Chapter Seventy-Seven
Mo Sigui was astonished. "Marry? You're not joking, are you? I haven't been in Bianjing for years, and even Hua Rongjian wants to get married now? Truly, the world changes beyond recognition!"
Yao Ye noticed An Jiu's dark expression and didn't dare mention that their young mistress had already agreed to it without hesitation. More than just the world changing—this was downright shocking!
"A dog can't stop itself from eating shit—there must be some scheme here." An Jiu thought that after her disappearance, it would be best to arrange a stable environment for Mei Jiu. But upon further reflection, this Hua Rongjian really did seem unreliable.
With many onlookers outside, Mo Sigui felt it unwise to linger too long and signaled for An Jiu to leave.
As they stepped out of the private room, they found the shopkeeper waiting at the door with his accountant.
"Young Master Mei, regarding the damages..." The shopkeeper smiled obsequiously as he extended the ledger toward Mo Sigui.
Before it could reach him, Mo Sigui blocked it with his folding fan. "Everyone in the restaurant saw Hua Erlang bullying others, barging into our private room and smashing things. Surely, Manager, you're not afraid of offending the powerful and just preying on us common folk, are you? His father and elder brother are known for their reasonableness, aren't they? If Hua Erlang is unreasonable, it's entirely due to his father and brother's failure to discipline him. They should be the ones held accountable."
The manager broke out in a cold sweat. Of course, he knew that presenting the bill to Chief Hua or Hua Rongtian would guarantee immediate compensation. But those two would undoubtedly make Hua Rongjian suffer for it. Once Hua Rongjian was punished at home, would he spare the manager afterward?
A rough estimate put the damages at ten thousand taels of silver. Unwilling to swallow the loss, the manager persisted, "Young Master Mei, that’s not how it works. This private room was reserved by you, so naturally, we must seek compensation from you. As for the matter between you and Hua Erlang, how could we possibly intervene? After all, we didn’t see who exactly did the smashing."
"Oh, fine then!" Mo Sigui made a show of reaching for the bill. "No need to trouble you further, Manager. I’ll take this bill and pay in full. Then we’ll present it to His Majesty and ask him to demand repayment from the Hua Clan."
The Mei Clan were imperial merchants. If they truly wished to bring this matter before the Emperor, it wasn’t entirely impossible.
The manager’s hand trembled, and he hastily withdrew the ledger. "This... such a trivial matter shouldn’t trouble His Majesty. I’ll go ask Hua Erlang myself."
His heart bled—this money was likely a lost cause. Hua Erlang was notoriously stingy; unless you were a beauty, you couldn’t pry a single coin from him.
With the matter resolved, Mo Sigui didn’t skimp on pleasantries. "The manager is truly wise and fair."
"You flatter me." The manager pulled out a handkerchief to wipe his sweat, his expression quickly regaining composure. He smiled and asked, "Young Master, with such striking bearing, may I know your name?"
Mo Sigui smiled faintly. "I am one who neither changes his name nor his surname—Mo Ran, courtesy name Sigui."
With a slight nod as a polite gesture, Mo Sigui led An Jiu and the others away.
The crowd watched their retreating figures and murmured among themselves:
"His surname is Mo. Not a young master of the Mei Clan. The Mei Clan’s children often die young—I knew a man his age should already be dead!"
"Could it be another daughter being married off?"
"Tsk, how ignorant. Years ago, a daughter of the Mei Clan married out—her surname was Mo. That must be her descendant."
"Could it be the Grand Physician of the Imperial Hospital, Mo Dengxian?"
"So it’s the young Miracle Doctor Mo! The Mei Clan brought him back, claiming they wanted to care for an orphan, but wasn’t the young Miracle Doctor doing just fine outside? In my opinion, he’d be better off staying away. Who knows if he’ll be affected by the curse in Plum Blossom Village?"
"Exactly."
The crowd sighed in unison.An Jiu had sharp hearing. "You're quite popular in Bianjing," she remarked.
A single sentence that stirred memories in Mo Sigui.
Back when he was very young, the Mo family had only him left as the sole survivor, with just an old servant by his side. Initially, they had to fight beggars for sleeping space in dilapidated temples. The old servant, once an attendant of Mo Dengxian, knew some medicine. At first, he could still earn money to support Mo Sigui, even managing to buy a remote, rundown thatched cottage. But as he aged, his strength waned.
One harsh winter, both he and Mo Sigui caught a cold. With no herbs to gather in the mountains and few medicines stored at home, the servant gave all the medicine to Mo Sigui, unwilling to spend money on himself. In the end, he succumbed to illness and died.
