I am aging gracefully in the world of famous books

Pei Xiang left the urban area in the dark and rushed towards Andrew Middleton and his wife's garden villa in the suburbs of London.

In the past two months, she has made a lot of preparations, but she has not yet confirmed the name of the first client.It just so happened that Mrs. Andrew Middleton appeared in front of her and gave her a chance.

Of course, she would not rashly come to her door and recommend her medical skills, that would be too abrupt.

Before dawn, Pei Xiang disguised himself as a hale and hearty little old man.She put on a well-made men's travel coat, cufflinks with a low-key but elegant style, and a pocket watch with a gold chain. She carried a small suitcase and appeared near a hotel in a carriage. I opened a room by myself.

At around ten o'clock in the morning, after enjoying a sumptuous brunch, Pei Xiang started to get down to business.

"White, is there a family named Middleton near here?" Pei Xiang put down the newspaper, looked up and asked the waiter of the hotel, "I'm from France, and I have something to visit Mr. Middleton, but I don't have the specific address of their home. "

"Mr. Peter, if the Middleton family you want to visit is Andrew Middleton and his wife who live on Zijinhua Road, of course I can guide you."

"Andrew Middleton?" Pei Xiang repeated, "Oh, yes, the gentleman I'm going to visit is called this. However, I didn't know he was married, haha, that's normal After all, we have been separated for many years, and because of the war, the communication between friends was interrupted."

Pei Xiang smiled and gave the waiter some tips, and then got the specific address of Andrew Middleton and his wife very smoothly.

At the same time, in Andrew Middleton's garden villa, Mrs. Andrew Middleton, who had just woken up, screamed in the mirror.

"Ma'am, ma'am, what happened?"

Not long after the screams sounded, the hostess' personal maid rushed in anxiously, and then she couldn't help but gasped.

Aaliyah Middleton looked at the red, swollen and ugly face in the mirror, her eyes were full of panic and panic.

"God, Lucy, get the doctor, hurry!"

"Okay, ma'am."

Realizing the urgency of the situation, the maid Lucy rushed out of the bedroom again, almost bumping into the oncoming butler Morris.

"I heard screaming, what happened?"

"Madame has a pimple on her face and her face is swollen. The situation is serious. We must call the nearby Dr. Dean immediately."

After hearing Lucy's words, the butler immediately had a serious expression:

"Why did it suddenly happen? Didn't you have any signs last night?"

Lucy shook her head: "Everything was as usual last night."

"But Dr. Dean is a surgeon..."

"Let him take a look first, maybe he will get better in a few days."

"May God bless the lady! There is a dinner party for the Countess of Walpole the day after tomorrow. The lady has been fighting for a long time to get an invitation. It would be a pity to miss the banquet because of this inexplicable disaster."

"I thought of that too. Oh, God have mercy."

The two chatted quickly while walking downstairs.

Soon, the servants serving Andrew Middleton's family learned of the misfortune of the mistress, and they all suppressed the smiles on their faces, for fear of being angered by the bad-tempered master.

The sky of Middleton Mansion was shrouded in tense and dull clouds, and it was in such an atmosphere that Pei Xiang's visiting card was carefully delivered to the butler by a servant.

"Monsieur Peter from France?"

"Yes, the old gentleman said that he is the master's friend. He and the master met in France, played together for a while, and forged a deep friendship. After the master returned to England, they often communicated by letter. Later, they had to break off their correspondence because of some things. That Mr. Peter said that he was traveling to England this time, passing through this place, intending to come to visit old friends."

"Is that gentleman still outside the door?"

"No, he said that he is currently staying at the Dixon Hotel on Mofan Street. If it is convenient for Mr. Middleton, he can send a letter to the hotel, and then he will visit on time."

The housekeeper frowned as he looked at the business card Pei Xiang sent, his eyes flicked over a series of strange titles that were unknown to be true or false, and finally stopped at the titles related to "doctor".

"Describe to me Mr. Peter's appearance."

"Mr. Morris, that old gentleman from France really doesn't look young anymore. He is thin and stooped, with silver hair all over his head. But he is full of energy, well-dressed, and he sounds like a gentleman when he speaks, um, The accent is also that of a foreigner, and he is indeed a very dignified gentleman."

