The sounds of shuffling and stumbling emerged from the dining hall, causing the maids of the Heir Apparent standing in the courtyard to glance over involuntarily.

"What in the world is going on?" Qiu Xiang, standing by the door to the Heir Apparent’s chambers, huffed under her breath. "Acting all mysterious and sneaking around..."

The word ghost made her shudder involuntarily.

It was rumored that the Young Mistress had once died and come back to life...

Originally, she hadn't believed it, but now, for some reason, she felt it might be true—otherwise, how could she have so thoroughly charmed the Heir Apparent into letting her enter his compound? Only a spirit could manage such a feat, perhaps?

When Qi Yue settled into the Heir Apparent’s compound, the older maids who had been punished, demoted, or forced to kneel and cry at Qi Tong’s courtyard dared not cause trouble here. Furthermore, the Young Mistress, who everyone assumed was destined for divorce, had moved safely into the Heir Apparent’s residence. Even if it wasn't in the same bed, it was enough to shock everyone.

If the Young Mistress secured her position, she would eventually become the Marquis's wife, ruling the Marquis's household completely. To offend her would mean...

Many people weighed this thought, then let the idea rest, deciding to wait and see.

At this morning's assembly, the managing women summoned to the Heir Apparent’s courtyard were gathered for the first time completely. Those who had been absent from previous meetings were now formally disqualified from entering.

Qi Yue swiftly promoted several trustworthy maids to fill the vacant positions—maids she had already noted on the household roster. Following this, she announced punishments for the managing women who had failed to fulfill their promised duties. These penalties were mere fines, far lighter than losing their posts. The women, who had been nervously bracing themselves for a fate as dire as being executed, breathed a collective sigh of relief, some even showing an almost visible gratitude toward Qi Yue.

"The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching. Everyone has given their suggestions regarding the preparations and reviewed the old precedents. Everything should be handled thoroughly and perfectly according to plan. After the festival, we shall reward you all." Qi Yue concluded the morning meeting with a smile.

The maids below responded with a messy chorus of assent. Although their voices were still uneven, the general order was much improved compared to the past.

Mother Su watched all this from the sidelines with a cold eye.

After finishing the household affairs, Chang Yuncheng was nowhere to be found again. Qi Yue casually asked Qiu Xiang, who reacted as if questioned by a thief. Qi Yue dropped the matter; it was no great issue if the Young Mistress went out without the Heir Apparent accompanying her.

"Is your master still in the study?" Qi Yue heard the eldest disciple say this immediately upon entering the Hall of A Thousand Talents, startling her.

"What did Qi Niangzi say to my master? Why is the old man..." The eldest disciple looked equally conflicted.

Qi Yue sighed. She hadn't said much, only that the medicine she presented had agitated the elderly doctor.

"I'll go check on the patient now," she said, shaking her head as she took the clothes Ah Ru handed her and pulled them on.

"Check on the patient?" The eldest disciple was thoroughly confused as he watched Qi Yue walk deeper inside.

Hu San eagerly scurried over to take the medicine box from Ah Ru. "Master, you're here." He called out cheerfully, "Ah Ru girl, let me, let me."

Ah Ru kept her head down, ignoring him, and refused to hand over the box.

"Don't call me Master," Qi Yue glared at him. "You have your own master."

Hu San managed a sheepish smile. "But my master told me to call you Master," he explained.

The circling titles of 'Master' made Qi Yue dizzy, so she simply ignored him. The injured man had already been moved to a private room in the Hall of A Thousand Talents. As per Qi Yue's strict instructions, access was severely restricted, requiring special attire to enter, and the room had to be fumigated with wine daily.

"Qi Niangzi is here."

As she reached the doorway, she heard a loud male voice call out from within.

"Not bad, sounds robust; recovery seems good." Qi Yue smiled, pushing the door open to look at the young man lying on the cot.

"Qi Niangzi is here." The dark-faced strong man serving as the bedside attendant rose happily to salute her, repeating the words he offered at every meeting. "Thank you, Niangzi, for saving his life."

"It is what I should do, what I should do," Qi Yue smiled back.

Her intention was that a physician should save lives, but the dark-faced man understood it as his duty as a retainer of the Dingxi Marquisate to obey the Heir Apparent’s commands. Both smiled, letting the topic pass.

The injured man attempted to sit up, smiling at Qi Yue.

"Don't move, lie still. If the wound reopens, you’ll suffer more pain," Qi Yue said quickly, smiling.

Ah Ru, meanwhile, skillfully opened the medical box and handed Qi Yue the stethoscope.

