Chapter 106 Healing, the Scheming Little Monk (Two Chapters Combined)

During dinner, the family saw Xiao Jingkong playing with a golden abacus, and they all felt like they were about to be blinded by its brilliance.

Xiao Jingkong didn't have much of a concept of gold. The only currencies he knew were copper coins and silver, because his family had only ever used those two.

As he said, he liked the abacus simply because it was pretty.

Gu Jiao: I guess every child likes sparkly things?

They could sell any bead from the abacus and feed their family for a year, but they still had some integrity; no matter how poor they were, they wouldn't stoop to stealing the abacus.

That night, Gu Jiao helped Xiao Jingkong sort through all his belongings again and found that apart from the abacus and Buddhist scriptures, there were no other valuables, just some old and worn-out trinkets that didn't seem to be worth much money.

Gu Jiao breathed a sigh of relief: "That's more like it. It's scary when a monk is too rich, okay?"

It seems that Xiao Jingkong's master loves him very much. Even though they are very poor, he still spent all his resources to get him one because Xiao Jingkong likes abacuses.

The private school had abacuses, so students didn't need to bring their own. Therefore, Xiao Jingkong only took out his golden abacus when he was studying at home and didn't bring it to the private school.

This saved us from a huge uproar.

The next day, as usual, Xiao Liulang took his children, "Dawa," "Erwa," and "Sanwa," to school. Yao Shi arrived at his home with gifts from Gu Jinyu.

Unsurprisingly, Gu Jiao didn't accept any of them.

Yao did not force her.

The old nanny whispered a word of advice: "Madam, you should persuade the eldest young lady. Although the second young lady is not her biological sister, she should at least pretend to accept the gift."

Granny Fang wasn't really standing up for Gu Jinyu; she wasn't her biological daughter, so giving her a look was already a favor. But sometimes, people have to do things in a way that everyone can see.

A young lady should have the demeanor of a young lady.

Madam Yao said gently, "As long as Jiaojiao is happy, there is no reason to force someone to accept someone else's kindness."

Granny Fang sighed.

After Yao left, Gu Jiao went to town to order ironware.

Zhao Kingdom has extremely strict control over iron and salt. If Gu Jiao needs a large number of farm tools, she must first register at the county government office and obtain a permit.

Gu Jiao went to the county government office.

The county magistrate personally received Gu Jiao.

He asked with a grin, "Why has Madam Xiao come to the yamen? Is someone in the village causing trouble again?"

His question surprised Gu Jiao for a moment.

If he hadn't reminded her, Gu Jiao would have almost forgotten about those restless people in the village.

The Gu family was suppressed by Lord Gu, with the county magistrate as the primary culprit; he was the one who dismissed Old Master Gu from his position as village head. Later, the delivery of grain rations to Xiao Liulang was also entirely arranged by him.

Of course, he didn't know Gu Jiao's identity yet, only that she had some connection with the Marquis's family, and that she was also the wife of Scholar Xiao, so he treated her with extra courtesy.

"I apologize for any offense I may have caused back then, Madam Xiao."

It refers to the time when he was ordered by Lord Gu to arrest Gu Jiao and Xiao Jingkong and put them in a prison cart.

Gu Jiao said, "It's alright. I came today to make some ironware. Would it be convenient for the county magistrate to affix his official seal?"

The magistrate hurriedly replied, "Very convenient! Very convenient! How much does Madam Xiao need?"

Gu Jiao gave a number.

The county magistrate was taken aback: "So many? May I ask Madam Xiao what she intends to do with them?"

Gu Jiao showed her land deed: "I bought a mountain and want to cultivate it."

That made the county magistrate understand that reclaiming wasteland was no small matter; it required a great deal of manpower and resources, so it was no wonder that so many farm tools would be used.

Normally, such documents would take several days to process, but because the county magistrate handled it personally, it was completed for Gu Jiao in no time.

Before leaving, the county magistrate smiled and said to Gu Jiao, "If there is anything the yamen can do to help, Madam Xiao, please don't hesitate to ask."

