Ties of Love, Ruan Wan

Huaihua handed the meat to Ruan Wan, saying, "Niece, you wait here, I'll be right back."

Huaihua pushed through the crowd and rushed to the entrance of the pharmacy, immediately launching into a tirade: "You shameless old woman, you've become addicted to extorting money! Is the little bit of money you've extorted enough to buy your coffin?"

A shrill voice rang out from the crowd, "Oh my god, your son prescribed the wrong medicine and is trying to kill me, and now you're turning around and blaming me! I don't want to live anymore! How can you treat people like this?"

As more and more people gathered around, Ruan Wan also joined in.

Huaihua was seen shielding a young man behind her. The man was quite thin, and his face resembled Huaihua's. It must be Liang Feng.

Liang Feng stuck his head out and said, "You have abdominal distension, chest tightness, pain under your ribs, and vomiting. Your pulse is also slippery. This must be a disharmony between the liver and stomach. The medicine I prescribed is correct."

Ruan Wan glanced at the person sitting on the ground. It was a middle-aged woman in her forties, with a pale face, weak appearance, and difficulty breathing. She was constantly making coughing motions.

Immediately afterwards, a middle-aged man came out, dressed in a gray-blue robe. He was probably the doctor on duty here. He stepped forward to help the lady up. "Madam," he said, "based on your described symptoms, it seems to be a liver-stomach imbalance. The medicine prescribed to disperse the imbalance is correct."

The woman broke free from the doctor, spat at him, and cursed, "What kind of lousy doctor is this? The medicine he prescribed almost sent me to the underworld!"

Ruan Wan stepped forward, instantly attracting everyone's attention; a beauty is always the center of attention wherever she goes.

Ruan Wan handed the meat to Huaihua, then bowed to Liang Feng and said, "Wan'er greets her cousin."

Liang Feng was suddenly dumbfounded. Where did this beautiful woman come from, calling him "cousin"?

Huaihua immediately explained, "This is your cousin Akun's daughter, that is, your cousin."

Ruan Wan turned around, looked at the woman, and asked, "Auntie, you seemed a little short of breath earlier. Did you cough when you slept last night?"

"Coughing, why don't I cough? I keep coughing until the middle of the night, I have diarrhea and I cough too. Now, whenever I cough, I have diarrhea."

The scene was so vivid that everyone covered their mouths and noses and took a few steps back.

Ruan Wan smiled and looked at the doctor beside her. "Madam, you have shortness of breath, cough, and chest tightness. What kind of illness is this?"

The doctor recalled the woman's symptoms: "Could it be phlegm retention?"

Ruan Wan nodded. "It is indeed phlegm and fluid retention caused by external cold and internal phlegm, which is why you misdiagnosed it as liver and stomach disharmony."

The doctor suddenly realized his mistake, slapping his thigh, "I really did misdiagnose you!"

The woman said, "I told you you misdiagnosed me, but you still insisted I was trying to extort money from you. If I weren't so exhausted from pulling, I would have jumped up and slapped you twice."

The doctor hurriedly bowed and apologized, then said to Liang Feng, "Quickly prepare the medicine: one mace of ephedra, one mace of peony root, eight fen of asarum, eight fen of dried ginger, two slices of licorice root, two mace of cinnamon twig, one mace of schisandra fruit, and one mace of pinellia tuber."

The misunderstanding was finally cleared up. On the way back, Huaihua couldn't help but exclaim, "Wan'er, I never knew you had such great abilities! Feng'er's master is a famous doctor in the surrounding villages, and you were able to diagnose the illness that even he couldn't."

Ruan Wan smiled and said, "Auntie, you flatter me. Some famous doctors treat difficult and complicated diseases all year round, and they may easily overlook these minor ailments."

Huaihua kicked Liang Feng, saying, "Learn from your sister; she's six years younger than you."

Ruan Wan turned her head to look and saw that Liang Feng's face was flushed red, which was quite amusing.

Moreover, he stared blankly ahead, completely unable to look at Ruan Wan.

Back home, before she even sat down, Huaihua went on and on about what had just happened.

Liang Shuanzi looked at Ruan Wan in disbelief. "Ah Kun, your little girl is so skilled in medicine!"

