To be honest, when Li Jin heard these words, countless thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant.
For example, three taels of silver could buy two bolts of cloth; one bolt of cloth could make four long shirts, and if making undershirts, even a little more could be saved.
Three taels of silver could buy the young man three months’ worth of meat, meat to eat every day.
Three taels of silver could also buy three cuts of Xuan paper, which could be used for copying books without needing to air them out as long as bamboo leaf paper.
…
Dr. Wu saw that Li Jin hadn’t responded for a long time and assumed it was a silent refusal.
He could only say, “Mr. Li, you are busy with your studies, it’s my imposition.”
Li Jin said, “Not at all, I can do it. But I really don’t have much experience in practicing medicine. Since that’s the case, next month, after class every day, I will come to you to first write prescriptions. If you think it’s feasible, then we can discuss the matters for August, is that okay?”
He indeed had hardly ever prescribed Chinese medicine.
But as a top student, he still remembered the things he was supposed to learn.
Moreover, in his era, many Chinese medicine prescriptions were publicly available, making them much easier to study than in ancient times.
Dr. Wu never expected that in the end, Li Jin would come up with such an idea.
How could he possibly disagree?
So he said, “Since that’s the case, I’ll mention the consultation fee for July to the shopkeeper; they should subsidize you a bit, and lunch will be provided.”
Li Jin immediately agreed.
The young man gave birth in early June, so by the time July passed, and in August, his health would be almost fully recovered.
He also needs to go out and earn some more money.
Chen Xiran saw that Li Jin was willing to sit in consultation for two shichen every day just for one or two taels of silver! That’s four hours. By the time Li Jin returned to the village, it would probably be past You hour1[You hour (酉时): 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM (Rooster hour)].
And he himself could casually spend a few taels of silver when buying jade pendants or paperweights. He deeply felt how hard it was for Li Jin and suddenly regretted helping Doctor Wu find Li Jin.
Wouldn’t it be better to let Li Jin have more time to review his studies? After all, he still had to take an exam in February next year!
But since Li Jin had already agreed, it was useless for him to say anything now. Luckily, Li Jin had strong self-control, so his studies would definitely not be neglected.
=
Li Jin came home relatively early today and first went to Li Daniu’s house to ask whether he was selling cotton cloth, but Li Daniu said he didn’t have any.
“That stuff is expensive, much harder to weave than hemp cloth. My wife can’t even weave a bolt in a month, and it won’t sell in town anyway, so she simply stopped weaving it.”
Li Jin then asked, “If I were to reserve a bolt, how much would it cost?”
Li Danniu said he didn’t quite remember the price and suggested asking again when his wife returned from doing the laundry. As soon as Li Danniu finished speaking, he readily took out a chess set and said, “My wife should be back in about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea2[“The time it takes to drink a cup of tea” (一盏茶的功夫, yī zhǎn chá de gōngfū) is a traditional Chinese expression for a short, informal span of time — roughly 10 to 15 minutes.], so we might as well play a game meantime.”
Li Jin thought this made sense; rather than going back and forth himself, it would be better to wait here.
As for that kind of cloth in town that starts at a silver or two a bolt, he probably wouldn’t be able to afford it for a long time. Might as well wait for Li Daniu’s wife to finish weaving.
Li Daniu had a unique style when playing chess— the worse he lost, the more stubborn he got. Once he set his sights on a piece of Li Jin’s, he’d insist on taking it, only to end up losing both his piece and putting his king at risk.
By the time Li Daniu’s wife came back, he had already almost run out of pieces.
His wife, upon hearing Li Jin’s question, said, “It depends on whether you want it dyed in the end. If it’s plain white cotton, I only need 700 wen here, and going to the town to dye it would cost about 200 wen.”
So in total, it would only be 900 wen, a whole 100 wen cheaper than in town!
Li Jin then asked how long it would take to finish weaving.
The reply was, “If you order today, I can have it done by early August,”
which is just over a month.
