Seeing that Ning Zhao's rice bowl was empty, Jiang Yuwei took the bowl from his hand, filled it with rice, and handed it to him.
"You must study hard, eat well, take care of your health, and don't put too much pressure on yourself. Our family can afford to pay for your education."
Ning Zhao nodded and stopped talking. No one noticed that as he lowered his head to eat his rice, tears streamed into his bowl.
After everyone finished eating, they all went back to their rooms to sleep.
next day
Jiang Yuwei had just opened her eyes when she heard Aunt Zhou calling from outside the courtyard:
"Yuwei, I've brought you some puppy puppies! Come out and see!"
Jiang Yuwei quickly dressed and went out of the house. She saw that the simpleton had already opened the courtyard gate for Aunt Zhou and was holding a small, dark puppy in his arms, carefully stroking its head. The puppy lay in the simpleton's arms without barking and seemed to be enjoying the stroking with its eyes closed.
Jiang Yuwei reached out to hug him and take a closer look, but the simpleton twisted his body and looked at Jiang Yuwei warily:
"This puppy is mine, and nobody is allowed to touch it."
Jiang Yuwei sighed helplessly. "Fine," she thought, "I'll just consider it as finding a companion for the simpleton." She smiled at Aunt Zhou.
“Aunt Zhou, this puppy looks nice, so we’ll keep it. Wait a minute, I’ll get you something. I also need you to give it to Uncle Ning to thank him for giving my puppy.”
As she spoke, Jiang Yuwei went inside, took two pieces of cured meat from the rafters, wrapped them up, and handed them to Aunt Zhou.
“Aunt Zhou, here are two pieces of cured pork. You and Uncle Ning’s family can each have one. Don’t think it’s too little. We recently set up a hot pot stall, and we’ve almost used up all the meat we have at home. There’s not much cured pork left either. Luckily, I cured it myself, and it tastes excellent. Please take it home and try it.”
Aunt Zhou waved her hand and said:
“What are you saying? We’re neighbors, and I’m not obligated to eat your cured meat after helping you with such a small favor. I’ll take the Ningbo piece and deliver it to him later. I’ll pass on my piece; I have plenty of meat at home.”
Jiang Yuwei pretended to be angry and said:
"That won't do. If you don't accept this cured meat, then you can take the puppy back with you."
Upon hearing that his puppy was to be taken away, the fool quickly carried the dog into the side room.
"No, you can't take my puppy away!"
Jiang Yuwei looked helplessly at the fool's retreating figure, then smiled at Aunt Zhou:
"Look, even a fool wouldn't like it. Aunt Zhou, please accept it quickly. I have to go to town with Huaizhi right now, so I won't keep you at home for tea."
Aunt Zhou also laughed:
"Okay, I'll keep it for now. I'll also enjoy your cured meat making skills."
Jiang Yuwei smiled as she saw Aunt Zhou off, then went to the backyard to drive the oxcart out. This time, she didn't plan to take Ning Zhao and Ning Wan with her to town; she would let them stay at home and play with the idiot. She and Ning Huaizhi would go on their own.
Ning Huaizhi had finished breakfast and was ready. Jiang Yuwei first helped Ning Huaizhi onto the oxcart, then went to the backyard to give him some instructions before she felt at ease and went to town with him.
The two arrived in town and headed straight for Huichuntang on North Street. As soon as they entered, Jiang Yuwei saw a middle-aged man in fine clothes sitting in the hall.
"Dr. Lin, I trust you the most. You must cure my mother's illness, or I will stay at your Huichuntang."
Dr. Lin frowned upon hearing this and said:
“Master Sun, please don’t make things difficult for this old man. You have a large and wealthy family, so you can find many good doctors if you want. I really can’t help your old lady with this illness. Instead of wasting your time here, you should go out and visit more people to see if you can find some century-old Gastrodia elata to treat your old lady.”
Master Sun frowned upon hearing this and said:
"If I could find that century-old Gastrodia elata you mentioned, why would I be bothering you? I've tried my best, but all the people I sent out returned empty-handed. I even asked someone in the Ghost Market to offer a high reward for finding this herb, but a month has passed and there's still no news. My mother's illness is getting worse and worse, and I'm really desperate, so I came to you, Dr. Lin. Please help me and think of a solution."
Jiang Yuwei overheard the entire conversation between the two in the lobby and quickly stepped forward to ask:
"Excuse me, how many years old of Gastrodia elata do you need?"
Master Sun glanced at Jiang Yuwei, then waved his hand impatiently and said:
"Don't come asking me any more questions, I'm really worried!"
Jiang Yuwei smiled and said:
"Perhaps I can be of help to you?"
Master Sun looked at Jiang Yuwei with suspicion and sneered:
"You? Stop messing around, go do what you're supposed to do."
Jiang Yuwei frowned and looked at Doctor Lin, slowly saying:
"Dr. Lin, I've come today not only to treat Huai Zhi's injuries, but also because I have a 500-year-old Gastrodia elata that I'd like you to assess its quality and how much it's worth."
Upon hearing this, Doctor Lin's eyes lit up, but he was interrupted by the wealthy Mr. Sun sitting next to him:
"Oh, so you overheard what I was saying to Doctor Lin? You, a village woman, can claim to have five-hundred-year-old Gastrodia elata? You're trying to swindle me right in front of me?"
Dr. Lin shook his head helplessly and said:
"Master Sun, please say less."
Then he turned to look at Jiang Yuwei and smiled:
"Yuwei, quickly take out the Gastrodia elata so I can take a look."
Jiang Yuwei glanced at Master Sun's disdainful expression and then said to Doctor Lin:
"I can show it to you, but there's one thing I need to make clear: if Doctor Lin takes this Gastrodia elata and tries to sell it to that person, I will absolutely not agree. Can you promise me that?"
Upon hearing this, Doctor Lin looked at Master Sun with a worried expression, only to be met with a cold laugh from Master Sun:
"Pah! Why would I want your rubbish? It's not even certain if it's Gastrodia elata, and you still want to sell it to me? Even if you beg me, I won't take it. What would a village woman like you know about Gastrodia elata?"
Seeing this, Dr. Lin quickly said:
"Enough, Master Sun, don't say another word. Yuwei has sold Gastrodia elata to me before. Alright, let's not talk about anything else for now. Let me see the Gastrodia elata first."
Jiang Yuwei nodded and handed the wrapped Gastrodia elata to Doctor Lin. The wealthy man, Sun, was also curious after hearing Doctor Lin's words, so he came over to see what it was. Doctor Lin carefully opened the handkerchief, and inside lay a thick and excellent-quality Gastrodia elata. The wealthy man was shocked when he saw this.
Doctor Lin ignored him, carefully picked up the gastrodia elata and examined it closely for a while, then exclaimed with delight:
"Yuwei, this Gastrodia elata is not the five-hundred-year-old Gastrodia elata you mentioned at all!"
Upon hearing Doctor Lin's words, Master Sun snorted coldly and moved his body away.
"I knew it! You still dare to boast that you brought five-hundred-year-old Gastrodia elata. Doctor Lin saw through the lie at a glance. Stop lying to people here. You could do something better with that energy."
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