Chapter 164.2
The weighing scale within Little Jing Kong"s heart was getting more and more tilted to one side. Right now, he really hoped that his bad brother-in-law had lied to him, because he couldn’t wait to make his bad brother-in-law, who became Little Eight, round and flat!
The Imperial Academy had finished the last day of cla.s.ses for this year and was now on vacation.
Xiao Liulang didn"t have to go to school the next day, so he decided to go to the market with Gu Jiao and buy some New Year"s goods.
Because they were going to shop in preparation for the New Year, the young couple got up earlier than usual.
When Little Jing Kong opened his eyes, Xiao Liulang was no longer in bed.
He went to the study first, then to the front and back yards, followed by Gu Jiao"s room, Gu Xiaoshun’s room, Gu Yan"s room, and even the elderly woman"s room.
Finally, he came to the conclusion that his bad brother-in-law was really gone!
Just then, Little Eight came running with its tail wagging.
Little Jing Kong"s eyes lit up in an instant!
……
Almost all the food to be cooked for the New Year had been bought earlier. This time, they mainly bought some snacks and some play things.
"Do you want to buy firecrackers?" Xiao Liulang asked.
"Do we still have to buy firecrackers?" Gu Jiao wondered. They planted bamboo in their front yard; she could just chop it and make one herself!
But she really hadn’t thought about firecrackers before. Furthermore, she thought firecrackers were also forbidden in the capital just like in her previous life.
Gu Jiao said, "Let’s buy some red paper for writing couplets and making paper cutting decorations."
Xiao Liulang nodded, "Okay."
The red paper in the capital looked better than the red paper in the county town, and Gu Jiao ended up buying some more.
Xiao Liulang reminded, "You don"t have to make extra couplets for Xue Ningxiang"s family this year."
Last year"s red paper was sent by Feng Lin, and Gu Jiao asked Xiao Liulang to write an extra pair of couplets, which she gave to Xue Ningxiang together with some paper cutting decorations.
Gu Jiao suddenly missed Xue Ningxiang a little.
She stilled and said, "But there"s now Granduncle. Granduncle should also put up some at home."
Xiao Liulang: Are you that addicted to recognizing relatives?
After they finished shopping, they went back to Bishui Alley.
As soon as he entered the backyard, Xiao Liulang caught sight of Little Jing Kong sitting astride a small bench, with Gu Yan"s dog in front of him.
Little Jing Kong put on his tiger shoes and vest. He also took a comb and a string to tie Little Eight’s hair.
Of course, he wasn’t very good at it so he went next door to ask his Granduncle for help.
Now he was only in charge of combing Little Eight’s hair.
He had a proud look as he combed Little Eight!
Little Jing Kong had never liked playing with dogs so much before.
However, children were always full of ideas; it wasn’t strange for them to have different ideas each day.
Xiao Liulang was about to leave when he heard Little Jing Kong called out to Little Eight, "Ah Heng~"
Xiao Liulang was shaken!
At last, Little Jing Kong saw Xiao Liulang.
However, he had already decided that Little Eight in his arms was his bad brother-in-law. Did that mean the bad brother-in-law at the door was Little Eight?
Little Jing Kong hesitated, then suddenly raised his head and shouted at Xiao Liulang, "Woof!"
Xiao Liulang：“…”
Xiao Liulang: "What"s wrong with you early in the morning?"
Little Jing Kong sighed.
He didn’t bark.
That meant he wasn’t Little Eight.
Sigh.
So disappointing.
Little Jing Kong was forced to accept the fact that his bad brother-in-law was still a person for the time being.
Xiao Liulang looked confused.
What was going on?
Was he disappointed in him because he didn"t return his bark?
He didn"t even blame him for changing the dog"s name.
Gu Jiao went to the kitchen to make breakfast.
After having their meal, Gu Jiao went to clean up the dishes, but Xiao Liulang said, "I"ll wash them."
The elderly woman said brazenly, "No need. You both just go about your business. Someone else will wash the dishes."
That someone else was none other than Old Chief.
After being robbed of his private money and being seized of his house, Old Chief began a life of hard labor at the hands of the elderly women.
There were many things to be done at home, hence Gu Jiao hadn’t gone to the medical hall these days. But there was still a little patient with st.i.tches in Zhuque Street, and today was the day her st.i.tches would be removed.
Gu Jiao packed up her back basket and went out.
Xiao Liulang gave her a look and asked, "Going out?"
Gu Jiao answered, "House visit."
It was already getting hard to hide her medical skill these days, so Gu Jiao simply thought that she might as well not hide it.
“Is it far?" Xiao Liulang asked again.
"Zhuque Street." Gu Jiao replied.
"It so happens that I also have to deliver something there, let’s go together."
Xiao Liulang wrote several articles for a wealthy young master, who was also a student of the Imperial Academy, and promised to deliver them to the other party"s house before New Year"s Eve.
Gu Jiao was fine with it.
Zhuque Street was quite far away, so they hired a carriage.
Xiao Liulang first sent Gu Jiao to her destination before delivering the articles to his client, and then he would pick up Gu Jiao again back home.
Gu Jiao"s little patient was a lively six-year-old girl. Apparently, it was due to her liveliness that she fell off the steps and injured her leg.
Her older sister at home was a student of the women’s academy. She heard that physicians in Miraculous Hands Hall had good medical skills, so she went to request a house visit in Miraculous Hands Hall.
"The wound was healing well, don"t be afraid, it won"t hurt." Gu Jiao took out the scissors and removed the thread for her.
The little girl was silent.
Her mother asked her, "Does it hurt?"
The little girl shook her head and looked at Gu Jiao adoringly, "It doesn"t hurt. Big sister is very powerful. Mom, I want to be a physician when I grow up!"
The mother was taken aback.
Physicians.. In the State of Zhao, their status wasn’t really that high, not to mention the medical women, whose ident.i.ty were almost no different than that of the servants.
The fact that they could live in Zhuque Street meant that they were not an ordinary family. How could they just let their daughter become a lowly medical woman in the future?
This girl in front of them had to become a medical woman only because her family was poor, was it not?
Not every patient would have a leg injury just like her daughter. Some could have lesions in unclean places. How could people of n.o.ble status like them look at those places?
Besides, she also heard that sometimes, during the busy days in medical halls, even medical women had to treat men.
Wasn’t this the same as forfeiting your innocence? How would you be able to marry in the future then?
Anyone who was particular about their family would never send their daughters to be medical women.
Gu Jiao ignored the awkwardness on the mother’s face, and pinched the little girl"s cheek, saying, "It isn’t easy to be a physician. You need to learn to read, study hard, work diligently, and be willing to bear hardships. If the cook makes a bad dish, you will only miss one meal. But if a physician treats someone wrongly, it’s a life that gets harmed, and this is a heavy responsibility."
The little girl seemed to understand only half of it. She bowed her head in thought and then asked weakly, "They say that medical women are very lowly."
Gu Jiao said lightly, "They were born just the same human beings as you, how can they be lowly?"
The mother suddenly felt a bit ashamed.
She had been looking down on medical women.
But at this moment, her heart was in deep shock.
She couldn’t tell whether it was because of the other party’s words or the firm belief within the other party’s eyes.