Fields of Gold

On a beautiful summer night, the sky was clear and the stars sparkled like bright diamonds. Under the darkness of the evening with flickering silver night in the background, the two masters of Imperial Prince Xu's Estate were enjoying the cooling breeze in the pavilion in the back garden.

Yu Xiaocao was reclined in a rocking chair with some smoldering mosquito repellant herbs at the side. Her chair swayed lightly back and forth. Her eyes were closed and it was so comfortable that she almost fell asleep.

Next to her was Zhu Junyang, who was lightly fanning her and occasionally feeding her a sweet gr.a.p.e. When she finished eating the gr.a.p.e, he used his hand to take away the spitted out seeds and skin from her mouth. He looked so sweet and tender and didn't even have a hint of the decisive and murderous aura of the head commander of the Xishan Barracks.

"My Lord, do you think our second child, compared to our eldest and youngest, is a bit too...how do I say this? Alright, look at our eldest, Little Baozi. At such a young age, he has his own views and ideas. Although he hasn't fully matured yet, at his preteen age, we can already see hints of his future intellect and schemes."

"Our third child, Little Guozi, is a young lass but she's crazy for martial arts. Furthermore, she has the best talent for it out of all of our three children. Just how many older children in the academy have been beaten up by her in these past four years? I can't even count them on my own two hands! How many times have I told her that force isn't the only way to resolve a disagreement? However, she always talks back and says 'but it's the most effective method'..." Whenever she talked about her problem child, Zhu Yunxin, Yu Xiaocao always felt her head hurt.

Zhu Junyang's face turned solemn and used a toothpick to spear a piece of cantaloupe before delivering it to his wife's mouth, "Little Guozi talks back to you? When I get back, I'll give her a talking to!"

Zhu Yunxin, who was currently on the training grounds practicing her martial arts, suddenly felt her back turn cold. This was a warning, telling her that danger was approaching. She became alert and looked around her but didn't discover any suspicious people. Puzzled, she scratched the back of her head before deciding to clean up her boxing equipment to head back to her own courtyard.

"You're going off topic, okay? Your daughter is too worrisome. How are we supposed to find a family for her in the future? Do you know what the rumors say now ah? They say that she's a smiling demon with quick fists! It's all your fault. Why did you have to allow our girl to practice martial arts with you and her brothers? Just look at her now! She's a violent young lady who has no sense of law and natural morality!" Yu Xiaocao was so angry that she bit down on his hand, leaving teeth marks.

Zhu Junyang used his tongue to lick the wound on the back of his hand and grinned, "Being more fierce is better than getting bullied after she gets married, right? Don't worry ah, do you really believe that no one will want my daughter ah? Does it matter if she can't marry in the future? This prince will raise her for the rest of her life!"

"You...you're the one spoiling her to high heavens!" Yu Xiaocao was furious and refused to eat anymore. She turned around so she wouldn't have to look at him.

Zhu Junyang hurriedly changed the subject when he saw that his wife was angry, "Weren't you talking about our second child earlier? Did he make you angry somehow?"

"The exact opposite! I actually want our second child to do something that would make me upset ah. Like you said earlier, Little Guozi is very skilled and doesn't have the personality that would let her get bullied around easily. Little Baozi ah, on the other hand, it's a miracle if he doesn't push other people around. As for our Little Mantou, he's just like his childhood nickname, soft and gentle. He doesn't have a temper at all." As expected, Yu Xiaocao forgot to be angry and began to worry about her second son again.

"Furthermore, our eldest and youngest children both have what they like and goals in the future. However, our Little Mantou doesn't seem to have that. He'll work very hard to learn whatever you teach him but he's never expressed a true liking or interest in anything. Little Baozi will inherit this estate in the future. As for Little Guozi, we'll just prepare more for her dowry and find a man who will be able to accept and love her for who she is. But Little Mantou will need to separate from the household and go out on his own. With this type of temperament, how will he be able to do it?" Argh! Children always caused troubles and worries for their parents ah!

