When these words were spoken, even Song Junran himself found them absurd.
Through the veil, he couldn't see Wen Qingci's expression.
But Song Junran could roughly guess that his junior brother probably... thought of himself as a fool.
"Ahem," Song Junran coughed twice, trying to change the subject, "I'll just keep an eye on the critically ill patients outside the clearing. You don't have to worry about these things."
Wen Qingci:…
Forget it, as long as you are happy.
"Thank you for your hard work, senior brother." Wen Qingci took over Song Junran's words.
"It's not hard," Song Junran regretted his wrong words and immediately stood up with his things, pretending to leave for something. "I'll go get busy first. If you have any problems, just ask someone to come find me."
"OK."
After Song Junran left, Wen Qingci finally lowered his eyes slowly and looked at the wood carving in his hand.
Lianhe is not a wood carving production area, so the handicrafts he made were not delicate, and even contained tiny unprocessed wood splinters.
But the shape of the wood carving was so lifelike that Wen Qingci could immediately recognize that the hand carved on the piece of sandalwood was his own.
Dealing with the malaria disease was urgent. Although Wen Qingci was not an impatient person, he still sped up.
The time he spends with each patient is no more than the time it takes to stick an incense stick.
Is it true that anyone can remember what their own hands look like just by spending a stick of incense together
The small town is surrounded by mountains, and there are only a few small plots of land available for cultivation.
Not only do people rely on these pieces of land for their livelihood, but so do the animals in the mountains and wilds.
In spring and winter, there was no food in the nearby mountains, so sick rats came down from the mountains and gathered here. They dug holes underground to reproduce, and even expanded their territory into the city.
It didn't take long for the feces and corpses of a large amount of sick rats to pollute the underground rivers and well water.
In addition, the rice jars of every household in Lianhe City did not escape this disaster.
Of course the people knew that the rice was no longer clean, but if they didn't eat it they would starve to death.
In desperation, plague spread widely here.
After determining the source of the malaria, the first thing Xie Bufeng did was to transport food and fodder from other states.
At the same time, the wells in the west of the city were temporarily abandoned, and a large amount of herbal medicine was placed in the wells that could still be used for disinfection.
Now, food and fodder from other places have been transported here.
The old grain in Lianhe County was also burned.
At noon, outside the Lianhe County government office.
In addition to the patients, two large cast iron pots appeared on the open space.
One pot is cooking soup and rice, and the other pot is stewing vegetables.
You can smell the aroma of food from across several streets and alleys.
It wasn't lunch time yet, but the open space was already lined with people.
Lianhe is gradually recovering. The patients who were originally forced to lie in bed and wait for death are finally showing signs of recovery, and many of them can even queue up for meals by themselves.
"Doctor, it's already noon. You should go back and eat first... and then get busy." The old man lying on the bed held Wen Qingci's hand tightly and said.
His eyes had become cloudy due to age, and his speech was not very clear, but he no longer looked as lifeless as before.
As soon as the words fell, the old man's son ran over and said, "Yes, doctor! Man is iron and food is steel. You have been busy for so long, go and rest first."
As he spoke, he looked at Wen Qingci with eyes full of admiration.
The news of this doctor wearing a veil and dissecting a corpse in the open field had already spread throughout Lianhe.
At the beginning, most people were afraid of him and avoided him, and even felt disgusted and disgusted with him.
But seeing that the medicine he prescribed was really effective, everyone's attitude changed drastically.
The leprosy was under control, and Wen Qingci felt much more relaxed.
Seeing that the old man seemed to be in good condition, he finally nodded slowly and said, "Okay, I'll come back in the afternoon."
Just as he stood up, Wen Qingci suddenly asked as if he remembered something: "By the way, how long have you two been staying in front of the county government office?"
Although he didn't understand why Wen Qingci suddenly asked this, the old man still answered: "It's been about eight or nine days..."
"August or nine? Did you two see someone delivering a wooden box into the county government office?"
When Wen Qingci asked, he actually didn't hold out much hope.
Unexpectedly, the old man's son paused for a few seconds, then suddenly raised his voice and said, "I have seen it, I have seen it!"
"There was a carpenter in the south of the city who sent something here a few days ago, saying he was looking for you," he said as he recalled, "You were not here at the time, so the inspector took it and delivered it inside."
Was it really given by the patient
Wen Qingci subconsciously asked, "Do you know how to get to the carpenter's residence?"
"Of course! Follow this road straight south," the man said, standing up and pointing to Wen Qingci, "Walk to the end and turn left, you can see the sign in the distance! How about I take you there?"
"No need," Wen Qingci smiled and shook his head, "I have some impression of it, I can just go there myself."
"That's good! Be careful on your way."
"Okay." After saying that, Wen Qingci followed the direction the other party pointed and walked quickly towards the carpenter's shop in the south of the city.