"Well, I see, you go down first."

After the servant turned and left, the butler thought for a while, and risked being scolded, he knocked on the door of the hostess' room.

"Ma'am, a Mr. Peter from France just sent a visiting card. He claims to be a friend of Mr. and has left his current address."

"I'm not in the mood to deal with these trivial matters right now, Maurice." There was obvious irritability in Alia Middleton's voice.

"I understand you, ma'am. But it is with some trepidation that I must mention that this gentleman appears to be a French doctor, whose card bears the relevant title."

Alia Middleton in the master bedroom was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked:

"Why hasn't Dr. Dean, who lives nearby, arrived yet?"

"Should be on the way here, ma'am."

"Dr. Dean is a surgeon, isn't he?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Tell me about that French doctor Peter, by the way, pass in his business card."

Butler Morris walked into the room with a silver tray, and found that the always strong and confident hostess was sitting in the shadow of the bay window, covering most of her figure with a translucent linen curtain.

"Ma'am, this is the identity card left by Mr. Peter."

The butler placed the silver platter near Alia Middleton and repeated in a low voice the message he had received from the footman.

When he finished speaking, Alia Middleton suddenly sneered, and she said angrily:

"This is a liar. My husband Andrew has never been to France, and I have never heard of him having such an elderly friend. Maurice, you have been at the side of Mr. Maurice, have you not even been to him?" Don't you even know France?"

Facing the questioning from the hostess, Butler Morris calmly explained:

"Ma'am, I am aware of this too, but I think there may be a regrettable misunderstanding."

"Misunderstand?"

"Yes, the old gentleman did come to visit Mr. Andrew Middleton. But I think that the old friend he is going to visit is not the current Mr. Andrew Middleton."

Alia understood immediately: "You mean, he knew Andrew Middleton from the previous generation?"

"Yes," Butler Morris nodded slightly, "One of Mr.'s uncles was named Andrew Middleton, but he passed away very early. When he was young, he went to Europe to study and made many friends. After the war The relationship between our side and the European continent is very tense, and it is not easy to exchange private letters, so many people have cut off contact."

Alia nodded thoughtfully:

"It makes sense when you say it like this. Moreover, the house we live in now is indeed the property of the previous generation of Andrew Middleton. That Mr. Peter was able to find this place, it should be Uncle Andrew who told him His address."

Butler Morris sighed:

"The war has created too much separation. The Mr. Peter who came from afar probably didn't expect... the current situation, alas!"

An unexpected visitor made Alia Middleton temporarily ignore her illness, and followed the housekeeper to say a few words of emotion.However, when she made a few more expressions, the tingling sensation on her face came back again, which immediately made her feel very bad.

"Maurice, I must attend the Countess of Walpole's dinner on time. This matter is very important. It involves Andrew's future and my social status. Do you understand?"

"Ma'am, I deeply understand the importance of the countess' dinner, and I am as anxious as you."

At this time, there was a rush of footsteps, and Dr. Dean finally arrived.

Unfortunately, Dr. Dean couldn't do anything about the swollen pimple on Alia's face. He could only say some words of rest and patience, and prescribed some common skin treatment ointments.

What made Alia even more disappointed was that Dr. Dean could not guarantee that his medicine would cure the patient before the Countess's dinner.

"Dr. Jones in London may have some original insights. If he can't prescribe the right medicine, madam, I can guarantee that doctors in the whole of England will not have a better and safer way."

Finally, Dr. Dean recommended another colleague to Alia.

So Alia Middleton hastily sent for Dr. Jones again.

Unfortunately, the diagnostic results are still disappointing.

At this time, Alia Middleton thought of Mr. Peter from France.

"Maurice, send someone to invite Mr. Peter. Since the doctors in England can't make me attend the Countess's banquet perfectly, I will ask the doctors from the European continent for help."

"I'll do it myself, ma'am."

Pei Xiang, who was sitting in the hotel waiting for "the wisher to take the bait", did not immediately agree to see a doctor for Alia Middleton after hearing the intention of the butler Morris.

For acting, she has always been dedicated.

