Chapter 169: Chapter 170 - 170 What's the use of the moon if it's not bright?

Qi Yue glanced at the three people, one woman, and two men.

“Where do you come from?”

One of the men immediately knelt on the ground, “In response to the Divine Doctor, we come from Heishu Village.”

Heishu Village?

Qi Yue was about to ask where that was when Zhao Xiyan came in holding a cup of tea.

“Heishu Village is close to Donggao, it’s a very small hamlet about eighty li from here. They must have set out last night.”

While saying this, he placed the teacup in her hands, softly saying, “Drink some water first. You really can’t remember anything when you’re busy.”

The man’s voice was extremely gentle, and Qi Yue, as if enchanted, obediently drank the tea.

“Yueyue, you’re also tired today. It would be better to treat them tomorrow.”

Upon hearing this, the woman and the two men became nervous.

Please no, don’t delay until tomorrow!

They wanted to be treated and quickly return home; any delay would throw their household into disarray.

They had hoped this man prettier than a woman would speak on their behalf, but to no avail…

None of the three dared to speak, only gazing hopefully at Qi Yue.

The moment Zhao Xiyan appeared, Qi Yue instantly regained her energy.

This man, he was like a walking shot of adrenaline!

She felt as though she had the vigor of eating ten Snickers bars.

“There’s no need to wait; I’ll treat them now. They came all this way as a group of four, it really must have been tough.”

Upon hearing this, the woman and the two men immediately prostrated themselves and started kowtowing.

“We thank the Divine Doctor for your understanding.”

“Thank you, Divine Doctor.”

Qi Yue asked them to get up and immediately began treating them.

Normally, she used the Ghost Gate Needle technique with twelve needles, but today she went straight for eighteen needles.

Although it was a bit more taxing on her, the results were better. After pairing it with her pills, the elderly wouldn’t need to make another trip for treatment.

In hearing that she was about to perform acupuncture, even Huang Zai’an came running to watch at night.

The silver needles were inserted, and all the major acupoints on the elderly man’s body were sealed.

Then there was a strange trembling sound, as each silver needle vibrated rhythmically.

After the time it took for an incense stick to burn, the silver needles were removed, and the elderly man immediately got up.

His eyes were bright, his limbs strong; where was the sign of the person who had been at death’s door?

Without speaking, the elderly man and the woman and two men immediately knelt down.

“We thank the Divine Doctor for your miraculous help. My Huo Family shall hereby venerate the Divine Doctor with a longevity plaque and pray for blessings generation after generation!”

While saying this, they knocked their foreheads on the floor with loud thumps. Qi Yue couldn’t bear such a display and quickly helped the old man to his feet and led them to take some medicine from the cabinet.

In the end, the old man’s son nervously took out two strings of copper coins, and Qi Yue only commanded to take one string.

This family was clearly impoverished. It was suitable to accept a modest fee to help the old man feel at ease.

The group of four left with boundless gratitude.

Outside, there was immediately a buzz of excitement.

“Wasn’t that man lying on the stretcher when he went in? How come he’s all cured now!”

“It seems you’ve come from afar; you don’t know about the Divine Doctor’s amazing skills?”

“The Divine Doctor is terrific indeed. I think this elder will live many more years!”

“Divine Doctor, Divine Doctor!”

“….”

Listening to the cries outside, Huang Zai’an also tugged at his beard in laughter.

“My disciple, your Silver Needle Technique really is peerless. Apart from you, there’s likely no one who can perform it.”

Qi Yue smiled faintly.

“Master, I’ve recently made some progress in the Stimulation Technique you’ve taught me. If it’s merged with the Silver Needle Technique, perhaps when King Yan pulls you away, your disciple will have the power to save you.”

“Very good, very good; keep studying it, my life is in your hands now,” he said.

While they were talking, the voice of Zhao Xiyan suddenly rang out.

“Yueyue, go back and rest.”

Qi Yue immediately froze.

Why was he still here?

“Oh, alright, I’ll go back.”

The thought of going back to dine and inevitably bickering with both Zhao Xiyan and Qu Wei made Qi Yue’s scalp tingle.

She quickly seized Huang Zai’an, laughing, “Master, let’s go back and eat together today, there’s good wine.”

“What good wine? You little girl just know how to sweet-talk this old man. When have you ever been willing to let your teacher drink at noon? No, I’m not going.”

