The Elder Princess responded, her gaze fixed on Lin Caisang’s face. After a long moment of hesitation, she finally spoke.
"Miss Lin, have we met before?"
She had never had such an open and pleasant conversation with any young lady before, not even with the few respectable young ladies in Jianan City. It was as if she felt an immediate connection with Miss Lin the moment their eyes met.
She thought, were they maybe acquainted from somewhere? But she just couldn’t recall.
Lin Caisang didn’t settle her mind on the Elder Princess’s question but instead took out some items from her small shoulder bag, placed them on the stone table, and began to sort through them meticulously.
"My family is quite strict, apart from this time, I have never left home."
Regardless of whether she’d ever left home, the first time she came to Jianan City was to treat the Elder Princess in front of her. Naturally, there was no possibility they had met before.
"Where is Miss Lin’s home?" The Elder Princess couldn’t help but ask.
"Oh, my family is in Yejun," Lin Caisang replied.
The expression on the Elder Princess stiffened, her hands clenched tight on her knees, dampening her red lips.
"Yejun is a good place, I was fortunate enough to visit once. I heard there’s a Qianlin County, where the majority of the local people have the surname Lin."
"Yes, seventy percent of the people in Qianlin County are surnamed Lin, of which I’m no exception."
Lin Caisang nodded and continued her current task, opening each porcelain bottle of medicine the Elder Princess needs, smelling them to ensure they’re correct before sealing them back.
"The princess can’t help but notice that Miss Lin is quite young. May I know how old you are this year?" The Elder Princess asked again.
At this question, Lin Caisang felt somewhat embarrassed to answer.
Because she used to be chubby, her skeletal structure was also larger; simply put, she was quite tall for her age.
When she practiced medicine, she never told others about her age. No one knew she was just thirteen years old. If they knew, they might consider her a fraud.
"I just turned thirteen this year."
Facing the Elder Princess, whose poison has been cured anyway, Lin Caisang didn’t need to hide this fact, so, she told the truth.
The Elder Princess was dumbfounded, not expecting Lin Caisang to be only thirteen.
"I made a fool of myself before the Elder Princess. I started studying medicine at a very young age and, of course, I never forget any medicinal herbs. That’s why I became known at an earlier age." Seeing her startled, Lin Caisang thought she did not believe her age and hurriedly added an explanation.
The Elder Princess collected herself and fiddled with the hem of her dress.
"Last time I overheard Miss Lin mentioning a elder brother who is preparing for the autumn imperial examination to be a scholar, is this so?" she asked.
Seeing her nodded, a hint of disappointment flashed in the Elder Princess’s eyes.
With a brother preparing to be a scholar, it definitely can’t be her. How could she be that lucky.
"He’s my cousin, seventeen this year. If he pass the examination this year for a provincial degree, he will be coming to Jianan City for metropolitan examination next spring." Just as she was thinking about changing the topic, she heard Lin Caisang speak again.
"As for my older biological brother, he’s the same age as me. He’s just a simpleton who indulges exploring the mountains all day. This year, I finally managed to send him to school to learn a few characters, so he won’t end up an illiterate in the future."