Chapter One Hundred and Five: You Are a Miracle Doctor

Then, Shopkeeper Xu rushed inside.

“Shopkeeper, is it the old master having another episode?” The young clerk looked worried as well.

He glanced at Lin Sangqian, guilt flickering across his face. “You should leave now. We don’t have time to talk about those things with you.”

“Has something happened?” Lin Sangqian asked gently. “Perhaps I can help.”

The clerk frowned, then managed a bitter smile. “Our old master’s illness has dragged on for years. Other physicians have tried, but none succeeded. What could a young girl like you possibly do? We run a pharmacy ourselves—if there was a cure, our shopkeeper would have used the finest medicines.”

“So you judge people only by age? No wonder you’re so easily deceived,” Lin Wenyen said coolly.

Knowing he was in the wrong, the clerk fell silent.

Lin Sangqian paid him no further mind. Stepping around the counter, she headed straight for the inner room.

“Hey, you can’t just barge in!” The clerk hurried after her.

As soon as Lin Sangqian entered, a heavy medicinal scent assailed her, even stronger than in the shopfront.

On the bed, an elderly man was coughing so violently it seemed as though it would tear him apart. Shopkeeper Xu sat by his side, worry etched deep into his face.

“Father…”

After some time, the old man’s coughing eased.

“Rest for a while, Father,” Shopkeeper Xu said with a forced smile. “I’ll pour you some hot water.”

As the owner of a pharmacy, he had a basic grasp of medicine. Now, he could see his father likely did not have much time left.

While pouring water, Shopkeeper Xu turned to Lin Sangqian. “Young lady, please go home. I need to look after my father.”

“Shopkeeper, give me a chance. Perhaps I can cure your father,” Lin Sangqian said calmly.

“What did you say?” Startled, Shopkeeper Xu’s hand trembled, spilling some hot water on himself. He winced in pain.

“I can cure him,” Lin Sangqian repeated.

Shopkeeper Xu glanced at her. “I know you want us to testify for you, but don’t joke about my father’s illness.”

“My sister isn’t joking,” Lin Wenyen said. “She is highly skilled. There was a child once, beyond hope, whom she saved.”

Still, Shopkeeper Xu didn’t seem convinced. He shook his head and helped his father drink the water.

“How about this, Shopkeeper Xu: Without taking his pulse, I’ll describe your father’s symptoms. If I’m right, will you let me treat him?” Lin Sangqian smiled.

Diagnosing without a pulse? How could that be possible?

Though observation and questioning were part of the art, no doctor here had ever been able to diagnose a patient at a glance.

Before he could reply, Lin Sangqian spoke: “Your father has suffered from a chronic cough for years, accompanied by chills, an itchy throat, frequent fevers, and general aches.”

As she finished, she was unsurprised to see Shopkeeper Xu’s expression fill with shock.

The old man on the bed managed a weak reply, “Young lady, you’re completely right… This illness has tormented me for years. I’ve sought many doctors and remedies, but nothing helped. I know I don’t have many years left.”

“Father, don’t say such things,” Shopkeeper Xu said quickly, then turned to Lin Sangqian in admiration. “Miss, you truly are remarkable! Forgive me for doubting you. Please, see to my father’s illness. As long as you can help him, even just to ease his suffering, I’ll agree to anything!”

“Including testifying in court?” Lin Sangqian raised her brows.

“Absolutely!” Shopkeeper Xu nodded firmly.

The clerk seemed to want to protest, but in the end kept silent. After all, he had been in the wrong—and now, with hope for the old master’s recovery, he could no longer act selfishly.

In truth, even without his testimony, Lin Sangqian would have helped them. A healer’s heart cannot ignore suffering, and this old man was innocent. Since she’d encountered him, she couldn’t turn away.

Still, this was a timely opportunity. If she could persuade Shopkeeper Xu to testify, why not make use of it?

“Very well! We have an agreement.” Lin Sangqian smiled. “Just to be thorough, let me check his pulse.”

“Please, go ahead.”

After feeling the pulse, Lin Sangqian frowned. “Has the old master been taking Minor Blue Dragon Decoction?”

Minor Blue Dragon Decoction—composed of ginger, cinnamon twig, ephedra and more—was a formula Shopkeeper Xu, as an apothecary, recognized instantly.

“That’s right. He’s taken it every few days for the past year.”

Lin Sangqian shook her head. “That formula is meant for external wind-cold with internal retention of fluids and cough. It cannot cure your father’s illness and may even worsen it.”

“What?” Shopkeeper Xu was alarmed. “But…”

“Don’t worry, it won’t do much more harm,” Lin Sangqian reassured him. “I’ve made a full diagnosis. Your father’s illness is a case of exterior cold with interior heat—cold on the surface, heat within. To treat it, you must expel wind-cold externally and clear heat internally. I’ll write a prescription for you; the ingredients—ephedra, licorice, skullcap, and so on—you should have in your pharmacy.”

“Quick, fetch pen and paper!” Shopkeeper Xu ordered the clerk.

The clerk hurried to comply. Lin Sangqian wrote out the prescription and handed it to Shopkeeper Xu.

“In less than half a month, your father will be well again.”

Shopkeeper Xu was stunned.

An illness that had plagued his father for years—could this young woman diagnose it in a single visit and promise recovery in just half a month?

“You must be a divine physician!”

Lin Sangqian laughed, embarrassed. “Please, don’t call me that…”

She was simply taking advantage of her modern knowledge. After all, many illnesses that were once intractable have solutions now.

“You’ve cured my father; our family owes you a great debt,” Shopkeeper Xu said with a deep bow. “When the time comes for us to testify, we will not refuse.”

Lin Sangqian looked at the clerk, who nodded in agreement.

“Not only that—if ever you need our help, we will do all we can.”

“Then I must thank you in advance,” Lin Sangqian replied with a smile.

“It is we who should thank you.”

Leaving the Xu Pharmacy, Lin Sangqian finally breathed a sigh of relief.

She had secured the testimony from the pharmacy.

Next…

“Sister, can we send Lan’er to accuse the Zhao family now?” Lin Wenyen rubbed his hands, eager to act.

Lin Sangqian nodded.

“Aunt Gao only accepted money to run errands; if we have evidence, she won’t cover for the Zhao family once in court.”

Lin Wenyen, suddenly worried, asked, “But if Aunt Gao insists she bought the poison only for rats, what then?”

“There’s only one way left,” Lin Sangqian replied.

Exhume the body for autopsy.