Sister-in-law Liu brought her child to Sanqing Alley to seek treatment from Zhu Shian. Zhu Fengqin didn't recognize her and was wary, asking where she'd come from and who had referred her.
"You must be Sister Zhu Fengqin. My sister-in-law has mentioned you. Oh right, my sister-in-law is Liu Xin, the wife of Zhu Kangchuan from your Zhu family—I'm her elder brother's wife."
A smile appeared on Zhu Fengqin's face. "Oh my, we're practically family. My fault for never having met you and not recognizing you. You've come to see Liu Xin, haven't you? At this hour she's still at work—you probably won't find her."
Sister-in-law Liu, holding her little son, stepped up the stairs and spoke to Zhu Fengqin across the threshold. "I'm not here for my sister-in-law today—I'm here for your family's eldest daughter. My child has been sick for half a month without improving. Doctor Zhu Changming said he needs acupuncture, and he said your eldest daughter needles better than he does, so he told me to come to Sanqing Alley to find her."
"Medical treatment, is it?" Zhu Fengqin hesitated.
Sister-in-law Liu hurriedly said, "That's right."
Zhu Fengqin looked at the child in her arms. Sister-in-law Liu lifted the blue cloth covering the child's face to show her. "I kept him covered the whole way, afraid the wind would get to him."
The tiny child's nose and philtrum were red, the skin seemingly rubbed raw, and his eyelashes were still wet—he must have been crying just before.
The little boy couldn't help coughing, coughing out a stream of snot. When it needed wiping, the moment the child saw his mother take out a handkerchief, he cried in fright.
"Mama will be gentle, it won't hurt," Sister-in-law Liu coaxed softly.
The nose was rubbed raw—how could it not hurt?
Zhu Fengqin quickly ushered Sister-in-law Liu inside, saying, "A child's skin is so tender—how can it stand being wiped all day like that? Better to wash it with water; that won't hurt."
The three-year-old could understand some adult speech. Hearing that his nose wouldn't be wiped anymore, the boy, mid-sob, sniffled and asked, "Water wash, Mama, water wash."
"Yes, yes, yes, we'll wash with water." Sister-in-law Liu turned and said gratefully, "I'm really troubling you."
Zhu Fengqin sighed and opened the door to let mother and child in. She didn't take them to the main hall, only to the small courtyard to the right of the screen wall to let them rest.
Zhu Changfang and the others had just boiled sweet potato soup, and the water in the pot beside it was still hot. Zhu Fengqin ladled out half a basin of hot water, found it a bit scalding to the touch, added cold water to make it warm, and only then carried it over to Sister-in-law Liu.
Zhu Fengqin said, "Wash the child first. As for the treatment, I can't make that decision—I have to go in and ask the eldest daughter. If she says no, don't hold it against us. Private practitioners aren't allowed to open shop and practice medicine these days. If someone catches and reports us, it's another heap of trouble."
Sister-in-law Liu understood completely. "Rest assured, we're reasonable people. We'd never do such an ungrateful thing."
Zhu Fengqin didn't say she didn't believe her, only told her to wait.
Zhu Fengqin left the courtyard, passed through the hanging-flower gate into the front courtyard, and walked along the covered corridor to the back courtyard to find someone.
Reaching the door, she slowed her steps. Seeing Zhu Shian reading inside, she called out, "An'an, do you have a moment?"
"Aunt Feng, come in and talk."
Zhu Fengqin pushed the door open and went in, not wasting words, complaining loudly: "Liu Xin's sister-in-law's child is sick. They went to Zhu Changming for treatment, and Zhu Changming sent them to our house. I don't know what he's thinking. Just the other day he brought it up several times, saying Director Li said policy forbids private practice, and now he pushes patients our way. If word gets out and someone with ill intent takes notice, isn't that just making trouble for us?"
Zhu Shian laughed. "You said all that—so did you turn them away?"
Zhu Fengqin gave an embarrassed little cough. "I meant to, but the child looked so pitiful—oh my, his nose is rubbed raw, and the moment he sees his mother take out a handkerchief he cries in fright. I couldn't bear it, so I had them rest in the small side courtyard and brought hot water to wash the child's nose."
