Xie Qiqi returned to Jifeng Courtyard, bandaged her own arm, then cleaned Yan'er’s wounds and applied medicine.
Looking at the meager supply of medicine left, Xie Qiqi felt anxious. She couldn't keep cutting herself just to get more supplies! Doctor Gao had mentioned that the price of medicine was skyrocketing, and she needed medicine for her own tuberculosis as well. With only twenty taels of silver in hand, what was she to do?
Xie Qiqi was deeply troubled. Her thoughts drifted to something Old Man Xi had once said to her: "Better to rely on yourself than others!" Her eyes lit up as an idea formed.
...
Xie Qiqi headed straight for North Street. Imperial Physician Wang, now elderly, had resigned from his post in the palace and was seeing patients at his own clinic, Baicao Hall. If he would accept her as his apprentice and teach her to identify herbs, she could gather what she needed in the mountains. Once she mastered medicine, she wouldn't have to beg others whenever Yan'er fell ill. Moreover, she could help improve her grandmother’s health, allowing her to live a longer life. Although her own days were numbered, she hoped to take good care of the people she cherished in the time she had left.
When she arrived at Baicao Hall, the clinic was bustling with patients. Xie Qiqi stood by the door, unable to find a chance to speak with Imperial Physician Wang alone. After waiting for two hours, she saw him stand up and head toward the back courtyard. Summoning her courage, she chased after him.
"Grandpa Wang..."
She followed him all the way into the back courtyard and, without a word, knelt down with a thud. Imperial Physician Wang turned around, eyes widening in shock at her gesture.
"Qiqi, what are you doing? Get up, child! If you have something to say, just say it—why kneel?"
At sixty, Imperial Physician Wang was the same generation as her grandmother, and he had always treated Qiqi like his own granddaughter.
"Grandpa Wang, I have a request, and I beg for your approval." Xie Qiqi looked at him uneasily. Medical knowledge in noble families was kept secret; would he think she had ulterior motives? He was the only elder besides her grandmother who treated her with kindness, and she didn't want him to despise her.
Unable to lift her up, Imperial Physician Wang asked doubtfully, "Qiqi, tell me, what is it you want to ask of me?"
Xie Qiqi mustered her courage. "Grandpa Wang, I want to become your apprentice. I want to learn to identify herbs and study medicine!"
Imperial Physician Wang’s expression darkened instantly. Xie Qiqi felt as if she couldn't even breathe. She expected that at any moment, the grandfather who had once cherished her would have her thrown out.
After a long silence, Imperial Physician Wang said slowly, "Xie Qiqi, didn’t I tell you that you have tuberculosis and only a year or two to live? Don't you think it’s absurd to ask me to pour my heart into teaching medicine to someone who is as good as dead?"
Xie Qiqi hung her head in despair. He had also said that her illness was severe—even a bad cold could take her life. Who would take on an apprentice who could die at any moment?
"I’m sorry, Grandpa Wang. It was a foolish whim on my part..." Xie Qiqi kowtowed once, tears streaming down her face. This path was a dead end; she would have to find another way.
Just as she started to stand, Imperial Physician Wang asked quietly, "Why do you want to learn medicine?"
Xie Qiqi replied instinctively, "I want to cure my own illness... to let my grandmother live a long life... and so that when people around me get hurt, I won't have to beg anyone else!"
Imperial Physician Wang chuckled. "You’re honest, at least! Anyone else would have put their grandmother first to sound more filial."
Xie Qiqi felt ashamed. "I... I was thinking that if I died before my grandmother, she would be heartbroken." Even if her time was short, she hoped to hold on until after her grandmother passed so that her grandmother wouldn't have to endure the pain of burying a grandchild.
Imperial Physician Wang stopped smiling and looked at her. He had many reasons to refuse—that few women practiced medicine, or that it was an arduous path—but were those things useful to say to a girl the age of his granddaughter who didn't have long to live? As for suffering, could anything be more bitter than her eight years as a servant?
Unable to bring himself to reject her, he said diplomatically, "Xie Qiqi, I am very strict with my apprentices. For one, they must be literate, and I hear you haven't even finished the *Thousand Character Classic*..."
Xie Qiqi blinked, then said eagerly, "Grandpa Wang, I can do it! Give me some time, and I will work hard to learn!"
Before he could respond, his grandson, Wang Mian, ran in hurriedly. "Grandpa, Second Grandpa, come quickly—it’s an emergency!"
With patients arriving, Imperial Physician Wang had no time for her and rushed off. Wang Mian grabbed a shop assistant’s uniform hanging from a pole and shoved it at Xie Qiqi. He whispered, "Put this on and come help. If my grandfather sees you doing a good job, he’ll take you on as an apprentice!"
Seventeen-year-old Wang Mian had yet to finish his own training, but he had often accompanied his grandfather to check on her. Knowing she suffered from an incurable disease, he felt great pity for the frail girl. He had seen the whole exchange and wanted to help her.
Xie Qiqi’s eyes lit up. She ducked into the utility room to change. Being small and thin, the clothes were a bit loose, but she looked just like any other shop hand. She had barely stepped out when a group of Jinyiwei in field uniform rushed in, carrying several wounded men. Blood dripped onto the floor, leaving a trail from the entrance.
The other assistants hurried forward to help. Xie Qiqi was bumped toward the door, losing her footing and stumbling backward. A strong, powerful hand caught her. As she regained her balance, she saw a tall, slender figure stride past her. The golden python embroidered on the hem of his black flying-fish robe was stained with blood. Before she could get a clear look at him, the man had disappeared into the back courtyard.
"Wang Mian, go get some jugs of wine from the storage room with A-Niu! And tell Auntie Zhang to bring hot water immediately!"
In the chaos, Imperial Physician Wang didn't notice Xie Qiqi and hurried to the back. Wang Mian pulled her aside and whispered, "I’ll go get the wine; you go find Auntie Zhang. Don't worry, even if my grandfather notices you, he won't call you out!"
Xie Qiqi nodded gratefully. When she and Auntie Zhang brought the hot water into the room, she saw Wang Mian and an older man with disheveled hair treating the wounded. She glanced over and her eyes widened in shock. The patient’s abdomen had been slashed open by a sword, his intestines exposed and drenched in blood—it was a terrifying sight.
"Little Bell, come help your Second Grandpa. I’m going to see to the others." Wang Mian didn't dare call her Qiqi in front of outsiders. Recalling how Old Madame Xie addressed her, it was the only name he could use in his haste.
Xie Qiqi didn't have time to think. She hurried over and asked nervously, "Second Grandpa, what can I do?" She wanted to be his apprentice; she had to perform well so as not to disappoint him!
The old man looked back at her and instructed, "Do you know how to stitch? Use the wine to clean your hands, tuck his intestines back in, and sew the wound shut."
He stepped aside, a silver needle already poised near the wound. Xie Qiqi stared in disbelief—could a wound really be sewn shut just like mending a piece of clothing?