Chapter 387: Chapter 145: Genius Medical Officer_2
Lu Tong nodded.
He sized up Lu Tong, "Nothing went wrong, right?"
Lu Tong replied, "No."
Chang Jin then let out a sigh of relief.
He was a kind-hearted person. During the spring examination, Lu Tong’s test paper was the first perfect answer sheet he graded, and he always had a special concern for Lu Tong. When Cui Min wanted Lu Tong to diagnose Jin Xianrong, Chang Jin was quite worried for a while, since Jin Xianrong’s reputation was such that not many people from the Medical Officer Institute were willing to diagnose him.
He was all prepared for Lu Tong to come back crying and whining, with him having to put on a thick face and beg the Court Envoy to take over the duty. But seeing Lu Tong behaving as usual, with no difference in her demeanor from any other day, was truly unexpected.
"Doctor Lu," Chang Jin said, "There is something I need to tell you. Cao Huai suddenly felt a chill and is bedridden, having taken sick leave, and he probably won’t be able to go with you to Jin Mansion these days." He watched Lu Tong’s expression, "I will inform the Court Envoy to appoint another Medical Officer to accompany you..."
Before he could finish, Lu Tong interrupted him, "No need."
Chang Jin paused.
"I’ve examined Lord Jin’s condition today, and it’s not serious. One person is enough; having more is actually troublesome. There’s no need to disrupt everyone’s schedule just for my sake."
Chang Jin’s prepared words were suddenly stuck in his throat, "...Is that so?"
Even if it wasn’t Jin Xianrong, having an extra person to help with regular medical visits was usually beneficial, yet Lu Tong just turned down his goodwill?
She even seemed a bit disdainful.
Lu Tong nodded at him and then went into the institute, carrying her medical box on her back.
Chang Jin stood in place, watching her retreating figure for a long while before muttering, "Truly worthy of being the top-ranked of the spring examination, with perfect answers in the Verification Department..."
"Really not an ordinary person."
Suddenly remembering the one who had taken leave, his face darkened.
"Not feeling a chill earlier or later, just happens to be bedridden now."
He swept away with a flick of his sleeve.
...
"Achoo—"
In Cao Mansion, Cao Huai, who was lying in bed, suddenly sneezed.
Seeing this, the house servant asked with concern, "Young master hasn’t actually caught a cold, has he?"
"Go away," Cao Huai replied, looking annoyed, "Don’t be so ominous."
That morning, he had not gone with Lu Tong on the medical visit and had taken sick leave from the Medical Officer Institute upon his return. Since there were quite a few people at the institute coming down with colds due to the spring weather, Cui Min didn’t really bother to check if a new Medical Officer like him was actually sick or just pretending and let him go home without issue.
Cao Huai did it on purpose.
He had never been very broad-minded, and he had been brooding over Lu Tong’s actions which embarrassed him in front of their peers at the Tribute Court for a long time. When Cui Min first assigned Lu Tong to the Southern Pharmacy, he secretly rejoiced at her misfortune, but somehow, Lu Tong managed to catch the eye of Court Envoy Qiu He from the Imperial Apothecary and circled back to the Medical Officer Institute.
Whether Cui Min had done it on purpose or not, he had appointed him and Lu Tong to diagnose Jin Xianrong together. Honestly speaking, Jin Xianrong was not only avoided by women but also loathed by men. During the month he diagnosed Jin Xianrong, he was berated and mocked every day, faced constant nitpicking, and the treatment for Jin’s carbuncle on his scrotum was especially difficult. As Jin Xianrong’s patience wore thin without signs of improvement, Cao Huai didn’t expect that a perfect scapegoat would arrive, allowing him to pass off this hot potato.
So, he didn’t hesitate to take the leave.
It was a move that not only extricated him from a troublesome duty but also created trouble for Lu Tong. It was really killing two birds with one stone.
Cao Huai snorted in contempt as he leaned back against the head of the bed, his eyes filled with disdain.
No matter how haughty and aloof Lu Tong acted, she was still a commoner without any background. Perhaps after treating Jin Xianrong for a few days, she would end up like the previous Hanlin Medical Officer who had become yet another concubine of Jin Xianrong, reduced to servitude.
Thinking thus, his mood seemed to improve a lot. Cao Huai clasped his hands behind his head and looked up at the canopy, as if already envisaging Lu Tong cringing behind Jin Xianrong, and he sighed with satisfaction.
The servant carefully ventured, "Young master, how long do you plan to rest this time?"
"For a cold, one needs to rest for several days," Cao Huai said with a smile, "Let’s wait and see."
...
Just one trip to diagnose Jin Xianrong at Jin Mansion had caused so much speculation, yet Lu Tong was unaware of the undercurrents involved and didn’t really care.
At night, when everyone in the Medical Officer Institute was asleep, Lu Tong and Lin Danqing walked along the long corridor of the medicine warehouse.
Although Jin Xianrong’s condition had been clearly diagnosed, curing him was not something that could be accomplished overnight. In addition to changing the prescription, Lu Tong was also planning to make a new medicine. Some of the medicinal ingredients would need to be allocated by the Imperial Apothecary, but the regular ones the Medical Officer Institute’s warehouse already had.