Zhu Shian leaned back in the round-backed armchair, stretching her arms and loosening her neck and shoulders. "Since Zhu Changming referred them, they must be tight-lipped and won't talk. Besides, they're relatives—for Liu Xin's sake they wouldn't make trouble for the Zhu family."
Fifth Grandaunt often brought Fufu to the main house to play, and Zhu Shian had heard her talk about the Liu family. All in all, Liu Xin's natal family treated the married-out daughter well. When Liu Xin had her baby, her own mother came to look after her for half a month of her postpartum confinement, and her brothers and sisters-in-law never said a single sour word.
Zhu Fengqin had also heard Fifth Grandaunt speak of the Lius. She said, "That's true. Liu Xin's sister-in-law looks kind—doesn't seem like someone who'd repay kindness with enmity."
Zhu Shian picked up the medicine chest from the cabinet. "Aunt Feng, invite them to the front courtyard main hall."
"All right, I'll fetch them."
Zhu Fengqin went to the small side courtyard and brought the Liu mother and child to the front hall, where Zhu Shian was already waiting.
Sister-in-law Liu had long known this eldest daughter of the Zhu family was young, but seeing her today, she hadn't imagined she'd be this young.
Young as she was, her presence was formidable. She sat there, watching her calmly, and Sister-in-law Liu unconsciously grew fidgety, not knowing what to do with her hands and feet.
Zhu Shian extended her hand. "Bring the child over for me to see."
Sister-in-law Liu quickly carried the child to her.
Zhu Shian took the child's hand and carefully felt his pulse, saying nothing.
Sister-in-law Liu had a bellyful of things to say, but the eldest daughter didn't ask a single question. After a moment, Sister-in-law Liu couldn't hold back. "My child's been sick for half a month now. He can't keep medicine down, the illness keeps coming back and won't clear up. Doctor Zhu at the county hospital said acupuncture would suit him well."
"Mm."
Zhu Shian had already heard the child's condition once from Aunt Feng. After taking his pulse and confirming Zhu Changming's diagnosis was correct, she settled on a needling prescription.
"The prescription is mainly to soothe the lungs, stop the cough, and dissolve phlegm. I need to needle Yingxiang, Tianfu, Baihui, Feishu, and other points—he'll have to take his clothes off."
Sister-in-law Liu didn't understand the diagnosis, only that clothes had to come off. She asked, "Here?"
Glancing at the sun outside, Zhu Shian said to Zhu Fengqin, "The weather's warmed a bit lately, but it's still cold. In a while, light a brazier and take it to the acupuncture room in the clinic next door. That room is small and out of the wind. Once the room's warmed up, then undress the child."
The Zhu family clinic was large, a traditional front-hall, rear-workshop structure. The front hall held a full wall of medicine cabinets, five consultation rooms partitioned off with wooden walls, two rows of chairs for waiting patients, and so on.
The rear workshop housed the medicinal materials storeroom, the medicine-making workshop, and eight acupuncture rooms. Occasionally the acupuncture rooms also lodged gravely ill patients who couldn't be moved, for a few days, to make treatment easier.
Zhu Fengqin smiled. "We cleaned it just the other day—spotless. Never thought it'd come in use so soon. I'll go prepare the brazier now and carry it over."
Zhu Shian didn't wait there either. She told Sister-in-law Liu, "Go with Aunt Feng to the clinic next door in a bit. Call me when everything's ready."
"Whatever you say."
Once Zhu Shian left, only Sister-in-law Liu and her child remained in the hall. Feeling awkward sitting there, she picked up her son and went to the small side courtyard to find Zhu Fengqin.
Zhu Fengqin was efficient—in short order she'd lit the brazier and carried it to the clinic next door. She unlocked the door with her key, entered from outside, and carried the brazier toward the acupuncture room.
Sister-in-law Liu, carrying her child through the door, looked up from inside the entrance and was instantly awed by the wall of medicine cabinets.
Such a huge pharmacy, such a great estate—how glorious the Zhu family must have been in the old days.
