Ever since she was little enough to still be wearing split-crotch pants, her grandfather had kept her by his side and taught her medicine.
The first toy Tang Youyou could remember having was a diagram of the human body marked with all 361 acupuncture points.
By the time she was five, she could locate those acupuncture points with pinpoint accuracy.
After that, under her grandfather’s guidance, she mastered the Tang Sect’s Eighteen Needles to perfection.
Watching her skillful technique, Gu Yuan and Doctor Mo exchanged a stunned look.
Once Tang Youyou began treating a patient, she became completely absorbed in her work.
After inserting needles into more than a dozen acupuncture points on the patient, she finally let out a long breath, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and turned to Qian Yuming.
“Excuse me, where can I get the medicine?”
“I’ll go.”
Qian Yuming quickly picked up the prescription from the desk and hurried out.
Less than ten minutes later, he came running back.
“I had the pharmacy grind everything into powder according to your instructions.”
Tang Youyou gave Qian Yuming an approving glance.
She hadn’t expected this intern to be so quick on the uptake.
After mixing the medicinal powder into an ointment according to the proper proportions, Tang Youyou turned around and removed the acupuncture needles.
“How do you feel?”
The woman had actually stopped itching a long time ago.
When she heard Tang Youyou ask, she immediately thanked her excitedly.
“Thank you, young lady—no, Doctor! I’m not itchy anymore! Oh, you have no idea how badly this illness has tortured me these past few days.”
Tang Youyou smiled.
“No need to thank me.”
She applied a thin layer of ointment to the woman’s rash and put the rest into a bottle.
“Apply it three times a day. If you can stand it, try not to scratch. Come back for a follow-up in three days.”
“Yes, yes!”
The woman nodded repeatedly.
Realizing that they still had important matters to discuss, she wisely thanked everyone once more before leaving.
Gu Yuan looked at Tang Youyou, who was already washing her hands, and was extremely satisfied.
“When can you start working?”
Tang Youyou’s lips curved upward.
She thought for a moment before answering,
“I can start tomorrow.”
Gu Yuan nodded thoughtfully.
“All right. Just come find me tomorrow.”
Tang Youyou thanked him and nodded politely to the other two before turning to leave.
Only after the door had closed did Doctor Mo finally let his excitement show.
“Director, where did you find such an amazing young doctor?”
Gu Yuan’s cloudy eyes were shining brightly.
It was the same look he got whenever he saw an interesting medical case reported in the newspaper.
He gave Doctor Mo a mysterious smile.
“Don’t you know who I am?”
After enjoying his moment of pride, he reminded him,
“She’ll be starting tomorrow. Since she’s new, she probably won’t be used to things here at first. Old Mo, keep an eye on her for me.”
Doctor Mo nodded, but then hesitated.
“What about the paperwork?”
Gu Yuan patted him on the shoulder.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it. I won’t be at the hospital this afternoon because I have something to do, so keep an eye on her for me.”
Doctor Mo immediately understood what he meant.
After thinking for a moment, he agreed.
Then he turned around and saw Qian Yuming grinning foolishly.
The corner of his mouth twitched.
“What are you smiling about?”
Qian Yuming scratched the back of his head.
“Nothing.”
But in his heart, he was thinking:
*Tomorrow…*
*Tomorrow they’ll be colleagues.*
Tang Youyou had no idea that, without even realizing it, she had already captured the heart of a young man.
After leaving the hospital, she went straight home.
When she arrived, her family was having lunch.
Lu Ye was there too.
The moment Tang Jiaojiao saw Tang Youyou walk in, her eyes lit up.
“Sis, have you eaten yet?”
Tang Youyou shook her head.
Tang Jiaojiao immediately called for the servants to bring another set of bowls and chopsticks.
She herself stood up, walked to the other side of the table, and pulled out a chair.
After Tang Youyou sat down, Jiaojiao happily carried her own bowl and chopsticks over and insisted on sitting beside her sister.
Lu Ye: “…”
Fine!
He should have realized this long ago.
As long as Tang Youyou was around, his little girlfriend couldn’t see anyone else.
Sometimes, Lu Ye felt that he was really quite contradictory.
Back when Tang Youyou ignored Jiaojiao, he had been indignant on Jiaojiao’s behalf.
