Chapter 135 Luck Li Xianghuan's luck seems to be really bad...
The doctor at the clinic tried to drive her away as soon as he saw her, but the sweet rice ball was already on the verge of death. Li Xianghuan could only kneel down and kowtow repeatedly, her voice choked with sobs, "Please... just take a look... it doesn't matter if it can be cured or not... just take a look..."
The doctor was an elderly man. Seeing Li Xianghuan in such a state, he couldn't bear it. After helping her up, he said, "Young lady, I see you are also badly injured. Why are you only thinking about a piece of livestock?"
"It's just a dog, we can just get another one if it's gone. But you, so young, and you don't look like you come from an ordinary family. You must have run away from some rich family, right?"
As he spoke, he sighed, "I've practiced medicine for many years and seen quite a few young men and women run away from home. But let me tell you, this world is treacherous, full of scheming, and it's not easy to survive here!"
“Especially young people like you, coming out here, there are hardly any who won’t be deceived. It’s especially dangerous for young women. I’ve seen plenty of cases where women are tricked into getting pregnant out of wedlock, and then the baby boys run away on their own.”
"So, my dear girl, listen to this old man's advice: no matter what conflicts you have with your family, you are still connected by blood, and blood is thicker than water. In this world, there are no people more willing to forgive you than your family."
"Sigh... Don't think that everyone outside is a good person just because you have a disagreement with your family. People in this world are all driven by self-interest. Who doesn't gather together for profit? So, this world is full of interests and calculations. If a young person like you can't understand this, you should go home as soon as possible."
Li Xianghuan raised her head and looked at the person in front of her. Two lines of clear tears slid down her red eyes.
She parted her lips slightly, her lips trembling a few times before she struggled to suppress the sobs in her voice, and said, "I...I have no home anymore..."
"Doctor...it's not that I don't want to go home...it's that I have no home anymore...it's all I have left...it's my only 'family'..."
doctor:"……"
The doctor was stunned, seemingly not expecting Li Xianghuan to say such a thing. After a long silence, he sighed heavily, "It was the old man who spoke out of turn. I never thought you were such a pitiful person."
"Sigh... No wonder I saw you running around everywhere before, working in restaurants and doing odd jobs in wealthy families. Turns out... you were homeless too..."
He shook his head and sighed again. "Alright. This is the first time I've treated livestock in all my years of practicing medicine. I won't charge you for the consultation. Just bring the dog over."
Upon hearing this, Li Xianghuan finally broke into a smile through his tears and said, "Thank you, doctor..."
Although it was the doctor's first time treating livestock, his medical skills were truly superb. He managed to save the nearly dead Jiu Niang Yuanzi from the brink of death.
Later, the doctor learned about her previous fight with others and found out that the people she had chased away were notorious local thugs. Perhaps to thank her for ridding the people of a menace, or perhaps out of pity for her and her dog having nowhere to go, the doctor took pity on her.
In short, on the day he heard about those things, he went to that alley and found her, let her stay at the clinic, provided her with food and lodging, but required her to stay at the clinic to help out.
Li Xianghuan had been sleeping in alleys and going hungry, but now that he finally had a place to stay and could have three meals a day, he naturally agreed without hesitation.
Although the doctor had asked her to help out, he noticed that she was unwell. After she checked into the clinic, he not only prescribed medicine to help her recover, but also taught her a lot of traditional Chinese medicine techniques.
Afterwards, seeing that she had a photographic memory, he was overjoyed and wished he could impart all his skills to her.
Although the doctor didn't mention it, his manner clearly indicated that he was treating her like an apprentice.
Since she and her sweet fermented rice balls moved into the clinic, their lives have naturally become easier.
Unfortunately, Li Xianghuan's luck seems to be really bad.
Her peaceful days were short-lived, as the doctor accidentally bumped into a drunkard one day while going out.
The drunkard had a violent temper, and even though the old doctor kept apologizing, he was still forced to the ground and given a severe beating.
When Li Xianghuan rushed there after hearing the news, the drunkard had already left. The doctor, an elderly man, had been beaten by a strong young man, suffering multiple fractures and serious internal injuries, and was already on the verge of death. Therefore, when Li Xianghuan arrived, he only had time to glance at her, give her a slight smile, and then breathed his last.
Holding the doctor's still-warm body, Li Xianghuan looked up at the crowds surrounding him, his voice trembling as if he were muttering to himself, "Why...why did you just stand by...why didn't you help him...why didn't you save him...why..."
She kept repeating her confusion, but unfortunately, her question was destined to remain unanswered.
In the end, she had no choice but to carry the doctor's body back to the clinic alone.
This clinic was the last place the doctor had left, and she could tell that he loved practicing medicine and often went out to do free clinics. Therefore, she wanted to stay and take over from the old doctor to continue running this clinic.
However, this matter was not really up to her to decide, because the doctor had children. After hearing the news of the doctor's death, his children rushed back and began to argue about the ownership of the clinic.
