Chapter 64 What if I marry her?

“Young Master Liu,” Ji Yun’s icy voice suddenly rang out again, interrupting his thoughts, “I know you are a man of the Jianghu, with a free and unrestrained nature. However, Lin’an is not the same as Qinzhou; the etiquette and customs are different.”

"You keep calling Dr. Meng 'Tongtong' and rarely avoid using that term in your words and actions, often putting your arm around her shoulder. If this falls into the eyes of someone with ulterior motives, have you ever considered how it might damage her reputation?"

Liu Sijun put down his pen, frowned, and said nonchalantly, "If you ask me, everything about this place is great, except for too many rules, which makes it uncomfortable! I get along well with her, so what's wrong with calling her affectionately? Only those with impure thoughts and corrupted eyes would find fault with everything!"

He got more and more excited as he spoke, "Besides, if it's really as serious as you say, as long as Tongtong is willing, she's so wonderful, what's wrong with me, Liu Sijun, marrying her?"

Ji Yun was speechless for a moment at his almost shameless remarks, and her tone became even colder: "Marriage is a major life event, how can you speak so frivolously?"

"How am I making a fuss? You're not me!" Liu Sijun retorted, quite unconvinced.

The patient being taken next to him, clutching his stomach, weakly interjected, "Doctors... please, have mercy, examine me first..."

When Meng Yutong walked back to the clinic area through the waiting crowd, this was the scene she saw: Liu Sijun was flushed and looked indignant. Ji Yun, on the other hand, had an icy expression, his lips tightly pressed together, showing great displeasure.

"What's wrong?" Meng Yutong looked at the two of them in confusion.

The patient, as if he had found a savior, spoke first: "Dr. Meng, you've finally arrived! These two were just talking about getting married..."

"Don't speak!" Liu Sijun interrupted hurriedly.

“Madam, please be careful with your words,” Ji Yun said almost simultaneously, his tone carrying a warning.

The patient was startled by the two shouting at the same time, and quickly covered his mouth, not daring to say another word.

Meng Yutong sensed that the atmosphere between the two was strange. It was one thing for Liu Sijun to be cheerful and talkative, but Ji Yun was usually steady and composed, so why did he seem a bit out of sorts today?

When Liu Sijun saw her gaze sweep over him, he immediately put on a smiling face and chuckled, "No, nothing! We were just discussing... discussing the prescription! Yes, the prescription! Isn't that right, Brother Ji?"

As he spoke, he nudged Ji Yun gently with his elbow.

Ji Yun turned her face away awkwardly to avoid his touch and did not reply.

“Brother Liu, you’ve been busy all afternoon, you must be tired. I’ll take over for you for a bit, you should go and rest.” Meng Yutong didn’t ask any more questions, and naturally walked around behind Ji Yun, preparing to return to her own position.

The hall was crowded with people. As she walked, her sleeves fluttered in the wind, like a soft willow branch, inadvertently brushing against Ji Yun's straight back.

A subtle yet unsettling sensation, accompanied by a faint, almost imperceptible herbal fragrance, wafted from behind.

Ji Yun suddenly sat up straight, his fingertips, which had been resting steadily on the patient's wrist, trembled almost imperceptibly. He concentrated and held his breath, trying to focus on sensing the pulse, but felt that the beating under his fingers seemed to have become somewhat disordered and difficult to discern due to that momentary lapse in concentration.

He frowned and moved his hand away, a rare look of hesitation and confusion flashing across his face.

The patient had been watching his expression closely. When he noticed something was wrong, his heart tightened, and he asked anxiously, "Doctor! What's wrong with me? Is something amiss?"

Ji Yun composed himself, shook his head, and placed his fingers on the pulse point again. He examined it closely and found that although the pulse was slightly weak, the rhythm was even and there was no sign of danger. It was just a common symptom of weak spleen and stomach and internal dampness retention.

“It’s nothing serious,” he withdrew his hand, his tone returning to its usual calm. “It’s just that I overate and damaged my spleen and stomach. I’ll take the medicine as prescribed and rest for a few days and I’ll be fine.”

The patient breathed a sigh of relief, patted his chest, and said, "Oh dear! That scared me to death! When I saw your face suddenly change, I thought I had some incurable disease!"

On the other side, Liu Sijun had already stood up happily and given his seat to Meng Yutong. The two chatted quietly for a few minutes, with Liu Sijun giving a general account of his afternoon clinic visits. Meng Yutong listened attentively, nodding occasionally in response.

After handing over these things, Liu Sijun smiled and leaned closer, lowering his voice to say, "Tongtong, you're finally back. I'm getting tongue-tied just looking at this block of ice wood."

Upon hearing this, Meng Yutong glanced at Ji Yun, who was sitting upright. Ji Yun's expression was always serious, and he never smiled. He was indeed like a block of ice.

She chuckled at Liu Sijun's words, but still corrected him, "Brother Liu, Physician Ji is here to help, don't talk nonsense."

Although Ji Yun remained focused on the patient in front of him, the soft whispers and laughter of the two people beside him always managed to penetrate the noise in the clinic and reach his ears clearly, disturbing his mind and making it difficult for him to remain completely calm.

Liu Sijun's blunt statement, "What's wrong with marrying her?", didn't sound like a joke... Could it be that he really has feelings for Meng Yutong?

Even after Meng Yutong sat down at the consultation table beside him, he maintained his unwavering and steady demeanor, seemingly focused on examining the patient before him.

