Chapter 48: While administering the medicine, the tip of the tongue licked the medicine spoon, just like a deep mountain...
Patients gathered at Tongbei Temple one after another, and doctors from Wenbin City also rushed here with their medicine boxes.
The carriage crushed the last ray of setting sun. Yuan Qingjun, wearing a plain robe and carrying a bulging indigo bag on his shoulders, jumped lightly and jumped off the carriage.
Fang Yilan happened to be discussing matters with Zhuang Gu in front of the temple. When she saw someone getting off the carriage, her eyes lit up: "Sister Qingjun, you're finally here!"
Yuan Qingjun followed Fang Yilan into the temple. Looking at the neatly divided layout and the regulations posted everywhere, he couldn't help but applaud. "Not bad! You've managed to set it up like this in such a short time. You have a real talent for medicine. If you ever tire of fighting in the future, why don't we open a clinic together? It will definitely benefit the people!"
Fang Yilan was about to reply when the Left Assistant Magistrate hurried over, holding a book. Yuan Qingjun waved her hand knowingly, letting her go ahead and went to the makeshift medicine stove in the backyard.
Without a moment's rest, Yuan Qingjun ordered her attendants to light the stove, set up a large cauldron, and begin to boil the herbs. The herbal medicine pot gurgled on the stovetop. She scooped up a spoonful of the decoction and was about to taste it when the crisp sound of a wooden fence breaking suddenly echoed from the backyard.
"hiss--"
Yuan Qingjun followed the sound and saw it was coming from Jiaoyue, a horse tied up in the temple's backyard. Jiaoyue was furiously digging at the broken bricks on the ground with its front hooves, its snow-white mane tangled in dry grass, its body twisting and turning, struggling to break free from the fence that bound it.
The bright moon hadn't changed much, except that the dashing and heroic young man on horseback was no longer visible.
"Good girl..." Yuan Qingjun rested his forehead against Jiaoyue's neck, and his eyes suddenly turned red.
A ghostly black shadow took the opportunity to pass by the window frame, came to the boiling medicine soup, and swiftly sprinkled a packet of powder into it, then quickly disappeared.
Yuan Qingjun wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, calmed herself down, and returned to the medicine furnace.
The medicine had been boiled. She first scooped out a spoonful, blew gently on it near her mouth, and tested the temperature and medicinal properties of the medicine. After confirming that there was no problem, she scooped out a few bowls with confidence.
Yuan Qingjun distributed several bowls of medicinal soup to Xunyun, Zhuanggu, and Shuxue.
"Sister Qingjun, what is this?" Shuxue's face wrinkled with bitterness after drinking it, and she couldn't help but ask curiously.
Yuan Qingjun patiently explained, "Those of you who have frequent contact with patients every day must drink it. Although it can't be said to completely isolate you from the disease, it can at least help prevent it."
"Yilan, come and drink this."
Yuan Qingjun held the bowl of steaming medicine in one hand and stopped Fang Yilan who was about to escape with the other.
Fang Yilan paused when she was about to quietly leave, but was forcibly brought back by Yuan Qingjun and forced to sit on a stone bench.
Knowing that he couldn't escape, Fang Yilan could only pinch his nose, raise his head, and drink the medicine before he could escape.
When I reached the temple entrance, I saw a girl sitting at the foot of the steps. She was covered in dirt, but her round, lovely face couldn't be hidden. Her clothes were stained, but if I looked closely, the embroidery was exquisite, and she didn't look like an abandoned child.
She sat there quietly, holding a rag doll with one eye missing in her arms, supporting her head with her little hands, and only looked back a few times when someone came in or out.
The guarding soldier hurried forward to explain: "General, this girl has been here for several days. She has not said a word and has been sitting here, looking into the temple from time to time. I don't know what she is waiting for."
Fang Yilan walked down the stairs, sat down with the girl, and gave her a steamed bun: "You must be hungry, eat something first."
The girl took the steamed bun and said in a clear and shy voice: "Thank you, sister."
"What are you doing here?"
"My parents are both in there getting treatment. I want to wait here until they recover and come out. I'm afraid they'll be worried if they don't see me when they come out."
