Chapter 59

  He Ruming glared at Chen Ke, and towards this short-haired overseas student, he had an inexplicable discomfort. How did they get mixed up together? He Ruming had such doubts. But it must be said that on the surface, He Ruming was furious, but in reality, he was rather guilty-minded.

  He Ruoming, although a member of the later party, was also a proponent of the Westernization Movement. The Tianjin Manufacturing Bureau was considered part of Li Hongzhang's Beiyang faction. Yuan Shikai's New Army in Xiaogan was considered part of the later Beiyang faction. There were not a few exchanges between personnel from both factions. Therefore, after He Ruoming arrived in Beijing, he also deliberately made contact with officers from the New Army in Beijing. Upon learning that someone had contracted an illness, he naturally thought of Chen Ke. This year, many people had contracted illnesses, not just those officers, but also a young man who was quite important to He Ruoming had contracted this unlucky disease. The father of this young man, Lian Bizheng, was one of the key helpers for He Ruoming's entry into Beijing this time. The two families had already arranged a marriage and were about to send out betrothal gifts.

  When he learned that this young man, who was almost his son-in-law, had contracted the disease, He Ruoming's temper flared up. But although he was angry, he still had to save him. He Ruoming knew that Chen Ke's medicine was toxic, so he kept a watchful eye and first let Chen Ke treat other military officers. If there were no problems, then he would have him treat Master Lian. Healing the sick was a good deed, but if healing became a matter of life and death, He Ruoming couldn't bear the responsibility.

  Lian's family also understood He Ruming's idea. They sent someone to watch Chen Ke's treatment process all the way. After Chen Ke left, their family doctor stayed there to observe. The effect of the medicine was obvious, and after one night, the bodies of the military officers had a significant improvement. Lian's son had already been taken back home, and they didn't give their own son an injection until the next morning.

  He Ruoming didn't want Chen Ke to intervene in this matter, after all, the Lian family was also a respectable family. Chen Ke might hear some rumors in the future, and this kind of illness was really embarrassing. The fewer people who knew about it, the better. Moreover, the Lian family was worried that something would go wrong, so they deliberately reduced the dosage during the first time, but problems arose soon after the injection.

  He Ruoming finally called Chen Ke over, originally he also wanted to ask calmly. But after all, his heart was not at peace, if something really happened to the young master of the Lian family... He Ruoming thought of this result and regretted it, he should have let Chen Ke come to treat him in person at that time. However, this self-reflection was quickly replaced by a nameless fire. What kind of tiger wolf medicine did Chen Ke make? Ten officers didn't have any problems, why did the Lian family's people have to have an accident. He Ruoming thought angrily, where is Chen Ke's medical ethics? Is this the heart of a doctor?

  However, this emotion was not as intense as Chen Ke saw it. It wasn't until Chen Ke entered the living room that He Ruming really erupted. Chen Ke's appearance was actually quite fierce, tall and with a square face. But Chen Ke's eyes completely inherited his mother's, a pair of bright and shiny big eyes, long eyelashes that wouldn't fall even if you dropped a matchstick on them, beautifully shaped double eyelids with a hint of downturned corners, these eyes looked calmly at He Ruming, making him feel an inexplicable innocence and purity in Chen Ke's gaze, which doubled the burning of his unexplained anger.

  What right does Chen Ke have to look at himself with such eyes, and how did he end up in this kind of danger? It's all because he believed in Chen Ke. With Yan Fu's recommendation and Chen Ke's calm and composed performance when persuading the beehive coal project, He Ruming gradually gained confidence in Chen Ke. At this critical moment, Chen Ke pushed He Ruming to the edge of the cliff. This quack doctor didn't even ask for medical expenses at that time, and He Ruming still thought Chen Ke was reliable enough. Now it seems that the quack doctor just wanted to shirk responsibility and leave a way out for himself. However, if someone dies on the other side, He Ruming will never let Chen Ke off no matter what.

