Chapter 26
The next morning, Shen Aheng was awakened by the chirping of birds outside the window.
The sunlight shines through the window lattice and falls on the bed, making it feel warm.
Shen Aheng opened his eyes dazedly and subconsciously touched the side, but found nothing.
She came to her senses and turned to look to her side.
Ashina Yu was lying obediently on the outermost side of the bed, her body pressed tightly against the edge, almost about to fall off.
He lay sideways with his back to her, his long eyelashes drooping quietly, his breathing even, and he was sleeping soundly.
The sunlight outlined his thin profile, his long black hair scattered on the pillow, making him look quiet and well-behaved.
Looking at him like this, Shen Aheng couldn’t help but laugh in his heart.
This guy was like a puppy last night, coming to hug her for comfort, but after waking up he became so well-behaved.
Shen Aheng waited for a while, and seeing that he showed no sign of waking up, he gently pushed his shoulder and whispered to him, "Hey, wake up, it's time to get up."
Ashina Yu's body moved, her eyelashes trembled, and she slowly opened her eyes.
He had just woken up with a hint of confusion in his eyes, as if covered by a layer of mist. He looked at her and was stunned for a few seconds, as if he had not fully realized where he was.
After a long while, he finally seemed to remember what happened last night. His cheeks turned red and his eyes instantly became flustered and embarrassed.
Shen Ah Heng felt funny in his heart, but he pretended nothing happened and pointed out the window: "The sun is shining on your butt. Get up quickly. We still have to go see the old lady today."
Ashina Yu didn't say anything, just uttered an unclear "hmm", his voice a little hoarse from just waking up, then quickly got up from the bed, moving swiftly as if he was escaping from something.
Seeing his flustered look, Shen Aheng finally couldn't help it, and the corners of his mouth rose slightly.
Fortunately, Ashina Yu finally returned to his room before outsiders arrived.
After washing and having breakfast, a maid came over and led them through several courtyards to pay their respects to the old lady and see her for treatment.
The old lady was still lying on the elegant and beautiful bed. She looked in good spirits, but her face was still sallow.
The air was filled with a strong smell of medicine.
Shen Aheng took the old lady's pulse and patiently asked about her diet and daily routine. Then he asked for paper and pen and began to write a prescription.
Ashina Yuze stood quietly behind her, like a well-behaved apprentice, watching her silently.
As Shen Ah Heng wrote, he softly explained to Mr. Liu, who was sitting at the rosewood table opposite him: "Mr. Liu, the old lady is ill due to overwork. In addition, she is old, her spleen and stomach are weak, and her blood and qi are insufficient. I will prescribe a prescription for her. First, regulate her spleen and stomach, and then replenish her qi and blood. She should recover slowly."
Mr. Liu, dressed in a brocade robe, frowned after hearing what she said, as if he didn't quite understand. But then he immediately put on an expression of understanding and nodded repeatedly: "Oh, so that's how it is. It's about regulating the spleen and stomach. Miss, you're right. My mother has been toiling all her life!"
He paused, patted his thigh again, and said in a tone of pretended solemnity, "I told you so. Those stinky doctors before were just spouting nonsense about people being too weak to take supplements. But you're really amazing, girl. You found the root of the problem right away! Brilliant, truly brilliant!"
Shen Ah Heng felt a little amused in his heart, but he still maintained a smile on his face and handed him the written prescription: "Mr. Liu is really too kind. First, follow this prescription to get the medicine. One dose a day, decoct and take twice a day in the morning and evening. It will be effective in half a month."
Mr. Liu took the prescription, folded it carefully and put it in his sleeve pocket as if it were a treasure, and smiled again: "Young lady, you are really a miracle doctor. Stay here for lunch. I will ask the kitchen to prepare a good meal!"
Shen Aheng hurriedly shook his head: “Mr. Liu is too polite, it is my duty to cure diseases and save people, I still have to go back to change the medicine for Ashina Yu, so I won’t bother you anymore.”
After coming out of the old lady's room, the two walked side by side on the gravel road back to their room.
The courtyard was very quiet, with only the occasional rustling of leaves in the wind.
Ashina Yu followed her silently the whole time. He wanted to speak several times but swallowed his words back.
Seeing that he was hesitant to speak, Shen Ah Heng couldn't help but ask first: "What's wrong, do you have something to say?"
When asked this, Ashina Yu stopped and looked up at her. In the sunlight, his eyes were serious. In his Central Plains dialect with an exotic accent, he said sincerely, "You... are amazing."
Shen Ah Heng was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing: "Amazing? What's amazing about it? Are you referring to the fact that I fooled Mr. Liu?"
Ashina Yu was stunned by Shen Aheng's question, as if he didn't expect her to say that. He frowned and thought seriously for a moment, then looked at her with a clear and firm gaze: "When you treated the old lady, you were very patient and very...reliable."
