TTLJDFL Chapter 29
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While Doctor Wu, Li Jin, and the shopkeeper were talking, a new patient arrived at Xinglintang and recognized Li Jin.
He asked, "Doctor, will you be working here in the future?"
He was facing all three of them, but his gaze was fixed on Li Jin.
Dressed in simple attire, he seemed unfamiliar with medical terms, referring to "consulting" as "working."
Li Jin hesitated. He was open to the idea—after all, he needed the money. Earning silver was always a good thing.
But the shopkeeper didn’t seem too eager to hire him, which was a problem.
As he was contemplating, the shopkeeper spoke up, "Of course. Once the busy farming season is over, Doctor Li will be here starting in July."
The patient was delighted. "So the young doctor’s surname is Li. My wife is seven months pregnant. I’ll bring her to see you then."
After the patient left, the shopkeeper said, "Indeed, Doctor Li’s reputation has already spread. Truly, one cannot judge a person by their appearance!"
Pausing, he added, "I was rude before. Let’s settle on a salary of one tael of silver for July and three taels for August. You’ll have one day off every ten days, and we’ll provide lunch. Does that sound good?"
This was an excellent offer.
Li Jin and the shopkeeper then discussed his working hours in July, since his husband had not yet finished his confinement period, and he couldn’t just leave his husband and child unattended.
In the end, they agreed that he would work one hour per day in July and two hours per day in August.
Doctor Wu also mentioned that the Song family wanted to thank Li Jin for saving the mother and child.
Li Jin thought for a moment and said, "There’s no rush. I’ll be here for consultations in July, so we’ll naturally meet then.
If they come again, please tell them to focus on taking care of the wife for now. It’s never too late to express gratitude later."
Doctor Wu agreed.
Seeing that Li Jin did not flaunt his achievements or expect rewards, the shopkeeper was impressed.
He praised him, "Doctor Li has high medical ethics. Having you at Xinglintang is truly an honor."
Li Jin quickly waved his hands and said he didn’t deserve such praise.
Two days later, it was finally the scheduled rest day.
This day off wasn’t just for students at the academy; doctors at the medical clinic also had the day off.
However, Doctor Wu’s hometown was far from town, so even on his rest days, he didn’t return home. Instead, he spent time studying medical texts in the inner hall.
For Li Jin, this day off was his chance to go to the mountains to gather herbs.
That morning, Li Jin woke up early and first collected three baskets of dry branches and leaves to use as firewood.
Only then did he set out to gather herbs, carefully sorting them into different baskets before preparing to walk for over an hour to deliver them to Xinglintang.
Before he left, his husband helped adjust the hemp rope securing his baskets and handed him a handkerchief.
The fabric was the cheapest kind of linen, but the edges were carefully and tightly stitched, making it look especially delicate and neat.
"Ah Jin, if you sweat on the way, use this handkerchief. I can sew a few more for you to use."
In this era, men—especially scholars—also carried handkerchiefs. After all, they sweated too, and wiping their sweat with their sleeves, like farmers, would be considered improper.
Li Jin had never paid much attention to this detail before. When he was hot and sweaty while rushing on the road, sweat would sometimes drip down his chin.
At those times, he had really missed modern tissues and felt like something was missing.
Now, with his husband's reminder, he realized that handkerchiefs were the perfect alternative—more environmentally friendly too.
Li Jin smiled. "This is the first thing you’ve ever sewn for me. I’ll treasure it."
His husband thought to himself, How is this the first? He had previously sewn a white robe, but Li Jin had refused to wear it.
Oh, right—Li Jin had even tried to throw that robe away.
He had thought it was a waste and had secretly hidden it in the storage compartment under the kitchen stove.
Recently, though, Li Jin had somehow found the robe and had actually worn it to his studies.
He had also sewn many other things over time—coin purses, pen pouches, and so on. But without exception, Li Jin had either rejected them or completely ruined them.
What had he said back then?
"If I use something sewn by a ger, would I still have any dignity in town?"
But this time, Li Jin had accepted the handkerchief in front of him.
Best not to dwell on past disappointments.
His husband’s dimples showed as he smiled. "We still have some linen at home. I noticed your coin purse is worn out—I’ll make you a new one."
Li Jin chuckled and agreed, "Alright."
By the time he reached Xinglintang, it was already past the hour of Si (between 9 and 11 AM).
Doctor Wu calculated the payment and handed Li Jin 610 pennies.
Six hundred pennies was for the herbs, and ten pennies was the bonus for their collaboration.
This time, Li Jin didn’t gather as many herbs as before because he noticed that some people in the village might have caught on to the fact that he was making money from collecting herbs. Many wild vegetables and herbs near the foot of the mountain had been stripped away.
However, these people lacked proper technique and couldn’t distinguish real medicinal herbs. They just blindly harvested everything, leaving nothing behind.
Although most people in the village knew that collecting herbs this way wouldn’t fetch much money, there were still some who were envious of how Li Jin’s family had gone from having nothing to now being able to afford braised pork and plant rapeseed.
They, too, wanted to try their luck collecting herbs.
After all, the mountain wasn’t privately owned by Li Jin, and the herbs weren’t planted by him. Others had the right to gather them however they pleased.
Fortunately, Li Jin didn’t plan to rely on herbal collecting for income anymore.
With the rainy season approaching, he was also prioritizing safety.
Besides, next month, Li Jin would begin practicing medicine at Xinglintang. In addition to receiving a meal each day, he would also earn one tael of silver per month, which was enough to support his household.
