A’Ru originally hadn’t wanted Qi Yue to come along, but when she got the news and was leaving, she happened to run into Qi Yue returning from the storehouse. A’Ru had wanted to lie, but her swollen eyes could only fool a blind person. Qi Yue wasn’t blind, and she was nearly ten years older—an “elder” who could read the young girl’s thoughts written all over her face.
Within a few words, she had gotten the story out. Hearing that her first patient since coming here had been injured again, Qi Yue insisted on going along.
“If old wounds are reopened, they’ll be very difficult to treat. Last time, that fellow said he couldn’t treat such a minor injury. If I don’t go, what will you do?” Qi Yue efficiently dismissed the other maids in the room and had A’Ru help her change clothes. “You two are just half-grown children without parents. I won’t feel at ease unless I go and keep watch.”
They were clearly about the same age, and before, she used to cling to A’Ru like a child holding onto an adult’s clothes. How had Young Madam suddenly changed and started treating them like children…
A’Hao had laughed about this privately with A’Ru several times. What could A’Ru say? The thought that the Young Madam before her was no longer the same Young Madam—she could only bury this in her heart alone. That time when saving A’Hao, both had spoken plainly about it, but afterward, neither mentioned it again, as if it had never happened.
After all, such words truly couldn’t be spoken.
While A’Ru was still conflicted, Qi Yue had already changed into simple clothes and had A’Ru carry the medical box. After the previous surgery on A’Hao, they had surgical sheets and surgical towels, and A’Ru had even made surgical clothing following Qi Yue’s drawings during her recent leisure time. These things would naturally come in handy today.
“No need to borrow your neighbor’s clothes again,” Qi Yue said with a smile.
“Where are Young Madam and Sister A’Ru going?” Que Zhi, standing in the corridor, couldn’t help asking as she watched Qi Yue and A’Ru walk out.
“Young Madam’s affairs—if she doesn’t instruct us, how can we servants ask?” A’Hao said.
Que Zhi knew she was being scolded for being nosy and smiled without saying more about it.
“Sister A’Hao, I heard you’re good at doing hair. Could you teach me?” she said with a smile, changing the subject.
Here, A’Ru and Qi Yue left the gate and saw a woman crouched in the corner. Seeing A’Ru come out, relief showed on her face.
“Quick, go look. He’s at Qianjin Hall. Those doctors can’t save him,” the woman said, her face pale as death.
This was a neighbor’s sister-in-law who often helped look after her brother. A’Ru pulled her, crying and thanking her.
“I thought he really went to the blacksmith shop. I didn’t expect he was lying—he was still mixing with those people…” she cried.
“Young people have rebellious periods. It’s nothing, nothing. Don’t talk about this now—quick, saving someone is urgent,” Qi Yue said from the side.
“Yes, Big Sister, don’t worry. Teach him slowly,” the woman said. She didn’t know how Yuan Bao was injured—someone had run to tell her, so she panicked and went to look, then hurriedly came to find A’Ru.
The woman led the way as she spoke, with A’Ru and Qi Yue following. They left the alley, turned a corner, and came to the street.
Qi Yue suddenly froze.
The bustling marketplace scene came rushing at her with its fresh, lively atmosphere—nothing like what could be experienced on those imitation Ming-Qing dynasty streets. Everything here was real, so real it gave her goosebumps all over.
“…finest quality…”
“…take a look, come and see…”
“I heard Ruixiang Studio got new fabric…”
“…young lady…”
Hawking cries, bargaining voices, and laughter mixed together to create the joyful song of the marketplace. The ding-ding-dang-dang came from the blacksmith shop, while bursts of applause came from the teahouse for the blind storyteller.
Qi Yue felt like her body wasn’t her own. Following A’Ru through it all, her mind buzzed as she looked at the passersby and antique shops with eyes that couldn’t take it all in.
This was a real ancient marketplace! Look at this ground, these deep wheel ruts—this wasn’t some tourist attraction from later times, but something she was actually standing on…
Qi Yue felt one phrase could describe her feelings: ten thousand of those creatures were stampeding through her heart…
Sister has come to ancient times, real ancient times. This ground under her feet is soil from a thousand years ago…
This feeling… it really made her hair stand on end from the shock.
“Here it is.”
She didn’t know how far they’d walked when she heard the woman call out. Qi Yue came back from her reverie, wiped the dense sweat from her forehead and face, and saw herself standing before a shop.
Like all the shops she’d seen along the way, it was antique… bah bah… seeing something European-style at this time would be seeing a ghost. Qi Yue couldn’t help grinning.
She raised her head and her gaze fell on the door plaque.
Qianjin Hall.
A’Ru and the woman had already rushed inside. A’Ru’s crying could be heard from within, so she quickly averted her gaze and entered.
There were many people in the hall, some standing, some sitting, and some lying down, but the atmosphere was very quiet except for the injured person’s continuous moaning.
Qi Yue had no time to look around this ancient hospital or see who was in the room. In her eyes, they were just a group of ancient people she wouldn’t recognize anyway. She went straight to A’Ru and saw that Yuan Bao indeed had an injured arm, though fortunately it was the other arm.
A’Ru was both sad and angry, crying while scolding Yuan Bao, mostly about why he went fighting again and such.
“I’m fine, Sister, don’t worry about me. Go, go, leave quickly!” Yuan Bao struggled to get up while shouting loudly.
But soon two people standing nearby reached out to hold him down. Weak Yuan Bao was like a chick under these two men’s hands, unable to move at all, and couldn’t even make a sound.
“Don’t move, or the blood will flow faster,” they said quietly.
A’Ru didn’t suspect anything and looked at them gratefully.
“Are you a doctor?”
A’Ru heard someone ask nearby.
“How am I a doctor? Where are your doctors here? Quick, treat him!” she became even more anxious hearing this.
No one nearby answered her. Qi Yue had already stepped forward.
“Good heavens, don’t you even know how to stop bleeding?” she said with a frown, then efficiently reached out her hand. “Quick, clothes, mask.”
“Let the doctors here…” A’Ru’s gaze finally turned from her brother. Only then did she see the people in the room.