Now that Tang Youyou finally treated Jiaojiao well, he was jealous because Jiaojiao could no longer see him.
*Being a person is really difficult.*
Fortunately, Tang Youyou had no idea what Lu Ye was thinking.
If she had known, she would have mercilessly pointed out:
*Even before, whenever I was around, there was no room for you in my sister’s eyes.*
Lu Ye gave Tang Jiaojiao a resentful look.
But Tang Jiaojiao glared back at him.
“What are you spacing out for? Sis likes that sweet-and-sour fish. Hurry and bring it over.”
Lu Ye: “…”
Sure enough, his decision to discuss getting married with his parents in the next couple of days was absolutely correct.
Lu Ye handed over the plate.
Tang Jiaojiao immediately picked out the most tender piece of fish belly, carefully removed the bones, and placed it on Tang Youyou’s plate.
Yet Lu Ye couldn’t even show any jealousy.
Instead, he kept serving several dishes to Tang Jiaojiao before finally saying to Tang Hao,
“Uncle, Auntie, my parents said they’d like to invite everyone over for dinner tonight.”
*Here it comes!*
Tang Youyou’s spirits immediately lifted.
Whether her sister, the ultimate sister-con, would marry well—and whether she could live the kind of life where she could simply reach out for clothes and open her mouth for food—would all depend on tonight.
She glanced at Tang Hao.
She noticed a flicker of excitement in his eyes as well.
Father and daughter exchanged a glance.
Each already had a plan.
After Tang Jiaojiao went to work, Tang Youyou asked Tang Hao to arrange for someone to keep an eye on Tang Yue and the Qin family.
She also told him her plans for what came next.
Of course, she left out the part about finding herself a cheap master and getting a job at First People’s Hospital.
She only told him that they should wait for Tang Yue to report the Qin family.
Once the Qin family came under investigation, it would give the Tang family more time to prepare.
After hearing everything, Tang Hao gave her a thumbs-up.
“My precious daughter is amazing! But…”
He thought for a moment.
“This isn’t a long-term solution. Besides, there’s no guarantee that anything will happen to the Qin family.”
“Why not?”
Tang Youyou frowned.
Tang Hao sighed.
“Although the Qin family, like us, is a prestigious family without much of a foundation, the Qin family’s grandaunt married the son of the current head of the Huo family.”
“The Huo family has had three generations of military service. Even senior government leaders have to show Old Master Huo some respect.”
Tang Youyou’s eyes widened slightly.
*No wonder.*
Now she understood why, when the Tang family ran into trouble, Tang Zhen’s only solution had been to marry his daughter into the Qin family and ask the Qin family for help.
Unfortunately, things never seemed to go according to plan.
“It’s fine. Whether anything happens to them isn’t important. What’s important is that we gain more time to prepare.”
“At worst, when we reach the point where there’s no other choice, I’ll marry into a family that’s even more powerful than the Qin family.”
Tang Hao was speechless.
Why did his daughter talk about getting married so casually?
Tang Youyou huffed.
“So what? With my qualifications, don’t I deserve to find someone better?”
“Of course you do!”
Tang Hao was incredibly proud.
“Both of my daughters deserve the very best.”
And just like that, the matter was settled.
Tang Hao had also gained some inspiration from Tang Youyou’s words.
Why had he been so fixated on choosing between Qin Yuchen and Zhao Yunzhou?
Since Qin Yuchen had gotten another woman pregnant first, he could break off the engagement at any time.
He simply needed to broaden his horizons and find someone better.
That was the plan.
After arranging for people to keep an eye on the Qin family and Tang Yue, Tang Hao hummed a little tune as he carried a birdcage outside.
Inside stood a long-crested myna.
Aside from its tail and wing tips, its entire body was snow-white, while its eyes were a striking blue.
It was a rare and expensive breed that he had spent a long time searching for.
His old friends loved birds like this.
He was taking it out for a stroll today—and, while he was at it, he could ask whether any of them knew a suitable young man with ambition and potential.
At the same time, on the outskirts of Beijing, in a somewhat run-down residential neighborhood…
Huo Mingxuan pushed open the door with a thoroughly gloomy expression.
He walked over to a reclining chair, collapsed onto it, and began sighing heavily.