Zhu Junyang felt like there was nothing to be worried about. With the industries under his and his wife's name, it was more than enough to allow Little Mantou to squander money as he pleased for several lifetimes. In the future, even if he decided not to do anything, he wouldn't starve.

That being said, in his eyes, Little Mantou wasn't completely without a temper. After all, when that fellow surnamed Long had insulted his mother, he had brought his younger sister along to toss a burlap bag over the stupid guy's head and beat him to a pulp. He even targeted the guy's most vulnerable spots.

Furthermore, Little Mantou wasn't completely uninterested in everything. In fact, he had too many interests. He had to try anything that caught his eye. If it didn't suit him, he would drop it to attempt something else. He was only at the stage where he hadn't found something that attracted his interest entirely, that was all.

Zhu Junyang used these points to comfort his wife. Yu Xiaocao sighed and said, "If only it were so ah!"

Sure enough, Zhu Junyang's words became true later on. When Little Mantou turned ten, he suddenly told his parents that he wanted to learn medicine! Yu Xiaocao was quite flabbergasted by this announcement and asked him why he chose to study this.

He replied in a forceful and righteous manner, "Lord Father has cultivated elite troops for the nation and guards our empire for the people. By doing so, he's given all of the people in the empire a safe living environment. Lady Mother has improved crop yields, which benefited both the country and the people, allowing all people to have ample food and clothing. I want to become someone like my lord father and lady mother!"

"So, you decided to become a doctor?"" Zhu Junyang's voice was neutral, revealing none of his inner thoughts.

Little Mantou replied instantly, "Yes! Right now the country is prosperous and the people at peace, so everyone is living a bountiful and plentiful life. However, when illness strikes, there are still many commoners who can't afford to see a doctor or the medicine that goes with it. There are also some hard to understand illnesses with no good treatments...I wish to help all of these people and help them become perfectly healthy!"

Yu Xiaocao was so touched that she wanted to cry. Apparently her Little Mantou wasn't so soft without any thoughts of his own but instead had a compassionate heart that thought of everyone! However, as his mother, she wouldn't feel relieved if he had to leave her at such a young age to find a doctor. She looked towards her husband.

Zhu Junyang could sense her unease and muttered to himself for a bit before finally saying, "Your lady mother and I both feel very gratified that you have such a bold and compassionate goal in your heart. As the proverb says, 'medicine does not divide families'. You also know that your lady mother is skilled at manufacturing and concocting medications and is the best in the Great Ming Empire. Before you start your journey on medicine, you first need to understand all of the medicinal ingredients, their properties, and the composition of every medication. That way, when you become a disciple of a famous doctor, you'll have a better grasp. What do you think?"

Little Mantou thought carefully for a bit and didn't persevere on his track of thinking. He nodded, "Lord Father is right. As for drug ingredients, their nature and properties, I have already learned almost everything I could from Manager Yingtao. Should I first start with learning how to concoct medications then?"

Yu Xiaocao was stunned by this. When did he learn these things and how come she, as his mother, didn't know about any of this? She truly wasn't qualified to be a good mother! She was vexed for a few seconds and then began to test her son a bit on medicinal ingredients. Sure enough, Little Mantou was able to answer all of her questions without any issues.

While teaching her son the art of concocting medications, Yu Xiaocao discovered that Little Mantou could be considered a true genius. Once he was concentrated on something, he reached the state of a perfect memory. She only needed to demonstrate the method to make a drug once and he was able to imitate it very well. Furthermore, the medications he made had the exact same efficacy as hers. As for the more complicated ones, he was able to get a hang of it after learning two to three times. He even had no issues learning the concocting methods that the little divine stone had taught her.

Before a year had passed, Little Mantou had learned everything his mother knew about concocting medications and was at the same level or even better than she was. Yu Xiaocao had nothing else to teach him, so she sent him to Medicine King Valley and had Xu Ziyi worry about him instead. After another year passed, Little Mantou came back from Medicine King Valley and brought along a letter that was written by the current head of the sect, Xu Ziyi.

