He Xiu had hoarded became evidence.
Seeing her silent, Ji Xun’s expression revealed anger, "As a medical officer, you know the toxicity of red fragrant silk grass but used it irresponsibly on someone for your personal desires, risking their life and damaging the integrity of the medical profession."