  Chen Ke didn't know why He Ruoming's anger was so intense. At this time, there was no time to explain, he picked up the draft that He Ruoming had placed on the table and read it through. Suddenly, he discovered a very subtle mistake, which might be his own error, writing "need to inject slowly and carefully, observe the patient's reaction at any time", but did not indicate how slow the speed was. However, on this paper, there were only four words left: "inject with care".

  "Mr. He, where is that draft?" Chen Ke asked.

  He Ruoming gruffly handed over the manuscript. Chen Ke compared it and only then asked, "Why are the two words 'caching' missing?"

  After listening to Chen Ke's words, He Ruming walked over and took a closer look. Indeed, the two characters were gone. However, He Ruming didn't think it was a big deal, but instead thought that Chen Ke was shirking responsibility, which made him even angrier. Before he could erupt, Chen Ke had already stopped him, "Lord He, what's important now is to save the person. How much medicine did you administer to the patient?"

  "We were afraid your medicine was poisonous, so we only used half the dosage." He Ruoming said indignantly.

  "That's much simpler. Quickly administer a large amount of physiological saline to the patient. As you said, the dose is small, it shouldn't cause any fatalities."

  "How much?" He Ruoming asked again, just because of a slight mistake, it caused such a big thing, about Chen Ke's words, He Ruoming did not dare to not understand clearly anymore.

  "First inject 300 milliliters." Chen Ke said, then detailed the injection site again. Seeing He Ruming's dissatisfied expression, Chen Ke asked for paper and pen, and wrote down what he had just said.

  Now that it has come to this, He Ruming is not someone who doesn't know what's important. This time he personally watched Chen Ke write the prescription and read it through himself, feeling there was no problem. Only then did he let the housekeeper take it to deliver to the patient's home.

  Two people sat silently, Bo Guan knew it wasn't his turn to speak now, so he also accompanied the two in silence. After more than half an hour, the butler ran back with a happy expression, and as soon as he entered the living room, he said: "Sir, it's true as written on the prescription, she has stabilized."

  Everyone in the house let out a sigh of relief. He Ruoming asked the butler to carefully copy down Chen Ke's treatment, not a single word could be wrong. Only then did he turn his head around. Looking at Chen Ke's seemingly innocent eyes, He Ruoming didn't know what to say either. Now apologizing to Chen Ke would make him lose face, and instead, he sat there awkwardly.

  Bo Guan Shui was after all from an official family background, and he had the ability to observe words and expressions. Seeing this situation, he said, "Mr. He, do you know about the Beiyang Army's autumn maneuvers?"

  He Yueming knew that 20,000 Beiyang troops were currently conducting autumn exercises in Hejian. Upon hearing Bu Guanzhong's words, he nodded, "I know about this matter."

  "Mr. Chen was supposed to write a military review song for the Northern Army's autumn maneuvers, but it requires piano accompaniment. However, they can't find one at short notice." Bo Guanshui said politely.

  That damned Chen Wenqing! He really knows how to cause trouble. Hei Ruming cursed in his heart. But thinking again, if what Bo Guanshui said was true, and Qiu Cao's tune could be transcribed for the family piano, it wouldn't be a bad thing for himself either. If someone could praise him a couple of times, maybe even Yuan Shikai would hear his name.

  "My home happens to have a piano, if Mr. Bo doesn't mind, he can use it." He Ruoming continued along the lines of what Bo Guanshui had said.

  "That's too kind of you. Can I use it now?"

  "This piano is in the women's quarters, please wait a moment, I'll get someone from my family to move it out."

  The housekeeper brought two servants to the backyard and, after a great deal of effort, finally moved the piano into the backyard. "Brother Wenqing, why don't we go help too?" Bu Guanshui was now quite anxious, wishing they could start immediately.

  Chen Ke was somewhat surprised by this, as he himself had never opposed labor, but Bo Guan's initiative to do manual work made Chen Ke look at him in a new light. He nodded his head.

  Seeing Chen Ke agreed, Bu Guan Shui said to He Ru Ming: "Lord He, we will also go and help."

  "This is not worthy of me, let the lower people do it."

  "It's already like this, what's the point of caring so much?" Bo Guan saw Shui Xin's anxious and flustered expression.

