Warm hospitality

Then, Bai Zhu learned what it meant to be "famous".

A long queue formed outside Qiu Chuxin's clinic, much longer than the queue when Liu's flatbreads were freshly baked and still hot. Couples with children squeezed in front of the courtesans from the brothel. A girl said a few words, and the two sides started arguing. A pimp from the brothel also came over with a whip, cracked it a couple of times, and started cursing at the women. The women fell silent, but the couples wouldn't let it go. The child was frightened and cried. The pimps then pushed and shoved the women dressed in red and green, intending to take them away for "discipline."

Hearing the commotion outside, Bai Shu, who was in the consultation room, asked Qiu Chuxin, "Should I go take a look?"

Qiu Chuxin had seen this scene many times before, so she nodded and said, "Go and bring in those people who were making a ruckus and cutting in line. Ladies, please wait here and don't let the pimp take them away. Also, tell the people outside not to rush. I won't leave until all the patients have been seen."

Bai Shu understood and went out to do as Qiu Chuxin instructed. Shocked by the long, serpentine queue outside, Bai Shu returned and quietly asked Qiu Chuxin, "How come the Jiaofang (a type of entertainment institution) has so many relatives?"

Qiu Chuxin gestured for Bai Shu to be quiet and said, "We'll talk about it when we get back."

Bai Zhu had hoped to learn and memorize as she did when she followed Senior Sister Pan during her medical consultations in the palace, but in the end, there was simply no time!

Maintaining order back and forth took up a lot of time. Finally, she was able to sit in front of Senior Sister Qiu for a while. Senior Sister Qiu was able to see much faster than Senior Sister Pan. Bai Shu felt dizzy as adults and children passed by one after another, and she didn't have time to remember them at all.

In the end, Qiu Chuxin never got to eat a hot flatbread with mutton inside.

Finally, before sunset, the long queue was over. The head of the music academy served tea and said, "Lord Qiu, you've had a long journey."

Bai Zhu, whose legs and back ached, stretched out his arms.

Qiu Chuxin said to the director of the music academy, "Even if you treat these women as cash cows, you should know that trees need fertilizer and horses need grass. These women are all weak and suffering from liver and kidney damage. What difference would it make if we gave them two ounces of meat every day and let them rest for a few days when they are not feeling well each month?"

"Lord Qiu, you don't know," the director of the music academy said with a smile as he accompanied Qiu Chuxin to the waiting carriage outside, "In the past two years, the emperor has been fond of slender waists, and it has become fashionable in the capital. Those with slender waists that can be encircled by a single hand are the most expensive, and they are the most graceful and beautiful when dancing. Therefore, we must not let them eat too much."

Qiu Chuxin was a little angry, but she suppressed her displeasure: "Even so, look at them, they have all sorts of hidden illnesses and pains, and their lives won't be long."

The head of the music academy said it was no big deal: "We are either the families of criminals who have committed crimes and had their homes confiscated, or they are low-class people who are unwanted by their parents. Their lowly lives are not worth anything. Besides, these girls are only worth money in their youth. When they get older, no one will want them."

Bai Shu, who was following behind and listening, was so shocked by the words of the music hall official that his eyes widened. Qiu Chuxin sighed and said to Bai Shu, "You get in the carriage first."

Bai Shu glanced at Qiu Chuxin, then at the head of the music academy. The head of the music academy smiled at her, friendly and polite: "Please, Lady Bai."

Qiu Chuxin exchanged a few words with the head of the music academy, then got into the carriage. Seeing that Bai Shu looked sullen, she asked her, "Are you tired? Will you come again next month?"

“Come on!” Bai Shu said decisively.

Qiu Chuxin smiled.

Bai Shu started muttering to herself, saying that the women of the Jiaofangsi were too pitiful, and that the Jiaofangsi director didn't treat people like human beings. Then she talked about the long queue and asked, "How can the Jiaofangsi director have so many relatives who need to see a doctor?"

