Three men make a drama.
Seeing that the farce was about to continue, Ye Wenxue slapped the bald man on the back of the head, burying him in the bowl of wine with a 'bang,' almost breaking the bowl.
"This is none of your business. They're talking, what right do you have to threaten them?"
However, Xu Lin truly impressed Ye Wenxue.
Ye Wenxue had always thought that Xu Lin was just a weak scholar who could be frightened by any tough bandit.
Unexpectedly, he dared to provoke Su Jiu, a doctor who was skilled in medicine and poison and had even killed people.
Xu Lin seemed to sense Ye Wenxue's thoughts and carefully explained them to her:
"My family couldn't afford to hire a page, so I had to travel back and forth to Tanzhou City to study all by myself. Over time, I would inevitably run into some ignorant bandits and hooligans."
Moreover, he had encountered countless dangers on his journey to the capital for the imperial examinations, and he had learned a few tricks, though these hadn't been seen in recent years, as he had become more docile.
Ye Wenxue waved her hand, about to say a few more words to lighten the mood, when the bald man raised his head, revealing a round red mark on his bronze face, thankfully not very painful:
"I'm just thinking about making money!"
Xu Lin didn't take credit, but the bald man knew that Zhixing was able to persuade many villagers to buy charcoal and sell it to several surrounding towns, and Xu Lin deserved some credit for that.
No matter how clever and quick-witted Zhixing was, he was still young and had little experience.
Xu Lin was different. He had seen everything while he was in the private school and had read many books written by his predecessors. With just a few pointers, Zhixing could benefit immensely.
Unfortunately, such a person is blind.
The bald man was eager to see how much more money Xu Lin could earn for him once his eyes recovered.
Ye Wenxue stared at Su Jiu expressionlessly: "The bald guy is brainless, don't mind him. If you think ten taels of silver isn't enough, you can discuss it with Xu Lin."
Su Jiu didn't think Xu Lin's words were a threat; he believed Xu Lin was trying to use them to set conditions for treating his eyes.
However, the bald bandit clearly lacked the brains to do so, and his unreasonable and forceful interruptions led to the fight.
He crossed his arms, raised an eyebrow at Xu Lin, and said, "Tell me, what do you, a poor scholar, have that's worth my time?"
Xu Lin took a sip of apricot blossom wine and smiled gently: "Firstly, after I pass the imperial examination next year, I will request to be transferred to Tanzhou and find a way to resolve your old matter."
"Secondly, consider it a favor I owe you, or to the Su family of Tanzhou. If you ever need anything in the future, I will do my best to help you."
"Thirdly...you can name any conditions you want, and as long as I can do it, I will never refuse."
The bald man, sipping his drink, clicked his tongue: "So much... Isn't that letting him off easy?! Maybe we should wait for Dr. Chen..."
Ye Wenxue stuffed a bottle of wine into the bald man's mouth, looking left and right with a complicated expression.
Xu Lin, this seemingly weak scholar, is dishonest. He paints empty promises in his words, but not a single one of them is practical.
In short, two sentences: If you don't pass the exam, don't worry about it; if it can't be done, don't do it.
However, the Xu family was penniless, and they even had to ask Ye Wenxue to temporarily borrow a bamboo house for a safe place to stay. Xu Lin had nothing of value to offer Su Jiu, so he had no choice but to resort to this tactic.
Su Jiu pondered for a moment. Saving someone was a simple matter, and he also wanted to use his influence on Ye Wenxue, which was why he made things difficult for Xu Lin.
“Okay. But thirdly, Ye Wenxue has to agree to one condition.”
Xu Lin frowned involuntarily. Treating his eyes was, after all, his private matter; how could he let others pay the price for it? "No..."
At the same time, Ye Wenxue spoke up: "Tell me what conditions you want to propose first, and I'll assess whether they're worth it."
Su Jiu didn't even look at Xu Lin, but secretly glanced at Ye Wenxue: "I want you to go and save someone."
Rescue?
Xu Lin and the bald man were both taken aback.
Especially the bald guy, he had only seen Ye Wenxue kill people, but had never seen her save anyone.
Ye Wenxue understood almost instantly who Su Jiu wanted to save.
She didn't ask when Su Jiu and Sui Ye's friendship had deepened to the point of painstakingly saving people, and silently put back the ten taels of silver that she had pushed in front of Su Jiu: "Impossible."
Then, turning to Xu Lin, he said, "You've been blind for so long, there's no rush. Once things are more stable, I'll personally take you down the mountain to find a more reliable doctor... It might even cost less than ten taels of silver."
Xu Lin nodded silently, offering no objection.
Su Jiu, however, became anxious: "Hey, you...you're just saving someone, right? With your skills, it's a simple matter!"
Ye Wenxue rolled her eyes at him: "My child is on the mountain, I won't come down. Besides, I've already settled things with him, and he won't let you come begging me to save him."
Seeing that her face was calm and without any ripples, Su Jiu sighed inwardly that Huo Zhaoqing was indeed a person with a tragic fate.
"Don't worry." Ye Wenxue glanced at him. "He's got a lot of luck, he won't die."
Although we don't know what danger Huo Zhaoqing is in now, he survived until the very end in the original book, so how could he not die prematurely?
Su Jiu sighed sadly, "I was afraid he would be seriously injured and die, and wouldn't be able to give me what we agreed on, so I took it upon myself to say that if you really didn't want to go down the mountain, then so be it..."
He looked at Xu Lin: "I'll remember one condition, and we'll discuss it another time."
Xu Lin didn't speak, but tapped the table lightly with his hand that was closer to Ye Wenxue, as if asking for her opinion.
Ye Wenxue thought for a moment and said, "Okay."
"Who do you think we should save?" The bald man, his face flushed from drinking, asked groggily, slumped on the table.
Ye Wenxue smiled enigmatically: "Your older brother."
Su Jiu's expression was subtle as he recalled the wounds that Huo Zhaoqing had been getting on his body before he went down the mountain.
The bald man was also taken aback.
Just when Ye Wenxue thought he was going to hand over all the resources of the mountain stronghold, or give up 20% of the profits, to beg her to save the people, the bald man suddenly stood up and slid to his knees to pounce on Ye Wenxue.
He didn't dare hug Ye Wenxue's leg, so he could only hold onto the leg of the stool Ye Wenxue was sitting on, and howled loudly under their astonished gazes:
"Since our leader is about to pass away, the stronghold cannot be without a leader for even a day... Boss Ye, please take us in!"
The three people inside the room: "..."
Da Zhuang, who was passing by outside the window: "..."
Ye Wenxue kicked the person away: "Are you putting on an opera here?"
Su Jiu and Xu Lin looked quite dismayed; this guy's role as the eldest brother and chieftain was really too embarrassing.
Baldy collapsed to the ground, gradually regaining consciousness from the pain. He then heard Ye Wenxue asking Su Jiu if he had seen Zhixing and his gang on his way back.
"They were all very fierce. The leader was a teenager who was always smiling. Had he ever been bullied?"
Su Jiu stroked his chin: "I was worried about being chased, so I rode here at top speed. I did see the person you mentioned, but..."
His eyes showed confusion, and a hint of doubt crossed his face: "Are you sure they were being bullied?"
No matter how you look at it, it's not like a bunch of fat, strong, and powerful bandits should be bullied!
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