After drinking the tea, Manager Liu felt the dry, scratchy pain in his throat instantly soothed. He was overwhelmed with comfort and couldn't help but pat his chest with a smile.
"This herbal tea is quite good, quite good," he praised.
"Give Manager Liu two packets of the herbal tea; that way, he can have it at home anytime," said Miss Jun.
Liu'er promptly agreed, while Manager Liu waved it off with a chuckle.
"That's too kind; that's really too kind," he said.
"It's no trouble; we're all family," replied Miss Jun.
Family, eh? Manager Liu's smile deepened.
Liu'er at his side curled her lip slightly. When it came to making someone happy, for Miss Jun, it was as easy as pie.
"Take this, Manager Liu. Miss Jun's prescribed tea is hard to come by," Liu'er said, handing over the neatly packaged tea.
Manager Liu laughed heartily.
"Even brothers settle accounts clearly," he said, accepting the tea. "De Sheng Chang and Jiuling Hall aren't strictly the same household, so I still must pay for the medicine."
Miss Jun had established Jiuling Hall in the capital with funds from De Sheng Chang but declared Jiuling Hall as her own property, unrelated to the Fang Family.
Manager Liu and the others could understand; after all, Miss Jun's surname was Jun, not Fang, and Jiuling Hall was a heritage of the Jun Family.
"No need; De Sheng Chang's money is also mine," Miss Jun said with a smile.
Manager Liu laughed again; how amusing the words of a child were.
He took the herbal tea with a laugh.
"Well, then I won't be polite," he said and reflexively started to walk out. Halfway there, he suddenly came back to his senses.
Something wasn't right. Hadn't he had more to say?
Why was he ready to leave with a chuckle?
He hadn't finished discussing the serious matters!
This child, he was nearly sent on his way by her.
"Miss Jun, please remember what I said just now," he urged as he composed himself. "Although we are at the foot of the Emperor's domain, it's a place of mixed elements. First and foremost, there must be staff staying overnight in the medical hall."
Miss Jun nodded and agreed.
"Furthermore, you should no longer make night-time visits," Manager Liu continued. "You, being a young lady, are not the same as other doctors. It could be dangerous to be out in the dead of night."
Miss Jun chuckled.
"Shopkeeper, rest assured, I only make evening visits to homes I know," she said. "I certainly wouldn't go out for unexpected night-time callers."
"Homes you know?"
"What kind of homes you know?" Manager Liu asked, puzzled.
"I don't diagnose just anyone. I don't treat every person, and of course, I don't take every person's nocturnal consultation requests," Miss Jun explained. "The woman who came seeking treatment last night was one I had been planning to diagnose."
Manager Liu was taken aback.
"An omen?" he blurted out.
Miss Jun laughed.
Manager Liu looked surprised.
How could that be possible? That woman...
He was about to speak when footsteps were heard outside.
"Miss Jun."
"Divine Doctor."
Two maidservants walked in and immediately knelt down, kowtowing to Miss Jun within the hall.
Manager Liu was startled.
"Is your lady well now?" Miss Jun asked with a smile.
The two maidservants lifted their heads, joy and complexity evident in their expressions as they nodded.
"Yes, she's all right now," they responded.
Manager Liu recognized them; these were indeed the maids from the family where Miss Jun had mentioned an omen the other day.
Could it be that last night...
"Last night her lady suddenly fell critically ill, but thankfully they remembered what I had said, so they came to ask me to treat her," Miss Jun told Manager Liu.
I see, Manager Liu thought as he looked at the two maids.
"Yes, yes."
"We didn't listen to Miss Jun at the time. We didn't expect that our lady would really suffer an emergency."
"It turned out just like the omen indicated."
"Lucky for us, Miss Jun had warned us and told us about Jiuling Hall, otherwise, we wouldn't have known where to seek medical treatment."
The two maids stated excitedly, wiping their eyes.
Oh, I see, nodded Manager Liu, realizing it was just like that.
If that was the interpretation of the omen, it was indeed sensible.
"It's good that everything is alright," he said smilingly, looking at Miss Jun with appreciation.
The maids once again expressed their gratitude and then carefully produced a small, embroidered box.
"Miss Jun, this is the agreed medical fee," they said.
"There's no rush. You can pay me after you're sure that your lady is fully recovered," Miss Jun said with a smile.
The expressions of the two maids became even more complex.
Last night, Miss Jun had identified the item's location and then excused herself, telling them to bring the medical fee to Jiuling Hall only after the illness was cured, without once asking what the item was or inquiring into the details of the situation.
It wasn't easy to find a Doctor who maintained such discretion, could treat illnesses, and didn't ask too many questions.