"If Niangzi, the miraculous divine physician, is here, I won't suffer at all," the injured man laughed.

This young man was cheerful and liked to joke. Qi Yue smiled as she asked him how he slept, what he ate, and how many times the wound had pained him, while systematically checking his pulse, blood pressure, and temperature with her instruments.

"The IV drip can stop now," she turned to tell Hu San.

Hu San was happily preparing the infusion equipment for her. Qi Yue had instructed him yesterday to pull the needle, which was less intimidating for Hu San than inserting one, so he had been looking forward to learning today. Hearing this, he reluctantly gave up.

"Leave the rest of his treatment to you and your fellow disciples. Follow their instructions on what medicine to give," Qi Yue stated.

"Ah? How can that be? Niangzi, why are you abandoning me?" the injured man immediately protested.

The term Niangzi sounded profoundly strange to Qi Yue, causing her skin to prickle uncomfortably.

"That's right, Master, you should continue the treatment," Hu San quickly added.

I can't continue treating him; I don't have all the medicine here, Qi Yue thought with a wry smile.

"Um, actually, I'm not very skilled at treating illnesses. I only know how to stitch wounds and things like that," she chuckled.

"Ah? Then how...?" Hu San asked, eyes wide.

Qi Yue shrugged and spread her hands.

"My grandmother never taught me. I only know this much. As for diagnosing and prescribing medicine, I know absolutely nothing about that, so you two must rely on yourselves," she said vaguely, not offering further explanation.

Hu San nodded. "One trick well-mastered conquers all, Master. Knowing this is enough for you," he remarked.

"Then, Qi Niangzi, will you not come again in the future?" the injured man asked anxiously from the cot.

"Of course, I'll come. In a few days, I still need to remove your stitches," Qi Yue said with a smile.

The injured man broke into a wide grin, revealing white teeth.

"That's good, that’s very good. I thought I wouldn't see Qi Niangzi again," he said with relief.

Ah Ru beside them coughed lightly.

"Let me handle this," she suddenly stepped in front of Qi Yue, reaching out to take the stethoscope, effectively blocking the injured man's view.

Qi Yue handed it over, unconcerned.

"Hey, you..." The man on the cot couldn't help but prop himself up, swaying slightly.

"Didn't you say you were going to see Doctor Liu?" Ah Ru reminded him quietly.

Qi Yue made an "Oh" sound, smiled at the injured man and the dark-faced attendant, and said, "Then you two rest well, I'm leaving now." She waved goodbye to them.

The injured man stared at the pair of smiling eyes visible above the mask and opened his mouth as if to say something.

"Qi Niangzi, please proceed," the dark-faced attendant interrupted him, quickly standing up and pinching the injured man's arm fiercely under the guise of movement.

The injured man sucked in a sharp breath, watching Qi Yue turn and walk toward the door.

"Qi Niangzi!" he still couldn't help but call out loudly.

Qi Yue turned back, her eyes questioning.

"I... my name is Jiang Hai," the injured man said.

Qi Yue smiled, waved at him, and stepped out.

Jiang Hai watched the annoying maid close the door, cutting off his view. He sighed and sank heavily back onto the cot, staring at the ceiling.

"You insolent brat, watch yourself. This isn't the frontier where you can casually fool around." The dark-faced attendant grabbed his ear and hissed quietly, "That's someone connected to the Heir Apparent’s residence!"

"So what if she's connected to the Heir Apparent's residence? I'll just ask the Heir Apparent to grant her to me," Jiang Hai said nonchalantly.

"That Niangzi’s skill is extraordinary, she’s not ordinary. How can you shamelessly ask the Heir Apparent? Besides, she’s clearly dressed as a married woman. Give it a rest," the dark-faced attendant glared and warned.

He had forgotten that fact. Jiang Hai paused, only then remembering that although the Niangzi looked young, she was indeed dressed as a married woman.

"That's truly a pity," he sighed, looking crestfallen.

The dark-faced attendant became joyful, enjoying his companion's dismay. "Ha! You rogue, relying on your pretty face to flirt with every woman, making us brothers jealous. It's your turn now," he grinned widely.

Footsteps sounded outside the door, accompanied by a laugh.

"When?" Chang Yuncheng pushed the door open, asking as he entered.

"Heir Apparent!" the injured man and the dark-faced attendant quickly shouted. The attendant stood at attention, while the injured man struggled to get up.

"Lie down," Chang Yuncheng said with a raised hand, his tone concise but leaving no room for refusal.

Jiang Hai obeyed and lay back down.

