The Splendid Brocade of the Painting Physician – Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Where Did It Come From

“It’s very simple. Since your second idiot son robbed someone else’s fertile land, occupied their daughter, and forcibly took some refugees as his personal troops, then all you have to do is return all these things,” the boy said with a relaxed and serious expression.

“Return them? Return them to whom?” Li-shi became nervous and asked first.

“Of course, return them to my Qing Gege,” the boy replied.

Calling him “Qing Gege” repeatedly, one would think he was a young master! But then again, is this legendary divine physician a lady or a young master?

“Hehehe…” Li-shi covered her mouth and laughed, “Boy, don’t blame this madam for not reminding you, let’s not talk about whether my Fourteenth Young Master really did seize someone else’s fertile land, daughter, and refugees as personal troops, even if he did, it’s a blessing for those lowly commoners.

In this world, if you want to live a good life, you’re either a noble or you sell yourself as a servant to a wealthy family. Without status or the protection of an aristocratic clan, you can only wait to be beaten, kidnapped, or even killed like weeds. There’s a saying, ‘Punishment doesn’t reach high officials, law doesn’t reach commoners.’ These days, the death of a commoner is no big deal.”

The boy fell silent. He understood why Li-shi could speak so arrogantly: Indeed, in this world, wars were so frequent, people died every day either from war or disease. Those corpses piled up on the hills like mounds, and the officials couldn’t and didn’t want to care about the lives of these commoners.

Seeing the boy lower his eyes and ponder, Li-shi looked smug, then put on a sympathetic expression: “Young Master, it’s not that we’re reluctant to use these things as a reward, but your master simply can’t afford them. Not only can she not afford them, she might even bring about her own demise!”

After a pause, she continued, “Look, how about this, if your master can really cure my Fourteenth Young Master’s illness, my Zheng family will offer a hundred bolts of silk and a thousand yi of gold as a reward, how about that?”

Li-shi smiled radiantly, looking at the boy’s handsome face with a hint of infatuation. Unexpectedly, the boy narrowed his eyes and smiled, then suddenly put on a stern expression and said: “No, my master regards money as dirt. If you also think your Zheng Fourteenth Young Master is just a pile of shit, then this matter… forget it!”

What kind of talk is this? What does he mean by a pile of shit? Li-shi’s mouth twitched, she glanced sideways at the old madam’s expression, and saw her face as calm as water. She sighed inwardly, this old woman really had excellent self-control and demeanor.

Seeing that the boy was about to step into the room, the group of women behind him anxiously surged forward. The old madam paused for a long time, then put aside her pride and apologized with a smile: “Young Master, don’t listen to this woman’s nonsense. Your master is virtuous and her grace is refreshing, how can we ordinary people compare to her? Please, Young Master, be magnanimous and don’t argue with this woman.”

After saying that, she glared at Li-shi, making her look aggrieved and trembling, not daring to say another word.

“According to your master’s wishes, I will give you the deeds of ownership for all the fertile land, refugees, and the woman that Fourteenth Young Master has taken,” the old madam promised sincerely, and hurriedly called a trusted aide to her side, whispering instructions.

“A-jia…” Li-shi was still a bit unwilling. She was just an unknown village doctor, who knows how good her medical skills really are. It was an honor to invite her to treat the son of an aristocratic family. How could she ask for such generous conditions before even seeing the patient? This was clearly not seeking medical treatment, but taking this opportunity to rob them.

The old madam didn’t know or care about Li-shi’s inner complaints. Under her orders, the group rushed off into the night.

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Ignoring the women, the boy stepped over the threshold and slammed the door shut with a bang. His disdainful and arrogant manner seemed to be guarding against thieves.

The women who were treated as thieves all shuddered, their stomachs full of anger.

“A-jia, look…” Li-shi couldn’t stand it and spoke again. When had the madams and ladies of their Zheng family ever been treated with such disrespect? Those commoners would crawl to lick their toes, how could they endure such humiliation?

“If you don’t speak, no one will think you’re mute!” The old madam straightened up, leaning on her cane, and said angrily, “Why are you still so unteachable after being slapped?”

Li-shi choked, her face flushed red.

Unlike the women outside who were enduring the cold wind and not daring to move, the room was as warm as spring. The boy had bought some charcoal and lit a fire to warm the “young man.” Seeing him holding a brush, hovering over a spot on the screen, staring blankly, he curiously came closer to look.

“Qing Gege, are you painting? What do you want to paint?” the boy asked.

