When night fell, the fragrance of food drifted from the back courtyard of Qianjin Hall.

A long queue had formed in front of the building marked “Canteen.”

This canteen was originally established to solve the disciples’ meal problems. Later, as more inpatients arrived, and because the prices were low and the patient meals were personally supervised and planned by Qi Yue, patients’ family members also came here to get food. So more and more people ate at the clinic canteen.

The original head cook could no longer keep up, so Hu San temporarily found two more cooks. Following Qi Yue’s instructions, they separated the disciples’ meals from the patients’ meals.

These cooks were all selected primarily from the disciples’ families. Although they didn’t earn as much as the disciples, they had the same benefits and treatment. Having their own apprentices also created employment opportunities for family members, which made the disciples even more motivated.

Hu San naturally complained that the treatment was too good and wasteful.

“This is called a sense of belonging,” Qi Yue smiled.

“Master, really, ‘A teacher for a day, a father for life’—what sense of belonging? Would a son dare to defy his father?” Hu San said.

“Since ‘a teacher for a day, a father for life,’ then isn’t it natural for a father to want his children to live better?” Qi Yue smiled.

A’Ru knocked on the door, and Qi Yue put down her book.

“Time to eat,” A’Ru said, carrying two plates into the room.

She had grown accustomed to Qi Yue’s simple fast-food approach. Though simple with two dishes and a soup, the combination of meat, vegetables, rice, and soup was well-balanced.

“Don’t listen to Hu San’s complaints. I’ve checked the books—the canteen isn’t losing money, it’s actually profitable,” she said while eating.

Qi Yue smiled.

“Many people are asking for the recipes for several soups,” A’Ru continued. “You know what Hu San said?”

“What did he say?” Qi Yue asked with a smile. Though she knew what Hu San would say, wasn’t this how conversations worked?

“He wanted money, of course. He bragged about secret recipes and techniques, something about ancestral secrets from the Medicine King,” A’Ru laughed. “He’s really thick-skinned.”

“Thick-skinned, but good-hearted,” Qi Yue said, stopping her chopsticks to look at A’Ru. “A’Ru, how are things progressing with you two?”

“What?” A’Ru didn’t understand and looked at Qi Yue.

Qi Yue winked at her.

“When will you… get married?” she said quietly.

A’Ru’s face turned red.

“When you get married, I’ll get married,” she said, but instead of running away shyly like before, she glared and put down her bowl and chopsticks.

“That won’t do,” Qi Yue laughed heartily. “Then you’d never get married in this lifetime.”

A’Ru looked at her.

“If you can live your whole life this way, why can’t I?” she said.

Qi Yue smiled and looked down, turning her chopsticks.

“Actually, about what Madam Yang mentioned that time…” A’Ru hesitated, then bit her lip and said.

Before she could finish, voices came from outside.

“Master, Master Wang requests an audience.”

A’Ru was startled, accidentally making noise with her bowl and chopsticks.

“Come in,” Qi Yue said quickly, standing up.

Wang Qian entered wearing plain clothes. Seeing them eating, he immediately apologized with a smile.

“Sorry to disturb you,” he said.

“Don’t say that, sit, sit,” Qi Yue smiled.

Wang Qian sat down and sniffed slightly.

“Qianjin Hall’s food is indeed excellent. No wonder people say you could run a restaurant as well as a clinic,” he said with a smile.

“A’Ru, bring a serving for Master Wang to try,” Qi Yue smiled.

“This is really too kind,” Wang Qian said with a smile, but didn’t refuse.

Too kind? Yet he specifically came at mealtime…

A’Ru responded and cleared away her own dishes, glanced at Wang Qian, and went out with her head down.

The food was quickly brought. A’Ru didn’t leave but stood to one side, organizing Qi Yue’s books.

“Truly delicious,” Wang Qian said after tasting it.

Qi Yue smiled and continued eating.

“Did Master Wang come specifically to eat with me?” she smiled.

Wang Qian chewed slowly, swallowed what was in his mouth, and sat up straight before speaking.

“Actually, I should be inviting you to dinner,” he said.

Qi Yue smiled with her chopsticks in her mouth, raising her eyebrows.

“This meal is deducted from my wages,” she smiled. “Remember to pay me when you leave.”

Wang Qian smiled.

“Those emergency treatment guidelines you distributed to various clinics in the city—could I have some?” he said.

“What do you want those for?” Qi Yue asked, puzzled.

“I think places other than Yongqing Prefecture need them too,” Wang Qian said with a smile.

Qi Yue suddenly realized—this Wang Qian seemed to be some kind of official somewhere.

“Oh my, truly the heart of a parent official,” she smiled. “Having such a good parent official like you is truly a blessing for the people.”

She put down her bowl and chopsticks and personally went to the cabinet to search, pulling out a thick stack.

These were the ones Hu San had tried to distribute but were rejected by the city’s clinics and pharmacies.

“If this isn’t enough, come ask me for more,” she said happily.

“If it’s not enough, I can print more myself. How could I make you pay?” Wang Qian said, standing up and accepting them with both hands.

Watching Wang Qian disappear slowly down the street with his servant, A’Ru couldn’t help but sigh.

“He really knows how to win your favor,” she murmured.

Not like the Prince, who either didn’t know how to win favor, or if he did, wouldn’t say so…

Really foolish… pitiful…

After seeing Wang Qian off, Qi Yue went to check on patients. By the time she finished her rounds, the bustle of eating, washing, preparing medicine, and nursing had quieted down, and Qianjin Hall began to enjoy the tranquility of night.