Gu Jiao nodded slightly, thanked her, and left.

As soon as she stepped out of the county government office, she saw the second landlord running towards her, panting: "Miss Gu... Miss Gu... I've finally found you... I just went to the village... Your aunt said you came to the county government office... Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, just need to buy some iron tools and get an official seal stamped," Gu Jiao said, giving him a strange look. "But you, why are you going to the village so early in the morning?"

The second boss rubbed his hands together, hesitant to speak.

Gu Jiao then said, "Tell me, which patient is from?"

"Ahem!" The second master gestured for Gu Jiao to hand over the document bearing the official seal.

Gu Jiao gave it to him, and he asked, "What kind of ironware do you want to order? How much?"

Gu Jiao gave him the list.

He handed it to the coachman and said, "Go to the blacksmith shop in a little while and take care of things!"

"Yes!" The driver took the documents and the order slip.

"Let's talk after we get in the car," the second boss said to Gu Jiao.

Gu Jiao and he got into the carriage.

"Go to Huichuntang first," the second master instructed the coachman.

The coachman agreed and cracked his whip to start the carriage moving.

He first took the two to the clinic, and then went to the blacksmith's shop.

The second landlord wiped the sweat from his forehead and sighed, "A patient came in, and it's a bit tricky. I only came to you because I had no other choice. Consider this a favor I owe you."

Gu Jiao paused for a moment and said, "No need, this will count as my consultation for this month."

The second boss was taken aback: "Huh? So you're not going to Young Master Gu's place?"

Gu Jiao nodded and said, "Okay, I won't go."

He's been staying at my house.

Gu Yan went to the private school today. The second master only saw his aunt and naturally did not know that Gu Yan had already moved into Gu Jiao's house.

The second master nodded thoughtfully: "I see that the young master's condition has improved a lot, so it's fine if we don't go. We can go next month."

Gu Jiao didn't say anything.

A moment later, they arrived at the clinic.

It wasn't until Gu Jiao entered the main hall that she understood why the second master had summoned her in such a hurry.

The clinic had long been emptied of patients. All the doctors and staff, including Manager Wang, were subdued by a group of guards dressed in brocade robes. A dangerous yet quiet atmosphere permeated the hall.

A young man in his early twenties, with handsome eyebrows, bright eyes, and a cold and stern face, walked over. He had a precious sword hanging at his waist.

He gave the second boss a cold glance, and his eyes also swept over Gu Jiao, but he clearly didn't care about Gu Jiao: "Where's the doctor you went to fetch?"

The second boss tried to remain calm as he looked at Gu Jiao and said, "It's her."

The young guard frowned: "An ugly girl?"

Gu Jiao changed into clothes made by Yao Shi. They weren't exactly tattered, but she still looked like an ordinary person, making it hard to associate her with a doctor who saves lives.

Besides, she's still so young.

"It's her!" The second landlord wiped away a cold sweat. "She is the most skilled doctor in our Huichuntang clinic. If even she can't cure him, then no one in town can."

The young man looked at Gu Jiao with a skeptical expression.

Though small, it possessed eyes that saw through life and death, cold and ruthless.

The young man frowned, but finally said, "Come with me."

Gu Jiao, carrying a small basket on her back, went with the young man to the side room in the backyard.

Dozens of guards stood watch in the backyard, almost one every five steps, crowding the entire backyard.

Gu Jiao also noticed that several guards were hidden on the rooftops and in the alleyways.

Such tight security suggests the other party is likely someone of considerable importance.

However, Gu Jiao didn't ask anything and remained calm and composed throughout.

"You wait outside." The young man, who was also a guard, stopped the second master outside the door with an unfriendly tone, and let Gu Jiao in.

Just as the young guard was about to step inside, Gu Jiao suddenly said to him, "You wait outside too."

Young guard: "..."

Before the young guard could react, Gu Jiao slammed the door shut!

The young man again: "..."

The second boss was trying so hard not to laugh.

The more time you spend with Gu Jiao, the more you realize that she is actually very protective of her own people, to the point of having no limits.

