Chapter 8 Sincerity
After the news spread that Dr. Lin, who was seeing patients despite his illness, had put up a new sign, all the news about Dr. Lin and Miss Li in Jianye City vanished without a trace, like dust scattered by the wind.
Lin Xiaocong never again trespassed into Li Rong's courtyard without permission, and continued to send a gift every day, along with a note.
Sometimes the note contains a greeting, and sometimes it contains observations from a trip, along with flowers, grass, and leaves picked along the way.
Although there was never a response, he never stopped.
He silently helped Li's father protect the Cheng'en Duke's Mansion.
The National Medical Bureau's recommendations were presented to Li Qu.
He gradually shed the arrogance in his blood, becoming as humble and refined as his first impression on others.
He was known as a savior of the world in Jianye City.
He held an uncrowned and lofty position in the National Medical Bureau of the Southern Zhou Dynasty.
He was a guest at the Duke of Chengen's mansion, but he remained hidden in the shadows, protecting the mansion like an iron barrel.
With him around, Li Qu could completely put aside the trivial matters of the Cheng'en Duke's Mansion and focus on her political career.
He silently offered his sincerity to the Li family and apologized to Li Rong through his actions.
June 25th, the fifth year of the Jianyuan era of the Southern Zhou Dynasty.
Li Buyue's fifth birthday.
Lin Xiaocong canceled everything else and took his daughter to spearfish early in the morning.
This was something the father and daughter had secretly arranged yesterday.
By the stream outside the city.
As the morning mist dissipates, the stream meanders, its surface rippling like shattered jade.
The five-year-old girl is dressed like a little fairy today.
Right now, with his arms strapped to his back, barefoot, and trousers rolled up, he's holding a harpoon in one hand and his father's hand in the other, intently spearing the small fish swimming in the water.
The area was guarded by servants and maids, and no one dared to peep or offend.
Lin Xiaocong held the hem of her skirt for her, his gaze falling on the little girl's head, his eyes filled with tenderness and joy.
On the day Li Buyue was born, the moment he held the child in his arms, he seemed to have an epiphany, and the arrogance and pride that had been ingrained in his bones and was difficult to eradicate instantly dissipated.
With a "pop," the harpoon plunged into the water.
The little girl splashed through the water and screamed, "Daddy! We caught him! We caught him!"
Lin Xiaocong raised his hand and took out the harpoon, and sure enough, there was a fish pierced through it.
He sighed, "When I'm happy, I go to Dad; when I'm unhappy, I go to Doctor Lin."
"Hahaha..." The little girl pretended not to hear, her laughter clear and melodious.
"Dad is so amazing! He took my harpoon out in one go!"
Lin Xiaocong smiled indulgently.
"Dad, is that a frog?"
Lin Xiaocong looked at what his daughter was pointing to and explained:
"That's a toad."
"It looks even more fun than a fish."
"It's a good thing. It can reduce swelling and detoxify, and treat bloating and edema. When taken internally, it can also relieve infantile convulsions."
"I want to play!"
"Dad will catch it for you."
"Dad is the best!"
Lin Xiaocong was so engrossed in his daughter's praise that he caught a whole basket of toads for her.
And without any regard for the feelings of normal people who have different interests from those of the father and daughter, he carried the toad back to the city.
The father and daughter didn't return until late morning.
The fairy turned into a mud child.
Lin Xiaocong rode his horse to escort Lin Buyue to the gate of the Duke of Chengen's mansion.
He lifted the little girl off the horse and placed her on the steps.
The little girl looked up and said, "Dad, it's A-Yue's birthday. Brother Xi, Brother Qi, Brother Bao, and their friends, Auntie and Auntie will all come to have dinner with A-Yue and sing her a birthday song. Dad, please join us too."
"Dad still has a patient and we can't delay."
Lin Xiaocong looked at the mud on his daughter and instructed her, "Remember, you went to catch loaches yourself, it has nothing to do with your father."
The little girl grinned, her pretty, gentle eye bags supporting her smile, just like her father's perfunctory manner when he was young.
"I understand, Dad, you go and save them first."
Lin Xiaocong pinched his daughter's cheek: "Happy birthday, A-Yue."
The cicadas delivered a package.
"The things in the box belong to your mother, the rest are yours."
The maidservant stepped forward and took it.
The little girl waved goodbye to her father enthusiastically.
Only after her father's figure on horseback had completely disappeared did she skip and hop back to the mansion.
"Grandma, Grandpa, Mom~"
"Dad took A-Yue to catch loaches, and he got A-Yue covered in mud!"
*
In the flower garden.
Xiao Zhouxi was playing chess with Zhao Xingqi, while the kids who came with them today surrounded the two of them to watch.
At the age of thirteen, Li Han sprouted new shoots and grew increasingly beautiful.
The young ladies who had come to celebrate Lin Buyue's birthday sat together in the courtyard, chatting and laughing.
Inside the hall, Li's mother was chatting with her eldest daughter.
The scene is beautiful.
The overjoyed birthday boy carried two fish baskets into the yard and shouted, "I'm back!"
The peace was broken.
Li Fu's second son, Bao Ge'er, was the first to surround them.
"Ah Yue, did you go turtle fishing again this year?"
"No, Dad said catching loaches was a lot of fun, so we went to the ditch to catch loaches."
"Wow!" The little boy looked on with envy. "When will my dad come back and take me to catch loaches?"
"Ah Yue doesn't know when Uncle will come back. Brother Ah Bao, don't be sad. Ah Yue will share some loach with you. Dad said that as long as there is mud and water, you can raise them."
The little girl wasn't afraid at all; she reached into the basket and grabbed a few loaches.