Therefore, after "first hearing" the bad news that her old friend Andrew Middleton had passed away, she immediately expressed a kind of melancholy and loneliness that only belonged to the elderly. After a long sigh, she sat in a high-backed armchair and remained silent. Word.

After a while, he suppressed the sadness in his eyes, and asked Morris about the burial place of his old friend in a suppressed and flat tone.

Obviously, he intends to leave here immediately and go to the Middleton family cemetery to visit his long-sleeping friend.

Butler Morris hurriedly stopped "Mr. Peter" who was about to leave, said all the good things, and asked him to see Mrs. Andrew Middleton.

In the end, the housekeeper actually had an illusion that as long as this Mr. Peter was willing to act, his wife's face would definitely return to its original state, completely forgetting that this was just a stranger who didn't know the details.

After three reminders and four invitations, Pei Xiang finally left the hotel where he was staying temporarily with a look of impatience, and "had to" treat minor illnesses and disasters that he despised.

"The noble ladies just like to make such a fuss. When I was in the court...cough cough, hey, how many lives are dying, and they can't be treated in time. I have a pimple on my face. What's the hurry? Let's rest for a few days and see. It's not too late."

"Madam has an important dinner the day after tomorrow, and she doesn't want to be the kind of spoiled guest who can't attend the appointment." Morris explained in a low voice.

When Butler Morris tried his best to persuade Pei Xiang to save her, Alia also found some folk remedies that were said to be very useful.

But after she tried one by one, those folk remedies not only did not slow down the condition, but made the pimple on her cheek more red, swollen and itchy.

Repeated disappointments brewed into great panic and anxiety. Alia Middleton was like an ant on a hot pot, running around in a hurry.

So, as a matter of course, after Pei Xiang, who was cured of his illness, made a move, he immediately received all the trust and gratitude of Alia Middleton.

In her eyes, this Mr. Peter from the European continent is a great savior with superb medical skills and a veritable miracle doctor.

"Mrs. Andrew Middleton, this is a two-day ointment. After you apply it according to the doctor's advice, there will be no major problems. However, such a big problem suddenly broke out on your skin, which is related to your physical condition. From now on In the future, you have to pay attention to your diet and work and rest, don’t stay up late, the black and white life habits and excessive drinking during the social season will make your old diseases relapse, you have to pay attention.”

This made Mrs. Andrew Middleton nervous.How could she give up the social season in London, how could she not indulge in drinking, if she liked the quiet and uncontested country life, she would not have stayed in London with bad air.

"But the others..."

"Everyone's physical fitness is different, and, in order to maintain a fair and transparent complexion, do you apply a lot of messy things on your face? Most of the potions and powders with obvious whitening effects contain toxins, which remain in your skin for years. On the skin, it will bite back sooner or later."

This made Alia stiffen.

She has always liked that fair, transparent and even sickly complexion, and thinks it is a delicate and noble expression.However, her natural skin tone is not fair enough, and she still has a lot of small freckles, so she has indeed been applying various whitening medicines on her face over the years.

"I know those things are not good for your health," Alia looked at Pei Xiang anxiously, "but I really can't bear the blemishes on my face. Mr. Peter, if, if I insist on using the previous things in the future, the situation will be even worse Is it bad?"

Pei Xiang nodded for sure. She really felt that this lady's skin condition was very bad. When she saw her yesterday, she discovered some hidden dangers.

"If you continue your previous skin care habits, after three to five years, the skin on your face will age faster. By then, you will not only have redness, swelling and acne, but also dark spots. In short, it will be very bad."

Alia's heart tightened, her life was still very long, and she absolutely didn't want to spend the rest of her life with an ugly face.

But... She is also unwilling to let her give up covering up her bad uneven skin tone, give up covering up freckles, and face the world with her original face.

She seemed to have heard the ridicule of some women...

"Doctor Peter, help me!"

"This has to be done slowly. It will take several years to completely heal your face," Pei Xiang sighed helplessly, "but I'm just traveling in Great Britain. Mrs. Andrew Middleton, I don't have to I do not regret to refuse your request, although...it is quite unpleasant for a doctor to voluntarily abandon a patient who could have been cured."

