Chapter 372: It’s Hard to be a Divine Doctor
"I mean no harm, just that the doctor at the clinic was uncertain because it’s so soon, but we’re just really anxious. Could you help check? Even if you can’t see anything, I won’t say a word, and you can be sure that I’m not the type to force you into giving free medicine."
Bai Ruozhu was amused by her seriousness, and so, after cleaning her hands, she walked to the side of her daughter-in-law and carefully checked her pulse.
The old lady’s daughter-in-law was probably pregnant for the first time. So when her mother-in-law mentioned it in public, her face flushed with embarrassment. Now being examined by Bai Ruozhu, her head nearly drooped down to her chest in shame.
After a while, Bai Ruozhu released her hand and said, "It’s too early to tell, but she’s probably pregnant. Wait another week and you can go to Fushou Hall to confirm."
The old lady showed a look of surprise and delight, "Really? That’s wonderful! Miss, your words are identical to the doctor’s at Fushou Hall. He also said to confirm again in a week. You’re remarkable!" The old lady joyfully gave Bai Ruozhu a thumbs-up.
"This is her first pregnancy, so she needs to be extra careful for the first three months. You should stop crowding in public places as well. It’s best for you to go home and rest now." Bai Ruozhu said with a smile.
"Alright, we’ll do just that, thank you. We’ll go home now." The old lady stood up cheerfully, left the money, and then led her daughter-in-law away.
Lin Ping’er watched the backs of the two with some envy and said, "This old lady is quite kind to her daughter-in-law. If you consider her daughter-in-law’s age, it isn’t long since she’s joined the family, maybe about two or three years. And this is her first pregnancy; If it were other mothers-in-law, they would probably have given her a hard time. They both just returned from Fushou Hall without a certain diagnosis, but the old lady was still smiling and brought her daughter-in-law snacks."
Bai Ruozhu nodded, "I only helped because I saw how well she treated her daughter-in-law."
Lin Ping’er listened and her eyes curved in amusement. She then looked at the seemingly proud Fusa on the side, and asked: "How did your business negotiations go today? Did you secure a big deal?"
It was meant to be a joke, but Fusa seemed quite pleased and winked at her, leaning in to whisper: "Auntie, we did secure a big deal."
Surprised, Lin Ping’er pulled Fusa to ask about it. Seeing that there were no customers on both their stalls at the moment, Fusa explained with a smile about their trip to the Ding Residence. Only the Bai family could hear her soft-spoken account clearly, while the people on the neighbouring stalls could not.
When the family heard that they had secured another big project, they were all overjoyed. Wan Caiyue glanced at Fusa and then at Bai Ruozhu, her eyes filled with envy.
By the afternoon, when Bai Ruozhu took Dengdeng back to the West Courtyard for a rest, Lin Ping’er was busy making pancakes. Bai Zehao quietly asked Wan Caiyue: "Caiyue, do you also want to do crochet work like Ruozhu?"
Wan Caiyue shyly nodded, "Seeing Ruozhu working hard for our family, I also want to help."
Bai Zehao thought for a moment and said, "Why don’t you ask Ruozhu privately? If I ask, it might make it seem like you’re at odds with her."
"Okay, I’ll check with Ruozhu first if it’s convenient." Wan Caiyue whispered.
Early the next morning, not long after the family set up their stall, the old woman who they saw yesterday came over with a bamboo basket.
"Young lady, this is a token of my family’s appreciation. They are all eggs laid by our chickens. Don’t reject them," the old lady said with a big smile.
Lin Ping’er didn’t dare to accept and said, "Just taking a pulse isn’t a big thing, how can we accept so many eggs from you? You should take them back and nourish your daughter-in-law’s body."
But the old lady refused to take them back, smiling and saying, "Our Liu Family always distinguishes between gratitude and grudges. Your daughter helped me, so it’s only right to present you gifts. Besides, I would have to pay the doctor’s fee if I were to go to the clinic, right? Being able to know that my daughter-in-law is pregnant earlier than expected gives us such joy."
Hearing their conversation, Bai Ruozhu came over and said to the old lady, "Auntie Liu, these eggs are just too much. We can’t accept them. As the saying goes, ’One should not accept payment for a favor unearned.’ If we were to accept these, we wouldn’t be able to feel at ease."
After persistent refusals from both sides, Bai Ruozhu decided to accept half of the eggs at last, but insisted that Auntie Liu take the rest back home for her daughter-in-law to eat.
After Auntie Liu left, many people looked at Bai Ruozhu with burning expressions.
Bai Ruozhu shuddered, why did she have a bad premonition?
Just as she expected, someone from the next stall came over and said, "Miss Bai, could you see if my old stomach ailment can still be cured?"
People from the other side also came over, saying, "I have been suffering from palpitations and shortness of breath lately, could you check on me as well?"
Others seemed ready to jump in. Bai Ruozhu twitched the corner of her mouth, regretting that she checked people’s pulses in public, and now trouble was coming her way.
"Fellow villagers, I learned my medical skills haphazardly from rural doctors. I didn’t pass any formal female doctor certification. I only know a little, and I really dare not casually diagnose people. What if I misdiagnose? I can’t bear the responsibility." Bai Ruozhu said with a troubled expression.
Some people looked hesitant when they heard it, but other people didn’t quite believe it. They said, "Just help us have a look, we are not forcing you to cure us."
After all, these were people who were also setting up stalls nearby, so Bai Ruozhu felt she couldn’t refuse. She begrudgingly ended up checking the pulse for a few people and then pretended to be uncertain, saying, "There seems to be some issues, but I can’t be sure. It’s best to go to the clinic for consultation."
Given that she had checked everyone’s pulses once, this answer, although not satisfactory to many, couldn’t be rebutted. So, the people seeking her help, scattered away. Some murmured, "She probably only knows how to check for pregnancy pulse, not as impressive as Auntie Liu described."
Bai Ruozhu was made to feel a headache by the crowd and decided to take Dengdeng to the Zhang family after telling her mother. Anyway, with her sister-in-law there to help with the stall, it didn’t matter if she was away.
Seeing Bai Ruozhu, Zhang Liliang’s face seemed somewhat conflicted. He welcomed Bai Ruozhu and left her to chat with his wife and daughter while he went to pour her a cup of tea. His mind was in turmoil.
These past few days, he had been looking for the merchant he previously worked with to source the medicinal materials. The merchant dealt with buying and selling medicinal materials. When he saw the names on the list, he frowned.
"Who wants these medicinal materials?" He asked.
Zhang Liliang replied truthfully. "My wife and child got burned. A well-known doctor suggested to make a scar removal medicine."
"The person you found surely has some skills, otherwise most doctors wouldn’t recognize these precious medicinal materials, but..." the man paused, then patted Zhang Liliang’s shoulder and said heavy-heartedly: "Listen, brother, we commoner folk can’t have our entire household brought to ruin just to get rid of scars, right? I know you don’t want your sister and child to suffer, but life still has to go on. You need to think clearly and rationally."