Hearing the noise outside, Pei Jinrong rose and lit a lantern. With a creaking sound, he opened the door.
Without turning his head, Song Wenqing knew it was him and said, “Take this horse to the backyard first. Just tie the reins loosely to the parasol tree, and come back to help me carry the things in a moment.”
Pei Jinrong responded in compliance. Fearing that Song Wenqing might not see clearly, he hung the lantern onto the front of the handcart.
Song Wenqing said, “Be careful.”
Before long, Pei Jinrong emerged once more to help him move the items.
The two of them carried the rice bags into the main room. If this rice were placed directly onto the ground, it would easily be eaten by rice weevils, so Song Wenqing used scissors to cut open the bags and poured all the rice into a large vat for storage. The vat was completely filled to the brim, which was enough to last the two of them until spring.
Although the cured meat could be kept for a long duration, its texture would ultimately not be as good as fresh meat. He intended to place the meat down into the cellar, where the temperature was low. Hanging it near the ventilation opening would effectively extend its preservation time.
After tidying up, Song Wenqing originally intended to return the handcart in one go. However, Pei Jinrong had just placed the cooled dishes back into the pot to reheat, and the aroma assailed his nostrils, making him suddenly feel incredibly hungry and entirely unwilling to move.
Seeing his craving expression, Pei Jinrong felt happy in his heart and said, “Ah Wen, there is remaining sour vegetable soup left over from noon. Do you want it reheated, or will you drink it cold?”
The sour vegetables were something Pei Jinrong had learned to pickle alongside the ger next door. During the summer, they washed the green vegetables thoroughly, rolled them once in boiling water sprinkled with flour, added the sour starter culture, covered the container tightly, and let it ferment for roughly twenty days, yielding an exceptionally authentic result.
When the large red beans grown in the countryside ripened, everyone would boil bean soup. One had to wait until the red beans were nearly boiled to pieces before retrieving the pickled sour vegetables, cutting them into sections, and boiling them together with the red beans. The cooled sour vegetable soup tasted incredibly delicious. When the weather was intensely hot and Song Wenqing possessed no appetite, he could easily down several bowls of rice soaked in this sour soup.
“I will drink it cold.”
Pei Jinrong nodded and brought the sour soup out from the main room.
He had already eaten his dinner, and having nothing else to do, he retrieved a storybook from the head of the bed to sit beside Song Wenqing and keep him company.
The sky outside was dark, and the candlelight within the room flickered gently. One person ate a meal while the other read a storybook. Although Song Wenqing did not speak of it, his heart felt deeply settled and reassured.
After finishing his meal, he rose to wash the bowls and lit the stove to boil a pot of water. Having busied himself outside for so long today, his body felt sticky and intensely uncomfortable.
It was not until they went to bed that Pei Jinrong finally asked him, “Are those pig skins in the main room meant for making braised pig skin?”
Hearing this, Song Wenqing could not restrain himself from letting out a laugh. “Those are certainly not meant for eating.”
The candle flame had already been extinguished. The moment he lay down, Pei Jinrong wrapped his arms around his waist. Unlike the summer when it was stiflingly hot, Song Wenqing’s constitution leaned toward being cold, leaving his hands and feet ice-cold. The youth resembled a small furnace, feeling remarkably warm to hold.
Remembering something, he removed Pei Jinrong’s hands, rose, and relit the candle flame.
Unable to adjust to the sudden light immediately, Pei Jinrong shielded his eyes with his hand, only to hear Song Wenqing say, “I nearly forgot to give you your massage.”
Song Wenqing let out a yawn, kneading the youth’s calf with practiced technique as he continued, “Those pig skins are for me to use to practice suturing.”
Seeing Pei Jinrong’s look of complete bewilderment, he smiled and explained, “What if I told you that when December arrives, I intend to perform surgery on this section of your leg, use forceps to extract the bone fragments inside, and then use a needle and thread to sew it back up?”
Song Wenqing’s hands came to a stop at the knee joint. His gaze was entirely earnest as he asked, “Are you afraid?”
The youth scarcely offered any thought, nodding his head. “I am afraid.”
He then added, “But because this person is you, brother, I am no longer afraid.”
