When the carriage stopped in front of Jiuling Hall, the rain had already ceased.
Watching Miss Jun disembark, Manager Liu hurriedly came up to greet her. He had recognized from afar that this was a carriage from Marquis Dingyuan's mansion, let alone up close.
After the coachman bowed, he got back on the carriage and left.
Manager Liu eagerly asked Miss Jun while he accompanied her into the hall.
"How did it go?" he asked.
"What do you mean 'how did it go'?" Miss Jun asked. "Manager Liu, physicians must maintain confidentiality with their patients. I can't tell you about the condition."
Manager Liu cleared his throat.
What was this child thinking? He wasn't concerned with what illness she had. When he asked how it went, of course, he meant the treatment.
"Since I agreed to treat her, naturally, there would be no issue," Miss Jun said, as if the question he asked was very strange.
Manager Liu cleared his throat again.
Seeing the carriage that brought her back, as well as the attitude of the coachman, it was not hard to imagine that things must have gone smoothly.
"Then why would Marquis Dingyuan's mansion ask for you?" inquired Manager Liu.
Miss Jun gave him a sidelong glance.
"My Miss is so capable, who else would they ask for?" Liu'er snorted, rolling her eyes at Manager Liu. "How can you, Uncle, be so bad at talking?"
Manager Liu coughed once more.
Was that called being bad at talking? It seemed to be a little bit true.
But apart from those words, there didn't seem to be anything else to say. Whatever needed to be said, she had said it.
"Don't worry, Manager Liu, the cases I agree to take on are always totally secure," Miss Jun said with a smile. "I know it's not easy to live in the capital, so I wouldn't act recklessly."
Manager Liu smiled.
"I know, I know," he said, stroking his beard. "Actually, I am happy for you. I didn't expect that without showing off, your reputation has already spread to Marquis Dingyuan's mansion."
That was exactly the kind of low-key effect she wanted.
Miss Jun just smiled without speaking, but Liu'er was not happy.
"Why would you say she hasn't made a show? My Miss has been a bell healer in the capital for almost a month," she said. "Walking the streets every day, she gives out a lot of candied fruit, and her reputation has already soared."
Manager Liu laughed heartily.
"Yes, yes," he said. He wouldn't argue with a young girl who knew nothing, then straightened his appearance. "Are you sure there's no problem with this illness?"
Miss Jun nodded with a smile.
"No problem at all. Today's medicine has already provided relief, and with three more doses tomorrow and the day after, there will be no issues," she declared.
That quickly?
Manager Liu looked surprised.
If Marquis Dingyuan's mansion had managed to find her for treatment, it was clear that the illness was quite intractable, leading them to desperately seek help.
Such noble households would normally have the best imperial physician from the Imperial Hospital, Imperial Physician Jiang, treat them.
If Imperial Physician Jiang couldn't cure the illness, and she said it would be better in three days?
It was one thing to say so to oneself, but another thing entirely to say so to others.
"You didn't tell them that, did you?" he probed.
"I did," Miss Jun replied. "Why not say it? It's good for the patient too. She will be happy to hear it, and her illness will recover faster."
What more could he say? You're so confident, Manager Liu smacked his lips and remained silent.
...............…
"Miss Jun has arrived."
Watching the girl carrying a medicine chest walk into the courtyard, the maids under the eaves said with a smile and lifted the curtain.
Laughter spilled from the room inside.
That kind of laughter hadn't been heard in Marquis Dingyuan's inner mansion for some time.
Inside the room were seated women, with Old Madam Lin leaning easily against the kang by the window. She did not move when she saw Miss Jun enter.
Of course, she wouldn't. Now she was a Marchioness, and Miss Jun was just a medicine woman.
Miss Jun stepped forward and greeted them with a bow.
"Miss Jun, please don't be so formal," Old Madam Lin said with a smile, extending her hand towards the inner area. "Your medicine truly works wonders; my daughter-in-law is much better now."
Miss Jun expressed her gratitude with a bow.
"I'll go administer the medicine to Madam," she said.
