23. Dependence on each other
Early in the morning, before the rooster crowed, Chen Ji opened his eyes and was shocked to see five small silver ingots placed beside his pillow.
This was the reward Yun Yang promised, but he didn't know how the other party sneaked into the clinic, nor did he know when the other party sneaked in. It was as if these five silver ingots appeared here out of thin air.
This is not only Yunyang's reward, but also a warning to the other party.
Chen Ji quietly got up and put on the new clothes sent by Xibing. When he unfolded them, he found that it was still a navy blue robe with a stand-up collar and a large front. The two buttons on the stand-up collar were decorated with silver. It was much better than the clothes he had worn before.
This set of clothes must cost several taels of silver, right?
Unfortunately, the wedding cake only sent the clothes, inner collar, and pants, but no boots or belt. So after Chen Ji put on the stand-up collar, he still wore the same pair of tattered cloth shoes and tied a wide linen belt around his waist...
Chen Ji laughed, but he felt a little out of place.
Never mind. What’s the point of a poor apprentice clamoring for help? I can make up for it when I make money later.
When the rooster crowed, Chen Ji went out and happened to see the grain and oil shop opposite was removing the door panels.
"Good morning, boss lady," Chen Ji said as he walked into the grain shop with a smile.
"Hey, Doctor Chen, what would you like to buy?" The proprietress was busy opening the shop. When she saw him come in early in the morning, she immediately put down what she was doing.
"How much is a pound of millet?" asked Chen Ji.
"If others ask, it's eight cents. If it's for you, Doctor Chen, it's six cents," said the proprietress with a smile.
"How much is a pound of rice?"
"Nine coins, this is not cheap, please forgive me."
Doctors are scarce these days and their status in the industry is relatively high. Chen Ji's master is a seventh-rank imperial physician in the imperial court, so the neighbors are quite polite to Chen Ji.
"Then give me five pounds of millet, five pounds of rice... and a pot of sesame oil. Oh, and a piece of bacon!" said Chen Ji.
The proprietress smiled brightly and said, "Okay, the total is one hundred and ninety-five coins. I'll charge you one hundred and ninety."
Chen Ji broke the one-liang silver ingot, exchanged it for a few strings of copper coins, and left them at the grain and oil shop to pick up in the evening. He then left with the packages of various sizes.
The package was tied with a straw belt, which made his hands hurt a little, but he was still in a good mood.
Chen Ji bought things in order to go home for a rest. He thought that judging from his own living conditions, his family’s conditions might not be that good either.
According to the information previously revealed by the master, my father should be working on the riverbank, right?
Under such circumstances, the other party still helped me to pay my respects to my master and find a good future for him. This must have been the result of the whole family's efforts.
This touched Chen Ji a little, and he even became curious about his family in this world.
The Chen family lived in Cuiyun Lane. He asked the owner of a shop on the street about the location and walked all the way to the north of Luocheng.
Los Angeles was a little more lively in the morning. He saw someone driving an ox cart passing by with several sacks on it. He didn't know what was inside. It seemed like someone was going to the market.
There were also caravans entering the city from the north, with their carriages piled with stretched furs. Winter was approaching, and these were the most sought-after goods among the nobles.
It is said that the most famous brothel in the East Market is called Hongyi Lane. The top girl usually does not receive customers, but if a rich businessman offers her a piece of white mink fur, she will definitely take advantage of her.
There were naughty children chasing and playing on the roadside, shouting nursery rhymes and holding homemade windmills in their hands.
The women were washing clothes and chatting by the small river that ran through the city, laughing from time to time.
Chen Ji arrived at Cuiyun Lane and asked a stall owner, "Excuse me, which household does the Guandong Chen family live in?"
The old man glanced at him and said, "Isn't this Chen Ji? Why do you need to ask where your home is?"
Chen Ji: “…”
So they are acquaintances.
He hesitated for a long time and didn't dare to ask any more questions. He just carried the things and walked into the alley.
At this time, there was a noise in the front: "Butler, butler, where should I hang this lantern?"
A man's harsh voice said impatiently, "Do I have to teach you everything? There's a hook on the eaves above where the stone lions are hung! Hurry up, the two young masters will be back soon. If you delay any longer, you'll be in trouble!"
