Jinan Hall was not far away.
After only a few minutes, a physician in his forties came hurrying over behind the servant. He had a medicine box slung over his shoulder, wore a dark indigo scholar’s robe, and had a goatee.
The crowd automatically parted, leaving a narrow path for him.
The physician squeezed through, knelt down beside the injured young man, and pulled up his trouser leg. He carefully examined the injury, pressing around the knee joint little by little while asking whether each spot hurt.
Cold sweat had already appeared on the young man’s forehead, and his features were scrunched together in pain.
“It hurts! It hurts! It hurts like hell!”
After examining him for a while, the physician finally stopped.
The servant hurriedly asked, “Dr. Ji, how is my young master?”
“He’s fractured a bone, and it’s displaced. Fortunately, you didn’t move him. Otherwise, the injury could have been much worse.”
Upon hearing this, the young man turned toward the direction from which the earlier voice had come.
For some reason, his eyes immediately landed on the girl in the crowd.
She had a white cloth wrapped around her head, a cold and composed face, and a pair of intelligent, clear eyes.
Dr. Ji continued, “Fortunately, the bone isn’t shattered, and there are no obvious external injuries. As long as we realign the bone, immobilize it, and let it heal properly, it shouldn’t affect his ability to walk in the future.”
“Send someone to my clinic and bring back two wooden boards, one chi long, along with some hemp rope. Tell them they’re for setting a broken bone.”
The servant hurriedly nodded.
“Yes!”
The servant turned around and was about to leave.
“Use boards one and a half chi long. The risk will be lower.”
Wei Ning spoke up again.
One chi was roughly thirty-three centimeters, so a one-chi board would not be long enough to cover the ankle joint. It could only immobilize the knee, which was not secure enough. The bone could easily shift while healing, increasing the possibility of a limp later.
The correct method was to immobilize both the ankle and knee joints with the same board.
The servant paused.
The young master immediately turned toward the voice.
It was her.
It really was her.
Dr. Ji froze for a moment before turning around.
“May I ask which young lady said that? I have treated broken bones for many years, but this is the first time I’ve heard someone specify the length of the wooden board. Could you explain your reasoning to this old man?”
Wei Ning said nothing.
She had already kindly offered her advice. Whether they listened was up to them.
Besides, there were so many people watching. If she publicly challenged the physician, how could he continue doing business?
The physician’s medical skills were actually quite good. He had simply overlooked a small detail.
The boy could still be treated properly with his method. It merely increased the possibility of a limp; it did not mean the boy would definitely become disabled.
Wei Ning raised her head and glanced at the position of the sun.
It should be a little after two in the afternoon.
She needed to go home and prepare for the next day.
She turned around and was about to leave the crowd when the young man suddenly called out,
“Dr. Ji, can we move to your clinic for treatment? Look how badly the street is blocked!”
His words successfully redirected Dr. Ji’s attention.
The physician immediately ordered someone to bring a door panel. They carefully supported the young man’s waist and injured leg before placing him on the wooden panel. His servants then carried him toward Jinan Hall.
The young man waved at one of his servants.
The servant leaned close, and the young man whispered a few instructions into his ear.
Once the crowd realized there was no more excitement to watch, they gradually dispersed.
Wei Ning hurried home.
Suddenly, two people stepped in front of her and blocked her path.
Judging from their clothes, they were the young man’s servants.
“Miss, my young master would like to see you.”
One of them spoke.
“I don’t know your young master.”
Wei Ning answered coldly.
She shouldn’t have said anything earlier.
Could she have just brought trouble upon herself?
“My young master has given an order. You’d better come with us.”
The servant’s voice was stern.
There were two grown men.
With the original owner’s current weak body, Wei Ning knew she couldn’t beat them.
“Fine. Let’s go.”
She had no choice.
The two servants walked one in front of her and one behind, effectively surrounding her as they escorted her toward Jinan Hall.
Inside a consultation room in the rear courtyard of Jinan Hall, the young man was still lying on the wooden door panel on the floor. Dr. Ji was nearby, arranging his medical supplies.
Wei Ning was brought inside with an expressionless face.
The young man looked up.
The girl wore a loose, faded light-green coarse-cloth shirt and black trousers. Her hair was tied high with a gray strip of cloth and casually knotted.
Her eyes were cold and wary, like a wild wolf ready to attack at any moment.
“Miss, I mean you no harm.”
The young man spoke first.
“I wanted to thank you. Because you warned us on the street just now, my leg injury wasn’t made worse.”
