The Female Supporting Role Shows Out

Translator: NovelMultiverse| Editors: MiniMe, thornling

Seeing that Xue Boyong's physical condition was stable, and that she now needed to accumulate real experience, Lin Dan finally decided to go out to be a traveling physician.

"Brother, I'm heading out. I probably won’t be back until the afternoon." Before leaving, she went to report to her brother in the next room.

Xue Boyong saw that she was wearing a set of coarse cotton clothing, carrying a bamboo basket on her back, and holding a string of bells in her hand, as if she was going out for a long journey, and immediately frowned, "Where are you going?"

"I want to travel through the towns and villages outside the city to treat patients. I’ve finished reading all the necessary medical books and learning all the essential medical principles. Now I just have to put it all into practice. The people in the capital are picky. Whenever they’re sick, they go to a doctor’s clinic to see the in-house physician. The clinic would never hire me, an ignoramus, so I can only go to remote rural areas. The living conditions there aren’t as good, so those with illnesses grit their teeth and hope to survive, unless their condition is critical. Only then will they load the patient on an ox cart and take them to the city. If I take the initiative to call on them, then charge a little less for the doctor's fee, they would probably be willing for me to treat them. After I get enough experience, one day, sooner or later, I will be able to heal your legs. You just wait and see. " Lin Dan said as she waved her hands, ready to leave just like that.

Xue Boyong quickly raised his voice to stop her: "Hold on! You’re a weak woman traveling outside alone. What will happen if you encounter danger?"

"Brother, I'm not a weak woman." Lin Dan clenched her small fist.

Remembering that she could easily lift an adult man, Xue Boyong's expression was slightly sluggish, but he still insisted: "I will not stop you from practicing medicine, but you must bring a bodyguard when you go out, or else you’re staying at home with me."

Lin Dan saw his expression was firm, so she half-heartedly said, "Okay, fine, brother, whatever you say. You, and you, come with me." As she spoke, Lin Dan casually pointed out two of the guards and turned to leave, not caring whether they actually followed her. Her bearing was more natural than a marshal gathering troops for the battlefield.

Xue Boyong looked at her upright silhouette with frustration and a bit of helplessness in his expression. Presently, he held his forehead and began laughing deeply. He waved his hand and said: "Go, go, just go with her and make sure she is well protected."

Only then did the two bodyguards salute to accept the order and take large strides to catch up.

Looking at the closed courtyard door, Xue Boyong shook his head and murmured: "I never actually blamed you for anything, so why would you go this far?" Although he said that, a corner of his cold, hard heart had already been vanquished by this stubborn little girl and begun to soften.

After Lin Dan left, the yard seemed especially quiet. Usually at this time, she would be reading in the study, the low hum of her recitation audible from time to time, like the drone of a swarm of bees. In the past, Xue Boyong had complained several times, and she would habitually agree to stop. Later, she would forget; memorizing books out loud seemed to be her habit. At this point, Xue Boyong had become accustomed to her habit; now that this sound had suddenly disappeared, he felt uneasy instead.

He had Li Zhong carry himself outside to bask in the sun and sighed, "This little girl didn't even ask me what I wanted for lunch this morning."

Li Zhong replied automatically: "Miss Lin said that she would not be back until the afternoon. Lunch will be made by Chef Fang. What do you want to eat, sir? I'll go to the kitchen now and let them know.”

Xue Boyong waved his hands with no interest: "No need, I don't want to eat anything."

Seeing that the eldest young master was so gloomy, as if he had returned to when he had first been injured, Li Zhong quickly said, "How about I call Chef Fang over now and ask her if they’ve received any fresh ingredients in the side kitchen today?"

"No need, let's talk about it in the afternoon." Xue Boyong was still as listless as before, just staring at the courtyard door; who knew what was on his mind.

Previously, just after breakfast, Miss Lin Dan would always playfully ask him to order what he wanted to eat at lunch. Today, Miss Lin Dan was not here, and the eldest young master didn’t want to order any dishes either; he even said to wait until the afternoon to decide what to eat. This is clearly him not wanting to eat lunch at all! Li Zhong became more anxious, worked up the courage to throw down the sentence "I'll go to the side kitchen to take a look," and ran away.

Xue Boyong closed his eyes, his expression a little desolate. Although he was surrounded by bodyguards, although there were countless servants to wait upon him outside the courtyard wall, he suddenly felt that his heart was empty and had nowhere to settle.

After a while, Li Zhong ran back, his anxious expression replaced by a smile, "Sir, guess what? When Miss Lin left, she stewed a pot of beef on the stove and told the kitchen to keep it cooking until noon. By then, the meat will be at just the right softness for you to eat. I sniffed it just now and the flavor is simply amazing! If I hadn’t covered my mouth fast enough, my saliva would’ve dripped into the pot. I don’t know what seasoning Miss Lin used; it’s not too bad if you don’t lift the lid, but as soon as you lift it, the people in the kitchen are almost intoxicated from the aroma. I have never smelled such fragrant beef before!"

Xue Boyong, who was originally still a little absent-minded, turned his head to listen attentively at this moment, his dark eyes continually flashing with light. He just remembered that before he fell asleep yesterday, the little girl had run to his room and asked him if he had any particular cravings recently. At the time, he had arbitrarily said beef, not realizing that she was asking so that she could start cooking it this morning.

