Tang Xiaotang got up early, and was sweeping snow in the courtyard.
“Hey, Xiao Tang, you put that down.” Granny Ge hastily fixed her hair in a bun while lighting a fire and shouted, “The sky is gloomy, so it might keep snowing. Go take a look at the general store, buy some sauce and vinegar. Then go to the butcher He’s place at the end of the street to pick up a cut of meat. I already gave the money yesterday.”
Tang Xiaotang threw away the broom and clomped back.
During that year, he had grown a lot, and at the same time the flesh on his cheeks quickly thinned. Even wrapped in a cotton coat, he still looked skinny.
“If Doctor Mo came back, he would blame me for starving you.” Granny Ge looked around on the stove, only to find a few cold steamed buns, so she could only grab one and stuff it into Tang Xiaotang’s hand, “If you get too hungry, gnaw on it for a bit. When you come back, there’ll be hot noodle soup, the kind with lard.”
Tang Xiaotang took the steamed bun, and dashed outside.
After only a few steps, Granny Ge caught up and stuck a felt hat on his head.
“What are you looking at? Hurry and get to work.” Granny Ge turned around, scolding Uncle Ge on the rooftop with a bad temper.
Last year a heavy snowfall collapsed quite a few houses, even the county seat was hit by disaster.
Sure enough, once autumn arrived, everyone got busy repairing the roofs. After last night’s snowfall, many people got up early to clear their roofs, checking if they needed any quick reinforcements. It truly scared them after what happened last year.
The door of the general store was forced open. The shop assistant, rubbing his eyes, looked at Tang Xiaotang carrying the meat, and asked in surprise, “It’s still a while before the New Year. Why are you folks so busy already?”
Tang Xiaotang said nothing, only smiled.
The shop assistant didn’t press, and reluctantly moved aside the door planks. Following Tang Xiaotang’s gestures, he took sauce and vinegar.
“Hey, wait……”
The shop assistant took out a jar of pickled vegetables from under the counter, but before he finished calling out, Tang Xiaotang had already dropped the money and ran off, disappearing at the far end of the street.
Having been woken up, the shop assistant couldn’t sleep again, so he stretched and simply swept the snow at the entrance.
After a while, he heard the clop-clop of a carriage approaching in the distance. In the cold wind, its outline gradually emerged.
The shop assistant gaped in amazement. In the county, most people used donkey carts. There were horses, but no one would dare use such fine horses for pulling a cart. And the closer it came, the clearer its form became: the refined wagon shaft, the exquisite and beautiful wheels, plus the especially wide carriage box…… Absolutely no one in any nearby county could have built it!
Where did such an important figure come from?
Maybe from Pingzhou Prefecture? The shop assistant grew nervous, glancing at the county office.
Just as he was thinking of whether to shut the store and go find Adviser Li or Constable Qin at the county office for a chat, the carriage actually stopped right in front of the store.
The shop assistant instinctively shrank back inside, cautiously stuck out his head for a look, and was startled to see a familiar figure jump down from the carriage shaft.
“Doctor Mo?”
The shop assistant was shocked, his neck stretched forward in that stiff posture.
Mo Li undid his windproof cloak, revealing his face. He smiled and nodded at the shop assistant.
Then someone the shop assistant had never seen before took down two jars and a large wooden box from the carriage.
“The Chen family’s trading caravan asked me to bring back the goods.” Mo Li saw the shop assistant’s silly expression and couldn’t help laughing. He had to remind him, “Especially the sugar from Yongzhou, which couldn’t stand dampness. The neighbours were waiting to buy it from your store!”
The shop assistant snapped out of his daze, smiled awkwardly, and hurried to move the goods into the store.
The payment had already been given to the Chen family’s caravan, and the remainder would be settled after spring, so it no longer had anything to do with Mo Li.
