Chapter 64: There are always people who walk faster, and there are always people who walk slower
Su Ying was a little surprised. She had never seen a scholar who didn't study hard for the purpose of taking the imperial examination and becoming an official.
Even her maternal grandfather, frustrated at court after offending powerful officials and returning home, still opened an academy to cultivate talented individuals for the court, in another way, to make up for his regrets in his official career.
Similarly, her so-called father, Su Jianrong, was forced to give up literature and pursue business because he failed to pass the imperial examination. If anyone had a little talent, her maternal grandfather would do everything in his power to help him pass the imperial examination.
She couldn't believe that this scholar, who was highly regarded by the Du family, had the ambition to save the world rather than to get a name on the imperial examination.
She looked up at Du Heng, who was bending down to look at her at eye level, her eyes full of surprise and confusion.
But his eyes were filled with sincerity and a bit of impatience, wanting to get closer to her.
In fact, what Cheng said was right. Du Heng had indeed not met many women and did not know how to express his feelings.
The only thing he can offer is a sincere heart.
Perhaps it was because Su Ying had sprained her ankle, or perhaps she was too surprised by his honesty in not having any interest in the imperial examination. In short, this time, Su Ying did not dodge as usual, but just stared at him blankly.
This glance made his heart tremble deeply.
The Su Ying in front of me looked like a little deer playing in the jungle, stunned by someone's sudden intrusion. Her big and bright eyes looked at the newcomer, smart and ignorant, which made people feel a little happy.
"Didn't you expect that?"
After saying this, he even lowered his head and smiled.
He is not someone who opens his heart to others easily. Even in the eyes of his closest people like his grandmother and Wanyi, he is always reserved and steady.
As for the servants in the mansion, let alone Qingquan, even if he had ten times the courage, he would never dare to make jokes in front of the young master.
He did not hand the Treatise on Febrile Diseases to Su Ying. Instead, he looked at the slightly stained cover and recalled, "Ever since I was a child, I've loved listening to the ringing of medicine bells as doctors walked around the streets."
After being punished by his father for sneaking out to play, Du Heng's father changed his strategy. He urged Du Heng to study hard at home, rather than confining him to a classroom. Instead, they agreed that if Du Heng could recite a poem or write a commendable essay ahead of time, his father would personally take him out for an outing.
He remembered one time, when his father had just taken him out of the house, they had not walked far when they saw a boy younger than him kneeling on the side of the road, kowtowing to passers-by, with a ragged old man lying behind him.
"Master, Master, please be kind and save my grandfather."
The father felt sorry for the old man. Seeing that he was about to take a breath, he took out a silver ingot from his sleeve and said, "Give him a good meal and go on your journey in peace."
The boy was still young, so how could he understand what "on the road" meant? After bowing and thanking him, he ran to the porridge shop, brought back a bowl of thick porridge, and fed it to the old man.
At this time, the old man was breathing in less and breathing out more, and the amount of white porridge he took in was the same amount that came out.
The father sighed and pulled Du Heng away helplessly.
Du Heng was led by his father, looking back every few steps. He saw the boy smiling at the silver, but now he was sad and flustered because the old man couldn't eat the porridge.
"We'll do our best and leave the rest to fate. This is all we can do."
The father stopped, leaned over to look at Du Heng, who was still naive about the world, and spoke slowly.
That was the first time Du Heng witnessed such a scene of separation between life and death, and he realized that there were such things in this world that were beyond redemption.
His mother and grandmother always told him to study hard and not to think too much, because with success he would have everything.
When he secretly ran out to play, the children from the servants' families said that when they grew up they would do big business and make a lot of money, so that they would never have to worry about anything.
But the father, who was well-read in poetry and literature, gave money to the grandfather and grandson but was still unable to help.
It can be seen that education and money are not omnipotent.
Just as the boy's crying became louder and louder, a series of crisp "ding-ling, ding-ling" sounds seemed to tear a hole in the sad scene.
Du Heng smelled the aroma of medicinal herbs that only existed in his grandmother's room. He couldn't help but look over and saw a man in plain clothes, carrying a bamboo basket and shaking a medicine bell.
As the man passed by the father and son, the sweet and bitter aroma of the medicinal herbs became stronger. Du Heng turned around and saw the man stop in front of the grandfather and grandson.
He pulled his father's hand and asked, "Father, what does that man do?"
"A traveling doctor who treats the poor."
"Don't doctors also treat illnesses?"
“Not everyone can afford a doctor.”
The doctor in plain clothes lifted the old man's wrist to feel his pulse, then looked at the old man's face, and finally took off the bamboo basket on his back, took out the medicine powder, sprinkled it on the spoon of porridge, and fed it to the old man.
The boy was also smart. He hurried to the porridge shop to ask for a bowl of water and slowly brought it to the old man's mouth.
After a while, the old man seemed to be choked, coughed lightly a few times, and opened his eyes.
"Father, the old man has woken up. The traveling doctor saved him!"
The deadlock was resolved just like that. Du Heng grabbed his father's sleeve tightly, excited and shocked to the extreme.
“There are times when God is merciless.”
His father's sighs at that time seemed to still ring in his ears. Du Heng looked into Su Ying's eyes and continued in a gentle voice, "Since then, whenever I have free time, I come to the library to look for medical books. My second uncle told me that if I'm interested, I can start with the Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine. After I have a solid foundation, I can read the Treatise on Febrile Diseases and the Golden Chamber."
"To be honest, not long after that incident, I took the Tongshi exam. After that, my schoolwork became increasingly demanding. I read the Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine for years, and only finished it three years ago."
Having said this, Du Heng lowered his head and remained silent for a moment.
Su Ying felt a little sad in her heart. She understood that the three years ago he mentioned was the year his father died.
At this time, Taoxi and Qingquan had already quietly retreated outside the library. The entire library was silent, with only the occasional sound of crackling charcoal from the basin.
Su Ying couldn't help but whispered comfortingly: "There are always people in this world who walk faster, and there are always people who walk slower. As long as they have walked with you for a while, it is enough."
As she finished speaking, she slowly stretched out her hand, and her fingertips gently touched the "Treatise on Febrile Diseases" in his hand.
It was not known whether her words touched Du Heng, or her actions interrupted his thoughts, but he suddenly raised his head, and his moist eyes, which reflected the mountains and water and were shimmering with light, met her unexpected gaze.
She was startled and hurriedly wanted to take the book away, but Du Heng held the book and did not move.
At this moment, he held one end of the book, and Su Ying held the other end, and their hands were connected through the book.
Su Ying pulled a few times, and seeing that he still didn't let go, she looked up at him again, her cheeks already flushed.
Du Heng's heart was surging, his throat was slightly tight, and he couldn't help but say: "Ying'er, I..."
Just as he started to speak, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door, and Qingquan came in to report: "Sir, cousin, the old lady wants to see you. There are guests!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
