"Jingle-jangle~"
Under a washed-clean blue sky with clouds like white silk ribbons, a bell hung around the neck of a brown donkey as its hooves went clop-clop-clop down the dirt road. Sitting indolently on the donkey's back was a young girl.
The girl wore her hair in a simple high ponytail and was dressed in short white attire. In her hand, she held a tree branch with a string tied to the tip, dangling a carrot in front of the donkey.
Stretching its neck forward, the donkey let out a huffing bray, but no matter how hard it tried, it couldn't reach the carrot. Snorting a breath of air through its nose, its hooves trotted even faster.
Passersby turned their heads to watch this novel scene. They had seen boys leading donkeys, but a girl riding a donkey like this was a first.
The girl was delicate, the donkey sturdy, and the chiming hooves made for a truly picturesque sight.
Seeing the girl traveling alone with her donkey, someone harbored malicious intent.
"What a pretty little girl!"
"Let big brother get a feel!"
Hearing the voice, the girl riding the donkey looked over and offered a bright, generous smile. The wind tousled her bangs; she looked clean-cut, her dark eyes bright and clear, reflecting the world within them.
The three men froze in place, watching as the girl turned her head back and the donkey trotted off, carrying her slender figure down the road.
One of them slowly grinned, chuckling stupidly.
"She smiled at me! I've pulled off so many robberies, but no girl has ever smiled at me like that—so gentle and bright."
"Does she like me?"
His two companions both shot him a look that said, he's beyond saving.
"Boss, are we robbing her or not?"
"Do you want to eat or not?"
"I do!"
"Get her!"
The two dragged the grinning fool along as they ran forward, blocking the donkey's path.
"Robbery!"
"Leave the donkey and you can go!"
"She can't go!"
"Shut your damn mouth!"
Smack!
"Girl, we three brothers steal money, not women. Cooperate obediently and we won't harm you, otherwise... we won't be so polite!"
The girl let out a light laugh, her voice crisp and clear as water, turning upward at the end. "And just how impolite will you be?"
"Second Brother, go! Drag her down!"
Lin Yue looked at the four hands reaching out toward her, grabbed her tree branch, and lashed out. With a few swish-crack sounds, the whip-like strikes tore through their hemp clothes. Panicked, they clutched their stinging wounds, hopping around in pain.
"Hiss... ah! Stop hitting us! Hiss..."
"Hiss! Stop..."
The two hopped twice before quickly backing away. Looking at the red, swollen welts, anger surged within them.
"Come on!" Lin Yue said.
"Damn it!"
Swish—crack!
"Ow~"
His cry trailed off into a wheeze. Eyes bulging, he clutched his waist and leaped skyward.
"Boss! Boss, how are you?! Boss! Don't scare me!"
Lin Yue dismounted the donkey and walked toward the two.
"Stop hitting us! Miss, please spare them!"
"Ow ow ow!"
Lin Yue snapped her wrist and lashed out again. "Who gave you such nerve?"
Seeing the three trembling like baby chicks, Lin Yue smiled.
Her smile was still bright, but in the eyes of the trio, she looked like a devil in human skin.
"How long have you been in this line of work?"
"Heroine, spare us! We've only done this two or three times!"
It turned out these three were local rascals from a nearby village. Idling away their days without doing an honest day's work, whenever their pockets ran dry, they would rob passersby on the roadside for a few copper coins. They had never intended to take lives, but today, seeing Lin Yue riding a donkey all by herself, greed had struck, and they wanted to pull off a big score.
Little did they know she was a wolf in sheep's clothing.
Lin Yue unfastened the handbell from the donkey's neck and made the three lead the way toward a village not far away.
Clang, clang, clang~
Ringing the copper bell, Lin Yue entered the village, attracting the attention of the locals. They looked curiously and scrutinizingly at this young female traveling doctor, whispering among themselves.
Seeing the three trying to slip away, Lin Yue whipped the tree branch toward them.
"Hey, why are you hitting people?"
The villagers surrounded Lin Yue. Even if the three were obnoxious, they were fellow villagers and of the same clan—how could they let an outsider bully them?
Swish—crack!
Lin Yue lashed out to force back the advancing villagers and shouted, "These three belong to your village, right? Call your village chief out!"
Lin Yue raised a fuss until she finally got the village chief to come over.
"Miss, these three may be idle good-for-nothings, but they know their limits. Even if they offended you, you shouldn't have beaten them like this!" the village chief said.
The three were covered in welts. Though not severe, if the wounds failed to heal and festered, it could be fatal—and where would they get the money to see a doctor?
Lin Yue recounted how the three of them had tried to rob her of her donkey.