Mo Sigui was not yet ten that year. Born into a family of medical practitioners, he had been immersed in the Way of Medicine since childhood. A natural medical genius, he already knew the properties of thousands of herbs and grasped medical theories and techniques at a tender age. Day and night, he studied the medical texts his father had written, began gathering herbs in the mountains, and treated the poor—not for money, but just for a meal.
At first, no one believed he could cure illnesses. Fortunately, the old servant had some former clients, and the poor couldn’t afford proper doctors anyway, so they let him treat them out of sheer desperation.
In a short time, he saved many lives.
Grateful and awed by his prodigious talent, they spread word of his skills far and wide, exaggerating his abilities until he was practically hailed as a divine incarnation.
Gradually, his reputation grew. People with strange ailments or those on the brink of death, beyond the reach of conventional medicine, sought him out.
Young and brash, he took them all in. Many recovered under his care, and even those he couldn’t fully cure lived a year or two longer. Thus, his fame soared even higher.
Snapping back to the present, Mo Sigui brushed aside the memories and grinned smugly. "When it comes to the most dashing figures in Bianjing, who doesn’t know Mo Sigui?"
Yao Ye, originally weighed down by worries, couldn’t help but laugh. "You were barely over ten back then. How could you be called a dashing figure?"
"Age has nothing to do with it," Mo Sigui chuckled. "My parents were remarkable—somehow they conjured up a genius like me."
Conjured how? Yao Ye covered her mouth in amusement, and even An Jiu twitched a corner of her lips.
"Miraculous Doctor Mo." As if to validate his words, a clear, melodious voice called from behind.
An Jiu immediately recognized the speaker—Lou Xiaowu.
The group turned to see a carriage parked in front of a tavern. A young woman in a pale yellow dress and a snow-white fox fur coat stood there. Even with her face veiled, her youth was unmistakable.
"You are…?" Mo Sigui didn’t recognize her.
"Years have passed. Perhaps you don’t remember me," Lou Xiaowu said softly, stepping forward with eyes like autumn waters gazing at Mo Sigui. "My surname is Lou, and my name is Xiaowu. It was on this very street that you once saved my life."
Bianjing truly is small! An Jiu mused inwardly. She knew few people, yet on her first outing, she’d already run into two.
In truth, it wasn’t quite as An Jiu thought. Bianjing had countless shops and streets, but by nightfall, the authorities didn’t permit the entire city to stay open. Tonight, only a few nearby streets were accessible—the rest were for vendors, while this one was for food and entertainment.
Like the Mei family, the Lou family also restricted their children from venturing out freely. Only during the New Year could they accompany the household on shopping trips for some leisure.Hua Rongjian, on the other hand, was always found wherever there was fun to be had.
"So it's you!" Mo Sigui clicked his tongue. "A girl changes so much as she grows up! You were just a wilted little sprout back then, but now you've bloomed into a flower!"
"Miracle Doctor, you still know how to tease people!" Lou Xiaowu was too excited to notice An Jiu. "Where are you staying now, Miracle Doctor?"
Mo Sigui lowered his voice, "Are you thinking of offering yourself in marriage? There's no need to rush tonight!"
"Pfft, of course not!" Lou Xiaowu stomped her foot. "I have something to ask for your help with. Is there somewhere we can talk privately?"
Only then did Mo Sigui set aside his casual demeanor and adopt a serious expression. "Lady Lou, did you come here specifically to find me?"
Lou Xiaowu nodded. "You could say that. I received word that you had arrived in Bianjing, so I came here hoping to get lucky. I didn't expect to actually run into you!"
"Ha! I'm surprised you still recognized me after all these years!" Mo Sigui said.
Lou Xiaowu gave a sly smile and pointed at the carriage. "I saw the Mei family crest on the carriage and guessed it might be you, Miracle Doctor Mo, so I called out to test my luck."
Mo Sigui thought there was no harm in befriending the Lou family. Besides, the Mei and Lou families were already connected by marriage, so interacting with them wouldn't raise suspicions. "Lady Lou, if you don't mind, why not join me in the carriage for a chat?"
"Alright!" Lou Xiaowu agreed readily.
It wasn't until everyone had boarded the carriage that Lou Xiaowu noticed An Jiu's presence. The moment their eyes met, she widened her eyes in surprise. "You're... Mei Shisi."
"What's so strange about her being Mei Shisi?" Mo Sigui asked.
Lou Xiaowu remembered that the trial matters couldn't be spoken of carelessly, especially since Mo Sigui wasn't involved. "Nothing."
After spacing out for a moment, Lou Xiaowu suddenly recalled her purpose for coming. She hurriedly pulled out a paper package from her bag and handed it to Mo Sigui. "Can you tell if there's any Poison Pill in this?"
Mo Sigui opened the package to reveal a severed finger inside!
"Mother of—!" Mo Sigui's hand jerked in shock. "Seeing this thing suddenly gave me a fright!" (To be continued...)
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