Family…

Arriving alone in this strange world, Chen Ji could only carefully explore it, sensing its mysteries and dangers. Every step felt like walking on the edge of a cliff, with the constant threat of falling into an abyss. The word ‘family’ held a unique appeal for him.

Chen Ji was acutely aware that these so-called family members were merely the family of the body he now inhabited, while he himself was an intruder who had entered this world after the original owner’s death. Yet, a hint of curiosity couldn’t help but arise in his heart… What if his own parents had also arrived in this world after their deaths?

After morning lessons, Chen Ji and his two fellow apprentices squatted by the large water vat in the southeast corner of the courtyard to wash up. He took a willow branch, pressing the wood fibers into a brush shape, and awkwardly scraped his teeth, imitating his fellow apprentices.

The tall, burly apprentice, who had slept soundly the night before, squatted on the ground, grimacing: “Master’s in a bad mood today. Don’t upset him; it hurts like hell! My own father never hit me this hard!”

Chen Ji spat out the salt water from his mouth and tentatively asked, “Maybe practicing this is useful?”

Liu Quxing pursed his lips. “What’s the use? I’ve been practicing for over a year and haven’t felt anything. Have you?”

“No,” Chen Ji shook his head. He had confirmed it: only he could feel that warm current.

The tall, burly apprentice asked while brushing his teeth, “Liu Quxing, when your mother comes later, will she bring those delicious oil cakes again?”

The slender Liu Quxing rolled his eyes, spitting out his mouthwash. “She Dengke, stop thinking about the food my mother brings.”

She Dengke bristled. “We’re fellow apprentices from the same school. What’s wrong with eating a little of your food?”

Chen Ji chuckled, “Yeah, what’s wrong with eating a little of your food?”

Just then, Old Man Yao emerged from the main house, carrying a bamboo cane. “Still joking around? See if you can still smile when I test your studies tomorrow. Now, all of you, get to the main hall and memorize your texts!”

After washing up, the three apprentices, without even eating breakfast, sat in a row on the threshold of the medical hall, each poring over a medical text. The others’ minds were not truly on their books; they were anxiously waiting for their families to bring money and food. Only Chen Ji silently turned the pages, as he had too many gaps to fill.

She Dengke announced, “Master’s testing us tomorrow. We’re fellow apprentices, so we share the good times and the bad. No one is allowed to secretly review, understand?”

Liu Quxing’s eyes darted around. “I haven’t opened a book recently, and I’ve forgotten everything Master taught us before.”

She Dengke scoffed, clenching his fist. “You better be telling the truth, kid!”

Liu Quxing shrank his neck. “Why don’t you talk about Chen Ji? He got the fewest bamboo canes this morning, and he’s still reading now!”

She Dengke closed the book in Chen Ji’s hand. “No more reading! We’ll all get beaten together tomorrow. My father had someone predict my fortune; I’m supposed to live past seventy! Master can’t beat me to death!”

Chen Ji: “…Such a strong fate then?”

Time seemed to rewind to his harsh yet wonderful high school days, when they would walk arm-in-arm to and from class, sweat together on the sports field, and get scolded by teachers together. Chen Ji pondered if he could accept such a life if these were the days ahead in this new world. It seemed he could.

Before long, Liu Quxing suddenly darted out, rushing to meet a middle-aged woman dressed in a blue ruqun. The woman wore a silver hairpin in her hair and embroidered shoes, appearing elegant and gentle. A maidservant followed behind her. She smiled warmly when she saw Liu Quxing. “Xing’er, have you upset Master recently?”

“No, no, Master is very fond of me. How could I ever upset him?” Liu Quxing cheerfully handed a bundle to her. “Mother, these are my clothes for washing. Please wash them for me when you go back.”

She Dengke scoffed from the threshold. “Worthless! How old are you, still hoarding clothes for your mother to wash!”

The woman took the clothes, then handed Liu Quxing a wooden box and a cloth bundle from her maidservant. “The cloth bundle contains this month’s tuition money and clean clothes. The box has some pastries I made for you, which you can share with your fellow apprentices.”

