The Martial Doctor-Chapter 139 - 127: Like Mother, Like Daughter

"Master, what’s wrong with Youwei?"

"She’s fine, just tired from the journey and fell asleep in the carriage." Lin Miao carried Sun Youwei from the gate into the courtyard.

Carefully laid her on the bed, removed her shoes and socks, and covered her with a quilt.

Senior sister must have been drugged and unconscious. Si Miaoxue mixed her among the goods of another merchant convoy and secretly brought her into the city, handing her over to Lin Miao, who then brought her back.

He has already checked on her and found no serious issues.

The problem is, when she wakes up, how will he explain this to senior sister? He also asked himself if this is too hasty, using her as bait to lure Mr. Xue without considering her feelings.

I am not without faults; the monks at Shanglin Temple colluding with Mr. Xue, utterly shameless.

Thinking of this, Lin Miao felt fearful. Without earlier arrangements, today senior sister might have been abducted and disgraced by Mr. Xue.

This consequence is something he absolutely cannot bear.

Unexpected events can happen at any time; just because this time was fine, doesn’t mean the next time will be. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

He must arrange protective forces for senior sister; he can’t always be by her side. How can a woman with no power to bind a chicken protect herself?

Hiring guards would be only temporary, and besides, paid guards may not risk their lives for you at crucial moments.

It must be talent cultivated from young.

It seems this really must be done, cultivating a force of my own is the foundation of survival in this world.

This matter is already urgent.

"Xie, has the letter been delivered?"

"It has been delivered, personally handed to Mr. Bai. Are you not confident in my work?" Mr. Xie assured, patting his chest.

"Find some orphans for me, aged between eight to ten, smart ones can be older, and if they’ve been educated and can read, that’s even better."

"Master, what are you planning?" Mr. Xie intuitively felt Lin Miao’s intentions were unusual, nervously asked.

"I want to cultivate a force of my own, teaching them martial arts and medicine." Lin Miao didn’t conceal his intentions, believing it’s unnecessary to hide.

"Is it because of the incident with Youwei?" Mr. Xie somewhat noticed, Lin Miao and Sun Youwei behaved oddly after returning, evidencing something went wrong.

But he was tactful, avoiding asking too many questions.

"In this world, it’s survival of the fittest. If I refuse to accept fate, I must have a force capable of protecting family and myself. Paid protection is unreliable; self-cultivation is more reliable." Lin Miao sighed long, "Search for orphans, boys and girls both, preferably without parents."

"That’s not hard, every year local disasters cause families to sell their children; some are destitute and beg on streets. Although the court has charity establishments, during great calamities, help is limited. With money, buying some isn’t difficult, but the court regulates the numbers." Mr. Xie replied.

"Oh, I wasn’t aware. How many can a person like me buy?" Lin Miao was surprised, unaware Da Li Dynasty had such regulations, suspecting it’s to prevent rebellion through private army buildup?

"Ordinary families can register two slave contracts with the government. You, passing as a physician, can increase by two. Of course, officials and nobles can have more." Mr. Xie explained.

"So I can register four slave contracts with the government?" Damn feudal society, where even owning slaves is legal!

"Correct, but now you have only three slots left since Miss Shi Yin has used one." Mr. Xie reminded.

"What about adoption?"

"Adoption has no limit, but registering with the government could be troublesome if numbers are large." Mr. Xie stated.

"Can I not register, then there shouldn’t be an issue?"

"Not registering is not an issue, but the adopted children wouldn’t have an official recognized adoption relationship; the government won’t acknowledge it."

This indeed exploits a legal loophole, where policies differ from practices.

And as long as no investigations occur, and nobody reports, naturally there’s no willingness to pursue such matters, being time-consuming, laborious, and likely offending others.

"Government acknowledgment isn’t important for me," Lin Miao said, "Find me about twenty, split evenly between boys and girls."

"Alright."

"Remember, it must be voluntary, no coercion, and tell the children, entering Lin Mansion means sealing their past surnames; from now on, they’ll share one surname: Lin." Lin Miao emphasized.

"Understood."

...

Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion.

A carriage sped in, charging into the mansion, completely disregarding the prohibition of ’riding into the mansion’ rule.

"Madam, Madam..."

"What’s happening, who is shouting and yelling in the mansion?" Marquis Lingyang’s Butler hurried over, sternly rebuking.

"Mr. He, please immediately report to Madam that the young master, Xue, has encountered an incident." Du Ziyu leapt off the carriage, knelt on the ground, and reported, trembling with fear.

Despite being a disciple of Green Blade Sect, what happened now was beyond his control. It’s notable that connecting with Marquis Lingyang required enormous costs, and now, under his and other sect masters’ protection, Marquis Lingyang’s fifth son was silently robbed of his progeny!