Chapter 47: Junior Sister is Too Hard

Zhao Meiqin touched her hair, which had gone stiff from the cold, a numb smile frozen on her face. She was poor attending university here, sure—but she wasn’t stupid. In fact, she believed she was much smarter than Xue Qingdai. That girl had already ruined her reputation in this alley, which Zhao Meiqin found a little pitiful.

Xie Wei used to shield Zhao Meiqin whenever Xue Qingdai bullied her. But now his legs acted on their own, stepping in front of Zhao Meiqin, only to shrink back under a cold glare from his uncle, Xie Yan.

Meanwhile, Xue Qingdai lazily held her hot water bottle. Though the old-fashioned tissue wrapping it was rough, it was warm. Her lips still hurt, which only made her speak more freely.

“And who the hell do you think you are?” she snapped.
“My grandpa only has one son—my dad—so don’t go around claiming kin.”

Her arrogant nature had long been ingrained in her bones. Her parents, grandfather, and three older brothers had always spoiled her, never letting her suffer even the slightest grievance. Other people’s opinions meant nothing to her.

Zhao Meiqin lowered her head. Yes, Xue Qingdai was still the same—overbearing and unreasonable. It was a stark contrast to her own polite greetings.

Xie Wei muttered,
“Zhao Meiqin, you’d better keep your mouth shut. That’s actually working out fine.”

His uncle’s stare was about to kill him.
What kind of spell did Xue Qingdai cast on him? Even Grandpa was looking at him strangely. He just wanted to crawl into a hole.

Zhao Meiqin looked stunned and hurt by Xie Wei’s indifference.
He used to stand up for her when Xue Qingdai bullied her. Had he really changed?

Xie Yan added coldly,
“Xie Wei, you should leave soon. It’s cold, and the roads are icy.”
“Also, try not to come by often—you might scare your little aunt.”

Xie Wei: “???”
Scare her? That was the village tyrant! The entire Xue family had been beaten up by him—who’s afraid of whom here?

But he didn’t dare go against Xie Yan. After all, the family’s future power and influence were going to his uncle.

“Yes, Uncle.”
Then he looked at Xue Qingdai and tacked on a polite,
“Little Aunt, we’re leaving.”

Finally, he saw a slight softening in his uncle’s expression and felt a hint of relief. As long as Xie Yan wasn’t openly hostile, that was already the best outcome.

Only after walking away did Xie Wei feel that pressure in his chest lift.
His uncle’s aura was stronger than ever—a natural-born soldier full of fire. He truly admired that.

But how long could Xue Qingdai last under his uncle’s cold, aloof temperament?
They were bound to fight within a few days. She’d be crying, and his uncle wouldn’t offer a single word of comfort. A driven man paired with an unempathetic woman—how could that marriage last?

Knowing Xue Qingdai’s unreasonable personality, divorce was only a matter of time.
But that wasn’t his business. He just had to sit tight and wait to inherit the Xie family legacy. It was all his eventually.

His gaze toward Zhao Meiqin, walking ahead of him, turned colder and colder.

---

Since injuring her lips, Xue Qingdai had been giving Xie Yan the cold shoulder for two full days. No matter what he said, she barely responded.

Xie Yan took half a day off just to escort her to Jiren Hall, a traditional medicine clinic.
The winter chill meant more people than ever were seeking treatment.

With Xue Qingdai’s “experience level,” she wasn’t qualified to see patients on her own.
Her master had been out for a few days visiting a particularly difficult case, so senior apprentice Fan Hua handled diagnosis while fellow senior Yang Lin prepared the prescriptions. The two had worked together for years and had become an efficient duo.

Even with a line almost out the door, Fan Hua’s concise and accurate diagnoses ensured no one waited in the cold too long.

As one group waited to be seen and another waited for their medicine, the clinic was crowded and bustling.

Xie Yan followed Qingdai in and held her small bag for her.

