Chapter 49 Transformation

  Chen Jing followed his sister-in-law and stayed at Li's house for twelve or thirteen days.

  The elder brother of Dàjiě had Chen Jing called to the outer study twice and chatted with him.

  The topic is nothing more than "to be a doctor or to read books".

  In the past, famous doctors believed that medicine was a humane art, "medicine originated from Confucianism". To become a highly skilled and morally upright doctor, one had to first study Confucian classics. It wasn't just about understanding medical terminology, but also learning about Confucian values such as "benevolence" and "filial piety". Therefore, Chen Xiang's approach of studying books before learning medicine gave him an advantage, making him much stronger than ordinary doctors.

  However, with the opening of the Daliang dynasty, there was the imperial examination system, and Confucianism seemed to have a better way out.

  It's not that studying medicine is inappropriate, it's just that using the Confucian classics I've spent years studying to delve into medical techniques seems a bit of a waste.

  Reading is an expensive thing.

  Since it's so expensive, it should be used in the best place.

  Just like in later generations, it is taken for granted that graduates from prestigious universities will go on to work for large corporations; if they choose to go to a small company or even start their own business instead, outsiders and even close relatives may not fully understand and think it's a waste of talent.

  This example may not be quite appropriate, but Elder Sister and Big Brother's words are hinting at this meaning.

  Chen Jie finally understood why his elder sister-in-law had to stay in Yaojiang for so long.

  She still hopes someone can persuade Chen Jing.

  Women in this era take men as heaven and worship them. As a woman, her words are considered "slander" and "ignorance" by the general public.

  She tried to persuade him, but was afraid Chen Xuan wouldn't listen.

  And she didn't like people from Jingzhong Alley to come and educate Chen Jing. In Li's view, Chen Jing was the future master of Qiwan Alley. Whether his brother came back or not, Chen Jing had to support the family.

  His status is equal to that of Jing Zhongxiang.

  He didn't need to be instructed by the people of Jingzhong Alley and lost a bit in terms of momentum.

  This is Li's small insight. As for her own brother in her mother's family, she was emotionally biased towards him and also a relative, Chen Jing and her elder brother did not have a door-to-door relationship, so there was no distinction between strong and weak.

  This will not weaken Chen Jiong's masculine image.

  Chen Jing also took his elder brother's and sister-in-law's advice seriously.

  "...I still want to be a doctor." Chen Jing expressed this view very clearly, without perfunctorily answering something.

  His main point of view is "the doctor is a benevolent art, although he cannot support the society, but can save the world and rescue the people". Moreover, he is good at medicine.

  The elder brother of the elder sister is not a stubborn person. For younger generations, he also encourages more than blames.

  Chen Jiong is not a member of the Li family, and his future has nothing to do with the rise or fall of the Li clan. Seeing that Chen Jiong refused to listen to advice, Li Dalang simply said: "This matter still needs careful consideration."

  Then she conveyed Chen Jing's meaning to Chen Jing's elder sister-in-law.

  Li listened and thought to himself, "Yang is indeed obstinate. He can't be strongly advised against it either. If he's strongly advised against it, he'll go even further astray. It's better to follow him for a year or two, maybe his brother will come back and be able to persuade him. For now, we need to stabilize him so that he doesn't take the wrong path."

  She didn't have the heart to stop him anymore.

  On the other side of Jingzhong Lane, it's still necessary to cover up a bit, so they won't think that Li's teachings have corrupted Chen Xuan.

  With this thought in mind, Li felt relieved and her previous worries were also put aside.

  After a few days, Li Yongrong handed over the silver ticket won from horse racing to Li Shi, who was shocked.

  A total of three thousand five hundred.

  This is still Li Yongrong's, made up a whole number for Chen Jing.

  Looking at these 3,500 taels of silver notes, Li was shocked and also had some joy.

  "....Did you really help them win at polo?" Li asked Chen Jiong.

