The Female Supporting Role Shows Out

After Wu Xuancao came to this world, she flipped through many medical canons, yet the subject which occupied the most text was none other than stories about Lin Chaoxian. As early as several hundred years ago, he was able to open skulls and abdominal cavities to treat people's diseases, and he could also use golden needles and restore the sight of cataract patients.

However, due to chaotic warfare between kingdoms and gaps in the cultural record, his medical arts were gradually lost. Wu Xuancao had always been skeptical about these stories, but now, seeing Xue Boyong standing in front of her with her own eyes,she felt reverence toward the ancestors’ medical skill for the first time.

Did traditional Chinese medicine actually work? This issue had been debated endlessly by later generations. With the development of western medicine, the philosophy that traditional Chinese medicine was useless had gradually become mainstream belief. However, the ancient Chinese people relied on traditional Chinese medicine to treat diseases for thousands of years and left behind many ancient treatments. How could those be explained?

Wu Xuancao was a surgeon, and only after she transmigrated here did she understand whether Chinese medicine worked or not. One of her colleagues once said that if a western medicine doctor transmigrated back to ancient times, they would probably have no choice but to become a butcher. And after she arrived, she had a deeper recognition of this viewpoint. Without high-end medical equipment, various antibiotics, special medication, and sterile operating rooms, her scalpel was completely useless.

When a patient came for treatment, she didn’t even know what kind of disease they had without a B-scan or an x-ray. If she hadn't made a name for herself by sewing up wounds and won over Zheng Zhe, then relied on his medical skills to deal with patients, this clinic would have folded long ago.

Doing things with the title of "miracle doctor" on her head every day had long made her full of unease, and she was extremely eager to learn Chinese medicine to make herself worthy of the name. After obtaining Xing Lin Spring, her desire peaked in an instant. She had a vague intuition that as long as she could obtain Lin Chaoxian's inheritance and combine it with western medicine, she would definitely be able to create a new age of medicine in this backward era.

She had a lot of faith in herself, and at the same time looked down on Lin Dan even more because she didn't know how to use the treasures in her hand. Because only she knew, without Xing Lin Spring, the inheritance Lin Dan had was the same as rubbish. Since that was the case, why not hand the entire inheritance over to those who knew how to use it?

But now, Xue Boyong's legs, which were in perfect condition, were like a huge palm viciously slapping her, making her blush up to her ears and shocked beyond words.

"Your, your legs have completely recovered?" Her voice was extremely hoarse.

But Xue Boyong ignored her, pulled Lin Dan's wrist, and walked straight into the storefront. When he got inside, he took out a medical book he had tucked into his robe* and handed it to Lin Dan: "This is a medical book I found at Wu Xuancao’s place. It should belong to your family. All of the books that Xue Jiming lent out yesterday, I have helped you get back. They are now locked securely in Xiaofeng Pavilion. When will you start living in the clinic? When the time comes, I will have someone deliver you those books."

*In some dynasties, ancient Chinese clothing consisted of robes crossed over the chest and held in place by a belt (like a bathrobe). People could put small or thin items into the side of the outermost part of the robe.

Lin Dan caressed the book cover, her eyes bright: "This indeed belongs to my family. Thank you, Brother!" Being able to find the missing part of the inheritance was truly a pleasant surprise.

"No need to thank me." Xue Boyong rubbed the little girl's head. After one day and one night of panic, he was finally able to slowly calm down.

Three days later, both the eldest princess and the little prince had mostly recovered from their illnesses. After taking medicine for a few more days to consolidate the recovery, they should be able to recover completely. Lin Dan checked the two’s pulses, cut a few things from the prescription, and then told the maid to grab the herbs. When she was done, she prepared to leave and buy some furniture and have it delivered to the clinic.

Her newly opened medical clinic was called Xing Lin Spring; the signboard had already been made. It blatantly hung right in front of Wu Xuancao’s eyes, and as long as she lifted her head and saw it, she would think of that medical book and the inheritance that she had narrowly missed out on. One can imagine the flavor of the feeling in her heart.