Hearing this, the village chief trembled with rage. Raising his walking stick in a flash, he swung it at the three. All face in Shitou Village had been lost!
The villagers hurriedly rushed forward to hold the village chief back and restrain his cane. He was so advanced in years; what if he collapsed from anger?
"Miss, I am truly sorry!" The village chief caught his breath, his face filled with guilt. "The three of them are orphans who lost their parents at a young age. The villagers took pity on them, feeding them a bite here and a bite there until they grew up. With no one to discipline them, they turned out like this..."
"Rest assured, Miss, this old man will certainly discipline these three boys properly. I won't let them commit such harmful acts ever again!"
Lin Yue nodded and said, "Village Chief, I was passing by, and it's getting dark. May I rest here for the night?"
"Of course. Seeing you ringing that bell, Miss, are you a doctor?"
"Indeed."
The village chief instantly perked up. "The last time this old man saw a doctor was ten years ago! That doctor stopped by our village to rest and treated the villagers. My old wife's legs used to ache whenever the wind blew, and that doctor cured her!"
"A female doctor... this is the first time this old man has ever seen one!"
The villagers began discussing amongst themselves.
"Miss, do you treat illnesses?"
"I do."
"My boy caught a cold a few days ago. I pulled some herbs from the mountain and brewed them for him, but he hasn't gotten any better. Could you take a look, Miss?"
"Lead the way, I'll take a look."
"Thank you so much, Miss." The middle-aged woman looked thrilled and hurriedly led the way.
Upon seeing the child who was semi-conscious with fever, Lin Yue examined him and immediately realized the woman had used the wrong medicine. Treating heat evil and cold evil were completely different. Lin Yue applied acupuncture to the child on the spot and administered a pill.
"Heat evil entering the body is different from cold evil entering the body. Fever from heat evil is more severe than cold evil, usually accompanied by obvious throat swelling and pain..."
Lin Yue explained the differences between the two and which herbs to use. Having no fancy words beyond expressions of gratitude and praise, the villagers simply took turns inviting her to be a guest in their homes.
Lin Yue examined several patients, all of whom suffered from ailments caused by years of hard labor or root causes left untreated. She also set the bones of a hunter who had fallen in the mountains. She charged only a few copper coins as consultation fees for her treatments; since she didn't carry that many medicinal herbs, she mostly instructed the villagers to gather them in the mountains themselves, saving them money.
By the time she finished treating them, the sky had already darkened. Lin Yue stayed overnight at the village chief's house. Dinner included vegetables sent by the villagers and a pheasant brought by a local hunter.
On the second day, Lin Yue continued seeing patients in the village. Once she had nearly finished with everyone in the village, people from other villages gradually began arriving.
She worked straight through until noon just to finish treating the people in the courtyard. Afterward, more people kept coming, travel-stained and weary—likely having rushed over from even farther villages.
The sun tilted westward, dipping below the mountains.
After seeing the last patient, Lin Yue stood up and stretched her waist.
"You've worked hard, Miss Lin. It's getting late, and my family has prepared a modest meal for you," the village chief said, walking over.
At the dinner table, Lin Yue slowly scooped up the thick porridge in her bowl.
"Doctor Lin, is the food to your liking?" asked the village chief's eldest daughter-in-law, Madame Zhang.
"The dishes Auntie made are very delicious; your cooking is great."
Madame Zhang smiled. "I'm glad you like it, Miss Lin."
"Where did you come from, Miss Lin?" the old village chief asked.
"The prefecture capital?" the old village chief asked in surprise.
"Yes, my master is a physician at a large medical clinic in the prefecture capital who used to be a traveling doctor. That's why he sent us disciples out to practice medicine before returning..." Lin Yue fabricated a story out of thin air, wrapping herself in a grand background to intimidate potential scoundrels.
The old village chief nodded thoughtfully. "I see. What places have you visited, Miss Lin?"
"I've visited surrounding counties and villages..." Lin Yue named a few villages she had been to.
The village chief began speaking about how difficult it was for people in remote rural areas to seek medical care. "Although our village is close to the official road, it's the farthest village from the town. If you take an ox cart to town, leaving in the morning, by the time you see a doctor, the sun is almost setting. With so many wild beasts around at night, you can only return the next day."
"If someone suffers from a minor headache or fever, they just endure it themselves. Only when they can't bear it anymore do they go to town. Seeing a doctor once costs over a hundred coppers. Sigh, without money, a sickness can drag on until it kills you." The elderly village chief let out a sigh.
Hearing this, Lin Yue felt no sympathy; instead, she suddenly recalled a rumor she had heard: a village once broke the legs of a passing traveling doctor to force him to stay, after which he was kept in the village to marry and have children.