Fang Yilan touched her head and said, "It's my fault for not being considerate enough."
She then called over her attendants and whispered a few instructions.
Shao Wan arrived quickly after receiving the news. She brought the girl an exquisitely crafted wooden doll, held her in her arms, and said softly, "Don't worry, I will take good care of her."
Fang Yilan also notified the left magistrate to issue a notice in the city, stating that if there were any elderly, weak, women or children in similar situations, they could be sent to the Jinling Money House for temporary residence, where they would be provided with comprehensive care.
Fang Yilan came back from work and was about to take a breath when a panicked soldier came running over to report: "General, a large number of patients have suddenly arrived."
Her expression was stern: "What's going on?"
"I don't know. These patients are all neighbors. They said they all got infected on the same day."
Fang Yilan walked quickly toward the area where the patients were being housed. Before she even got close, she heard a cacophony of shouting and cursing. A group of people gathered together, their emotions agitated. They were the same people who had bullied the widow, Wang Qiong.
"Wang Qiong, get out here! You're a disaster! You've made everyone sick!" A man with a face full of flesh shouted at the top of his voice.
When Wang Qiong heard the noise, she walked out of the west wing slowly. Her complexion looked much better than before.
"You vicious woman! Are you poisoning us all? What are you planning?" A tall and thin man jumped out, almost poking his finger into Wang Qiong's face, and cursed viciously.
After hearing this, Wang Qiong sneered, "I don't know who stole my things at home, and now he's sick, and they're blaming me."
"Who stole your food?" A woman with a shrill voice jumped out, hands on her hips. "You're not home, so it's a waste if you can't eat it. We're helping you!"
Wang Qiong laughed even more wantonly, her eyes full of mockery: "You didn't dare touch my things? How come you dared to touch them as soon as I left? Besides, I made the porridge myself and drank a bowl before leaving. What's the problem?"
Fang Yilan looked at the noisy group, her brows knitted tightly into the shape of a "川" character, and shouted sternly, "Shut up! This is a place to treat patients and save lives, not a place for you to run wild!"
Everyone quieted down instantly after being shouted at, but some people were still muttering in low voices, with a look of dissatisfaction on their faces.
The secret guard came over and said, "General, His Highness asks you to come over."
Fang Yilan turned her head and saw the half-open window of the Zen room in the west wing.
It is the New Year, and the fresh grass on the windowsill and the leaves with tender buds sway in the wind. A figure is vaguely outlined through the gaps in the green gauze.
Although he couldn't see the face clearly, Fang Yilan could still feel the pair of dark jade eyes, which followed him without wavering.
The door creaked open, and Zhao Huaixu lay halfway on the bed, his figure looking increasingly frail, as if a gust of wind could blow him over. Seeing Fang Yilan come in, he deliberately suppressed his violent cough.
Fang Yilan came in with the medicine, placed it on the couch, and said with a stern face, "I'll help you up, drink the medicine first."
She reached out to help Zhao Huaixu, but he gently avoided her.
"I'll do it myself. It would be bad if I pass the disease on to A'lan." He forced himself to sit up and reached out to pick up the medicine bowl. Suddenly, he felt dizzy and his fingers became weak. The medicine bowl fell to the ground with a clang, and the medicine splashed everywhere, leaving a dark stain on the ground.
Fang Yilan sighed and ordered the secret guard to get another bowl.
She sat beside the bed, patted his back, and when his coughing subsided a little, she said unhappily, "Why are you trying so hard?"
After taking the medicine newly delivered by the secret guard, Fang Yilan personally fed him the medicine.
Fang Yilan scooped up a spoonful of medicine, put it to her lips and blew gently. When the temperature was right, she slowly handed it to Zhao Huaixu's mouth.
Zhao Huaixu was so anxious that he couldn't stop drinking the medicine. When he lowered his head, his crow-feather eyelashes brushed lightly across Fang Yilan's fingertips that were holding the medicine bowl, and a tingling sensation spread along his left hand.
Zhao Huaixu raised his eyes while holding the medicine spoon, and inadvertently, his gaze met Fang Yilan's eyes directly.