Maybe she lost all consideration, or maybe she hated Lin Dan and Xue Boyong to the bone; she actually wrote the entirety of Xing Lin Spring down from memory and gifted it to Zheng Zhe, hoping that he could use his superb medical skills to understand the foundation of the Lin family, and then impart it to herself. In this world, there were many smart people. Lin Chaoxian wasn’t the only one; what he could come up with, others may not be unable to recreate.

After Zheng Zhe got the medical book, he locked himself in his room and studied it day and night. As for all of these things, Lin Dan still didn’t know anything about it at the moment. She was currently pouring out the silver taels she had saved up onto the table, concentrating on counting them one by one. At this moment, there were loud sounds from outside the courtyard as if someone was chopping something with an ax, and then a wave of commotion.

"Did something happen?" She immediately went out to check the situation.

"It's nothing, the rabble next door just broke down our door." The maid named Yaozhu sneered and waved her hand.

Lin Dan walked out of the courtyard door, but saw a handsome middle-aged man aggressively rushing into the main courtyard, followed by two alluring and graceful women and a strong man with an ax. The middle-aged man raised his voice and shouted: "Li Tong, Li Tong, show yourself! All those years ago, you clearly gave birth to a daughter, so why did you pretend it was a male heir to deceive me? If you don't give me a clear explanation, I will go to the palace and report you; I’ll tell them you muddled my Zhu family’s bloodline, and also muddled the royal bloodline!"

The eldest princess sat on the main seat with a frozen expression, and was about to scold the man, but Zhu Yimin, who was sitting next to her, exploded first, stripping off his upper garment without a second word, exposing his flat chest, and roaring: "What nonsense are you saying? Whether or not I’m a man, don't you have eyes to see? Mom, father is spouting off so much nonsense, I'm afraid he's gone mad. You should quickly find a doctor for him to check his brain!”

The man stared at Zhu Yimin's flat chest and was stunned, but the two concubines following him shrieked and hurriedly averted their gaze.

The eldest princess smashed a teacup and said coldly, "You’re so audacious that you even dare to chop down Bengong’s front door. It seems like you’re tired of living! Come, catch him and tie him up with rope! These two concubines disrespected their superior*, Bengong wants them dragged out and severely beaten!"

*They caught a glimpse of the little prince’s naked chest.

After her words fell, she slowly stood up, pretended to wipe the non-existent tears in the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, and said sorrowfully, "Min'er is clearly a boy, but the Marquis somehow believes he is female. I’m afraid the Marquis ate the wrong medicine and lost his mind. Bengong will enter the palace right away and invite an imperial physician to take a look at the Marquis. Lock the Marquis in the woodshed, to avoid him grabbing an ax and hurting people. Min’er, if the Marquis is truly seriously ill, this household will have to rely on you to support it, do you understand?"

Zhu Yimin got dressed and nodded repeatedly. After getting used to Lin Dan seeing and touching him, he already completely opened his mind. Wasn’t it just a naked body? This prince will let you see your fill!

It was only then that the middle-aged man realized that the princess was serious this time. She was planning on imprisoning him on the grounds of insanity so that Zhu Yimin could inherit the title in advance. It was because he had been too believing of the information he had received that he broke down the door with great fanfare. Not only did all of the servants in the manor hear his ravings, but even the neighboring Ning* Prince Manor, separated by a single wall, probably heard it too. It would be impossible for him to redeem himself.

*This is a title that means “peaceful.”

He immediately went limp, hurriedly groveling to the eldest princess and begging for mercy for himself. The two concubines who had urged him on, he hated to the bone, so why would he care whether they lived or died?

The eldest princess understood that there was a traitor among her people, otherwise Xuanping Marquis, this trash, would never dare come and look for trouble this aggressively. Fortunately, she met Physician Lin and averted disaster, saving her son's title and even his life! Thinking of this, the eldest princess immediately went to the rear courtyard, personally expressed her gratitude to Lin Dan, and also gave her a small jewelry box full of gold ingots. "Physician Lin, for your great kindness, Bengong can't thank you enough. This is a small token of my gratitude. Please accept it. In the future, if you have any request, Bengong will never refuse you."