“No wonder Xiao Tang was bustling around early this morning, buying meat and coming to my place for sauce. Turns out Doctor Mo came back.” The shop assistant finally understood, and couldn’t help chattering, “I heard from the Chen family’s caravan that things outside were in chaos this year. There was an earthquake in Qiuling County, Pingzhou. The old emperor died. That gang of frauds worshiping the Purple Star Lord fled to Jiangnan to kill and burn? Just hearing it made us worried. Old Man Niu said the other day that Doctor Mo was away. We didn’t know when you would be back.”
Mo Li seemed a bit lost, as the same hometown accent recounted the disasters he had personally witnessed. It felt like another lifetime.
The shop assistant kept talking, and occasionally snuck a glance at Meng Qi, thinking that he was probably someone Doctor Mo met outside, seemingly a big shot, yet so unassuming. Though helping with the goods, he still made people hesitate to approach him.
“Last month, my father fell ill. Old Master Qin came to treat him. We asked about the doctor’s whereabouts then! Doctor Mo, you were gone so long. Why didn’t you send any letters home, not even a message?”
Qin Lu, who was seated inside the carriage, awkwardly stroked his beard.
Letters were typically sent back by passing caravans. Because they didn’t know where the addressee lived in town, the letters would first be left at this general store, and then people would spread out to find the recipient. But Mo Li had gone too far away, unlike ordinary folks from Majiang in Zhushan County, so he simply had no chance to send a letter.
Everyone meant well, but Qin Lu never explained. As a result, his disciple took the blame.
Mo Li didn’t mind. He knew his fellow villagers had no notion of the outside world. None of them had gone beyond Pingzhou Prefecture. They all believed you could send a letter or deliver a message wherever you went.
Once the shop assistant finished chattering, he insisted on giving a small jar of pickled vegetables to Mo Li.
“I pickled it at home. Last time I tried giving it to Old Master Qin, but he refused. I carried that jar chasing after him and never caught up, so my parents scolded me. Then back at the store, the shopkeeper scolded me again.”
The shop assistant looked aggrieved, making Mo Li laugh and cry at the same time.
In most people’s minds, failing to catch up to someone of Old Master Qin’s age meant they hadn’t tried very hard.
As the carriage slowly moved on, Qin Lu deliberately ignored the jar of pickled vegetables at his feet and said, “Xiao Tang knew you were returning, so he was very happy.”
“It was my fault for being delayed on the road.” Mo Li bowed his head, then quietly spoke about what he had seen and heard outside.
Meng Qi drove the carriage. Occasionally, while listening to Mo Li’s words, he steered through the street intersections.
Fortunately, the clinic was on the widest street in the county. Otherwise, the carriage wouldn’t have fit.
When Tang Xiaotang heard the horse snorting outside, he couldn’t even finish his noodle soup. He dropped the bowl and chopsticks and rushed out in a hurry.
“Doctor Mo……”
“Call me Senior Brother.”
Mo Li patted Tang Xiaotang’s head, glimpsing the mole on the boy’s earlobe. Recalling how he had almost been mistaken for a descendant of the Chu imperial family, Mo Li shook his head, helping Qin Lu down so they could head into the courtyard.
“I’m not so old that I couldn’t walk.” Qin Lu said sternly.
Mo Li fell silent. Considering how Master Qin had received the message and rushed to the inn hundreds of li away, his health was obviously quite robust.
Tang Xiaotang noticed Meng Qi, looking puzzled. The next moment, he found a box placed in his hands.
Startled, he tried to dodge until Mo Li said, “It was something Senior Brother brought back for you. Take it.”
Tang Xiaotang opened the lid in a daze. At once, his eyes shone, and he let out a loud “Wow”.
It was a set of twelve clay figurines, each tied down with toothpicks and fine thread against the velvet at the bottom of the box. The most striking was the fierce general with a red face, green robes, and a Green Dragon Crescent Blade. Next to him, there was the black-faced warrior Zhang Fei holding a snake spear, and Lü Bu with his halberd. The figurines were brightly colored, their armour vivid. Forget Zhushan County— even in Pingzhou, no one had such artistry.
Tang Xiaotang’s face lit up with joy. He smiled until his eyes crinkled.