Inside the room stood a landscape screen, and two servants stood guard outside the screen.

The servant was not young, about the same age as Gu Changhai and Gu Changlu, but he had an unusually effeminate air about him, unlike a normal man.

Just as Gu Jiao was about to walk around the screen, one of the servants stopped her, saying, "Please wait."

"What are you doing?" Gu Jiao asked.

The man took a piece of cloth and intended to blindfold Gu Jiao.

Gu Jiao brushed his hand away and said calmly, "How can I see people and treat patients if my eyes are covered?"

The servant said, "You can take my pulse."

Gu Jiao said coldly, "Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes observation, auscultation, inquiry, and palpation. Do you think I'm a god just because I can only take your pulse?"

The servant frowned, about to reprimand someone, when the person behind the screen spoke in a hoarse voice: "Let her in."

The servant immediately bowed respectfully to the screen and said, "Yes."

Gu Jiao walked around the screen to the bedside.

The man lay inside the tent, only his withered hand visible.

Gu Jiao sat down on the stool first and took his pulse.

"Whatever you want to see, young lady, just look," he said, and was about to lift the curtain.

Gu Jiao suddenly pressed down on his wrist: "No need, I don't want to see your face."

Would she even survive if she saw the face of such an important person?

Gu Jiao used the curtain to cover his face, only revealing the area below his waist and abdomen.

After the examination, the man's face turned red.

Gu Jiao remained calm and composed.

The man cleared his throat: "Excuse me, young lady, what illness do I have?"

Gu Jiao glanced at the screen, and the man understood, saying, "They are trustworthy people, please speak freely, young lady."

"Oh." If the patient doesn't care, then Gu Jiao, the doctor, has even less to worry about.

"Hua Liu disease." Gu Jiao said bluntly.

"Nonsense!" A servant outside the screen rushed over instantly, glaring menacingly at Gu Jiao. "My family..."

Before he could finish speaking, the man shouted at him sharply, "Shut up! Get out of here!"

The servant gritted his teeth and retreated behind the screen.

"I have offended you greatly, please forgive me, young lady." The man's voice and demeanor showed little fear, indicating that he was a man who had experienced many trials and tribulations.

"You know that, right?" Gu Jiao asked.

The man nodded sadly.

A doctor had examined him and said he had syphilis, but he couldn't believe it.

He never philandered, so how could he have contracted syphilis?

Gu Jiao wasn't very interested in his private affairs, but she did explain to him the different ways venereal diseases can be transmitted. As for how he actually contracted it, that was up to him to figure out.

Gu Jiao continued, "You've had this illness for a while now, and it's already in stage two. If you don't get treatment soon, it will progress to the late stage."

Stage I and II venereal diseases are relatively easy to cure. Although late-stage diseases can be controlled, the various damages to the body are irreversible.

The man remained silent for a long while, then asked in a low voice, "Can that young lady heal me?"

Gu Jiao glanced at him: "Why can't I come in?"

The man was taken aback: "You...you really can cure it?"

Gu Jiao put down her small basket: "I'll try my best, but you'd better let them leave first. They're always making a fuss here, which will affect my treatment."

The man looked at the screen and said in a deep voice, "Did you hear me? Get out."

"Master!"

Do you want me to say it a second time?

"I wouldn't dare."

The two servants left, worried and helpless.

"Why did you come out?" the young guard asked.

One of the servants said, "Master told us to come out, and we had no choice. But she's just a little girl in her teens, weak and helpless, and clearly doesn't know any martial arts. She can't do anything to our master..."

Before he could finish speaking, the young man clenched his fists and rushed into the house, but before he could even fully open the door, Gu Jiao kicked him out!

The young guard, like a sandbag that had been thrown into the air, crashed into a tree with a thud and hung upside down from a branch.

The young guard spat out a mouthful of rotten leaves: What happened to the promise that he was powerless to even kill a chicken?

Gu Jiao bolted the door and took out a penicillin skin test tube from the small medicine box: "Give me your hand."

The man looked at the strange needle through the curtain, feeling inexplicably afraid: "What are you going to do?"