Lin Dan opened the little box and said, "Your Majesty need not be so formal. This is the best repayment I could ask for. My medical clinic has just opened and there are still many things to be purchased. Your Majesty doing this is really like sending charcoal in snowy weather*. I have already drawn up the prescription. You can just take it accordingly; there shouldn’t be any issues. Since there are some things happening in the manor, I will take my leave now; in four days, I will return for a follow-up consultation.”

*An idiom meaning “to provide help in one’s hour of need.”

The eldest princess had to enter the palace and meet with the emperor, and also had to dispose of the traitors in her household, so she really had no extra effort to spare to attend to Lin Dan. If anyone in the manor had ulterior motives and deliberately offended her, it would not be good. Moreover, after three days of interacting, the eldest princess already had a very good understanding of Lin Dan's personality. She never spoke any flattery and was not very good at social interaction, but in everything she did, she was always calm and steady. She would never publicize a patient's secret illnesses, because she would disdain to do so.

The eldest princess thanked her again and again, then personally sent her out of the manor. She then changed into formal court dress and entered the palace. Xuanping Marquis was locked in the woodshed, and no one responded to his shouting*; he was truly pitiful. Those little concubines and bastard children of his were much too scared to come over and check out the situation. They just hid in their rooms, trembling.

*Literally, “Cried out to the heavens, but the heavens didn’t respond; cried out to the earth, but the earth didn’t do anything.”

Lin Dan had always been proactive, and by the second day that she had returned to the clinic, she opened it for business. Opposite Xing Lin Spring was Xuancao Hall, where two miracle doctors were in residence; when a patient came, they would directly go across the street, too lazy to even glance at her plaque. But she was not anxious at all. She just sat in the hall, flipping through medical books and meridian diagrams. At meal times, she would go to the rear courtyard and cook. Her days passed in a very leisurely manner.

Xue Boyong came for breakfast in the morning, then went to the barracks to train; he came for lunch at noon, then took a short nap before leaving; he came for dinner in the evening, then sat down to chat with her about interesting things that happened during the day, and finally returned to Xue Manor. He had long ago become used to spending time accompanied by Lin Dan, and without her, everything in his life seemed to have no flavor.

Lin Dan is also very used to Xue Boyong’s company. If he didn’t come one day, or if he came late, she would even run over to the barracks to inquire about him, which made Xue Boyong unable to stop grinning in his heart. Once in a while, maybe one or two days, he would deliberately come a little late and wait for the little girl to come and find him. That feeling of anticipation and sweetness would stay with him for days.

The days passed in tranquility. Xing Lin Spring's business was desolate, but Xuancao Hall across the street was more and more prosperous. After Zheng Zhe came out of isolation, his medical skills greatly improved, and he joined hands with Wu Xuancao to treat a patient with a bloated abdomen. They cut open his belly and removed a sarcoma weighing more than ten catties* from his abdominal cavity, saving the life of someone who was hanging by a thread.

*More than 6 kg or 13 lbs.

After the news came out, the entire capital was shaken. The names of Zheng Zhe and Wu Xuancao spread all over the kingdom of Qin in an instant, and even the emperor heard about them and personally summoned them to meet him. Xuancao Hall became the first choice of patients for quite a while, and some foreigners even hurriedly traveled for consecutive days and nights to ask the two miracle doctors to treat them.

Suddenly one day, a woman collapsed in front of the door to Xing Lin Spring, and the man who was supporting her looked up at the plaque and shouted anxiously, "It’s wrong, it’s wrong, this isn’t Xuancao Hall, you must hold on a little longer!"

Lin Dan walked out the door and carefully checked the woman's pulse, but did not force them to stay. Instead, she pointed to the opposite side and said, "Xuancao Hall is on that side, just two steps away."

Zheng Zhe heard the commotion and had already run out. Seeing that the woman was really struggling to hold on, he diagnosed her on the spot. Passers-by hurriedly crowded around and discussed spiritedly, "Look, this is Miracle Doctor Zheng who removed a tumor by cutting open someone’s abdomen! This auntie is really lucky. She managed to get to Xuancao Hall before she died, so she will definitely be saved!"