Dodge
“Let’s go,” Pei Jue said, taking her hand. “It should be about time. Let’s go see if your plaque is ready yet.”
Upon arriving at the carpenter's shop again, Xu Ruoyan recognized her own signboard as soon as she stepped into the backyard.
“There it is!” she exclaimed excitedly, pointing with her hand.
The carpenter came over when he heard the noise. Seeing that it was the two men who had come that morning, he immediately said, "Gentlemen, your work is finished. I'll send someone over to install it for you right now."
Xu Ruoyan happily agreed.
After-sales service is included, which is quite good.
So the carpenter summoned three apprentices and asked them to accompany Xu Ruoyan to the clinic.
Xu Ruoyan's shop wasn't large, so the signboard wasn't big either; even two people wouldn't have much trouble carrying it. Walking alongside the signboard, Xu Ruoyan stared almost obsessively at the three large, golden characters on it. She reached out to touch it, but got some wet paint on her hand and quickly withdrew it.
Upon arrival, the measurement, installation, and finishing processes took up a considerable amount of time. By the time everything was finally completed, it was almost completely dark.
"Thank you all!" Xu Ruoyan waved goodbye to the helpers.
Pei Jue stood behind her and said, "I've checked, everything the shop needs is there, we can open for business tomorrow."
Xu Ruoyan turned around with her hands behind her back, tilting her head with a smile: "Thank you for your hard work."
Pei Jue's Adam's apple bobbed, but he remained silent.
Xu Ruoyan turned her head again, raised the oil lamp in her hand, and carefully examined the brand-new plaque.
The dark brown sign, bathed in the warm yellow firelight, radiated a blissful glow.
“I can’t wait,” Xu Ruoyan sighed and rubbed her frozen hands. “I’ll go arrange for the pinellia and honeysuckle, and then we’ll go back.”
"I've already made the arrangements, and I just locked the door."
Pei Jue stepped forward and stopped. Xu Ruoyan was stunned for a moment, but immediately understood what he meant. She smiled and took his hand.
"Then let's go home."
The word "home" was completely foreign to Pei Jue.
Having lost his mother at a young age, he struggled alone in the ruthless palace. The only family he could feel was his father, who distributed his already meager love among many others, leaving him with only a small amount.
So for the past ten years or so, I've been thinking about what a home really is.
He looked up and vaguely saw Xu Ruoyan leaning against the misty window.
“Winter is the season for painting on windows,” Xu Ruoyan said, wiping away the moisture with her fingertip as she sketched a few little figures with a few strokes.
“You can’t see it, but I’ll tell you.”
She pinched Pei Jue's index finger and pointed it at the window: "This is you." Then she moved it again: "This is me, then Sanqi, Qingdai..."
The dampness lingered on Pei Jue's fingertips, seeped into his skin, and then quickly disappeared.
Pei Jue thought, this must be what home looks like.
This is the image of their home that they envisioned together.
"Thank you," he heard himself say.
The voice sounds a little hoarse, but that's okay.
"Thank you for letting me know what home is like."
That night, the stars and moon shone in the eyes of both of them.
Xu Ruoyan stared blankly at the ceiling, tossing and turning for a long time without any sign of falling asleep.
She couldn't help but recall Pei Jue's words. She thought back to Pei Jue's burning gaze and tried to analyze her own heart.
Having lived together as husband and wife for four months, how does she feel now when she looks at Pei Jue?
It's not that I like him, let alone love him; it's just that I feel sorry for Pei Jue's pitiful background.
In the pitch-black night, Xu Ruoyan gently rubbed her fingertips, trying to wipe away the lingering warmth of Pei Jue's body, and also trying to forget Pei Jue's eyes.
When she was a child, her father warned her to be careful when interacting with people, and to start by looking into their eyes, because the eyes cannot lie.
Numerous schemes will be revealed by the eyes, and so will love, which is difficult to hide.
Pei Jue's eyes were originally empty; he couldn't see, so they couldn't hold anything. But with the treatment, he could now see the blurry shapes of objects, so he could now locate Xu Ruoyan not by feeling, but because he could actually see her.
During this time, Xu Ruoyan could always feel an unreserved, ardent gaze following her at all times.
Pei Jue never intended to hide his feelings; his love was too obvious, so she couldn't pretend not to see it, much less treat it casually.
But what should she do?
It was a peaceful night; even the wind had subsided considerably, passing by silently.
But for two people, their hearts were in turmoil for so long that their breathing was deafening.
...
Xu Ruoyan got up early that morning. Although she had gone to bed very late the night before, she was so excited about opening her pharmacy that she felt no fatigue at all.
The only unusual thing was that she didn't tell Pei Jue before she left, nor did she take him with her.
She knew it was wrong to do this, since Pei Jue had played a crucial role in the successful opening of the clinic, but she really didn't know how to face him, so she could only procrastinate for a while.
The news of the free clinic was spread by Banxia and Rendong yesterday afternoon, and according to them, quite a few people were interested. Xu Ruoyan had already anticipated this; after all, although there were many small pharmacies in the capital, most were squeezed out of business by a few dominant pharmacies, and their consultation fees were naturally high. And people are most susceptible to illness in winter, so naturally everyone wanted to try a free clinic at this time.