Although this place was beside a main road, it sat isolated between settlements, making it easy to hide a person.
The old village chief stated his goal: "Doctor Lin, as you travel alone, why not take on an apprentice? That way, you'll have someone to look out for you on the road."
Hearing this, Lin Yue actually breathed a sigh of relief. Putting things out in the open was better than underhanded schemes; she had no desire to kill anyone.
"I have not yet finished my apprenticeship, so I don't intend to take on pupils for now."
"Your medical skills are superb, Miss Lin, comparable to the doctors I've seen in the county. They've all taken on plenty of apprentices; it would be good for you to take one or two to do chores."
"Apprentices raised from childhood are more dutiful and sensible."
"There's no rush."
Lin Yue merely smiled without speaking, and the old village chief shifted the topic as well.
Because setting bones required observing the patient's recovery, Lin Yue stayed here for a few days.
She had meat with every meal, and the villagers were very polite, bringing herbs gathered from the mountain for her to identify whether they were valuable. Children everywhere picked all kinds of wild fruits for her and fed her donkey. The entire village created an illusion reminiscent of an inspection tour of a picturesque countryside.
Naturally, Lin Yue had no intention of staying here, nor did she plan to take on an apprentice. Besides, traveling on the road with a child was unsafe.
She planned to stay one more day and then leave.
Suddenly, the village grew lively as children ran clamorously toward one spot.
"Uncle Liu caught a huge wild boar!"
"How big?"
"Super big! Come quick!"
Hearing this, Lin Yue also went over to join the fun. Amidst the crowd, an adult black wild boar weighing roughly a hundred jin was panting inside a pig crate. Its four legs were bound, and several bloody holes pierced its body, leaving trails of blood on the ground that quickly attracted flies.
"Liu San is so impressive, actually hunting such a large wild boar!"
"If you take it to town, it'll fetch at least two taels of silver..."
A ruddy-faced, middle-aged man with a cloth band tied around his head chuckled triumphantly. "Hurry, bring the public ox cart over! Let me haul it to town while it's still fresh!"
"The ox cart is here!"
The crowd bustled as the public ox cart was brought over by the hunter's son.
The wild boar was lifted onto the cart and pulled out of the village. The villagers continued talking about Liu San's hunting achievements—pheasants, wild boars, wild deer—he almost always returned with a harvest whenever he entered the mountains.
Listening to the villagers praise him, Lin Yue watched the receding ox cart, lost in thought.
When the old village chief brought up the matter of taking on an apprentice again, Lin Yue did not immediately refuse.
"I have one condition."
Hearing that there was a chance, the old village chief's voice rose excitedly. "Please speak, Miss Lin!"
"Traveling out in the world, I want to learn some skills to protect and sustain myself. If you can teach me how to hunt, I can take on apprentices."
Hunting was also a technical skill to earn a living; one had to learn how to identify the movement tracks of various game and set traps, rather than simply shooting arrows.
In this era, mountains were plentiful and wild beasts abounded. Knowing how to hunt would be of great help to her when wandering the world and identifying dangers in the future.
"No problem, no problem! Liu San is the best hunter in our Shitou Village; I'll have him teach you!" Upon hearing this, the village chief immediately agreed.
Lin Yue pondered the rules and said, "I will stay here for three years and teach for three years only. Once the time is up, I will leave. Take a look and see if there are suitable children—I only want two boys and two girls, and they must pass a test to become my apprentices."
"No problem! No problem!" The village chief was so excited he became incoherent, agreeing to everything first and leaving the rest for later.
In less than a quarter of an hour, news of Lin Yue taking on apprentices spread throughout the village, leaving the villagers thrilled.
In the eyes of wealthy and prominent families, doctors were as lowly as ants, but in the eyes of common folk, doctors were as precious as mountains.
Early the next morning, the village chief selected a residence for Lin Yue at the end of the village. It was quiet and close to the mountain, making it convenient to gather herbs. The house was fully furnished with pieces chipped in by the villagers; though not brand new, they were clean and comfortable.
On the third day, the village chief brought four children over.
"Miss Lin, Hunter Liu has two sons and two daughters in his family. Do you think you could take one of them?" the village chief asked.
"Village Chief, studying medicine requires talent; they must pass my test." Lin Yue refused. Her time was short, so she needed the smartest students; otherwise, teaching them poorly would only mislead them.
The old village chief tried to persuade her again, but seeing Lin Yue's firm stance, he had no choice but to find another way to compensate Hunter Liu's family.
On the fourth day, the village chief brought over thirty children around ten years old from the village.
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