Chapter 18: Physician Bai's Test

After walking for another fifteen minutes, Chen Jie felt Dr. Bai getting heavier and heavier...

He had to admit, his body was still far too weak. Just as he was about to reach his limit, he suddenly remembered the Spring Nourishing Formula. He immediately adjusted his breathing, switching to the breathing technique of the formula.

At first, there wasn't much of a change, but gradually, Chen Jie felt his breathing become much smoother and less labored. As his breathing stabilized, the exhaustion in his body began to recede, and he actually started to slowly recover.

He even found himself walking more easily as he went.

*This Spring Nourishing Formula is the real deal!*

Continuing his descent, he finally made it down the mountain and back to the village, where he delivered Dr. Bai to his home.

Only Dr. Bai's daughter was at home; her husband had not returned because of business at the fish weir.

Seeing how severely injured her father was, the daughter was terrified and rushed to ask if he was alright. Dr. Bai waved his hand dismissively. "I'm fine, just a sprained ankle."

Once Chen Jie had helped Dr. Bai into the house and seated him on the bed, the doctor finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The daughter immediately set about serving him water and attending to his needs.

Seeing that everything was settled in the room, Chen Jie stepped outside. He saw many grinding stones of various sizes placed outside, which appeared to be used for tempering physical strength.

He remembered that Dr. Bai's son-in-law was named Wu Zhong, a Ming-level martial artist who had broken through a cultivation bottleneck.

*These must be for tempering strength,* he thought.

Inside the house, Dr. Bai called his daughter over.

"Go to the cabinet and get three taels of silver. Give it to him."

The daughter froze, looking at her father. "Father, isn't that too much?"

"Is my life not worth three taels of silver?" Dr. Bai countered.

The woman was stunned, then quickly added, "No, Father, that's not what I meant."

"Do you know who he is?"

"Who?"

The Bai family had only recently moved back to Xiantao Village, so the younger generation was not very familiar with them.

"Chen Yongwang's grandson."

"Ah! You don't mean Chen Jiu-si, that gambling addict!"

"Shh, keep your voice down."

Dr. Bai made a silencing gesture and continued, "Sigh... I wasn't satisfied when I lost to Chen Yongwang back then, but his medical skills were indeed extraordinary. This Chen Jiu-si should be considered a descendant of a famous physician."

"It's a pity he's succumbed to gambling, but seeing him today, his understanding of medicine is quite novel. He has some talent..."

"Father, you don't intend to take him on as an apprentice, do you?"

Dr. Bai replied, "Why not? I lost to his grandfather back then; if I take him as my apprentice now, even the late Chen Yongwang will know the breadth of my character."

"However... well, just give him the silver first. If he accepts it, we won't mention this matter again, and it will count as me repaying the favor. If he refuses, go to his house tomorrow and tell him I'm too busy and am looking for an apprentice, and ask if he's interested."

Having said his piece, Dr. Bai dismissed his daughter.

Soon, the daughter arrived in the courtyard and saw Chen Jie patting one of the grinding stones. Seeing this, she smiled and said, "You're Jiu-si, right?"

"Hello, Auntie."

As Chen Jie approached, she said, "Well, thanks to you today, otherwise our old man would have been in real danger. I won't say much more—great kindness needs no words of thanks. Here, take these three taels of silver."

"Ah, no, I can't take this."

Chen Jie immediately declined, but she insisted, "Take it."

Seeing her resolve, Chen Jie quickly stepped back. "Auntie, I've delivered him safely, so I won't linger. Please let Dr. Bai know I'm leaving."

Chen Jie practically fled the scene.

Inside the house, Bai Wenjing was watching through the window. Seeing that Chen Jie left without taking the money, he nodded with a smile and said nothing more.

The woman also watched Chen Jie's retreating figure, unable to help but look at him with newfound respect. This Chen Jiu-si didn't seem as worthless as people said.

Returning to the room, she said, "Father, he didn't take the money."

Bai Wenjing replied, "When Ah Zhong returns, tell him to prepare a large fish. Tomorrow, you go to his house and ask if he's willing to be my apprentice."

"Yes, Father."

As Chen Jie left the Bai residence, he looked back at the few large brick houses in the village with a hint of envy.

Regarding the money offered today, Chen Jie would absolutely not accept it.

To take that money would mean settling the debt of gratitude. His goal was not those three taels of silver, but to use Dr. Bai's platform to eventually climb the great tree that was the Fishing Gang.

*One must never underestimate the Fishing Gang.*

The Great Qian was founded by foreign tribes, and they maintained a heavy suspicion of the Han people. Consequently, while there were yamen and magistrates in every region, most were either servants of the Mulan people or appointed by them.

Therefore, the true local power was held by the Darughachi sent by the Mulan to oversee the regions.

To limit the power of the Han magistrates appointed through recommendation, the Darughachi heavily relied on local gangs to help manage the regions, creating a system of checks and balances while simultaneously allowing for corruption.

As a result, these local gangs held immense power; a gang leader could stand on equal footing with a county magistrate.

In the local hierarchy, the influence of a gang was far more intimidating than that of the yamen bailiffs.

Thus, building a gang in this world held great prospects.

It was similar to joining the Green Gang in early 20th-century Shanghai.

After leaving the Bai residence, Chen Jie thought for a moment and headed straight for the town. He soon found a pharmacy, which was also an affiliate of the Fishing Gang.

Chen Jie sold the ten-year-old ginseng he had found earlier, receiving three taels and eight mace of silver.

The price wasn't high, but it wasn't a rip-off either.

With the money in hand, Chen Jie began to shop. His own home could be described as having nothing but four bare walls; he often went without meals, so he had to secure basic supplies first.

He first bought a hundred catties of sorghum, then some fatty pork—the kind that would be perfect for rendering lard at home.

Next came the oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar.

As the saying goes, there are seven essential things to run a household: firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea.

Chen Jie bought them all. Afterward, he went to a pawnshop to find the manager to redeem a pledged item.

Chen Jie remembered that Su Yunjin had pawned a hairpin given to her by her mother to buy arsenic. The hairpin was silver-plated copper and not particularly valuable, yet that damn manager was insisting on charging Chen Jie one tael of silver to get it back.

After some thought, Chen Jie paid the money.

He had originally intended to make new clothes for the two women, but most of his money had been spent, leaving him with only eight mace of loose silver.

Chen Jie borrowed a wheelbarrow from a fellow villager and began pushing his goods toward home.

Suddenly, he encountered a group of people on the road. The leader was a man with a face full of small pockmarks. Seeing Chen Jie, and especially seeing the cart full of goods, he approached with a grin and shouted from a distance, "Brother Jiu-si!"

Chen Jie recognized him: Ma Liu, a lackey of the Yu Family Bureau. In places like Macau, such people were called "junket agents."

In the intelligence he had refreshed yesterday, there was information stating that Ma Liu was colluding with the young master of the Yu Family Bureau.

The report said that the fat pig, Yu Sanliu, had set his sights on Chen Jie's wife and was planning a scheme to make Chen Jie lose Su Yunjin to him in a gamble.

And this Ma Liu was his accomplice.

Chen Jie narrowed his eyes and smiled. "Oh, it's Brother Ma Liu."