In that instant, Chen Ji distinctly heard She Dengke swallow.

However, Liu Quxing didn’t offer them any pastries. He opened the box on the spot and stuffed the oil cakes and mung bean cakes into his mouth, one by one. Chen Ji watched as Liu Quxing stuffed food for what felt like a long time, finally cramming all the pastries down his throat. Only then did he hand the box back to the woman. “Mother, you can take the box back.”

Chen Ji: “What?”

She Dengke mumbled, “You goddamn…”

The mother and son talked for a while longer, then Liu Quxing happily returned with his cloth bundle, letting out a satisfied burp as he stepped over the threshold.

Pedestrians gradually filled the streets. Amidst the scattered buildings, children chased and played in the alleyways, while women carried basins to the Luo River to wash clothes. Some drove ox-carts eastward, the oxen flicking their tails and dropping manure, filling the entire street with a muddy, grassy odor. Chen Ji was immersed in the scene.

She Dengke and Chen Ji waited eagerly like this until noon, when a capable man finally arrived, carrying a bundle. The dark-skinned man wore a short jacket on his upper body and grey cloth trousers, his sleeves rolled up to reveal twisted tattoos on his arms. “Little brother!”

“Third brother!” She Dengke’s eyes lit up immediately.

The man laughed heartily. “I was delayed helping someone in the East Market this morning. Here, your mother prepared two strings of cured meat for you: one for your Master, and one for yourself.”

“Where did you get meat?!” She Dengke exclaimed in surprise.

“Your elder brother and I encountered a wild boar in the mountains a few days ago. Unfortunately, it was a male, so it has a somewhat gamey smell,” the third brother replied with a smile.

She Dengke beamed. “It’s good enough to have meat to eat; who cares about a gamey smell!”

“Alright, I’m off. A wealthy family in the East Market is holding a celebration tonight, and I’m going to help set up the stage. Maybe I can even catch a show,” the third brother said decisively, turning and leaving without hesitation.

She Dengke strode back to the medical hall. Liu Quxing, leaning against the doorframe, said sourly, “I heard male wild boar meat has a urine smell…”

Chen Ji commented with admiration, “Senior Brother Liu, you truly are the moral low point of our medical hall.”

She Dengke shot Liu Quxing a fierce glare. “Believe it or not, I’ll knock out your front teeth?”

Liu Quxing immediately recoiled. He then turned to Chen Ji. “They’re still not here. Your family probably isn’t coming, right?”

Chen Ji shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Liu Quxing said gloatingly, “Maybe they don’t want to pay your tuition anymore. Two hundred copper coins a month really isn’t a small sum for an average family. Or you could go beg Master for some leeway.”

No sooner had he spoken than Old Man Yao, standing behind the counter and counting accounts, spoke unhurriedly: “Knowledge is not lightly imparted, principles not cheaply sold. A master does not teach those who simply happen by, nor does a doctor knock on doors. I only teach those who are sincere. If your family thinks two hundred copper coins is too much, then you needn’t learn.”

“Understood, Master,” Chen Ji replied.

She Dengke scratched his head. “Master, we’ll be taking care of you in your old age and burying you when you pass. Surely there’s some affection involved?”

Old Man Yao stroked his beard. “Even sons aren’t always truly filial to their own fathers, so how can I expect it from you? You’ll understand everything when you get old: money is the most important thing. Feelings change. A long life without means is often humiliating. Only with money can one have dignity. Your families pay the tuition, and I teach you skills. There’s no need for too much master-apprentice affection between us.”

Chen Ji sat silently on the threshold, from early morning until noon, and then from noon until evening. Having returned to the medical hall only at the third watch (around midnight) last night and then tormented by the icy current until the fifth watch (around 4-5 AM), Chen Ji couldn’t take it anymore. He leaned against the doorframe and fell into a deep sleep.

