It was such a strange sight that the entire sect discussed it the whole afternoon. After Anji’s lesson with Doctor He, Lizi had to be carried back to the servant’s estate because she was in too much "healthy pain" to walk. Anji was seen limping with a smile as she lectured Lizi about the importance of sleeping eight uninterrupted hours.
At dinner, Zhao Mingfeng could no longer control his curiosity.
"Anji, what did you and Lizi do at Doctor He’s clinic this afternoon? How did you and Lizi become injured?"
Showing her younger sister concerned looks, Ruiting placed the back of her hand on Anji’s forehead. Only after confirming that the youngest princess did not have a fever did she retract her hand and piled more de-boned fish in Anji’s bowl.
"You should eat more meat if you’re injured," she advised. "Wrap your leg warm at night so it would not hurt in cold weather."
Laughing nervously at her overly concerned family, Anji reassured them that nobody was injured and that they were getting healthier.
"Doctor He was only teaching me some basic acupressure points for the main meridians. Lizi was standing in as a substitute for medical bronze dolls. However, she is very unhealthy and received free treatment from Doctor He after my practice. He said that she should be feeling much better in two days. There are no bruises on my leg either. Father, Mother, Older Sister, please don’t worry too much. Doctor He would never let me do anything that would harm me."
Relieved that it was merely pain from therapy, Mingfeng commanded a servant to rely on the information that Lizi was on two days of official rest. Another maid would attend to Anji while she studied medicine.
"Don’t overdo it, ok? Can you promise, Mother?" Wanting watched her youngest daughter with concern. "There is plenty of time. You don’t have to rush to learn everything."
Agreeing with his wife, Mingfeng wondered if there was anything he could do for his overly capable youngest child. Yan Ping was still trying a different method to cultivate her soul, and they had not received any news from her since she had disappeared into seclusion. Anji was making much quicker progress with her lessons with Mingfeng. The Doctrine of the Mean was a difficult book but Anji found no challenge in interpreting its texts after she learned how it was related to the origin of cultivation. His daughter was very well-read and spent most of her time reading in the library or her room whenever they finished their lessons. There was no need for Mingfeng to assign Anji any homework because she remembered everything she read.
Doctor He highlighted Anji’s recent enthusiasm for medicine to the Zhao family. Her apprenticeship was no longer a secret. However, Zhao Mingfeng did not know if he should encourage Anji’s thirst for knowledge in this industry. Doctors, like teachers, were very respected. However, the reality was much harsher, with doctors suffering greater setbacks than teachers. Anji was still young and might have an overly idealistic passion for saving and helping anyone in need. In reality, doctors sometimes witness deaths and cannot save everyone, even if they can reach these patients. Doctors were not Gods. At the end of the day, they were only humans.
"Anji," Wanting called gently, brushing off a grain of rice stuck to her younger daughter’s cheek. "We heard from Doctor He that you’re learning medicine from him. Is that true?"
Nodding as she shovelled another mouthful of rice, Anji chewed and swallowed.
"I requested it," she explained. "It was related to the Doctrine of the Mean and Cultivation. Also, I had fun learning new things that could be useful for myself and others."
Setting his chopsticks down, Zhao Mingfeng sighed. It was as he feared.
"Do you want to become a doctor in the future?" he asked carefully. Even Ruiting held her breath in front of her father, nervous for her younger sister’s response.
Anji thought for a while in between bites. She had not considered her future career. As the privileged youngest child of the mighty Celestial Dragon Sect, nobody would find fault with her even if she wished to remain unemployed. After all, she was the ’unfortunate’ youngest princess of the clan. For more chapters visit novelFɪre.net
"Maybe," she shrugged. "I don’t know enough to become a doctor. However, learning more about the human body and how it works from the inside is fun. It would be nice to lessen the pain and injuries of the disciples who practise hard daily in our sect. Suffering is not good."
Troubled, Zhao Mingfeng wondered how he should word it so that he did not sound as if he was discouraging Anji from becoming a doctor. However, he did not want to shield her eyes from the ugly truth of this world. Children cannot be protected forever, and he would rather have Anji understand the truth now than later.
"It’s a good intention," he affirmed. "However, even doctors cannot save everyone. People die one way or another. It’s the way of life. Doctors cannot treat many mysterious illnesses, and many people live too far to see a doctor. Not everyone is thankful to doctors and can afford to pay for one. I’m sure you’ve heard about Doctor He’s story before he came to the sect. Even so, will you study medicine from him?"
Whatever her father said, Doctor He had already discussed it with Anji. However, the little girl’s answer remained unchanged. She was not studying medicine with such a noble reason in mind. Her father told her to be a little more selfish and childish, so it was exactly what she was doing.
"Father, you told me I could be more selfish. I’m doing exactly that right now," Anji smiled. "Studying medicine from Doctor He is simply a hobby. I don’t have any noble intentions to save people or receive glory from the job. Doctor He already shared with me the pros and cons of becoming a doctor. If anything, Anji wants to learn medicine so that I can treat father’s headaches, shifu’s eyesight and Lizi’s terrible eating habits. I told Doctor He that I would only study medicine to help the people I love because I don’t want to see them in pain. We have to work hard and live a long life together!"
Hearing Anji’s resolution, Zhao Mingfeng could not help but laugh loudly. What an answer!
"Father will not stop you from studying medicine if that’s the case. I will also support engineering, business or martial arts if you want to study it. As long as you are happy, there isn’t anything Anji isn’t allowed to do."
Grinning cheekily, Anji gave her mother a wink. Ruiting hid a smile behind her rice bowl. Her younger sister was so crafty that she had everyone in the palm of her hand. Not even her father, the most powerful cultivator in the sect, could win against Anji’s charm.