Although this was Cheng Ruyi's second visit to the Wen family, it was her first time stepping into Wen Jingqing's bedroom.
The first thing that catches the eye is rows and rows of bookshelves, and countless papers piled up in every corner of the room, followed by a pungent, strong smell of medicine.
She glanced around casually and thought this place should be called a library rather than a bedroom...
To accommodate more books, all five rooms were knocked down and dozens of bookshelves were crammed in. The rooms were spacious enough, but they were not good for keeping warm at all. Wen Jingqing's bed was placed right in the middle of the room, with drafts coming from all sides. There were only a few braziers around the room. It would be strange if he didn't freeze to death!
At this moment, there were many people standing in the bedroom. Besides Wen Jingqing, who was lying on the bed with a face so pale that it was almost transparent and her breathing was weak, there was also an old man with a full head of white hair who looked like he had a very good medical skill. He held Wen Jingqing's hand and took her pulse. His face, which was weathered by time, had a very serious expression.
Besides the old man, there was also a tall man whom they had seen in the waterside pavilion before. He was also continuously performing acupuncture on Wen Jingqing, and despite the freezing winter weather, he was covered in sweat...
Cheng Ruyi shifted her gaze slightly and noticed a woman sitting anxiously on a chair next to the large bed. This woman was none other than Gu Pingting. However, at this moment, not only did she look haggard, but her makeup and hairstyle were also in disarray, indicating that the situation was indeed quite urgent.
"Madam! Madam Cheng has arrived!" Wen He practically ran all the way over, and as soon as he entered the room, he immediately reported to Madam Wen.
Gu Pingting seemed to wake from a dream upon hearing this, and slowly turned her head.
Although she was in a terrible state, it did not affect her beauty at all. Her pale face and helpless eyes, with pearl-sized tears hanging from the corners of her eyes, slid down her cheeks as she turned her head, and dripped directly into Cheng Ruyi's heart.
A beautiful woman is always so endearing...
Gu Pingting stared blankly for a full few seconds after seeing Cheng Ruyi before shakily standing up, holding onto the chair for support.
Ruyi immediately walked over quickly, intending to greet her and bow: "Greetings, Madam Wen..." However, before she could finish speaking, her wrist was forcefully grabbed by Gu Pingting, and Ruyi couldn't help but look up at the other woman.
This legendary, aloof, and unapproachable young lady from a prestigious family, for the first time, disregarded all etiquette. Her hands trembled as she tightly gripped Cheng Ruyi's wrist, and with a pleading and expectant tone, she weakly asked, "Acheng said you could save him, right?"
Faced with the beautiful woman before him, her face contorted with sorrow and tears streaming down her face, Cheng Ruyi found it truly difficult to refuse...
She couldn't help but look at Wen Jingqing, who was lying motionless on the bed, seemingly like an ice sculpture. Recalling the past year they had spent together, although he had guessed that she had a secret from the beginning, he had never done anything to her. On the contrary, he had always been polite and helpful in his business, and did not mind being used as a living advertisement by her.
Moreover, the Gu family's position in Chongzhou is as stable as Mount Tai. Although Ruyi is not clear about the extent of Wen Jingqing's influence on the Gu family, the death of the eldest daughter's husband would likely cause some turmoil...
She sighed deeply, causing even the two doctors standing by the bed to turn around and look at her.
Cheng Ruyi took out a delicate little porcelain bottle from her bosom and handed it to Gu Pingting. She said calmly, "Let me make it clear first that I can't guarantee whether this pill will work or not, or what will happen after he takes it. If it doesn't work, you absolutely cannot blame me."
After she finished speaking, she took a step back and stood aside, silently watching Gu Pingting's reaction.
Unexpectedly, Gu Pingting didn't even open it to check first. After taking the small porcelain bottle, she went straight to the big bed. The two people guarding the bed also quickly moved away when they saw this. No one had any intention of stopping her or checking the pill first.
Gu Pingting poured out the pills and carefully placed them near Wen Jingqing's mouth. However, Wen Jingqing had completely lost consciousness and did not know how to open his mouth to take the medicine.
Everyone watched anxiously as Madam Wen tried for a long time but failed to get Master Wen to swallow the pill.
Cheng Ruyi watched this scene speechlessly, and she began to understand. It turned out that these people treated Wen Jingqing as an inviolable immortal, afraid that he would melt in their mouths or break in their hands, which was why Wen Jingqing was becoming increasingly careless about his own body...
Seeing that the pill was almost melted and the people were still dawdling around, she couldn't stand it anymore. She quickly pushed through the crowd around the bed, snatched the pill from Gu Pingting's hand, and swiftly and accurately pinched Wen Cheng's mouth open, forcibly prying it open and shoving the pill directly into her throat. Although Wen Cheng was unconscious, her body's instincts allowed her to swallow the pill successfully.
After Cheng Ruyi quickly retreated, she felt as if the air around her had frozen for several seconds.
A moment later, Gu Pingting, who was the first to come to her senses, calmly took out a handkerchief and wiped the person on the bed's mouth, then gently closed his chin.