She'd only heard before that the Zhu ancestors ran a pharmacy. Seeing it today, Sister-in-law Liu silently praised her sister-in-law's good marriage again and again. A family like the Zhus—a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. They couldn't be doing badly.
"Sister-in-law Liu, come in quickly."
"Ah, coming."
Zhu Fengqin called from the back, and Sister-in-law Liu hurriedly carried her child across the broad hall and through the side door to the rear.
The front gates were shut tight against the light, but the rear workshop had no gates blocking it—a four-sided courtyard, bright and airy.
The door curtains of the acupuncture rooms were all tied up in bundles; only one room's curtain hung down, a faint scent of charcoal smoke drifting out. That was the one.
Zhu Fengqin lifted the curtain and came out, telling Sister-in-law Liu, "Take the child inside. Once the room's warm, undress him and wait. I'll go invite the eldest daughter."
"Ah, thank you for the trouble."
As Zhu Fengqin left, she lowered the curtain so the warmth wouldn't escape.
Sister-in-law Liu set her son on the bed, poked his forehead lightly, and sighed softly, "You lucked out, you know. When you're better, Mama will bring you back to thank the eldest daughter. And thank your aunt too—if your little aunt weren't a Zhu family wife, the two of us couldn't even get through the Zhu family's door."
Zhu Shian didn't want to detour through the clinic's front entrance. She unsealed the door between the back garden and the clinic herself and carried her medicine chest over to do the needling.
Sister-in-law Liu was afraid the child would squirm and worried he'd cry from the pain. The moment Zhu Shian entered, she tensed up.
Zhu Shian smiled. "No need to be nervous. It's a small matter."
Sister-in-law Liu watched as the eldest daughter pressed and rubbed a few spots on her son's arms, legs, and waist, then inserted the needles—as if it were as simple as eating and drinking.
Sister-in-law Liu glanced at her son lying obediently still and not crying, then looked at the eldest daughter again.
Zhu Shian packed up her medicine chest. "Watch the child. I'll come back in a while to remove the needles."
Sister-in-law Liu froze for a beat, then quickly said, "Take care, Eldest Daughter Zhu."
The curtain lifted and fell. Sister-in-law Liu hurriedly asked her son, "Does it hurt? Don't move around now."
"Not moving, Mama. Warm."
"What's warm?"
The child couldn't explain it—he just felt warm. His eyes went cross-eyed staring at the needle stuck by his nose, and it didn't hurt one bit.
The foundation of acupuncture lies in "qi." Acupuncture regulates and channels the qi in the meridians; by stimulating the points it achieves unimpeded qi and blood and balanced yin and yang.
Why is it said that nine out of ten Daoists are healers?
Those who have entered the Dao understand "qi" far beyond ordinary people. Zhu Shian was a standout even among cultivators.
Zhu Changming had been taught by a famous physician, but he had not entered the Dao. That Zhu Furu could teach his acupuncture to his current level was already the limit.
Aptitude differs. Even under the same master, the gap between him and Zhu Shian wasn't something hard work and accumulated experience could close.
Zhu Changming was a Zhu family man, and the Zhu family passed down its legacy through "Daoist medicine." Clearly, he knew exactly how great that gap was and how it came to be.
Zhu Changming wasn't without regret in his heart, but so be it—at least the family had Zhu Shian, and the Zhu family doctors had a formidable figure to fall back on.
In the mid-afternoon, Zhu Kanglin and Zhu Yongwen hurried to the county hospital after class.
Ever since they began studying medicine under Zhu Changming, the two had been running back and forth between school and the county hospital. Only during holidays, when there were no classes, did they skip school and follow Zhu Changming from morning to night to study.
Zhu Kanglin and Zhu Yongwen genuinely loved being doctors and didn't find such days hard.
When they arrived, there were no patients in the consultation room. Zhu Changming beckoned. "Come look at these two prescriptions. These two patients have the same illness, but the medicines differ. See if you can spot the difference."
"Yes, Master."
They were both clansmen and his last personal disciples, so Zhu Changming taught them everything he knew, holding nothing back. He often used this comparison method to teach his two disciples to differentiate prescriptions—useful and highly efficient.
