Chapter 21: Chapter 21: One whose heart is unlike Buddha’s is unfit to be a physician.
 

“She’s called Cong Zhonglan, the wife of the murderer Zhang Zhao. Her husband was exiled, and she sold everything to follow him.”

Qi Yue glanced at Guan Yidao, who had somehow caught up without her noticing.

“Are you sympathizing with her and her husband? Why? Is her husband wrongfully accused?”

Guan Yidao was taken aback.

Had he said anything? How had she seen through his sympathy for them? And how did she know Zhang Zhao was wrongfully accused?

Could it be…

Watching Guan Yidao’s rich expression change, Qi Yue’s lips twitched.

As a doctor, if you can’t even observe and understand people, how can you diagnose by inspection, listening, and inquiry?

“Commander Guan, if he truly were a heinous criminal, I doubt you would show such a compassionate expression, would you?”

Once again, Guan Yidao was astonished.

When had he ever shown compassion?

The government officials all said he was like a fierce god or evil spirit!

“Commander Guan, if you truly sympathize with her, find a place for her to stay,” Qi Yue’s gaze shifted from the woman’s protruding belly, “Moreover, she has little more than a month to live, let her eat something decent.”

While Guan Yidao was still in a daze, Qi Yue turned and left.

In her previous life, ever since her father died, she had warned herself not to be indiscriminately kindhearted, but she couldn’t always help herself.

Fortunately, this woman was not a bad person.

As she was thinking, she heard Shen Yu asking anxiously.

“Yueyue, why did you say that woman only has a month to live?”

At her question, the Zhao Family stared at her, even Zhao Yonglian, who was pulling the cart, turned around, his face full of curiosity.

Qi Yue pursed her lips.

“That woman is carrying twins, and the fetuses are upside down. The day she gives birth will be the death of three, her fate is sealed.”

Upon hearing this, the members of the Zhao Family were stunned.

Shen Yu, who was naturally kind-hearted, realized the severity of the situation, her eyes were nearly brimming with tears.

“Then Yueyue, since you’ve noticed this, surely there must be a way; why not…”

Snapping at what Shen Yu meant, Qi Yue abruptly cut her off.

“Mother, noticing is one thing, being able to save her is another. I won’t save just anybody.”

The words were harsh, and the Zhao Family immediately fell silent, each contemplating the significance of her statement in their hearts.

Seeing that Qi Yue seemed angry, Shen Yu didn’t dare say another word.

The family settled into silence as they arrived at the inn.

Qian Faliang eagerly cleared out the best rooms for them, but Qi Yue, finding them dirty, chose two ordinary rooms instead.

Zhao Yonglian stayed in one room with his son Zhao Yongzhe, while Qi Yue shared another room with Shen Yu and several of her young aunts.

It wasn’t for lack of rooms; it was for safety.

The underlings, wicked government officials though they were, had been slashed by her, but Qian Faliang was still here.

Although she had him under control, there was no guarantee he wouldn’t cause trouble.

After everything was arranged and night had fallen, Qian Faliang said he had already prepared food and asked Qi Yue what she wanted to eat.

Qi Yue ignored him and turned to look at Zhao Shuanghua.

“`

“You’ve followed me long enough in cooking, you should be able to do it yourself by now. Make whatever you feel like eating.”

As he turned to leave, he dropped another line.

“Alright, you guys just eat, no need to wait for me.”

Qian Faliang, true to his dog nature, immediately followed with an umbrella as Qi Yue headed out.

“Master, let me hold the umbrella for you.”

“Get lost!”

Without turning her head, Qi Yue slapped the umbrella and Qian Faliang to the ground and disappeared into the curtain of rain step by step.

Shen Yu felt a sense of desolation and unease upon seeing Qi Yue leave.

“Yanyan, did Mother say something wrong? Is Yueyue angry? Will she stop taking care of us?”

Zhao Xiyan silently shook his head.

“Mother is overthinking it. If I’m not mistaken, Qi Yue is just in a very bad mood, and it happened to be Mother who ran into her.”

“Yueyue in a bad mood? Didn’t she sort out that man with the surname Qian for us, and now even Commander Guan is behaving politely?” Shen Yu paused, sighing, “It’s our fault, too; we’ve been too much of a burden on her.”

“Mother, don’t talk nonsense, it has nothing to do with that.”

“Then what is it? Tell Mother quickly, otherwise I truly can’t be at ease. Yueyue is our family’s great benefactor; if Mother made her angry, that would be truly inappropriate!”

“Mother, you really are overthinking it,” Zhao Xiyan said with helpless shake of his head, revealing his speculation.

“In the stable, when those people began talking about General Qi, Yueyue’s expression turned a bit off. Later, when Mother asked Qi Yue to save that woman, it must have touched upon her concerns again, or maybe…”

Zhao Xiyan didn’t know how to describe that feeling, paused, then continued, “Anyway, don’t overthink it, Mother. Since Qi Yue has chosen to take care of us, she must have her reasons and won’t abandon us.”

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yongzhe also nodded in agreement.

“Xiyan is right, I see that Qi Yue is a person of integrity; she doesn’t overthink things. You shouldn’t worry too much either.”

“Is that really the case? Yueyue will come back, right?” Shen Yu was still somewhat uneasy.

“Mother, just be at ease. If Qi Yue were angry, she would have left long ago and wouldn’t have ensured we were well settled before departing. She probably just went out to clear her mind and will be back soon.”

Only then did Shen Yu breathe a sigh of relief, but she quickly became melancholic again.

“With such heavy rain, who knows where she’s gone? I hope nothing bad happens to her!”

“We don’t know what’s worrying Yueyue about General Qi; if we could help, that would be good.”

Zhao Xiyan glanced at the darkening night sky outside, his hands on his knees gradually tightening.

He was worried about her too.

Meanwhile, Qi Yue had long been in her space.

She was soaked through, rainwater dripped steadily from her hair onto the floor beneath, immediately wetting a patch.

Looking up at the neatly placed photograph on the table, a wet Qi Yue suddenly drew up a smile on her face, appearing somewhat pitiable.

“Father, you’ve come to remind me again, haven’t you?”

“Yes, you were too kind-hearted, you’ve attained enlightenment, you’ve become a great doctor. But what did you get?”

She lunged forward, seized the photo frame in her hands, and fiercely hurled it onto the sofa next to her.

“A lifetime of reputation slandered, even in death bound by morality—has your soul found peace?”

The photo frame clinked against the armrest of the sofa, emitting a crisp “ding” sound, then rolled onto the floor with a “thump”.

Qi Yue was startled, hurriedly scrambled up from the floor, and rushed to grab the photo frame.

Seeing the photo frame unscathed, she breathed a sigh of relief as if pardoned.

Looking at the man in the photograph who was still smiling at her, Qi Yue couldn’t bear to gaze any longer, flipped the frame over, and suddenly, several large characters overwhelmed her vision!