Wei Ning didn’t respond.
This young man was quite perceptive.
She had only spoken twice, yet among all those people, he had still managed to identify her.
“The reason I asked you here is because of what you said about the wooden board being one and a half chi long. What is the reasoning behind that?”
“Miss, could you explain it to us?”
At this, Dr. Ji stopped what he was doing and turned toward the girl standing not far from the doorway.
She had a white cloth wrapped around her head, with dried blood still visible on it. Her body was thin and frail, but her posture was straight, and her eyes were exceptionally clear.
She gave off the impression of someone who had a great deal of knowledge and wisdom.
Was she the one who had spoken earlier?
Wei Ning still said nothing.
Dr. Ji sincerely said, “Young lady, please speak freely. This old man is asking with an open mind. I won’t hold it against you.”
Wei Ning didn’t even blink.
Her lips remained tightly shut, as if she hadn’t heard him.
The young man frowned slightly and continued persuading her.
“Miss, if you’re willing to explain, I will certainly reward you generously.”
“How generously?”
Wei Ning’s crisp voice immediately rang out.
The young man froze for a moment before answering.
“Miss, what kind of reward would you like?”
“What kind of reward are you planning to give me?”
Wei Ning tossed the question right back at him.
Unless he revealed his offer first, how was she supposed to know whether he was generous or stingy?
“I could invite you to Tingzhu Pavilion for a feast?”
The young man tentatively suggested.
Wei Ning rolled her eyes.
Did she really need him to buy her a meal?
Grrrrr…
Grrrrr…
Her stomach, which had only received a bowl of thin porridge that morning, chose that exact moment to growl loudly.
Well…
Apparently, she did need the food.
“How much would one meal at Tingzhu Pavilion cost?”
“Ah?”
The young man was stunned again.
“It should cost around ten taels of silver.”
Ten taels?
That would do.
“Give me the money instead.”
“Ah? Oh! All right!”
Only then did Wei Ning turn toward Dr. Ji and speak clearly.
“From the way Dr. Ji examined the injury just now, you seem very experienced at setting broken bones. Your medical skills are impressive.”
“May I ask, Doctor, have you treated many patients with injuries similar to this young master’s?”
Dr. Ji answered, “Quite a few. If not a hundred, then certainly several dozen.”
After all, this was a frontier region. People with broken arms and legs were common.
Wei Ning asked again,
“Of those you’ve treated, did all of them recover completely and walk normally afterward?”
Dr. Ji thought for a moment before slowly answering,
“Most recovered well. Only a few were able to walk afterward but were left with a limp.”
“But you used the same treatment method on all of them, including the same type of medicine, correct?”
“Yes.”
Dr. Ji’s eyes suddenly lit up.
“Young lady, do you know why?”
This was something that had puzzled him for a long time.
Wei Ning spoke word by word.
“Your technique and medicine aren’t the problem. The problem lies with the wooden board.”
“The board you use is generally only long enough to immobilize the fractured joint, like with this young master.”
Wei Ning walked over and crouched beside the young man, placing her hand on his knee.
Seeing this, Dr. Ji also crouched down beside her.
“You’re using the board to immobilize the broken bone around the knee so that the bone can grow back properly.”
Dr. Ji nodded.
“If the patient follows your instructions, stays in bed, and doesn’t move around, the bone will indeed heal.”
“But some patients aren’t careful. They may move their ankle without realizing it. They think that because their knee isn’t moving, it doesn’t matter.”
“But the bones in the human body are connected through joints.”
“If the ankle moves, even slightly, the lower leg bones will move with it. That can cause the fractured joint at the knee to shift.”
“If you simply make the wooden board one and a half chi long and extend it far enough to immobilize the ankle as well, you can prevent this from happening.”
As Wei Ning spoke, her hand moved between the young man’s knee and ankle, explaining the mechanics to Dr. Ji.
The young man stared intently at Wei Ning.
Her pale face was so smooth that not even the slightest blemish could be seen, like a peeled egg.
The focused expression on her face seemed to radiate a faint golden glow, making her exceptionally captivating.
Perhaps his gaze had been too intense.
Wei Ning suddenly turned her head toward him.
Her clear, intelligent eyes were filled with confusion.
The young man immediately stiffened.
“Whoosh!”
Both his ears and cheeks suddenly became burning hot, turning so red they looked as though blood might drip from them.
Wei Ning froze.
She straightened up, took two steps backward, and stood perfectly upright.