Chapter 66: Concern

“Are you going to bandage it or not?” The doctor, growing impatient at Qin Huiyin’s silence, pressed her again.

Qin Huiyin had been lost in thought, sorting through the plot in her mind. Startled by the doctor's question, she quickly replied, “Of course, bandage it. And I’ll buy two more bottles of medicine.”

“One is enough,” Jiang Qibin interjected hastily. “One bottle costs a hundred coins. I only make three hundred coins after a whole month repairing the dam.”

“You’ll use one, and the other is for my brother.” Qin Huiyin took the bottles the medicine boy handed her and stuffed both into Song Ruizhe’s hands. “When you work on the dam, you’re bound to get bumps and scrapes. It’s wise to keep some wound medicine on hand; it’ll spare you suffering in critical moments. The bottle for my brother is a gift from me, but you’ll have to pay me back for yours.”

Jiang Qibin scratched his head sheepishly. “Of course.”

He looked at Song Ruizhe with envy. As Qin Huiyin left, he nudged Song Ruizhe’s arm. “Ruizhe, why didn’t you ever mention you had such an adorable sister?”

Song Ruizhe opened his mouth, but the words “She’s not my sister” seemed stuck and wouldn’t come out.

He glanced toward the doorway, then finally turned his head away and looked at the doctor.

The doctor was busy bandaging Jiang Qibin’s wound and said as he worked, “Luckily, there’s no damage to the bone or tendon. Rest for a few days until the wound scabs over and you’ll be fine. But you’re working on the dam, and even if you want to rest, the overseer probably won’t allow it. I’ll bandage it tightly so it doesn’t come loose and the wound can heal properly.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Jiang Qibin said sweetly. “You really are a good man.”

The doctor snorted. “Don’t bother flattering me; it’s useless. I’ve lost too much money lately, so from now on, I’ll be keeping a cold face with everyone. If I don’t, and when my wife checks the accounts at home and finds out I not only didn’t make a profit but actually lost money, I’ll be kneeling on the abacus all night…”

Jiang Qibin kept flattering him. “Hearing you say that, I can tell you must really care about your wife. Only men who love their wives are this afraid of them.”

The doctor hadn’t intended to be so hard-hearted, but times were tough—if he sympathized with others, he’d be the one to suffer. Now, hearing Jiang Qibin’s words hit the mark, and seeing such a young boy forced to work on the dam—so thin he looked like a bamboo stick, clearly not favored at home and sent to do this hard labor—he softened a little.

“I can’t give you credit, but I can offer you a free bowl of medicine. Wait here. I’ll have the medicine boy prepare it for you; drink it before you go.”

The doctor was very busy. Leaving Jiang Qibin and Song Ruizhe in the medicine boy’s care, he went off to tend to other patients.

Jiang Qibin’s attention soon returned to Song Ruizhe.

“Ruizhe, how many people are in your family?”

“Just one.”

“Liar. Wasn’t that sister who paid for me just now a person?”

“I was only gone for a moment, and you’re already gossiping about your benefactor?” Qin Huiyin handed him the wontons she’d bought. “Eat quickly, I need to return the bowl.”

Jiang Qibin was famished, and the aroma made his stomach growl loudly. He glanced nervously at Song Ruizhe. “Ruizhe, is it alright if I eat? Anyway, with all the debt I owe, what’s one more bowl of wontons!”

Song Ruizhe frowned. “You haven’t left yet?”

“I figured you two must be hungry, so I went to find you something to eat. I checked all the nearby shops, and only this place had such delicious-smelling wontons. Try them if you don’t believe me.”

Song Ruizhe took the bowl, found a spot to sit, and began to eat with a spoon.

Qin Huiyin approached the counter and asked the medicine boy, “Do you have any medicinal herbs that can be used as spices?”

“Are you making cosmetics or incense?” The medicine boy was used to people buying herbs for such things, so he asked in detail to better recommend the right herbs.

“Neither. I want herbs you can cook with—herbs that are harmless and make dishes more delicious.”

The medicine boy was taken aback. “…Would you like to take a look yourself?” Qin Huiyin said. “If I find what I’m looking for, I’ll buy five jin of each.”

“Five jin?” The medicine boy’s mouth twitched. “This is a pharmacy; we usually sell by the liang, not by the jin. I’ve never seen anyone buy five jin of anything.”

Qin Huiyin wanted to choose herself because she wasn’t sure if the names of herbs in this world matched those she knew. She thought there were too few spices available, so she’d have to mix her own.

“Is that alright?”

“I’ll have to ask the master. Medicinal herbs aren’t like ordinary goods; not just anyone can handle them. If something goes wrong after someone else touches them, who’ll take responsibility?”

“I won’t touch them. Just open the drawers and let me look. If there’s one I want to be sure about, just let me smell or taste a piece. If it’s right, I’ll buy five jin.”

The medicine boy asked Qin Huiyin to wait, then went inside to consult the doctor.

Jiang Qibin, curious, asked Song Ruizhe, “What does your sister want to do? Medicinal herbs are expensive, and she wants five jin of each! Does she have that much money? What does your sister do? She seems really impressive.”

Song Ruizhe replied coolly, “Doesn’t your wound hurt anymore?”

“It does.”

“Then be quiet.”

Jiang Qibin fell silent.

Ever since entering the dam workers’ camp and meeting Song Ruizhe, Jiang Qibin’s first impression was that he was different. He couldn’t help being drawn to him, always seeking to make his presence known.

Their beds were close together; one turn and Jiang Qibin could see Song Ruizhe, so he would enthusiastically try to chat him up. But for every ten words Jiang Qibin said, Song Ruizhe would only reply with one—and that was usually, “You’re noisy, be quiet.”

The medicine boy soon returned, as expected, with the doctor’s approval. Under the medicine boy’s supervision, Qin Huiyin examined the herbs in the pharmacy cabinet one by one.

“This one… this, this one… and this one…”

“You want five jin of all of them?” Jiang Qibin hobbled over. “Sister, shouldn’t you discuss this with your family first?”

“No need—I’m in charge at home.” Qin Huiyin said, “Your medicine is ready. Go drink it.”

Jiang Qibin looked back and saw another medicine boy bringing over the herbal decoction. But the medicine was scalding hot straight from the pot, and needed to cool before drinking. Clearly, this ‘Song family sister’ found him too noisy.

Indeed, they really were like siblings—both found him a nuisance.

“That will be two taels of silver and four hundred fifty-seven coins.”

Qin Huiyin took out a piece of silver.

Jiang Qibin stared, wide-eyed. He nudged Song Ruizhe. “I thought you were as poor as me, but now I see I was wrong. If your sister can just pull out silver like that, you must be well off too!”

What kind of ordinary girl carries around silver? In all his life, he’d only ever seen silver in other people’s hands, never touched it himself. Clearly, this Ruizhe was a man of means.

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