Qiu Chu thought to herself, "What do you think?"

“I don’t think so,” Bai Shu pondered. “There are all sorts of people here, it’s more like they’re treating you like a doctor who sits in the clinic.”

Qiu Chu thought to himself, "It's the kind of doctor who sits in the clinic."

“But we’re here to treat the ladies of the brothel,” Bai Shu said, frowning. “They’ve swarmed in like a horde, pushing the ladies to the back. They’re usurping our place and acting so aggressively. What kind of logic is that?”

Bai Zhu often reflects on Sister Pan's teachings on "doing one's job well" these days, saying, "These people are not our job, but they have made us neglect our proper duties."

"There are no classes of doctors, but there are only a limited number of doctors." Qiu Chuxin said, "The difference between the noble and the lowly is a disease, as is the difference between the rich and the poor. We are all patients."

At night, Bai Shu kept thinking about the events of the past few days, about Zheng Xiaoniangzi, about the Jiaofangsi (a type of entertainment venue). Bai Shu suddenly felt that the world was very big, no longer just the three-courtyard house of the Bai family, where only her grandparents lived. In this world, there was also Su You, Consort Shu, Senior Sister Pan and Senior Sister Qiu, Little Zheng Xiaoniangzi, Sister Wang the butcher, and those little girls who had been sent to the Jiaofangsi since childhood.

Unable to sleep, Bai Shu suddenly felt like writing something. She got up, put on her clothes, lit a candle, laid out paper and ground ink. She picked up her pen and, by the flickering lamplight, wrote down her observations and experiences from her time in the palace.

A light rain was falling outside the window; autumn was deepening and the weather was turning cool.

Bai Shu would go to the Jiaofangsi (Imperial Music Bureau) with Senior Sister Qiu every month. After two or three visits, he became familiar with the Jiaofangsi official and asked, "My home is not far away. If you have some free time later, could you please do me the favor of going home to visit my family?"

The music hall director glanced at Qiu Chuxin, who said, "This girl is homesick; she's about to fall ill with homesickness."

The music academy director understood and replied with a smile, "What's so difficult about that? It's only human nature."

The head of the Imperial Music Academy sent someone to escort Bai Shu back to the Bai family.

Bai Shu originally did not want to be escorted by the envoy of the Imperial Music Academy, saying, "I grew up in the capital and am used to the roads, so there is no need for you to trouble yourself." However, Bai Shu could not refuse the envoy's hospitality and had no choice but to get into the carriage arranged by the envoy.

The head of the Imperial Music Academy was very thoughtful. While the carriage was being harnessed, the kitchen prepared tea, wine, and two bundles of pastries and fruits. The head of the Imperial Music Academy handed them to Bai Shu and said, "Lord Bai, it wouldn't be right for you to go home empty-handed after coming from the palace. These are tea and wine served to distinguished guests in the academy. Please take them home and also give my regards to the old physician and the imperial chef."

Bai Shu declined, saying "No need to be so polite," but the head of the entertainment brothel insisted, saying "It's nothing," and tried to force it into Bai Shu's hands. Bai Shu was a naive young girl fresh out of school, while the head of the entertainment brothel was a shrewd and worldly-wise person. Bai Shu couldn't argue with him and her cheeks turned red with anxiety. The head of the entertainment brothel simply gave the tea and wine to the coachman and instructed, "Make sure to treat Lady Bai well."

The groom naturally obeyed the orders of his master, the head of the imperial music academy.

Bai Shu looked at the tea, wine, and fruit, unsure whether to accept them or not, as if they were a hot potato. She looked at Qiu Chuxin with pleading eyes, who nodded and said, "The manager is so thoughtful, why don't you thank him?"

Bai Zhu had no choice but to accept.

Just as the music and dance envoy said, "it's not worth much." A packet of tea, a jar of wine, and two boxes of fruit and pastries are not heavy, but Bai Zhu felt they were heavy in her hands, which even diluted the joy of her long-awaited return home.

