Chapter 621 Intimacy (First Update)
Gu Jiao didn't say anything like he guessed wrong. She wasn't the type to argue with people, and besides, it wasn't something she cared about.
In addition to the dormitory assignment, Zhong Ding also told the two of them the time and place of their classes, and reminded them to remember to come to class the next morning and not to be late.
"Being late will result in a demerit. Sky Dome Academy has strict rules, and students who receive more than three demerits will be expelled."
After listening to him ramble on for so long, we finally got some important information.
She couldn't be given a demerit or expelled, since Tianqiong Academy was the only way for Gu Jiao to stay in Yan Kingdom.
After leaving the East Courtyard, Gu Xiaoshun wanted to visit the South Courtyard, but Gu Jiao didn't really want to go: "They're all the same, there's nothing to see."
Gu Xiaoshun thought about it and it seemed to make sense. He and his sister were both from Zhao State, so how could their assigned dormitories be so different?
"Then let's hurry and meet up with Master's wife and the others."
Gu Xiaoshun calls his master's wife and master in front of others, but only calls his father and mother when he is alone with Nan Xiang.
The two returned to the back gate of Tianqiong Academy by the same route.
To be honest, aside from the purpose of performing surgery on Gu Yan, Gu Jiao was indeed very interested in the capital of Yan, but she had no intention of sightseeing until she resolved Gu Yan's matter.
Nan Shi Niang and Lu Shi Fu's carriage had already stopped nearby.
Gu Xiaoshun took the token and retrieved their carriage, saying with a pained expression, "Sister, we only stopped for a moment, and they charged me a knife of coins. Yan Kingdom is so expensive; it really costs money everywhere!"
Gu Jiao reached out and removed a leaf from his shoulder: "It's nothing, just a knife coin."
Gu Xiaoshun said, "We still need to be careful with our spending; we need to save the money for Gu Yan's medical treatment."
They hadn't known before their departure that prices in Yan were so high, especially in Shengdu. A steamed bun cost two dao coins, a large meat bun cost three dao coins, and a mutton bun cost four dao coins...
Nan Shi Niang did live in Shengdu more than ten years ago, but back then it was three buns for one dollar, how come the price has increased so much?
“It’s alright, I have some silver deposited at the bank,” Madam Nan said to Gu Jiao and Gu Xiaoshun.
Gu Jiao didn't stand on ceremony with Nan Shi Niang, but even with Nan Shi Niang's money, it probably wouldn't be enough for them to live on for a long time. It seemed they had to think of a way to earn some money.
That's a story for later; let's deal with the immediate issue first.
Since entering the territory of Yan State, Gu Jiao had been inquiring about operating rooms along the way, but no medical clinic had the operating room she needed.
Either the operating room was never built, or the things inside the operating room were too shocking to be known to the outside world.
Gu Jiao hoped it was the latter.
This way, at least Gu Yan still has hope.
Nan Shi Niang said, "I have already found a house. It is not far from the academy. Go out through the back gate and walk forward for about a mile.
It was a house that could barely be considered a two-courtyard house, with a front yard and a back yard. The back yard was connected to the kitchen and woodshed. It wasn't very big, but it was enough for the few of them to live in.
There are three side rooms, one small study, one room for Master Nan and Master Lu, one room for Gu Xiaoshun and Gu Yan, and the remaining room is for Gu Jiao.
"Master's wife, how much is the monthly rent for this house?" Gu Xiaoshun asked.
Nan Shi Niang smiled and said, "Not much, one hundred taels a month."
"What? One hundred taels?!" Gu Xiaoshun was completely dumbfounded!
Nan Shi Niang was amused by his blank expression: "The houses near the academy are rented by the room. A room costs at least twenty taels a month. We have four rooms in total, plus a kitchen, a woodshed, and two courtyards in the front and back. One hundred taels is not expensive."
Gu Xiaoshun clicked his tongue in amazement: "Bishui Hutong is so much bigger than this place, and it only costs thirty taels of silver, plus it's in a good location near the Imperial College."
In just one day, Gu Xiaoshun also began to understand how to compare locations.
If the Zhao Kingdom is divided into inner and outer cities, then Bishui Hutong, where they lived, definitely belonged to the inner city, while Zhuque Street, where Princess Xinyang lived, was extremely close to the imperial palace, making it the innermost inner city within the inner city.
Gu Jiao said, "It's alright, we can earn more money. Let's go pack our things first."
"Okay!" Gu Xiaoshun readily agreed.
"We'll take care of the packing. You all have classes tomorrow, so go and prepare your things for class."
"There's nothing to prepare. You can pick up the books when you go to the classroom tomorrow."
