Mingxi ate her meal calmly, whether the other woman believed her or not was up to her.
When Liu Cuihua and the others turned around, they discovered Zhao Qingling had disappeared. After carefully scanning the area, they finally spotted Zhao Qingling in a corner.
The woman sitting across from Zhao Qingling looked somewhat familiar.
Lin Hongmei squinted and examined carefully: “Mother, doesn’t that woman look familiar?”
Liu Cuihua widened her eyes and pushed her aside with a slap. “Then let me see! I was just about to take a closer look when you stepped forward and blocked me.”
Lin Hongmei quickly moved aside: “Oh, oh, then take a good look, mother. I feel like I’ve seen that woman somewhere before.”
This time Liu Cuihua saw clearly: “Seen your head! That’s Mingxi!”
Lin Hongmei: “What! That’s Mingxi? How does she look even better than before?”
Liu Cuihua opened her triangular eyes wide and said venomously: “She doesn’t have to endure wind and sun here, nor do any work. Of course she’s fairer and more delicate than before.”
“Watch how I deal with her now!”
Mingxi also noticed that Liu Cuihua and her daughter had seen her. She tilted her head and smiled, pointing at Zhao Qingling sitting across from her.
Come on, reveal your true nature in front of your future daughter-in-law.
Just as Lin Hongmei was about to approach, Liu Cuihua suddenly grabbed her. “Not now.”
Lin Hongmei didn’t understand: “Why? Weren’t you just saying you wanted to teach her a lesson? She’ll finish eating and leave soon. If we don’t go now, who knows when we’ll get another chance.”
Liu Cuihua: “That leader’s daughter is sitting across from Mingxi. If we cause trouble for Mingxi now, we’ll leave a bad impression on the leader’s daughter.”
“Next time, I refuse to believe we won’t run into Mingxi somewhere else.”
Thinking of her son’s future prospects made Liu Cuihua a bit smarter.
If only Lin Jianguo had told her about Zhao Qingling two years earlier, she wouldn’t have tricked Mingxi into marrying Lin Jianguo.
Mingxi’s father was the best doctor in the village. At the time, she thought that since Mingxi was his only daughter, he must have left plenty of money for her. Who would have thought he left nothing behind?
How could this not make her angry? That’s why she had tormented Mingxi so much over the past two years.
Mingxi quite enjoyed watching the mother and daughter pair being unable to do anything about her.
After finishing her meal, Mingxi went to prepare for her afternoon work.
The sister-in-law would come in the afternoon, so she needed to prepare the medicinal cream.
After eating, Zhao Qingling ended up mixing with Liu Cuihua and her daughter again.
But honestly, the mother and daughter pair could really put on an act at times, calling Zhao Qingling “good daughter” and “good little sister” repeatedly. Anyone who didn’t know better would think Zhao Qingling was truly their second daughter.
Mingxi had quite a few patients in the afternoon. Recently the weather had been quite hot, so Mingxi had prepared her own Liang Cha (herbal tea) and Suan Mei Tang (sour plum juice).
Therefore, many people came to the Zhongyi Fang (Traditional Chinese Medicine clinic) to buy Liang Cha and Suan Mei Tang, especially those suffering from heatstroke, whom Mingxi would also treat with Zhenjiu (acupuncture).
Doctor Liao and Doctor Xu had completely become assistants, though they were quite willing.
“Doctor Ming, we’re out of both Liang Cha and Suan Mei Tang. The weather has been really hot lately,” said Doctor Liao while preparing medicine and wiping sweat.
They wanted to buy some themselves, but it had sold out so quickly.
While performing acupuncture on a patient, Mingxi said: “No problem. The herbs for brewing Liang Cha and Suan Mei Tang are available everywhere. We’ll restock soon.”
Mingxi kept peering outside, waiting for Tu Xiaoli.
She had thought Tu Xiaoli would arrive early in the afternoon, but it was already mid-afternoon with no sign of her. Could it be that she wasn’t coming?
After the hottest part of the day passed, the number of people gradually decreased.
Mingxi finally spotted the familiar figure.
Tu Da Niang had accompanied Tu Xiaoli.
“You’ve finally come! I’ve been waiting all afternoon. I thought you weren’t coming.”
If Tu Xiaoli hadn’t come voluntarily, there would have been nothing Mingxi could do. When patients don’t cooperate proactively, no amount of concern from a doctor would help.
“Come! We were definitely coming. It’s just that there were so many people this afternoon, so we thought we’d wait until it got less crowded.”
Tu Da Niang had been extremely anxious – how could they not come? It was just that her daughter didn’t want to see so many people, which is why they had waited until now.
Mingxi glanced at Tu Xiaoli and understood how she felt.
“Then come into my office. I’ll examine you carefully.”
For normal scars, she had methods to lighten them. As for whether marks would remain in the end, that depended on the depth of the scar and individual constitution.
In the office, Tu Xiaoli removed her headscarf. This was the first time Mingxi had clearly seen Tu Xiaoli’s face.
Actually, Tu Xiaoli was quite beautiful – the healthy kind of beauty.
Her skin wasn’t fair but had a wheat-colored tone. Her round face featured almond-shaped eyes, but because of this scar, those eyes had never fully opened.
Mingxi leaned in to carefully examine the scar on her face.
Tu Xiaoli shrank back slightly, unaccustomed to someone being so close to her face.
Mingxi steadied her head with her hand. “Don’t move around. If you move, it’ll be hard for me to examine properly.”
Tu Xiaoli softly murmured agreement. Looking at Mingxi’s fair face and smelling the fragrance coming from her, Tu Xiaoli felt her mood suddenly calm down.
Tu Da Niang stood nearby, nervously rubbing her hands. It should be treatable, right? If this couldn’t be treated, her daughter’s life would be ruined.
After careful examination, Mingxi smiled and said, “The scar on your face isn’t very deep. Was it caused by something scratching you?”
Tu Xiaoli nodded and said quietly, “Yes, it was from a tree branch. It was an accident.”
Mingxi could tell she didn’t want to say more and didn’t press further. The scar wasn’t large or deep – they could try using the yao gao first.
“I can lighten this scar, but I can’t completely guarantee it will disappear entirely.”
Tu Xiaoli quickly waved her hands. “That’s fine, that’s fine! Just lightening it would be enough.”
She would be perfectly satisfied if it could just be lightened.
Mingxi smiled and brought out the yao gao. This medicinal cream was somewhat different from what she usually used on her face. Since she occasionally got injured and feared scarring, she had made extra.
Fortunately she had made extra, otherwise she wouldn’t have been able to provide it immediately.
“Take this bottle of yao gao home and apply it daily, especially at night. After applying the medicine, wear a mask to protect your face from sun exposure.”
“When you’ve used half the bottle, you should start seeing some effects. If you experience any discomfort, come find me immediately.”
When the Tu mother and daughter heard this, they nearly cried.
They held Mingxi’s hands, pouring out endless thanks, and directly took out all the money and ration coupons they had, stuffing them into Mingxi’s hands.
“You don’t need to give this much money. Just pay the normal consultation fee.”
Tu Xiaoli: “No, no, you’re our great benefactor. This money really isn’t much.”
She had spent countless efforts and money trying to cure her facial condition, so this amount truly wasn’t significant.
Mingxi sighed helplessly: “Even if it’s not much, I still can’t accept it.”