There were still many terms spoken by Song Wenqing that he failed to comprehend, but he knew with absolute clarity in his heart that Song Wenqing would never harm him.
Receiving such an answer, Song Wenqing dazed for a long pause. A smile hid within the corners of his eyes as he said, “I will make you stand up.”
Autumn entered its final phase, and a wintry chill already drifted upon the wind, causing the solitary leaves remaining on the branches to rustle loudly.
Song Wenqing exhaled a breath of air to warm his hands. Today was the day Jishi Hall delivered the medicinal herbs, so he did not head outside, instead remaining seated at home to read medical books.
He did not have to wait for long. Before a significant amount of time passed, a horse carriage appeared at the entrance of the village.
Song Wenqing set down his book, and only after arranging all the medicinal herbs properly did he present three prescriptions to the young apprentice, instructing him earnestly, “This prescription is for treating internal injuries and fever. This one with the four corners folded down is for treating coughs. Do not mix them up under any circumstances.”
The apprentice nodded hurriedly and asked, “Young Master, Physician Tang instructed me to inquire whether you require anything else in addition to these ordinary medicinal herbs?”
Since he opened the matter in this way, Song Wenqing did not stand on ceremony either, stating directly, “I require some Mafei powder.”
The apprentice’s brows instantly knitted closely together. Seeing this, Song Wenqing said with a smile, “I am aware that the supply of Mafei powder is scarce. Tell Physician Tang that next month, I will provide four prescriptions.”
The matter of Pei Jinrong’s leg could no longer be delayed, so no matter how difficult Mafei powder was to obtain, he had to devise a method to secure it.
Sure enough, upon hearing this, the apprentice’s brow relaxed, and he bid him farewell.
“Ah Wen, I still have some silver coins remaining on my person. See if we ought to lease a plot of land and construct a small medical clinic.” Every time Pei Jinrong saw how exceptionally inconvenient it was for Song Wenqing to manage the medicinal herbs, his heart filled with immense pain.
Song Wenqing, however, did not feel it was an issue, though the medical clinic certainly needed to be built, just not at the present moment.
“It is fine. We can endure a bit of hardship for now, and once we accumulate more silver coins in the future, we will construct a large one,” he said with a beaming smile.
Pei Jinrong naturally never refuted his words, nodding as he said, “That sounds fine.”
From that day onward, Song Wenqing became highly occupied. The agricultural tasks were nearly completed, and the villagers had grown idle. Having heard that Song Wenqing’s medical skills were considerably superior to Physician Li’s, they all came rushing to seek his diagnosis.
Fearing that Physician Li might feel uncomfortable in his heart, Song Wenqing inquired on several occasions, only to discover that the elder originally intended to close the clinic anyway and return to his hometown alongside his wife. It was merely a matter of a physician’s benevolent heart; previously, he worried about who would care for the local patients and those from the neighboring villages if he departed. Now that Song Wenqing was here, he could consider a lingering concern fully resolved.
He also intended to sell his medical clinic to Song Wenqing, but he still needed to spend the New Year in Yunhan Village this year before returning, so he remained for the time being. Song Wenqing let out a massive sigh of relief upon learning of this arrangement.
Leaning into this routine, he held free clinics on the first and fifteenth days of every month, while charging consultation fees during the remaining times. The cost was modest, and the villagers all praised him for having mastered an excellent set of capabilities.
However, on a certain day, an unexpected visitor arrived.
The weather outside was freezing, so Pei Jinrong lit several braziers. Those who came for a consultation but had not yet reached their turn in line huddled together to toast themselves by the fire and chat.
While they were chatting happily, an aunty suddenly spoke up, “Oh my, look over there. Is that not Auntie Lan?”
“It truly is. Come to think of it, Auntie Lan has seldom been seen since Brother Wen got married.”
Upon hearing this, a ger whispered in a low voice, “It seems Brother Ming is discussing marriage with a good household from the neighboring village. Word is they will come to present the betrothal gifts after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.”
“Then what is her purpose in coming here?”
Before they could surmise the reason, Shen Xiaolan arrived. Her eyes were swollen terribly from crying, and she spoke in a choking voice upon seeing Song Wenqing, “Brother Wen, your maternal aunt was wrong. For the sake of how well your maternal uncle treated you in the past, please save Brother Ming!”