Chapter 180: I’ll Take the Blame for You, but Don’t Forget to Give Me the Benefits in the Future
Wen Jun kept Wen Xiuyi’s instructions firmly in mind. Once the patient flow thinned out and Manager Qiu returned home to keep his two guests company, Wen Jun finally found an opportunity to bring the matter up with Divine Doctor Jin.
“Meng De? You mean that stepfather of yours?” Divine Doctor Jin seemed to have a vague memory of such a person, but he recalled him as merely an insignificant, low-ranking official.
Stroking his beard, Divine Doctor Jin pondered for a moment. “I’ve been away from the capital for many years, so I’m not entirely clear on the current situation there either. I’ll write a letter to Yi’er’s father and have him look into this Meng De.”
Wen Jun gave Divine Doctor Jin a solemn, formal bow. “Then many thanks to you, Master, and to Senior Brother.”
Divine Doctor Jin laughed heartily. “We are all one family, what is there to thank? Old Qiu and I adore Datou so much; if they truly fix their designs on him, we naturally cannot sit by and watch idly. You can wait for the news in peace, and tell your father to set his mind at ease. With us around, no one can take Datou away.
“But then again, how did you all learn that they would return to take Datou away? After all, when your mother left, she was thoroughly resolute. Out of the three of you siblings, she didn’t want a single one.”
Wen Jun could hardly explain that they possessed advanced knowledge of the plot, so he could only fabricate a story: “Your disciple dares not hide anything from Master. Before my mother left, I happened to overhear her speaking with Datou, saying that once she secured a firm foothold in the Meng household, she would come back to fetch him.”
Divine Doctor Jin arched an eyebrow. “To fetch only Datou?”
Wen Jun lowered his head, putting on a thoroughly hurt expression.
Divine Doctor Jin let out a deep, heavy sigh. Thinking that the child had overheard with his own ears that his biological mother didn’t want him and only wanted his younger brother despite the bond of blood, he was certain it must have broken the boy’s heart.
“Your father is wonderful, and your grandfather, grandmother, uncles, and aunts all treasure you and Yao’er like absolute prizes. There is no need to remain unable to let go over such a minor matter. Your mother… well, let it be. Since she chose to abandon you all, regardless of whether it was due to your father’s past muddle-headedness, it was ultimately her who hardened her heart against you first.
“Your future path is still incredibly long. Once you inherit the entirety of my medical expertise, a seat in the Imperial Academy of Medicine might not be out of your reach in the future—heck, you might even become the Head of the Academy. What you need to do now is study medicine with a peaceful mind, and not let external matters disrupt your inner character.
“When that day comes in the future, you can stand before her openly and grandly, and she will know that her original choice was an absolute mistake.”
Divine Doctor Jin’s consolation was entirely heartfelt. Had the original host heard these words, he might well have been deeply moved. However, Wen Jun’s feelings toward this biological mother only existed within the fragmented memories left behind by the original host; because of Datou’s plot line in the original book, he couldn’t muster a single shred of goodwill toward her.
Despite this, Wen Jun still gave Divine Doctor Jin another solemn bow. “Thank you for your guidance, Master. Your disciple will keep it engraved upon his heart.”
Seeing that his disciple’s heart was eased, Divine Doctor Jin sidled over and whispered in a low voice, “Those things you gave me last time—while there’s no one around right now, you ought to teach Master how to use them properly again.” With that, he led Wen Jun into his resting quarters. One explained while the other listened, except the roles of teacher and student had been completely reversed from Divine Doctor Jin to Wen Jun.
Upon arriving at the Xie residence, Wen Yao used the exact same method to serve the potatoes and sweet potatoes to Qiu Rongrong. Learning of the yield capacity of these two crops, Qiu Rongrong—a person who had never set foot in a field in her life—was thoroughly dumbfounded.
“The yield is actually this high?”
Once her astonishment subsided, Qiu Rongrong said, “Yao’er, can’t you scrounge up a bit more for me to use as seed? This is far too little. No, I’ll go speak with Grandpa Wen and have him allocate a larger share to me.” Qiu Rongrong spotted the massive utility of these items at a single glance; they were bound to be cultivated on a grand scale in the future.
However, the amount Wen Yao had hauled over wasn’t even enough for a single mu of land. With hundreds of mu of fertile land on her manor, she could accommodate any amount, no matter how much more was brought.
