There is a happy inn in the capital.

Chapter 221 Encountering a Thief

Li Shuchen smiled and replied, "Alright then, I'll get back to work."

"go"

After leaving Yaqingxuan, Li Shuchen clutched the wooden box tightly to her chest. Instead of going directly to the printing shop, she returned to the inn.

The gold bars were too conspicuous; fearing robbery, she exchanged them all for silver and began stuffing them into her purse.

She needed to go printing and hire people to put up missing person notices, which would cost a lot of money. She wasn't sure if the money she carried would be enough, so she packed a full purse and tied it around her waist.

He then stuffed a few more silver notes into his pocket.

"Grapes, is the printing place far away?"

"Miss, it's not far, just a 15-minute walk."

You lead the way.

"Yes, miss"

Li Shuchen was walking along the road when a child bumped into him. He immediately became angry and started cursing at the child as the child ran away.

"Hey, the road is so wide, why didn't you use it and instead bumped into me? I'll let you off the hook since you're just a kid, hmph."

She took a couple of steps and suddenly realized something was wrong. Looking at her waist, she saw her purse was indeed gone. She shouted...

"Thief, stop right there!"

He then quickly went to chase after it.

Heave-ho, heave-ho, heave-ho

Damn, this kid's pretty fast. Looks like he's done this kind of thing a lot. Today, she'll act on behalf of heaven and catch this child.

Ugh, there are so many people! It's hard for her to use her light-footed skills. That kid is like an eel, skillfully weaving through the crowd. She'll lose him if she's not careful. It's so annoying!

Li Shuchen followed intently, and when they reached a corner at an alleyway, the child suddenly disappeared.

Li Shuchen calmed himself down and began to listen carefully, checking each house one by one.

Not here, and not here either.

"Grandpa, look, I have silver! I have lots of silver!"

It seems this is the place. The thief can't escape her grasp after all; he'll have to surrender. Li Shuchen pushed open the door and was immediately stunned by what he saw.

Broken, broken, broken—broken walls, broken floor, broken doors and windows—this dilapidated courtyard exudes decay everywhere. Even a thief would have to leave a couple of coins before leaving.

Li Shuchen frowned and walked into the inner room.

The smells of dampness, mold, and Chinese medicine mixed together and assaulted Li Shuchen's skull.

It's addictive, truly addictive.

An old, sickly man lay on a broken wooden bed, sighing silently.

A dirty little child clutched a bulging purse by the bedside, sobbing softly.

The old man on the bed saw Li Shuchen and said softly

"Bamboo, give the money back to that girl."

The child named Zhuzi turned around and saw Li Shuchen. He tightened his grip on the silver in his arms, took a step back, and pressed himself against the edge of the bed.

His eyes showed vigilance, wary of Li Shuchen.

Li Shuchen sighed and went inside, intending to touch Zhu Zi's head. Zhu Zi tilted her head to avoid him, shielding all the silver coins beneath her body, making her even more covered up.

The air was somewhat quiet.

The bamboo suddenly cried, tears streaming down its face.

"Grandpa, please get proper treatment. Don't abandon Zhu Zi. I don't want Grandpa to die."

The old man slowly raised his hand and touched the top of the bamboo, stroking it.

"Bamboo, be good. Grandpa is dying. Remember the flower-growing tips Grandpa taught you. After Grandpa dies, go to a wealthy family and help them tend to their plants. With this experience, you'll be able to support yourself. Now, quickly return the money to this young lady."

Upon hearing this, Li Shuchen raised an eyebrow. This old man seemed to be an expert at growing flowers and plants; she just happened to need someone to care for her flowers. She then asked...

"Sir, if I may ask, what illness do you have?"

The old man replied with tears in his eyes.

"The doctor said it was a cold, and I've taken medicine, but it's not getting better. Judging from your clothes, you seem to be from a wealthy family. My grandson is skilled at gardening and can certainly keep the flowers in our household fresh and beautiful. Could you please send him to help out at your residence? I'm begging you on my knees."

After the old man finished speaking, he tried to get out of bed, but Li Shuchen dared not accept such a gesture and quickly said...

"Sir, don't rush to kneel before me. Let me ask you, you're very good at growing flowers, aren't you?"

The old man leaned against the headboard upon hearing this.

"To be honest, young lady, I entered the palace at the age of twelve and have been tending to flowers and cultivating new varieties in the flower room for over thirty years. Now that I'm getting old, the ladies in the palace think I'm no longer useful and have kicked me out."

Upon hearing this, Li Shuchen stroked her chin. So this old man is only in his forties? But he doesn't look like it. He looks more like a sixty-year-old man. And as far as she knows, the men who do odd jobs in the palace must be eunuchs. How could a eunuch have a grandson?

Li Shuchen couldn't help but glance at the bamboo.

The old man, seeing the confusion in Li Shuchen's eyes, explained, "I was originally a rootless being, so I couldn't have children. But as people get old, they always want to enjoy the joys of family life, so I adopted Zhu Zi. Unfortunately, I was unlucky; I caught a cold, spent all my savings, and ended up like this."

After the old man finished speaking, he began to cough.

"Cough, cough, cough"

"Grandpa, I'll go get you some water."

Bamboo ran out

The old man gazed intently at the bamboo that had run away and said, "The bamboo isn't a bad person. He stole your money because he wanted to cure my illness. I hope you won't blame him."

"As long as he's not inherently bad, I won't blame him."

Bamboo brought in a ladle of water and handed it to the old man, who took it and was about to drink it.

Li Shuchen intervened.

"If you've caught a cold, why are you drinking cold water?"

The old man sighed and said, "Young lady, you don't know this. Because I am a eunuch, my grandson and I are not well-liked. They won't let me cook or boil water. If there is any smoke, they will beat us. So, we usually eat and drink cold food and water. This winter, I caught a cold and became like this."

Li Shuchen: "In that case, if I heal you, would you be willing to tend to the flowers for me?"

The old man's eyes lit up with joy upon hearing this.

“Of course I am willing. If you don’t mind that I am a eunuch, I will do my best to serve you. I don’t ask for wages, I only ask that you give my grandson a meal.”

Bamboo suddenly presented the purse to Li Shuchen with both hands and said...

"Sister, I know how to grow flowers, and I can grow them for you. I don't want any payment; I just ask that you cure my grandfather."

Li Shuchen took back his purse and said, "Sir, how should I address you?"

"Miss, the ladies in the palace all call me Little Lin."

Li Shuchen nodded and said, "Then I'll call you Uncle Lin."

"You can call me whatever you like, Miss."

Do you still have the strength to come with me?

"When people are happy, they are in high spirits," Grandpa Lin replied in a strong voice.

"Have"

Having received a definite response, Li Shuchen patted Zhu Zi on the head and said, "Zhu Zi, go pack your things, we're moving."

Bamboo jumped up with joy: "Great!"

And so, the grandfather and grandson followed Li Shuchen to the backyard of the Happiness Inn.

Li Shuchen opened the door to a room and said, "You can stay in this empty room for now."

"Thank you, miss"

Li Shuchen found Linglong and took her to treat Grandpa Lin.

Linglong Diagnostic Aftercare

"Miss, Mr. Lin is perfectly healthy; he just needs some careful recuperation."

"Go and prepare the medicine."

"Yes, miss"

Bamboo: "I'll go make medicine for Grandpa too."