Chapter 220: Desperate for Fame
The other interns went to help Xia Qiuming, but Jiang Ruyan was banking on the fact that her cousin-in-law was Xu Qingxu’s granddaughter.
She was constantly pestering Elder Xu to take her on as a disciple. After her uncle had yelled at her, she became even more determined to make Elder Xu her master.
She wasn’t the type to give up on herself. Her upbringing had shaped her selfishness and ambition.
She quickly shifted her focus, no longer trying to win Jiang Ruihao’s affection—that was all just an illusion.
It was the first time she had ever seen her uncle so furious, and it had been terrifying.
She wanted to do everything in her power to gain Elder Xu’s approval. Elder Xu wasn’t just a very famous traditional Chinese medicine doctor.
He was also the most formidable traditional Chinese medicine doctor in the entire Empire’s medical community. Unfortunately, he hadn’t accepted a disciple in over a decade.
Jiang Ruyan didn’t particularly like traditional Chinese medicine; she just wanted to become famous. If she became Elder Xu’s disciple, she would be dazzling.
Then, after graduation, she could take her pick of any hospital. Another thing was that it was easy to coast by in traditional Chinese medicine; even if she didn’t learn anything, she wouldn’t kill anyone.
She could even be like that freak Su Gu, putting on an enigmatic act to win everyone’s admiration.
Especially the way Mr. Han’s eyes lit up when he looked at that freak Su Gu—it was the look of reverence one gives to a superior.
Every time she saw that look in Mr. Han’s eyes, Jiang Ruyan got so angry she could spit blood. If she could just win Mr. Han’s approval...
...then would she even need to be afraid of her uncle?
This only strengthened Jiang Ruyan’s resolve to study traditional Chinese medicine.
Western medicine was genuinely hard to learn. They said that an incorrect dosage of Western medicine could be fatal.
Besides, she didn’t even dare to attend human anatomy classes, let alone touch a scalpel.
In the past, she had relied on the influence of her uncle and older cousin, so the teachers had all turned a blind eye and no one gave her a hard time.
Jiang Ruyan clenched her fists and approached Xu Qingxu. "Grandpa Xu? From now on, may I stay by your side?"
"Follow whoever your advisor is. I don’t have time to mentor you," Elder Xu said without even looking up.
The look in Elder Xu’s eyes was one of obvious disgust, but Jiang Ruyan acted as if she hadn’t seen it.
"Grandpa Xu... before I left, my cousin-in-law repeatedly reminded me to follow you. She was hoping you would look after me a little..."
Her shameless pestering finally made Xu Qingxu snap. He stormed over to Jiang Ruihao and roared.
"Jiang Ruihao, your son is excellent in character, perspective, ability, and upbringing.
"That’s why I agreed to marry my granddaughter to him. But I will not do you or your son the favor of letting this girl anger me to death!"
Jiang Ruihao froze for a moment, then flew into a rage. Wincing in pain, he lunged forward and grabbed Jiang Ruyan by the collar.
"Ru Yan, when did you become like this? Do you want me to send you back right now?"
Seeing her uncle looked like he was about to tear her apart, Jiang Ruyan suppressed her seething resentment and adopted a meek, pleading tone.
"I’m sorry... I’ve let you down, Uncle... it’s all my fault. Please forgive me... I really just love traditional Chinese medicine and want to learn from Grandpa Xu..."
She spoke in a low voice about her admiration for Xu Qingxu, her eyes already red and brimming with tears.
Jiang Ruihao was furious, wishing he could slap her a couple of times. He let go of Jiang Ruyan’s collar and snorted coldly.
"Hmph! If Elder Xu were willing to take you as a disciple, would he have come to lecture me? A person needs to have some self-awareness. Don’t embarrass yourself here.
"Besides, since when have you wanted to study traditional Chinese medicine? Your grandfather always wanted to teach you, but you said you wanted to study Western medicine!"
Jiang Ruyan stared at the tips of his shoes, her eyes turning increasingly sinister, but she kept her head lowered as she spoke.
"Uncle... I know you don’t want me to bother Grandpa Xu, but I genuinely want to study traditional Chinese medicine."