Sandalwood ornaments are too expensive.
Now that the thing has been carved, there is no reason to return it.
But Wen Qingci still wanted to go back and find the carpenter, thank him in person, or buy something from his shop.
This way you won’t feel guilty.
Just like what the man just said, the carpenter's shop is very easy to find.
After a cup of tea, Wen Qingci had already walked out of the store.
There are white couplets pasted on both sides of the slightly dilapidated wooden door.
There was a spirit-calling banner at the corner of the gate, but I didn't have time to receive it.
Several people in this family must have died of malaria.
Wen Qingci's mood suddenly became heavy.
Before he could even raise his hand to knock on the door, a slightly excited voice came from behind Wen Qingci: "Doctor? Why are you here?"
Wen Qingci turned around and saw a skinny middle-aged man holding a little girl of about four or five years old, who was standing behind him holding a coarse porcelain bowl.
They must have just returned home after lunch.
Without waiting for Wen Qingci to answer, the skinny carpenter quickly handed the bowl to the little girl next to him, then turned around and opened the door: "Come in, please come in."
"Okay, thank you for your help." Wen Qingci nodded slowly and followed the two of them in.
This carpenter's shop is not big, and it is filled with furniture wood and various tools, leaving almost no space to step.
Wen Qingci's eyes slowly swept across the shop.
If he was not mistaken, most of the wood piled in the shop was common wood such as pine or paulownia.
The red sandalwood ornaments delivered to me are worth the money of a whole house...
“No trouble!” The carpenter didn’t even bother to eat. He pulled the little girl inside and said, “This is our little girl Jiaxi. She was infected with leprosy a few days ago. If it weren’t for you, sir… I’m afraid, I’m afraid…”
As he said this, he couldn't help but burst into tears.
Then he had to kneel down to Wen Qingci again.
Children from poor families have to grow up early, not to mention this little girl named Jiaxi, who had just been through a life-and-death situation.
When she heard her father's words, her eyes also turned red and she wanted to kneel down with the people around her.
"Please get up-"
Wen Qingci was startled by the actions of the other man and quickly stretched out his right hand to help them up.
Wen Qingci had treated so many patients in the past few days that if the other party hadn't told him, he wouldn't even remember that the little girl in front of him was also a patient he had treated.
The carpenter seemed to remember something and quickly turned around and brought a chair over to Wen Qingci: "Please sit down first!"
Then he said awkwardly, "You know, the water here is not very clean, so... so it's not good for making tea."
At this time, the little girl also moved a bench and sat next to Wen Qingci.
He waved his hand and said to the carpenter, "Don't bother me. To be honest, I came to you today to buy something."
"Buying something?" The carpenter was a little confused. "You came to my place to buy some furniture?"
His shop is full of large pieces of furniture.
If Wen Qingci wanted to buy it, he would naturally be happy, but the question was... why did Wen Qingci come here to buy furniture
Although this doctor was just a quack, he was always dressed in white and saved people from danger. In the eyes of the people, he was no different from a god in heaven.
How could a person like him come here to buy furniture
Wen Qingci himself also found this statement strange.
He thought about it and said quickly: "I would like you to make a new medicine box."
Wen Qingci's voice came through the white gauze, sounding muffled.
When his daughter was sick, the carpenter stayed by her side all the time, and that's how he saw Wen Qingci's medicine box.
After so many years in the industry, he would not make a mistake. The material used for Wen Qingci's medicine box is the finest golden nanmu wood.
The wood is dense, hard and corrosion-resistant, and can be used for hundreds of years without any problems.
The doctor has a perfectly good golden nanmu medicine box that he is not using, so why is he looking for me...
The carpenter paused and suddenly let out a soft sigh.
He finally guessed why Wen Qingci came to see him today.
"Sir, are you here for that sandalwood ornament?" The carpenter asked directly without hesitation.
Seeing this, Wen Qingci stopped beating around the bush.
He nodded slowly and said, "Yes... This thank you gift is too valuable. I really can't just accept it."
Even through the veil, one could still hear the sincerity in his tone.
"To be honest," the carpenter sighed, "someone paid me for that wood carving a long time ago."
He had originally promised the other party not to tell this matter.
But the carpenter really couldn't go against his conscience and make money from this wood carving.
Under the wide sleeves, Wen Qingci subconsciously clenched his palms: "What do you mean?"
He didn't realize how anxious he was at the moment.
The middle-aged carpenter paused, then turned to his daughter and said, "Jiaxi, go to the room and bring the two wood carvings back to Daddy."
"Okay!" The little girl nodded quickly and ran into the yard.
The room suddenly became quiet. The carpenter paused for a moment and said in a deep voice, "… That day, an official came over and asked me if I had any good wood that could be used to make ornaments."