Gu Jiao said, "I'll give you acupuncture. If you want to recover, you'd better behave."

The man said he didn't want to obey.

Gu Jiao said earnestly, "Sigh, I am a doctor at the clinic, and everyone in the clinic is controlled by your subordinates. Do you think I can get away unscathed after harming you?"

The man felt that Gu Jiao's words made sense, but he didn't suspect that Gu Jiao had ulterior motives; he was simply afraid!

Gu Jiao decisively grabbed his wrist. She was very good at dealing with disobedient patients. Before the man could even react, Gu Jiao had already completed the skin test.

The man looked at the small bag on his wrist: "...Hmm?"

The best medicine for treating venereal diseases is penicillin, but unfortunately, penicillin was unavailable in ancient times, making it very difficult to cure completely, and there were few cases of complete recovery. This is why the man felt he had no hope.

However, this disease is not a terminal illness for Gu Jiao.

The skin test results showed that he was not allergic.

Gu Jiao walked towards him, holding the syringe: "Bear with it."

When the man saw that the needle was several times larger than the one before, he was so frightened that he flailed his arms and legs!

—It turns out that even the most powerful men can be afraid of injections!

"Ugh—" The man bit down on the pillow, enduring the most horrific torture he had ever endured.

Gu Jiao packed her things and said to him, "Quarantine yourself properly and come back in seven days."

After negotiating with Xiao Liulang, Steward Zhou immediately sent a message back to the Lin family in the provincial capital by carrier pigeon.

When Master Lin learned that Xiao Liulang was willing to teach his son, but only if his son came to his door to learn in person, Master Lin packed up his son and sent him over without saying a word.

So one sunny afternoon, the chubby and fair-skinned Lin Chengye appeared at the entrance of Tianxiang Academy.

Lin Chengye has a youthful appearance; although he is already twenty-one, he looks like he is sixteen or seventeen.

Clutching his heavy book bag, he asked nervously and anxiously, "Is...is...this...the place?"

He stutters, a problem he's had since childhood, and he stutters more when he's nervous.

Manager Zhou shook his head inwardly. What a smart child he was, but he had a stutter. He wondered if he would be ridiculed and disliked after starting school.

That's right. Lin Chengye has been staying at home with a private tutor all his life because he's worried that he'll be ridiculed when he goes to school.

There's nothing more to be done now. Although Lin Chengye passed the imperial examination and became a Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations), he is only a Zengsheng (a student who has passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations). He still needs to put in a lot of effort to stand out among the many Linsheng.

"This is it," Steward Zhou earnestly instructed. "Scholar Xiao will be out soon. Do you remember what I told Sixth Young Master?"

"I...I remember." Lin Chengye nodded. "Speak less!"

Manager Zhou nodded with satisfaction: "Yes, speak less, that way no one will notice that the Sixth Young Master has a stutter."

"Hmm." Lin Chengye lowered his head.

The two didn't wait long before Xiao Liulang came over from the private school, followed by Feng Lin and Gu Xiaoshun.

Recently, Feng Lin has also been eating with them.

Manager Zhou stepped forward with a smile, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Scholar Xiao!"

His gaze fell on the back of Xiao Liulang.

Xiao Liulang introduced, "My younger brother is Gu Xiaoshun, and my classmate is Feng Lin."

Manager Zhou smiled politely and said, "Ah, so it's Brother Gu and Brother Feng. My apologies for not recognizing you."

Feng Lin returned the greeting with a cupped hand.

Gu Xiaoshun glanced at him and asked Xiao Liulang, "Brother-in-law, who is he?"

Xiao Liulang said, "The steward of the Lin family is surnamed Zhou."

"Ah, him!" Gu Xiaoshun knew, of course, that his brother-in-law was going to be a tutor. His brother-in-law seemed to be under a spell in the past six months, his grades had improved rapidly, and quite a few people wanted to ask him for advice.

Manager Zhou pulled Lin Chengye over and introduced him to Xiao Liulang: "This is my sixth young master, Lin Chengye. He is introverted and doesn't talk much. I'll entrust him to Scholar Xiao's care from now on."

