The little girl before her hardly held any semblance of the Marquis's young mistress, clad in the plainest floral jacket, her hair tied back with just two red strings—just like the poor children scampering in the streets.

"I, I sell flatbread," Yan'er stammered in reply.

"I asked why you're out here selling flatbread!" Qi Yue called out, striding forward, grasping Yan'er to examine her closely.

The loiterers by the roadside, whose casual gossip had been interrupted, grew irritable. But when they saw how exquisitely beautiful the woman was, they couldn't help but try to flirt, only to hear passersby whisper that it was Madam Qi, Madam Qi of the Qianjin Hall, that divine physician...

The two idlers immediately shuddered.

Though they hadn't seen her in person, the name Madam Qi was already famous throughout Yongqing Prefecture.

A beggar who became the young mistress of a Marquis, then received an imperial decree for divorce, possessing the skill to perform abdominal surgery, daring to lead people into fights, and having all the young masters of the city as her followers—a single shout from her, and a large group would rush to follow her bidding, wherever she pointed...

The idlers quickly turned and tried to sneak away tiptoeing.

"Stop," came the woman's sharp command from behind them.

When she told them to stop, the two idlers truly dared not leave.

"Madam..." They turned back, bowing with forced smiles, "We... we didn't know..."

"The money for the flatbread," Qi Yue said sternly.

The idlers hastily pulled a handful of coins from their clothes and stuffed them into Yan'er's hand before quickly fleeing.

Following Yan'er, they arrived at an alley near the city gate. After several twists and turns, they stopped before a doorway.

The door was half-open, and inside the courtyard, two women were talking.

"Madam Chang, you must finish laundering these clothes quickly; they are urgently needed," one woman said.

Chang Chunlan, dressed in a plain gown, nodded.

"Don't worry, Sister Wang," she replied with a grateful smile, using her hand to push back a stray strand of hair. "I will certainly finish washing them."

Only then did the woman nod and walk out.

"Thank you for finding me work, Sister," Chang Chunlan said, following her and thanking her repeatedly. When she looked up again, she froze.

Qi Yue stood at the doorway, pulling Yan'er along, while A'ru beside her also wore a look of utter astonishment.

The small courtyard was somewhat messy, with drying clothes occupying all the open space.

"Yan'er and I have moved out of the Marquis's residence," Chang Chunlan said, moving two small stools over and wiping her hands on her clothes. "Sit down. It’s quite untidy here, so I won't invite you inside; I don't even have tea..."

"I didn't come here to listen to you talk about that," Qi Yue interrupted, not sitting down. "What are you doing? Why did you move out when everything was fine? Did they throw you out?"

"No, Yan'er wanted to leave. Yan'er originally planned to live with her aunt, but Mother wouldn't allow it..." Yan'er quickly explained.

Chang Chunlan stopped her.

"Go, go boil some water," she instructed.

Although reluctant, Yan'er obeyed and left.

"Sister, what on earth happened?" Qi Yue didn't believe the excuse and asked with a serious expression.

Chang Chunlan smiled and smoothed her hair back with hands that were swollen and pale from soaking.

"I'm learning from you," she said.

Qi Yue slapped her forehead.

"Why are you learning from me!" she exhaled. "Can you be like me?"

Chang Chunlan maintained her smile.

"Yes, I am not as capable as you," she admitted.

Qi Yue stamped her foot.

"This isn't about capability!" she urged. "I, I..."

I am different from you. I am accustomed to a life where I have to hold up the sky myself, but you, an ancient woman whose world revolved around her father and husband, are completely different.

Good heavens, running out like this—how can she manage? The gossip of the populace could drown her.

"But didn't you just manage?" Chang Chunlan asked.

"I, I have a skill; I can live well even if I leave," Qi Yue declared, eyes wide.

"While I don't have your kind of skill, I also have my hands," Chang Chunlan said with a smile, holding up her hand to look at it. "See, these hands of mine can support myself and Yan'er too. It turns out, if you truly want to live, you can live however you wish."

Is this my own 'butterfly effect'?

Qi Yue was speechless looking at Chang Chunlan. If she hadn't set the example, Chang Chunlan would absolutely not have dared to act this way, right?

But, damn it, this wasn't some example for her; for Qi Yue, this was the most normal course of action!

"Fine then. Since you are learning from me, come with me," Qi Yue finally said.

"If I wanted to rely on you, I would have gone from the start," Chang Chunlan replied, shaking her head. "Besides, who are you relying on? Aren't you relying on yourself?"

"Nonsense," Qi Yue retorted.

Chang Chunlan was stunned. Yan'er, who had just walked over, found the exchange quite amusing.

"Nonsense," she mimicked.

Qi Yue quickly covered her mouth, a hint of embarrassment on her face.

"Don't learn my bad habits from me," she threatened playfully.

Yan'er burst out laughing.

Chang Chunlan smiled too.

"How am I relying on myself? Didn't I take half the assets from the Marquis's residence? Those are your grandmother's assets, which you are certainly entitled to enjoy," Qi Yue said, taking Yan'er's hand. "Our Yan'er has suffered enough; she has endured more than enough. From now on, it’s time for enjoyment and pleasure. We must make up for all the lost laughter and joy from the past."

She lowered herself as she spoke, looking at Yan'er.

"Hardship isn't the only path in life. Some lives can achieve success without hardship. Yan'er has already passed through adversity, so from now on, it's enough just to enjoy prosperity," she said, then looked up at Chang Chunlan. "Sister, since you are learning from me, then learn to live a good life, just like me. We will only live well, without suffering or enduring slights, living exactly as we please."

Yan'er smiled even more happily looking at Qi Yue.

