Chapter 67: The Young Master Grows Up (Part 3)

Chapter 67: The Young Master Grows Up (Part 3)

"Doctor Chen, can it be cured?"

Doctor Chen looked at the anxious Xu family members surrounding him and signaled for Cheng Ge Er to close his mouth. He smiled and said, "Madam Xu, there's no need to worry too much. I just examined him, and the young master's throat is infected with heat toxins due to a high fever, which has caused ulcers. It can be treated. I'll write a prescription, and with some rest, he will recover."

Xu Linshi had great faith in Doctor Chen's medical skills. Hearing this, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After writing the prescription, Doctor Chen handed it to Xu Linshi: "Madam Xu, would you like to go with me to get the medicine now?"

Xu Linshi, recalling what the village doctor had said, had her own calculations in mind.

"Cui Zhu, accompany me to see Doctor Chen off and pick up some medicine on the way." Using the excuse of seeing him off, she walked with Doctor Chen to the entrance of the Xu residence before asking, "Doctor Chen, we deal with each other quite often. To be honest, how much does one dose of this medicine cost?"

Cui Zhu followed behind Xu Linshi, not daring to look up, pretending to be busy by fiddling with her fingers.

Thus, Cui Zhu did not notice Xu Zeping, who had come out under the pretext of using the restroom and was following them.

Xu Zeping knew that although his family was kind, they were also frugal. He understood their concern about money...

From another perspective, Cheng Ge Er was not related to them. Taking him in and providing food and shelter, keeping him from falling into a dirty place like a brothel, was already a significant act of kindness for Xu Linshi.

Hiding around the corner of the gate, Xu Zeping clearly heard the conversation between Xu Linshi and Doctor Chen.

"One dose costs one and a half taels, enough for two days."

Xu Linshi pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "Can ten doses cure him?"

"I cannot guarantee it, but if the medicine is taken promptly, ten doses should be sufficient," Doctor Chen replied. "However, I can assure you that at most twenty doses will ensure recovery."

Xu Linshi calculated and realized, as the village doctor had said, it would cost at least twenty taels.

"Cui Zhu, go with Doctor Chen to Bai Cao Medical Hall and bring back two doses first."

Cui Zhu responded, "Yes."

Hearing this, Xu Zeping left first, feeling relieved. At least his mother had sent Cui Zhu to get the medicine, showing her kindness.

Yesterday, after Xu Linshi explained Cheng Ge Er's background to Xu Tangshi, Xu Tangshi did not say much, only instructing her to take good care of the boy until Xu Songshan returned to make further decisions.

Cheng Ge Er could read and write, and at his age, he could write beautiful small regular script. He must have been born into great wealth. If they could find his family, it would be a favor. If not, raising him well might lead to a good marriage alliance for the Xu family.

Clearly, both Xu Tangshi and Xu Linshi had similar thoughts, though neither explicitly mentioned their plans.

"Zeping, are you hungry?" Xu Tangshi glanced at the courtyard outside the hall and complained, "Your mother is taking so long to send Doctor Chen off."

Xu Zeping shook his head, "Grandma, it's fine. I'm not hungry yet."

"You had lunch at noon, and it's already dusk. How can you not be hungry? Don't fool your grandma," Xu Tangshi scolded him gently and waved at Cuiguo, "Cuiguo, go urge your mistress to come back for dinner."

Just as Xu Tangshi finished speaking, Xu Linshi's loud voice rang out, "Mother, you're being partial again. You only care about your precious grandson and forget about your daughter-in-law. I've been busy all afternoon; isn't it okay to take a break?"

Xu Linshi's words weren't entirely false. Yesterday, although she arranged a room for Cheng Ge Er, it was done hastily, and the cleaning was rushed. Today, taking advantage of the good weather, she thoroughly cleaned Cheng Ge Er's room and found two sets of clothes suitable for him—simple jackets and skirts that Xu Zerou no longer wore.

Time was short, so Xu Linshi promised to take Cheng Ge Er to buy new clothes tomorrow.

The current situation was beyond Cheng Ge Er's expectations, so how could he complain?

Living in the Great Jing Dynasty for so long, Xu Zeping confirmed that this dynasty did not exist in history. As internet slang would put it, it was a fictional setting.

Xu Zeping's education on Blue Star was limited, and he didn't know much about the economic level of the Great Jing Dynasty. However, their clothing resembled that of the Ming Dynasty seen on TV.

His mother often wore jackets and skirts, while his sister preferred bright-colored long jackets. Even his grandmother wore mostly long jackets. Initially, he didn't understand why, but his mother jokingly explained that short jackets were more convenient for work.

As for the boys here, there seemed to be no specific dress code. For example, Xu Songrui wore both jackets and skirts and even men's straight robes and armor, albeit more ornate and elegant than those worn by men.

"You always have excuses," Xu Tangshi glanced at her, "Why don't you sit down and eat?"

Xu Linshi, knowing her mother-in-law wasn't angry, smiled, "I'm coming right away."

Cui Zhu's pace was quick, and she returned with the medicine just as the Xu family finished dinner.

Cuiguo needed to help Xu Zerou bathe, so Xu Linshi naturally took the medicine from Cui Zhu, "Cui Zhu, your dinner is warming in the stove. Go eat first."

Seeing Xu Linshi heading towards the kitchen with the medicine, Cheng Ge Er followed closely.

Just as Xu Linshi poured the medicine into the pot, Cheng Ge Er approached and pointed at the small stove: "Ah."

"Cheng Ge Er, you're such a diligent child," Xu Linshi said, hearing his hoarse voice and seeing his bright eyes. She encouraged him, "Can you help Auntie start the fire?"

Cheng Ge Er nodded confidently.

After starting the fire, Xu Linshi placed the pot over it, instructed Cheng Ge Er on how to boil the medicine, then patted his head and went to attend to other matters.

Watching the glowing flames in the small stove, Cheng Ge Er couldn't help but smile.

How wonderful.

Meanwhile, Xu Zeping was racking his brain over the upper couplet.

Upper couplet: A scholar studies to earn a title.

Xu Zeping pondered for a moment. A hero trains to win the championship?

It didn't seem to fit. In the Great Jing Dynasty, there was no emphasis on suppressing martial arts, nor were there martial examinations, so there were no martial champions.

He pondered for a moment and finally wrote: *The soldiers train in martial arts to protect the city*.

After writing it, Xu Zeping immediately realized something was off. In couplets, even tones should match odd tones, and vice versa.

He recalled what his teacher had said and organized his thoughts. According to Lanxing's tonal system, first and second tones belong to even tones, while third and fourth tones belong to odd tones.

*Scholar* is an even tone, *soldier* is an odd tone, so they match.

*Reading* is an even tone, but *training* is a second tone, which won't work. *Training in martial arts* is an odd tone, so it matches.

*Taking exams*... *taking* is a third tone, *protecting* is a first tone, so one odd and one even can match.

*Titles* are first and second tones, belonging to even tones, while *emperor*... all fourth tones, which works.

Finally, Zeping wrote: *The soldiers train in martial arts to protect the emperor*.

Just as Zeping was about to praise himself for his wit, his mind flashed back to his teacher's words: overly crafty... Now he seemed to understand something.

Looking at how he meticulously examined each character for its tonal quality, he couldn't help but bitterly smile, no wonder his teacher's face turned green.

He sighed silently. Well, let's just finish the task first.