Liang Kun, true to his years of experience as an undercover agent, quickly devised an explanation: "I'm usually in the military camp, so I entrusted her to my neighbor's family. My neighbor is a doctor, and although she's been learning for over a decade, she's not exactly a doctor, just knows a little bit. For a young woman like her, needlework is more important."

Ruan Wan immediately smiled and said, "Wan'er has just seen a lot and knows a little, but has never actually treated a patient. Cousin is much more capable."

Liang Feng blushed again and kept scratching his head.

Lou Qianyuan suddenly reached out and grasped Ruan Wan's hand, smiling as he said, "Wan'er's cooking skills are also excellent."

Ruan Wan tried to break free from Lou Qianyuan's grasp, but Lou Qianyuan held her tightly.

Lou Qianyuan leaned close to Ruan Wan's ear and whispered, "That Liang Feng has been secretly watching you."

Ruan Wan looked up at Liang Feng, and their eyes met. Liang Feng immediately lowered his head.

Could this guy be lusting after her? But Ruan Wan is his cousin, and she's already married.

Since Ruan Wan is now a guest, and Huaihua certainly knows Liang Dashan's tastes better, Ruan Wan will not show off her cooking skills.

Perhaps Ruan Wan had caught Liang Feng peeking earlier, because Liang Feng kept his head down throughout the meal.

Since Ruan Wan changed back into women's clothing, she has become somewhat accustomed to the attention from philandering men and lecherous men, but fortunately, Lou Qianyuan is there to keep them at bay.

With the convenience of this marital relationship, Ruan Wan usually didn't take Lou Qianyuan's teasing to heart.

The family enjoyed their meal together happily. Liang Dashan drank two cups of wine and wanted more, but Liang Feng snatched the cup away, saying, "Grandfather, you can't drink more than three cups, have you forgotten?"

Liang Dashan didn't care about any of that. His own nephew had returned to his hometown in glory after thirty years, so naturally he wanted to enjoy himself to the fullest.

Liang Dashan tried to snatch back the wine glass, saying, "You brat, hurry up and give me back this wine glass! How many more drinks can your grandpa have at my age?"

Liang Feng was stubborn and refused to give in. Ruan Wan smiled and said, "Uncle is still very healthy. He'll live to be at least a hundred years old and see my cousin get married and have children."

Liang Dashan then gave up, and looked at Liang Feng, saying, "You should learn from your cousin. She's always like a gourd with its mouth sawed off. When you go to your future in-laws' house for a marriage proposal, you'll be just like that too."

Liang Feng blushed again. "Grandpa, there are so many people here, what nonsense are you talking about?"

Everyone burst into laughter. Liang Kun and Liang Shuanzi chatted enthusiastically, while Liang Dashan listened from the side, occasionally chiming in with a few words.

They were simply asking where Liang Kun went after he left home in his teens, what happened to him, and what kind of business he was doing now.

Liang Kun was naturally not going to tell the truth; he answered fluently and quickly made up a story.

Ruan Wan listened with great admiration; to be able to lie so blatantly and flawlessly.

Suddenly, the topic shifted to Ruan Wan. Huaihua looked at Ruan Wan and asked, "Why haven't you had a child yet? The sooner you have one, the more children you can have. Unlike me, I only had these two children, a brother and a sister. His sister got married and died away from home, leaving just the two of us."

Seeing that Huaihua was reminded of sad things and was about to wipe away tears, Liang Dashan immediately said, "Akun and the others have come from afar today, why talk about such old and trivial matters?"

Liang Feng didn't speak, but gently patted Huaihua's back.

Lou Qianyuan said with a smile, "We want to have a child soon, but for some reason, we just can't get pregnant."

Huaihua immediately said, "It's possible there's something wrong with you. You should see a doctor while you're still young."

Liang Feng winked at his mother and said, "My cousin knows medicine; they must know that."

Huaihua chuckled sheepishly, "My memory is terrible, I forgot about that."

Ruan Wan smiled and said, "This can't be forced. We're still young, so there's no rush."

Liang Kun also said, "Children and grandchildren have their own blessings; what is destined to be yours will be yours, and what is not, you cannot force."

Lou Qianyuan immediately changed the subject, looking at Liang Feng and saying, "Cousin, this is your fifth year as an apprentice. When are you planning to open your own pharmacy?"

Liang Feng quickly waved his hand, "My medical skills are not yet at the level where I can open a pharmacy; I still need to study for a few more years."