“Physician Ji,” Meng Yutong spoke softly, interrupting his deliberate attempt to maintain focus, “I just checked on Prince Li’s condition. His fever is subsiding and his breathing is steady, so he should be fine. You’ve been busy all day, why don’t you take a break now and go to the backyard to rest for a while?”

Ji Yun then turned his head to get a better look at her. Although she still looked tired after her nap, her eyes were much clearer than before, and her cheeks had regained some color.

“No need.” He withdrew his gaze, his tone indifferent. “I usually work at the Medical Academy, where the affairs are complicated and not as leisurely as today. I’m used to it.”

Upon hearing this, Meng Yutong stopped trying to persuade him. She simply rolled up her sleeves, spread out a clean sheet of prescription paper, and then gently pushed the brush and inkstone toward Ji Yun: "In that case, I will trouble Physician Ji to help me write the prescription and record the medicinal materials."

"I can treat the remaining patients myself. Although Physician Ji is not afraid of hard work, this is my own clinic after all. Taking care of patients is my duty. How can I keep being lazy and make our guests so tired?"

Ji Yun lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on the brush and inkstone. He remained silent for a moment, lost in thought.

In the end, he reached out and took the pen, his fingertips accidentally touching the cool edge of the inkstone. His voice was low, almost as if he were talking to himself: "Doctor Meng likes to divide everything so clearly. I wonder if he treats me this way only, or if he treats everyone the same way?"

Meng Yutong was tidying up the pulse pillow on her desk when she heard this. Without pausing, she spoke naturally: "As Physician Ji knows, I come from a merchant family. From a young age, I understood a principle: in this world, all comings and goings, favors and gifts, ultimately boil down to two categories:"

"There's the difference between owing money and owing favors. Debts are easy to repay; the amount and deadline are clearly stated in black and white, making the settlement quick and easy. But owing favors is quite different,"

She slightly raised her eyes, her gaze clear and bright. "If I owe too much and repay too little, I will feel uneasy. Moreover, as time goes on, it is hard to guarantee that the creditors will not feel resentful and demand a return that far exceeds what they initially asked for."

"If I owe less and have to repay more, I will suffer a loss and find it difficult to feel at ease. Therefore, it is best to minimize the amount of favors I owe. Only when I have no debts in my heart can I live a more relaxed and carefree life."

“In that case, Miss Meng’s words do have merit.” Ji Yun held his brush above the paper, the ink about to fall, and turned his head to look calmly at the woman beside him. “But what if the creditor is willingly giving without expecting anything in return? Would you still feel uneasy, Miss?”

Meng Yutong had already settled the new patient and was gesturing for him to extend his wrist when she heard this. She replied casually, her eyes still focused on the patient's pulse: "Whether the creditor is willing or not is the creditor's own business. Whether I am at peace with myself is my own business. I only ask that I have a clear conscience. As for what others think or do, I have no time or intention to overthink or care about it."

A subtle understanding and a hint of complexity seemed to flash in Ji Yun's dark eyes.

He said no more, picked up his pen again, and listened intently as Meng Yutong clearly described the patient's symptoms and the required medicines. Then he began to write the prescription on the prescription paper with great speed, writing it out in advance.

As the pen scratched away, he suddenly spoke: "Doctor Meng's temperament and disposition seem quite different from ordinary women. She is independent and decisive, with a deep understanding of the world, and is not easily swayed by others. She seems unwilling to have too many entanglements with others, nor does she place her hopes on others."

"The girl appears bright and gentle on the outside, and is friendly and proper in her dealings with others. But deep down, she carries a sense of aloofness and calmness that keeps people at a distance, as if it is difficult for anyone to truly get close to her and open up to her."

Meng Yutong was concentrating on feeling the pulse under her fingers when she heard this and couldn't help but laugh. Without raising her head, she replied, "If you don't listen carefully, you might think that Physician Ji was talking about yourself."

Ji Yun paused, leaving a tiny ink dot on the paper.

He was stunned for a moment, and was speechless.

After a while, no one spoke to each other, only the noise from inside and outside the consultation room and the scratching sound of pens on paper.

After a busy day, until the very last moment of the evening, the last patient at Zhaoyutang finally got his medicine and left. Everyone in the clinic was exhausted, barely able to straighten their backs.

Just then, Sun Guifang from Qinglai Restaurant appeared at the door with a smile and a loud voice: "Dr. Meng! Everyone, you've all worked so hard! I see you've been so busy that you haven't had time to eat dinner yet, have you?"

"I've prepared a few simple home-style dishes, and I've also chilled a pot of sweet and sour plum wine in the well. If you don't mind, come and have a sip to tide you over!"

In the past few days, Sun Guifang had frequently brought food over, her attitude both attentive and somewhat obsequious, and everyone had grown accustomed to it. Upon hearing this, Bai Zhi, Wu Ming, and the others, who were already starving, immediately brightened up and looked at Meng Yutong.

Meng Yutong rubbed her sore neck and felt hungry, so she smiled and agreed, "Thank you for your trouble, Aunt Sun. We'll pack up and head over."

As she spoke, she turned her gaze to Ji Yun, who was slowly tidying up his things to the side, and asked politely, "Physician Ji has been busy all this time and has not eaten yet. If you don't mind that the food is simple, would you like to come and have some with us?"

She had assumed that Ji Yun, with his aloof and taciturn nature and dislike of noise, would most likely decline.

To everyone's surprise, Ji Yun didn't stop what he was doing. He simply glanced at her and nodded calmly, saying, "Very well, then I'll take my leave."