That smile revealed his secret.
Several teeth were missing. Mo Li was stunned. No wonder Tang Xiaotang’s voice sounded strange just now— it was because he was speaking with gaps in his teeth.
“How did this……”
Mo Li turned to look for Qin Lu, and Tang Xiaotang instinctively covered his mouth, his face filled with frustration.
“Perhaps his foundation was weak when he was young. Back then, when you were here, he lost a tooth that never grew back. Over the past half year, three more fell out.” Qin Lu sighed slowly, “The Chen family’s caravan managed to get some milk curd from beyond the pass, and we’ve been giving it to him. There was also bone broth……”
Old Master Qin sighed.
He had not discovered for over ten years that his eldest disciple was a fish, and he had always thought it was a delusion. He also had to worry about his young disciple, who had been slow to grow teeth.
This would ruin the reputation of the Miracle Physician of the Mysterious Gourd if it got out.
Tang Xiaotang covered his mouth while secretly peeking at Meng Qi, looking very curious.
“Growing teeth still required more exposure to the sun.” Meng Qi blurted out.
Qin Lu nodded instinctively and asked in surprise, “Qihang also understood the art of healing?”
Bestow a name—this was the idea Qin Lu had.
Otherwise, a friend of the disciple should have been called ‘virtuous nephew,’ but Qin Lu simply could not utter those two words. Even though the disciple was also a dragon vein, he was used to him. Suddenly, a stranger appeared, who even had a history of being the Grand Preceptor of the Chu Dynasty, so Qin Lu had to rethink what ‘dragon vein’ truly meant.
Logically, they had only just met, so he should treat him with courtesy, neither coldly nor too distantly.
But every time Qin Lu saw Meng Qi, he recalled the scene of their first meeting……
The deep-seated impression that ‘dragon vein’ equalled chubby baby seemed impossible to change now.
——The sight of those short arms and legs flailing clumsily made one want to pick each of them up with one hand and then give them a candied hawthorn.
At the same time, Qin Lu felt infinitely gratified. Even when Mo Li was ‘little,’ he had never played so freely. Did dragon veins really need true companions?
“…I do not understand medicine; it was just a bit of experience.”
Meng Qi raised his head awkwardly. The sky was dark, seemingly about to snow.
Basking in the sun was a sand rat’s hobby. If there was any problem that could not be solved by digging a hole and sleeping, then they would go sunbathe.
Moreover, when wild animals in the mountains and forests broke their teeth while hunting, or when young beasts grew teeth, they needed to eat more, sleep more, and sunbathe more. That was correct.
At this moment, the Ge couple from the pharmacy came out to greet them. Seeing the stranger Meng Qi, they paused, then smiled.
“Is this Doctor Mo’s friend? Originally, in our Zhushan County, only Doctor Mo had such good looks. Now it seems he wasn’t the only one; they were just outside!”
“Hurry in. If the neighbours see, tomorrow our pharmacy might be trampled down by visitors.”
Qin Lu cleared his throat, about to speak, when he suddenly remembered something. He gave Meng Qi a strange look.
In fact, on the day Qin Lu sent Mo Li out, he had seen a pair of fish designs on the porcelain bottle. He had been convinced that not only would Mo Li find a companion, but the main purpose was to look for someone of similar interests to spend a lifetime together. However, Mo Li had not brought back a bunch of dragon veins, only one.
That was fine. These two dragon veins were very restrained in his presence.
Qin Lu came to his senses and felt that something was off. It was natural for Mo Li to respect him, but Meng Qi had no reason to do so.
“There were still some foods and goods brought back from Taijing…”
Meng Qi stopped Uncle Ge from moving the boxes and then saw Mo Li’s ‘alert’ look.
——They needed to take things step by step and eat one bite at a time. They could not just tell the teacher straight away that this was not just a found friend but a marriage partner.
Meng Qi swallowed his words, lifted one box in each hand, and easily carried seven or eight boxes inside.