  Chen Jing nodded and said, "Good luck. I only got one ball, the rest are theirs. Eighth brother is kind, gave me a silver ticket, I'm not too embarrassed to take it. Eldest sister, you keep it. This money will supplement household expenses, don't save it for me, after all, it's not mine."

  Li asked carefully what was going on.

  But she never watched polo and didn't quite understand the rules, and even if someone explained it to her, she still wouldn't get it.

  Chen Jiong explained it in a confused manner, and Li listened with a bewildered expression.

  She looked at the silver ticket again and glanced at Chen Jing a few more times, her eyes flashing with emotions that were hard to express.

  This kid...

  Li previously thought that making money was particularly difficult and life was struggling to make ends meet. But now, Chen Jiong's earnings are all in large sums, easy and simple, even enough for them to live a worry-free life for over a decade.

  Chen Jiong makes life much easier and more relaxed.

  In the past he only read books, it didn't seem like this.

  "Maybe it's better to be a doctor?" Li thought to herself. She was just a woman, and no matter how clever she was, her experience was limited to small family social interactions, without any broad vision or insight.

  She thought that reading books was the only way out for men, and also because her husband was a bookworm, she took pride in her husband, thus producing such cognition.

  The bookish Chen Jing is dull and distant from Li, while the medical Chen Jing is intimate and can even earn a lot of money. Comparing the two, Li prefers the current Chen Jing.

  Her mind's resistance to Chen Jing's medical skills had lessened a bit more.

  These past few days, Chen Jiong hasn't changed much, but Li Shi's state of mind has become vastly different from before.

  ***

  Mr. Li plans to set out on May 20th and return to Wangxian County.

  She returned to Yaojiang these days, accompanied by her daughter and Qingyun, and stayed in the wing room of her mother's main house, keeping her mother company, and the two women talked about their private affairs.

  The 19th day arrived, and Li thought that he would have to return early tomorrow. He wanted to show his filial piety, so at the beginning of the night, he got up with Qingyun and went to the small kitchen to prepare a breakfast specially for Old Lady.

  It was already dawn when the old lady woke up, and Li Shi and Qing Yun had already set a small table with food.

  Jujube paste, rose lotus seed powder, fragrant apricot tofu, vegetarian stewed three fresh balls, jade bamboo shoots, milk fragrance chrysanthemum rolls, osmanthus lily cake, wisteria cake, silver sprout chicken silk porridge and so on, filled the whole table.

  The old lady woke up and saw that her eyes were slightly bright. She smiled and said, "It's been a long time since I've had Erniang's breakfast."

  Mrs. Li hired a special cook to teach the girls how to cook. Among several daughters, only Li Erniang's dishes were most in line with the old lady's taste.

  So among several daughters, the old lady loved Li Erniang the most, probably also for this reason.

  "It's unfilial of you as a daughter." Li Shi An comforted the old lady and helped her sit down, personally serving her meal.

  The old lady had just taken a sip of the fragrant almond tofu, when she saw the maid from the main house rush in and kneel down beside her. "Old lady, the eldest young lady has fallen ill," she said. "The second lady has sent someone to fetch the doctor. The second lady asked me to inform you that she won't be able to come today to pay her respects, and asks that you not blame her."

  The daughters-in-law have to serve breakfast to the old lady every morning.

  Even if you don't cook personally, you should still help with laying out chopsticks and towels.

  The big girl is Li Juanjuan.

  Li Qianqian is the eldest daughter of Zhang's family.

  "What's wrong with Qianqian?" the old lady asked anxiously.

  The old lady is no longer in charge of household chores as she has grown older, and has handed over the responsibility to her daughters-in-law. Now, what she cares about most are her grandsons and granddaughters.

  This is called intergenerational relationship.

  As soon as she mentioned Li Juan being ill, the old lady immediately became anxious and didn't even finish her breakfast, putting down her bowl and chopsticks to head for the main house.

  Li helped her up.

  Several maidservants also hurried after them.

  On the road, the maid next to Dà Nǎi Nai told Lǎo Tàitai about Li Juanyuan's condition: "Before midnight, she starts itching. She says it's an unbearable itch and can't sleep. The big girl sits on the bed crying."