He paused, as if searching for a suitable description, but due to his lack of ability in the Central Plains dialect, he couldn't come up with a suitable one. In the end, he had to give up and added: "With you, I feel... very safe."
His words were simple, without any fancy words, but they were like a small stone, causing ripples in her heart.
Looking at his serious and earnest appearance, Shen Ah Heng felt a little panicked inexplicably. He quickly laughed and pointed to the road ahead to change the subject, saying, "Well, just be at ease, just be at ease. Let's go quickly. If you dawdle any longer, your injuries will get inflamed again."
After saying that, she quickened her pace and walked forward, not daring to look into his eyes that were too clear and pure.
Ashina Yu was stunned for a moment, then quickly followed and replied in a low voice: "Yeah."
In the afternoon, Shen Ah Heng was sorting out her medicine box in the room. The clever little maid from the morning came again with a happy look on her face: "Miss, this young master, I have good news to tell you. The old lady is fine after drinking the medicine you prescribed. She has no uncomfortable reaction."
Shen Ah Heng nodded. This was within her expectations. Chinese medicine conditioning emphasizes gradual progress. This first dose of medicine is mainly to allow the body to adapt. No adverse reactions are the best start.
The little maid continued, "Our master is very happy and asked me to invite you two to have dinner together in the front hall tonight."
Before Shen Aheng could speak, Ashina Yu frowned and glanced at her, as if he wanted to say something.
Shen Aheng smiled calmly at the little maid, his tone polite and firm: "Thank Mr. Liu for his kindness on my behalf. I have some medical books to study in the evening regarding the old lady's illness, so I won't bother you. Besides, my apprentice also needs to rest, so we can just have some food in the room."
The little maid was a little embarrassed, and seeing Shen Aheng's firm attitude, she didn't try to persuade him anymore, so she just said "yes" and turned away.
The room fell silent again. Ashina Yu looked at her and asked softly, "Don't you want to...eat with them?"
Shen Ah Heng walked to the window and looked at the courtyard outside, then turned around and said in a low voice: "We are not from here. This place is not far from Qingxiu Town. It is not good for us to stay here for too long."
"Once we cure the old lady and get the money, we should leave here as soon as possible. There's no need to get involved too much with the people here, and we won't have any more trouble."
Ashina Yu listened to her words, his eyes darkened, and he said nothing more. He just walked silently to her side and looked out the window with her.
After washing up in the evening, Shen Aheng was preparing to turn off the lights and rest, but Ashina Yu was still lingering in her room and refused to leave.
Sometimes he pretended to read the medical book on the table, his fingertips sliding aimlessly on the book, but his eyes would glance at her from time to time. Sometimes he stood by the window and looked out, as if there was some strange sight outside, but his attention was obviously not outside the window, and his eyes were still glued to her.
Shen Ah Heng suppressed his laughter and deliberately asked, “It’s so late, why don’t you go back to your room to rest?”
When Ashina Yu was asked this question, his body froze for a moment. He turned around, his eyes evasive, and he stammered, "I, I'll wait a little longer..."
Shen Ah Heng raised his eyebrows and looked out the window: "The weather is very good tonight, it's not raining and there is no thunder."
The implication is that you have no reason to stay.
Ashina Yu's cheeks instantly turned red, from his cheeks all the way to his ears. He lowered his head for a long while, and then, as if he had mustered up the courage, he suddenly looked up, looking at her with wet eyes, and whispered in the Central Plains dialect with an exotic accent: "I... I still want to sleep with you."
After he finished speaking, he was like a deflated ball, but he still took a deep breath, as if he had made up his mind, and said frankly: "Just like... last night."
Seeing him looking so embarrassed that he was about to smoke, Shen Ah Heng couldn't help but burst out laughing.
She deliberately dragged out her tone and asked with interest, "Oh, before it was because there was no extra room at the old lady's house, and last night it was because you were afraid of thunder. So what about tonight? What are you afraid of?"
Ashina Yu was speechless when she asked him this question. Her originally cold and white face turned even redder. Her lips moved, but she couldn't utter a word.
If he keeps teasing her, she will really become a mimosa. Shen Ah Heng couldn’t bear to bully him anymore, so he sighed and moved closer to the bed: “Okay, okay, come here, but the rules remain the same.”
Ashina Yu suddenly raised his head, and his tense body relaxed instantly. His beautiful eyes lit up instantly, like lit stars. He looked at her and nodded vigorously, with a barely perceptible lightness in his voice: "Yeah."
He walked quickly to the bed, carefully lifted the quilt, and then obediently lay down on the outermost part of the bed.
The candles went out.
Shen Aheng also lay down, pulled the quilt to his chest, and turned sideways with his back to him.
The room was very quiet. All that could be heard was each other's gentle breathing and the occasional rustling of leaves outside the window.
