[The Relentless Helper]
After resting for only two days, Ling Dang couldn't stay away from the kitchen. Despite the bandages on her hands, she pleaded with the head cook, Auntie Hui, until she was allowed to help.
"I'll chop the greens and fill the water vat!" she declared, her eyes shining with determination. She needed to prove she wasn't a burden—especially not to Luo Ye.
Under the scorching sun, she hauled buckets of water from the well to the vat. Sweat soaked her hair, and her breath came in ragged gasps, but she didn't stop. Every bucket was a step toward feeling worthy of the kindness she had received.
[Luo Ye's "Accidental" Care]
A tall shadow suddenly loomed over the water vat. Luo Ye stood there, arms crossed, his expression like a gathering storm.
"Your hands aren't healed, and you're hauling water?" he barked. Before Ling Dang could argue, he snatched the bucket from her. With effortless strength, he emptied it into the vat.
"You're a magnet for trouble," he grumbled, looking at her small, trembling frame.
"I... I just didn't want to be a drag on everyone," she whispered, looking at her feet.
Luo Ye froze for a second. He reached out and gave her head a rough rub, messing up her hair. "Stupid kid. If you want to help, heal first. Stop trying so hard."
He turned back to the well and filled the vat to the brim in a few swift motions. "I was just passing by. Don't overthink it," he muttered before stomping away. Ling Dang touched her head, a sweet smile blooming on her face. Passing by? Sure.
[Debt of the Pharmacy]
Later, Ling Dang crept into the medical tent. "Sang-Dage... I want to get some basic medicine, for cuts and scrapes. But I have no money. Can I work to pay off the debt?"
Sang Qi looked up from his scrolls, a playful glint in his eyes. "What can a shrimp like you do?"
"Anything they can do!" she pointed at the apprentices sorting herbs.
Sang Qi smirked and decided to test her. He laid out Chuanxiong and Angelica—two herbs that looked nearly identical. "One moves blood, one builds blood. Get it wrong, and you kill someone. Understood?"
Ling Dang nodded frantically, her eyes wide. She guessed wrong on the first try and received a sharp flick to the forehead from Sang Qi. "Guessing will send people to the Grave God," he scolded.
[The Bitter Taste of Learning]
Under Sang Qi's sharp tongue but patient guidance, Ling Dang spent the afternoon learning to feel the veins of leaves and smell the roots.
"This one is Angelica!" she finally exclaimed, holding up a root.
Sang Qi glanced at it and gave a curt nod. "One right out of thirty. Don't get ahead of yourself."
Despite his biting remarks, he watched her meticulously sort through thirty baskets of herbs without a single complaint. Her small figure, drenched in sweat but refusing to quit, was like a stubborn weed growing in the cracks of stone.
"Go home," Sang Qi finally said as the sun dipped low. "If you get them wrong tomorrow, I'll make you eat the dregs until you're bitter to the bone."
Ling Dang nodded solemnly, "I'll remember!"
As she left, Sang Qi let out a soft, low chuckle that was warmer than the herbal tea on his stove. This kid... that stubborn streak of hers is actually quite endearing.