Jiang Ruihao sneered. He wasn’t about to give his niece any face, and he laid into her with a tirade. "You’re already twenty-two years old, what’s the point of studying traditional Chinese medicine now?
"You never understood the theories of Chinese pharmacology or the art of acupuncture, and your grandfather taught you for many years.
"But you learned nothing. Even when you were young and innocent, you only managed to scratch the surface.
"Now that you’re older and full of schemes, it’d be a miracle if you could learn anything. I know your little game—you just want to ride on Elder Xu’s coattails.
"From now on, stop following Elder Xu and just focus on studying Western medicine properly!"
Jiang Ruyan was speechless. Back then, her grandfather had genuinely wanted to teach her, but all her efforts went into dressing up and pleasing her family.
At that time, the whole family doted on her, and she thought she’d never have to work hard. Who knew her uncle would turn on her so ruthlessly in the blink of an eye.
Hearing Jiang Ruihao mention her grandfather, Jiang Ruyan gritted her teeth, her expression as sour as if she’d swallowed a fly.
Jiang Ruyan’s eyes narrowed, a venomous hatred flickering within them. ’It’s all this uncle’s fault.’
She had been spoiled her whole life. For him to suddenly warn her and threaten to kick her out of the family—she couldn’t possibly swallow this indignation.
’I hate him!’
’I hate him!’
Seeing his niece’s hateful expression, Jiang Ruihao knew there was no point in saying more. Enduring the pain in his body, he bowed in apology.
"Uncle Xu, it is my failure to discipline her that has made Ru Yan act so rudely. I apologize on her behalf. From now on, please don’t worry about giving Qingqing face. We won’t hold anything against Qingqing because of her."
Then he struggled to lie back down on the bed. He had gotten up too quickly. The pain, which had been stopped by the silver needles from Divine Doctor Su Gu that morning, was now even worse.
Xu Qingxu saw that Jiang Ruihao’s apology was sincere enough, and he didn’t want to completely humiliate Jiang Ruyan either.
So, he said kindly, "Alright! Jiang Ruihao, I accept your apology. In that case, I’ll be frank with you all.
"Traditional Chinese medicine is vast and profound, but not everyone can master it. Since you like it so much, you can study with Qingqing from now on."
"Thank you, Grandpa Xu. When I get back to the Imperial City, I will definitely study hard with my cousin-in-law’s father."
’I’m so angry I could spit blood!’ Jiang Ruyan thought. ’Xu Qingqing just helps her dad grab herbs. What could I possibly learn from her?’
’If I have to learn from someone, it should be Elder Xu’s first disciple, Xu Qingqing’s father!’
’Why should I be stuck learning from that old codger’s granddaughter?’
’I, Jiang Ruyan, was raised in the palm of my family’s hand. Whatever I, Jiang Ruyan, want, I get.’
’Since that old codger won’t take me as his disciple, I’ll settle for the next best thing and make his first disciple my master.’
’Xia Qiuming worships that freak Su Gu, and isn’t it just because that freak has a good master?’
’That freak looks like a siren. She has no real ability herself, but they say her master is incredible.’
Gu Jiaojiao, who had just enjoyed such a juicy piece of gossip, had no idea what Jiang Ruyan was thinking about her.
Jiang Ruihao’s reaction had greatly surprised Gu Jiaojiao. He had actually apologized sincerely on his niece’s behalf.
In that respect, he was even better than Mr. Sheng. Soldiers from any era truly have such unimpeachable integrity.
Jiang Ruyan was an overly ambitious girl, crazy for fame, but that was none of Gu Jiaojiao’s business.
She didn’t say anything. After all, she was just a spectator. So, she administered a few more silver needles to Jiang Ruihao to help ease his pain.
Never mind that Jiang Ruihao was Su Shuochi’s superior; based on his sense of justice alone, Gu Jiaojiao was inclined to give him some extra care.
"Little Divine Doctor, I see you’re taking special care of Jiang Ruihao. Could it be you’ve taken a liking to his second son?"
Now that he was feeling a bit better, Mr. Han started teasing Gu Jiaojiao.