Even though she was gone, she was still concerned that her brother's lunch would not be settled. This little girl…. Thinking about this, Xue Boyong raised his fist and tried to cover the corners of his mouth, which rose uncontrollably.

—

When Lin Dan was leaving, she had already completed or delegated every task she needed to. There was no need to worry whether any problems would arise from Xue Boyong’s end. She hired an ox cart and slowly rode toward the outskirts of the city. Seeing that the city gate was near at hand, she said to the two guards: "I let you follow me to appease my brother, but in fact I can handle any situation by myself. If you follow me, you won’t have anything to do. Instead, you can help me look for someone."

The two bodyguards sat outside the canopy of the cart without saying a word and did not respond at all.

Lin Dan did not get angry and continued: "You can help me find someone who has the exact same symptoms as my brother, someone whose legs were paralyzed after a fall. After you find them, tell me their address and I will go treat them. I have no experience. I can’t treat my brother as a guinea pig, so I want to find a similar patient to try and treat. I’ll tell you the truth, Lin Chaoxian is my great great great… grandfather. My family’s ancestral Xuanji acupuncture method can cure my brother’s legs. In any case, this is also a ray of hope, so please treat it with importance. "

The two bodyguards, who had been holding their swords, pretending to nod off, suddenly opened their eyes and looked into the cart, but only saw a bamboo shade.

"Lin Chaoxian is your ancestor?" The two spoke in unison, their tone extremely alert.

"Naturally. Brother also knows this." Lin Dan lifted the bamboo shade and then probed, "Will help me with this task?" Legends of Lin Chaoxian's godly medical skills had been passed down through the years, but the medical books he left behind just happened to be missing the most important volume. That was why the Lin family hid their ancestral roots and dared not brag, for fear that not only would they not be able to keep the legacy, they would ruin their ancestor’s reputation instead.

The Lin family’s ancestral acupuncture and massage techniques needed inner strength to be effective. Without inner strength, when the doctor pierced the lethal point with a needle, the patient would immediately take their last breath. That would not be saving people, it would be killing them! Because of this, Father Lin, who obviously possessed the family legacy, did not dare to learn it, only delving into the simplest techniques used to treating bruises and injuries. It was very unfortunate.

The two bodyguards did not know the inside story and had no desire to ask. They only knew that they had to seize any hope of curing the general, so they nodded immediately: "Yes, we will help you with this task! There are more people in the city so we will look there first, and if we can’t find anyone there, we’ll go to the surrounding towns and villages. "

"Okay, then you can get off here. We will meet back at the west gate in the evening." Lin Dan knocked on the shaft of the cart and motioned for the driver to stop.

The driver was a rustic villager. What Lin Chaoxian, what Xuanji acupuncture, he had no idea at all. But even if he knew and spread rumors, Lin Dan had no fear. She was confident that she could easily resolve any trouble.

After the two bodyguards got out of the car, they showed the driver the tokens on their belt and warned: "This young lady belongs to the General Xue manor. You must send her back safely. Where you live and how many people are in your family, we know very clearly."

The coachman agreed in fear and trepidation. By the time the two bodyguards had left, the clothes on his back were soaked through with cold sweat. If he had known beforehand that these clients were so powerful, he would have not accepted this request.

"Let's go! With me here, there will be no problems on the way." Lin Dan waved her hands, her tone calm, completely unaware that she had completely reversed the positions of the protector and the protected.

In fact, the Xue Manor also had their own carriages, but the decorations were very luxurious and not suitable for traveling in the countryside. Furthermore, if the people in the manor needed to use a carriage, they had to report it to Madam Xue. If she knew, Lin Dan’s plans might not have been able to come to fruition. Madam Xue might be able to tolerate her staying behind to take care of her son, but she would probably not tolerate her being a traveling physician and throwing the Xue family’s face.

To say something unpleasant, Lin Dan was very displeased with Madam Xue, who prioritized etiquette and dignity above all else. If the debts left by the original owner didn’t have to be paid off, she would already have swung her arms and left.

The driver was amused by the little girl's commanding attitude and his anxiety dissipated in a flash. He shook the reins and slowly drove the ox cart out of the city gate.

Lin Dan took out a set of silver needles and a wooden figure she had kept in her bamboo basket and took this time to practice acupuncture techniques. She tried her hardest to control her inner strength, but the moment she inserted the needle, she wavered just the slightest bit and violent qi flowed through the tip of the needle, into the soft wood, which instantly exploded and made a small hole.

With a muffled “pff” sound, snow white sawdust burst out of the hole and covered Lin Dan’s face. Fortunately, this set of silver needles was made of extraordinary material which could withstand destructive internal force without breaking; otherwise, even her means of making a living would be destroyed. If you replaced the wooden figurine with a real person, you could imagine, the matter on her face wouldn’t be sawdust, but fresh blood and pieces of flesh. If you couldn’t control the strength of the inner force while channeling it, this set of needles would only be able to kill people, not save them.

Thus, what she said to the driver just now was not exaggerated. As long as she held a needle in her hand, she would be able to kill whatever men or immortals she meets. She was wholly unafraid of any danger.