“I see, so you’re a physician too, sister, and you’re going to participate in the Empress’s Medical Recruitment Exam? You’re amazing, sister!”
Yin Qiu had eaten her fill, and in the face of Shen Yu’s gentleness, she relaxed a bit, enough to chat with her.
Though she was still somewhat introverted, it was clear she was doing everything she could to please Shen Yu, like a small animal afraid of being abandoned by its mother; every movement revealed her caution.
“Once we reach the Capital City, I’ll find a good place for you to stay, so don’t be afraid.”
Shen Yu chatted idly with Yin Qiu.
For some reason, when she mentioned that she would send Yin Qiu away upon reaching the Capital City, a flash of unexplained disappointment flickered in the girl’s eyes.
“Sister… what are you doing? Is this Yellow Hemp?”
“But it’s different from the kind that grows on the mountain. The leaves are larger, and it looks sturdier.”
Shen Yu was somewhat surprised to hear Yin Qiu say this.
This young girl actually understood herbs?
And she could tell at a glance that the Yellow Hemp in her hand was unusual?
“That’s right. My mother cultivated this herself. It’s different from wild Yellow Hemp; its medicinal properties are stronger, it has fewer side effects, and it’s more stable.”
The current Grand Princess’s illness was acute asthma.
Extracting the active ingredients from the Yellow Hemp and administering them via Nebulization was the key to saving her life.
Therefore, Shen Yu had to prepare the medicine on the way to the Capital City; it would be too late once they arrived.
“Very few people can keep Yellow Hemp alive. My grandfather tried too, but most herbs just won’t grow when planted. Even though they grow perfectly fine in stone crevices outside, once they’re transplanted and cared for at home, they can’t survive more than a few days.”
Yin Qiu was right.
This world was slightly different from the previous life Shen Yu remembered.
The reason Shen Yu said the Imperial Physicians of the Imperial Academy of Medicine were already top-tier at making decoctions was that the herbs in this world had stronger medicinal properties and more obvious effects.
Thus, when treating illnesses, the herbs of this world had a higher starting point and better results.
However, most herbs could not be artificially cultivated.
They could easily survive exposure to the elements in stone cracks outside, but if the temperature at home dropped even slightly, they would die on you…
Yet Shen Yu never understood why her own mother, Su Lianyue, could grow herbs, and grow them so large and well.
Sometimes she even wondered if Su Lianyue was some Disney princess in hiding who could talk to plants.
“Sister, let me help you with the rough work like grinding and decocting.”
As Yin Qiu spoke, she proactively took the manual labor from Shen Yu’s hands, taking the pestle and skillfully grinding the medicine.
“Your hands are so white and beautiful. These are the hands of a future Medical Exam Top Scholar; you shouldn’t be doing such rough work.”
Seeing Yin Qiu working so hard, Shen Yu felt a bit embarrassed for a moment.
In truth, Shen Yu’s hands couldn’t really be called white and tender.
On the contrary, as the young miss of Qingfeng Village, her palms were full of calluses.
They were left behind from years of researching herbs; there were no ready-made medical books in this world, so she had to figure everything out herself.
Sometimes she even had to carry a hoe into the fields with her mother to tend to the herbs.
“This girl is quite skilled.”
Shen Yu watched as Yin Qiu worked hard to grind the herbs.
Her thin body used almost all its strength, and fine beads of sweat soon appeared on her forehead.
However, her movements weren’t awkward; she clearly did this kind of work often.
Grinding herbs was a tedious task—fussy and exhausting, it wasted a lot of Shen Yu’s time.
For some reason, as Shen Yu watched the hardworking little figure, she suddenly had the thought of keeping her by her side.
But she quickly dismissed the idea.
After all, staying by her side meant a slim chance of survival, and Shen Yu didn’t want more people risking their lives along with her.
“Miss Shen, the road has been cleared. We’re setting off immediately. According to our previous plan, we’ll travel non-stop day and night for seven days, and after seven days, we will rest at the Official Relay Station in Wangzhou…”