Master and disciples studied the two prescriptions for a long time. Only when Zhu Changming was sure both disciples understood and knew how to apply them did he put the prescriptions away.
While Zhu Kanglin helped tidy up, he noticed one prescription that listed only symptoms, with no diagnosis. He showed it to his master. "Is this a discarded draft? Should we keep it?"
"It's not discarded. Keep it."
Zhu Yongwen leaned over to look, scratching his head. "What's with this patient? Transferred to another doctor?"
Zhu Changming smiled and nodded. "Transferred to the eldest daughter. She treats this illness better than I do."
"Knock, knock, knock!"
The three of them turned around.
Director Li's face was dark. "Doctor Zhu, this is my last warning. Just this once—never again."
Zhu Changming truly couldn't guarantee that.
Zhu Kanglin and Zhu Yongwen were baffled. What were the director and their master talking about?
Director Li walked in and snorted angrily. "What, you're going to refer our hospital's patients to your family's eldest daughter? Believe it or not, I'll report her right this instant for practicing without a license."
Zhu Changming laughed. "You won't."
"I will!" Director Li said the two words with absolute finality.
Zhu Changming explained, "Our eldest daughter is very busy and doesn't treat outsiders. At most, when she can't bear to see a patient suffer, she does me a favor—no consultation fee, so it doesn't count as private practice. And to take a huge step back, my family's eldest daughter has a barefoot doctor's certificate, so she's not unlicensed either."
Director Li wouldn't hear his sophistry. "Don't try to exploit loopholes. It won't work."
Director Li looked Zhu Changming up and down. "I said your family was hidebound—I was clearly wrong. Your Zhu family has got some nerve."
Neither could convince the other. Director Li had just one line: if Zhu Shian wanted to practice medicine legitimately, she had to come to the county hospital.
After Director Li left, Zhu Kanglin said, "Master, the director has a point. Perhaps we shouldn't bring patients to the family head's side anymore."
"Rest easy. The eldest daughter knows what can and can't be done."
For one thing, a smart person like the eldest daughter wouldn't leave anyone a handle against her. For another, there was County Magistrate He. How long had it been since he'd sought treatment on that rainy night? Given his attitude toward the eldest daughter, he'd surely help cover for her.
Zhu Yongwen stood on his master's side and said indignantly, "Why doesn't Director Li go look outside? At the cinema entrance, outside the station—since New Year's, where can't you find people privately hawking sunflower seeds, steamed buns, dried grilled fish, all sorts of snacks? Even outside the county hospital, aren't there plenty carrying old hens pretending to visit relatives when they're really selling chickens? Nobody bothers them—so why is it a capital crime when our family treats people for the patients' own good?"
"You can't put it that way. Director Li means no harm—he's just habitually cautious. His coming to me again and again is for our own good."
Director Li's family had also run a clinic back in the day, and by class background he was no poor peasant either. It was precisely his cautious, plan-ahead temperament that had let him escape calamity, and he still sat securely as director of the county hospital to this day.
"Enough of that. Let's go home."
Meanwhile, in Sanqing Alley.
Liu Xin got off work and only then learned that her sister-in-law had brought her little nephew to see the eldest daughter. She hurried to the main house to check on things.
Seeing her arrive, Zhu Fengqin took her arm and said, "Perfect timing. Take your sister-in-law to stay the night at your place, so she doesn't have to run back and forth carrying the child."
There were spare rooms at home, so Liu Xin readily agreed. Not seeing her sister-in-law, she quickly asked, "Aunt Feng, where are my sister-in-law and nephew? How's the child's illness? Wasn't it just a little cold before? How did it get this serious?"
"It's not serious, really—your little nephew just won't take his medicine, so it dragged on. The eldest daughter treated him with acupuncture."
As the two were talking, Sister-in-law Liu came over carrying the child. Seeing Liu Xin, she smiled. "Xinxin's home from work."
"Sister-in-law, how's the child?"
"Haha, much better. Needled once in the morning and once just now. The eldest daughter says one more session tomorrow morning, and if things look good we can go home."
