Chapter 94 Want to Stand Up

Qing Wu originally thought that the matter was over. Even though she and Xiao Ji had already laid it out, it would take some time to continue practicing medicine.

But who would have thought that after Xiao Xing's family returned home, some villagers from Hedong Village also came to visit them, and they all brought medical fees.

One or two is fine, but people kept coming to my house for ten days straight.

First came the young daughter-in-law holding the swaddled baby. She was Xiao Xingniang's neighbor and had heard from Xiao Xingniang that Qingwu was a skilled doctor, so she brought the baby over to try. Her face was filled with anxiety as she asked anxiously, "Madam, please take a look. What's wrong with our baby?"

Qingwu gently opened the swaddling clothes and saw white spots as small as needles on the baby's nose and forehead, with pus on the top. The child did not react much. If it were an ordinary peasant woman, she would not care, but the woman in front of her was a new bride, and she was particularly concerned about her first child.

"It's millet sore," she said softly, "It's caused by the indigestion of milk and food, which causes dampness to rise up."

"Then, how do we treat it?"

The bride subconsciously pressed the cloth bag in her arms. She only brought two cents of silver with her. If she brought more, her parents-in-law might not treat her. They had originally said that the child didn't cry or make a fuss, so there was no need to spend money on treatment.

Qingwu noticed the bride's distress and said gently, "Don't worry, this disease can be cured with some common herbs." She turned and told Yuzhu, "Go to the backyard and pick some fresh dandelions."

A short while later, Yuzhu returned with the herbs. The palace lacked a pestle, so Qingwu could only grind them carefully in a bowl. A green juice gradually oozed out. She dipped a thin bamboo stick into the juice and placed it precisely on several prominent pus spots.

"Dandelion is used to detoxify and dissipate nodules." She explained as she applied the medicine, then poured the remaining liquid into a small porcelain bottle and handed it to the bride. "When you go back, follow my method and apply it twice a day."

Then he said, "That's not enough. The child should be seven or eight months old, right?"

The bride nodded, and Qingwu said, "Go back and grind raw coix seeds into a paste and apply it thinly to the affected area. If you don't have raw coix, grind coix seeds into rice paste and give it to the child."

The bride gratefully accepted the medicine bottle and pulled out a cloth bag from her bosom. Qing Wu smiled and pushed her hand back, "These herbs are readily available in the herb garden; they're nothing special. When the child is well, give me another ten copper coins."

Three days later, the bride came with her child to pay the medical fee. The millet sores on the baby's forehead had mostly disappeared, and her husband brought a basket of freshly picked loquats and cherries, which were bright yellow and bright red and very tempting.

After the family left, Qingwu asked Yuzhu to wash the loquats and cherries and put them on the table for them to share.

Qing Wu picked up a cherry and put it in her mouth. The sweet and sour juice burst between her lips and teeth. She squinted her eyes, which was really cute. Xiao Ji watched her like this and couldn't help but taste one too.

"Is it sweet?" Qingwu asked him with his head tilted.

Xiao Ji nodded, but his eyes fell on the corner of her lips stained with juice: "Sweeter than the tribute from the palace." As he said that, he reached out to wipe away the bright red spots for her, and his fingertips lingered on her lips for a moment before retracting them.

This action made Qingwu look around subconsciously. He saw Yuzhu and Baozhu hiding in the corridor and sharing their share. The two girls were eating one piece each, smiling happily. They didn't pay any attention to here, so he breathed a sigh of relief, but still glared at Xiao Ji.

Zhao Tong came over with tea in hand, and Qing Wu urged him to pinch a loquat. He squinted his eyes as soon as he took a sip: "Oh, I haven't eaten it in years. Where did it come from?"

"The child's mother sent it the day before yesterday."

When he heard that it was sent by the patient's family, the smile on Zhao Tong's face became even brighter. Every fruit carries the most simple gratitude, isn't it sweeter?

What surprised Qingwu even more was that after a few days, several more women with the same problem came one after another. All of them had problems with their half-grown children. However, these children's problems were minor and could be cured with ordinary herbal medicine.

After several times, Fugui began to grumble, and Nanny Xia Baozhu and Yuzhu also asked Qingwu privately. Finally, Qingwu and Xiao Ji discussed it and gathered everyone in the palace together to tell them about the exchange. From then on, Qingwu didn't have to hide it anymore.

Xiao Ji asked Fugui and Zhao Tong to clean up two rooms in the gatehouse near the main gate and use them as clinics. The small clinic in the palace was opened in such a simple way.

Qingwu had new things to do: picking herbs, drying them in the sun, and further treating Xiao Ji's leg.

She removed the gauze on Xiao Ji's leg. The bruises at the injury had almost completely disappeared, leaving only a dull pain. Now there was no need to hide it, so she prepared better medicinal herbs and boiled water, and massaged the acupoints at the injury every day.

Originally, Xiao Ji could walk dozens of steps every day with the help of crutches. With Qingwu's direct massage of the fractured blood vessels, he recovered even faster. However, he still would not walk much outside, and would show a painful expression after walking a few steps.

Once, Qingwu ran into them and scared her. Finally, she went into the house and Xiao Ji explained the reason.

Qing Wu almost dropped the medicine bowl in her hand, but fortunately the medicine inside had been drunk. She looked at Xiao Ji blankly, "Spy... Spy?" How could ordinary people come across this word?

Xiao Ji pulled her hand over and squeezed it, "Don't be afraid, they're just little bugs." He said it lightly, but it made Qingwu's heart tighten.

"Is he... sent by the palace?" Her voice was a little tense. Thinking of the scenes of drying medicine in the yard and treating villagers these days, a layer of cold sweat suddenly broke out on her back.

"If they find out that I'm different..."

Xiao Ji pinched her fingertips again: "Don't be afraid, they won't pay too much attention to you, they are paying attention to me."

He said this calmly, but Qingwu could feel the oppression and suffocation in it. Who would like to be stared at every day?

She shook Xiao Ji's hand back and couldn't help asking, "Where are they?"

Xiao Ji shook his head. "They're in different places every day, and there's more than one group of people. The emperor's, my brothers'..."

"So your legs haven't recovered yet and you're just pretending?"

Qingwu felt a little strange. How come he could walk steadily with a cane in the house, but would fall down as soon as he went outside?

"Much better." Xiao Ji blinked, suddenly stood up without using his crutches and turned around in front of her, "Thanks to the madam's excellent medical skills."

Qingwu was surprised and happy, but after just a few breaths, the boy's body began to shake, and Qingwu hurriedly supported him.

Xiao Ji leaned on her shoulder, his warm breath brushing against her ear: "But in front of outsiders, I am still that crippled and abandoned prince."

When he sat back in his wheelchair, he smiled calmly, a hint of self-mockery in his voice, "This way... everyone can feel at ease."

Qing Wu suddenly felt a tightness in her chest. She thought that being persecuted by her mother and sisters was rare, but after hearing what Xiao Ji said, she suddenly realized that the person in front of her had the same experience as him.

And he has more than two, many.

Qing Wu squatted down and gently held Xiao Ji's hand. A ray of sunlight shone in from the window, making his pale knuckles almost transparent.

"It's okay," she said softly, but with great determination, "I'll act with you in the future."

"Outside, you staggered every step you took, and I cried my eyes out. From now on, we'll quietly rehabilitate in the house."

Xiao Ji was stunned for a moment, then suddenly laughed out loud.

He leaned over and rested his forehead on Qingwu's shoulder, saying sullenly, "Qingqing, if you do this... I can't help but want to stand up."

I can't help but plan to seize the throne again now.