When the sky began to glimmer with dawn, Qi Yue awakened. To be precise, she hadn’t really slept much at all—not because of any sorrow, but because of this girl beside her…

The curtain outside the partition moved slightly, and Cui Zhi quietly peeked her head in to look. Seeing that it was silent inside, she tiptoed over and lifted the bed curtain.

“Ah!” She cried out in fright.

Qi Yue laughed heartily.

Cui Zhi was both flustered and embarrassed, at a complete loss.

“Alright, stop tormenting yourself. Go get some sleep,” Qi Yue said with a smile, getting down from the bed.

Cui Zhi followed with a red face.

“This servant will attend to Miss’s washing and dressing,” she said.

Qi Yue said nothing, letting her bustle about.

The Wang family’s matron had already prepared breakfast. Though it couldn’t compare to the Marquis residence’s lavish fare, it was still light and palatable. Qi Yue had a good appetite and ate an extra bowl of rice.

In the courtyard, Yuan Bao was again holding a broom, sweeping. Qi Yue stepped out the door and stretched her arms and legs.

“I’m going to work. You all stay home,” she said, lifting her feet to step out.

Going to work?

Cui Zhi was puzzled but hurried to follow.

“Are you coming with me?” Qi Yue looked at her with a smile.

“Yes, this servant came specifically to attend to Miss,” Cui Zhi said.

Still guarding against me committing suicide.

Qi Yue nodded and said nothing more.

Another day’s work began at Qianjin Hall.

Seeing Qi Yue enter, the disciples respectfully bowed in greeting.

Hu San was the first to rush out. Seeing the girl behind Qi Yue, he paused.

“Didn’t Sister A’Ru come because she had something to do?” he couldn’t help asking, looking at this unfamiliar girl.

After entering, the girl felt very uncomfortable. Why were there so many men here, and they were all looking at her so brazenly…

Qi Yue simply said yes and didn’t elaborate.

Liu Pucheng came out upon hearing the commotion. The two had just greeted each other when there was a sudden commotion outside.

“Doctor, doctor, save us!”

Four or five men rushed in carrying a door panel.

The men’s bodies, faces, and hands were covered in blood and dirt. They looked utterly disheveled, and the man on the door panel was even more covered in a mixture of dirt and blood, letting out continuous wails.

Cui Zhi had never seen such a thing. Frightened, she screamed and hid in a corner.

“What kind of injury is it?” Qi Yue stopped talking and asked loudly.

“A house collapsed and crushed him,” the arrivals shouted.

“…Prepare for emergency treatment.”

With Qi Yue’s words, the partitioned emergency area immediately became busy—sterilizing, brewing medicinal soup, fetching clothes, gloves, and instruments—busy but orderly.

Cui Zhi stood in the corner, hearing the continuous wails and smelling the bloody scent, so frightened that her legs cramped.

“Miss Qi…” Unable to see Qi Yue, she couldn’t help calling out, boldly craning her neck to look into the crowd.

She saw a woman wearing a gown and mask, her blood-covered hands reaching out to pry open the bloody wound on the injured person’s leg.

“Spray bottle. Deep irrigation—the wound contamination is too severe…” she said.

Cui Zhi felt her eyes go black and knew nothing more.

When she woke up again, she found herself lying on a bed, with a strange smell in her nostrils—not fragrant, but medicinal.

Cui Zhi sat up abruptly, remembering where she was.

Cui Zhi hurriedly got up and opened the door. The noise from outside drifted in.

“…The most urgent issue now is preventing infection,” Qi Yue said, removing her mask.

Liu Pucheng nodded.

“This person is too severely injured,” he also frowned.

The injured person’s family members stood nearby. Hearing this, they were about to kneel.

“Divine physician, Madam,” they called out, “you must save him. He has elderly parents above and young children below. The whole family depends on him alone. If something happens to him, the whole family won’t be able to survive.”

Word had spread throughout the city that Qianjin Hall had a divine physician woman who could perform surgery. So whenever they saw a woman, they knew who she was.

The incident when hunters first came and refused treatment because she was a woman would absolutely never happen now. On the contrary, everyone would be overjoyed to see Qi Yue there.

Qi Yue hurried to help them up.

“I will naturally do my best,” she said.

“That… about hospitalization… what procedures… need to be done?” the family members asked haltingly.

“Just register personal information and medical history,” Qi Yue said with a smile, nodding, “Come with me.”

Cui Zhi came down and saw that Qi Yue had already entered a room nearby. After much deliberation, she didn’t dare follow.

The disciples coming and going in the courtyard were all busy, occasionally glancing at Cui Zhi standing there with curiosity and inquiry.

“How should I address this sister?” Naturally, such socializing was Hu San’s specialty.

Cui Zhi was standing there feeling uncomfortable all over. Hearing someone speak, she turned around.

“Cui Zhi,” she said.

“Sister is also one of Young Madam’s people, right? How come I haven’t seen you before? But it’s nothing—Que Zhi and A’Hao also learned halfway through, so sister can definitely learn well… Sister A’Ru is very capable. She learned early, so you can ask her if you don’t understand…” Hu San chattered on.

Cui Zhi frowned and stepped back several paces.

“What is Sister A’Ru busy with at home?” Hu San finally asked what he wanted to know.

“I don’t know,” Cui Zhi said, turning her face away. “I don’t know her.”

Hu San was stunned.

“You don’t know her? You don’t know A’Ru? Are you a newly promoted low-ranking servant girl?” he asked.

