The dinner that Jiang Qiao hosted that evening left everyone who came completely satisfied. Of course, the overflowing praise made even someone like Wen Songtao grin from ear to ear, mainly because he was happy.
His wife's cooking skills weren't great, but this time, his granddaughter really made him proud. Before, he would just eat at other people's houses, and even if he returned the favor, the dishes were always the same few. Today was different. The old man was satisfied with the meal, and he felt even more proud. He even walked with a sense of satisfaction.
It's no wonder everyone praises it so much. In this era of meat and oil scarcity, even ordinary cooking methods taste good as long as there's enough oil.
Besides, this was made by Jiang Qiao, who is half an apprentice of Ma Liu. There are some dishes that these people will never get to eat in their entire lives.
"Alright, today's task is complete. Tomorrow, I'll make Buddha Jumps Over the Wall for you two. I need to study medical books tonight, so you two go to sleep first. Tomorrow morning, we'll go to pay our respects. Later, I'll go out again to fetch some things."
Wen Songtao's only concern was to give two words of advice: "Go to bed early, don't take your health for granted just because you're young. Okay, go read your book now—"
The elderly couple sat in the courtyard enjoying the cool air. The old lady sighed, "Oh, Qiao'er's cooking is still the best. This is the most satisfying meal I've had here. It feels like I've gone back to the old days."
The old man took his wife's hand and patted it. "I'm sorry you've suffered along with me. But I'm also very happy today. The girl's cooking skills were praised by those old men. That's rare. However, I feel a little sorry for her. Those guys drank quite a bit of the medicinal wine she made."
Zhou Yaru rolled her eyes at the old man, "Do you really think I don't know? That girl will definitely bring you several jars later."
You can drink some medicinal wine in moderation, but it's best to be careful with other things. After all, you're getting older. It's not like when you were young and needed to conduct business, which was unavoidable. Now, let's take good care of our health, at least so our children don't worry about us.
Jiang Qiao could see the elderly couple nestled together in the courtyard from the window. In fact, she quite envied their relationship of growing old together.
Even wealthy men like Wen Songtao rarely remain faithful; it's good enough if they don't divorce their first wife. Most of them have multiple wives and concubines, but her maternal grandfather managed to do just that.
So she envied her maternal grandmother, that happy woman who grew old slowly amidst her husband's love and care, from youth to old age.
She sighed and lowered her head to continue studying the books she had just acquired. The more she studied, the more alarmed she became. No wonder he was called a miracle doctor. There were some things she had never heard of before. No wonder traditional Chinese medicine has been gradually replaced by Western medicine, and so many things have been lost.
"Girl, go to bed early. There's no rush to read. Take your time and study slowly."
Jiang Qiao responded from inside the room. She was indeed a bit tired today. After putting away her books, she checked the time, took out her radio, and contacted Song Shutian, mainly because she was worried that something might have happened to him.
While waiting, Jiang Qiao took out the two jade pendants and carefully compared them. They were exactly the same size and shape, so it was obvious that the two jade pendants were related.
However, she didn't know what this thing was used for, whether it was a symbol of status or something else, or who the people who lived in the valley back then were.
Unable to understand what the two jade pendants represented, Jiang Qiao could only sigh and put them away.
There was no word from Song Shutian, so she stopped waiting, put the things away, and went to bed.
The next morning, the grandfather and grandson went to the old doctor's grave with incense, candles, and paper money. Jiang Qiao respectfully kowtowed three times to the old man.
"Although I will never have the chance to meet you, now that I have received what you left behind, I will study it diligently, carry forward your medical skills, and save more patients."
Wen Songtao, who was burning paper money on the side, was so shocked that he couldn't close his mouth.
He burned the paper; there was no sign of it beforehand. After his granddaughter finished speaking, the burnt fragments flew straight up.
Wen Songtao was dumbfounded. He couldn't understand what was going on. Was it a miracle?
However, there was one piece of debris that, for some reason, seemed to have a soul. Seeing that the old man and the others were not moving, it just stayed in the air.
Wen Songtao was stunned, but as someone who had weathered many storms, he quickly adjusted his mindset.
"Qiao'er, look! Those scraps of paper—"
Following the direction the old man pointed, Jiang Qiao glanced at it, then got up and pulled the old man along behind the scraps of paper.
As Wen Songtao walked, he muttered to himself, "Why does this direction lead to the old doctor's house?"
Jiang Qiao didn't reply, but pulled the old man along behind. When they arrived at the old doctor's house, the door was unlocked. After Jiang Qiao and Wen Songtao went inside, the piece of paper fell directly to the ground under a tree in the yard.
Without hesitation, Jiang Qiao found a tool and started scraping at the spot where the scraps of paper had fallen, with the grandfather and grandson taking turns.
Upon hearing the sound, Wen Songtao exclaimed with delight, "Got it! Quick, make way!"
The old man used his hands to pry and pull, and finally managed to pull out a small iron box from inside.
Jiang Qiao opened the box; the contents were wrapped in oil paper.
Jiang Qiao opened it and found a book and a letter inside. She couldn't wait to open the letter and start reading.
After she finished reading it, she handed it to Wen Songtao. She picked up the book, didn't even look at it, and stuffed it directly into her bag.
Then he got up and filled the hole. After reading Nobunaga's work, Wen Songtao sighed.
"I never expected that this old doctor would be a descendant of the Heavenly Medicine Sect. Alas, it's a pity that there's no one left in his generation. Girl, since the letter said so, you have to carry on the Heavenly Medicine Sect's legacy from now on."
Although I don't know anything about this sect, judging from what's written in the letter, it must be quite powerful.
Jiang Qiao nodded. "Grandpa, I know. From now on, I will be a disciple of this sect. I will help my master do what he couldn't do."
Such a powerful sect has withered away like this; even Jiang Qiao didn't expect it.
That's true. The old doctor's father passed away early, and he hadn't finished learning this skill yet. He had to figure it out on his own in the later stages, but he still didn't understand many of the words in the book. Otherwise, he wouldn't have stayed in a remote corner of the country.
The grandfather and grandson finished tidying up, closed the door, and left. By then, smoke was already rising from the chimneys of every household.
A neighbor who came out to clean the house was puzzled to see the old man and the young girl coming out of the old doctor's house.
"Hey, Third Master, what brings you here?"
Wen Songtao sighed, "My granddaughter thinks this place is nice and wants to get a house here. Since the old doctor went, I brought her here to see the house. If it's suitable, we can let our family stay here when they come to visit. I'll talk to the village chief about it later. I don't know how much this house is worth."
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