Chapter 256
By the time Athena belatedly realized something was amiss, it was already too late.
The very villagers Athena had once painstakingly healed not only stopped seeking her help, but now glared at her. Some even returned the medicines they had taken from Athena. Their anger was plain to see; they wanted nothing more to do with her.
One of the villagers shoved the medicines back at Athena and snapped, “We won’t take your medicine anymore. Have it back!”
Another villager chimed in, “Exactly! She’s just using us as stepping stones. We’re not falling for your tricks.”
“So you’re that cast-off who ended up in the army camp. And I thought you were just being kind, but it turns out you just want to clean up your reputation,” one villager bellowed furiously. “Four dollars for just this handful of herbs? You think my money grows on trees? Give it back!”
Seething with indignation, the villagers turned against Athena one after another. They even branded Athena as utterly worthless.
Upon seeing those returned medicinal herbs, Athena felt her heart bleeding. All the medicinal formulas she had painstakingly developed through countless sleepless nights to heal those people were now being ruthlessly trampled underfoot.
Athena hadn’t even covered her costs for those herbs. She had only taken a token payment. A single packet of the medicine was worth over a hundred dollars. Even so, she was still branded as an unscrupulous profiteer.
Athena thought in disbelief. “How could everything change so drastically in just one day?”
Trina couldn’t hold back her tears. “Miss Monson, they’re utterly shameless! When they were sick, they called you a miracle healer, but now that they’re almost cured, they bite the hand that fed them!”
While others had no idea how much Athena had struggled, Trina knew it all too well. Athena pulled all-nighters perfecting these medicinal formulas. Getting by on just four to six hours of sleep each day, Athena would immediately throw herself into endless patient consultations. Even with her students helping, Athena was utterly overwhelmed by the flood of patients.
Those prescriptions contained two key ingredients called Mugwort and Boneset, which were no longer available in the capital. Athena had sent Jessa to a neighboring town to procure the herbs, but Jessa had yet to return.
Just when the epidemic was nearly under control, Willow came up with some so-called masks and started spreading wild rumors about them.
Trina clenched her jaw and spat in disgust. “That walking disaster! She’s completely ruined all of your efforts, Miss Athena.”
Athena said to Trina, “Never mind them. Hurry up and gather these herbs. Some can still be used.”
Athena’s heart ached. To her, those medicinal herbs were priceless treasures. However, those ignorant villagers threw the herbs on the ground without so much as a second thought.
Trina crouched down to gather the herbs, seething with anger. “Willow Morgon, I could just strangle you!”
Yet, Athena’s earnest efforts were entirely unappreciated by the villagers. They stubbornly believed Athena was profiteering from the national crisis. The number of villagers coming to return their medicine kept growing.
“Give us our money back now! Refund!”
Despite Trina’s and her students’ desperate pleas, villagers kept coming in droves to return their medicine.
Just then, a woman’s crisp, commanding voice cut through the air, “You accuse Athena of making blood money? Let me tell you, the real black-hearted ones here are you.”
The crowd turned in surprise toward the source of the voice, only to see a stunningly elegant, exquisitely dressed noblewoman appear with graceful steps.
Someone recognized the woman and gasped in alarm, eyes wide with fear. “That’s… That’s Lady Fiona, Lady Fiona Monson!”
Fiona Monson strode forward, flanked by over a dozen attendants in two neat rows, with several maids and matrons in tow.
In her hands, she held a counting board. She casually took a packet of herbs from one of the villagers, then she rapidly calculated on the counting board.
Fiona said, “Ephedra, 15 grams–100 dollars; Mugwort, 15 grams–100 dollars; Valerian, 10 grams–80 dollars; Mullein, 5 grams–35 dollars. All together, these cost over 300 dollars. The Viscountess only charged you 30 dollars and didn’t even charge the consultation fee. If you insist on a refund, you’d better return the medicine you’ve taken as well.”
The burly man who had come to return the medicine stood there utterly dumbfounded, struck speechless for what felt like an age.
Fiona snapped her counting board shut with a sneer. “You wanted a refund, didn’t you? Cat got your tongue now? Oh, don’t forget the consultation fee: You’ll need to pay that in full as well.”
The burly man stood there, mouth agape for a long moment before finally managing to stammer out, “How is that possible! How could some lousy herbs cost so much?”
He knew full well how tough it was for poor folks to see a doctor. Just one visit to the doctor could leave a family broke. Just the doctor’s house call alone costs a hundred dollars, a small fortune for the common folk. How could they ever afford that?
Fiona’s expression turned icy as she snapped, “If you don’t believe me, bring in someone you can trust.”
Fiona had a physician from Harmony Apothecary brought before her and declared, “This physician has decades of experience running an apothecary and knows these medicinal ingredients better than anyone. Let him verify whether my calculations are true.”
The old physician merely glanced at the herbs and waved his hand. “The Viscountess shows remarkable benevolence, paying from her pocket to treat the people. I’m utterly humbled. Why, just these herbs cost over one hundred thousand dollars!”
At that, the old physician finally lost his temper. He pointed at the villagers returning their medicine and shouted, “You brainless parasites! You’ll believe any nonsense people tell you. You put your faith in those ridiculous masks instead of accepting that it was the Viscountess’s medical skills that cured you. If I were the Viscountess, I wouldn’t give a damn about your lives! You ungrateful wretches!”
The old physician’s harsh rebuke made the crowd falter, their earlier bravado fading. They no longer clamored for refunds as they had just now. More importantly, they now realized their actions were absurd. Some slipped away quietly, while others forced awkward smiles, too embarrassed to meet anyone’s eyes. Still, others wore expressions of deep shame.
The crowd quietly dispersed, and peace returned to Saint Joga Clinic.
Standing aside, Athena’s eyes lit up with surprise as she looked at Fiona Meyer in her wildest dreams come to her aid. She had resigned herself to the fact that Fiona would be the last person to help.
“What… What brings you here?” Athena couldn’t bring herself to call her name, so she just offered an awkward smile.
Fiona sensed her discomfort and said warmly, “Had I not come, I’m afraid these people would have run you out of town. I’m here purely in my personal capacity. If you don’t mind, just call me Fiona.”
“Alright, Fiona,” Athena smiled at her, but a puzzled look crossed her face. “But how did you get in? The place is completely surrounded by villagers outside.”
Fiona’s lips curved into a subtle smile as she gestured for Athena to look outside. Athena looked out to see Xander’s attendants firmly guarding the gate, while he himself strode toward her with measured, commanding steps. Xander had a faint smile on his lips, but his eyes sparkled with barely concealed pride.
Xander’s expression practically screamed at Athena, “Come on, aren’t you going to praise me?”
“If it weren’t for Prince Xander’s help, I doubt I could have made it inside,” Fiona said, a knowing twinkle in her eyes. She could tell Xander was truly smitten with Athena. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone to such lengths for Athena, Fiona thought.
Xander came to a halt before Athena, his brow furrowing deeply at the sight of the discarded medicinal herbs scattered across the ground.
Xander muttered, “What an appalling waste of precious resources.”
No one could have anticipated that Xander, in all his noble dignity, would actually humble himself to stoop down and gather the scattered herbs from the ground. Such a remarkable down-to-earth gesture utterly shattered the icy, unapproachable image Xander had long held among the common folk.
Xander rose and carefully placed the herbs in Athena’s hands. “These medicines were crafted by your hands. What others discard, I shall treasure.”