The Favored Heiress
Chapter 604: You Know Chinese Medicine?

Chapter 604: Chapter 604: You Know Chinese Medicine?

Finally, Jin Rong, as if parting with flesh, gave Li Qiao three islands as a meeting gift once again.

At Shang Yu’s urging, Li Qiao reluctantly accepted them.

Jin Rong: "..."

About five minutes later, Jin Rong received a call from his subordinate and, glancing at the two seated under the parasol, he looked toward the coastline and said, "Let’s go, I’ll take you to see the medical room."

...

The medical room was set up on the neighboring equipment island.

The island wasn’t large, with a sea-view house by the shore and the rest were single-story storage buildings.

The group disembarked from the yacht, with Jin Rong leading the way in flip-flops, hands clasped behind his back, occasionally pointing at nearby buildings and offering a brief introduction, although each island had a similar overall style.

Li Qiao had been here more than once, but she only ever visited the main island to discuss matters with Jin Rong.

Soon, they walked past a grove of coconut trees, and the medical room came into view.

Upon entering, Li Qiao’s gaze swept around the room.

The medical room was neither too large nor too small, about two hundred square meters in size.

But the facilities were complete, with all kinds of testing equipment available, all of which were brand new.

Next to the medical table, there were also many black cloth bags, and the air was filled with the scent of herbal medicine.

After making a round, Jin Rong finally stood next to the CT scanner, arm resting on the machine, "I’ve gathered all the medicinal herbs for you, if it’s not enough, let me know anytime."

"Mm," Shang Yu replied tersely, walked over to the medical table, opened a cloth bag, and crushed a piece of herb, "You can go now."

Caught off guard by his dismissal, Jin Rong turned his face and asked, "What did you say?"

The man didn’t look at him, his attention focused on sorting the herbs in the cloth bag.

By this time, Li Qiao had gotten a preliminary understanding of the layout of the medical room and strolled over to Shang Yu’s side, looking at the countless herbs in the cloth bag, some of which she’d never even seen before.

Li Qiao looked at the man’s sharply contoured side profile, "Do you know traditional Chinese medicine?"

As the Parma Shang clan was a family of medical heritage, and Shang Zonghai held the title of King of Traditional Chinese Medicine, it was not surprising that Shang Yu knew medical skills.

But in all this time together, she had never seen him touch medicinal herbs.

She had thought that Shang Lu was the heir to Shang’s traditional Chinese medicine.

Hearing her question, Shang Yu flicked off the remnants of herbs from his fingertips and glanced at her surprised expression, lips slightly tilted, "Surprised?"

"A little," Li Qiao leaned on the medical table, looking up into his eyes, "Did you learn from uncle?"

As she spoke that, she caught a fleeting shadow in Shang Yu’s eyes.

A complex expression.

As if tinged with subtle mockery amidst memories.

Then, Shang Yu looked back at the herbs in the cloth bag, his Adam’s apple shifted up and down, he hesitated, then finally said in a deep voice, "Madam Xiao."

Li Qiao pursed her lips and said nothing more.

Indeed, she hadn’t expected that his medical skills had been learned from Madam Xiao.

This name was not exactly taboo between them, but they never brought it up on their own.

Li Qiao stared at the herbs and zoned out, as she had never had a favorable impression of Ming Dailan.

What kind of person could a mother be if she was protective of her stepson yet harmed her biological son mercilessly?

But Shang Yu’s words suggested another possibility to her.

If Madam Xiao had personally taught him medicine, did it mean... they too had a period of maternal affection and filial piety?

What caused the rift that led to their estrangement today?

Less than three minutes passed, and Jin Rong tactfully chose to leave on his own.

He had stood behind Shang Yu and Li Qiao for quite a while, completely ignored to the utmost degree.

Jin Rong felt as if the fine cabbage he had nurtured had been rooted up by a pig.

And that pig just happened to be his good brother, whom he couldn’t hit or scold.

...

In this way, Shang Yu took Li Qiao to stay temporarily at the Wenxi Archipelago under the pretense of recovering from her injuries.

Most of their time was spent in the medical room.

Jin Rong would come over every day from the main island on his yacht, tirelessly bringing all sorts of island fruits for Li Qiao.

He proclaimed that at the age of growing, one needed to replenish nutrition.

As for his good brother, he had completely pushed him out of his mind.

Time flew, and before they knew it, three days had passed.

One of the perks of living in the Wenxi Archipelago was the sense of isolation from the world.

In these past few mornings, Li Qiao had woken up to the sound of the waves, and opening the door, she could see a vast expanse of beach and the azure sea.

All worries were washed away by the waves, truly a life facing the sea with blossoming spring.

At ten in the morning, Li Qiao sat cross-legged in a hanging basket chair in front of the villa, carefully examining a pair of jade Pixiu ornaments that fit in the palm of her hand.

Soon after, the door opened, and Shang Yu walked out in a silk robe, carrying a bowl of herbal medicine in his hand.

Hearing the noise, Li Qiao placed the Pixiu ornaments on her lap and took the bowl of medicine Shang Yu handed her, frowning slightly as she downed it in one gulp.

The recovery was truly focused on healing.

Because Shang Yu himself had personally prepared a blood-activating and stasis-dissolving Chinese medicine for her, twice daily, more punctual than mealtimes.

Not only that, but there was also a patch of hot herbal paste applied to the side of her waist, all crafted by his hand.

Li Qiao smacked her lips, the bitter taste of the Chinese medicine leaving a slight aftertaste, as she looked up at Shang Yu, "Are we going to the medical room today?"

"Not today," the man pulled a rattan chair and sat down, crossing his long legs out in front, then glanced out at the sea, turning to her with a crooked smile, "After a few more days of recovery, shall we go back to South Sea?"

Li Qiao leaned her head against the hanging basket, tapping the Pixiu ornament with her fingers, "That’s fine, but..."

She thought about the Official Kiln Vase that Jin Rong had been searching for.

Shang Yu took her hand, examining the scabbed wound, and asked lazily while lifting his eyelids, "You want to get the vase?"

Li Qiao pondered for a moment, then smiled, "Let’s see how it goes; I can have Ah Chang fetch it just the same."

...

As evening approached, the sea’s surface shimmered with the golden light of the setting sun.

In the living room of the seaside villa, Luoyu arrived with a briefcase in hand, "Miss Li, is this what you were talking about?"

"Uh-huh, give it to me." Li Qiao opened the briefcase, took out some documents and medals, threw them onto the table, and casually placed the briefcase aside.

Shang Yu and Jin Rong were smoking on the scenic platform outside the door, their shadows elongated by the sunlight.

"When are you guys leaving?" Jin Rong glanced back into the living room.

With a cigarette between his lips, the man squinted and spoke in a deep, magnetic voice, "In a few days."

Jin Rong pursed his lips, rocking his flip-flopped feet while thinking about how to make them stay a few more days, when he suddenly heard this, nearly snapping his cigarette, "What? You want me to get it myself?"