Chang Chunlan's eyes grew slightly red, but this time she did not shed tears; instead, she nodded.

The next day, when Qi Yue went to work, a little shadow followed behind her.

"I am Madam Qi's assistant," Yan'er introduced herself boldly to the curious disciples.

Everyone recognized her. At this moment, Yan'er was no longer wearing a veil; she exposed the scar on her mouth openly.

"The wound is healing so well," the disciples commented one after another.

While her scar was visible and subjected to comments, the discussion here made Yan'er feel completely at ease.

"Mhm, in a few more days, it will certainly be better," everyone agreed.

Meanwhile, Qi Yue was asking Liu Pucheng about using Chinese medicine to treat scars.

"I could perform scar excision, but she is too young, and the time frame is too short, so I was hoping there might be a way using Chinese medicine, perhaps a plaster or something," she inquired.

She then chuckled wryly; if this were the modern era, performing cosmetic surgery on Yan'er would take mere minutes.

"Besides scar excision, there's also dermabrasion," she continued. "Did you know, we can even grind down bone, sharpen a jawline, create double eyelids, implant artificial dimples—in short, we can turn an ugly duckling into a heavenly beauty."

Startling, right? Qi Yue waited to see Liu Pucheng's astonishment.

"Dermabrasion," Liu Pucheng nodded, his expression surprised, but not by that aspect. "Little Qi, you know about this too?"

Huh? Qi Yue was amazed.

What did he mean, I know about this too?

"When I followed my master, I was fortunate enough to see the Sheng Ji Zong Lu, which contained a prescription for treating facial scars using jade grinding stones," Liu Pucheng looked at Qi Yue and smiled faintly, a smile tinged with reminiscence and emotion. "This book is only preserved in the Imperial Academy of Medicine. It turns out it wasn't some secret not to be disclosed."

However, upon reflection, if Madam Qi possessed such divine skills, what sort of texts could her master not access? The secret prescriptions she knew might not even be preserved in the Imperial Academy.

Qi Yue's mouth was agape.

"Ancient people truly were divine..." she finally murmured, looking at Liu Pucheng with a trace of eagerness. "Teacher, Teacher, please teach me everything you know."

This Madam Qi seemed perpetually unaware of how astonishing her own skills were, yet she expressed wonder at things that were commonplace here, as if she had come from another world...

The thought flashed through Liu Pucheng’s mind, and he paused himself. Another world—was it a celestial realm like Penglai Island? He was amused by his own idea; physicians should neither discuss nor dwell on gods and ghosts.

Because there were few doctors in the clinic, Qi Yue and Liu Pucheng took turns working the night shift, one day each. The wards were kept empty, as the concept of hospitalization was entirely new—the poor couldn't afford it, and the rich refused it.

The disciples on night duty extinguished the lights in the ward section, and the courtyard grew quiet.

After reading for a while, Qi Yue stepped out of her room. The auxiliary disciples were gathered in the courtyard, chatting and laughing, the aroma of wine and grilled food drifting out. Seeing Qi Yue emerge, they all rose to greet her.

Qi Yue told them to carry on, moving to another area—the storage room, which was built square, its roof slightly flatter than the others, also used for airing large surgical cloths. She propped a ladder and climbed up.

The low, single-story building was naturally no match for modern skyscrapers, but fortunately, the surrounding buildings were also low-rise, offering an expansive view. The night market of Yongqing Prefecture was still lively; she could see scattered lights, hear hawkers' calls, and the faint sounds of flutes and strings.

Qi Yue stood there watching absentmindedly, then pulled a tiny wine flask from her pocket.

"...Moon, here, have a drink of beer..."

Looking up again, the scene before her seemed to change: towering buildings, brilliant lights.

Two senior colleagues from her department walked over. One tossed her a can of beer.

"Ha, drinking on your night shift tonight!" Qi Yue laughed, catching the can.

"Ah, it's fine. If I drink too much, I still have you," the senior colleague chuckled.

Afterward, they would lean against the railing, talking about everything from TV shows to movies, and, of course, all the gossip from the hospital.

Qi Yue tilted her head back, brought the small flask to her lips, and drank.

"Cheers!" she said, raising the flask towards the night sky, then took another sip and raised it again.

"Cheers, Chang Yuncheng."

A lump in the corner, merged with the night shadows, suddenly stirred, but it managed to steady itself just in time.

"Miss? Miss?" A'ru's call came from the courtyard below.

Qi Yue quickly tossed the wine flask away while forcefully clapping and responding into the empty air.

A'ru quickly climbed up.

"Don't climb so high, what if you get dizzy?" she said, sniffing the air. "What's that smell? Are you drinking?"

Qi Yue laughed loudly, waving her hands dismissively.

"What drinking? It's them drinking," she pointed towards the disciples still sitting and eating in the courtyard. Qi Yue had introduced grilled skewers, and everyone quickly became addicted. Sitting down after a long day of labor to eat and chat was incredibly pleasant; this had almost become a mandatory ritual for every night shift. There was just one rule: alcohol consumption was limited to just one small flask, shared among seven or eight people, so each person got barely two small cups.

Qi Yue pointed at the courtyard and laughed heartily.

"This wine smells so strong..." she said.

A'ru was somewhat exasperated but fond.

"Alright, come down quickly. It’s not busy tonight, get some rest early," she said, nudging Qi Yue.

The two descended, chatting and laughing. The rooftop returned to silence. After a long while, once the people eating and drinking in the courtyard had dispersed and the lights were extinguished, a figure moved in a corner of the roof. He swiftly climbed down and slipped into a room, sat down, pulled out a small slip of paper, and began to write.

One more chapter pending, and seeking votes, RS.