As the rooster crowed at dawn, Chen Ji woke from a battlefield in his dreams.
He slowly got up, limping as he made his way to the main hall of the clinic, where he sat on a bamboo chair, waiting for Xi Bing to arrive.
Liang Mao'er, dressed in a gray cloth robe, had also risen early and gone out to fetch water.
Chen Ji wanted to help sweep the floor, but Liang Mao'er stopped him, saying, "Your injury needs another month to heal. Don't move around too much. I can handle all the chores in the clinic by myself."
Chen Ji, curious, asked, "Actually, it's clear that everyone here doesn't mind you staying. So, Brother Mao'er, you don't need to rush to do all the work."
Liang Mao'er replied softly, "It doesn't matter how much work I do. I just hope you don't blame my brother for not helping yesterday. He has his reasons."
"Why did he set those three rules for himself?" Chen Ji asked, puzzled.
"Did he often deal with the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs in the past?"
Liang Mao'er, carrying a shoulder pole, stood silently in the hall for a long time before finally saying, "Actually, I lied before. After my sister-in-law left, we didn't completely lose contact with her."
"Where did she go?"
Liang Mao'er lowered his head.
"When my sister-in-law left Ning Dynasty, she was discovered by the Secret Intelligence Bureau. The Tianma intercepted her at the border town. She was no match for them and was captured on the spot. At that time, the Grand Chancellor sent someone to tell my brother that they wouldn't send her to the inner prison but would return her to Luocheng instead. However, the condition was that my brother could no longer oppose the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs and had to do three things for them."
"Then why didn't your sister-in-law come back?" Chen Ji suddenly realized that the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs must have suspected the identity of the female swordsman long ago.
They had been waiting for her to escape so they could use her to control Liang Gou'er.
Liang Mao'er smiled.
"My brother agreed to the Grand Chancellor's conditions, but he didn't let them send my sister-in-law back. Instead, he chose to let them release her."
Chen Ji was silent for a moment, surprised by this answer.
"The girl named Yan'er in Red Clothes Lane... she looks a lot like your sister-in-law, doesn't she?"
"Yeah," Liang Mao'er replied with a simple smile as he headed out the door.
"I'm going to fetch water. I still need to cook later."
Just as he stepped out, he saw Xi Bing hurrying down the bluestone road of Anxi Street, her skirt lifted.
She brushed past Liang Mao'er at the threshold.
Chen Ji stood up with a smile to greet her.
"Miss Xi Bing, why are you here so early?"
Xi Bing quickly said, "Chen Ji, I was just looking for you. Bai Banruo has been injured again by some scoundrel. Madam asked me to fetch you to treat him... I don't know who could be so cruel as to harm Bai Banruo twice! It's just despicable!"
Chen Ji lowered his head slightly, feeling a bit ashamed.
"Miss Xi Bing, I can't go to the prince's residence to treat him. I was stabbed by a scoundrel a few days ago, and my leg injury hasn't healed yet."
According to the rules of intelligence transmission, Chen Ji should have met with Yun Fei in person to ensure the information was passed correctly.
However, there were people from Jin Zhu watching from the second floor across the street.
If he limped to the prince's residence, it would surely arouse suspicion.
Chen Ji stood by the redwood counter, picked up a brush, and said, "I'll write you a prescription. Take it back with you and apply it externally to Bai Banruo. He'll be fine."
Xi Bing hesitated for a moment.
"Alright."
Chen Ji weighed the herbs, wrapped them in butter paper, and tied them with hemp rope.
After securing the package, he tucked the prescription into the folds of the rope.
"Go back now. Apply it twice a day, and Bai Banruo will be fine."
Xi Bing took the package from him and returned to Feiyun Garden.
Outside the pavilion at Feiyun Garden, Yun Fei's gentle voice could be heard.
"Bai Li, Mr. Wang says you've been dozing off in class lately. If this continues, your father will surely scold you when he returns."
Bai Li muttered, "Mr. Wang is a great scholar. How could he gossip behind my back?"
Yun Fei pretended to be angry and lightly smacked Bai Li's palm.
"This isn't gossip. He's just being responsible. Don't speak of Mr. Wang like that again."
"I understand..."
At that moment, Xi Bing hurried into the room.
"Madam, Physician Chen is injured and couldn't come, but he wrote a prescription and prepared the medicine. He said Bai Banruo only has external injuries and will recover with some ointment."
"Xi Bing, leave the medicine here for now. Go tell Xi Tang that the prince has sent a fast horse with news. He has finished gathering military provisions and is preparing to return. Have Xi Tang clean the residence thoroughly, especially the Jing'an Hall and Mingzheng Hall. Even the glass roof needs to be wiped clean," Yun Fei said, then turned to Bai Li.
"Bai Li, go review your lessons. You need to hand in your calligraphy practice tonight, or I'll cut your allowance... Bai Li?"
Bai Li snapped out of her thoughts, stood up, and took the medicine package from Xi Bing.
