Chapter 132: What a Precious Welcoming Gift

With such a brilliant master, to be willing to send a disciple away to the countryside at the prime of her life—this must mean a catastrophe occurred that left the master unable to save themselves.

If it were possible, Elder Sun wanted to exhaust all his connections to ensure her safety. He wanted to do his part to protect such a formidable practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine.

"I am self-taught," Xu Lin said with a smile as she collected her silver needles one by one, then produced a pre-prepared pill and handed it to Huang Hongli. "Take three of these pills, three times a day. If you haven't fully recovered after finishing them, I will come back to check on you."

"Good, good, thank you so much." Huang Hongli treasured the pills as he tucked them away. "Tell me, how much are the consultation and medicine fees?"

"Five yuan for the consultation and the medicine together," Xu Lin said, pointing at the pills. "I used high-quality, aged ginseng in those."

"Yes, yes, I understand," Huang Hongli replied, paying immediately without a hint of reluctance. To recover fully in three days—he wouldn't have believed it possible without precious medicine; pneumonia was not an illness easily cured. Had they been sent to the hospital, the costs would have been even higher. More importantly, they had no access to a hospital anyway.

Xu Lin pocketed the money, her gaze shifting to Elder Sun. After a moment of hesitation, she pointed to his legs. "Your legs can still be saved. Shall I treat them?"

"They can really be saved?" Elder Sun touched his legs. "But I have no money."

"It doesn't matter, you can owe me for now," Xu Lin said, her peach-blossom eyes flashing with a touch of mischief. She had not missed the kindness that had flickered in Elder Sun’s expression earlier; this old man was no ordinary person. Even in the midst of his own plight, he had wanted to help her "non-existent" master, proving he was a man of great integrity and vision.

Elder Sun stroked his beard. Being in debt was something he had always disliked throughout his life, though he had been owed many favors by others. Sighing as he looked at his legs, he hesitated. His legs had suffered severe damage from frostbite in the bitter cold, were neglected, and then later broken by others. Now, he was nothing but a crippled old man. But if they could be healed...

"How much would the medical expenses be? We can scrape together the money to help him pay in advance," Huang Hongli whispered.

The other elderly people nodded in agreement. Xu Lin scanned their faces, surprise flashing in her eyes. Looking closely, she realized she could see threads of kinship between the elderly couple and Zhao Qing and Zhao Nan. As for the Huang couple, if she wasn't mistaken, they also shared familial ties with Huang Zishu and Lin Zihao. She hadn't expected this—these people were hiding their backgrounds quite well.

Although the Zhao sisters were low-key, Xu Lin could tell they were not short on money. If they were well-off, it meant the elderly couple likely wasn't struggling either. As for Huang Zishu and Lin Zihao, even though she hadn't been here long, she knew they were no simple characters; they frequently traded on the black market. Looking at it this way, the only one truly short on funds was the old man before her.

"He has severe chronic rheumatism, and since his legs were broken and there are other old injuries, a full recovery won't be easy." Xu Lin calculated for a moment before holding up two fingers. "Two hundred yuan. That covers everything—the old injuries, the broken bones, and the rheumatism. I guarantee a full recovery."

"Really?" Huang Hongli’s eyes brightened. He extended his arm, "Then take a look at me. Can my chronic ailments be cured?"

Old Mrs. Huang, leaning against the bed, laughed and scolded her husband for his eagerness, though she made no move to stop him. Seeing Xu Lin look her way, she smiled at her. "Go ahead and check us all. We will pay whatever it costs to be treated." As she spoke, she fumbled under the kang and pulled out a small cloth bundle. It looked very old, as if torn from tattered clothing, but when she opened it, Xu Lin’s eyes widened.

"This is a jade pendant once worn by an emperor. It has a history of several hundred years. I know that in these times it isn't worth much, but..." Mrs. Huang stroked the pendant affectionately, "once this period passes, it will certainly be priceless." She left out the fact that the pendant was already a treasure beyond price.

"That’s not just a case of supply and demand; it is a priceless treasure," Xu Lin noted with a sharp eye, sensing the dense imperial energy emanating from it. This pendant was at least several centuries old. To have survived until now was truly remarkable, and for it to retain such concentrated imperial energy, it must have been worn by more than one sovereign. The Huang family’s heritage was profound.

"Since you say it is a priceless treasure, could it be exchanged for the health of us old folks?" Mrs. Huang asked with a smile.

"That would be more than enough, but you would be taking a huge loss," Xu Lin said, shaking her head. "If money can solve a problem, you really shouldn't use a jade pendant."

"But there are many problems that money cannot solve." Mrs. Huang beckoned Xu Lin over and pressed the pendant into her hand. "This pendant has a destiny with you; just keep it."

Xu Lin tilted her head in a charming way, which put Mrs. Huang in an excellent mood. "Good child, I know that with your medical skills, the consultation fee alone is worth far more than five yuan. You are considerate of us, but we old folks cannot take advantage of you with a clear conscience."

Mrs. Huang gestured toward Elder Sun. "His old injuries—even the most renowned imperial physicians wouldn't dare guarantee a cure."

Huang Hongli realized the truth and nodded in agreement. He had thought too simply before. With Xu Lin's acupuncture skills, five yuan would never have been enough to hire her. Moreover, the pills contained high-quality, aged ginseng; they were the ones getting the better deal. There was no more to be said—they had to insist she keep the pendant, or they would have no face left if word got out that they had taken advantage of a young girl.

Elder Zhao Jiang joined the persuasion, signaling his wife to bring out a gift. The young girl was kind-hearted and worthy of their friendship. Mrs. Zhao fumbled on the kang for a moment and produced a jade bracelet. Smiling, she said, "Good child, this is Grandma Zhao’s greeting gift. You cannot refuse."

"Huh?" Xu Lin was stunned. How did it become a "greeting gift," and when did she become "Grandma Zhao"? Things were moving far too fast; she hadn't intended to build such close ties with these people.

"Good child, surely you don't think little of Grandma Zhao's gift?" Mrs. Zhao put on a stern face, her eyes filled with mock resentment.

Xu Lin quickly waved her hands. How could she think little of it? The bracelet was top-tier imperial green jade; in the future, it might be worth tens of millions. This gift was far too precious.

Elder Zhao joined in, "Good child, we aren't refusing your help to restore our health, so you shouldn't refuse our greeting gift."

"Exactly, exactly! It’s a greeting gift, you mustn't refuse," Mrs. Huang added, finally catching on and joining the chorus of persuasion.