Song Wangyue walked out with the silver ticket in her pocket and got straight onto the ox cart, “Go to the pharmacy.”
Knowing that she had done it, Song San Xiao did not delay, turned the cart around and drove it back to the pharmacy.
Inside the pharmacy, Song Shen was sitting on a wooden stool, looking eager, his eyes unblinking as he looked at the door.
Every time someone came in, his body unconsciously moved with them. When Song Wan Yue entered, he stood up in a misty voice, “Yue, Yue’er.”
Song Wangyue nodded towards him. ‘
The heart Song Shen had been hanging on to fell back into his stomach and followed her over to the counter, taking out the three taels of silver he had been hiding in his arms as well, holding it in both hands.
Song Wangyue took out a hundred taels of silver cheque and placed it on the counter, re-stating the prescription she had just given, and the man hurried off to get the medicine.
Seeing the word “One” on the silver cheque, Song Shen held the silver hands are shaking, a hundred taels, is the family’s cattle and land and people are sold, but also not worth so much silver, brother where to borrow from, how to pay back later?
“Just pay it back within six months.”
Song Wangyue lowered her voice, but even so, Song Shen still couldn’t slow down.
He was eleven years old, and his family had only saved three taels of silver in total, so saving a hundred taels in half a year was something he wouldn’t dare to dream about.
Song Wangyue nudged her mouth towards the counter.
Song Shen didn’t know what she meant and looked at her dumbfounded.
“Put it down.”
Song Shen still didn’t respond, his face bewildered.
“Put down the silver in your hand.”
Only then did Song Shen respond and put all the silver in his hand on the counter in one go.
“Go ask Third Uncle if we still need to buy ginseng back?”
“Oh.”
Song Shen obediently turned around and headed out.
He had just stepped out of the doorway when Song Wangyue pulled out another silver ticket and placed it on the counter, “Give me another ginseng and a good blood-stopping medicine, and settle the bill first.”
He remembered the first time this little girl came in and told him about the prescription, she was so young and had no silver, but she didn’t have any stage fright. He thought to himself, looking at the little girl who grew up in the countryside, how could she have developed such an unperturbed temperament. What he didn’t expect was that in such a short time, this little girl had come up with two hundred taels of silver.
By the time Song Shen returned, the fellow had already taken the medicine, given the ginseng and the medicine to stop the bleeding, and the extra silver was also found.
Song Wangyue pulled all the three taels on the counter into her hands, took the ginseng, and without waiting for Song Shen to speak, gestured for him to hurry up and take the medicine bag.
Song San Xiao did not know how much money was spent on the medicine, and thought there was a surplus of fifty taels, so when he saw the two of them come out with the medicine bag and ginseng, he did not ask anything else and hurriedly drove the ox cart back.
It took them more than an hour to get back and forth, and Song’s family was anxious and worried as they watched Song Lin.
They were worried that Song Si would not be able to borrow the silver, that the medicine would not be caught and that Song Lin would not wake up; they were also anxious about how several people had not returned.
Even Song Shu’s family could not wait any longer and ran straight to the entrance of the village to wait. When they saw the bullock cart in sight, they raised their feet and ran to meet it, asking from a distance, “How is it, have you caught the medicine?”
“Yes.”
Song Sanxiao replied.
Song Shu’s heart fell back into his stomach as he turned and ran back, after running a few steps, he turned again and ran to the ox cart, holding out his hand, “Give me the medicine, I can run fast, take it back and boil it first.”
Song Shen hurriedly gave him a packet of medicine, Song Shu took it in his hand and ran home in a flash, “I’ve bought it, I’ve bought it, the child’s mother, hurry up and boil the medicine.”
The doctor had not yet left and said, “Bring the medicine in and I’ll take a look.”
Song Shu hurriedly brought the medicine bag in and carefully placed it on the table. The doctor got up and opened it, and when he saw the herbs inside, his brow furrowed.
The Song family’s hearts lifted as they followed.
Song Shu asked nervously, “Is there, is there anything wrong?”
“This is not the prescription I prescribed.”
The Song family froze.
Just as the ox cart came to a stop in front of the house, Song Shu rushed out of the house, looking anxious, “What’s going on, the doctor said it wasn’t taken according to his prescription?”
“It was prescribed by the doctor in the pharmacy.”
Song Wan Yue replied without changing her face, getting off the ox cart and going straight to the house, “After I arrived at Jishi Tang, I gave the doctor there the word that this was the medicine he had re-prescribed for me to take.”
At this moment, the doctor re-read the herbs, pondered over them, stroked his beard and nodded his head, “High, really high, the doctor at Ji Shi Tang is indeed much more skilled than the old man.”
The herbs were indeed more suitable for the patient too, but the relative cost was also high.
“So, can it be used then?”
Song Shu asked, dumbfounded.
“Sure.”
The doctor picked the medicine bag back up and handed it to him carefully, “The herbs in here are all very precious, be careful.”
Song Shu took it carefully and was just about to go out with his daughter-in-law to boil the medicine when Song Wan Yue took out the ginseng and handed it to the doctor as well, “Please take a look, is this ginseng suitable for my father to eat?”
Ginseng?
Song Shu’s hand shook and the medicine bag in his hand almost fell off, instantly breaking out in a cold sweat.
Grandma Song, Master Song and Xu were also shocked, all looking at the ginseng in the doctor’s hand, about as thick as a middle finger, with a few bearded roots, an intact one.
It was the first time the doctor had seen such a complete ginseng and he was vaguely excited, “Miss Song, this ginseng must be worth at least thirty to fifty taels, right?”
There was a huff of air in the room.
Only then did the doctor realise that he had said something he shouldn’t have said, coughed and said, “It’s suitable, of course it’s suitable.”
Song Wan Yue put the ginseng into Song Shu’s hand, “I’ll trouble Second Uncle.”
Song Shu was still a bit overwhelmed, but it was Grandma Song who reacted and urged him, “Why are you still standing there, why don’t you go and boil it quickly?”
Only then did Song Shu come to his senses and went out with the medicine bag and ginseng, with Song Shu’s daughter-in-law following closely behind him.
The house was silent for a while, and the Song family didn’t know what to say.
“Song girl, do you remember the prescription given by the doctor of Ji Shi Tang?”
Song Wan Yue shook her head, “They didn’t let me look at it, they took the prescription away after the medicine was taken.”
There was such a rule in the pharmacy and the doctor was convinced, “Then, could you give me another pair of medicine to look at.”
The prescriptions of the Ji Shi Tang were exquisite, and if he learned them, he could save a few more people in the future.
“Of course.”
Song Shenzhao put the rest of the medicine packets on the table, and the doctor unpacked one of them, looking at it carefully, but he couldn’t decide on the amount of each herb, and after thinking about it for a while, he opened his mouth, “Song boy, go to my house and bring the scale I use to weigh the herbs.”
Song Shen answered and ran to the doctor’s house and brought the scale over. The doctor weighed the herbs inside one by one and took notes on paper before he was satisfied and picked up the medicine box to leave.
“The money for the hemostatic medicine and the consultation fee have not been given to you yet.”