But upon further thought, she realized that if she could communicate with the dead, then there was nothing she didn't know.
Doctors could be offended, but a doctor who could communicate with spirits must not be offended.
So, as soon as dawn broke, the lady who had composed herself busied herself with sending the consultation fee over.
Manager Liu smiled, thinking it was just the fee for consultation, how much could it be?
"The Jiuling Hall is right here, it's not going anywhere. If the condition recurs, you can always come back," he said.
Miss Jun smiled without speaking and stretched out her hand to take the brocade box and open it.
Manager Liu gently stroked his beard with a smile.
It was the first sum of money he had earned after arriving in the capital.
He remembered how thrilled he was when he first came from Yangcheng to the capital to take up the post of shopkeeper and received money for his first business deal, staying awake all night with joy.
It wasn't so much the amount of money that was important; it was the testament to the fact that the situation was starting to open up.
Of course, the amount of money he received wasn't small either, five thousand taels.
He thought this and casually glanced at the silver banknote Miss Jun had taken out of the brocade box.
Five thousand taels.
Five thousand taels!
He inhaled sharply, with a hiss, for he had plucked a few whiskers from his beard in shock.
What kind of doctor charges five thousand taels for a single consultation!
Manager Liu, who had seen silver banknotes for decades, was for the first time harboring the thought that he might have misread a banknote.
It was madness.
How could this be possible?
Having sent away the two maidservants, Manager Liu didn't even care to leave; he looked at the silver banknote casually placed on the countertop by Miss Jun, his expression complex.
"Miss Jun, this consultation fee… it's so much?" he asked.
"Yes," Miss Jun replied with a smile, looking at him, "Which is why not just any ailment or person can come to me for treatment. It depends on whether their illness is worth my consultation fee."
Five thousand taels for a consultation fee.
Indeed, not just anyone could afford that.
But, was this not a bit too absurd?
Manager Liu looked at the silver banknote, but indeed someone had sought her out for treatment, and she had cured them.
Could the Jun Family's medical skills really be that formidable?
Having seen off Manager Liu, who was full of thoughts, Miss Jun instructed the shop clerks to keep the doors closed for the day, and she went back to sleep with Liu'er.
Liu'er was full of excitement, mixed with a touch of fear.
"Miss, did you really see a ghost back there?" she asked in a lowered voice.
Miss Jun smiled.
"Of course not," she said.
Liu'er uttered an "ah" of surprise.
"Then how…" she looked utterly puzzled.
How did she know that the woman couldn't sleep at night because she had seen a ghost?
Miss Jun smiled and, leaning on her pillow, fanned herself as she looked out the window.
"I guessed," she said.
Liu'er was even more astonished.
"Guessed?"
It was a guess, but not merely a guess.
One could only guess based on what was known.
"Although she looked spirited, her eyes were actually unfocused, and her steps unsteady. These are signs of long-term sleep deprivation. Yet, she tried hard to appear full of energy to cover it up. This indicates that she didn't want others to know what had happened."
"What matters can't be spoken of to others? Either they concern one's private interests or they're beyond one's wildest imagination."
Fortunately, the concubine from Kuang Haizhen's household met both criteria.
When Kuang Haizhen was in trouble, she was the first to flee. Later, seeing that the Kuang Family, although damaged, was rooted in a strong lineage that could flourish again after three generations, she harbored the thought of having her son join the Kuang Family. The initial escape was indeed a betrayal to Kuang Haizhen, a fact she did not wish to confess to his family.
"Thoughts by day cause dreams by night. When the heart is hollow, the spirit sees. Coupled with sleeping poorly for so long, a vicious cycle accumulates, increasingly destabilizing the spirit, making one prone to hallucinations and fear. That's why I guessed she was delusional," Miss Jun said with a smile.
Liu'er nodded, half-understanding but not really seeking to understand—her role was to listen to whatever Miss said.
"Then how did Miss guess that she was looking for something and where that something was?" she asked curiously.
That, well.
Miss Jun looked at Liu'er.
"It was still a wild guess," she said.
Liu'er laughed heartily, not finding it strange in the least, nor feeling brushed off.
"Who cares? In the end, Miss cured her illness. It's a trade of money for service, without stealing, robbing, or deceiving. A willing deal between both parties," she said.
Miss Jun nodded with a smile.
"Liu'er is right," she smiled.
Liu'er also smiled, her eyes shining.
"Then from now on, our Jiuling Hall will be renowned and wealth will flow in," she said.
Miss Jun smiled.
"That's not likely to happen," she said.
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Thank you to Ice from the South for the reward of the He's Bi~~~~