Chen Ji looked at the house decorated with lanterns and didn't know what kind of celebration was going on. The more he looked, the more he felt something was wrong. He saw the plaque in front of the house read:
...Chen Mansion.
Are there two Chen Mansions in Cuiyun Lane?
This family's door lintel is bright, and although the vermilion lacquered main gate and stone lions are not particularly grand, they are definitely not an ordinary family.
"...This shouldn't be my home, right?" Chen Ji muttered.
"Chen Ji?" The mustachioed butler looked over and asked in confusion, "Why are you back?"
Chen Ji hesitated for a second: "I'm taking a day off today."
The housekeeper said, "That's perfect. You're taller. Come up the ladder and hang up the lantern."
"oh."
Chen Ji put the package in his hand aside and climbed up the ladder to hang the lantern.
The housekeeper directed the other maids, "Come, come, get a basin of water and sprinkle it in front of the door to prevent dust from being raised when the two young masters return. You are a bunch of clumsy people. After all, you are servants of the Luocheng Tongzhi. If anyone sees you, they will laugh at you for not knowing the rules!"
As he spoke, the housekeeper saw the packages on the ground and said, "Whoever put them here, take them aside quickly and don't get in the way."
Chen Ji calmly came down from the ladder: "Butler, I..."
The housekeeper suddenly realized: "You came to learn about silver, right? The master told me about this a while ago, but you see, I was so busy that I forgot, so I didn't send it to you."
He ordered someone to bring out a string of copper coins from the accounting office, which should have been three hundred pieces. "Please use them sparingly. The world is difficult now, and it's not easy for our Chen family either."
Until this moment, Chen Ji still didn't understand what his identity was in the Chen Mansion.
The sound of horse hooves could be heard in the distance, and a cacophony of discussion drifted in from outside Cuiyun Lane. "The eldest and second young masters of the Chen family are back! They've been away at Donglin Academy for three years, and now I can hardly recognize them."
"The eldest and second young masters are becoming more handsome."
Chen Ji looked over and saw two young men riding white horses entering the alley. They were wearing green brocade robes embroidered with delicate and elegant patterns. The embroidery alone told him that the robes were very expensive.
The two young men wore cloud-shaped boots, each with a piece of green jade hanging from their belts, and pearl and jade pendant collars hanging from their chests. They looked no more than eighteen or nineteen years old, and were extremely graceful.
The butler came forward, smiled, and took the reins: "Having completed their studies at Donglin Academy, the two young masters will surely make a splash in this year's imperial examinations!"
The two young masters jumped off their horses, handed the whips to the maids, and said with a smile, "The housekeeper has a lot of white hair in recent years. It seems that he has been working hard for the mansion."
"No, no, it's all my job... The master was supervising the water conservancy work on the riverbank. He heard you were coming back a few days ago, so he rushed back to wait for you. Go and pay your respects to him!"
Amidst the noise, everyone followed the two young masters into the mansion. They didn't even glance at Chen Ji when they passed by him.
They were not pretending, they really seemed not to recognize who Chen Ji was, or it didn't matter whether they recognized him or not.
The once bustling front of the Chen Mansion had become deserted. Chen Ji stood at the door in silence, as if the world had forgotten him.
Chen Ji thought carefully. His master should know his family background, but it seemed that his master never mentioned that his family could not afford the tuition because they were poor, nor did he say what his father did on the river bank.
The reason why the master was so angry at the beginning was because he knew that his family was obviously rich, but he was still dragging his feet and unwilling to pay the tuition.
The Tongzhi of Luocheng, like Liu Mingxian, was a fifth-rank official.
Chen Ji looked at the plaque "Chen Mansion" above his head, and finally did not step into the red door. The young man just bent down and placed the string of three hundred copper coins at the door, then picked up the packages he brought with him and turned away.
The old man at the entrance of the alley looked at his back and sighed, "There's a world of difference between a legitimate son with a mother and a bastard son without one."
Chen Ji returned to Anxi Street and took the copper coins from the grain and oil store. The proprietress was a little surprised: "Little Doctor Chen, why did you bring the things back in the same condition? We can't accept returns here."
He smiled and said, "No, I will take it back and honor my master."