The letter first started off with how much he envied and was jealous of her for having such a genius as a son. It also stated the grand and glorious deeds of Little Mantou while he was at Medicine King Valley. Then, it expressed his regret that he had been refused by Little Mantou after asking him to be his disciple. In summary, Little Mantou not only learned everything that was taught to him during the year or so he had spent at Medicine King Valley, but he also learned all of their secret methods that weren't taught to outsiders. Now, there was no one in the Great Ming Empire who could compete with him at concocting medication.

Two years had passed, and Little Mantou insisted on pursuing his studies in medicine. With the recommendation of the sect leader of the Medicine King Valley, Little Mantou had become the disciple of a hidden godly doctor. It was said that this godly doctor was the best doctor under the heavens. As long as a person had a breath of air left, he was able to save that person. Even the black and white reapers had to give him some respect.

Little Mantou began his journey to become a doctor. That hidden godly doctor had only reluctantly taken this prince as disciple because he had owed Medicine King Valley a favor. Originally, he was only planning on teaching him a few basics and that was it.

He didn't expect that this youth, who had an ill.u.s.trious background, was actually a rare, one-of-a-kind, genius at medicine. He was like a dry sponge and absorbed everything that was taught to him at lightning speed. Furthermore, he was able to go beyond what he was taught and get to the next level. The teacher was enthusiastic now and so was the student. Before long, the hidden godly doctor had completely changed his attitude towards Little Mantou. Thus, Little Mantou had succeeded in becoming the last disciple of this goldy doctor and was being cultivated appropriately.

Five years later, the seventeen year old Zhu Yunxiao finished his studies. When he left the mountain, his master told him, "Dear Disciple, you've already learned everything I have to teach you. The future is up to you now!"

When he got back to the capital, his mother told him that they had already prepared ten thousand mu in fields located in the north and southwest to grow medicinal herbs for him. Furthermore, they collaborated with all of the noble and wealthy individuals willing to do charitable works to contribute to a project that would provide free medical consultations and medications. They even used his name and named the place 'Yunxiao Benevolent Hospital' and it was especially established to help the elderly and children who couldn't afford treatment.

Little Mantou felt incredibly touched. His parents had sacrificed more than he had ever expected for the sake of his dream. With his father and mother at his back, he didn't need to fear more troubles popping up.

A lone tree was not enough to make a forest. Thus, he quickly got in contact with some fellow students from his generation and their disciples and managed to persuade them to join his venture. Furthermore, he also recruited a few good doctors with good skills and morals to also work at the hospital.

Of course, the amount of money required to do charitable treatments was beyond one could imagine. Zhu Yunxiao naturally wouldn't bankrupt his father's and mother's pockets for the sake of his own dream. He needed to use his own medical expertise to keep himself and the hospital afloat. When he was learning the skills of a doctor, he especially concentrated his studies on some hard to understand illnesses. There were some 'incurable' diseases that he could actually treat and eradicate by using his special prescriptions.

Who cherished their lives the most? Obviously, that was people who had money and power! If these people were told that they had a disease that was incurable and deadly but suddenly someone told them that it could be treated, they'd give up their entire family fortune for the grasp at a miracle!

Once Zhu Yunxiao cured a few diseases that were considered incurable or ineradicable, his reputation as a godly doctor grew and grew. As for his considerable consultation fees, he invested all of them into the Benevolent Hospital and Pharmacy. As their reputations grew, more and more people went out to find him so that he could treat them. Some only had ordinary illnesses and came to Yunxiao Hospital to get a proper diagnosis and treatment for the sake of their own anxieties.

'Yunxiao Benevolent Hospital' soon became a godly hospital that the commoners saw as a place of hope and it had also become a place that saved the lives of those with previously determined incurable disease. As for Godly Doctor Zhu Yunxiao, he had also achieved his dream of becoming the best doctor under the heavens…