Seeing the child's condition wasn't serious, Liu Xin finally breathed easy. She smiled. "Sister-in-law, stay the night at my place. I'll send someone with a message to my brother so they won't worry."
"Ah, sorry to trouble you then."
Liu Xin thanked Aunt Feng and took her sister-in-law and little nephew home.
Not long after the Liu sisters-in-law left, the sky was nearly dark. Zhu Fengqin was about to close the gate when she saw Zhu Changming return with his disciples. She greeted them: "Busy day today?"
Zhu Changming smiled and said not too busy. "Did Liu Xin's sister-in-law bring the child to Sanqing Alley?"
"She did. The eldest daughter treated him—he's recovering well."
"That's good." Zhu Changming didn't ask more. "You carry on. I'm off."
"All right."
Zhu Changming took his two disciples to Liu Xin's home. After feeling the child's pulse, he smiled. "The eldest daughter treated him very well."
Sister-in-law Liu smiled along. "He looks better than this morning to me."
Seeing the child spared further suffering, Zhu Changming grew all the more convinced his choice was right.
Treating such a minor illness was effortless for Zhu Shian. After needling the child once more the next morning, she told them to go home, take care he didn't catch cold, and let him recuperate a few more days.
Sister-in-law Liu happily carried her child home, saying she'd come back to give thanks once he was fully recovered.
After staying a night in Sanqing Alley, Sister-in-law Liu ran into neighbors on her way back. A busybody asked her—hadn't she taken the child to see a doctor? Why was she only back today?
Sister-in-law Liu made the excuse that she'd taken the child to visit her sister-in-law, and the sister-in-law's mother-in-law had insisted they stay the night. Hearing this, the neighbors all said the Zhu family was so kind and hospitable.
As for the Zhu family side, the clansmen never lightly troubled the family head; anything they could solve themselves never reached Zhu Shian's ears.
Over these two days, hearing the eldest daughter had treated a relative's child, those in the family with ailing relatives all went to Zhu Fengqin to ask whether the eldest daughter could treat their kin.
After asking Zhu Shian, Zhu Fengqin relayed to the clansmen: "See Zhu Changming first. Only if Zhu Changming says to find the eldest daughter may you bring your people."
Zhu Changming naturally wouldn't turn away his relatives' patients. He just told them to wait at the house in Sanqing Alley—he'd see them after work. They were not to look for him at the hospital, lest they prick the director's eye.
Director Li had watched Zhu Changming for half a month. Seeing him dutifully at work, he figured the man had learned his lesson and relaxed his vigilance for the time being.
In that half month, Zhu Shian cured a dozen or so patients from relatives' families. Cultivating while healing and saving people, time flew by, and in a blink even Qingming Festival had passed.
Ding Mao felt time crawl. After recovering at Wangyun Temple, he'd been waiting for his team leader to come fetch him, and then to follow the leader to see the Three Purities Taiji Formation that Zhu Shian had repaired.
Huixin figured Ding Mao's illness definitely hadn't cleared up—otherwise he wouldn't be talking such garbled nonsense.
In the pigeon letter Daoist Li Qingyuan had sent, it clearly stated he was coming to Zhenshan County to see the Three Purities Taiji Formation and then visit the Zhu family in Sanqing Alley—without a single word about Ding Mao.
Ding Mao secretly gloated and, with utmost nonchalance, told Huixin, "I'm my team leader's most capable man. He's definitely coming to back me up. However formidable Zhu Shian is, she can only get the better of me—she's no match for my leader."
Huixin: "Daoist Ding, have you got a fever again?"
"No, I'm perfectly fine. Little monk, don't you curse me."
"No fever? Then why are you talking nonsense?"
Ding Mao: "…"
Ah, you rotten little baldy, can't you speak properly? Ding Mao was too angry to talk.
Huixin asked earnestly, "Daoist Ding, are you really not sick?"
"No!"
So infuriating! This little monk was truly infuriating!
Ding Mao gazed at the sky in speechless despair. Ah, he was never coming to Zhenshan County again. This place really, truly jinxed him!