The two argued until neither was willing to back down, so they could only agree to split the clinic in two, sell it, and then divide the money equally.
As for Li Xianghuan, who could hardly be considered an apprentice, he was naturally kicked out along with the dog.
Even if she was kicked out, there was nothing she could say. After all, those were the doctor's children, not hers. She wasn't even his apprentice.
Fortunately, during his time at the clinic, Li Xianghuan saved up some money, enough to buy a small, dilapidated house in a remote area outside the city.
After buying a small, dilapidated house, she left town with the fermented rice balls.
After the woman and her dog simply moved into their new home, she hung up a sign outside the dilapidated house that read "Free Clinic".
Although her medical skills weren't particularly advanced, she understood basic medical principles and could easily treat minor ailments like headaches and fevers by prescribing basic remedies.
The person who sold her the house, probably out of respect for the old doctor, not only gave her a house but also a small plot of land as a bonus.
On that land, you can grow some vegetables and radishes, and raise chickens. Over time, there will definitely be no shortage of vegetables. As for meat, you should be able to eat meat five or six days a year.
Besides, those who came to her for a pulse diagnosis after hearing her voice would bring food or other necessities with them, since she was providing free medical services and did not charge money, so she and the sweet fermented rice balls lived a very comfortable life.
However, Li Xianghuan's luck seems to be really bad.
Her peaceful days didn't last long. One day, the sweet rice balls, who was used to leaving every morning and returning in the afternoon, didn't come home for a long time.
She looked at the chicken soup simmering in the pot and felt something was off. She muttered to herself, "Strange... Did the sweet rice balls get lost today? It's rare for someone to bring a chicken; I was thinking of giving it some nourishment..."
But despite my grumbling, I still need to find the sweet fermented rice balls.
After she put out the fire, she went outside and began calling out "Sweet Rice Balls" while aimlessly searching around.
Sweet Fermented Rice Balls go to so many places. Sometimes they go begging for food, sometimes they go hunting for wild game, and sometimes they bring back medicinal herbs on their own. Li Xianghuan thought about it for a while, but he couldn't think of any other places besides home where Sweet Fermented Rice Balls would often go.
She walked along calling out for a while, and then suddenly saw a man and a woman walking towards her.
Upon seeing her, the two quickened their pace, clearly indicating that they had come specifically to find her.
Seeing this, Li Xianghuan stopped in his tracks.
Before she could even ask anything, the woman said as the two men approached her, "Dr. Li, we've come to tell you something. This morning, when my father-in-law went out to collect his fishing nets, he happened to see your dog running towards the mountains over there."
“Your dog only listens to you. He barked several times, but it didn’t stop. My father-in-law is afraid of dogs and didn’t dare to stop it, so he could only watch it run that way. So, Dr. Li, you should hurry up and look for it in that area. Don’t let your dog go up the mountain!”
Upon hearing this, Li Xianghuan frowned.
She instinctively wanted to run that way, but after taking a step, she realized that she was not as capable as before and could no longer rely on her skills to act rashly.
Therefore, she stopped and asked, "Are there wild animals on that mountain?"
The man continued, "Not a wild beast, but something even scarier than a wild beast! Dr. Li, you don't come to town often, so you don't know! About ten days ago, someone saw a group of bandits running away from somewhere and heading up that mountain. And after they went up there, they haven't come down since, as if they're going to settle down there."
"We didn't see it with our own eyes, but we heard that those bandits seemed to have been driven there by imperial troops. Although they were all wounded, they were all carrying large machetes! The blades were gleaming from being sharpened, it was terrifying!"
Then the woman added, "My father-in-law told us about this as soon as he got back. He's lame and walks slowly, so he sent us to tell you. We all know that Dr. Li and that dog are each other's only family, so..."
Li Xianghuan didn't listen to the person finish speaking before running towards the mountain she had pointed to.
She ran very fast, clearly using some spiritual power; for a part of the journey, she even flew.
Even though she suffered internal injuries and vomited blood due to using her spiritual power halfway through, she didn't dare to stop. She continued to call out "sweet rice balls" while searching around.
Finally, seeing that she couldn't find it down the mountain, she had no choice but to go up the mountain to search for it.
Fortunately, the mountain wasn't very high, and there were many trees on it. She leaped onto the treetop and ran and flew for a while, her voice becoming hoarse from shouting, but she still didn't hear a response from the sweet rice balls.
At this moment, she seemed to have a bad feeling. After vomiting a few more mouthfuls of blood, she jumped to the top of the tallest tree in the area, stood on a green leaf, and looked down at the forest.
Author's Note: Hmm...
Xianghuan will never forget that old doctor, and neither will I. I also remember the elder who loved me dearly, who, even as he struggled to breathe, gave me a final smile as he looked at me one last time.
well……
Why isn't it finished yet?
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