Bai Zhu's sudden return home was a huge surprise to the Bai family.

Little Baizhou called out "Auntie!" and rushed out first, throwing herself into Bai Shu's arms. Bai Shu held her and spun her around twice before she got down.

Madam Bai excitedly pulled Bai Shu to look at him again and again, saying, "He's changed. He looks like an adult now."

When Bai Shu returned, it was just in time for lunch. But since Bai Shu had finally come back, Madam Bai started preparing to cook a couple more dishes. Madam Bai said with concern, "My son, you've lost weight!"

But Bai Shu felt that she hadn't lost weight; in fact, she might have gained even more.

The sun was shining brightly that day, and instead of drying medicinal herbs, a large area of ​​cotton was being dried in the courtyard. Bai Zhu asked, "Why is there so much cotton?"

Her sister-in-law said, "Your second brother is getting married, so we need to prepare several extra quilts. Didn't you know that? He didn't even tell you?"

Bai Shu, unaware of this, exclaimed in surprise, "So fast? Is it Sister Qin? My second brother didn't tell me."

The young lady from the Qin family was also a neighbor of the Bai family. The two families, who knew each other well, had long planned to arrange a marriage. However, both of them were still quite young. The Qin family wanted to keep their daughter alive a little longer, and the second son of the Bai family also wanted to save more money before getting married. So they agreed to postpone the betrothal for two years.

But this document, "The parents of a seventeen-year-old unmarried woman shall be punished," made the young lady of the Qin family impatient, and she hurriedly went through the six rites.

Lady Bai chuckled and said, "The wedding date has been set for more than half a month now. Erlang must be embarrassed. When he comes back, we'll give him a good slap on the wrist."

Bai Shu chatted and laughed with her sister-in-law, saying, "He didn't even tell me. Could it be that he planned to send me a copy when he sent out wedding invitations to everyone at the Imperial Medical Academy?"

Bai Shu hadn't eaten her mother's cooking in a long time, so she ate two extra bowls of rice and ate until she was stuffed.

Bai Shu, who was full, was taking a walk in the courtyard with her grandfather, the old physician Bai. Bai Shu told the old physician Bai about her medical records, the endless meetings, the countless monthly reports and memorials she had to write, and all sorts of strange and unusual assessments. The old physician Bai sighed and said, "The duty of a doctor is to treat the sick and save lives. When I was young, the Imperial Medical Bureau was not like this."

Bai Zhu had never seen what the Imperial Medical Bureau used to be like.

Bai Shu couldn't stay at home for too long, and the afternoon passed quickly. As darkness fell, Bai Shu reluctantly returned to Ruanyu Tower, where Qiu Chuxin was already waiting for her in the carriage on her way back to the palace.

As the carriage headed towards the palace, Qiu Chuxin handed two exquisitely square brocade boxes to Bai Shu, saying, "These two boxes of rouge were a gift from the Imperial Music Academy. The colors are quite nice. I don't like using these, so you can have them."

Bai Shu glanced at it but didn't take it. She said to Qiu Chuxin, "Senior Sister, I don't like dealing with people like the Chief Envoy."

But we have no choice but to deal with them.

Qiu Chuxin smiled and said, "Little Shu, water that is too clear has no fish."

Even if you bring in another hundred music brothel directors, the music brothel will still be the same music brothel.

Moreover, in Bai Shu's opinion, the head of the music academy was even a "good person." He was polite and courteous, made way for her to go home, and arranged everything thoughtfully. Sometimes Bai Shu wondered if her "dislike" for the head of the music academy was a bit "ungrateful."

Atractylodes macrocephala causes shortness of breath.

Qiu Chuxin patted Bai Shu, put the two boxes of rouge into Bai Shu's hands, and said, "Keep them."

The two boxes of rouge were bright red, with a soft and delicate texture and a rich, sweet rose scent.

Bai Zhu covered the small jade box and the next day, she gave both boxes of rouge to Taishi Yi.