Since giving up her night life, Gu Jiao woke up earlier than the rooster each day.
She'd be out the door with her buckets before dawn.
She went to the ancient well at the entrance of the village to fetch water.
As the villagers were early risers, several older women and young wives were already there fetching water. They all wore baffled expressions upon seeing her.
Buzz about Gu Jiao causing havoc with a ox cart had spread throughout the village, and everyone knew that she had pulled Gu Dashun down from the cart. Was she really a fool, causing trouble for her own cousin when she fell ill?
But...
What's the deal with her fetching water so early?
The little fool never worked, only waking up after the sun was high in the sky.
Gu Jiao ignored everyone's gaze, calmly arrived at the ancient well, fetched water with her bucket and shouldered it back home.
It wasn't until she was far away that everyone came back to their senses.
Were they seeing things just now? The little fool didn't seem foolish at all, plus her fetching water and walking styles were really attractive.
After fetching water, Gu Jiao steamed a basket of large meat buns.
She had bought a piece of bacon yesterday and had soaked it overnight to remove the excess salt, retaining the perfect flavor of the bacon.
The scent of the meat buns wafted out, making the neighboring dog salivate.
Gu Jiao took two buns and headed to the mountain.
The fungus was almost all picked by her, but there were still many wild mushrooms.
In fact, the villagers could see these ingredients when they went up the mountain to chop firewood, but most people were afraid to pick them. One was because they couldn't distinguish between poisonous mushrooms, and the other was because they didn't know how to detoxify fresh fungus.
After picking the mushrooms, Gu Jiao went directly to the marketplace.
Town East was a rather affluent and bustling area, the best medical halls and restaurants were there, and so were the Yamen and the Academy. In contrast, Town West was much more complex, with a marketplace, workshops, gambling houses, kilns... a mixture of everything.
Gu Jiao arrived at the marketplace and casually set up a stall in an empty space.
The woman next to her remembered her and smiled at her, "You're here, do you have any of those mushrooms you picked last time? My grandson likes to eat them, can you trade some more with me?"
The woman sold sweet potatoes. The price of sweet potatoes and mountain mushrooms were far different, but Gu Jiao didn't mind and handed her the basket for her to take for herself.
The woman grabbed two handfuls, and gave her two big, red sweet potatoes in return.
In no time, another lady came over, cheerily asking, "Can I... Can I use radishes to exchange for some mushrooms? I want to stew some for my family."
"Hmm." Gu Jiao nodded indifferently, gesturing with her eyes for the lady to help herself.
Thus the lady used two of her large radishes to exchange for two handfuls of Gu Jiao's mushrooms.
Then, a few more vendors came over one after another, exchanging their own vegetables for Gu Jiao's mushrooms.
This scene was witnessed in full detail by two men in the tea shed across the way.
"Shopkeeper Wang, are you referring to her?" The one who asked was a fine-dressed man in his thirties, with firm, handsome features and a tall stature.
The middle-aged man in his forties by his side responded, "Responding to Second Boss's question, yes, that's her."
Second Boss looked at Gu Jiao, frowning, "Such expensive mountain produce, let others exchange it with such cheap vegetables, isn't she foolish? And there are people who put rotten ones in, she didn't say a word, she's really a fool, isn't she?"
"This…" Shopkeeper Wang couldn't answer.
He always felt that she wasn't foolish, she just didn't care.
"Are you sure you didn't mistake her for someone else?" Second Boss asked.
"I was right next to her when she was rescuing the patient. I saw her with my own eyes when she stitched up such a deep and long cut. I couldn't have mistaken her," Shopkeeper Wang demonstrated as he spoke.
What Shopkeeper Wang didn't say was that he had actually met her twice. The first time was at this marketplace, which was how he knew she would come here to set up a stall.
"How old is she?" Second Boss frowned deeply. He found it hard to believe that this was the doctor who could bring the dead back to life.
She's too young, too poor, and has that kind of birthmark on her face.
But Shopkeeper Wang wouldn't lie to him.
The medical incident last time had a huge impact. Not only did he offend Doctor Zhang, but it also displeased the Grand Hall in the Capital City. Second Boss's position was at risk, and he desperately needed a reputable doctor to hold the fort.