"Then you two take a rest." The two children were exhausted from the journey, and Nan's wife felt sorry for them and refused to let them do anything more.
Gu Jiao had no choice but to give up. After a pause, she said, "Then I'll go and inquire about nearby clinics."
"Sister, I'll go with you."
"good."
The siblings wandered the streets all day, asking locals about the largest medical clinics in the outer city of Shengdu. However, when they arrived, there were no operating rooms, and none of the doctors at any of the clinics had ever seen or heard of the equipment shown on the blueprints.
As evening fell, the two returned to the courtyard, covered in sweat.
The meal was ready, prepared to suit the children's tastes, except for Gu Yan, who had a separate meal prepared for him.
Gu Yan looked at the steamed pork in front of him, which was so bland it looked like it was practically bird food, and his lips twitched.
Madam Nan served soup to Gu Jiao and Gu Xiaoshun, and asked, "Did you find out anything today?"
"Thank you, Madam Nan." Gu Jiao took the soup bowl and said, "The same as before, I didn't find out anything."
Nan Shi Niang wasn't too surprised: "Are you sure what you want is in Yan?"
“I have seen its blueprints, and I am certain that there are people in the Yan Kingdom who know about those things. As for whether it has been built, I cannot be sure.”
Nan Shi Niang thought for a moment: "How about... we go up to the inner city? After all, the outer city is for ordinary people to live in, and the best clinics and the most skilled doctors are all in the inner city."
"It's hard to get into the inner city." Master Lu put a piece of braised pork on Master Nan's plate.
"That's true." Madam Nan frowned.
Gu Jiao took a sip of soup and said, "I'll go wander around the inner city wall in a bit and see if I can sneak in."
Nan Shi Niang felt that doing this was risky, but thinking of Gu Yan's condition, she understood that they didn't have time to wait indefinitely.
She nodded and said, "I'll go with you."
Gu Jiao shook her head: "No, it's easier to hide it alone. Master's wife should stay at home and help me take care of Ayan."
It was already a huge favor that Madam Nan accompanied them to the Yan Kingdom. How could she let Madam Nan go into the inner city with her and risk danger?
Nan Shi Niang opened her mouth.
Master Lu advised, "Just listen to Jiao Jiao. She's smart and quick-witted, and she knows how to act. She won't be rash or impulsive. On the contrary, you're not as composed as Jiao Jiao."
Nan Shi Niang's face darkened: "Are you asking for a beating?"
Master Lu cleared his throat sheepishly: "Eat, eat!"
Dinner was eaten early, and it was still bright outside when they finished. However, Gu Yan was already exhausted, so Gu Jiao escorted him back to his room to rest.
Gu Yan lay weakly on the hospital bed, unable to do anything but watch helplessly as Gu Jiao risked her life to run around for him.
He suddenly felt very uncomfortable.
Gu Jiao took his temperature and blood pressure, packed up her first-aid kit, and said, "Don't worry about it, I'll be right back."
Gu Jiao packed her night clothes and mask into a small bundle, tied it to her body, and went out to get into the carriage.
Gu Xiaoshun escorted her to the vicinity of the inner city wall.
Gu Jiao jumped off the carriage: "Alright, that's enough. You should go back now."
Gu Xiaoshun said, "Sister, be careful!"
Gu Jiao hummed in agreement: "I know."
After Gu Xiaoshun left, Gu Jiao observed the area near the inner city wall for a long time and finally spotted a carriage parked by the roadside that was about to enter the inner city.
Gu Jiao came to the back of the carriage, and took advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention to crawl under the carriage. She grabbed the bottom bar with both hands, hooked her feet on the wheel hub, and stuck herself on it perfectly.
This method was actually quite risky, but Gu Jiao seemed to be lucky; the carriage was not subjected to any checks when it entered the inner city.
Just as Gu Jiao was thinking of finding a less crowded street to land, she didn't expect that the carriage was traveling on a main street with pedestrians on both sides. She inexplicably fell out from under the carriage, which immediately alarmed half the street.
Gu Jiao gritted her teeth.
She waited.
She continued to wait.
This position was a bit physically demanding, and she was soaked in sweat.
The carriage traveled through several more streets until it finally left behind the bustling main road.
Before Gu Jiao could even get out of the carriage, it drove into a large house by the roadside.
Gu Jiao: "..."
The reason it was called a mansion was because after entering, the carriage bounced for a long time, and Gu Jiao's brain was almost shaken to pieces before it finally stopped.
The man got off the carriage and instructed his servants, "Move everything to the storeroom."
"Yes, Master Guan."
The servant replied.
