Chapter 7

“This medicine of yours is not simple; it’s very precious. I’ll buy it for a hundred taels of silver! What do you think? From now on, any medicine you make can be delivered to Xinglin Hall, and I’ll buy them at a fair price!”

Old Doctor Sun stroked his white beard, his face full of anticipation as he looked at Xia Qingqing.

A hundred taels of silver!

My gosh, this is calculated based on the purchasing power of one tael of silver in Long Kingdom, which is worth a hundred thousand dragon coins!

Oh my!

This is the first bucket of gold in my journey to Dahuachao!

Xia Qingqing’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“Alright! I’ll do as you say!”

“Just…”

Xia Qingqing scratched the back of her head, a bit troubled as she said, “This hundred taels of silver weighs around ten jin. Carrying ten jin of silver down the road might attract attention. Could you help me exchange it for banknotes or something?”

She was worried that those petty people from the Xia family would see her carrying a hundred taels of silver and would definitely ask where she got so much silver from! They might even frame her for stealing from the family!

Old Doctor Sun laughed heartily, “No problem! I’ll have my son take you to get the banknotes and give you some small change, which will be easier for you to carry!”

“Thank you, Old Doctor Sun! You’re really a kind-hearted old man, hehe!”

Xia Qingqing’s eyes curved into crescent moons as she looked at the amiable Old Doctor Sun, reminding her of her grandfather in Long Kingdom. She really wanted to hug the old man and cry.

I miss my grandfather!

The old lady next to her looked at the girl in simple clothes and instructed the maid beside her, “Jian Qiu, go get a cloak for her. It’s so cold; she’s dressed too lightly! Just consider it a little token of my appreciation!”

“Yes, Old Madam!”

The maid Jian Qiu immediately went to fetch a fox fur cloak.

“Come here, Qingqing!”

The old lady waved her hand at her as well.

Xia Qingqing hurried back to the old lady’s side.

“Put it on! From now on, make more good medicines to cure people and benefit the common folk!”

The old lady personally draped the cloak over her, tied the straps, and held her icy little hand, giving her earnest advice.

“Thank you, Old Madam!”

Xia Qingqing was deeply moved by the care of the two old men and the old lady, her eyes welling with tears.

A pair of watery big eyes instantly filled with tears, and large droplets rolled down her cheeks.

Maybe it was because the original body had suffered too much; she couldn’t help but cry.

“Oh dear! Good child, don’t cry, don’t cry!”

The old lady quickly took out a handkerchief to help her wipe her tears.

“Hmph! My cricket died so terribly!”

An unharmonious voice suddenly rang out.

Young Master Liu, fearing that everyone would focus on comforting Xia Qingqing and forget about the grudge between him and her, quickly cried out.

Xia Qingqing couldn’t help but send him a thought.

“Alright! Alright! Qingqing didn’t say she wouldn’t compensate you; why are you howling?”

The old lady looked at the delicate and lovely girl, her heart softened involuntarily.

She was around fourteen or fifteen years old; at this age, she should be a child living joyfully under her parents’ knee. Looking at her thin frame and the way she was dressed, having just held her hand, she could feel the thick calluses; she must have been mistreated at home!

“Old Madam, you’re biased!”

Young Master Liu pouted in dissatisfaction. If it weren’t for the needles on his body, he would definitely be rolling on the ground throwing a tantrum.

“Qingqing, come with me to get the money!”

Uncle Sun Sun called out to Xia Qingqing to leave quickly, to avoid that little tyrant going crazy.

“Yes!”

Xia Qingqing bowed to the old lady and Old Doctor Sun, then hurriedly followed Uncle Sun Sun out the door.

The old lady softly instructed the maid Jian Qiu a few words:

“Send someone to follow Miss Qingqing and find out about her background!”

“Yes, Old Madam!”

“She’s getting away! She hasn’t compensated me for my cricket yet! How can you let her leave?”

Young Master Liu angrily slammed his fist on the soft couch.

“Enough! Qingqing will come back to sell medicine again; the poison in your body still needs her medicine to detoxify. If you provoke her and she poisons the medicine, what will you do?”

The old lady was trying to reason with Young Master Liu.

“Oh! Right! Then I won’t!”

Once Young Master Liu heard this, he obediently closed his mouth.

Xia Qingqing had a few small banknotes tucked into her clothes and a small piece of silver in her pocket. She happily left Xinglin Hall.

Walking on the bustling street, there were all kinds of food and goods available.

I have silver, so I can buy some good food to take back for Xiao Suo.

As Xia Qingqing strolled around, she bought some food and daily necessities.

Not far behind her, a slender woman had been following her; wherever she went, the woman followed.

Xia Qingqing was so preoccupied with her happiness that she completely failed to notice.

After she climbed over the wall into the back alley of the Xia residence with a large bundle on her back, the woman waited outside.

After a while, seeing that Xia Qingqing hadn’t come out, the woman concluded that she must be living inside.

Then the woman circled the Xia residence, using silver to gather information about it.

After finding out the details, the woman quickly returned to Xinglin Hall to report the situation.

“…Old Madam, that little girl should be a concubine daughter of the Xia family, ranked sixth. Her name is Xia Qingqing, and she is fourteen years old. In a month, she will turn fifteen. She has been sent to live in the most remote and dilapidated part of the back courtyard by her legitimate mother, Yan Meili.

The servants in the residence bully her, and it’s said that she started to resist yesterday, hitting those lowly servants who look down on her. This caught the attention of her biological father, Lord Xia, who gave her some clothes, blankets, and food.

As for where she learned her medical skills, it’s possible that she really is self-taught. Her maternal grandfather is a scholar, and her biological mother is also a lowly scholar. Her father was able to come to the capital to take the imperial examination thanks to her grandfather’s support.

However, when her father became the top scholar, he became the son-in-law of the Grand Minister Yan! Because the marriage to Xia Qingqing’s biological mother was only a verbal agreement, therefore…”

“Slap!”

“What a scumbag! What a scumbag! I didn’t expect that the impressive Xia Minister is actually a complete scumbag!”

The old lady was so angry that she slapped the armrest of her chair.

“Old Madam, please calm down. People in this world are all driven by profit. Being the favored son-in-law of Grand Minister Yan is certainly better than being a country scholar’s son-in-law by a hundred times!”

The maid Jian Qiu reached out to gently pat the old lady’s back.

“I understand! We can’t help her openly, but we can secretly assist Miss Qingqing. When I return to the palace, I will definitely tell the Emperor to inform Lord Yan to discipline this ‘good son-in-law’ properly! How can he be a good father if he mistreats his daughter? If he can’t be a good father, how can he be a good official? Hmph!”

Young Master Liu, lying on the soft couch, twitched his ears, and a flicker of unnoticeable light flashed in his eyes.

“Old Madam, why do you care so much about other people’s matters? You should be concerned about your grandson. My cricket died, and I will definitely make Xia Qingqing compensate me with a bigger one. If I’m not satisfied, she won’t have it easy! Hmph!”