Huaihua's sigh brought the atmosphere at the dining table to a freezing point.

Ruan Wan smiled and said, "The doctor who taught me medicine told me that when learning medicine, you can't just listen to what your master says; you have to learn how to think for yourself."

All eyes turned to Ruan Wan, and Liang Feng also raised his head to look directly at her.

Ruan Wan continued, "The method he taught me was that every time you have a patient, when you're examining them, you first make a diagnosis in your mind based on their symptoms, then write a prescription, and compare it with your master's results. In your spare time, you should also read more medical books, but you shouldn't completely trust your master's words."

Huaihua slapped Liang Feng on the back of the head. "Did you hear that? You'll do it like that from now on."

Liang Feng seemed to understand as well, nodding his head.

After finishing their meal, Liang Kun led Ruan Wan and Lou Qianyuan to say goodbye.

Liang Dashan, leaning on his cane, chased after them, saying, "Why are you leaving so soon? Why not stay a few more days?"

Liang Kun wanted to stay a few more days, but there were still pursuers behind him, and he might even implicate his uncle's family.

With tears in his eyes, Liang Kun said, "Uncle, I would like to stay a few more days, but unfortunately my son-in-law has to rush to the capital to take up his post, and we can't afford to be late."

Huaihua came up to help Liang Dashan and said, "Father, we absolutely cannot let our grand-nephew-in-law's important matter be delayed."

Liang Dashan held Liang Kun's hand, his eyes already brimming with tears. "You have to think about coming to see me more often. I don't know how many more years this body can hold on."

Liang Dashan instructed Huaihua, "Huaihua, quickly go and fetch the money from town that was meant to subsidize Akun's family."

Liang Kun pulled Huaihua back, saying, "Sister-in-law, don't bother. I've been away all these years and haven't had the chance to take care of my uncle. This is just a small token of my appreciation."

Liang Dashan refused to agree no matter what. He felt guilty because he couldn't even protect his nephew's ancestral home. It took Liang Kun a lot of persuasion to finally get them to accept it.

Liang Dashan had difficulty moving around, so Liang Kun saw him to the door and told him to stop. Liang Shuanzi also had work to do, so he left first.

Huaihua asked Liang Feng to escort Ruan Wan and the others out of town.

With Liang Feng's help, Ruan Wan and her companions bought a carriage. Before leaving, Ruan Wan took it upon herself to take out two gold ingots from her bundle and hand them to Liang Feng.

Liang Feng resolutely refused, saying, "How can I accept this? Although my family is poor, I am still a man of integrity. I cannot accept money from my cousin."

Ruan Wan smiled and said, "This isn't my money, cousin; it's my uncle's way of nurturing his nephew. As you know, cousin, we don't have any male heirs, and my father will have to rely on you in the future."

Liang Kun took the gold from Ruan Wan's hand and stuffed it into Liang Feng's hand, saying, "After I pass away, I will need your help to keep vigil and carry my coffin."

Liang Feng frowned and said, "This is something my nephew should have done."

Lou Qianyuan also advised, "Cousin, please don't blame me for being abrupt. You're twenty-four this year. Starting a family and building a career will cost money in the future. Your great-uncle is also getting old, and he'll be a considerable expense in the future. If you want to open a pharmacy, you'll also need money. We're family, and we should help each other. If you keep shirking responsibility like this, it will create distance between us."

Liang Feng then accepted the gold, saying, "Consider this a loan from my uncle. I will definitely repay it when I open my pharmacy."

My uncle laughed and said, "That's right. Keep the address I gave you safe. Remember to write to me. I'll come back to see you after we've settled down in the capital."

After bidding farewell to Liang Feng, Ruan Wan and her companions resumed their frantic journey.

Liang Kun looked at Ruan Wan gratefully, "Thank you, Madam, for giving me such an honor."

Ruan Wan quickly said, "Uncle Liang, we all abandoned your businesses in the Southern Frontier, so this compensation is nothing."

Lou Qianyuan also said, "When we return to the capital, Uncle Liang, if you want to go back to Mangshan Town, I'll get you a property there so you can retire comfortably."

Liang Kun really wanted to go back to his hometown to retire. His great-uncle was getting old, and he himself was unable to have any children. Living with Liang Feng was a good option.