Cui Zhi didn’t like these words. What low-ranking servant girl? Did she look like a low-ranking servant girl? She, Cui Zhi, was one of the Old Madam’s people!

“I’m not from the Marquis Dingxi’s household,” she snorted, glaring at this man with no perception.

Hu San was stunned again.

When evening approached, Qianjin Hall finally became somewhat quieter.

“Young Madam, you should rest. You’ve been busy all day,” Liu Pucheng entered the sterilization room and said to Qi Yue, who was sorting gauze.

Qi Yue, wearing a thick mask and cap, looked up while holding a piece of boiled cloth.

“Good. Coming right away,” she said with a smile.

Liu Pucheng waited until dark before seeing Qi Yue enter with a weary expression.

“Young Madam, they all know how to do these things. Let them do it,” he said, personally pouring her a cup of tea.

Qi Yue took it and gulped it down, clearly thirsty.

“It’s fine. Actions speak louder than words,” she smiled. “This counts as our second inpatient. I’ll stay here.”

Liu Pucheng firmly refused.

“You’ve already done the wound cleaning and suturing. We can handle the rest,” he said. “Could it be that Madam doesn’t trust us?”

Qi Yue laughed.

“Teacher, you know that’s not what I mean,” she smiled.

Liu Pucheng looked at her thoughtfully.

Qi Yue also seemed to be thinking about something and didn’t speak.

The room fell silent, the atmosphere somewhat strange.

“Young Madam…”

“Teacher…”

Both spoke simultaneously, both paused, then laughed.

“You speak first,” both deferred simultaneously.

“I was saying that for these routine treatments, non-emergency serious cases, Young Madam doesn’t need to handle them personally. Daily lectures would be sufficient,” Liu Pucheng said. “I heard that the Prince is about to leave…”

The Marquis residence’s Young Madam should still spend more time at the Marquis residence. No matter what, it still wasn’t good for her to be out so much. Fortunately, the Prince was open-minded enough, but there were still elders in the family.

Qi Yue lowered her head and smiled.

Cui Zhi sighed inwardly. Poor Miss Qi. Having to hide such things from people, but someday it couldn’t be hidden.

“Teacher, from now on you can call me Qi Yue, or Yueniang. You don’t need to use the title Young Madam anymore,” Qi Yue raised her head and said with a smile.

Liu Pucheng was stunned.

“How could that be? Young Madam, don’t be ridiculous,” he shook his head, thinking this woman was just being modest about her status, wanting to position herself as a student.

“Also, besides teaching, I can do much more,” Qi Yue continued smiling. “As for wages, teacher, would you consider giving me some?”

What?

Liu Pucheng was stunned.

“Young Madam is joking. This Qianjin Hall is yours…” he shook his head.

Before he could finish, Qi Yue interrupted him.

“I’ll depend on this for food and drink from now on, so I should do more work. It’s only right,” she smiled, lowering her head then raising it again to look at Liu Pucheng. “I’m divorced.”

Divorced?

What… what was that?

Liu Pucheng had already guessed what it was, but he couldn’t believe it at all.

“Separated by mutual consent—meaning I’m no longer the Young Madam of the Marquis Dingxi’s residence. I’m now just Qi Yueniang,” Qi Yue said again.

Liu Pucheng’s face paled, and Cui Zhi also changed color.

She, she just told people like that?

How could such a thing be told to people so simply?

When the lanterns were lit, Qi Yue walked out of Qianjin Hall.

“Then I’ll trouble you all,” she bowed to Liu Pucheng and the others who had come to see her off. “Pay attention to fluid balance, timely fluid replacement, and the bleeding issue. Since there’s really no way to do blood transfusions, we can only rely on your medicine, teacher.”

Liu Pucheng and the others were used to this ritual of hers and bowed back together.

“Good, don’t worry,” he said, raising his head to look at Qi Yue with a worried expression. “Yueniang, perhaps…”

Perhaps what?

What could be done?

Liu Pucheng ultimately didn’t continue.

Qi Yue smiled at him.

“Teacher, don’t worry. I’m fine,” she smiled. “I now live in the alley on East Street, with Yuan Bao there.” This last sentence was directed at Hu San. “Call me immediately if anything happens.”

Hu San acknowledged.

“Young Madam, why did you move there?” he asked. Before he could finish, someone kicked him from behind, making him cry out “Ouch!” “Who did that? Why?”

He turned around angrily and saw Zhang Tong glaring at him.

Qi Yue smiled and nodded again, then turned and walked down the street.

The night market was just beginning. The street was even livelier than during the day, with people coming and going amid laughter and chatter.

“The night market here is quite lively,” Qi Yue said to Cui Zhi.

“Yes, East Street is just lively,” Cui Zhi finally found her chance to speak. Having held it in all day, she said busily, “And there are mostly food vendors…”

Speaking of food, Qi Yue remembered.

“We haven’t eaten yet,” she said. “Shall we take a look around?”

“Great!” Cui Zhi nodded with a smile. As a refined servant girl, she knew that at this time, the fear wasn’t of this woman wandering around, but rather of staying home without moving. It was good that she was willing to walk around and enjoy herself. When encountering such situations, the fear was of staying alone, so she said busily, “Our Old Madam loves to have fun and often takes us out. Miss Qi, look over there—that’s Old Lady Wang’s steamed dumplings. However, only her pork ones are good…”

Qi Yue smiled with narrowed eyes, appropriately saying “really,” “that’s wonderful,” and “where is it,” encouraging Cui Zhi to speak even more enthusiastically. The two walked and talked, blending into the bustling street and gradually disappearing into the distance.