Alia Middleton saw the hesitation of the old gentleman, she gritted her teeth, and said decisively:

"Mr. Peter, I ask you to stay in England for a long time. We have many good doctors here. Even though you have different fields of expertise, I think that after in-depth and friendly exchanges, you will definitely feel that your visit is worthwhile. I still have some contacts in my family, and I can introduce one or two for Mr. Peter."

Hearing that he had the opportunity to communicate with his peers, Pei Xiang's expression softened a little, but he remained silent.

At this time, Alia felt a coolness on her face. She looked back at herself in the mirror and felt that the skin condition had recovered a little. It can be seen that this Dr. Peter is really good at treating skin problems.

"Mr. Peter, as far as I know, there are many poor women who have the same troubles as me. You have a high moral character, how can you bear to watch the ladies suffer more pain? It is really unkind of you not to ask. .”

"Hey, I'm not particularly interested in the small problems on the faces of ladies. I have other areas of concern. Ma'am, treating a disease like yours that is not life-threatening is just a random thing for me. My future research I will definitely not concentrate on this aspect. Besides, I am old..."

"Mr. Peter, please listen to me..."

In the end, Pei Xiang became Mrs. Alia Middleton's guest, and started a "reluctant" business of selling limited skin care products.

After the word of mouth slowly spread, she has more and more customers, and the ladies are flocking to her maintenance ointment, but the "Doctor Peter" she plays is not proud of it.He often refused to prepare more ointments, but instead focused on research in other areas, hoping to save more lives.

A year and a half later, Pei Xiang gained the trust of Baron Middleton and began to help him take care of his body, and achieved good results.

At this time, someone finally began to seriously investigate the origin and identity of "Doctor Peter".After all, why has no one heard of such a skilled doctor at this age?

However, the information Pei Xiang gave was too general, and in addition to the years of revolution and war in France, many people fled abroad, many big families fell apart, many nobles remained anonymous, and many details have been lost in blood and gunfire Among them, where can we really check them one by one?

When someone asked about it face to face, Pei Xiang just shook his head and sighed, his eyes were tired and melancholy, and he didn't say much.

In this way, it is difficult for the questioner to continue to inquire.

Because, no matter how doubtful Mr. Peter's identity is, it is absolutely true that he has superb medical skills, and on the surface, his identity materials are also formal and legal.

Another point is that he never regarded himself as a doctor, nor took the initiative to seek patients.

He has always insisted that he came to Great Britain to travel, and when he had enjoyed enough of the beautiful scenery of this island, he would set off again.

Hometown, in his lifetime, he will not go back again, because it is a sad place.When his body could no longer support him, he buried his bones in a foreign country. Anyway, he had been wandering for most of his life.

It is said that Dr. Peter's heartfelt words were confided when he was a little drunk, and several soft-hearted ladies were moved to tears at that time.

By the time Pei Xiang graduated from Colendell Girls' School, she had already managed the two identities well.

Of course, no one will ever associate a young and beautiful 16-year-old lady with a silver-haired old gentleman. They have their own lives and life trajectories, one still has a long life, and the other has already passed away.

After Pei Xiang graduated, he would live in Highbury part of the time with the Rochester family.But every year when the social season comes, she will accept Mrs. Grant's invitation to live in London for a while.

Her appearance became more and more refined and beautiful, with an elegant and gentle charm. According to Mr. Rochester, upon a cold glance, she really had a bit of oriental charm.

For this evaluation, Pei Xiang could only smile silently.

As we get older, the friends of the year have changed, and the topic of marriage between men and women has gradually become the most important part of life.

For example, Norton Bleiman fell in love with Pei Xiang's friend Alice van Laier.

For example, William Grant was gradually attracted by Pei Xiang's smiles.To be precise, at her first dance party when she was 16 years old, he took her dancing in the bottom of his heart.

Now, seven years have passed quietly, and his love for her has gradually deepened. He can't find any flaws in her, except...she doesn't have a particularly rich dowry and a decent enough natal family.

Of course, for William Grant, these shortcomings certainly cannot affect his love for Pei Xiang, she is the most perfect girl he has ever met.However, as the heir of Viscount Rio, his life is not only about love.

In response, Theodore Grant wrote in his diary:

"William is going to be a fool as he gets older and he'll regret it, but I'm happy."