Second Boss said, "Go ask her where she learned her skills. I'm willing to pay a large sum to hire her master to sit in the clinic."
This girl's medical skills can't be self-taught, inviting her master would surely be more reliable.
Shopkeeper Wang felt this was a feasible idea. He turned around to inquire only to witness a young man collapse. Quite coincidentally, he fell in front of a chicken vendor's stall, startling away all the chickens in the cage.
"Oh no! My chickens! My chickens!" The chicken vendor hurriedly tried to catch his loose chickens.
The scene turned chaotic.
Shopkeeper Wang and the second shopkeeper were taken aback simultaneously by the sight of the young man.
The young man exhibited symptoms of chest tightness, cyanosis, and shortness of breath. These symptoms were strikingly similar to those of the patient their medical hall had mistakenly treated and caused his death, only in this case, the symptoms were more severe. The aforementioned patient had managed to return home. However, this young man seemed to be on the verge of suffocation.
This was an incurable condition, even if their own doctors from the medical hall came, they would not be able to cure him!
In the nick of time, a slender figure darted out from the crowd, knelt on one knee in front of the young man, swiftly tore open his shirt, and with something in hand, fiercely stabbed his chest!
Everyone present gasped in shock!
Was this a murder attempt?
The next second, Gu Jiao pulled out the needle core, and a thin stream of air spurted out.
Everyone saw the young man who had almost suffocated. His chest sunk momentarily before returning to normal breathing.
Shopkeeper Wang was dumbstruck, "Should we still ask for her master?"
"Hell no!" If their medical hall had a doctor like this, they wouldn't have caused that death.
The second shopkeeper decisively brushed off Shopkeeper Wang, rose, and walked personally towards Gu Jiao.
"You said, you want me to be the doctor of your medical hall?" Gu Jiao glanced at the young man as she listened to the second shopkeeper's words.
The man had suffered from a broken rib that had perforated his lung, leading to pneumothorax. Even though the built-up air was released, he still required further treatment. Unfortunately, he left alone right after his breath was restored.
Gu Jiao diverted her gaze, questioning the second shopkeeper, "Which medical hall do you belong to?"
Second shopkeeper laughed, "In Qingquan Town, the only medical hall worth mentioning is our Huichun Hall!"
"Hmm." She stroked her chin.
The second shopkeeper assumed she would not agree so readily, prepared for her to be pompous and bargain. However, Gu Jiao responded unexpectedly, "Perfect timing, I've been seeking you guys. I can collaborate with Huichun Hall, but let me make it clear, I will only see patients once a month."
"Once? Once a month?" the second shopkeeper was stuck. Wait, was she agreeing? She didn't even bargain or increase prices. But wait, only once a month!
"I'm very busy." Gu Jiao seriously added.
Busy... selling vegetables?
The second shopkeeper glanced at her basket, with the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
Honestly speaking, he wasn't satisfied with only once. But the way to do business is to take it step by step. She was now entering Huichun Hall, so there would be room for further negotiation in the future.
The second shopkeeper agreed, "Fine... once it is!"
Gu Jiao stared at him as if implying that the main point was yet to come, "Also, I have an additional condition."
--
Feng Lin rushed to the medical hall right after his class.
After the medical treatment dispute, the medical hall's business started to decline, and the staff were listlessly sorting out medicinal herbs in the grand hall.
"Is Doctor Zhang here?" Feng Lin asked one of the staff.
The staff answered, "Doctor Zhang has returned to the capital city."
"When will he be back?" Feng Lin courteously asked.
"Not sure." The staff answered.
"Could you please inquire for me? My friend's leg has been injured for half a year, only Doctor Zhang can cure him." Feng Ling persisted.
The staff member gave him an impatient glance, "To be honest, Doctor Zhang won't be back. You should go to the Huichun Hall in the capital city if you really want him to treat your friend, but his consultation fee is quite high."
"How much?" Feng Lin asked.
"Ten silver taels."
"What? Ten taels?"
Feng Lin was stunned. Even if his savings were combined with Xiao Liulang's, they still wouldn't be able to afford such an amount.