Gu Jiao patiently waited for the servants to empty the carriage, leaving only the coachman unloading the horses' harnesses.
Gu Jiao endured the aches and pains all over her body and silently fell from under the car.
She felt like her body wasn't her own anymore; she had almost lost all feeling in her fingers and abdomen.
She needs to leave here as soon as possible.
After unloading the harness, the driver led the horse to a water vat to begin brushing it.
Gu Jiao took advantage of their unpreparedness and left the stable.
She wanted to find the shortest route out, but when she looked around, she was stunned.
What kind of place is this?
You can't see the wall at all!
"there!"
Suddenly, a male voice carrying a chilling aura rang out, and Gu Jiao sensed a familiar yet frightening presence.
Dragon Shadow Guard!
Or more precisely, they were assassins from the Yan state.
The Zhao Kingdom's Dragon Shadow Guards were trained from the Yan Kingdom's assassins, but there are still significant differences between the two. The Zhao Kingdom's Dragon Shadow Guards cannot speak or communicate; they are merely tools used by the late emperor to carry out missions.
However, not all of the Yan state's elite warriors were like this.
Had I been discovered?
With the stables behind her and Yan Kingdom assassins rushing towards her from the front and right, Gu Jiao had no choice but to flee to the left.
wall!
Her eyes lit up, and with a light touch of her toes, she leaped up, using one hand to support herself on the top of the wall as she jumped over.
However--
She did not leave the mansion, but instead went into a small courtyard within the main compound.
What luck!
Is Xiao Heng possessing me?
Does that mean she shared his bad luck because she used his name?
"Don't forget what I told you to prepare. If Madam finds out you're slacking off, I won't be able to protect you."
"Don't worry, Sister Lianqiao, we won't slack off!"
Several maids were about to walk around the corridor towards Gu Jiao's direction when Gu Jiao closed her eyes and, having no other choice, pushed open a door and entered a room.
A warm, fragrant aroma of incense and medicine wafted over. Gu Jiao, being a doctor, was naturally sensitive to this scent.
There are patients.
"You lot, come inside with me and take a look!"
"Stop! What are you doing?"
"Madam, it seems that an outsider broke into the manor just now, and we are searching it."
"How did you end up searching this place? Is this a place you can just walk into?"
"Please forgive me, Madam."
"I'll go in and take a look. You all wait outside."
"yes."
Not long after the conversation ended, Gu Jiao clearly heard the woman's footsteps approaching the room where she was.
Gu Jiao slapped her forehead.
What bad luck!
The cabinets are too full, the space under the bed is too narrow, the tablecloth is too short, the beams...
She doesn't know any light-footed skills, so she can't climb the beams!
Gu Jiao came to the bedside, lifted the bed curtains, looked at the middle-aged man sleeping soundly on the bed, and said, "Excuse me!"
She climbed into bed, thought for a moment, then pulled back the covers and crawled inside.
In order to avoid being exposed, she had to get as close to him as possible and stick to him.
The man was slender and exuded a faint, cool fragrance mixed with the scent of medicine.
The woman went inside.
Forsythia!
The woman's tone was not pleasant.
The maid, named Lianqiao, hurried over: "Madam!"
"Where have you been? Why weren't you in the room keeping watch?" the woman demanded.
Lian Qiao hurriedly replied, "I just went to get the medicine."
Gu Jiao listened carefully to their conversation, quietly holding her breath.
The woman gently lifted the curtain.
Gu Jiao could feel the woman's gaze directed in their direction.
The woman complained, "Why is there such a thick blanket?"
Gu Jiao: No way, you're not going to pull back his blanket, are you?
“It was the doctor’s order,” Lian Qiao said.
The woman came to the bedside, reached her hand under the covers, and touched the man's hand.
Gu Jiao subtly touched the man's other hand with her fingertip.
It was very cold, and the cover wasn't thick.
The woman sighed and placed the man's hand back under the covers.
"Has anything strange happened in the yard?" the woman asked.
“No, Madam,” Lian Qiao said.
After that, the woman asked a few more questions about the man's diet and daily life. Lian Qiao's answer was mostly the same as yesterday, with no significant improvement in his complexion.
The woman then left.
"Phew, that scared me to death." Lian Qiao breathed a sigh of relief.
The woman instructed Lianqiao to keep a close watch on the man, but the girl named Lianqiao only stayed for less than a quarter of an hour before secretly slipping away again.
Gu Jiao lifted the covers and sat up, took a few deep breaths, got out of bed, and covered the man with the covers.
She then turned and left.
In the twilight, the man's fingertips suddenly twitched.
(End of this chapter)
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