“If you want it faster, it could be late July, then I can take it to get it dyed for you.”
Li Jin went ahead and ordered a bolt of cotton cloth from Li Daniu’s wife. He said, “Can the deposit be delayed for a while? I can write a note and have the village head take a look.”
Li Daniu flatly refused.
“What note? I trust you, wife, just go ahead and do it. The deposit isn’t urgent either.”
Li Daniu’s wife glared at her husband but said nothing. Anyway, Li Jin currently had a good reputation in the village and wasn’t afraid that he would back out.
=
Li Jin went back and told the young man about this, and he said, “I didn’t expect cotton cloth to be so expensive. Wait until your health is better in August, then you can make clothes for me.”
Besides, he had been working out more lately, and by then, his muscles would probably have some shape, so clothes made now would end up looking small in a few months.
The young man felt a bit regretful; he felt like recently, besides cooking and taking care of the child, he didn’t seem to be doing anything else.
Although he needed to rest up, this was a bit too relaxing for him.
Li Jin really wanted to instill in the young boy the idea of ‘you can be a little delicate,’ but unfortunately, the work in the boy’s eyes was never less, only more.
Li Jin scratched his nose: “Isn’t taking care of a baby tiring enough? When the little brat cries, don’t your arms get sore from holding him?”
Under Li Jin’s gaze, the boy shook his head slowly and seriously.
Li Jin: “…Alright, it seems my husband appears delicate, but he can actually harvest two mu3[Mu (亩) is a traditional Chinese unit of land area. 1 mu ≈ 666.7 square meters ≈ 0.165 acres (about 1/6 of an acre)] of wheat alone, and still manage farming, weeding, watering, sewing, all without missing a beat.”
The young man realized he had contradicted Li Jin and hurriedly tried to save face for him.
“It’s not that… nowadays the little one is very obedient, eats until full and then sleeps, wakes up and eats again, so I really am not tired. But I’ve heard from others in the village that when a child starts crawling around at seven or eight months, it becomes quite demanding.”
Li Jin, of course, knew this was the young man giving him a way to retreat.
However, women or gers in ancient times really had to take care of the child, cook and clean, and use the remaining time to do needlework to earn money.
Every household was like this, so Li Jin was especially doting on the young man. Only Li Jin knew it was because this era was particularly unfair. Gers and women basically had no chance to work outside; the only way to earn money was through sewing.
Li Jin said, “Anyway, don’t be fooled by how much you can do now—you actually have a weak body. You need to rest and take care of yourself.”
Although he wasn’t skilled in traditional Chinese medicine, he could still manage the basic pulse conditions.
The young man was indeed physically weak, though not so weak that he needed medicine, but he still had to supplement his diet with various proteins.
Suddenly, he thought about his desire to have another child, and this time he truly took Li Jin’s words to heart.
Having only Baozi as a child is so lonely. If he had another, they could grow up together. Qin Muwen thought it would be best to have a boy, so Baozi could take care of his younger brother, and the younger brother could protect his older brother.
After the sun went down, Li Jin went to plant vegetables, watered them, and the remaining fields would probably require another two days of planting.
Li Jin carried a lot of water today, and after coming back, his shoulders felt like they weren’t even his own anymore.
The young man saw him rubbing his shoulders and eagerly said, “Ah Jin, let me massage your shoulders.”
Back at home, when his father played the piano for a long time and got sore shoulders, he was the one who would massage his father’s shoulders.
Li Jin thought, it’s nice to have someone at home who takes care of you; they notice when you’re hot, cold, or in pain.
He sat on the edge of the bed, and the young man knelt on the bed, first pushing Li Jin’s hair forward, then placing his hands on both shoulders, pressing firmly with his fingers.
Li Jin only felt extremely comfortable. The young man’s strength was just right, neither too much nor too little; it wouldn’t hurt him, yet it could relieve the soreness from his labor.
Qin Muwen asked, “Is the pressure okay? Is it too much?”
Li Jin said, “Just right.”
