Chapter 217 2/3

Li Laogen was a small man with sharp features that made him look untrustworthy. The guard, hearing his question, became wary, suspecting he might be trying to gather information.

The guard gave his alias.

Li Laogen, unaware it was an alias, began to boast. “It must be tough being a guard, right? Young man, it’s not easy.”

“I had a hard life too, but luckily I later had a good son!”

“My son is a top scholar, you know? When he took the imperial exam, he was the top scorer in Jiang’an Province!”

…

Li Laogen kept talking.

He went on and on about how smart Li Qingzhi was, how he had a photographic memory, and how he had written books, even for Governor Zhang.

He even suggested the guard buy some of Li Qingzhi’s books to absorb some of his talent.

The guard: “…”

He had initially thought this man was trying to extract information from him!

It turned out he just wanted to tell him all about Li Qingzhi’s life!

The more Li Laogen spoke, the more excited he became, and his voice grew louder.

Concubine Liu, who had been inside the house, overheard some of it. One of her maids remarked, “Madam, I didn’t expect Mr. Li’s father to be like this.”

“Yes…” Concubine Liu was also a bit surprised. Li Qingzhi and this small old man seemed nothing alike.

But according to the old man, Li Qingzhi was indeed very impressive.

Considering Li Qingzhi had become a top scholar, he must be quite capable.

She wondered how such a small old man had raised a top scholar.

Li Laogen chatted with the guard until it was time for dinner.

Thanks to the food sent by Concubine Liu, the dinner was very sumptuous that night.

Another guard had arrived during the day, so now Concubine Liu had two guards.

They brought the dishes to Concubine Liu’s room first, but Li Laogen followed them in.

Holding a bowl, he continued talking to the guards non-stop. Once the guards left after serving the dishes, he followed them out…

Concubine Liu, having lived in the palace for many years, had never encountered anyone like Li Laogen and was quite taken aback.

The old man was a bit annoying, but also rather amusing.

When Li Qingzhi came in the evening to treat Qi An, he apologized on behalf of his father, “Madam Liu, I apologize. My father hasn’t had anyone to talk to since we came to the capital, and he loves chatting with people…”

Concubine Liu replied, “It’s fine… Mr. Li, you and your father really don’t look alike.”

Li Qingzhi was handsome, while his father was quite the opposite… there was no resemblance at all.

“I was adopted, so we don’t look alike,” Li Qingzhi explained.

“Your biological parents were willing to let you be adopted?” Concubine Liu was surprised.

“It’s not about willingness. I don’t even know who my biological parents are,” Li Qingzhi said.

When he sent Li Laogen to talk to the guard, he had already anticipated this situation and thus said what needed to be said.

However, he didn’t dwell on it and changed the topic to discuss Qi An’s condition.

Concubine Liu suppressed the fleeting thoughts in her mind and continued the conversation.

But after the conversation, she immediately had her guards inquire about Li Qingzhi from Li Laogen.

Out of respect for Li Qingzhi, the two guards had been polite to Li Laogen but never actively asked him questions, merely responding when he spoke.

However, after Concubine Liu’s directive…

The next day, they started asking questions: “Mr. Li, Mr. Li really doesn’t look like you. Does he take after your wife?”

“Mr. Li, how did you educate Mr. Li?”

“Mr. Li, you must have spent a lot of money on Mr. Li’s education?”

…

For a while, Li Laogen had kept it a secret that Li Qingzhi was adopted.

But as the people in Chongcheng County eventually found out and even envied him…

Li Laogen became willing to talk about it: “I’m an old bachelor, never married. How could I have a wife? Li Qingzhi was a child I found!”

“Amazing, right? I managed to pick up such a talented son!”

“I didn’t have to spend money on his education. He even gave me money!”

“If you’re lucky enough to find a good son like I did, you’ll have a good life too!”

…

Li Laogen was very pleased with himself.

However, when asked about Li Qingzhi’s past, he couldn’t provide answers.

Neither the original Li Qingzhi nor the current one had ever told him much about their lives before coming to Miaoqian Village. Concubine Liu quickly learned this information.

At the same time, Lu Qingxi in the palace also thoroughly investigated Li Qingzhi’s background.

Li Qingzhi’s background was clean. He couldn’t have known Concubine Liu, nor could he have any ill intentions toward her.

As for him volunteering to treat people… it was said that back in Chongcheng County, he had even taken in many homeless children.

Though he claimed they worked for him, he was actually very kind to them.

Li Qingzhi was highly knowledgeable and had even done things some scholars looked down upon, such as writing books for Gou Tongzhi and Zhang Zhiru in Hexing Prefecture.

Speaking of which… Lu Qingxi had read the book praising Zhang Zhiru that Li Qingzhi had written.

He had secretly mocked Zhang Zhiru, thinking he was a hypocrite who pretended not to care about anything but secretly had someone write a book praising him…

He hadn’t realized the author was Li Qingzhi!

Although slightly displeased by this, Lu Qingxi’s wariness towards Li Qingzhi faded.

With many tasks at hand, Lu Qingxi, once assured that Li Qingzhi was not a threat, decided to leave him alone.

In the blink of an eye, Concubine Liu had been staying at the Li family’s home for four days.

That morning, the first thing Li Qingzhi did was knock on the door of the east wing to treat Qi An.

After once again using all his energy on Qi An, Li Qingzhi breathed a sigh of relief.

Qi An was out of danger and could now eat normally.

However, Qi An’s face was still in bad shape. Since this wasn’t life-threatening, Li Qingzhi didn’t rush to treat it.

After the treatment, Li Qingzhi told Concubine Liu, “Madam Liu, when you make porridge later, break an egg into it. The child can now eat some eggs.” Eggs are nutritious and great for recovery.

“I understand,” Concubine Liu nodded seriously.

After four days, she was certain of one thing — Qi An would not die!

Li Qingzhi had truly saved Qi An!

Although Qi An’s face was still scarred, he had survived!

For this alone, Li Qingzhi was her benefactor!

“I won’t give him acupuncture at night anymore. I’ll only check on him twice a day, morning and evening,” Li Qingzhi said. “You don’t need to give him ginseng anymore either. It’s not good for children to have too much ginseng.”

“Alright,” Concubine Liu agreed again, “Thank you, Mr. Li!”

“No need to thank me,” Li Qingzhi replied.

Over the past few days, Concubine Liu had learned a lot about Li Qingzhi from Li Laogen, including all the information Lu Qingxi had gathered.

Now that Qi An was out of danger, Concubine Liu engaged Li Qingzhi in conversation: “Mr. Li, who taught you your medical skills?”

“I learned from an old master,” Li Qingzhi said.

Concubine Liu continued the conversation and eventually asked about Li Qingzhi’s background: “I heard you came to Chongcheng County when you were eighteen. Where did you live before that?”