  As soon as the piano was moved into the living room, Chen Ke opened the lid and found a book under it. To his surprise, it was the last volume of his own book series. Was the young lady from that family also reading his books? Chen Ke was puzzled, but he couldn't think about it too much at this moment. His fingers slid over the keyboard, and the piano's tone was quite good. He casually played a tune, which happened to be the theme song of "Gate of Destiny".

  This is a rather cold music, Chen Ke likes that kind of distant style. The beautiful melody echoes in the living room, really has a feeling of transcending time and space. Pianist He Ruming's father bought it when he was alive, He Ruming often listened to his sister and daughter play the piano, but in his opinion, the sound of the piano is nothing more than that. However, looking at Chen Ke's fingers jumping on the long black and white keys in a very strange way, this unattractive way can actually make the piano produce such beautiful sounds, which really makes He Ruming feel quite surprised.

  After listening, He Ruming indeed looked at Chen Ke with new eyes, but he was also puzzled. Could such a cold and clear melody be used as a military march? He didn't believe it.

  Chen Ke felt that his hand was already up, and after returning to this era, his body had a kind of leapfrog-like strengthening. Piano playing requires high speed, strength, and control from the performer's fingers. Although his physical strengthening is not limited to being invulnerable to swords and guns, the change in this aspect is very significant. He casually played Chopin's "Revolutionary Etude", a piece that Chen Ke used to need a long time to prepare for, but now it was truly effortless. The passionate and majestic music made Chen Ke feel his blood boiling. Music has such magical power, no need for communication, even if Chen Ke had no idea what Chopin's mood was like when he heard about the uprising in Poland being suppressed back then. However, the emotions in this piece still made Chen Ke feel extremely uplifting.

  Just as Chen Ke was immersed in the joy of music, He Qian and He Ying sat quietly at the door of their boudoir, listening to the melody coming from the living room. When Chen Ke finished playing a song, He Qian simply shook her head lightly. He Ying, on the other hand, turned around and picked up her embroidery. However, she didn't continue embroidering; the purpose was just in case her mother came in and saw that she wasn't doing needlework, she would get angry.

  The back door of the house opened, and two little boys tiptoed into the yard, looking towards the living room. Soon, a fierce and majestic melody sounded. The two young ladies and two young masters were startled. These four people naturally did not know that Chen Ke was playing today's "main course" - "The Hell March". After the first movement, He Ying asked: "Auntie, this piece of music sounds quite scary."

  He Qian didn't answer, this was the first time she had heard such a piece of music and she felt shocked. Just now she had asked who would be playing the piano, it was that Chen Ke whom her brother He Ruming had mentioned before. She listened to Chen Ke play three pieces in a row, each with a completely different style, his skilled performance made He Qian want to go see how he played. However, during this era, girls were not allowed to show their faces without the permission of their parents. Although He Qian was treated as a boy when she followed Old Master, there were limits to this. Without Old Master's permission, He Qian couldn't take the initiative to meet strangers. Now that she was following her brother He Ruming, He Qian actually couldn't be as free as she had been with her father.

  Chen Kyou started playing, but this time it became fragmented and unclear what was going on. No matter how good the melody is, playing like this would make people lose interest. Not to mention that He Qian actually didn't like this kind of overbearing music style.

  Not long after, He Ruming returned to the backyard. First, he drove his two sons back into the house to read books, and then He Ruming returned to his own room. After a while, He Ruming finally came out. He Qian knew that her elder sister-in-law was not a woman with insight, if there was any advantage, it was just being a virtuous wife. Her brother He Ruming actually didn't discuss things with his sister-in-law much. If there were important matters, they would still be discussed with herself. Indeed, He Ruming went into the house and called He Qian to go to the main room together. He Qian noticed that her brother looked at He Ying with a particularly apologetic expression.

  What's going on? He Qian was somewhat perplexed.

