Chapter 48: Schemes and Calculations

Most of the time, she only treated minor ailments, and for serious illnesses, she would advise people to seek out Doctor Li. Coupled with the fact that her father was a fierce gambler, people were even more reluctant to approach her.

Qin Youtian had lived in the village for three years, and only knew that Hua Qinci existed; whenever he saw her, it was only from a distance up in the mountains. With his ruined face, he often walked with his head bowed in self-consciousness.

But he never imagined that Hua Qinci would actually agree to marry him.

After investigating thoroughly, he found nothing amiss except that she now spoke more and seemed livelier than before. The only suspicious points were her face and her reaction when she married him.

She had repeatedly asked for a divorce letter and wanted to leave the Qin family—most likely she disliked his ugly face and feared her own father.

This was how Qin Youtian rationalized it.

Thinking about his unsightly face, he felt bitter, but his mother was still waiting to hold a grandchild! With Hua Qinci's firm attitude, he could only proceed slowly, reasoning that even having a child would be good enough.

Besides, when it came down to it, it was Hua Qinci who was unworthy of him—he had endured so much, and she, a country girl, had become his legitimate wife, which was an honor beyond compare. What more could she want?

Was it not said that once married, a woman should obey her husband? He refused to believe he couldn't manage a woman like her.

Hua Qinci had no idea about the things Qin Youtian was doing behind her back or his desire to have a child with her.

Her mind was preoccupied with trying to understand what Shang Jinxiu truly intended.

She had originally thought that Shang Jinxiu would use money or power to coerce her, or threaten her family. But none of this happened, nor was there any mention of repaying the three hundred taels of silver—she was simply allowed to leave.

Looking back, Shang Jinxiu was rather pitiable; if things continued in this way, she would surely...

Thinking of the woman's misfortunes and the rise of concubines, Hua Qinci couldn't help but sigh with sympathy.

"What a pitiful woman," she murmured, shaking her head.

"What?" Qin Youtian didn't quite catch her words.

Hua Qinci merely shook her head, troubled as she looked at Qin Youtian.

She wondered how much longer she would have to share a home with this stubborn, somewhat foolish man. Imagining the day she finally kicked him out, she felt an inexplicable pang of pity for him.

Well, so be it—he was unlucky, after all, insisting on marrying Hua Qinci. If he squandered his chances, he couldn't blame her for being heartless.

Suddenly, Hua Qinci felt that Qin Youtian wasn't such a bad person after all. She reconsidered; at worst, when the time came, she would reward him with some money, and perhaps help him find a few beautiful concubines, as a gesture of gratitude for letting her stay in his family.

When Hua Qinci arrived at the clinic, Wei San had already been taken back to the village by his wife. The doctor said the injury was not serious, just excessive blood loss and some damage to the head, but since Wei San was already mentally challenged, it made little difference.

To save money, his wife had the doctor stop the bleeding and prescribed some restorative medicine, then hauled him home on an ox cart.

The day was still young, and Hua Qinci's favorite pastime was searching for medicinal herbs.

Recently, she had noticed, in her inquiries, that people often brought small bundles of herbs to the pharmacy to exchange for cash, but the prices were extremely low—several times lower than the market rate. The shopkeeper claimed these were the worst quality herbs and used the excuse to squeeze the poor farmers. But Hua Qinci could see clearly that these herbs were actually excellent, genuine, and unadulterated.

Hua Qinci thought, if she opened her own pharmacy and recruited these herb gatherers to supply her, she wouldn't have to fear exploitation or paying exorbitant prices for medicine.

She could even pay them a little more, allowing them to live better lives.