Chapter 13: Mutual Benefit

His eyes, deep as a dark pool, fixed on her for a long time. Xu Qingye slightly parted his lips.

“The condition?”

“Help me deal with the Huang family,” Song Yuntang immediately replied.

“Good.”

Good?

Song Yuntang was surprised. He agreed so quickly?

Without the slightest hesitation?

Xu Qingye opened the door wide, stepping aside to make way for Song Yuntang.

“Miss Song, please come in.”

Song Yuntang entered the courtyard and looked around.

Two rooms stood side-by-side; one was a bedroom, the other a beautifully decorated study, its double doors facing a vibrant lotus pond in the courtyard.

A large tree on the other side of the courtyard shaded most of the area, making it cool and comfortable.

Mr. Xu was indeed a refined scholar.

But though he looked young, his demeanor was excessively bland. Even if he told her he was thirty-three, she would believe it.

They didn’t go inside but sat under the eaves opposite the courtyard gate, the tree above them blocking the sun.

The courtyard gate remained open, their figures visible to everyone.

However, they were too far away for the villagers to hear their conversation.

Song Yuntang looked at Xu Qingye sitting opposite her and smiled faintly. “I didn’t expect Mr. Xu to believe me so quickly. I thought I’d have to use more persuasion.”

Xu Qingye chuckled self-deprecatingly.

“Perhaps because one has been ill for so long, one grasps at any hope.”

Song Yuntang didn’t say anything more. She extended her hand. “Mr. Xu, I need to feel your pulse.”

Although the villagers couldn’t hear the conversation, they could see what was happening.  Seeing Song Yuntang reach out to Xu Qingye, they widened their eyes in astonishment.

“What is Song Yuntang trying to do? Does she dare to be disrespectful to Mr. Xu?”

“Shameless!”

“Mr. Xu is such a remarkable person, how could he possibly let her…” The speaker widened his eyes. “What’s wrong with Mr. Xu? He actually extended his hand!”

Under everyone’s gaze, Xu Qingye slightly pulled up his sleeve, revealing a somewhat thin arm with prominent veins on his wrist.

Song Yuntang immediately felt Xu Qingye’s pulse and examined his tongue. After a moment, she asked, “How long have you been ill, Mr. Xu?”

“Five years.”

She withdrew her hand. “What medicine are you taking now, and what are the effects?”

Xu Qingye went into the study, took a prescription from the desk drawer, and placed it before Song Yuntang. “The physician said this medicine has the effect of moistening the lungs and stopping coughs. After taking it, the cough did lessen slightly, but it returns severely when I stop.”

Song Yuntang nodded. “How is your sleep, sir?”

“Not good.”

“Is the phlegm white?”

“Yes.”

Song Yuntang looked at him. “Then lying down must be quite uncomfortable for you, sir?”

Xu Qingye was surprised. He did indeed have all these symptoms, but previous physicians had never asked so meticulously.

“How did Miss Song know?”

“Based on the pulse, water invading the lungs makes lying down impossible. White phlegm indicates the lungs are beginning to suppurate.  The previous physician’s medicine to moisten and nourish your lungs couldn’t cure you, but at least it slowed the worsening of your condition. Otherwise, even if you met me now, it would be too late.”

Song Yuntang spoke while taking out paper and pen to write a prescription.

Hearing her words, a glimmer of hope arose in Xu Qingye’s heart, which had been “dead” for many years.

He looked intently at the girl writing the prescription, his still calm voice tinged with uncertainty.

“Can my illness really be cured?”

He had consulted countless physicians, all saying his illness was incurable and his life was nearing its end.

Hearing a different answer, he still felt a sense of unreality.

Song Yuntang nodded. “You can stop taking the previous medicine. I’ll prescribe a new dose of Shegan Mahuang Tang, adding a dose of Platycodon grandiflorum to increase the speed of pus drainage. Complete recovery will take about two months. During this time, I will come to check on your progress every seven days.”

She handed the prescription to Xu Qingye.

Xu Qingye took it, his voice slightly heavy.

“Thank you.”

“It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement, Mr. Xu. You don’t need to be so polite.”  Having resolved her business, Song Yuntang didn’t stay long. She stood up. “Mr. Xu, I’ll go now. I’ll leave the Huang family matter to you.”

Xu Qingye stood up. “Miss Song, rest assured, I will keep my word. Go slowly.”

“Mr. Xu, farewell.” Song Yuntang left Xu Qingye’s courtyard without hesitation. Instead of going towards the end of the village, she walked in the opposite direction towards the village entrance.

The villagers watching from a distance looked at each other.

“Was Song Yuntang just taking Mr. Xu’s pulse? When did she learn to practice medicine?”

“Judging by Mr. Xu’s expression, she seems quite skilled.”

“I’ve never heard of her practicing medicine.  Before, I thought she was going to be disrespectful to Mr. Xu.”

…