  He and his brother entered the main house, and He Ruming only then told him what had happened. Upon hearing that Lian's family's good-for-nothing son had contracted an illness, He Qian furrowed her brow, feeling an urge to spit. The look in her big brother's eyes just now was probably because of this matter, He Qian finally understood. After He Ruming finished speaking, he merely sighed. He Qian knew what her big brother was worried about. She thought for a moment and already had an idea. "Big brother, the Lian family is after all a respectable family with a good reputation. Their son caused such trouble, and since big brother introduced Chen Ke to them to cure his illness... I think the Lian family probably won't have the face to mention this marriage again."

  He Ruoming nodded, but didn't say anything.

  Seeing her brother like this, He Qian's eyebrows furrowed slightly as she tentatively asked: "Brother, are you afraid that you won't be able to form an alliance with the Lian family and they will make things difficult for you in the future?"

  He Ruoming's face turned red as he was seen through.

  He Qian's eyebrows furrowed even deeper, "Big brother, there must be a reason for everything. Our family's daughter is either a pampered princess or a delicate flower, why should we let the Lian family people bully her? You're so fond of He Ying, but when it comes to your own official position, you're different?"

  "I will definitely not let Ying Er marry a disobedient son of the Lian family. This is non-negotiable. Only..."

  He Qian stared at her elder brother with a gaze that was full of resentment. He Ying's birth also had some secrets. He Ruming's current wife was not He Ying's biological mother, but his second wife. When He Ying was born, due to a difficult delivery, only the child was saved. According to Tianjin customs, such children were called "killing parents" and were supposed to be given away to others. However, He Ruming refused to give away his daughter and quickly married again, forbidding anyone in the family from mentioning the matter. He Ying had always thought that her stepmother was her biological mother.

  She is not her own biological daughter, so this stepmother will naturally not be too close to He Ying. As a result, He Qian, as an aunt, has a very good relationship with her niece who is two years younger than herself. He Qian heard that Old Master He occasionally complained privately that whether it was knowledge or appearance, or the way she treated people, he thought that his first daughter-in-law was several streets better than this second daughter-in-law. However, He Ruoming brought a child considered to be "oppressing parents" and still married again, so naturally there is no hope for a good family door.

  As a woman, He Qian highly appreciated her brother's approach. She didn't expect that He Ruming, who had paid such a great price for his daughter, would also have such an attitude when it came to official positions. He Qian knew that her brother had not had an easy time, and after the Tianjin manufacturing case was over, He Ruming's career path had been completely cut off. It was only through his own efforts that he managed to find a new job, and because this matter had no future prospects, he naturally wouldn't be happy.

  "Brother, I'm going to say something unpleasant. Don't get angry."

  "Say."

  "Look at Chen Ke in the living room, he's only twenty-five years old. But from what you just said, he can find a way and connections anywhere, anytime. Even someone like you, a fifth-rank official, has to come to his door. What do you think is the reason for this?"

  He Ruoming had never looked at Chen Ke from this angle, and after thinking for a moment, he said: "He's an overseas student, you also know that these years overseas students have been having a good time."

  After listening to He Ruming's words, He Qian was somewhat disappointed. Her own brother still didn't understand this issue even now. Wasn't her big brother not like this in the past? Had his backbone been completely worn away after the year of Gengzi? He Qian suppressed her dissatisfaction and continued in a soft voice: "I think Chen Ke never asks for favors."

  "He doesn't ask for help, yet he comes to me to cooperate on the beehive coal?" He Ruoming retorted. Upon hearing his sister praise Chen Ke, he immediately became furious.

  "Rotten wood can't be carved!" He Qian said to herself. But this couldn't be explicitly stated, so He Qian tried to wake up her own brother, "He came to your doorstep, isn't it because you have something Chen Ke wants?"

  By this time, He Ruoming felt much more relieved.

  "As long as you have your own strengths, others will naturally come to you when they want to accomplish something. This Chen Ke is a self-made man who has achieved success in medicine, music composition, and writing. Even at a young age, he was already an accomplished person. You were also a notable figure back in the Tianjin Manufacturing Bureau, with many acquaintances. Why must you care about the Lian family? If you owe them a favor, just repay it later. Why must you let He Ying suffer for this?"

  Article 59