Chapter 126: The Invitation to the Evening Banquet

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Li Zhao scratched his head in confusion before saying to the butler, “I have no idea what happened to President Gu today either. He became like this after speaking with Miss Xie.”

“Oh? What exactly did Miss Xie say that made the young master shut himself away in the study? I still remember the last time he locked himself in there—it was when the old master passed away,” the butler murmured.

Li Zhao thought for a moment before answering casually, “I think Miss Xie simply asked President Gu what his goal in life was and what he wanted to do.”

The butler’s expression froze for a moment. Then he sighed without saying a word and turned away. Seeing his inscrutable manner, Li Zhao hurried after him.

“Butler, why are you sighing? Do you know why President Gu locked himself in the study?” Li Zhao was a straightforward man by nature. Whenever a question troubled him, he had to get to the bottom of it before he could feel at ease.

The butler raised his head and gazed at the portrait of Gu Xiujin’s grandfather hanging in the corridor. With a sigh, he said, “From the moment he was born, the young master has shouldered the responsibility of the Gu family’s company. From childhood until now, he has never had hobbies or a life of his own. Everything in his life has revolved around the Gu family. So when Miss Xie asked him what his goal in life was and what he wanted to do, I doubt the young master himself has ever considered those questions.”

“I see. President Gu’s life may look glamorous, but he has his own share of helplessness behind the scenes,” Li Zhao said with sudden understanding.

Xie Qingtang naturally had no idea that Gu Xiujin, with his hidden thoughts, had taken her casual question so seriously. She truly had only asked on a whim. That evening, she happily stared at the balance in her bank account while hugging her phone, then fell asleep.

Early the next morning, Xie Qingtang was pecked awake by a bird. The little creature was remarkably intelligent and rarely went anywhere except Saving Goodness Hall, so she seldom kept it in a cage.

“All right, I’m up.” Xie Qingtang waved her hands and shooed the bird away before getting out of bed. When she arrived in the courtyard, she first gave it a piece of sun-dried medicinal herb. Unexpectedly, the little bird turned its head away haughtily and refused to eat.

Seeing this, Xie Qingtang smiled and said helplessly, “What is it? Are you blaming me for not giving you that stone lingzhi yesterday? That stone lingzhi was meant to treat an illness, not for you to eat. If you refuse this, you’ll just have to go hungry.”

With that, she set down the piece of herb and went to the front hall. The bird watched her for a while, tilting its tiny head as though deep in thought. After a moment, it flew onto her shoulder.

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And so, before long, word had spread among the patients that the female physician at Saving Goodness Hall—Xie Qingtang herself—always had a spirited little bird perched on her shoulder.

That afternoon, Xie Qingtang suddenly received an invitation. When she opened it, she found that it was an invitation to a dinner party, accompanied by an evening gown and a pair of high heels.

“Wow, Boss, you’re something else. Someone invited you to a dinner party, and this evening gown looks pretty expensive,” Zhou Jinfan said, immediately coming over to examine the dress in the box.

Xie Qingtang frowned slightly when she discovered that the invitation came from Dong Weiyi. For a moment, she found it difficult to refuse him. After all, the man had only just sold her a piece of stone lingzhi.

Of course, she had then turned around and sold it to Gu Xiujin for several times the price.

“I don’t want to attend an occasion like this. I’d better find an excuse to turn him down,” Xie Qingtang thought. She was about to look up Dong Weiyi’s phone number when he called her directly.

After a moment of confusion, she answered.

“Miss Xie, I wonder if you’ve received the package I sent you?” Dong Weiyi’s gentle voice came through the phone.

“I’ve received it,” Xie Qingtang replied at once. “But I’m really not accustomed to occasions like this, so I don’t want to attend.”

“It’s like this, Miss Xie. There will be several collectors at the dinner, and what they most enjoy collecting is medicinal herbs. It’s possible that some of the herbs you’re looking for may be among their collections.”

Dong Weiyi did not directly persuade Xie Qingtang to attend. Instead, he changed his approach and told her that several of the medicinal herbs she wanted might appear at the dinner.

It was like bait being cast directly before her. Whether or not she took it was up to Xie Qingtang. Guided by the principle that healing the sick and saving lives was a physician’s duty, she agreed immediately.

The moment she did, however, she regretted it. Looking at the evening gown in the gift box, along with the absurdly high heels, she wore an expression of utter dismay.

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“Come on, Boss!” Zhou Jinfan continued to watch the spectacle with great amusement, clenching his fist and cheering her on.

Xie Qingtang gave him a speechless look before taking the gift box and high heels back to the rear courtyard. She had grown up on a mountain—when had she ever worn shoes like these? The instant she put them on, she toppled backward and sprawled across the ground.

A little bird chirped overhead, as though mocking her awkward predicament. The scene was truly something to behold.

“It’s not me who’s sick, so why am I tormenting myself like this just to gather medicinal herbs for Gu Xiujin? I’m done with this!” Xie Qingtang struggled to rise from the ground in those sky-high heels, gritting her teeth as she spoke.

Thinking about it, she had indeed exhausted herself over Gu Xiujin’s prescription during this period. She had even risked entering the forbidden grounds to gather herbs for that man.

Without realizing it, Xie Qingtang had apparently done quite a lot for Gu Xiujin. The realization made her frown slightly in bewilderment.

Since she had no idea why she was doing these things, Xie Qingtang decided not to dwell on it any longer. She consoled herself inwardly: “I’m certain to meet many influential people at this dinner. If I get them to know me and have them come to me for treatment, I’ll be able to earn more money and stand against Shao Siming. That’s right. For this reason alone, I absolutely have to attend.”

With that thought, she felt somewhat better. She took a deep breath and practiced walking a few more steps in the sky-high heels.

Night soon descended. Brilliant neon lights transformed the entire city into a capital of illusion.

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