"Hmph, Gao Jianshe, I don’t believe he can hide forever!"
Xu Nian’an specifically detoured to the Gao Family, only to find out that Gao Jianshe had not returned, so he followed Xu Nianhua into town.
After placing the mung bean jelly in Granny Cai’s well, Xu Nian’an and Xu Nianhua, brother and sister, packed a lunchbox full of mung bean jelly and headed straight for Doctor Du’s house.
"It should be here, right?"
This area was part of the old-town district with especially many small alleys, each looking pretty much the same in Xu Nianhua’s eyes.
"You aren’t lost, are you?" Xu Nian’an observed his little sister, who was generally quite smart but somewhat weak in terms of sense of direction, often unsure of north, south, east, and west.
Apart from the simpler, more familiar routes, she would get a bit dizzy.
"I should be able to find it; I remember there is a big persimmon tree."
When Xu Nianhua had left yesterday, she had made a point of remembering the way because she owed Doctor Du money for treating her wound, and she had intended to pay him back the next day.
However, her memory was getting a bit fuzzy looking at these nearly identical alleys.
Suddenly, Xu Nianhua saw a familiar face; she quickly approached him and said, "Doctor Du, Doctor Du."
"Oh, the brave little girl from yesterday?" When Du Chang saw Xu Nianhua, he immediately remembered that yesterday Pei Yicheng had uncharacteristically not chased people away.
Xu Nianhua touched her nose.
"Doctor Du, thank you for saving my sister yesterday," Xu Nian’an said gratefully to Du Chang.
"Don’t thank me; thank my Yicheng," he said.
While inviting them to walk to his house, Doctor Du asked, "What’s your name?"
"Xu Nian’an, and I live in Shuangzhu Village," Xu Nian’an replied as they entered the Du Family’s home, only to realize that they had walked past the entrance twice already.
The Du Family’s home was a small bungalow, somewhat resembling a courtyard house but less refined. It had a yard at the front and another at the back, with many herbs drying in the front yard, whose scent hit them as soon as they entered.
"Doctor Du, why haven’t you opened a medical clinic?" Xu Nian’an inquired.
Smiling and stroking his beard, Du Chang replied, "Aren’t you afraid that I’m not a good doctor?"
"How could that be, Doctor Du looks very skilled," Xu Nian’an praised, genuinely sensing that Du Chang was a highly skilled doctor.
"The Du Medical Clinic at the entrance of the alley is mine," said Du Chang, stroking his chin, amused by the siblings.
"Du Medical Clinic? I remember many from our village go there for medical treatment," Xu Nian’an recalled and then directly asked, "Doctor Du, how much do I owe for my sister’s wound dressing from yesterday?"
"No charge," Du Chang looked at Xu Nianhua and said, "I already told your sister yesterday, no charge."
He waved his hand, effectively stopping any further discussion from Xu Nian’an, adding, "If you insist on paying, then I might have to ask you to leave."
Du Chang kept a stern face; having said he wouldn’t charge, he couldn’t go back on his word.
"Doctor Du," Xu Nian’an again expressed his thanks and, at the same time, offered the mung bean jelly they had made, saying, "Doctor Du, you won’t take money, but you must accept this mung bean jelly. I made it myself, and it tastes quite good."
"There have been a lot of mung bean jelly vendors on the streets recently; are you selling it too?" Du Chang remembered the recent surge of vendors.
Scratching his head somewhat embarrassingly, Xu Nian’an said, "Yes, earning some tuition money."