maidservant

Chapter 150 Hiding Something from Her

The four children selected in the end were: one was strong and chubby, able to carry medicinal herbs faster than the boys; another had delicate eyebrows and eyes and was skillful, wrapping medicine packets tightly and beautifully; and yet another always pursed her lips, whose abacus beads clicked loudly when Yun Shan tested her on accounting. The most endearing was little A-Xi, with her round face, who smiled at everyone she met.

The four of them were all raised by open-minded parents who genuinely wanted their children to study medicine. Yun Shan deliberately avoided those who only wanted their children to earn a monthly income.

Apprentices were hired, and the new clinic opened.

The whole street became lively. Pharmacy owners came to collect gifts, and former patients brought eggs and brown sugar to offer their congratulations.

Su Yu wrote a poem on the wall with a flourish of his brush, and before the ink was even dry, a crowd gathered around and applauded.

Looking at the signboard hanging in front of the door that read "Specialist in Women's Medicine," Yun Shan finally felt a little more at ease—the clinics on the same street all catered to male customers, so she had carved out a different path. They were both in the medical field, and it wasn't good to steal business from each other; that clinic only had male doctors, and men usually saw patients there. This way, it was good for both of them.

With this woman practicing medicine, the wealthy landowners on the street felt much more at ease. And if the concubines in their households had even the slightest headache or discomfort, they would come to her for help.

Today someone is experiencing chest tightness and shortness of breath, tomorrow someone else is having menstrual problems; often, you just send one patient off for a consultation, and another person comes to ask you to come back the very next day.

Yunshan and Dr. Liao were so tired that their backs ached, and one night they even had to go out for a house call with lanterns in the middle of the night.

"If this keeps up, I'll be completely exhausted." Yunshan rubbed her lower back and sighed as she looked at the long line in front of the medicine cabinet.

Doctor Liao, who was demonstrating how to grind medicine to his young apprentices, stopped upon hearing this and said, "I know a few itinerant female doctors who travel all over the country. How about we put up notices to recruit some people?"

“That’s the plan!” Yun Shan’s eyes lit up, and she immediately spread out the Xuan paper. This time, she wanted to recruit not just apprentices, but doctors who could work independently.

As darkness fell outside, the clinic remained lit, with several apprentices gathered around a table helping to cut red paper. Their chatter, mingled with the aroma of medicine, drifted towards the long street adorned with lanterns.

The morning frost had not yet dissipated. Yun Shan leaned against the carved window frame, the plain paper in her hand slightly wrinkled from being repeatedly rubbed.

Seven letters were neatly arranged on the table, their ink scent mingling with the aroma of medicine, depicting the different circumstances of female itinerant doctors from various places.

The letter at the very top, written on indigo-dyed stationery, was in the handwriting of Madam Xie from Lingnan. In her delicate handwriting, she described her plan to travel north by boat: "Sister Liao wrote to inform me that the capital is recruiting female doctors. I wish to come to the capital. In about a month, when the water level of the Dongjiang River stabilizes, I can hire a boat and set off. I should arrive in the capital in about a month."

At the end of the letter, a line of small print was added, saying that three boxes of Lingnan herbs had been prepared, which would surely add some rare medicinal materials to the new medical clinic.

A letter from a female doctor, however, carried a hint of helplessness. The ink smudges in the letter seemed to reveal her sigh as she wrote: "Although the plague outside the county has subsided, there are still more than twenty infected children who have not recovered. It is truly difficult for me to leave."

Yunshan's fingertips traced each letter, as if she were touching the warmth of the doctors far away.

These people basically came to Xinglin Medical Clinic because they trusted Dr. Liao.

After pondering for a long time, she summoned Physician Liao.

"Sister Liao, please read these letters carefully." Yunshan gently pushed a stack of letters over. "Madam Xie's journey is safe, you can send someone to the dock to meet her; as for Doctor Li, please write a letter for me, so that she can take care of the sick child with peace of mind."

"As for the rest, you can consider it. Let's select three or four people to keep for now. Take their schedules into account and make a list of the people we can allocate, then we'll discuss the scheduling. As for the rest, if the shop gets bigger in the future, we'll invite them back."

"Don't worry, shopkeeper."