The loach was slippery and slippery. It squeezed out of the little hand and fell to the ground, wriggling its body, which startled the kids who gathered around and made them shout excitedly.
All eyes turned to them.
Li Han and her girlfriends surrounded them.
What are you looking at?
Abao: "Looking at the good thing that Sister Yue caught, the loach."
“I also brought back something even better than loach,” the little girl said, reaching into another fish basket.
"Dad said it has high medicinal value."
Everyone craned their necks curiously: "What good stuff?"
"look!"
The little girl presented a bunch of toads.
Because my hands were too small, two of them fell to the ground.
The two toads that escaped their cage jumped around aimlessly, not knowing which way was which.
The first to scream was Li Han's friend.
Then there were the little guys squatting on the innermost layer.
These were all pampered young masters, experiencing firsthand the disgust of a toad, such an ugly creature.
"Wow!"
Someone was so startled that they sat down on the ground and kicked over the fish basket.
The toads scattered and fled.
Then, in their panic, someone kicked over another fish basket.
The loach immediately began to writhe and crawl.
The children scattered and ran away, while the young ladies covered their faces and fled.
The guards rushed over upon hearing the commotion, and the servants panicked and tried to save their master.
Only Xiao Buyue, carrying a toad leg, earnestly emphasized:
"Father said this is a good thing, it won't bite, so don't be afraid."
Frozen in place, Li Han looked at the toads squatting on her feet, and cried out to the sky:
"Second sister, please do something about your husband!"
That's insane!
*
Lin Xiaocong, who had been ignored by Li Rong for 1,644 days, had just returned to Jimin Pharmacy when Li Qu summoned him to the palace.
It wasn't that he didn't want to go to the Duke of Chengen's mansion to celebrate his daughter's birthday, but rather that if he went, Li Rong definitely wouldn't attend.
Upon arriving at Fengyi Palace, he followed the palace servants' directions to Li Qu's study.
She exudes an air of nobility.
Her face was as beautiful as a flower reflected in water; she was in the prime of her life, in full bloom.
She wore the empress's everyday dress, her hair piled up like clouds, adorned with phoenix hairpins symbolizing her status.
Tea is being brewed at the tea table.
Lin Xiaocong followed the palace servant's guidance and sat down opposite Li Qu, looking at her listlessly: "Third Sister, be sincere and just state your purpose."
Just like six years ago at Youpenglai Tea House, Li Qu skillfully brewed tea.
However, at the time, he smiled calmly and brightly, seemingly unconcerned.
Now she smiles radiantly, brimming with confidence.
"I want my second brother-in-law's knowledge."
"Sweet talk won't help. From the moment I became a disciple, I vowed never to reveal what I have studied or read."
Li Qu poured him tea: "How long has it been since your brother-in-law spoke to your sister?"
Lin Xiaocong's gaze fell on the cup that Li Qu presented with both hands.
"The last time my second sister's husband saw her was when A-Yue was born."
"No, I ran into Rongrong at the Confucius Temple last month."
Li Qu didn't hesitate to expose his shortcomings: "Was it a chance encounter? Or did you just peek from afar from the side? And there was a fence between you, wasn't there!"
Lin Xiaocong picked up the cup and brought it to his lips without a second thought.
"Brother-in-law, be careful, it's hot!"
"Ptooey! It's burning hot!"
The two voices rang out simultaneously.
Li Qu pushed a bowl of iced water that had been prepared beforehand in front of Lin Xiaocong: "Put ice in it."
Lin Xiaocong put a mouthful in his mouth.
Li Qu smiled and said, "My second brother-in-law has the world in his heart. He writes books to enlighten the people and save the masses. This is a great achievement that will last for thousands of years."
She wants to break the monopoly of traditional medicine by hereditary medical families.
Popularizing medical knowledge can reduce the population mortality rate.
However, she will certainly not be accepted by the medical families of the National Medical Administration on this trip.
“I know my brother-in-law’s situation. Don’t worry, brother-in-law. You just need to write down the knowledge about common diseases that people encounter.”
"Medical knowledge is not solely the domain of my second brother-in-law. Without his signature, there is no evidence to prove that it was you who practiced it."
“I was afraid that the people at the National Medical Administration would be hypocritical and publish a book that would mislead the world for me, so I had no choice but to ask my second brother-in-law for help.”
"I will make sure my second brother-in-law's hard work is not in vain."
"Given the current situation between the North and South, it is not convenient to immediately make public the good deeds done by my second brother-in-law."
"But I, Li Qu, can swear to the heavens that your merits will be known throughout the world a hundred years from now."
Lin Xiaocong spat the still-warm ice water from his mouth into the spittoon brought by the palace servant, and wiped his lips with a handkerchief: "Should I thank Third Sister for her trust?"
She took an envelope from her sleeve and pushed it in front of Lin Xiaocong: "My second sister asked me to give this to my second brother-in-law."
Lin Xiaocong leaned back in his chair, pretending to be calm: "Aren't you afraid I'll write nonsense too?"
"The banquet is about to start, and I don't have time to celebrate A-Yue's birthday. I'd like to trouble my second brother-in-law to help me bring the gift to A-Yue."
Li Qu served tea to the guests as they saw them off.
Hongguo presented a box.
Lin Xiaocong, calculating the time in his mind, grabbed the letter in frustration, stood up, tucked the box from Hongguo's hand under his arm, and quickened his pace.
"As expected of Empress Li, who could rule from behind a screen!"
They have a knack for manipulating people's hearts.
As soon as he left Fengyi Palace, he couldn't wait to open the letter.
The above statement:
As if intentionally walking under the moon, emotions arise uncontrollably.
(End of this episode)
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