At first, there was no movement behind her, and Shen Ah Heng felt that he was extremely gentle even when he turned over, as if he was afraid of disturbing her.
Shen Ah Heng's tense nerves gradually relaxed, sleepiness slowly came over him, and his consciousness began to become blurred.
Just when she was about to fall asleep, she felt a very light touch on her back.
The other person seemed to gently rub the corner of her clothes, and when he saw that she didn't move, he moved his warm body over little by little. One hand also reached out cautiously and tentatively, loosely wrapping around her waist, without using any force, just gently resting on it through the thin cloth.
Shen Aheng closed his eyes and sighed helplessly in his heart.
The young man behind her was no longer the "living medicine cauldron" who had empty eyes and was indifferent to everything around him when she first picked him up.
Now he would feel nervous and embarrassed, and would use this clumsy and direct way to express his true thoughts.
But the problem is that he is too direct, so direct that he seems to be "ignorant of the rules". He probably doesn't understand the etiquette and morals of the Central Plains, nor does he understand the distance that needs to be maintained between men and women.
And she seemed to be becoming more and more indulgent towards him, from taking him in at the beginning, to allowing him to sleep with her, and now...
The words of refusal were on the tip of my tongue, but I just couldn't say them.
Maybe I just couldn't bear to see his starry eyes, which made me feel a little lost.
In the past few days, the old lady drank the prescription prescribed by Shen Aheng, and she was getting better day by day. First, she could speak a few words softly and was no longer as drowsy as before. On the third day, she could even walk a few steps slowly with the help of a maid.
Liu Yuanwai saw it all, and when he came to pay his respects every day, he never closed his mouth. He kept saying to Shen Aheng, "The girl is really a living Bodhisattva," and "If I had met you earlier, my mother would have suffered less." He wanted to heap all the compliments on her.
Later, he was even more enthusiastic and said that he would take Shen Aheng to the restaurant in the town and introduce her to those prominent friends. He also patted his chest and said that he would make her medical skills famous throughout Liuzhou City. Shen Aheng's scalp tingled when he heard this. He quickly waved his hand and found an excuse to refuse, saying that he had to stay with the old lady to observe her condition.
She and Ashina Yu were anxious to leave. Knowing one more person meant one more involvement, so it would be better to get their reward and leave as soon as possible.
During the day, Shen Aheng mostly stayed in the old lady's bedroom, recording her pulse and adjusting the prescription. At night, he would return to his own courtyard to wash up and rest early, trying not to step out of the courtyard.
But since when, Ashina Yu had developed the habit of sleeping in the same room with her.
At first he would wait for her to urge him, but later he would just go straight into the room after washing up, and sit obediently by the bed waiting for her to turn off the lights, unable to hide the anticipation in his eyes.
Shen Aheng: ...
Don't hit someone who smiles at you.
Looking at his stubborn look that said, "If you don't let me stay, I'll wait at the door," and remembering that he was still half a "patient," I swallowed the words back.
Watching him skillfully help her spread the bedding, Shen Ah Heng sighed helplessly in his heart.
Just think of it as having a puppy around.
On the day when the old lady was able to walk by herself holding the railing, the Liu family invited the best opera troupe in town. The yard was filled with the sound of gongs and drums, and the whole day was lively.
In the evening, the guests had almost all left. Shen Aheng packed her luggage and went to the living room. Liu Yuanwai was leaning on the armchair with a tea bowl in his hand, listening to the opera. When he saw her come in, he waved his hand and asked the troupe to take a break.
Shen Aheng sat down opposite him and said in a calm tone: "Mr. Liu, the old lady's condition has stabilized. She will be cured if she continues to take the medicine according to the prescription. I can't help much here. I plan to leave tomorrow."
As soon as these words came out, the smile on Mr. Liu's face froze instantly. He put down his tea bowl and began to persuade him to stay: "Why are you leaving now? Stay a few more days. My mother hasn't thanked you properly yet. Besides, there are many friends in town who want you to come over for medical treatment..."
He talked a lot, and every word was meant to keep you here.
Shen Ah Heng listened patiently, still shook his head, and said: "Thank you for your kindness, but I have other things to do, so I can't stay any longer."
Seeing her resolute attitude, Mr. Liu's face cooled down a bit, but he never mentioned the promised reward. Shen Ah Heng was anxious and could only bite the bullet and take the initiative to speak: "Mr. Liu, I have been busy these days diagnosing and prescribing medicine for the old lady. Regarding the consultation fee mentioned before, I wonder if it is convenient for you to pay it now?"
Unexpectedly, just as she finished speaking, Mr. Liu suddenly raised his eyebrows and curled his lips in disdain: "Consultation fee? You've been staying in my house for so many days, and I've provided you with delicious food and drink, and you've been treated to wonderful performances and delicious tea every day. Now you're asking me for payment?"
His words were like a basin of cold water, instantly chilling Shen Ah Heng's heart.
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