Jie Jingchen’s pupils constricted. He hadn’t expected Qin i to demand a consultation fee. In his heart, he hadn’t even realized he already saw her as family.
"When you go to the hospital, you have to pay the doctor. I’m treating her leg, so shouldn’t you pay my fee?" Seeing Jie Jingchen’s silence, Qin i assud he was unwilling to pay.
Jie Jingchen raised a hand and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "We’re family."
For a mont, Qin i was touched by the word "family." Then she grinned. "Don’t play the family card with . Even brothers settle their accounts."
She had a point. Jie Jingchen asked, "How much do you want?"
"Heh." Qin i chuckled, rubbing her nose without giving him a definite number. "The more, the better."
’No one ever complains about having too much money. The more, the better.’
’Money gives a woman security, no matter the circumstances. It makes things easier, and you need money to make money.’
"Alright. As long as you can heal Jing Qi’s leg, I guarantee the fee will be to your satisfaction." Jie Jingchen emphasized the last part. While his face was unreadable, Qin i could hear the emotion in his voice.
"Deal." Qin i was very satisfied. She couldn’t care less about Jie Jingchen’s feelings. ’Making money is what’s important. First, I’ll earn it from inside the family, then I’ll find ways to earn it from outside.’
Qin i stood up and walked to the bedside. She first took Jie Jingshan’s pulse, then examined her leg. To her relief, the condition was better than she had anticipated.
"How is it? Can you treat it?" Jie Jingchen asked anxiously.
"Yes." Qin i didn’t keep him in suspense. She had no interest in using cheap theatrics to emphasize her dical skills.
’A simple yes or no. Clear and direct.’
"How certain are you?" Jie Jingchen asked.
"Seventy percent," Qin i answered. ’In truth, I’m ninety percent sure, but I can’t be overconfident. There’s always that ten percent chance of an unforeseen complication. What if Jie Jingshan is just unlucky enough to fall into that ten percent?’
At her words, the tension in Jie Jingchen’s expression visibly eased, and a hint of a smile touched his eyes. It was like seeing a ray of dawn after finding oneself at a dead end, on the brink of despair.
"Thank you." Jie Jingchen couldn’t suppress his excitent. Never mind seventy percent—even a thirty percent chance would have been a glimr of hope.
’His mother was a doctor with outstanding skills, yet even she had been helpless when it ca to Jing Qi’s leg.’
’Traditional Chinese dicine truly is profound.’
They’d had buns for breakfast, and for lunch, they wanted rice. Qin i didn’t know how to cook it, and you couldn’t expect anything from Jie Jingshan. It was also inconvenient for Jie Jingchen. Qin i suggested they eat out, but then they considered that Jie Jingshan refused to leave the house, and they weren’t comfortable leaving her ho alone. In the end, they decided Jie Jingchen would go buy takeout.
Qin i moved a table into the courtyard so they could eat outside. Jie Jingshan was visibly uncomfortable. Ever since her leg had been crippled, she hadn’t eaten at a table with her family. Her als were always brought to her room for her to eat alone.
It wasn’t that her family looked down on her; she was the one who refused to leave her room.
Qin i had told Jie Jingshan about the plan to treat her leg, but Jie Jingshan had shown no reaction. She didn’t believe Qin i could heal her. After four years of trying one thing after another to no avail, it seed she had already accepted her fate.
Qin i hadn’t begun the treatnt yet. She wasn’t going to worry about whether Jie Jingshan would cooperate. ’Right now, I need to co up with a treatnt plan.’
At four o’clock in the afternoon, mbers of the Jie family began to return from work, each carrying an aluminum lunch box. Qin i was sitting under a tree in the courtyard while Jie Jingchen was lounging comfortably in a rattan chair.
"Xiao Si, is this your wife?" asked a handso man. He was followed by an utterly charming woman who was leading a young boy by the hand.
The boy was about seven or eight years old, with an army-green satchel slung over his shoulder.
Qin i rose to her feet, giving the couple a beaming smile before turning a questioning gaze to Jie Jingchen.
"Second Brother, Jie Jingwei. Second Sister-in-law, Xu Chunyan. And their son, Jie You." Jie Jingchen didn’t get up, remaining reclined in the rattan chair with his eyes closed as if resting.
’Jie Jingchen’s second brother.’ Qin i sized up Jie Jingwei. He bore no resemblance to Jie Jingchen at all. Jie Jingwei was handso, but Jie Jingchen was devastatingly so. She couldn’t help but wonder, ’Are they really blood brothers?’
"Second Brother, Second Sister-in-law." Qin i’s smile widened, her eyes curving into crescents. It was a dazzling, bewitching smile.
Jie Jingwei smiled and nodded. ’So this is the wife Xiao Si found,’ he thought. ’She’s bewitching to the bone, voluptuous yet gentle—a true fem fatale.’
"Xiao You, co here. Greet your Fourth Aunt," Jie Jingwei said, beckoning to the son Xu Chunyan was holding by the hand.
"Hmph!" The little boy snorted, glaring at Qin i before shouting, "She is not my Fourth Aunt! She’s a vixen! A vixen who seduced my Fourth Uncle! Teacher Lin is supposed to be my Fourth Aunt!"
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