His eyes moved, and his bright black pupils stared at Fang Yilan without blinking. He swallowed the bitter medicine with his Adam's apple rolling, but his tongue licked the medicine spoon lightly, just like a snow fox rubbing against people in the mountains to beg for food.
Fang Yilan glanced at him and said, "The Seventh Prince, acting like a prostitute in Yixiang Tower."
Zhao Huaixu did something seductive and asked with an innocent look on his face, "What's wrong with me?" His voice was a little hoarse and had a bit of a coquettish tone.
He leaned over again, rested his head on her shoulder, and sighed contentedly: "Yuan will only serve you..."
A high-ranking prince didn't mind at all that Fang Yilan compared him to a man who used his beauty to please others, and he shamelessly emphasized his own uniqueness.
If Emperor Jingwen heard this, he would probably die of anger on the spot, right?
When I thought about it this way, I suddenly felt that it would be a good idea if this bad idea came true.
Fang Yilan fed him another full spoonful of medicine: "Drink yours, I really want to block your mouth."
"Like this..." Zhao Huaixu took advantage of her unpreparedness and kissed her lips. The bitter fragrance of the medicine flowed down his lips into her mouth.
Fang Yilan was afraid that the medicine would spill again, so she unconsciously stepped back. However, Zhao Huaixu seemed to have anticipated her reaction. He pressed on, his tongue lightly teasing her lips, tracing their shape before unscrupulously drilling inside, muttering, "Isn't it blocked?"
After a long time, Zhao Huaixu reluctantly retreated, with a fierceness still in his eyes, as if he was accusing her of indifference and non-cooperation.
"Aren't you afraid of passing your illness on to me?" Fang Yilan's palms began to itch again, but considering he was still a patient, she just rolled her eyes at him and said, "Drink it yourself!"
Zhao Huaixu's plan succeeded, but he also knew when to stop and obediently drank the remaining half bowl of medicine.
It was late at night, Fang Yilan helped him lie down and tucked him in.
"Alan, can you wait until I fall asleep before leaving?" After saying that, Zhao Huaixu didn't care whether Fang Yilan agreed or not, and intertwined his fingers with Fang Yilan's.
He spontaneously clung to her again, resting his head gently on her legs, his movements as gentle as a docile cat slave, nudging her to coax him to sleep.
Fang Yilan tried to push his head between his knees, but it was like a thousand-pound rock and didn't move at all.
If she used too much force, the scoundrel would rub his temples, frown, and cry out in pain.
Anyway, he refused to move.
Fang Yilan was helpless. She couldn't hit or scold the patient, so she could only make up stories: "Once upon a time, there was a mountain. On the mountain was a temple. In the temple was a cunning little pig. He was disobedient and was thrown down the mountain by an old monk. He grunted and scraped the flesh off his body until only bones were left. He threw the bloody flesh on the stone steps in front of the temple and cursed the old monk for being cruel..."
"Then what?"
"And then the piglet died."
"What about the old monk? Will she be sad?"
"The old monk held the bones and chanted sutras for seven days..."
"Seven days are too short..."
"Pooh, pooh, pooh, may you live a long life, little pig."
...
The next morning, Yuan Qingjun walked out of the room rubbing his neck, but happened to meet Fang Yilan walking out of the west wing.
Yuan Qingjun raised his eyebrows playfully and jokingly said, "Are you reconciled? He's still sick, so don't be too presumptuous."
"I just took care of the patient for one night. It's not what you think." Fang Yilan coughed twice and quickly changed the subject: "What's wrong with your neck?"
Yuan Qingjun covered his neck with his hand and gently turned his head, saying, "I'm also wondering, my neck hurts so much when I wake up. It doesn't feel like a stiff neck, but more like someone punched me hard."
I tried to recall what happened last night, but my mind was blank. I slept very soundly last night and even dreamed of a lingering ghost.
An old doctor came running over, his face full of panic. "General, Miss Yuan, this is bad. Several patients are getting worse. They're starting to develop red spots on their bodies, and some are even vomiting blood."
Upon hearing this, Fang Yilan and Yuan Qingjun looked at each other and without thinking too much, they immediately walked quickly towards the area where the patients were.
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