Chapter 373

Chapter 373

Zhou Jieshu became more and more satisfied with Wang Qinghe as he tested him.

This child was indeed telling the truth. His knowledge was not only solid but showed a deep understanding of the material. It was clear he hadn’t just memorized the texts but truly comprehended them.

Mastering the knowledge from the medical texts required first memorizing it, then thoroughly understanding it, followed by a master guiding the student through practical experience step by step.

Wang Qinghe’s previous teachers had only given him a general education, merely leading him through the basics.

He was like a raw gemstone, full of untapped potential. Now that Zhou Jieshu had taken on the role of his teacher, he was confident that this child would become even better in the future.

And from what this child had said earlier, he had started learning in order to provide a good life for his wife?

He was someone who deeply valued relationships.

Zhou Jieshu had been married to Xiu Juan for decades, and their relationship had always been strong. He had always admired children who valued emotions as much as he did.

Now, Zhou Jieshu found Wang Qinghe increasingly appealing.

This sudden change left Yu Cheng, who was watching from the side, utterly astonished.

Previously, the old man hadn’t been like this at all. He had vividly scolded those people away just the other day.

“Old man, there are still guests outside,” Xiu Juan called out. From the window of the east room, she could see the situation outside. Noticing that there were people waiting again, she came over to remind him.

On such a cold winter day, if he needed to see them, they should be brought inside right away.

If not, she would go and tell them so they wouldn’t freeze outside.

“Guests?” Zhou Jieshu had been so engrossed in his conversation with his future apprentice, Wang Qinghe, that he had completely forgotten about the people waiting behind him.

To ensure fairness, he had allocated time for each child, meeting them one by one for his tests.

But with Wang Qinghe, he was so satisfied that he temporarily forgot about the others.

“Xiu Juan, turn away the people behind. Tell them I’ve already found a suitable apprentice.

This child is called Wang Qinghe, a child from the He family.

I will not take any more disciples from now on. Also, please give the two packages of high-quality herbs in my room to the people waiting outside.

Consider it a compensation for their trouble coming here.”

After saying that, Zhou Jieshu stopped paying attention to them.

He continued to assess his promising disciple.

Seeing that Wang Qinghe didn’t show excessive joy because Zhou Jieshu had taken on a disciple, he was even more satisfied.

This was how it should be.

If someone were to get overly excited over something trivial, how would that be appropriate?

In contrast to Wang Qinghe’s calm demeanor, both He Zhifei and Yu Cheng were visibly excited.

He Zhifei’s mouth couldn’t help but curve upwards, and looking at his eldest son, he felt immense pride. This was his son. His son was no worse than He Tian from the third family, and perhaps even better.

From now on, he wouldn’t have to worry about his son being compared to others.

Unlike He Zhifei, Yu Cheng didn’t dare to openly express his joy.

On the surface, he and Wang Qinghe still needed to pretend they didn’t know each other.

But inside, he was overjoyed. Wang Qinghe had previously told him about selling some ancient formulas for health-strengthening drugs. Yu Cheng had been worried something might go wrong, but now he could stop worrying.

With the old master around, Wang Qinghe wouldn’t be practicing medicine without a license anymore.

What once seemed like a risky idea now felt entirely possible.

Yu Cheng could already see the money rolling in.

Zhou Jieshu spent over half an hour talking with Wang Qinghe before he was finally satisfied.

"Child, starting today, you’re my disciple. We don’t have any cumbersome apprenticeship ceremony. Just follow me." Zhou Jieshu led Wang Qinghe into the inner room. The room had a portrait of the Medical Sage and a stack of medical books.

"Bow to these, and you’ll officially be my disciple." Zhou Jieshu was a man without much pretense.

He smiled warmly, like a kind grandfather.

Wang Qinghe paid his respects to the portrait and the books, then bowed to Zhou Jieshu. "Master."

"You don’t need all this fuss, it’s not the time for it," Zhou Jieshu said. "I heard you’re working in a factory now? What time are you available each day?"

"I get off work at 5:30 PM and can be here by 6:30 PM," Wang Qinghe calculated.

Zhou Jieshu nodded. "Alright, come over at 6:30 PM every day, and I’ll teach you for two hours. If that’s not enough, I’ll figure something else out."

Zhou Jieshu was eager to start teaching his new disciple right away.

If it weren’t for the circumstances, he would have preferred the boy to focus solely on learning.

But that wasn’t possible, so he would have to see if this arrangement worked. If not, he’d adjust.

"Thank you, Master, for understanding," Wang Qinghe said gratefully.

"No need to be so formal now that you’re my disciple. Let’s go—you’ll head home with your family today. Don’t be late tomorrow; I’ll take you to put what you’ve learned into practice."

Zhou Jieshu patted his good disciple’s back and led him out of the small room.

He Zhifei was also very concerned when he saw his son come out.

"Xiao He, your eldest son is now my disciple, so make sure you treat him well," Zhou Jieshu said to He Zhifei.

He had just found the boy in the countryside, and although he didn’t know the exact situation, it seemed the boy wasn’t very close to his father.

There was probably some estrangement, and it wouldn’t be good if the boy was being mistreated.

Hearing this, He Zhifei felt both happy and helpless.

Of course, it was good that someone was helping his son, but... when had he ever mistreated the boy? The boy wouldn’t even call him dad.

Still, he wouldn’t bring up such matters at a time like this. He just thanked Zhou Jieshu happily.

Even after they left the Zhou family, He Zhifei was still in disbelief.

He still couldn’t believe his son had really become an apprentice.

"Wang Qinghe, let's head back quickly," He Zhifei really wanted to say something nice to his son, but thinking about the twenty-plus years of unresolved grievances his son had that hadn't been properly addressed, he couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

Youde’s situation... he really should reconsider it.

He couldn’t just drive his son away like this. The other kids weren’t much help, but his eldest son was promising and could take care of the others in the future.

They wouldn’t be left without anyone to look after them after he and Yingying were gone.

Besides, he genuinely liked kids who made him proud!

He Zhifei knew his thoughts were pretty selfish, but he had no other way.

Wang Qinghe had no clue what He Zhifei was thinking. He only knew he was one step closer to protecting Xiuxiu.

If he kept excelling, he could provide better cover for Xiuxiu’s space and keep her safer.

The more successful he became, the more He Zhifei would favor him over Youde.

Youde’s family would grow increasingly desperate.

Once they were completely out, he’d make sure they ended up behind bars for good.