So Xu Ruoyan went to the pharmacy full of confidence.
Just as she expected, a long queue had already formed in front of the pharmacy half an hour before the agreed opening time. Xu Ruoyan carefully observed that most of the people there were elderly people and children, which was pretty much what she had anticipated.
Banxia and Rendong had already opened the door early and were busy inside. When they saw Xu Ruoyan arrive, they hurriedly went to greet her. Although the two were panting heavily, they were still in high spirits. Their rosy faces were filled with joy, and they couldn't stop chattering when they were in front of Xu Ruoyan.
"Madam, did you see that? The people at the door are all lining up for our free medical consultation!"
Xu Ruoyan patted Ren Dong's head: "Of course I saw it, it's all thanks to you. I'll buy you candy later."
The two children were overjoyed to hear that there was more candy to eat, and they jumped and skipped off to continue their work.
Xu Ruoyan added some charcoal and wiped the table. Seeing that everything was ready, she announced, "Open the door and welcome guests!"
Given that most of the visitors were elderly people and children, Xu Ruoyan skipped the firecrackers ceremony and simply had Banxia and Rendong each open one side of the door solemnly.
When the door finally opened, the people who had been waiting outside rushed in, and soon the small room was full of people, but many people were still stuck outside the door, anxiously waiting.
"Don't push! Line up!" Xu Ruoyan stood on a stool, cupped her hands to her mouth, and shouted loudly at the noisy crowd, "Anyone who pushes won't be allowed to watch!"
This tactic of intimidation is used both in ancient and modern times. Before long, the crowd gradually calmed down.
Xu Ruoyan was still standing on the stool, looking towards the door at something.
“Ren Dong, come here,” Xu Ruoyan placed a small purse in his hand. “Go and buy some hot buns nearby. Everyone must be cold and hungry since they came so early. Buy a lot and share them with everyone.”
Honeysuckle bowed and squeezed her way out of the crowd.
Xu Ruoyan then smiled and looked at an old woman at the front of the line.
"Auntie, please have a seat."
She picked up her pen and asked, "What's your question?"
The old woman was probably quite old, as her speech wasn't very clear. Xu Ruoyan tried hard to decipher the string of words that came out of her mouth, and managed to understand the gist of it.
It's simply that the elderly person is getting old, and it's winter, so their rheumatism flares up.
She led the old man into the inner room.
"Come, let me help you lie down."
After the old man lay down, Xu Ruoyan took out her needle kit, disinfected it, and inserted the needle in one smooth motion.
"Why don't you try it? Does it make you feel any better?"
The old man shakily reached out and pressed his knee, muttering, "It seems to hurt less now."
“That’s fine,” Xu Ruoyan said, taking out a few packets of mugwort from the cabinet and handing them over. “Take this mugwort first. Use it to boil water and then use it to fumigate and wash your knee joints every day. I’ll make some Sanfu patches when I have time in a couple of days, and you can come and pick them up then. If you’re willing to move around, it would be even better if you came here every two or three days for acupuncture.”
The old man stared at the herbal packet in his hand for a moment, then trembled as he grasped Xu Ruoyan's hand and shook it, saying, "Thank you, doctor."
Xu Ruoyan smiled gently and held the old man's hand in return: "It's nothing, I'm glad I could help you."
Next, there was a mother holding a baby.
"Doctor, please take a look at me quickly, my baby has had a high fever for several days and it won't go down..." As she spoke, the woman was about to burst into tears.
Xu Ruoyan hurriedly took the baby and held it in her arms, comforting the woman who was on the verge of collapse: "It's okay, you're not asleep. Let me see you. Don't worry."
Has he been crying a lot these past few days?
The woman shook her head with tears in her eyes: "She doesn't cry or make a fuss, she just sleeps the whole time. Even when she cries, she just hums weakly a few times."
Xu Ruoyan held the baby's little hand again and tried it, then pried open its bright red little mouth and smelled it. After asking the woman some questions, she concluded that the baby was just suffering from indigestion and fever, and there was nothing seriously wrong.
She grabbed a piece of paper and hastily began to write.
"Hawthorn, medicinal fermentation, malt..." she called out, turning around, "Pinellia ternata, get the medicine!"
Banxia walked over with small, quick steps, took the order, and went to the counter.
"After you get home, reduce the amount of milk and avoid foods that are difficult to digest. In short, feed him less. He should be fine soon."
The woman took the baby and held it tightly, bowing deeply to Xu Ruoyan, her voice trembling with tears: "Thank you, thank you so much!"
Another day passed like this, Xu Ruoyan was so busy that she didn't even have time to drink a sip of water. Finally, as the sun was about to set and the line of people coming for consultations at the door gradually shortened, Xu Ruoyan could finally catch her breath.
"Madam, there is only one person left."
Xu Ruoyan slumped in her seat and waved her hand weakly: "Let him come."
However, the next second she sprang up from the stool like a spring, and her eyes, which had been so tired from a long day of work, suddenly opened wide.
"It's you?!"
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