Chapter 23: The Joy of Learning
A week later, Lin Xueyi walked into the library with a gentle smile. Holding a small ointment jar in both hands, she placed it carefully on Rong Shuyan’s table.
"Your Highness, here is the Golden Wound Medicine. I made sure every ingredient is completely safe," she said.
[It’s been a week since I last saw him. Why does he look paler every day?] Lin Xueyi wondered. [Is it only because the weather is getting colder... or is his condition getting worse?]
Rong Shuyan looked up from the calligraphy he had been working on and met her eyes. "You were supposed to spend the past week resting," he said without any significant tone, even though he had known from the beginning that she had been making the medicine.
Lin Xueyi raised her hand. The blisters had already disappeared, leaving only a faint redness behind.
"I’m fine now, Your Highness," she said with a smile. "My ointment even helped my hand heal faster, so I’m confident this one won’t cause you any harm."
In truth, Lin Xueyi thought the medicine she had made worked surprisingly well. The more she learned about herbs and medicine, the more she found herself enjoying it, almost to the point of becoming addicted.
She had even asked Mei Lu to bring her several medical books from the library. Since Physician Liu had ordered her to avoid going outside for the past week, reading had become her favorite way to pass the time.
Fortunately, Rong Shuyan was willing to help Mei Lu choose the best medical books, since Mei Lu had no idea which ones would be the most useful.
Rong Shuyan set his brush aside and looked at the ointment jar for a long moment before reaching for it.
"You seem to have grown very interested in medicine," he remarked.
Lin Xueyi smiled without thinking. "I do find it interesting."
[Maybe it’s because I never had the chance to study medicine in my previous life,] she thought. [Now that I have this opportunity, I want to learn as much as I can.]
After all, she had grown up in a poor family. She couldn’t afford to spend many years in school.
Instead of studying what she truly loved, she had chosen to major in finance so she could graduate quickly and start earning money to support herself and her family.
Unfortunately, working in the finance industry never brought her any joy.
Not only was the workload exhausting, but there were also far too many shameless men in the company. Some would make inappropriate comments whenever they saw a young female employee, while others would deliberately find excuses to touch them.
[They even fired me because I reported sexual harassment at work,] Lin Xueyi thought with a sigh. [Well, whatever. If I hadn’t become unemployed, I probably wouldn’t have spent my days reading novels... and I never would have read a book about Yanyan.]
Rong Shuyan fell silent as he listened to her inner thoughts. All this time, he had only thought that she was a bit annoying. But after learning more about her, he realized that she had lived through far more hardships than him.
She had grown up in poverty, given up her dreams to support her family, and even lost her job after reporting sexual harassment.
Compared to her, Rong Shuyan felt like he had lived a far more comfortable life.
After a moment of silence, Rong Shuyan looked at her and said, "I can recommend more medical books for you. If you’d like, I’ll have a servant deliver them to your room later."
Lin Xueyi’s eyes sparkled with excitement. She even leaned closer to him, unable to hide the joy on her face.
"Really?!" she asked eagerly.
Rong Shuyan gave a small nod. "Really."
Lin Xueyi’s smile grew even brighter. "Thank you, Your Highness!"
She looked genuinely happy, as if he had just given her the greatest gift in the world.
Rong Shuyan swallowed hard and slowly looked away. He had never realized before that Lin Xueyi had such a charming face.
Or perhaps... it wasn’t that he had never noticed before. Maybe the soul that had once lived in her body had been so rotten that even a beautiful face had seemed unpleasant to look at.
Pushing those thoughts aside, he calmly said, "I’ll also ask Physician Liu to prepare a reading list for you. Some books are too advanced for beginners. It would be better if you learned them step by step."
Lin Xueyi nodded repeatedly. "That would be wonderful!"
She paused for a moment before asking, "Your Highness... if there’s anything I don’t understand while reading, may I ask Physician Liu?"
"You may," Rong Shuyan replied. "I don’t think he would mind answering a few questions for someone who truly wants to learn medicine."
[But wait... Yanyan just called me a beginner.] Lin Xueyi let out a silent groan. [Does it really show that I don’t know much about medicine?]
A second later, she let out a silent sigh. [Of course he could tell. What kind of medical expert would get this excited over books that most experts had already finished reading when they were still beginners?]
She stole a glance at Rong Shuyan and watched him in silent for a few moments. Without realizing it, she lightly bit her lower lip. [But... he doesn’t seem to mind.]
The thought made her relax a little. [As long as he doesn’t bring it up... maybe I can just pretend I never told him I was an expert in medicine.]
Rong Shuyan lowered his eyes to hide the faint smile that almost appeared on his face. To be honest, if he hadn’t been able to hear her thoughts, he might have actually believed she was a talented physician who had simply forgotten a few things.
"Physician Liu also has several handwritten notes," he said calmly. "They contain knowledge that isn’t recorded in ordinary medical books."
Lin Xueyi’s eyes widened. "Really?"
"If you finish the books I’ve prepared for you, I’ll ask him whether he’s willing to lend those notes to you."
Her face lit up so brightly that it almost made Rong Shuyan look away again.
"Thank you, Your Highness!" She bowed slightly, unable to hide her excitement. "I’ll study hard. I promise I won’t disappoint you or Physician Liu."