Xiao Liulang looked at him and said, "There will be an exam today. Only those who pass can enter. Do you understand?"

Lin Chengye nodded: "Yes, I understand."

Manager Zhou breathed a sigh of relief, relieved that he hadn't been exposed.

Actually, it wouldn't matter if he failed the exam. At most, he would be placed in Dean Li's Zhongzheng Hall, and it wouldn't matter if he skipped classes to tutor him. But Xiao Liulang didn't say this.

Xiao Liulang led Lin Chengye to find Dean Li.

Dean Li went to great lengths to win over his beloved student, doing something that involved giving someone a preferential treatment for the first time in his life.

However, Lin Chengye lived up to expectations. He completed every single exam paper given to him by Dean Li. His scores on the classical texts and miscellaneous essays were decent, while his scores on the eight-legged essay were a bit poor, but he was still qualified for admission.

He was assigned to Class B of Xiao Liulang's class and sat at the same desk as Xiao Liulang.

Lin Chengye didn't live in the dormitory, so Manager Zhou spent a lot of money to buy a house in a nearby school district.

Xiao Liulang used his spare time each day to tutor him: one hour at noon, half an hour after school, and if he came early in the morning, he could have another half hour of tutoring.

"Ah, why don't you stay here too, Scholar Xiao? That would save you the trouble of traveling so far, wouldn't it?" Steward Zhou suggested with a smile.

“My wife will be angry.” Xiao Liulang refused without hesitation.

Manager Zhou: "..."

Unable to keep Xiao Liulang overnight, Steward Zhou had to find other ways, such as replacing Uncle Luo's dilapidated oxcart with his own luxurious carriage that could travel a thousand miles a day, or providing Xiao Liulang and his party with a place for lunch and rest.

Gu Yan and Xiao Jingkong needed to take a nap, and lying in the side room was better than lying down in the classroom.

Xiao Liulang had no objection to either of these arrangements.

Because they were tutoring Lin Chengye, they returned to the village late, but knowing that Xiao Liulang was doing it to earn money to support his family, Gu Yan and Xiao Jingkong had no complaints.

Gu Xiaoshun focused intently on carving the wood without complaint.

"Are you hungry? Why don't you have dinner here?" Manager Zhou said to the three Gu brothers.

The three of them shouted in unison, "No!"

Manager Zhou was astonished. "No, isn't the food here delicious? It's all prepared by a master chef! Can your young lady's cooking be better than a master chef's?"

The three of them: Ha, how delicious Jiaojiao's (my sister's) cooking is, you mortals can't even imagine!

The provincial examination is held every three years. Xiao Liulang was lucky; he passed the county-level examination this year and could take the provincial examination this year. However, many candidates had been waiting for two whole years.

As the provincial examination drew near, the atmosphere at the academy became unprecedentedly tense. Even the teachers stopped reciting classical Chinese texts every day and began to simulate the provincial examination to give the candidates practice questions.

Xiao Liulang would also give Lin Chengye questions, and his questions were more profound and tricky than those of the teachers. Lin Chengye seriously suspected that Xiao Liulang stayed up every night to specially look up the Four Books and Five Classics and give him sentences that no one had ever memorized before!

At noon that day, Gu Yan and Xiao Jingkong went to the side room for a midday rest, while Gu Xiaoshun was carving wood in the courtyard.

Lin Chengye was completely stumped by Xiao Liulang's test questions.

Manager Zhou was guarding the door when suddenly a servant came over.

Manager Zhou moved to the side and whispered, "What's wrong?"

"The post station was flooded, and Brother Zheng was swept away by the flood. He only returned to the Lin residence a few days ago and is now recuperating there."

Brother Zheng was the young man who had come to invite Gu Jiao earlier; he was the son of a deputy manager of the Lin family.

After Xiao Liulang refused to go to the Lin family last time, the young man surnamed Zheng turned back home, but unexpectedly encountered a flood on the way.

When did this happen?

"Two weeks ago."