“Hey! You two look well-dressed. Why aren’t you lining up like everyone else?”
“Here at Jiren Hall, everyone follows the rules. Otherwise, Doctor Fan won’t write you a prescription.”
“Please go to the back of the line.”

Fan Hua was in the middle of adjusting a patient’s dislocated arm, using a wooden stool for leverage.
With a sharp crack, she snapped it back into place.
“All done. You don’t need medication—just avoid heavy lifting for a few days.”

Her eyes and ears were sharp. She quickly noticed the commotion and spotted Xue Qingdai.

“Everyone relax—it’s just my junior apprentice.”

She then asked,
“Who’s the man behind her?”

Xie Yan hurriedly replied,
“Xie Yan. Qingdai’s fiancé.”

He had heard her call so many people “Senior Brother” lately—it was driving him a little crazy. No matter how calm he usually was, it didn’t seem to work around her.

Xue Qingdai pouted but didn’t deny it. Xie Yan had treated her pretty well, and embarrassing him here in front of a crowd didn’t benefit her.

“You can head back now, Xie Yan. Be careful on the road.”
“Senior Sister, I’ll help you out.”
Xue Qingdai rolled up her sleeves and sat upright on the wooden stool.

Gone was the lazy posture. Instead, she wore the focused expression of a serious physician.
“Divide the incoming patients into two lines. Both lines will be seen.”

At first, few people went to her.
She was young, with fair skin, still just a girl—and not even married.
She didn’t exactly inspire confidence.

Xie Yan’s lips pressed into a thin line. He didn’t want to leave. He even thought about sitting across from her just to give her confidence.

But Xue Qingdai calmly treated the patients who did trust her.
She wasn’t thinking about anything else.

As a professional TCM doctor, she hated seeing patients waiting around. Her senior brother and sister were clearly exhausted too.
More importantly—she’d been promised chicken stew with mushrooms for lunch today.
The sooner she helped, the sooner she could eat.

The first two or three patients were light cases: colds, stomachaches, etc.

“Just two needles, and my nose is clear again! No more snot, no more frozen icicles hanging from my face!”
“Little doctor, should I still get some medicine?”

What truly earns a patient’s trust is seeing actual results. The body naturally has a self-healing ability, and for minor ailments, Xue Qingdai’s acupuncture merely acted as a supporting aid. Ultimately, everything depended on the individual’s constitution.

She praised the patient, saying,
“You’re just naturally healthy. If you’re short on time, you don’t have to buy medicine. Just drink some ginger tea—it’ll help.”

Hearing this, the man touched the cloth pouch in his coat, thinking of the nearly empty grain cabinet at home filled with a little rice and coarse grains. He decided not to buy the medicine. Since the treatment had cost almost nothing, the smile on his face became even more genuine.

“Thank you! Jiren Hall truly lives up to its reputation—an honest clinic the common folks can trust. You didn’t make us spend even a drop of our hard-earned money.”

That was high praise, and soon more people came to see Xue Qingdai. After all, saving money was a hard truth that resonated with everyone.

Fan Hua spared a glance at her junior apprentice.
It was her first time seeing patients on her own, yet she wasn’t even visibly happy about being praised—was she used to it already?

Fan Hua quickly focused back on her next patient.

Xue Qingdai’s patients rarely ended up buying medicine, which surprised senior brother Yang Lin.

“Junior sister, I thought from afar it was master himself performing acupuncture. Your technique is so practiced and skilled—you must have spent a lot of time training in private.”

“Yeah, junior sister usually strolls in around ten, acting all lazy. But you must’ve been staying up late training all night, huh?”
Fan Hua swept the dirt off the floor and added her thoughts.

It turned out their seemingly indifferent little junior just didn’t want them to worry. Her quiet diligence was truly touching.

Xue Qingdai: “……”

Big misunderstanding.
As long as it didn’t get in the way of her meals, she was fine.

“I do stay up late studying most nights…”
Xie Yan, who had just returned from a state-run restaurant carrying a few takeout dishes, happened to walk in just in time to hear that line come out of her mouth.

His thin lips parted slightly in surprise.