Almost the next moment, Wen Qingci realized that the "official" the carpenter was talking about was Xie Bufeng.
The carpenter's voice was low and hoarse, with a slight ripple and accent.
Like a gust of wind wrapped in yellow sand, it blew into Wen Qingci's heart.
Each of those words was like a grain of sand, slowly passing through his heart.
It didn't feel painful.
“… I told him I had three pieces of red sandalwood that were passed down from my ancestors, and he bought them without saying anything.”
"Next, let me teach him how to carve ornaments."
"But how can you learn carving in one day? The master worked with me for two hours and still couldn't carve something that satisfied him. Finally, he gave me the last piece of wood and asked me to carve it according to his instructions."
As soon as the carpenter finished speaking, the little girl named Jiaxi came trotting over with two wooden boxes in her hands.
"Look, sir, this is it!"
After saying that, she carefully handed the thing to Wen Qingci.
The small box containing the rosewood ornaments was particularly heavy.
For a moment, Wen Qingci didn't know how to open it.
—
Wen Qingci held the wooden box in his right hand and gently raised his left hand.
Not sure if it was because of injury, weakness, or nervousness, but his fingers trembled slightly at this moment.
The sunlight came in from the window.
The tiny wood chips suspended in the air glowed with a faint golden light.
At noon, people in the streets and alleys were queuing outside the county government office to get their meals.
The streets were empty and quiet, with only the chirping of cicadas ringing in my ears.
After a pause of a few seconds, Wen Qingci mustered up his courage and slowly opened the wooden box under the expectant gaze of the little girl.
—Two crude and simple wooden sculptures appeared before his eyes.
There are many knife marks on the wood carving, which shows that it was modified many times by the carver.
Unfortunately, wood carving cannot be learned in one day.
These two ornaments can only be vaguely seen as the shape of hands, and have absolutely no aesthetic appeal.
Wen Qingci slowly stretched out his hand and slowly touched it with his fingertips.
Through the rough wood grain on the ornament, Wen Qingci could even imagine what it looked like when Xie Bufeng carved it.
The middle-aged carpenter said softly, "… I originally thought that the gentleman bought it for himself, but I didn't expect that after carving it, he actually asked me to deliver the wood carving to the outside of the county government office."
At this point, he choked up.
The next moment, he gently wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes with the back of his hand.
"Even, even the adults told me to tell them that this is a gift from him to you, saying that it is a token of love from the people of Lianhe County, and that you must accept it..."
After he finished speaking, the carpenter burst into tears.
Seeing this, the little girl on the other side also had red eyes.
She snuggled into her father's arms and sobbed softly.
Unfortunately, Wen Qingci stayed in the county government office at that time and did not come out, so Xie Bufeng had to "deliver" the things on his behalf.
Although the carpenter was extremely grateful to Wen Qingci, it was difficult for him to survive in this disaster year.
There was really no way he could give away the family heirloom rosewood as a gift.
It was not until Xie Bufeng reminded him that day that he realized that not only he, but even the entire Lianhe, had not yet properly thanked Wen Qingci.
When he thought of this, he felt half grateful and half ashamed.
"… Why did he do this?" Wen Qingci murmured.
At this moment, his mind was blank.
Hearing Wen Qingci's voice, the little girl sitting next to him sniffed and said, "That adult, the adult said that you have never been thanked properly by the patients, so - just, just wanted us to give you a small gift."
Wen Qingci: “…”
He slowly closed his eyes and clenched the rough wooden sculpture in his hands.
The girl was sobbing quietly, and her voice had a nasal tone in addition to her accent.
But based on her words alone, Wen Qingci could actually imagine how Xie Bufeng looked when he said this.
—The young emperor in black robes frowned slightly and gently turned the wood in his hands.
After a pause, he said these words in a voice without any emotion.
Then he handed the task over to the carpenter's family with great solemnity.
No more guessing at this point.
Xie Bufeng definitely knew that he was Wen Qingci.
Have you never been thanked properly by a patient
Wen Qingci never knew that Xie Bufeng could actually think of this.
When he was in school in his previous life, Wen Qingci also thought that one day a patient would give him a banner.
Unfortunately, he accidentally traveled through a book early on and did not live to see that day.
In this life, because of the past events in Shanyujian, he had visited countless towns where water plague had broken out over the years.
But in this era, anatomy is still not understood.
Not to mention cooperating with his experiment, even if a prescription was finally developed, few people would dare to use it.
Wen Qingci saved many people, but just as Xie Bufeng said, he had never been thanked properly by anyone.
Instead, only the rumor of a "fairy-faced Rakshasa" remained.
When he was young, Wen Qingci was unwilling and even a little sad.
But later on, he had already gotten used to these things without realizing it, and became numb and indifferent.
Until now, someone finally gave him the gift secretly.