Old Madam Lin smiled and nodded as she watched Miss Jun enter the inner room.
The curtains in the inner room were lifted. Madam Lin was not lying down as before; though she still looked haggard, her spirits had improved a great deal. She even had her hair combed and was sitting up in bed.
The maidservants inside quickly stepped aside to allow Miss Jun to approach.
Miss Jun observed Madam Lin and offered a small smile.
"Madam's complexion looks much better," she said.
Madam Lin also smiled.
"After so many days, I finally had a good night's sleep last night," she said. "Miss Jun's medical skills are truly exceptional."
Miss Jun always accepted such praise with a smile and never refused.
She opened her medicine chest and took out the acupuncture needles.
"I will apply a few more needles to Madam," she said softly.
The maids stepped forward to help Madam Lin remove her clothes. Without a hint of embarrassment, Madam Lin turned and lay face down on the bed, not even bothering to draw the curtains for the acupuncture procedure.
Long acupuncture needles were progressively inserted across Madam Lin's back.
Miss Jun administered needles while simultaneously inquiring about Madam Lin's sensations, to which Madam Lin responded to each one.
"There is one more thing... I think..." Madam Lin started to speak, hesitatingly offering more information.
Miss Jun did not wait for her to finish, but instead knelt by the bedside and leaned in to listen closely to Madam Lin.
Madam Lin whispered to her, and while Miss Jun nodded along, no one knew what was said, but Madam Lin suddenly laughed softly.
"Young girl, do you understand?" she laughed and asked.
Miss Jun looked at her with serene eyes.
"Madam, I am not only a young girl; I am also a Doctor. A Doctor should understand everything," she said.
Madam Lin pursed her lips in amusement and whispered to Miss Jun again, who listened intently, nodding at times.
Old Madam Lin, who had been watching from outside, was very reassured.
"Putting aside Miss Jun's medical skills for now, when we women see a Doctor, it's best if it's another woman," she told those beside her. "Would those imperial physicians even dare to apply needles like this?"
The ladies around her all laughed.
"Never mind applying needles, apart from taking the pulse, the imperial physicians dare not even take a second glance at Madam," one woman chuckled.
"Yes, indeed. A Doctor should inspect, smell, ask, and feel. One cannot be lacking," Old Madam Lin said. "Otherwise, the diagnosis and prescriptions can be off, especially for us women with some private ailments. We don't even want to discuss them with the maidservants, let alone the imperial physicians. Asking back and forth, what can one really find out?"
She pointed to the inside.
"Look how convenient and clear this is."
The ladies all marveled in agreement.
The chuckles and low conversations from outside, for the most part, drifted in, but Miss Jun did not pay too much attention. After the acupuncture, Liu'er had also prepared the medicine.
Maidservants naturally came forward to help Madam Lin take her medicine.
Old Madam Lin entered as well and started a casual conversation with Miss Jun about her age when she started practicing medicine.
While they were speaking, a maidservant came in.
"Old Madam, Thousand-Man Commander Lu's household has come to request Cook Fang," she said.
The laughter in the room paused, and Miss Jun lowered her head as she sat on the stool.
"It must be for Princess Jiuli that they have sent someone," Old Madam Lin said with a laugh. "Princess Jiuli used to love the red bean cake made by Sister-in-law Fang."
"Yes, it's been years since she had it," said Madam Lin.
The room fell silent for a moment.
Princess Jiuli and her two brothers had been living in seclusion in Prince Huai's mansion without any contact with the outside world, so they certainly had not sent any food out.
"Princess Jiuli is not one to ask others for treats," Old Madam Lin said with a chuckle. "It must be Thousand-Man Commander Lu who knows she likes it."
The ladies in the room then laughed along.
"He is indeed considerate," they said.
"Anyway, for a woman, what matters is to live a good life with someone who appreciates her warmth and affection; that alone would make for a good life," Old Madam Lin mused. "Everything else is immaterial."
All the women in the room agreed, while Miss Jun, with her head bowed, looked silently at her medicine chest.