When he returned to the clinic, Old Man Yao glanced at him and said, "Didn't I tell you to rest? Why are you back so soon?"
Chen Ji counted out five hundred and sixty copper coins and said, "Master, this is the money my family gave me to make up for the tuition and medicine money I owe you. These packages in my hand were also given to me by my family."
Old Man Yao curled his lips and said, "Your family has finally grown sensible. I didn't expect your father could repair his brain while supervising the repair of a riverbank."
Chen Ji: "...you are
You're too rude, so you were banished to Los Angeles, right?"
…
…
At night, Chen Ji sat in the main hall of the clinic, quietly copying down knowledge points about the pathology of typhoid fever. When he turned around, Wu Yun was already squatting on the counter behind him, holding a small blue cloth bundle in his mouth.
"Are you planning to run away from home?"
"What are you thinking about?" Wu Yun asked after hesitating for a few seconds, "Can you take me to Qingping Lane?"
"It's late, and I'm afraid of the dark."
"Do you think I believe it?"
Chen Ji sighed: "Okay, I'll take you there, but why are you going to Qingping Lane?"
"I don't want to talk about it now!"
Where is Qingping Lane? This is a very serious question.
Chen Ji thought for a moment and said, "Well... I'll take you there tomorrow night. It's not convenient today."
"Why not today?!"
"I don't know where Qingping Lane is..." Chen Ji said, "You don't have to look at me like that. Although I can't explain why, I really don't know where Qingping Lane is."
Wuyun thought for a moment: "I know."
A night watchman passed by the door. He knocked on the bell and shouted, "It's dry, be careful with fire."
It is already Yinshi, 3 o'clock in the morning.
Los Angeles is no longer as lively and prosperous as it was during the day.
Chen Ji quietly closed the door of the clinic and followed the dark clouds into the night.
He tied the small blue cloth package to the back of the dark cloud. It looked quite cute and also helped him not to lose track of the dark cloud in the dark night... The dark cloud was really too dark.
Along the way, the dark clouds seemed to be relying on memory to identify the direction, sniffing here and there.
The man and the cat walked and stopped for an hour, and they got lost several times.
Chen Ji did not urge him either. He could see that going to Qingping Lane tonight must be very important to Wuyun.
He has enough patience.
Finally, the dark cloud stopped in an alley and stared blankly at the closed door.
"Is this the place?" Chen Ji asked.
"Here."
"Should I knock on the door?"
"no!"
Wuyun shouted twice towards the door, calling out something.
But the shouting didn't happen except attracting two wild cats.
"I want to climb over and take a look. You wait here." Wuyun took a little help from the wall and leaped into the yard. His speed was so fast that it seemed to leave an afterimage. He was extremely agile.
Chen Ji leaned against the alley and waited calmly. After a while, the dark clouds disappeared and returned again. His mood was obviously much lower: "Let's go."
"Is it done?"
"Um."
"What's up?"
Wuyun stopped and looked back at the door: "I miss my mother."
Chen Ji was silent, cats also miss their mothers.
Wu Yun said absentmindedly, "She may not miss me, but I just wanted to come and see her... Besides, I want to travel the world with you in the future, so I have to bring you here and let her see you."
Chen Ji asked, "Isn't she at home?"
Wuyun's voice trailed off, "She must have been sold too. Her cage and food bowl are gone."
"Help you find her?"
"I won't look for it anymore. This is the fate of cats."
"What's in that little bag you brought?"
"I hid some dried fish to bring to her."
Chen Ji stood in the darkness of the alley in silence. He bent down, held Wuyun in his arms, and walked towards the clinic.
The dark cloud did not struggle. It just curled up into a small ball and covered its head with its furry tail.
There was a clattering sound of footsteps on the bluestone slabs, and the boy's back was thin but straight.
"Chen Ji, what kind of person is your mother?"
"She... is a very gentle person," Chen Ji didn't want to say anything more, as if memories were a warm air flow like breath, which disappeared as soon as they came out of his mouth.
He walked along the long streets of Los Angeles holding Wuyun in his arms. Wuyun was very small, just a few months old. When he shrank, he was only the size of two palms.
Chen Ji suddenly wanted to live a good life.
"dark clouds?"
"Um?"
"Let's depend on each other."
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