Fearing they would disturb Xu Zifan's rest, his parents didn't stay long before helping him lie down and returning to their room. After waiting for silence outside, Xu Zifan mentally said, "[Shaohua, scan this room for anything useful. I need acupuncture.]"
[Hold on.]
Shao Hua appeared in mid-air as a large virtual screen activated, its lasers preparing to scan the entire room. Xu Zifan hurriedly said, "[Activate stealth mode. This is ancient times; there's no technology related to you. Remember not to speak to anyone, and absolutely do not let anyone discover your presence.]"
[Oh, right, sorry, I haven't gotten used to our new environment yet.]
Shao Hua immediately activated stealth mode. The scene Xu Zifan saw remained unchanged, but the words "[Stealth Status]" were displayed in the upper right corner of the virtual screen. No one could see or hear Shao Hua's voice. The laser scanned the entire room without missing a single detail, displaying all detected sharp objects or things that could be made into sharp objects on the screen.
The screen could be both flat and three-dimensional, and the objects were presented in a realistic manner. Xu Zifan reached out, picked up one of the items, rotated it 360 degrees, examined it, and tossed it aside; the item disappeared. After discarding five or six virtual models in this way, he looked at the remaining calligraphy brush and frowned, saying, "[There's absolutely nothing suitable. Acupuncture definitely won't work; I'll just have to try stimulating the acupoints.]"
The calligraphy brush was newly bought a few days ago, and its tip was very stiff. Xu Zifan couldn't find anything suitable, so he had to make do. He had Shao Hua analyze his physical data, then unbuttoned his clothes and used the brush tip to prick several acupoints in turn. With each movement, the physical data displayed on the screen changed. Fifteen minutes later, Xu Zifan, panting heavily, threw down the brush, drenched in sweat. He looked at the screen, closed his eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief. [Thankfully, it worked. I'm going to sleep now. Remember to wake me up at five tomorrow morning; another prick will help me recover a lot. By the way, what time is five tomorrow morning again?]
[It is the end of Yin hour and the beginning of Mao hour.]
[Okay, from now on you can remind me what time it is anytime. I estimate it will take me a while to get used to it, so I guess I'll have to treat you as my watch.]
[It would be my pleasure, goodnight.]
[Good night.]
Xu Zifan, despite his frail health, underwent a simulated acupuncture treatment. Exhausted, he said goodnight and quickly fell asleep. The virtual screen flickered and disappeared into thin air, but Shaohua continued to monitor his physical data.
That night, the eldest son's house was unusually silent. Xu Dalang felt a tightness in his chest whenever he thought of his parents' disappointed eyes, and he even felt a growing resentment towards Cai Shi, who constantly talked about dividing the family property. But he knew the main fault lay with him; it was his indecisiveness that had caused his parents so much pain. His third brother had made a mistake, but it wasn't a major one; a proper lesson and strict discipline in the future would suffice. Other families in the village had done far worse—fighters, alcoholics, gamblers—what kind of people weren't there? How come other eldest brothers could shoulder their responsibilities as elder brothers, while he had to abandon his third brother?
The more he thought about it, the more guilty he felt. Unwilling to share a bed with Cai, he simply put on his clothes, moved a small stool, and sat by the door, lost in thought. Cai felt wronged, but the family had already separated, and she didn't want to further offend her husband over this matter, so she simply closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep. But her mind was in turmoil; how could she possibly sleep?
The two children from the second wife's family were asleep, but Xu Erlang and Su Qianyun were still quietly dreaming about the future, full of energy and not sleepy at all. They mentioned that nothing major had happened in the family, and Xu Zifan and Xiaolian were not yet married. Separating the family property so early was almost unprecedented in the village, and it would easily attract gossip. They still wanted to make a lot of money in the future so that their children could have a bright future, and they couldn't let that be delayed. So they listed the shortcomings of the Xu family members, as if this would prove that they were not wrong. They weren't being petty or intolerant; it was just that their family members were too eccentric.
Mr. and Mrs. Xu stayed awake almost until dawn. Mrs. Xu shed tears several times, feeling very distressed. Xiaolian also tossed and turned, unable to sleep, worried that in the future she and her third brother would be the only ones living with their parents. Would their parents' efforts to treat her third brother's illness, support his education, and find him a wife delay her marriage prospects?
Xu Zifan was the only one in the family who slept soundly, even longer than the other children. At five o'clock in the morning, Shaohua woke Xu Zifan up on time. Xu Zifan used the hard end of a calligraphy brush to stimulate many acupoints on his body. This time he had some strength and wasn't as tired, but he was still covered in sweat.
He took off his undergarment, wiped the sweat from his forehead, quickly dried himself off, got out of bed, and took out clothes from the closet to start dressing.
[Luckily, I have the original owner's memories, otherwise I wouldn't even know how to put on clothes. These are different from the clothes worn by the crew.]
[Don't worry, I've compiled all the knowledge related to daily life, including records of clothing from various dynasties, so there should be records similar to those of this dynasty.]
Xu Zifan finished dressing and awkwardly tied her hair up, saying as she did so, "[This place isn't even from any historical dynasty. I wonder where this place came from. But with time travelers and reincarnated people already here, it's not surprising to encounter a dynasty I've never heard of. The social hierarchy here doesn't seem as rigid; even time-traveling women can thrive in business. It's much better than the historical environments we're familiar with.]"
