"Innkeeper, quickly refund this boy’s room money. I’ll take their room." Someone urged.
"No, we can’t refund the room." the attendant said excitedly.
"Innkeeper, refund this boy’s money, and I’ll give you another half a tael of silver."
The innkeeper didn’t get blinded by money, and bowed slightly to the person, "Sir, they’ve already paid the room fee, according to the rules, even if they can’t make it, I can’t book the room for you when it’s empty."
"What happened?" Meng Yao asked the attendant.
"My young master fell and is too hurt to walk; I can’t carry him, so I left him there to rest and ran to the inn for help but..." The attendant’s eyes were red.
Evidently, no one was willing to help.
"You seek help without offering silver, who would be willing?"
"Yes, what if the city gate closes, and we have to camp outside? The cold spring chill, what if we get sick?"
The attendant hung his head in embarrassment.
They have too little silver, if they use it to hire help, there won’t be any left for his brother’s meals. How can he take the exam on an empty stomach?
Meng Yao asked the innkeeper about the closing time of the city gate, then asked the attendant where the person was. After calculating, he realized they wouldn’t be stuck outside with a carriage.
"Wait here, I’ll find someone to help you." Meng Yao said softly.
The attendant’s eyes shone; it was a look of hope after despair.
Meng Yao went upstairs to call Li Chang’an, and then instructed Zhao Dahe and Qin Zheng to stay put in the room and not go anywhere.
The inn’s patrons were murmuring all sorts of things.
Let them say whatever they want, Meng Yao wasn’t concerned at all.
Li Chang’an drove the carriage out of the city, and soon saw a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy sitting on a large stone.
The attendant was excited, "Madam, that’s my brother... my young master."
Meng Yao glanced at the attendant, "Are you his sister?"
The attendant looked at Meng Yao vigilantly.
"Your earhole is showing." Meng Yao smiled.
The attendant subconsciously reached to touch her ear, hand raised to the earlobe, then suddenly remembered she didn’t have pierced ears.
Meng Yao looked amusedly at the girl glaring at her, "Don’t worry, no one else noticed, just me, and now my nephew knows too. We won’t broadcast this!"
The girl touched the back of her head, smiled bashfully, "Well, since Madam is willing to help me, surely there’s no malice. To be honest, we’re poor, my younger brothers are still small, so after thinking it through, I could only accompany my brother."
"You’ve done well. If you hadn’t followed, your brother might have been stuck deep in predicament, hard to escape."
Meng Yao already jumped off the carriage, checking the boy’s ankle, it was dislocated.
"Sell me your sister, and I’ll fix your ankle, then let you take the carriage to the county." Meng Yao’s hand didn’t leave the boy’s ankle, but she spoke words that provoked anger.
The boy’s eyes were filled with gratitude but now brimmed with fury.
"Even if I can’t take the exam, I won’t sell my sister!" the boy’s voice was full of anger.
Meng Yao stood up, "Get up and move around a bit."
The boy was a bit bewildered.
"I asked you to move because I’ve reset your dislocated ankle." Meng Yao said again, "Just to divert your attention, otherwise it would hurt too much."
The boy came to realization and looked abashed.
He moved the ankle that had hurt fiercely before, and was amazed to find it only hurt a little now, at least he could walk slowly.
"Young master Wen Shu thanks Madam for the assistance." Wen Shu gratefully bowed to Meng Yao.
"Get on the carriage, or we might be locked outside the gate." Meng Yao said.
Wen Shu quickly climbed into the carriage, sitting properly to one side, while his sister leaned against him, still nervous, "Brother, is your foot really better?"
"Not fully recovered, back at the inn, apply some bruise healing ointment for a few days, and it’ll be fine." Meng Yao said.
"Madam, is the ointment expensive?" The girl looked at Meng Yao with tension.
"Not cheap." Meng Yao said.
"Madam, can you count on what you said about buying me earlier?" the girl asked Meng Yao eagerly.
Before Meng Yao responded, Wen Shu quickly interjected, "Madam, my sister is young and loves jokes, please don’t take her words seriously."
With that, he sternly glared at the girl, "Wen Nuan, what did I say before we left home? Listen to me, or I’ll take you back."
Wen Nuan was defiant, "Brother, Madam managed to reset your ankle, her medical skills must be amazing. If she said you need the ointment, it definitely must be used. Without it, you won’t get better, delaying the exam, then what? Grandma and Mom are waiting for your good news! Madam is kind, if I can serve her, it’s my blessing."
"If I go home alone, even with good news, Grandma and Mom would be happy? That’s my fate, Little Nuan, let’s stay in the county for a night, refund the room fee, and take the carriage back." Wen Shu spoke with difficulty, "In the future, brother won’t study, he’ll work hard to earn silver, making life easier for Little Nuan."
Wen Nuan’s tears flowed.
Wen Shu managed not to cry, but his eyes were red.
From their conversation, Meng Yao could guess how difficult life was for the siblings.
Meng Yao cleared her throat, "Well then, I didn’t bring anyone to serve me on this trip, I won’t buy you, what if I hire you instead? No silver, just one bottle of ointment, and three meals a day."
Wen Nuan’s eyes widened, "Brother, pinch me, pinch me, am I hearing hallucinations?"
Wen Shu choked up, "Madam’s great favor, Wen Shu will surely remember forever."
"Hope you won’t disappoint your family’s expectations." Meng Yao said.
Wen Shu looked determined, "Madam lent me a hand, I won’t let her kindness go to waste."
The carriage entered the city before the gates closed.
After parking the carriage, Li Chang’an also helped move Wen Shu into the inn.
The lobby was still full of people, probably waiting to see if Meng Yao would return.
Seeing them come back now, they lost interest and scattered.
"Ah Shu?" a young man suddenly spoke.
Wen Shu looked towards the voice; it was his schoolmate.
Wen Shu nodded towards him, "Brother Chen."
Chen He looked awkward, "I didn’t know it was you, Ah Shu, who got injured, had I known, I wouldn’t have ignored it."
"No problem." Wen Shu’s voice was calm, "I’m lucky to have received help from a benefactor."
"I, I didn’t recognize your attendant..." Chen He murmured.
"Brother Chen, don’t worry about this matter." Wen Shu spoke kindly, it was a courtesy for someone to offer help, no obligation in not doing so, he had no ground to blame anyone.
Meng Yao noticed that Wen Shu’s words were sincere, and thus felt this young Wen Shu, although young, had a truly stable character, quite rare.