Chapter 15: Chapter 14 New Home at the Medical Center_1
Lu Tong originally intended to switch to a different inn to stay for the night, but Du Changqing acted quickly and found them a place to settle down right away.
Yin Zheng looked up and saw the four characters "Renxin Medical Hall" above her head, her face showing shock, "Isn’t this a medical hall?"
By her side, Du Changqing cleared his throat lightly, "Come in with me."
Lu Tong followed Du Changqing into the establishment.
The shop was narrow and dimly lit. It was nearing evening, and it was hard to see inside. Du Changqing lit a paper lantern and lifted the curtain to the inner room, heading straight inside.
Lu Tong and Yin Zheng followed, and upon entering the inner area, they were slightly taken aback.
Behind Renxin Medical Hall there actually was a small courtyard.
The courtyard seemed to have been uninhabited for a long time, the ground covered in a layer of dust, and corners piled with dry firewood, filling half of the yard.
Yin Zheng asked with suspicion, "Shopkeeper Du, the place you’re talking about for us to stay, it isn’t here, is it?"
Du Changqing touched his nose, "Back when there was a resident doctor in the medical hall, that old man lived here."
Seeing Yin Zheng frowning, Du Changqing hurriedly added, "Don’t judge this courtyard by its looks, it’s quite nice once cleaned up. Doctor Lu," he glanced at Lu Tong’s expression, "it’s not that I don’t want to help, but property is incredibly expensive in the Capital City, and it’s not easy to find a suitable house at a good price in a short time. Besides, you’ve seen the state of Renxin Medical Hall, I’m so poor I can’t even scrape together a meal. How about this," he clapped his hands, "once our medicinal tea sells well, I’ll personally find you a spacious two-entrance house, how does that sound?"
Lu Tong didn’t speak and took the lantern from Du Changqing’s hand, carefully surveying the entire courtyard.
This courtyard was connected to the Renxin Medical Hall in front, which was narrow, while this yard was spacious. One side of the courtyard was against a high wall, where one could vaguely see the rooftop tiles, and on the other side was a stone gallery, beside which stood three empty rooms side by side.
Du Changqing pointed to the three empty rooms, "Doctor Lu, these three rooms are all spacious, and you or Miss Yinzhen can choose whichever you like. Look, there’s even a kitchen in front and a dressing room..."
Something stirred in Lu Tong’s heart.
Walking down the stone gallery, indeed there was a kitchen. The kitchen was spacious, with an earth stove and pots and pans haphazardly filled with dry wood underneath. Further inside, it became darker, a place for dressing and cleansing oneself...
Lu Tong gazed intently at the courtyard in front of her.
The layout of this courtyard bore an uncanny resemblance to the home of the Lu Family in Changwu County.
Du Changqing continued to persuade fervently, "Doctor Lu, take a look at this stone table in the yard, perfect for you to pound medicine at night. That plum tree by the window, it will smell wonderful once it blooms in winter, girls love that..."
"Hold on," Yin Zheng interrupted him, "Shopkeeper Du, didn’t you say we were only staying here temporarily? Why are you talking about winter already?"
Du Changqing choked and said, "That just slipped out, Doctor Lu, you see..."
"Let’s stay here then," Lu Tong turned around with a slight smile, "Thank you, Shopkeeper Du."
Seeming not to have expected such an agreeable response from Lu Tong, Du Changqing was momentarily stunned, then hurriedly moved their luggage from outside indoors as if afraid she would change her mind, and cheerfully said, "Since that’s the case, Doctor Lu can settle here with peace of mind, stay as long as you wish."
He found two clean quilts for Yin Zheng, took care of a few matters, and then left with relief.
After his departure, Yin Zheng disapprovingly said, "Miss, how can we live inside a shop? We should at least find some respectable civilian housing to move into."
Lu Tong walked into the room closest to the kitchen and opened the window. Directly facing the window, the plum tree had yet to bloom, standing tall and solitary.
Gazing at the plum tree, she said, "Renxin Medical Hall is located on West Street, and beyond that are the restaurants. Shengjing has no curfew, West Street is patrolled by the city guard every night. We can’t afford bodyguards, living here is safer than elsewhere."
"Besides, it is closest to the Ke Family."
Yin Zheng thought for a while, still feeling somewhat discontented, "Still, that lets Shopkeeper Du take advantage of us. We’re living inside his shop, saving him the trouble of covering our lodging costs. Isn’t he afraid we’ll run off with his medicinal materials?"
Lu Tong laughed.
Du Changqing only left the key to the courtyard, but did not leave the key to the medicine cabinet with her. Unless she smashed each cabinet open or found a strong man to carry away the cabinets, with city guards patrolling West Street at all times and Du Changqing’s acquaintances on all sides, she feared she would be caught and taken to the authorities before even leaving the street.
That Shopkeeper Du, seemingly unassuming, was actually quite shrewd.