The morning light fell on their intertwined shadows, reflecting the unspoken understanding between the doctors. This invitation that crossed mountains and rivers will eventually blossom into the fragrance of healing and saving lives over time.

As dusk settled, Yunshan dragged her weary body back to the Li residence, only to find that the servant Xiaoyue had sent to deliver the meal was nowhere to be seen.

She frowned slightly, thinking to herself that perhaps her sister was feeling down and had lost her appetite because Li Maocai had left the capital, or perhaps she had simply forgotten. She didn't think much of it and slowly walked toward the side hall.

Before long, Xiaoyue arrived at the side hall with her maid. The maid placed exquisite pastries and dishes on the table in Yunshan's room, and then quietly withdrew.

In the large room, only Xiaoyue and Yunshan remained, and the atmosphere inexplicably became oppressive and heavy. Yunshan cautiously observed Xiaoyue's expression, her mind racing with countless thoughts and possibilities.

It can't be that A-Yuan is sick. If that were the case, given Xiao-Yue's love for that child, she would be anxiously waiting by his bedside right now, and wouldn't have the mind to arrange dinner.

Could it be that Li Mao is a womanizer and is having affairs with other women?

Or was it some kind of rumor that hurt Xiaoyue's heart?
Or perhaps news came from the Li family in Nanzhou that Xiaoyue's parents had put pressure on her?

Yunshan found it increasingly difficult to guess, her eyes filled with worry.

Xiaoyue remained silent throughout, only awkwardly arranging the dishes in front of Yunshan.

Yunshan forced herself to remain calm, took the tableware, and asked softly, "Sister, why are you having dinner here today?"

Xiaoyue stammered and gave five reasons in a row: "My room is too spacious. I'm afraid I'll disturb Ayuan's sleep. Your brother-in-law isn't here either. The maids are boring. I have no one to talk to."

Yun Shan's alarm bells rang. If it were just one reason, she might not have thought much of it, but these five reasons all came out of Yue's mouth at once, which only made things more complicated, as if she was desperately hiding the real reason.

She sat down next to Xiaoyue, held her hand tightly, and said sincerely, "Sister, you can tell me anything. We sisters will face it together."

Xiaoyue looked up, her eyes filled with complicated worry, and hesitated to speak: "Ashan, you and your sister are happy together, aren't you?"

“Of course, my sister is my only blood relative in this world,” Yunshan answered without hesitation.

"Then, if your older sister stays with you for the rest of your life, you'll be happy for the rest of your life, right?" Xiaoyue cautiously probed.

Yunshan could no longer contain her anxiety: "Sister? What happened? Are you going to divorce Li Mao?"

"No, your brother-in-law and I are fine." Xiaoyue bit her lower lip, then suddenly hugged Yunshan tightly, her voice choked with barely perceptible sobs: "Please stay home with me these next few days, okay? Don't go out for now."

Yunshan's heart trembled. Her elder sister had never made such a request before. She must have encountered an extremely difficult situation to be so uneasy.

She nodded emphatically: "Okay, sister, I'll go with you. We won't go anywhere."

During the meal, both of them were preoccupied with their own thoughts, and they couldn't taste the food. Every bite felt like it weighed a ton.

After Yunshan lay down on the bed, Xiaoyue made sure she was asleep before quietly leaving.

The sound of the door closing was particularly clear in the quiet night. As Yun Shan lay in bed, her unease grew stronger.

Once there was no more noise outside, she quietly got up and whispered towards the window, "Zhanqian? Is that you?"

A dark shadow fell from the roof like a ghost and stopped in front of the window.

Yunshan put on her robe and tiptoed to the window.

The moonlight, like water, shone through the window paper, clearly casting Zhanqian's shadow on it.

"What's wrong? Did you need to talk to me?" Yunshan asked anxiously.

Zhanqian remained silent for a long time. Yunshan stared at the shadow on the window paper and was surprised to find it trembling slightly.

Is he crying?! Yun Shan's heart clenched. She was about to open the door when she heard Zhan Qian speak, his voice trembling with tears, each word deliberate and forced:
"The general—is dead!"

The voice struck Yun Shan's heart like a heavy hammer. In an instant, the whole world seemed to stop turning, and tears welled up uncontrollably in her eyes. The two lonely figures stood by the window, not daring to speak to confirm.