Chapter One: Saving a Life

Amidst the rolling hills, a narrow winding path snaked through the mountains. Wei Ruo walked along the path, a bamboo basket on her back. The early spring weather was perfect, and the evening glow bathed her fair face in warm light.

Though Yunping Mountain was quite a distance away, it was rich with rare wild herbs, making her early morning trek worthwhile. As she left the mountain path and turned onto the official road, she soon heard a noisy commotion not far ahead.

A lavishly decorated carriage was stopped by the roadside, surrounded by a retinue of attendants—an impressive display. Wei Ruo paused, preferring to avoid trouble, lowered her head, and continued forward as if she hadn’t noticed them.

But the group still spotted her. A well-dressed man strode quickly toward her, blocking her way. “Where is the nearest medical clinic?”

His voice was urgent, his expression somewhat alarming.

“There isn’t one nearby. The closest is in the county town, seventy or eighty li from here,” Wei Ruo replied, eyes downcast.

“What about a midwife? Is there a village nearby with a midwife?” he pressed.

“No.”

Her answer made the man’s face grow even darker.

Seeing he had no further questions, Wei Ruo had no intention of meddling and turned to leave. She had only taken two steps before a woman's anguished scream erupted from the carriage, followed by the anxious voices of maids:

“Madam, hold on! It’s alright, we’ll find a doctor soon!”

“The hand—I see a hand! What do we do? It’s a hand! This is life and death!”

“Water, quickly! Bring hot water and ginseng tea!”

Wei Ruo frowned, unable to keep walking. Someone inside the carriage was giving birth, and the situation was clearly dire.

Should she intervene?

Better not, she thought. Getting involved was asking for trouble, and this group didn’t seem easy to deal with.

She had just decided to move on when another agonized scream tore through the air.

How could she walk away now? A life was at stake—and a child’s, no less.

Wei Ruo glanced at her bamboo basket, hesitated for two heartbeats, and finally couldn’t suppress her conscience. She turned and walked back.

As she approached the carriage, the attendants immediately barred her way.

“I know some medicine, and I happen to have freshly gathered herbs with me. If you trust me, let me into the carriage right now, or else I’ll leave,” Wei Ruo declared crisply, giving the man two clear options.

She hoped for a quick answer. If he refused, she would leave at once and spare herself the trouble.

The man was in a daze. He’d heard the maid say they saw a hand—if a child’s hand emerged first during birth, it meant both mother and child had one foot in the grave.

Another scream from inside the carriage hammered at his heart. He didn’t have time to think. “I’ll give you a chance—save my wife and child, and you’ll never lack for wealth!”

With his consent, Wei Ruo climbed swiftly into the carriage.

Inside, a richly dressed woman was howling in pain, drenched in sweat, her hands gripping the maids beside her. Wei Ruo looked down. The amniotic fluid had broken, but the baby was in an abnormal position—complicated labor.

Fortunately, not all the amniotic fluid had drained, and the infant’s hand hadn’t fully entered the birth canal.

From her basket, Wei Ruo retrieved a cloth bundle—her acupuncture kit and some commonly used medicines.

She took out two slices of dried ginseng for the woman to hold in her mouth and instructed the maids to feed her water, preferably with sugar or nourishing broth.

Wei Ruo soothed the woman’s panic. “Don’t cry or scream. Save your strength. I’ll give you acupuncture for the pain, then reposition the baby. Try not to be nervous—relax as much as you can.”

What? Reposition the fetus now? Acupuncture?

The two maids paled. Even the most experienced midwives in the capital wouldn’t dare attempt this—it was far too risky.

Wei Ruo wasted no words. She quickly washed her hands with the hot water available, opened her acupuncture kit, and inserted fine silver needles with precision into several points on the woman’s body.

Soon, a dozen needles glinted from the woman’s skin, and the pain eased noticeably.

Then, under the maids’ wide-eyed disbelief, Wei Ruo pushed the baby’s emerging hand back inside.

The maids’ pupils dilated in shock, barely suppressing a scream.

Wei Ruo pressed her hands to the woman’s belly, her movements as fluid as a tai chi master, gently guiding the fetus to turn within.

Inside the carriage, the maids were struck speechless by what they witnessed—the baby inside was truly moving!

Minute by minute, time dragged on. Outside, the waiting crowd grew ever more anxious, as if they were being roasted over hot coals.

Could that young woman really do it?

She must, surely? But if she failed... what then?

Heaven protect them, Buddha have mercy!

At last, after an hour, a newborn’s cry pierced the stifling gloom above them.

Everyone’s faces lit up with joy as they turned toward the carriage, breaking into cheers.

Inside, accompanied by the celebrations outside, Wei Ruo cut the umbilical cord, cleaned the newborn, and tended to the mother’s bleeding.

Wiping the sweat from her brow, she exhaled deeply, then climbed wearily down from the carriage.

She had just announced that it was safe to see the lady, when the richly dressed man rushed in, barely able to contain himself.

A while later, prompted by his wife’s reminder, he hurried out to find Wei Ruo and reward her handsomely, only to discover the woman who had just saved his family was gone without a trace...

He had promised her wealth and honor—why had she left without a word?

Making her way along the path home, Wei Ruo felt a pang of regret. The ginseng slices she’d just given that woman, and the hemostatic herbs she’d used, were worth a good sum!

How vexing! When she’d apprenticed in medicine, she’d sworn an oath: never to seek reward for saving lives with her master’s teachings. She could not ask for payment or act for profit.

Sometimes, she wondered—she had been reborn; perhaps old vows no longer applied.

But in those moments, her master’s face would appear in her mind, compelling her to keep her promise without question.

For she knew, whether she lived once or twice, her skills were her master’s gift, and his teachings must never be forgotten.

So, the next time something like this happened, she really shouldn’t get involved. Such a loss!

Wei Ruo trudged homeward, her bamboo basket on her back. She should have been home within an hour, but saving a life had drained her strength, and she could barely manage the rest of the journey.

Three hours later, a secluded courtyard appeared before her.

This was where Wei Ruo had lived for ten years: black-tiled roof, gray-white walls, moss-green bricks—a faint air of neglect about it.