The journey to the provincial capital was uphill and slow, while the journey from the provincial capital was downhill and faster. This allowed Lin Chengye, who was traveling from the provincial capital, to perfectly avoid the flood.

But if Xiao Liulang had gone to the provincial capital with Steward Zhou back then, he would probably have encountered the flood at the post station just like the young man surnamed Zheng.

When Xiao Liulang finished tutoring Lin Chengye and came out, he saw that Butler Zhou looked like he had just escaped a disaster, so he couldn't help but ask, "What happened?"

"Ah, is that so?" Steward Zhou recounted the flooding that had occurred at the post station half a month ago.

Xiao Liulang knew about that post station; it was the only one on that official road. In other words, whenever they went to the provincial capital, they would definitely stay at that post station.

Judging from the timing, it just so happens to coincide with the flood.

Lin Chengye couldn't catch up; the provincial capital was fast, and he would have already passed the post station far away in half a month.

Xiao Liulang thought of Gu Jiao's obstruction of his trip to the provincial capital.

This isn't the first time such a coincidence has occurred.

Because she asked him to buy osmanthus cake, he avoided the medical disputes at the clinic.

He avoided the dormitory collapse because she came to find him for lunch.

Because she was going to spend the night in town, he missed the blizzard halfway there.

Once or twice is a coincidence, but three or four times is something to think about.

In the evening, after Xiao Liulang arrived home, he went to the kitchen to help Gu Jiao with her cooking.

Gu Jiao cooked, and he tended the fire and added firewood.

Both pots on the stove were in use. One was steaming sweet potatoes and cornbread, while the other was simmering a soup of wood ear mushrooms and wild mushrooms. The thick soup gurgled and the kitchen smelled wonderful.

Xiao Liulang broke off a dry branch and put it into the stove, saying casually, "Today, Steward Zhou said that Qishan Post Station was flooded half a month ago. Luckily, I didn't go to the provincial capital, or I would have been swept away by the flood."

Gu Jiao: "Oh."

Xiao Liulang looked up at her: "Aren't you surprised?"

Gu Jiao paused for a moment, then said, "Oh!"

Xiao Liulang: "..."

Xiao Liulang asked her, "Did you know about the impending flood?"

Gu Jiao said calmly, "No."

Xiao Liulang gave her a deep look, then bent down and broke off a dry branch: "This time when I go to the provincial capital, I plan to stay at the Lin family's house."

Gu Jiao paused, her hand holding the spatula still: "Didn't I say I wasn't staying?"

Xiao Liulang said seriously, "It's convenient to stay at the Lin family's house. Besides, I've already asked Steward Zhou. Steward Zhou said that although the Lin family's daughters are beautiful, they are all married and none of them are still unmarried. You don't need to worry about that."

Was she worried about the Lin family's daughter? Or was she worried about the Lin family's cousins?

Does he even want the good fortune he'll have for the rest of his life?

Gu Jiao held her breath, but couldn't let it out, and her face instantly turned completely black!

Xiao Liulang was almost amused by her expression of wanting to lash out but being unable to.

The conversation was about to continue when Xiao Jingkong stormed in, clutching a chick and puffing out his cheeks: "Jiaojiao! Gu Yan's dog bit my chick!"

After Gu Yan's puppy moved into the house, the family experienced what true chaos and turmoil were like.

If puppies and chicks are released from their cages at the same time, they can tear chicken and dog feathers all over the ground.

The puppy was big, but it couldn't compete with the chicks, who even knew how to form formations. Neither side was afraid when they fought.

Gu Jiao asked him, "Did your chicks peck Gu Yan's dog?"

Xiao Jingkong immediately fell silent.

Little Jingkong looked up and said cutely, "The food smells so good! I suddenly remembered that I haven't finished my homework yet, I'm going to do it now!"

The little monk, who had falsely accused the villain, skipped out, assuring Jiao Jiao that his hopping was incredibly cute, and Jiao Jiao was so charmed by him that she forgot to get angry.

He hopped around while stuffing the chicks back into the coop, then in one swift motion, he disappeared!

(End of this chapter)