Huang Zai’an had long seen through her little schemes and deliberately teased her.

Qi Yue busily nodded like a pecking chick.

“What’s wrong with letting the teacher drink a little when I’m happy today?”

“Alright, you said it, it better be good wine!”

“No problem.”

The three of them returned to the mansion through the side door, and on the way back, Qi Yue didn’t dare to look at Zhao Xiyan, talking to Huang Zai’an non-stop instead.

But she could feel that Zhao’s deep eyes hadn’t left her for a moment.

What’s with this man, suddenly changing like this?

What happened to his manners, his propriety?

When they arrived at the dining hall and saw Qu Wei getting along famously with four men of varying statures, she suddenly realized something and a terrible suspicion arose in her heart.

Could it be that Qu Wei had told Zhao Xiyan something?!

The more she thought about it, the more she felt it was possible.

During the meal, she noticed Zhao Xiyan’s gaze contained an obvious tenderness and affection. She immediately felt her guess was right.

It must be that Qu Wei had told Zhao Xiyan about her going out of her way to find White Rhino Horn.

Zhao Xiyan, touched by this, must have also sensed a bit of her affection for him and wanted to make it up to her somewhat.

Having figured out this train of thought, Qi Yue truly wanted to tell Zhao Xiyan it was unnecessary.

After the meal, Qi Yue found an opportunity to ask Qu Wei.

Upon learning that he indeed had said quite a bit, she was so angry she wanted to give Qu Wei a good thrashing on the spot.

“Your mouth is really superfluous, one day it will get the better of you!”

Qu Wei was so frightened he ran off in a flash.

The matter of her liking Zhao Xiyan was something that, if he were to know, should come from her own mouth.

Yet now, he had heard it from someone else’s, which felt like a slap to her face.

Thinking of the conversation they would have that evening made Qi Yue feel inexplicably angry and restless.

That afternoon, as she went to the corridor to feed the fish, she felt the mansion was quieter than usual, and even Mama Zhang, who was normally close by, wasn’t around, so she asked a question.

“Cai Wei, where is everyone?”

Cai Wei replied gleefully, “They all went to help at the pharmacy.”

Qi Yue was even more surprised.

“What is there to help with at the pharmacy?”

Cai Wei added, “The Marquis said he wants to build a clinic next to the pharmacy. In the future, any patients who come from afar can stay there. Miss can take her time seeing patients without having to rush.”

“Miss, the Marquis is really good to you. When are you two getting married?”

At this, Qi Yue’s hand holding the fish feed trembled.

“What marriage? Don’t talk nonsense. He and I, it’s impossible.”

Cai Wei’s innocent eyes widened in shock.

“Why impossible? The Marquis and Miss are a match made in heaven. One is unmarried, and the other a bachelor, why couldn’t it be?”

“Because…”

Qi Yue initially wanted to say he already had someone he liked, but felt somewhat wrong to voice it out, so she swallowed the words, feeling increasingly uncomfortable.

How could others understand her feelings?

Zhao Xiyan was the moon in her heart, pure and lofty. But that moon already had its moonlight.

Moreover, he had all those messy incidents with some Princess.

If the moon no longer shines, what use is he?

“Don’t talk about this anymore. The Marquis will leave before long.”

“Oh.”

Cai Wei, not understanding the meaning, could only silently withdraw.

Qi Yue had wanted to go to the pharmacy to take a look, but after thinking it over, she decided against it and continued back to her space to make medicine.

The last batch of medicine-making machines she bought were highly intelligent, but some tasks still required her personal touch.

For instance, collecting herbs from the field, sorting, cleaning, drying, and such steps were indispensable tasks for her.

The medical assistant tool was delicate, not water-resistant, and had to stay away from dust, limited to indoor activity, so it wasn’t much help.

Fortunately, she enjoyed doing these tasks, and since she was accustomed to them from a young age, not doing them would actually make her uncomfortable.

Finally, in the evening, as soon as she stepped out of her room, she saw Mama Zhang leading several maids and matrons, carrying food boxes in procession and setting up a table of dishes in the small hall of her courtyard.

“What’s going on? Why has the meal been brought here?”

Mama Zhang immediately smiled and answered, “Miss, didn’t you promise the Marquis this morning that you two would dine alone tonight, to facilitate conversation?”