She stepped outside and picked up a bamboo broom lying in the courtyard, "Let’s clean up the place first."
Yin Zheng rolled up her sleeves and nodded in agreement.
As the courtyard was spacious, sweeping it became particularly exhausting. Since it had been uninhabited for so long, even a simple cleanup took the two of them quite a while.
By the time they moved the last bundle of firewood to the kitchen, the night had already grown deep.
Yin Zheng looked at the courtyard, which appeared as good as new, and couldn’t help but feel spirited, "Miss, this courtyard is really beautiful!"
Lu Tong was also somewhat taken aback.
The gray dust on the blue stones of the courtyard had been swept away, doused with clear water, making it look clean and refreshing. Bowls and basins on the earthen stove in the back kitchen were sorted and stacked, and in the corner, bundles of firewood were neatly piled up.
All three rooms had been cleaned out, and since they were uninhabited, they contained very few belongings. In the room where Lu Tong stayed, lifting the speckled bamboo curtain revealed an old folding screen that hid the round table and wardrobe in the outer room. Behind the screen was a bed made of yellow wood, covered with a bedspread in the color of autumn fragrances. In front of the window, there was a writing desk, reflecting the plum tree outside, simple and elegant, very pleasing to the eye.
Yin Zheng said happily, "Tomorrow, I’ll write a piece of calligraphy to hang on the wall and cover up that old mark. When the weather gets warmer, we can plant some yellow peonies in the courtyard. That would be even more beautiful." She turned her head to look at Lu Tong and, seeing her indifferent expression, she asked, "Don’t you think it looks nice, Miss?"
Lu Tong smiled, placed the lantern she was holding on the writing desk by the window, and said, "It is beautiful."
The courtyard was indeed beautiful. The freshly cleaned small yard looked even closer to the former appearance of the Lu Family in her mind.
The thought of the Lu Family caused the smile on Lu Tong’s face to fade slightly.
Today, under the Baoxiang Tower, by some twist of fate, she encountered the young mistress from the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion.
The Ke Family was thriving, thanks to the patronage of the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion. Lu Rou’s death may not have been unconnected to the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion.
And what she saw today was her own bloodied abduction, met with indifference. The Grand Preceptor’s daughter remained unscathed and received all the sympathy and concern.
That young mistress did not even take a proper look at her.
The Grand Preceptor’s Mansion and she were as different as heaven and earth, clouds and mud.
Under the lamplight, Lu Tong’s dark eyes were deep, like an unfathomable spring.
Becoming a resident doctor was just the first step in her journey.
How could she get close to the Ke Family?
And the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion.
...
That night, at the Capital Marshal’s Mansion.
Pei Yunmeng returned from outside when it was already late.
As soon as he entered the hall, Duan Xiaoyan came out to greet him. The round-faced, round-eyed young man in blue was not as lively as usual and appeared somewhat wilted.
Pei Yunmeng glanced at him, "What’s wrong?"
"Yunmeng brother," Duan Xiaoyan would never call him "sir" when they were in private, he sighed deeply upon hearing this, "Today, that young mistress from the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion specifically asked for you to escort her home. You dumped the task on me, how could she have been pleased with me? She nearly devoured me on the way."
Pei Yunmeng casually removed his saber and placed it on the table, continuing inward, "Didn’t you always complain about being promoted too slowly? Isn’t it good to have an opportunity to show your worth?"
"What kind of opportunity is this?" Duan Xiaoyan followed behind him, grumbling, "She was smitten with your looks, not mine. Besides, the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion doesn’t have jurisdiction over the Palace Front Office, we don’t need to ingratiate ourselves with them."
Pei Yunmeng ignored him and asked while walking, "How is Lu Dashan?"
"He’s been sent to the Department of Criminal & Justice. But Yunmeng brother," Duan Xiaoyan asked quietly, "Lei Yuan from the Department of Military Affairs is the Right Chancellor’s cousin once removed. The case with the military supervisor has likely some connection with the Right Chancellor. Are we not concerned about offending the Right Chancellor by doing this... "
Pei Yunmeng was noncommittal, "What, are you afraid of him?"
Duan Xiaoyan was speechless, "You’re not afraid, but it’s different for me." After saying this, he suddenly remembered something and pulled out an item from his chest, "Right, I almost forgot this."
Pei Yunmeng paused in his steps.
It was the scar-removing medicine he had given to the female doctor during the day.
"The shopkeeper of the Rouge Shop chased after me to give it to me, saying we had left something behind. I recognized it as the scar-removing medicine the Empress Dowager had awarded you last time. How did it end up at the Rouge Shop?"
Pei Yunmeng stared at the medicine bottle thoughtfully for a moment, then shook his head with a smile and tossed the bottle to Duan Xiaoyan, walking ahead.
Duan Xiaoyan caught it in a fluster, "Yunmeng brother?"
He waved his hand, "It’s yours now."