Chapter 334: Chapter 330: Zhong Family Members_1

In September, finally, that person from Beijing arrived.

This time he came not only to treat his ulcer, but also brought the imperial edict, to investigate Pei Shixian, and if the rumors were true, to bring him to Beijing for an audience with the Emperor.

Because Pei Shixian had become quite famous in Qinchuan County, he was referred to as Master Pei.

According to rumors, Master Pei was well-versed in astronomy and geography, could predict the future, and discern fortune from the stars.

Moreover, he had a fortunate daughter, who it was said even the Qin Tianjian had divined for and who had once saved the life of the prince.

“Brother Wuchang, you seem quite relaxed.” Qin Zhaolin looked at the village in front of him with his hands behind his back: “This place has splendid scenery and a talented population, no wonder it produces peculiar individuals often.”

Zhou Wuchang gave him a sidelong glance: “How does this little village have anything to do with the peculiar individual you mentioned?”

Qin Zhaolin touched his nose, laughed and said: “Doesn’t the little apprentice you mentioned in your letter count as a peculiar individual?”

Zhou Wuchang impatiently said: “My apprentice is not peculiar, she is just slightly more intelligent than others.”

He then gestured to his senior apprentice: “Take this officer Qin for a bath, make sure he is cleaned properly, so as not to bother others.”

Qin Zhaolin snorted, ignored Zhou Wuchang, and went directly with Zhou Hao.

He indeed did not like bathing, drank too much in the winter, had sat under the sun removing lice from his cotton clothes with a few old friends, competed to see who caught the most, who could kill them with a loud snap, and so didn’t even care when a boil grew on his back as a result.

When the ulcer got deeper and deeper, Qin Zhaolin got anxious, but no treatment helped.

In the past few years, his health deteriorated day by day, not even able to drink. Once he drank, the ulcer on his back would flare up, making him miserable.

His childhood friend Zhou Wuchang suddenly wrote a letter a while ago asking him to come to the small village for treatment. Qin Zhaolin was just worried about not having a reason to leave Beijing then, conveniently the Emperor asked him to inspect Luzhou and look for talented individuals.

After bathing, Qin Zhaolin stood on the wall of the Jiang Family’s courtyard with his wet hair looking around, deeply moved.

The whole village was surrounded by tall soapberry trees, the houses in the village were neatly arranged, vegetable beds were lush, the elderly and children were properly dressed, their faces full of joy.

Outside the village, there was a market, which had grown quite large.

In the market, there was not only an oil mill and a tofu shop, but also a meat shop, a cloth shop and a carriage shop.

“Stop looking, hurry down, my apprentice is ready.” Zhou Wuchang urged him at his side: “When the surgery starts later, you must endure. My little apprentice doesn’t usually give people Powder for Anesthesia, you must hold on, don’t embarrass me.”

Qin Zhaolin glared at him: “If others can endure, I certainly can too, no need for your reminders.”

The two of them came to the sickroom, and saw a little girl, eight or nine years old, arranging surgical instruments.

She was wearing a face mask and said to Qin Zhaolin, “Take off your coat.”

Qin Zhaolin glanced at his childhood friend, and seeing his friend with a poker face, he couldn’t help but shiver.

Seeing him dilly-dallying, Zhou Wuchang ordered his apprentice, “Take the officer’s coat off, tie his limbs to the bamboo bed, tie them tightly.”

Zhou Hao and the second apprentice did as they were told, stripped off Qin Zhaolin’s coat, dragged him to the edge of the bamboo bed, laid him down directly, regardless of his struggle, and tied his limbs firmly to the bamboo bed.

“What are you doing?” Qin Zhaolin began to panic: “Why are you tying me up?”

“This way it’s simpler.” Zhou Wuchang sat on a chair by his side, picked up a medical book and began to read.

Qin Zhaolin grumbled: “I, as an officer of the Imperial Court, you treat me like this? Where is the decency?”