How could the people of Lianhe County carve out their own hands based on impressions alone
Only Xie Bufeng can do it.
Having grown up in an environment of malice, he is particularly sensitive to all of this.
It is also very clear what Wen Qingci needs.
"Doctor, please wait for a moment!" After saying that, the carpenter seemed to realize something and turned around and walked into the room.
After a long while, he finally got the silver that was wrapped in cloth.
Xie Bufeng was very generous, and this bag of silver was more than enough to buy three wood carvings.
It can even support the carpenter's family expenses for several years.
"I really shouldn't have accepted this silver," the carpenter's voice came from the main room, "Please return this silver to that gentleman—"
But when he walked out of the main room, Wen Qingci, who had just been sitting there, had disappeared.
There was only one empty chair, quietly placed in the middle of the room.
"Jia Xi, where is the eldest lady just now?" the carpenter asked the little girl anxiously.
"He, he just passed away," Jiaxi said while wiping away tears, "When he left, he left a hairpin and said he wanted to buy those two wood carvings."
The carpenter looked in the direction the little girl pointed—a jade hairpin was quietly placed on a small table that had not yet been finished.
"Oh! How can this be possible!" The carpenter immediately picked up the things on the table and trotted out the door.
But at this time the long street was already empty, without a single person in sight.
*
“… Ahem, this smell is really choking. Not to mention rats, even humans can be suffocated to death.” Outside Lianhe City, a young imperial physician stood beside Wen Qingci and said, his words full of admiration.
Before this, he had never heard of the method of using sulfur fumigation to kill rats.
It turns out that this quack doctor is really capable.
A gust of hot wind blew, bringing with it a strong smell of sulfur, and he covered his mouth and nose with thick white gauze.
"It is indeed dangerous, it is better to stay away from it." After saying that, Wen Qingci took the imperial physician away from here.
He had casually mentioned before that sulfur fumigation could be used to kill rats, but he didn't expect that a few days later, Xie Bufeng would actually transport the stuff over.
—Although it is not difficult to obtain natural sulfur, Lianhe is tens of thousands of miles away from the sulfur production site.
Mining and transporting along the way in a short period of time is not an easy task.
Thinking of this, Wen Qingci couldn't help but look back at the empty space: "I didn't expect the sulfur to be delivered so quickly."
"Of course," the young doctor couldn't help but add a bit of pride to his voice after hearing Wen Qingci's words, "Look at us... uh, who our inspector is."
It’s so annoying!
The imperial physician felt a chill down his spine; he almost let the cat out of the bag.
To ease the awkwardness, the imperial physician walked towards the city with Wen Qingci while saying, "The matter in Lianhe County is almost over. Why don't you two gentlemen come back to Yongdu with us?"
In the professional field, he truly admires this quack doctor.
And I think it is a waste to let a person like him stay in the world.
Wen Qingci paused: "I..."
Fearing that Wen Qingci would refuse outright, the imperial physician said without waiting for his reply: "I'm sure the inspector will agree. Besides, there have been wandering doctors who have come to the Imperial Medical Bureau before."
There is no need to guess, you know that the "itinerant doctor" he is talking about must be myself.
Wen Qingci nodded casually.
After spending a few days together, the young doctor had already discovered that the person next to him wore a veil all day and looked a little strange.
But in fact, he is of the same age as me, and outside of professional matters, he is very easy to talk to.
After they became familiar with each other, the imperial physician couldn't help but share the story of Yongdu.
After looking around and making sure that no one else was around, he couldn't help but lower his voice and asked, "Have you heard about the current emperor and the former imperial physician named Wen?"
Then he said sincerely, "Our Majesty is really good to Doctor Wen."
"… "
"Of course I have heard of it. By the way..." Wen Qingci gritted his teeth, looked back at the empty space, and suddenly spoke faster, "Please go back to the county government office first. I just remembered that I still have something to do here."
"Ah? Well, then you shouldn't stay here too long." The imperial physician, who had a lot of stories to tell but couldn't share them, was a little frustrated. However, he couldn't stand the smell in the open space, so he briefly chatted with Wen Qingci and quickly left.
Our Majesty is really good to Imperial Physician Wen.
—This sentence, like thick smoke in an open space, enveloped Wen Qingci and refused to dissipate.
It made his heart beat heavily one after another.
Wen Qingci, standing alone in the open space, paused for a moment, and finally opened the wooden box in his sleeve again.
He moved cautiously.
Judging from the craftsmanship alone, the two semi-finished wood carvings in the box are indeed crude.
But every knife mark on the wood carving is filled with seriousness and patience.
Wen Qingci's fingers slowly slid across the wood carving, and he finally couldn't help but smile softly.
As he put it back into the box, Wen Qingci said softly, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Even through the thick white gauze.
I can still hear the endless tenderness in his words at this moment.
(End of this chapter)