Cheng Ruyi didn't know what illness Wen Jingqing had, and in fact, she didn't have any elixirs to cure it. Although Runmai Dan could nourish the meridians, Lingquan water could improve physical condition, and Yu Sui Mi rice could prolong life, these all required long-term consumption to be effective. The only healing medicine, Xiao Huichun Dan, was also used to repair injuries, so none of them were suitable for someone who was already terminally ill.
So she herself wasn't really confident, she could only mix all these things together and cram them in, leaving her survival to fate.
Fortunately, the system's products are quite reliable. With the help of several elixirs, Wen Jingqing's ashen face gradually regained some color, and his breathing and pulse also became slightly more noticeable.
Seeing this, the old doctor examined Wen Jingqing from head to toe again before finally showing his only smile in the past few days: "He's finally saved!"
Everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief, and some couldn't help but cry tears of joy.
Cheng Ruyi naturally breathed a sigh of relief as well. After all, the pills came from her. Although it was unlikely, if anything happened to Wen Jingqing, she would definitely not be able to leave here alive!
Looking back now, she still feels she took a bit of a risk, but what could she do when that Mr. Wen left that note? It was like putting her on the hot seat; she really had no other choice...
"Madam Cheng, thank you!" Gu Pingting finally reverted to her previous aloof and dignified image. Even when she came over to thank Cheng Ruyi and bowed, she was still in the standard manner of a noble lady. However, it was not hard to notice that there was a slight tremor in her voice.
Seeing the other party like this, Cheng Ruyi was also a little emotional. It seemed that this Miss Gu really loved her husband to death. She wondered if Wen Jingqing was just as deeply in love with her.
"Madam Wen, you're too kind. You are my Lingyun Pavilion's most important clients and living advertisements. Of course, I hope you live to be a hundred years old and continue to support my business!"
To be honest, she didn't really want to have a closer relationship with the Wen or Gu families. Maintaining the current purely business relationship was just right. Although they knew each other, they weren't close, and she could advance or retreat at any time.
However... she had to waste one of her spiritual herbs to save Wen Jingqing, and she didn't want him to squander the rest of the spiritual herbs.
After thinking for a moment, she decided to speak: "Madam Wen, these words may be somewhat impolite of me to say them, but I wonder if you could spare a little of everyone's time to listen, considering that I just gave away the medicine?"
"Of course." Gu Pingting could tell that Madam Cheng's expression was serious, so she guessed that she really had something important to say, and thus agreed to the request.
"Although I don't know what illness Mr. Wen has, it's the dead of winter and the weather is freezing cold. Even a healthy person would get sick from sleeping in this room. How could you allow a patient to sleep here? Is this a room suitable for a patient to recuperate?"
"And this Mr. Wen, what he needs most is peace and quiet to recuperate. How can he find peace here? How can he go to bed early? As his family and his doctors, how can you let the patient act so recklessly?"
"If the weather continues to be this cold in the coming months, and if Mr. Wen continues to not change his lifestyle, I'm afraid things like today will repeat themselves!"
"My pills are extremely precious. After giving this one to Master Wen, there's only one left in the whole world. It's our family heirloom. If even this last one is given to an outsider, I won't have the face to face my ancestors after I die!"
Cheng Ruyi's intention was to hope that Wen Jingqing's family could make a clear decision: either completely change his lifestyle and let him recover slowly, or silently accept his fate when he is on the verge of death next time, and not involve innocent people like her again.
Of course, she specifically mentioned that there was still one pill left, as a backup plan for herself.
If we simply say there's nothing left, they definitely won't believe us, and they might even send someone to the Cheng family to investigate secretly, causing unnecessary trouble.
Before Gu Pingting could speak, the man who had been standing by the bed administering acupuncture suddenly said in a contemptuous tone, "Family heirloom? Hmph, I wonder which aristocratic family you are, to have such a big mouth? You? You dare to compare yourselves to Mr. Wen's life?"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Ruyi couldn't help but frown and retorted in a very unfriendly tone: "Our family is not some powerful clan, but all lives in this world are equally precious. As a doctor, don't you understand such a simple principle? Do you think only the rich and powerful deserve to live? Should ordinary people just die when they get sick?"
"Ignorant woman, what do you know!" The man applying acupuncture continued without stopping, saying, "Sir, your talent is beyond your comprehension!"
"Really? Then may I ask which genius survived just now thanks to the elixirs of this ignorant woman?"
Seeing that the man administering acupuncture was about to lose his temper and abandon his precious, prodigy, Mr. Cheng Ruyi, and was about to turn around and "teach" her a lesson, Gu Pingting then sternly rebuked him: "Dr. Qu! Please don't forget your duty!"
Upon hearing this, the acupuncturist stared silently at Cheng Ruyi for a while before turning back to continue treating Wen Jingqing.
Cheng Ruyi is now practically a member of the martial arts world, so it's not hard for her to notice the killing intent and internal energy fluctuations emanating from that person. Good heavens, it seems this person not only knows medicine, but also has a solid foundation in martial arts. No wonder he's so arrogant.
This time, however, she witnessed the true nature of Wen Jingqing's entourage. Whether it was the martial artist who tried to capture her by force, or this utterly heartless and incompetent doctor, they were clearly Wen Jingqing's most ruthless accomplices. In their eyes, apart from their precious, exceptionally talented Mr. Wen, the lives and dignity of everyone else were utterly worthless...
People with different principles cannot work together.
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