Chapter 685 - 354: Buying Servants

Chapter 685: Chapter 354: Buying Servants

Yun Ying decided to personally look after the woman until her wound healed.

Qin Feng naturally approved. In fact, he didn’t plan on leaving for the next few days either. He prepared to return to Qingnan Village to fetch more medicinal herbs and supplies, and the two of them would stay temporarily at the Liu Family’s home.

He looked at the Liu family’s bare, impoverished home and sighed. He decided to use his own money to buy black fish and other nourishing foods to help the new mother recuperate. This was no time to worry about expenses; there was simply no room for error.

Before leaving, Qin Feng gave Yun Ying some instructions, telling her he would hurry back that evening and that she should watch over the patient carefully.

Yun Ying looked at the woman sleeping soundly on the bed, her expression complicated. She said to Qin Feng, "Senior Brother, you used that medicine today. What will we do when Juhua gives birth?"

Qin Feng frowned and stared at her. "So, to save it for Juhua, we should have just ignored whether someone else lived or died? Is Juhua’s life a life, but another’s is not?"

Yun Ying said hastily, "That’s not what I meant..."

Qin Feng said gravely, "I know exactly what you mean. You simply feel guilty about Juhua. But you have to remember, this woman is no different from Juhua. You can’t prioritize Juhua just because of your own personal hang-ups."

A look of anguish instantly crossed Yun Ying’s face.

Qin Feng lowered his voice and snapped, "Do you still not understand where you went wrong? If you valued every single patient, you never would have thrown that medicine away in the first place. And now you’re trying to make up for that mistake by prioritizing Juhua over others. How is that any different from your original transgression? Right now, your sole focus should be on doing everything in your power to save Aunt Liu. Even when it comes to triage, we must deal with the urgent case before us. How could you consider delaying this woman’s care for Juhua? As for Juhua, if we can save Aunt Liu, won’t that also mean Juhua can be saved? Putting your heart into this treatment, keeping detailed case notes—that will do more for Juhua than any medicine. It’s clear that every action has its fated consequence. If you let selfish motives corrupt your work, you’ll inevitably harm one patient while treating another, saving one only to lose the other!"

As Yun Ying listened to his words, tears streamed down her face. She choked out, "Senior Brother..."

She finally understood. Her senior brother and her father weren’t angry about her jealousy; they were angry that she had abandoned her fundamental duty as a physician. Even if she hadn’t known what was in the black box, had she truly taken Juhua’s facial ailment to heart, she would have handled its contents with care—after all, the whole reason she’d come last time was to deliver medicine for Juhua—not just thrown it away so casually.

She didn’t even notice when her senior brother left. She simply let her tears fall, not daring to make a sound. After crying countless silent tears, her heart suddenly felt light and clear, as if a heavy knot that had been strangling her had finally come undone, releasing all her anxiety and unease. Then, she threw herself wholeheartedly into caring for the mother and child post-surgery.

She checked the new mother’s pulse every four hours. In the days that followed, she personally went to the kitchen to prepare her meals. She tended to the woman’s every need, from food and drink to personal hygiene, with meticulous care.

Liu Heizi’s family was dirt-poor, yet he saw Qin Feng constantly bringing black fish, pig’s trotters, and other foods, which Yun Ying would personally cook for his wife, adding all sorts of medicinal herbs. The honest man was at a loss for how to repay them. He could only think that from now on, his life belonged to Doctor Qin—no, his entire family would forever see Doctor Qin and his junior sister as their greatest benefactors.

Liu Heizi’s wife grew stronger by the day, and the baby was especially robust, with a loud and healthy cry. Qin Feng and Yun Ying were also overjoyed, their faces wreathed in smiles every day. Anyone who saw them and didn’t know better might have mistaken them for part of the Liu Family!

Ten or so days later, Yun Ying finally returned to Qingnan Village.

By then, the Zhang family, the Zhao family, and the Liu Family had already spent several days celebrating, holding one banquet after another. Afterward, Zhang Yang and the two other young Scholars packed their bags and set off for Huzhou again, this time to enroll in the Prefecture School. The government would provide their meals each month, along with a subsidy of two taels of silver. They had officially become court-funded students, much to the envy of many. After they departed, life in their respective households returned to normal.

A dark-skinned boy of about ten followed behind Yun Ying—it was Heipi, Liu Heizi’s eldest son. When Yun Ying saw Juhua, she looked as though she were reuniting with a long-lost friend, her joy plain to see.

She had the boy wait in the courtyard, then pulled Juhua inside the house. Giggling, she said, "Juhua, I have to go to Qingbei Village again, but I came to your place first to get some food to take with me. The Liu Family is terribly poor. If we don’t help them out a bit, then even after we’ve nursed Aunt Liu back to health, the illness will have been treated in vain. All my senior brother’s and my work will have been for nothing. You have to help me."

Juhua suddenly felt that the Yun Ying before her was completely different from usual. She seemed like a whole new person—her laughter was genuine, and she seemed so relaxed and at ease. Juhua liked this version of Yun Ying immensely, so she agreed without a second thought. "Of course! I’m just contributing some goods; it’s nothing compared to you two looking after her day and night. As the saying goes, ’When you save a life, see it through to the end.’ I’ll just follow your lead and earn a little merit. Just tell me what you need, and I’ll have Brother Huai Zi pack it up."