"Heir Apparent, you don't need to visit us every day. This lad is tough; he won't die," the dark-faced attendant said. "You haven't been home for ages; now that you're finally back, you still worry about us."

Chang Yuncheng hummed in response but said nothing.

"Heir Apparent," Jiang Hai suddenly remembered something and scrambled to sit up, wincing as the injury bothered him. "Is Qi Niangzi's husband still around?"

Chang Yuncheng was momentarily stunned by the sudden question.

"Qi Niangzi?" He didn't immediately recall who that was, frowning slightly as he asked.

"The physician from your residence who treated my injury," Jiang Hai quickly explained, a hint of hope in his voice. "Does she have a husband still?"

Chang Yuncheng finally understood, but his expression became even uglier.

"Her?" he vaguely replied.

"Scold this brat!" The dark-faced attendant hadn't expected him to ask the Heir Apparent directly and slapped Jiang Hai.

"Heir Apparent, if her husband is gone, please grant her to this humble one," Jiang Hai said, grinning and ducking his head.

Chang Yuncheng's face instantly turned ashen.

When Qi Yue met Doctor Liu, she was startled by the scene in his room. Books and papers were scattered everywhere. Liu Pucheng, who had been gone for just a day, scrambled out from among them, looking haggard and exhausted.

"Qi Niangzi, I've found several prescriptions. Look, can you concoct something with the same effect as your anesthetic?" He waved several sheets of paper at Qi Yue excitedly, grasping them tightly.

Qi Yue looked at the old man whose eyes were red from staying up all night, feeling a complicated emotion.

What could she say? Tell this elderly scholar that the medicines she brought were from a thousand years in the future, and no matter how hard he tried, he would never see them? Or should she say nothing, allowing this elder to believe they could easily be replicated, leading him to become obsessed, to renounce his own medical skills, and abandon his path?

Was what she was doing wrong? She had stitched the wound of Ah Ru's brother, prompting Hu San to imitate her. That was just an external suture; if a doctor saw the abdominal surgery she performed on Ah Hao, they might try to copy it...

Qi Yue shivered involuntarily. Saving one life might inadvertently lead to the deaths of many others. She looked at Liu Pucheng, who, engrossed in excitement, stood up again, rummaging through the piles of books and papers, muttering something Qi Yue could no longer hear.

This physician, rumored to be the most famous in the city, possessed vast experience and superb skill, and had trained so many apprentices. His duty was to use his art to alleviate the suffering of the people and to pass on this knowledge and technique to benefit generation after generation, not to become obsessed with one dazzling skill, thereby wasting the path he was meant to follow.

She finally understood why her father had sent her to the countryside for experience. What she should do now was nothing—stay quietly within that compound, guard that beam, and wait for the moment to return. If she did that, for this place, it would be as if she had never been here, changing nothing and influencing nothing, allowing everything to flow quietly along the track history was meant to follow.

Perhaps this was what she should do now, what she must do.

"Doctor Liu," Qi Yue called, stepping forward.

Liu Pucheng didn't hear her; he was flipping through a book, murmuring to himself.

"Doctor Liu!" Qi Yue raised her voice again.

Only then did Liu Pucheng walk over, holding the book, his face alight with excitement.

"Qi Niangzi, what do you think of this?" he asked, offering the book.

Qi Yue shook her head and held up a hand to block the book he was offering.

Liu Pucheng looked at her, puzzled.

"Qi Niangzi, what is it...?" His eyes, bloodshot from fatigue, were filled with surprise.

"It’s useless. The medicines I used cannot be replicated," Qi Yue said, her expression serious.

"Qi Niangzi, since someone could create it, doesn't that prove it can be created?" Liu Pucheng said, smiling faintly.

"It cannot," Qi Yue interrupted him again, taking a deep breath. "Because it wasn't created; it's innate, a naturally occurring... plant..."

"A plant?" Liu Pucheng looked at her, full of astonishment. "Then—"

"This plant doesn't exist here," Qi Yue finished for him. "The person who had it brought it from overseas. That plant is not found here. If one day someone can sail a great ship to the place that person visited, perhaps there will be a chance to obtain this medicine again. But for now, it will not exist here, Doctor Liu. Please stop exhausting yourself."

Behind her, Liu Pucheng’s expression became distant and instantly dimmed; the book slipped from his grasp and clattered to the floor.

Qi Yue dared not, nor could she bear to, look at Liu Pucheng’s face. After speaking, she bowed deeply.

"For the rest of that injured man’s treatment, I must rely on you. Thank you," she said, turning and walking away without looking back.