Qin Muwen breathed a sigh of relief. Although he was used to doing farm work, there was still an essential difference in strength compared to men.
This was already the maximum force his fingers could exert. Any stronger… he would be powerless.
Li Jin gradually realized that, at first, the boy’s strength was okay, but later he could hardly feel the boy’s strength at all.
He asked, “Tired?”
The boy, panting, said, “Not tired.”
Li Jin laughed, stood up, and said, “I should go practice my calligraphy, little liar.”
When Li Jin’s lips curled up and he said ‘little liar,’ there was a lot of affection in his eyes that even he hadn’t noticed.
The young man accepted it completely. He was a bit shy, sitting back under the covers, his fingertips hidden in the blanket. In fact, his fingers were numb from pressing so hard, but it seemed that his strength was still insufficient.
After Li Jin finished writing, he went to do push-ups before returning to sleep. Once he discovered that writing with a brush required arm strength, he started exercising more intensively.
Even though Chen Xiran seems unreliable, he’s actually very good at judging people. After only a few days of interacting with Li Jin, he already felt that Li Jin was extremely disciplined. And he wasn’t wrong.
Once Li Jin set a small goal, like practicing calligraphy, he would practice several extra pages every day and also do some supplementary exercises. This kind of self-discipline, no matter who has it, probably wouldn’t fail in life.
The next day, after school, Li Jin went to Xinglin Hall and met the shopkeeper that Doctor Wu had mentioned.
The man was quite surprised to see that Li Jin looked so young, “So this is the skilled herbalist you were talking about, the one who’s even willing to share secret remedies?”
Doctor Wu said, “Yes, Mr. Li is indeed young. He’s been preparing for the imperial examinations recently, but his medical skills are solid.”
The shop owner hesitated a bit. “But Old Wu, you know how it is. Patients choose doctors mainly based on reputation, and then whether the doctor is old or not.”
Old Chinese doctors, old Chinese doctors4 This roughly means how the term ‘old Chinese medicine doctor’ came to be passed down—it’s probably just how that reputation has been passed down.
Li Jin felt a bit helpless; in terms of fame and exposure, he had no advantage.
But Doctor Wu said, “How can you say he have no fame? Right now, there are storytellers in the town talking about ‘The Divine Doctor Saves a Mother and Child from the Gates of Ghosts.'”
Li Jin looked completely blank, feeling totally out of touch with this era.
He would still have to communicate with Chen Xiran after school—having him to dig up information meant he wouldn’t miss out on the town’s gossip.
As for that so-called divine doctor scholar… what the heck?
Dr. Wu also said, “The family you saved has the surname Song. They’ve been trying to find you these past few days but couldn’t, so they come to me every day just to thank you for saving their lives.”
Li Jin thought to himself that he truly only wanted to keep his deeds quiet.
Dr. Wu said, “If you don’t meet them, who knows? In a few days, the storyteller at the teahouse might come up with a new tale: ‘The Divine doctor, Who Does Good Deeds Without Leaving His Name, Showing His Dragon’s Head but Never His Tail’5[神龙见首不见尾 — “shows the dragon’s head but never its tail” (mysterious, elusive, hard to track down) ] ”
Li Jin and the shopkeeper exchanged a glance, and in each other’s eyes, they both saw despair.
What kind of legendary storyteller is this, anyway?
Dr. Wu gave Li Jin a tea voucher. “You can go and have a cup of throat-soothing tea and listen to what the master has to say; it’s really wonderful. With this voucher, there’s no need to pay. Leave your basket here with me first.”
Li Jin expressed that he was unable to accept it and hoped to have Dr. Wu convey it.
Dr. Wu immediately relayed compliantly,
“Because the door of Xinglin Hall does not block sound, the words you spoke the day before yesterday were heard by the onlookers outside.
They know that you did not enter the inner hall and did not see the woman’s condition, yet you still wrote a prescription that saved a life. If this is not the work of a divine doctor, then what is?”
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