[So what do you plan to do? Taking the imperial examinations and becoming an official is the most respected path, but you've never liked officialdom, and it wouldn't help you much. How about business? You love business the most. In this era, you could create a commercial empire unprecedented in history—that should be very interesting.]
Xu Zifan finished tidying himself up, then frowned slightly in disdain. "What's so interesting? The food, drink, and entertainment here are so backward. There are many things others don't understand. The nail that sticks out gets hammered down. In the end, this commercial empire will definitely fill the emperor's treasury. Besides, even without our history..."
My status is so low, even compared to others. It's fine if I don't make it too big or too small, but if I get too big, I'll have to find a patron and curry favor with others, so forget it. I think I could become a doctor. A doctor's status is higher than a merchant's, but lower than an official's. However, if my medical skills are good, I'm still very respected in the community. After all, who wants to offend a doctor?
Are you planning to study Traditional Chinese Medicine here?
"Of course, wouldn't it be a waste of this trip if I didn't learn traditional Chinese medicine in such a wonderful environment? If I were a woman, I might even learn embroidery." Xu Zifan opened the window, squinting at the sunlight, took a deep breath of fresh air, and smiled. "I used to love doing business and thoroughly enjoyed it. But not anymore. I think I need to learn more things, master them. There are so many worlds ahead, and who knows what we'll encounter? Learning more skills is always a good thing. Doing business and being an official can only bring me wealth and glory in this life, but learning medicine will benefit me for lifetimes to come. You should also record everything about this world; in the future, perhaps we'll live in another similar world."
[So that's why you spent your life researching science and technology in your previous life—mastering one thing and understanding it thoroughly. I understand now. Good luck.]
Xu Zifan shook his head and chuckled, then pushed open the door and walked out. Having Shaohua by his side, chatting occasionally, made him feel very relaxed. Binding himself to this system was the right decision, and it really was a great help; he no longer had to do many things himself. If he had the chance in the future, he hoped to help Shaohua upgrade even more functions.
The Xu family was almost all busy in the yard, and they were stunned when they saw Xu Zifan come out. They heard Xu Zifan wake up last night, but they never expected that he could actually walk. Apart from being a little pale, he didn't look weak at all. Was the medicine prescribed in town really that effective?
Xu's father dropped the bamboo basket he was weaving, strode forward to help Xu Zifan up, and immediately scolded him, "Why are you up? You just woke up last night, why are you out in the fields instead of resting? Go back inside, don't catch a cold."
Xu Zifan grabbed his father and said with a smile, "Dad, I'm fine. I felt much better yesterday, and when I woke up this morning, I felt great. I've been lying in bed for days and it's been really uncomfortable. If I hadn't come out for some fresh air, I would have gotten moldy. Don't worry, I'm not stupid. If I felt unwell, I would have gone back to my room immediately."
Xu's mother wiped her hands as she came out of the kitchen. She looked at him nervously several times before letting out a sigh of relief and smiling. "You're really in better spirits! It seems the medicine worked. After you finish eating, I'll brew you another dose." She glanced at Xu Zifan again, then walked towards his room, saying as she went, "You've just recovered, so put on another layer of clothing and be careful."
A moment later, Xu's mother took out a piece of clothing and draped it over Xu Zifan, asking, "You're feeling better now. Is there anything you'd like to eat? I'll make it for you."
Xu Zifan thought about his family situation and the original owner's personality, and said, "I love everything Mom makes. The steamed eggs she made last time were especially delicious, and the chicken was even better."
Xu's mother immediately laughed, raised her hand and pushed his head, and said with a smile, "You're not fully recovered yet and you already want to eat chicken? We still need to keep those two chickens at home to lay eggs, so don't think about it. We have eggs, Mom will stew them for you, just wait."
Xu Zifan was in much better health, and his mother was overjoyed. She walked briskly into the kitchen, and everyone could hear her humming a tune. Xu's father also had a smile on his face. After all, the village doctor had said he couldn't cure Xu Zifan, and the town doctor had said that Xu Zifan was physically weak and would be severely weakened even if he woke up. They were genuinely afraid. Now that they saw Xu Zifan standing there perfectly fine, how could they not be happy?
Madam Cai looked rather displeased. She complained that Xu's mother only made stewed eggs for Xu Zifan and didn't mention the children at all. Did she think that she was no longer the children's grandmother after the family was divided? But then she thought that since the family had already been divided, their eldest branch had also received two chickens. She could stew them for the children herself later and let them eat whatever they wanted from now on.
Su Qianyun lowered her head and pouted, thinking that Xu Zifan was just faking it, trying to take advantage of his illness to avoid punishment and get some good food. She suspected even falling into the water was intentional. She had absolutely no liking for this parasitic brother-in-law, but considering they wouldn't be moving for a while, she looked up and smiled, saying, "Third brother, you're much better now. Your second brother was so worried about you these past few days that he didn't sleep well. Now that you're better, we're relieved. From now on, you mustn't walk down that steep slope again."
Xu Zifan nodded. "I understand. Thank you for your concern, Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law."
Xu Erlang echoed his wife's words, "Don't be so polite, it's only natural for the family to care about you."
Xu Zifan smiled faintly, "It's better to be polite, after all, we've separated the family, lest my second brother and sister-in-law blame me for not knowing manners."