Please read my translation only at Moonlight Teatime.
If you like our translation, please support us on Patreon or Ko-fi or donate
She was really overthinking it, how could an unrenowned carpenter in the neighborhood get his hands on such expensive wood?
Liu Sihe gathered a few brothers to move the furniture and wooden boards to the clinic.
They arranged and installed what needed to be done.
By the afternoon, the place had been completely transformed.
The signboard would be hung on opening day.
For now, Su Xiaoxiao stored it in the accounting room.
Two days later, Zhang Erzhu also finished making the knives.
True to his word, he only charged Su Xiaoxiao two taels.
Doctor Fu consulted someone to choose an auspicious date, it was the eighteenth of the month, ideal for opening.
However, on the eve of the opening, the clinic ran into trouble.
Because they were opening the next day, everyone had spent the entire day tidying up the clinic.
They worked late into the night and were just about to close when a woman supporting a man in his early twenties arrived.
"Doctor! Doctor! Please save my son!"
Doctor Fu had just finished checking the medicine cabinets.
Hearing the woman’s cries, he hurried over. "Let me take a look!"
The woman glanced at her injured son and asked tearfully, "I came because I heard Renxin Hall has excellent medical skills. Doctor, you must cure my son!"
If Su Xiaoxiao or Shopkeeper Sun had been there, they would have treated the patient first, regardless of whether it was Renxin Hall or not, they wouldn’t have even bothered to correct her!
But Doctor Fu was an honest and straightforward man.
Upon hearing this, he said, “Renxin Hall is next door. We’re newly opened……”
The woman interrupted him,
"What? You’re not Renxin Hall?"
She stepped back and looked up at the signboard.
The signboard hadn’t been hung yet, but it certainly wasn’t Renxin Hall.
Annoyed, she supported her injured son and left.
"Wait—"
Doctor Fu wanted to remind her that the patient’s injury was serious and that dragging him around recklessly could cause further harm.
But the woman had already walked away without looking back.
"What happened?"
Su Xiaoxiao asked, carrying a basket of sun-dried herbs from the backyard.
Doctor Fu said, "A patient just came looking for Renxin Hall but ended up here. It seemed like he was injured."
Renxin Hall had already closed for the day, and the doctor was about to board the carriage when the woman swiftly stopped him.
"Doctor! You’re from Renxin Hall, right? Please save my son! He fell off the carriage! His arm can’t move!"
This doctor was also surnamed Hu, a distant relative of the Hu family.
Due to his medical skills, he had been selected to work for the main branch.
He was a few years older than Doctor Fu, with a bit of a beard, making him appear more mature and trustworthy to patients.
The coachman said, "If the injury wasn’t serious, just come back tomorrow.….."
The woman snapped at him, "How can this not be serious? Can’t you see my son’s arm can’t move?"
Her shouting attracted street vendors and passersby.
Curious onlookers gathered around.
Doctor Hu frowned but maintained his patience, speaking gently: "Madam, please calm down first. Let me take a look."
With that, he stepped down from the footstool.
Only then did the woman’s expression soften slightly: "Then sorry trouble you, Doctor."
Doctor Hu had the coachman hold the oil lamp while he examined the patient on the spot.
He asked, "Where are you feeling unwell?"
The man replied, "I fell off the carriage. My whole body hurts, and my arm can’t move."
Doctor Hu gently lifted his right arm: "Is it this arm?"
The woman gasped: "Doctor, be careful ah!"
Doctor Hu smiled and said, "I know what I’m doing."
The crowd around them grew larger.
Doctor Hu gently moved the man’s right arm slightly, "Are you still unable to move it?"
"Yes, I can’t move it."
"Does it hurt anywhere else?"
"Everywhere hurts."
"What about your head?"
"My head doesn’t hurt."
Doctor Hu examined his clothes, which were still intact.
Aside from a scrape on the back of his hand, there were no other signs of bleeding.