Seeing that the crops in the manor’s fields were nearing harvest, and according to what Uncle Wen said, another round of these things could be planted after the wheat was harvested, time was truly of the essence.
To Qiu Rongrong right now, time was money.
Wen Yao certainly wanted to give her more—she had plenty inside her space. It was just that the crop had already been brought to light with the old man, and he knew exactly how much they had at home down to the last digit. Trying to pull a fast one would likely prove rather difficult.
Furthermore, this wasn’t her primary purpose in seeking out Qiu Rongrong today.
“Sister, do you think these things are good?”
Qiu Rongrong nodded almost without a moment’s hesitation. “Of course they are good! If they are truly as you say—capable of serving as both a vegetable and a hunger-staving staple food with such a high yield—do you know what that represents? It represents that countless people will no longer have to starve to death because of low grain yields and various taxes.
“Although our Qiu family consists of merchants, we haven’t done any less over the years to aid the impoverished. Moreover, you also mentioned that this thing isn’t picky about soil quality and can be grown anywhere, with only the yield varying. If this is truly promoted across the land, there will be nothing but benefits and no drawbacks whatsoever.”
Listening to her speech, Wen Yao suddenly broke into a grin.
Qiu Rongrong looked utterly bewildered. “I’m speaking seriously with you, what are you laughing at?”
Wen Yao burst out laughing, giggling as she said, “I thought you were thinking about how to use them to make money, Sister.”
Qiu Rongrong was taken aback for a moment, and only then did she realize this wretched girl was actually testing her. She lunged forward and began tickling Wen Yao relentlessly, making Wen Yao beg for mercy repeatedly.
“Sister, Sister, I was wrong! I was wrong! Please don’t tickle me anymore, Hahaha, it tickles so much, stop it!”
Pressing her down, Qiu Rongrong put on a thoroughly fierce expression. “Do you admit your mistake?”
Wen Yao nodded repeatedly. “I admit it, I admit it! I won’t dare to tease you like this ever again.”
Only then did Qiu Rongrong let her go. Smoothing down her clothes, she said, “Am I the type of person who only cares about falling into a pit of money?”
Wen Yao arched an eyebrow. Aren’t you?
This caused Qiu Rongrong to want to lunge at her again, but joking aside, they still had to address the real business.
Qiu Rongrong adjusted her dress and sat properly, saying, “How much money can this thing actually make? Sometimes, reputation is far more important than money.”
She, Qiu Rongrong, had plenty of money right now. The only thing she lacked was that single shred of official reputation.
Scholar, peasant, artisan, merchant—she was acutely aware of the low social standing of merchants. Otherwise, when a minor branch of the Xie family came to propose marriage back then, her parents wouldn’t have agreed so readily. Had it not been for her desire to secure a better path for the younger generations of her family, she wouldn’t have wronged herself by swallowing her anger in the Xie family for so many years.
But things were fine now; she felt refreshed and invigorated every single day. Only now did she realize that life after marriage could actually be lived with such wild abandon.
Thinking up to this point, Qiu Rongrong said, “If Grandpa Wen is worried that planting this item will attract unwanted attention, just plant it all on my manor. My manor has people guarding it daily, so the sprouts definitely won’t be stolen.”
“We aren’t afraid of them being stolen right now. It’s just that, Sister, there is something I want to ask of you.”
“Speak.”
Only then did Wen Yao explain the entire situation to Qiu Rongrong, detailing this and that.
After a long while, just when Wen Yao was beginning to worry if this elder sister was angry because she had used her name as a shield, Qiu Rongrong actually burst into a completely unladylike laugh, rocking back and forth. It took her a good while before she reached out a finger to poke Wen Yao’s forehead.
“Well aren’t you something! After all this time, you used me as a cover, and only now do you come to tell me. Then isn’t giving me this tiny bit of seed a bit insufficient? After all, this item was supposedly procured by ‘me helping you.'”
Wen Yao stared blankly at her, opening her mouth slightly. “Sister, aren’t you curious about…”
Qiu Rongrong shot her an affectionate, chiding glare. “Stop right there. I’m not curious, nor will I ask. Yao’er, I treat you like my own flesh-and-blood sister; it was your appearance that changed me. I, Qiu Rongrong, am absolutely not an ungrateful person. So as for how exactly the item came about, I won’t ask you either. I have only one thing to say: from now on, you cannot leave me out of such wondrous matters again. Look at this, I’m already late by a whole season, I’ve lost out tremendously!”