She pulled out the prescription tucked inside and examined it carefully.
Aside from a few typos, she found nothing unusual.
But according to common practice, the medicine should have been given directly to the servants.
Why had her mother asked Xi Bing to leave the package in the pavilion and then sent her away on an errand?
There must be something going on.
At that moment, Bai Li was filled with countless questions.
She suddenly remembered that when she had just returned from Donglin Academy, she had seen Chen Ji at Feiyun Garden, but she hadn't paid much attention at the time.
Now, knowing that Chen Ji's identity was suspicious, she realized there was more to him than met the eye.
Outsiders might not know the situation, but she was familiar with the clinic staff and knew that the three apprentices weren't qualified to make house calls.
Why would someone being investigated by the Secret Intelligence Bureau be connected to Feiyun Garden?
Yun Fei casually took the prescription from Bai Li's hand.
"What's wrong, Bai Li? Why are you so interested in the prescription all of a sudden?"
Bai Li shook her head.
"It's nothing. I was just curious about what medicine the clinic prescribed for Bai Banruo."
...
Outside Taiping Clinic, an ox cart slowly came to a stop.
Manager Yuan jumped off the cart and walked into the clinic with a smile, cupping his hands in greeting.
"Physician Yao, it's time to restock the herbs. I've brought the goods."
Physician Yao glanced up at him.
"Let me check the quality."
He slowly walked over to the cart, untied a sack, and pulled out a handful of monk fruit from the bottom.
He examined it in his palm.
Physician Yao glanced at Manager Yuan and tossed the monk fruit back into the sack.
"The quality is good. It seems you put some effort into sourcing these herbs."
Manager Yuan smiled.
"When has Bai Lu Pavilion ever had issues with its goods? They're always the best. Take a look and see which herbs you'd like to stock."
Physician Yao pulled a list from his sleeve.
"Follow this list, and add ten wild ginseng roots. Remember, I won't accept any that are less than fifty years old."
Chen Ji was startled inside the clinic.
Why did his master need ten ginseng roots all of a sudden?
Outside, Manager Yuan looked troubled.
"Physician Yao, who carries ten ginseng roots around with them? The cart only has common herbs."
Physician Yao said calmly, "No matter. Just deliver them by evening. Make a note of it, and I'll check the quality of the other herbs."
At that moment, Liang Mao'er returned to the clinic, carrying a shoulder pole.
Chen Ji immediately noticed a long tear in the gray cloth robe on his chest.
"Brother Mao'er, what happened to your clothes?"
Liang Mao'er looked down and panicked.
"It must have been the person who bumped into me earlier. I'll go find him... This is She Dengke's robe!"
When Liang Gou'er and Liang Mao'er had arrived at the clinic, they hadn't brought any spare clothes, so Liang Mao'er had borrowed She Dengke's robe.
Now that it was torn, Liang Mao'er was frantic.
How would he explain this to She Dengke?
Physician Yao, with a stern face, stopped Liang Mao'er from going after the thief.
"It must have been a pickpocket. You won't find him. Go fetch water in the courtyard, and later, Liu Quxing can mend it for you."
Liang Mao'er was on the verge of tears.
"But the mend will still be visible. She Dengke only has two sets of clothes, and his family isn't well-off..."
Physician Yao sighed.
"Don't worry. He won't blame you."
Even the usually harsh Physician Yao couldn't bring himself to be harsh with Liang Mao'er.
While Physician Yao and Liang Mao'er were talking, Manager Yuan walked back into the clinic with a smile.
He stood beside Chen Ji and asked in a low voice, "Xi Bing came earlier. Did she confirm the time and place for the second delivery?"
Chen Ji replied calmly, "Tonight at midnight, Red Clothes Lane, Gold Workshop. Look for the madam and mention Luo Tian. We shouldn't use the same place twice, but my leg is injured, and I can't meet with the person from the prince's residence directly. So, I had to use the prescription to pass the information and stick to the old location."
"The old location it is," Manager Yuan said, breathing a sigh of relief.
He patted Chen Ji's shoulder with a smile.
"Good, very good! Once this is successful, I'll report your merits to the Director."
Chen Ji was silent for a moment, then turned to look at Manager Yuan.
"Why did you have to hurt someone today?"
Manager Yuan chuckled.
"I didn't know if you'd followed my instructions. Besides, it's good for you to know that even with Liang Mao'er and Liang Gou'er by your side, they can't protect you. Focus on your work for the Military Intelligence Bureau, and don't get any other ideas."
"I understand."
Chen Ji watched without emotion as Manager Yuan and his assistant left in the ox cart.
Behind the cart, two small tabby cats followed.
In the courtyard, a crow perched on an apricot tree branch, watching as Chen Ji lay back on the bamboo chair, growing calmer by the moment.
Chen Ji slowly closed his eyes, returning to the battlefield in his dreams.
There was still much to do today.
(End of Chapter)