If he saved carefully, he could even afford to buy paper and ink next month.
By August, his monthly salary would increase to three taels, and he wouldn’t have to be so frugal.
Doctor Wu, who was aware of Li Jin’s family situation, said, “Earlier today, someone came in before you with a pile of unclassified herbs. From the looks of them, they likely came from the same place as your herbs.
Unfortunately, their improper harvesting methods damaged the useful parts, rendering them completely useless.”
He looked at Li Jin with concern. “Are these people jealous of you?”
Li Jin replied, “Perhaps. But with the heavy rains in August, I’ll only go up the mountain a few more times next month. After that, I won’t go anymore.”
Doctor Wu nodded thoughtfully. “That’s wise. In the past, some of our hired collectors fell from the mountain while trying to gather more herbs to earn money. They didn’t survive.
Being cautious is the right approach.”
“Thank you for your concern, Doctor Wu.”
Leaving Xinglintang, Li Jin counted his 610 pennies and thought about repaying half of the deposit he owed to Li Daniu’s family—350 pennies.
After deducting that amount, he only had 260 pennied left, not counting the family’s ‘savings.’
Li Jin thought about his recent physical training and decided he needed to buy some beef.
Relying solely on eggs wasn’t enough for proper protein intake.
If he wanted to build muscle within three months, his diet was just as important as his exercise.
What happened next felt a bit dramatic to Li Jin.
The owner of the butcher shop in town turned out to be from the Song family—the same family whose wife and child he had saved with his herbal medicine.
Back when he had inquired about the case, someone had mentioned that the patient was from the butcher’s family, but Li Jin hadn’t paid much attention at the time.
The butcher hadn’t been attending to customers outside when Li Jin arrived, but his assistant immediately recognized Li Jin and hurried to call his boss.
The moment the butcher, Song, saw Li Jin, he became extremely emotional. “Our savior!”
Li Jin quickly waved his hands. “Please, no need for such words.”
“Doctor, are you here to buy meat? Ribs, pork belly, hind leg—assistant, wrap it all up for the doctor!”
Song had hired two assistants and owned a courtyard with two inner yards, clearly doing well for himself.
Li Jin hurriedly said, “That won’t be necessary. You’re too kind. I just wanted to ask if there’s a way to reserve beef and fish in town?”
Song replied, “Doctor, don’t call me ‘Boss Song.’ My name is Song Dali. I’ve been strong since childhood, and my father taught me to butcher pigs. Just call me Dali.”
Li Jin didn’t dare be that casual and settled on calling him “Brother Song.”
Song Dali explained, “Beef is scarce here. Our cattle are valuable, mainly kept for farming.
But when an old cow is close to dying, it gets sold for slaughter.
That said, Doctor Li, old cattle meat isn’t as tender or tasty as pork.”
Li Jin thought about it and realized he was right—beef in ancient rural areas was both expensive and tough.
He then asked, “What about fish?”
“The downstream river doesn’t have many fish, but there’s a pond upstream. If you need fish, I can find someone to inquire about it for you.”
Since Li Jin had no direct source for fish, he could only trouble Song Dali with the matter.
Song Dali said, “It’s no trouble at all. You seem in a hurry today, so I won’t keep you long. But please tell me where your home is. You saved my family’s lives, and we must come to express our gratitude properly.”
At this point, Li Jin no longer refused. In ancient times, such gestures of gratitude were considered proper etiquette.
Refusing again would make him seem inconsiderate.
Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many stories in books about “a hero saving a family, and the young lady offering herself in marriage.”
Song Dali was so enthusiastic that Li Jin left with a bag full of ribs, hind leg meat, pork belly, and pig’s trotters.
Returning to the village, Li Jin put the items away and then bought some seasonal vegetables from the village chief—pumpkin, eggplant, potatoes, winter melon, and more.
His vegetable garden had just been planted and wouldn’t yield crops for at least four weeks. Until then, he had to rely on purchased vegetables.
When the young boy saw the pumpkin, his eyes lit up. “Pumpkin is sweet. We can make pumpkin buns.”
Li Jin asked, “Do you want to eat pumpkin buns?”
The boy hesitated for a moment but then nodded. He was becoming bolder in expressing his thoughts, no longer as timid as before.
This was a good sign.
Li Jin noticed the change clearly and was very pleased, though he kept his expression neutral as usual.
He said, “Then I’ll make the buns, and you can eat them.”
The boy was momentarily stunned. Making buns was a tedious process—not only did the pumpkin need to be chopped and mixed into the filling, but the dough also had to be kneaded, and the buns had to be pleated properly.
Li Jin raised an eyebrow. “What? Don’t think I can do it?”
The boy quickly shook his head. “Of course not. It’s just that you’ve had a long, tiring day, and I… I want you to rest.”
Qin Muwen finally voiced his feelings, albeit nervously, worried that Li Jin might not like it.
But over the past few days, he had seen all of Li Jin’s efforts with his own eyes.
He felt that Li Jin seemed completely tireless, working from dawn to dusk every day. Even when everyone else was resting, he still had to find time to practice calligraphy...
If he kept going like this, even an iron man wouldn’t be able to endure it.
A strange emotion, one he had never felt before, suddenly took root in Li Jin’s heart.
He had no time to analyze what it was.
Or rather, he tried to, but couldn’t find an answer.
Finally, the fearless Dr. Li blurted out, “Are you worried about me?”
Author's Note:
Finally, the fearless Dr. Li blurted out, “Why do you care?”
Tl Notes:
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