Smiling, she looked directly at Scott. “Mr. Scott, would you happen to have any medicinal herbs?”
Scott set down his knife and fork, wiping his mouth. “What kind of herbs?”
“All kinds, as long as they’re suitable for traditional medicine decoctions!” she said eagerly. “Medicinal herbs, spices—if it’s not too much trouble, Mr. Scott, could you arrange a batch for me? However much you can manage.”
A faint smirk tugged at Scott’s lips. “First time I’ve seen someone buttering me up so subtly.”
“…”
He stood up, looking down at her. “Follow me.”
Scott led Sophia to a room in the backyard. The house was shaded, and even in the summer, it felt noticeably cooler inside.
As soon as they entered the dimly lit room, Sophia inhaled deeply.
Without hesitation, she began listing herbs: “Fritillaria, cassia seeds, forsythia, bupleurum, peony root, lacquer, galangal…”
One by one, she named over a dozen herbs. The more she spoke, the more astonished Livinus became.
As a child, he had trained with his grandfather to identify medicinal herbs. Even after thirty years of working with them, he’d never reached her level of proficiency—able to identify so many herbs by scent alone.
Sophia always seemed to have some way of surprising him.
The lights came on suddenly, and Sophia blinked at the sight before her, momentarily overwhelmed.
It was the Scott family’s medicinal storage room, designed like a traditional apothecary, with entire walls made up of small drawers labeled with the names of herbs.
The cabinets reached the ceiling, covering hundreds of square feet. The dark wood and rows of drawers gave the room an imposing atmosphere.
Not even her family’s medicinal storeroom from her previous life had been this extensive.
Sophia pulled open a few drawers, examining and sniffing the herb slices inside.
They were indeed top-quality herbs, but…
“These licorice and angelica roots lack potency and aren’t top-grade,” she noted.
Scott looked at her in mild surprise but didn’t deny it. “These are already the best available on the market. These days, herbs contain too much water, and their medicinal properties are often diluted. What the Scott family has sourced is already the best.”
Sophia realized he was right; this era wasn’t the same as the golden age of traditional medicine. Back then, the government incentivized farmers to cultivate high-quality medicinal herbs.
Scott’s herbs were already superior to most available today, even if they fell short of her standards from her previous life. For now, they would have to do.
“I’ll write down the two hundred herbs I need. If I need more, I’ll reach out.”
Scott gave a faint laugh. “Not holding back, are you?”
—
Efficient as always, Scott provided her with a contact the following day to arrange for the herbs.
Sophia rented a car to transport the herbs to the clinic, organizing them in the apothecary’s storeroom. It took her all afternoon to sort the herbs into drawers, a task more tedious than she’d expected.
By evening, she looked at the fully stocked clinic and felt a deep sense of satisfaction. At last, the clinic was ready to open.
The next morning, she intended to go to the clinic to officially open for business but received a call from Mr. James, asking her to come for a follow-up.
Understanding the family’s concerns, she took a cab over to the James residence.
Mr. James greeted her at the door, looking surprised when he saw she had arrived by cab. “The Scott family doesn’t provide a driver? I’ll have someone pick you up next time, Dr. Smith.”
Sophia laughed. “How’s Mrs. James doing?”
“Much better! Please come check her pulse and confirm her progress,” he said, leading her inside.
Upstairs, Mrs. James, whose name was Chloe, looked noticeably healthier. Her face, which had been so pale before, now had a faint pink flush, revealing a sharp, capable aura.
“Dr. Smith!” Chloe said, her face filled with gratitude. “I owe you so much—if it weren’t for you, I don’t know if I’d even be here today…”
Sophia placed her fingers on Chloe’s wrist and said, “Let’s skip the thanks; let me check on your recovery first.”
Switching to Chloe’s other hand, Sophia felt her pulse for a while before smiling at Mr. James, who was waiting anxiously.
“It’s looking great! Mrs. James is recovering very well. Her pulse is strong, and in two more days, she’ll be able to get out of bed and walk around. After that, just continue with the prescribed herbs.”
“Really?” Mr. James was overjoyed, and even Chloe couldn’t hide her smile.
Sophia returned the smile, knowing that moments like this were the most fulfilling for any doctor.
Seeing once-despairing patients regain hope and joy was priceless.
Chloe touched her face, which was still dotted with blemishes. “Dr. Smith, I’ve been breaking out lately—probably from all the supplements I took before the hemorrhage. Do you think there’s anything I can do?”
Sophia smiled. “It’s a side effect of the excessive supplements. Don’t worry, I’ll prepare a topical cream for you. Just send someone to pick it up from the Scott family house tonight.”
“Oh, wonderful! Thank you!”
As she was about to leave, Mr. James suddenly handed her a small gift. Opening her hand, Sophia found a Diamond necklace resting on her palm.
Although Sophia was no stranger to valuable items, she could tell at a glance that this diamond was of excellent quality, a priceless treasure.
“Oh, I can’t accept this. It’s far too valuable…”
“Dr. Smith,” Mr. James laughed. “Do you know what I do for a living?”
Sophia shook her head.
“I’m in the jewelry business. Trust me, this isn’t worth much to me, but you absolutely deserve it.”
Unable to refuse, Sophia chuckled and accepted it. “Alright, I’ll accept it, then. Let me know if you ever need anything else.”
“Oh, absolutely!” Mr. James said, thrilled she’d taken it. To him, securing a doctor as skilled as her for his family was worth any price.
Sophia returned to the clinic and spent the day in quiet anticipation. Despite her preparations, there wasn’t a single visitor. With nothing else to do, she decided to work on Chloe’s anti-acne cream.
The cream was her own creation, and in her previous life, companies had offered her large sums to buy the formula, but she’d never sold it.
Sophia selected the herbs she needed and began grinding the powder, adjusting the formula to match Chloe’s specific skin concerns.
—
Mary, a local resident, had decided to hike up the mountain since she had the day off. Midway up, she spotted a small house and a striking young woman at the entrance, meticulously grinding herbs.
“Hey, what are you doing?” Mary asked, curious.
Without looking up, Sophia replied, “Grinding herbs.”
“What’s the remedy for?” Mary asked with even more interest.
“For acne.”
“Acne?!” With eight years of experience fighting acne, Mary’s eyes lit up as if she’d just heard a magic word, a flicker of hope finally sparking.
