With that thought, Lu Yuan lifted the blanket covering him and walked into the clinic, stopping before a wooden cabinet filled with various bottles and jars.
Lu Yuan planned to first concoct the simplest painkiller: red-leaf grass ointment.
As a coastal town, Gelimu Port had no shortage of dockworkers who frequently suffered bruises and scrapes while loading and unloading cargo.
In theory, a useful red-leaf grass ointment would never struggle to find buyers, provided its effects were worth the price.
The recipe was simple: red-leaf grass, triple-leaf hemp, and pine resin.
The difficulty lay in a vague description within 【Basic Medicinal Herbology】: "Extract the active ingredients of triple-leaf hemp with appropriate heat."
"What does 'appropriate' even mean? This kind of ambiguous language is nothing more than a way to monopolize knowledge."
"Too bad for them, they've met me."
As Lu Yuan thought this, he set up an iron pot, his eyes fixed intently on the bottom-right corner of his vision.
He put the triple-leaf hemp into the water and boiled it over a high flame, but the experience bar showed no reaction.
"That's not right." Lu Yuan immediately discarded the waste, switched to warm water for soaking, and began stirring slowly with a wooden stick.
The moment the medicinal liquid began to turn cloudy, a line of grayish-white text finally popped up.
【Pharmacology: +0.1... You are refining medicine.】
"There we go." A slight smile played on the corner of Lu Yuan's lips.
He didn't need to understand the principles of pharmacology; he only needed to treat it like a game, using trial and error until the system triggered a successful check.
This was his absolute advantage.
This sense of convenience, as if he were using an 'operation assistant' in a video game, drove Lu Yuan to continue processing the medicinal materials.
Half an hour later.
Three crimson pills, emitting a faint fragrance of pine, lay quietly on a tray.
【Pharmacology: 1/50 (Entry)】
【You have successfully crafted low-quality red-leaf grass ointment. Although it looks decent, the effects are lackluster.】
"As long as it doesn't kill anyone, it's good medicine."
Lu Yuan carefully placed the pills into a glass bottle and tidied the workspace with satisfaction.
"Once I slowly grind my experience points up, I should be able to establish a foothold in this world."
"But I still need to think of a way to let people know the clinic has reopened..."
The next morning, a layer of lead-gray fog hung over Gelimu Port.
Lu Yuan pushed open the door, and a scent of sea brine mixed with coal smoke rushed toward him.
In the distance, the muffled sound of a steam whistle echoed, accompanied by the gruff shouts of workers on the docks.
Lu Yuan took a deep breath of the damp air, removed Doctor Laisen's original notice board from outside the door, and replaced it with a new wooden sign.
Written on it in sharp, bold strokes of Imperial Language was a single line:
【Laisen Clinic is reopened. New physician in residence. Specializing in trauma, pain relief, and various difficult ailments. Fair prices, honest treatment for all.】
However, when he wrote the word "specializing," Lu Yuan had actually hesitated for a moment.
As a fake who had barely touched a medical book, this was bordering on a scam.
But after feeling the two copper shields clinking in his pocket, he hung the sign up without changing his expression.
"As long as they're cured, I'm a miracle doctor. As for how they're cured..." Lu Yuan glanced at the experience bar ready to go in his vision. "...That's a family secret passed down through generations."
After placing the notice, Lu Yuan returned inside and took out the books related to medicinal herbs to flip through them again.
The clinic door was left ajar, and occasionally the sound of footsteps passing by on the bluestone street could be heard.
As he turned the pages, Lu Yuan silently calculated whether he would be able to get his first bit of business today.
If not, would he need to write more notices and find someone to distribute them at the docks?
Just as Lu Yuan was thinking, light footsteps sounded from the courtyard.
The footsteps were strange, uneven and limping, as if one leg were severely injured or something was dragging a heavy weight.
Lu Yuan was sitting behind the counter reading a medical book to grind experience. Hearing the sound, he subconsciously reached into a drawer and gripped a scalpel.
But then he realized it was daytime.
Finally, a knock sounded at the door, followed by a shout.
"Doctor? Is anyone there?"
The voice was loud and slightly hoarse, carrying a heavy dockside accent.
Lu Yuan closed his book, stood up, walked to the door, and opened it.
Standing outside was a man whose skin had been turned dark by the sea breeze and sun. His hair was messy, and he wore a coarse cloth coat that had been patched several times, with damp salt stains visible on the cuffs.
The man's left foot was slightly lame, and there were obvious mud stains on his pant leg. As he stood, he subconsciously guarded his left leg, which was clearly injured.
The man looked at Lu Yuan and was visibly stunned for a moment. He apparently hadn't expected the new doctor to be so young, let alone an Easterner with black hair and dark eyes.
"You... you're the new doctor?" the man asked tentatively. "The one named Lu... Yuan, who took over for Doctor Laisen?"
He spoke with a hint of doubt in his eyes, as if ready to turn and leave at any moment.
"Yes," Lu Yuan nodded, stepping aside to make way. "Come in and we can talk. Also, my name is Lu Yuan."
The man thanked him and gave an embarrassed smile, dragging his leg through the hallway and leaving a long trail of muddy footprints on the floor.
The man was clearly familiar with the consultation room; he grabbed a chair and sat down on his own.
"How should I address you?"
"The folks in town call me Thomas." The man scratched the back of his head, his smile a bit restrained. "I move cargo at the port."
"Thomas," Lu Yuan repeated the name. "Where are you feeling unwell?"
Thomas hesitated for a moment before stretching out his left leg and rolling up his pant leg, revealing his lower calf.
A strange bruise sat upon it. At the edges of that bruise, one could vaguely see several circular marks that looked like they had been left by suction cups.
Lu Yuan looked at the faint yellowish traces remaining around the bruise and asked, "Have you looked at this elsewhere?"
"I went to the Church to get some medicine." At this, an awkward expression appeared on Thomas's face. "But the medicine they prescribed was too expensive. I only used it for two days, and if I kept using it, my family and I would be whistling for our supper."
"Fortunately, I earned a small sum a few days ago..."
Having said that, Thomas seemed to think of something and added, "Doctor Laisen's fees weren't very high before; we all used to come here. Since you've taken over, the price shouldn't be too expensive, right?"
"It won't be. It's the same as before," Lu Yuan answered casually.
"That's good! Jack didn't lie to me after all. He said you're just like Doctor Laisen—at least you're not a black-hearted crook." Thomas smiled, a look of relief appearing on his face.
"Jack?" Lu Yuan asked in passing.
"Him? He always says he's a bard, but in reality, he's just a vagrant. We worked at the docks together before. Lately, he's been soaking in the tavern every day, picking up odd jobs on the side."
"I see." Lu Yuan nodded, committing the name 'Jack' to memory. At the same time, he was certain that the only person who knew his name was the homeless man under the electric lamp last night.
'He's actually done me a big favor... I should find a chance to meet him.'
Rate on N.U.