“I don’t know what I want to paint. Some things seem to be bursting out of my mind, but I don’t know what they are,” the young man replied.

“Then what exactly did you think of or see in your mind, Qing Gege?” the boy asked tentatively.

✿✿✿

The young man concentrated and tried to recall, but even remembering seemed to be an extremely laborious and painful task. Soon, he furrowed his brow, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. Under the candlelight, one could see the veins bulging on his pale, almost translucent forehead.

The boy quickly stopped him, saying with concern and distress, “Qing Gege, don’t think about it anymore. If you can’t remember, then don’t think about it. Whatever you want to know, I’ll tell you. If I don’t know, I’ll find a way to find out and tell you.”

Only then did the young man’s expression slowly return to calmness, his pitch-black eyes gradually becoming tranquil. He sat upright, his black hair cascading down, his posture straight, and dressed in white as pure as snow, his skin as smooth as jade. He looked like a statue carved from the finest mutton-fat jade.

“Fenghuang, you said my name is Xiao Jinyu, courtesy name Changqing. These are the names my mother gave me. A month ago, we rushed here from the Qi capital, Yecheng, right?” he asked suddenly.

“Yes, yes,” the boy replied repeatedly.

“I’m a little unclear about what happened recently. Tell me more,” the young man said again.

The boy’s mood became heavy. He really didn’t want to repeat those facts and add to the pain in the heart of the “young man,” or rather, the “young woman.” He had originally come to repay a kindness. Half a year ago, he finally found his benefactor and became one of her personal troops. He also became nominal siblings with the benefactor’s daughter, this young woman. But three months ago, his benefactor passed away for no apparent reason, leaving only the two of them to depend on each other. In order to conceal their identities and avoid attracting attention, and also to fulfill his benefactor’s dying wish, the young woman disguised herself as a young master and used the medical skills she had learned from her mother to practice medicine and support herself.

However, two months ago, they encountered a pack of wolf-like soldiers pursuing them. While fleeing, they accidentally fell down a slope. The young woman hit her head on a rock and lost all her memories upon waking up. She also became somewhat mentally impaired.

She didn’t know who she was, where she came from, or where she was going. The only thing she remembered was the medical skills her benefactor had taught her, and she was even more proficient in them.

To escape the pursuit of “those people,” they fled from the Qi capital, Yecheng, to Yingyang Commandery, seeking refuge in this secluded paradise. But unexpectedly, a plague broke out in the village. She stayed to treat the villagers and cured all of them within ten days. A month ago, while they were enjoying the scenery in Peach Blossom Valley, they encountered Zheng Fourteenth Young Master, a dissolute young master from the Zheng family.

This Zheng Fourteenth Young Master, relying on his status as a young master from a prominent family in Yingyang Commandery, had bullied the common people here countless times. That day, he somehow caught a glimpse of the young woman’s face. Perhaps because he had seen countless beauties, he immediately saw through her disguise and attempted to abduct her as his concubine.

Of course, what happened next was that he gave Zheng Fourteenth Young Master a good beating. Because of this beating, Zheng Fourteenth Young Master, seeking revenge, sent people to find out where they lived and stole all their belongings while they were away, including some of the wealth left by his benefactor and the deeds of sale for their servants and personal troops.

Zheng Fourteenth Young Master’s threat was that he would make their lives impossible in Yingyang Commandery unless they willingly surrendered and became his concubine and servant. He couldn’t tolerate such humiliation, so he planned to find an opportunity to settle the score with Zheng Fourteenth Young Master and retrieve their belongings. But the young woman said that the Yingyang Zheng Clan was a prominent family, and the entire Yingyang Commandery was under their control. A direct confrontation wouldn’t be a good idea. The best way was to make him hand over the things himself or have someone in charge from the Zheng family do it for him.

So, they devised this plan to wait for Zheng Fourteenth Young Master to come to them willingly, which led to today’s events.

Speaking of this, the boy said indignantly, “Qing Gege, that Zheng Fourteenth Young Master is truly despicable! When Old Madam Zheng sends him over later, we must make him pay!”

The young man’s expression remained unchanged, still confused and calm.

“You said my mother died three months ago. How did she die?” she suddenly asked.

The boy fell silent. Just as he was wondering how to answer, he heard a commotion outside the door.

The boy stood up vigilantly and said, “They should be here. Qing Gege, I’ll go bring them in. Then, we’ll think about how to get revenge. After we’ve taken our revenge, I’ll tell you everything else.”

With that, he ran out with a bright smile.