“Stop talking, if you interfere with my apprentice’s surgery, you’ll be the one who suffers.” Zhou Wuchang opened the book in his hand.

Qin Zhaolin:

Outside the sickroom, a few guards not allowed to enter were keenly watching children race on deer, suddenly they heard their master’s screams from within the room, they could only look at each other.

“What’s going on? Should we go in and take a look?” A guard asked.

“No need, the Divine Doctor is performing surgery on our master, what if we disturb them?” Another one who had more faith in Master Zhou’s character, was sure he wouldn’t harm their master.

Following that were few more pig-killing like screams, the guards couldn’t stand still anymore, hurriedly walked far away, out of earshot and out of mind.

An hour later, the doors of the sickroom finally opened, Yingbao came out with her medical box, first she disinfected the surgical instruments by boiling them in a separate container, then, she took off her own special coat and face mask and boiled them in another big container.

The container was heated with charcoal, Chunniang watched the fire, and let her daughter rest.

Yingbao now had considerable experience in the treatment of ulcers, and she used common herbal medicines, like dandelion, greater thistle, and honeysuckle, which could be picked directly from the wilderness.

In addition, for patients with less serious cases, she only gives them herbal teas boiled with Pupil Spring, without using the Five-Tripod Ganoderma, and the patients also recover well.

This greatly reduced her consumption of Five-Tripod Ganoderma, and also saved the patients quite a lot of silver taels.

Three days later, Qin Zhaolin was finally able to go out for a stroll, he even went to the village school with Zhou Wuchang.

When Li Xu saw that the visitor was a person of stature, he immediately bowed in salute: “Junior Li Xu greets the Sir.”

“There’s no need for excessive courtesy.” Qin Zhaolin waved his hand and started a conversation with him.

Upon learning that Li Xu was only in his twenties and was preparing for the county exam next year, he nodded approvingly and asked him a few questions on the spot.

The content of the county exam included the Four Books and Five Classics, Analects, Mencius, the Doctrine of the Mean, The Great Learning, etc., and candidates also needed to express their views on current affairs and government affairs, if they had no insights into these subjects, they would probably fail.

Li Xu answered seriously, his words were grounded, and he had his own views despite his young age.

Qin Zhaolin suddenly felt the desire to mentor this young talent and began to give him some guidance on the spot.

Seeing this, Zhou Wuchang went to the martial arts field next to the school to watch the kids practice martial arts.

His two small apprentices were also practicing combat there, each holding a wooden knife, attacking each other.

Zhou Wuchang watched expressionlessly, but he felt that the knife skills seemed familiar.

There was a time, when someone was proficient in extraordinary knife skills, but he was shot dead by enemy’s arrow.

The brilliant young man of the Zhong family could never return.

However, it was said that he had a son, but no one knew where he had ended up.

Zhou Wuchang took a closer look at Zhang Meng.

He did not know this man, and didn’t know if he was a subordinate of General Zhong.

Yet he could not ask.

Because after General Zhong and his son died in battle, another son of the Zhong family raised a rebellion, which was later suppressed by the imperial court, and the entire Zhong family was executed.

So many former subordinates of the Zhong Army fled the army and their whereabouts were unknown.

After dancing a few rounds of knife skills with her second senior brother and practicing a few rounds of unarmed combat, Yingbao finally put away her wooden knife and went home.

Zhang Min, however, continued to practice with Jiang Wu.

He refused to believe that he was not able to defeat a seven-year-old child.

A few days later, Qin Zhaolin’s back had completely healed and he was ready to leave for Qinchuan County. Before leaving, he took a few bottles of sesame oil and Jiang family’s dried soy bean paste.

Zhou Wuchang also returned home with his senior disciple, but didn’t take with his second apprentice and little apprentice Yingbao.

Yingbao was happy not to go, but Zhang Min was very frustrated, always feeling that his master didn’t want him anymore.