Tang Xiaotang’s eyes lit up. The senior brother’s friend was not only good-looking, but also just as powerful as the senior brother and the master.
After untying the reins and settling the horse, Uncle Ge came back in time to see everyone seated.
They could not prepare a lavish banquet to welcome them in such a hurry, so they each had a bowl of hot noodle soup to warm their stomachs. Aunt Ge turned around and went back to the kitchen, seeming determined to show off her skills.
Meng Qi took out a jar of wine. Once opened, the fragrance filled the room.
Uncle Ge could not help clicking his tongue in amazement. Obviously, he had never smelled such an aromatic wine.
“Taijing’s Golden Osmanthus Brew. Even if a child drank a cup, it would not go to their head. The taste was second only to the Peach Blossom Brew of Jiangnan…”
Meng Qi stopped himself just in time and raised his hand to pour everyone a cup. Of course, Tang Xiaotang got none. He pouted unhappily.
Qin Lu took a small sip, then sighed, “It had been a long time since I last tasted this. Golden Osmanthus Brew was made from the honey of a certain golden osmanthus tree in Shangyun Mountain… Truly rare. I had never seen it after leaving Taijing.”
Actually, the Chu Dynasty had plenty of commercial trade, and it was not as though it did not exist outside the capital, but it was always very expensive.
The Miracle Physician of the Mysterious Gourd was not fond of drinking, so he would not spend a large sum on such fine wine.
That single sip slipped down his throat and into his lungs, fragrant but not harsh, sweet yet not cloying, as though he could see the flourishing and prosperous scene of the Chu Dynasty in years past.
After savouring it, Qin Lu suddenly remembered that Meng Qi was precisely the dragon vein of Shangyun Mountain, and he raised his eyes in awkwardness.
He saw that Meng Qi was quite proud of this Golden Osmanthus Brew, like a wealthy landowner flaunting his estate, and was about to pour more.
“No, no, just one cup. I must not overdrink.” Qin Lu quickly declined.
Mo Li sat upright, as if he had his guard up, carefully avoiding meeting Meng Qi’s gaze, lest his teacher sense anything.
Without meaning to, he noticed Meng Qi looking his way. Mo Li could only make gestures under the table.
Meng Qi felt helpless. Why did he not trust him? Overdoing it would only arouse suspicion. He tried to persuade Mo Li and gestured as well.
Because Tang Xiaotang’s height gave him a different view than others, “……”
Senior brother was acting strangely.
Tang Xiaotang was seated to Qin Lu’s right. He subconsciously tugged on Old Master Qin’s sleeve under the table.
Qin Lu had already been suspicious. Now, with his young disciple’s hint, he frowned.
Then he looked again at Mo Li, who was lowering his eyes and restraining his expression. No sign of the under-table gestures appeared on his face. Qin Lu stroked his beard calmly and asked, “I wonder when these Three Letters and Six Rites will be completed?”
“Pfft.”
Mo Li choked on his wine.
Meng Qi stared in disbelief.
“Ol…Teacher?”
“If I did not ask, you would never say anything. You would act as if nothing happened and drag it out for half a year, right?” Qin Lu sighed gloomily, “I am old and cannot afford to wait.”
They had already dragged out the fish matter alone for over ten years!
Author’s note:
Mo Li’s and Teacher’s thought processes never matched
The main text is finished, with a few extras =3=
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A lot happened in real life during the serialization. Last year, I had a minor surgery that went well. When the story was about to finish, the pandemic arrived. Although I was not in Wuhan, I still encountered some difficulties. The elders in my family were old and lived in a different part of the city. They refused to live with the younger generation, so I had to take care of them with my parents.
Fortunately, I’m not married and have no children. Otherwise, it would have been even more of a headache.
In the face of life and death, these difficulties were nothing. Upon closer examination, I was actually quite lucky.
————
The author was about to starve due to a lack of income, so I planned to write a fanfic after Fish ended. It would be short and not go VIP.
Then my next original novel would be an apocalyptic story.