  Those maids and servant girls didn't dare to make a sound, they just coaxed her until dawn before daring to report back to Madame Wang. Madame Wang has now arrived at the eldest daughter's courtyard and has already sent someone to invite the doctor."

  "Itchy?" The old lady walked slowly and asked the maid, "What's itchy about?"

  "It started with itchiness on my face and arms, now my whole body is itchy. My arms are all scratched up." The maid replied.

  The old lady's footsteps slowed down slightly, as if she had thought of something. She turned to ask Li: "Second sister, didn't Jing'er say last time that Qianqian would get a rash?"

  Mr. Li was also stunned and said, "Yes, it seems to have been said before..." Mr. Li was amazed in his heart and asked him if he could not only diagnose diseases but also predict the future?

  Could it be that the child has really received Grandpa's blessing?

  Last time Chen Jiong said he was hit by the statue of Yao Wang Temple, Li Shi was actually half-believing and half-doubting. But at this moment, she was shocked to find that Chen Jiong's medical skills were simply astonishing.

  He can diagnose by looking at one's face.

  In medicine, there are "look, listen, ask, and cut". Knowing by looking is called divine, knowing by listening is called sage, knowing by asking is called skillful, and knowing by cutting is called clever.

  Chen Jiong has become a divine doctor?

  "...go and invite Mr. Chen." While Mrs. Li was stunned, the old lady ordered her maid to go to the outer courtyard to invite Chen Cang.

  The maid replied, "Yes."

  They soon arrived at Li Juan's courtyard.

  In the courtyard, a silver ginkgo tree was planted, and it has been many years. The crown of the tree is like an umbrella, with lush green leaves.

  As soon as I stepped into the courtyard, I heard Big Nanny's anxious voice: "Don't scratch, don't scratch!"

  "Mother, it's so itchy!" Li Juanjuan wailed miserably.

  "...the skin is all broken, if you scratch any more it will rot. Don't scratch, the doctor is coming soon." The old lady coaxed her, also anxiously choking back tears.

  The old lady and others came in and saw that Li Juan's hair was disheveled, her face had red marks all over it, and some places were even bleeding.

  Her beautiful face as white as jade was a little frightening to look at.

  "Old lady..."

  The wet nurse and the maidservants discovered the old lady and paid their respects.

  The old lady and the maid, Bi Tao, held Li Xiangxiang in their arms. The two of them worked together to pin her hands behind her back, not allowing her to scratch herself again. The old lady arrived, but she didn't have time for formalities, only calling out "daughter".

  "What's going on?" Seeing Li Juan like this, the old lady's eyes were also wet.

  Li Qianqian burst into tears and cried out to the old lady: "Grandma, I'm so itchy."

  Itching is more unbearable than pain.

  The itch that cannot be scratched is simply a form of torture.

  "Good child, the doctor is coming soon, it's all right." The old lady sat on her bedside, comforting her.

  Li Qianqian just cried.

  She kept calling out.

  It's too much to bear.

  She was helplessly pinned down by her mother and Bi Tao, unable to move at all. If she could just struggle a little, it would be better. Li Xiangxiang wished she could bang her head against the ground to alleviate this suffering.

  "What's going on?" The old lady saw her like this and was heartbroken, asking the wet nurse beside her, "How did she suddenly get sick, is it something she ate?"

  "...I had a bowl of red date rice porridge last night and didn't use anything else." The wet nurse replied tremulously, "A few days ago, the young lady said her arm and face were a bit itchy, but not this severe."

  "If so, why didn't you call a doctor earlier!" The old lady was furious.

  The old lady was so anxious that she burst into flames, Li Juanjuan cried and shouted again, and Li Dainai's heart ached with tears, the house was in a mess.

  Chen Jing followed the maid and rushed to Li Xiang's courtyard. He was sweating profusely, and what he saw was a scene of utter chaos.

  He arrived before the doctor did.