She had just sat down to continue reading when the door was knocked again.

“Teacher, why haven’t you left yet?” Qi Yue quickly stood up seeing Liu Pucheng enter.

Liu Pucheng looked excited, placing a muskmelon he was carrying on the table.

“I’ve already had fruit after dinner,” Qi Yue smiled, reaching for it. “But it can be a midnight snack.”

“Oh, it’s not for you to eat,” Liu Pucheng quickly took it back. “Zhang Tong said this can be made into medicine?”

He looked excited. Qi Yue was stunned for a moment.

“Oh, this,” she realized, then shook her head. “This, this can’t be explained clearly. It’s not that simple.”

“As long as it’s possible, we can try!” Liu Pucheng said eagerly.

Although Lady Qi always said those medicines her master left behind could never be obtained again, Liu Pucheng never believed it. Whatever existed in this world could definitely be recreated.

Zhang Tong had indeed carried a muskmelon back that day and excitedly told Liu Pucheng about it.

“Is this the medicine from those small bottles you used at the beginning?” Liu Pucheng immediately thought of it after hearing Zhang Tong’s description and asked.

Qi Yue nodded.

“Lady Qi!” Liu Pucheng shouted excitedly.

Qi Yue was startled but found it amusing.

“Teacher, it really won’t work. I know the general idea, but this really can’t be made,” she explained with a bitter smile.

“How do you know it won’t work without trying?” Liu Pucheng insisted.

Qi Yue was at a loss for words.

“But you know it won’t work even without trying,” she said, spreading her hands. “This kind of Western medicine from laboratories, this is completely…”

She gestured around. “This is completely impossible.”

“Then tell me, and I’ll try,” Liu Pucheng said.

Qi Yue sighed.

“Teacher, the reason I said that medicine didn’t exist was to prevent you from neglecting your current skills and wasting time pursuing impossible research,” she said seriously.

“How can that be called neglecting?” Liu Pucheng smiled. “Some things must be done by someone. If everyone waits for others to do it, that’s what I’d call neglecting.”

Deep into the night, A’Ru had gone to sleep. Qi Yue sat at her desk, having finished writing the day’s case notes. A sweet fragrance drifted to her nose. She looked up at the muskmelon Liu Pucheng had placed on the table.

Some things must be done by someone. Could she do it?

Qi Yue reached out and picked up the muskmelon.

Instead of waiting for things to appear naturally when they were supposed to, should she try to make them appear early?

Could this really work?

A crisp sound came from the room as Qi Yue slowly bit into the muskmelon.

Having been kept by Zhang Tong for several days, the pure, natural, unpolluted muskmelon had become even sweeter.

Qi Yue nodded with satisfaction and began eating it in large bites.

Looking at the list Qi Yue had given him, Hu San looked surprised.

“…What are these for?” he asked.

“To make a kind of medicine, similar to injectable solution,” Qi Yue said.

“Is this the muskmelon medicine Senior Brother mentioned?” Hu San asked.

It seemed Zhang Tong, the big mouth, had already spread the news everywhere. Qi Yue smiled.

“Yes,” she nodded.

Hu San was about to shout with joy.

“Hey, hey, don’t make noise. First see if you can get these things for me,” Qi Yue smiled.

Hu San looked at several drawings of strange instruments and carefully put them away.

“Master, just wait. No matter what, I’ll get them made,” he said.

Hearing Hu San’s words, Liu Pucheng also couldn’t hide his smile.

“Don’t get happy yet. This might not be possible for several lifetimes,” Qi Yue quickly said, spreading her hands.

“As long as we’re willing to try, there’s a possibility. That’s better than not trying at all,” Liu Pucheng said.

As they were talking and laughing, the sound of a bell came from the main hall.

“Emergency call from the courtyard,” Qi Yue said quickly, and everyone busily prepared.

The person seeking treatment was a carpenter who had accidentally fallen while repairing a Buddha statue at the Great Buddha Temple and appeared to have broken bones.

The foreman had one of Qianjin Hall’s flyers in his pocket and knew that some injuries shouldn’t be moved carelessly, so he hurried to seek help.

Seeing the Qianjin Hall disciples in uniform clothing arrive, the onlookers made way.

“Alcohol,” Qi Yue said.

This caused murmurs among the spectators.

“Why alcohol?”

“To get drunk for pain relief?”

Amid the discussion, they watched a disciple bring a jar of alcohol and use a large brush to apply it to the injured person’s body, causing another uproar.

But Qianjin Hall had always been different from other clinics. Thinking this way, everyone found it quite normal.

During the discussion, they saw a disciple pull out a red umbrella and open it with a swoosh over the injured person’s head.

“…Here… here…”

Under the umbrella, the woman and a disciple looked carefully, then pointed to locations on the injured person’s body.

The umbrella was closed, the injured person was firmly bandaged and secured, then secured again after being placed on a stretcher. Since current vehicles had no shock absorption, Qi Yue still used manual carrying for such patients. Though slower, it was the safest method.

A group of people protected the injured person as they ran toward the temple exit. Though it wasn’t festival season, there were still many people offering incense.

“Yueniang.”

A voice called from beside her.

Qi Yue stopped and looked toward the sound.

She saw a luxurious carriage had stopped, with a line of servants and maids surrounding a beautiful woman who had just gotten out.

“Yueniang,” the beautiful woman looked at her and called again, smiling slightly.

Concubine Zhou?!

Qi Yue stared in amazement. (To be continued)