He didn’t know how much time had passed when someone tapped Chen Ji’s shoulder. He wearily opened his eyes. She Dengke, holding his rice bowl, mumbled through a mouthful of cured meat, “Chen Ji, why don’t you go eat something first? I’ll watch here and call you when your family arrives.”

Chen Ji didn’t reply.

Across from the medical hall, the shopkeepers and assistants from the eateries, pawnshops, and grain and oil stores came out, installing their door panels one by one, preparing to close for the night. One assistant saw Chen Ji and greeted him with a smile, “Young Doctor Chen, waiting for someone?”

He smiled and replied, “Mm-hmm.”

However, Chen Ji’s family never came. His own birth parents couldn’t possibly forget such an arrangement. As the sun’s afterglow gradually sank westward, and homeward-bound pedestrians grew sparse, the light and shadows slowly faded from his face until night fell.

Someone once said, “Never wake up at dusk.” At that moment, the distant bells fell silent with the world, and the sun dipped below the horizon. You gaze at the bleak, distant sky, as if fading away alone. He suddenly recalled that before the gears of fate began to turn, someone had asked him: “Can you endure loneliness?”

Chen Ji had replied, “Yes, I can.”

The last vestiges of evening light fell, finally vanishing behind the scattered pavilions. Chen Ji sat on the threshold, watching the last shop across the street close its door panels and the last pedestrian return home. Only then did he stand up and brush the dust from his clothes.

Life had to continue. Back in reality, he had to seriously consider his predicament:

At that moment, Old Man Yao, counting accounts behind the counter without looking up, scoffed, “What, your family doesn’t want you anymore?”

Chen Ji thought to himself that his Master’s mouth was like it was poisoned. He replied with a smile, “Master, they might have been delayed by something. They’ll bring the tuition money tomorrow.”

Old Man Yao sneered, “You’ve been with me for two years. At least the other two families know to bring me things during holidays. Your family has never sent anything. Even if you manage to pay the tuition on time, I don’t want you as an apprentice anymore.”

“Give me one month, and by then, perhaps I can pay the tuition without relying on my family,” Chen Ji said earnestly.

Old Man Yao shook his head. “Who can’t make empty promises?”

Chen Ji pondered for a moment. “The monthly tuition is two hundred copper coins. If you give me a one-month extension, I will pay two hundred forty copper coins each month afterward.”

Old Man Yao mused for a moment, then took out some copper coins from his sleeve, tossed them six times for a divination, and calmly said, “This shows some sincerity… But how will you, an apprentice not even qualified to collect consultation fees, earn money?”

“I’ll find a way.”

“Hah, big words. You’re just an apprentice; you can’t even take a pulse accurately. How do you expect to make money?” Old Man Yao scoffed, idly clicking the abacus beads.

Liu Quxing, who had been watching with amusement, chuckled, “Chen Ji, how about I give you a hand?”

“How do you plan to help, Senior Brother Liu?” Chen Ji asked.

“The three of us take turns with chores. Tomorrow, it’s my turn to fetch water, sweep the courtyard, and wipe the main hall floor. If you can help wipe the floor, I’ll give you two copper coins; if you can sweep the courtyard, one copper coin; if you can fill the water vat, two copper coins. It’s not much, but at least it’s fifty copper coins a month.”

The hierarchy among the apprentices suddenly became very clear.

Chen Ji: “Alright, I’ll help Senior Brother Liu with the chores.”

She Dengke looked at Old Man Yao. “Master, is this appropriate?”

“As long as the tuition money gets paid, it’s appropriate,” Old Man Yao said indifferently.

She Dengke looked at Chen Ji. “Aren’t you angry? That rascal Liu Quxing is treating you like a servant.”

Chen Ji said with a smile, “Senior Brother Liu is helping me.”

“What Senior Brother Liu are you talking about? The three of us were born on the same day, same month, same year, even the same hour! Why should he be the senior brother?” She Dengke scoffed.

Chen Ji paused, taken aback. Why would an Imperial Physician choose three apprentices with identical birth charts?