After thinking for a moment, she smiled and said, "I heard last time that the princess is studying medicine. That's no easy task. It must be very hard work. Not to mention anything else, just identifying herbs and memorizing prescriptions is enough to give you a headache."
"That's right!" Tao Hongying said, feeling the same way.
These past few days, she's been memorizing the charts, and she finally understands how hard her daughter has been working!
"Fortunately, Fu Niu'er is young and quick-witted, otherwise memorizing lessons would be a real headache..."
Madam Jia was amused and laughed heartily, "If memorizing texts were easy, wouldn't everyone be a top scholar in the imperial examinations?!"
Everyone laughed. Old Mrs. Li pointed to a piece of cloth covering the corner of the room and said, "There's a bronze figure hidden under there, sealed with wax on the outside and filled with oil inside."
"Recently, Fu Niu'er has been using her memorized acupoints and meridians. If she finds the right acupoint, the silver needle will ooze oil when inserted; if she finds the wrong one, she can't insert it at all."
"It's really tough on my Fu Niu'er. It's not easy for her to learn a skill. Otherwise, she would have run off to play with Bao Zhu long ago!"
Madam Jia nodded repeatedly, "My Baozhu has been learning manners recently. She is still lazy and not as clever as the princess. She often gets her hands slapped, which makes me so distressed that I can't sleep or eat, but I have to bear it."
After saying that, she changed the subject and asked, "There's a legend in the city that there's a miracle doctor in our Broken Gold Beach who can cure all diseases. Is this the princess's master?"
Seeing the eagerness in her eyes, Old Lady Li vaguely guessed what was going on. After pondering for a moment, she said, "Words always get distorted as they're passed around! There is indeed an old doctor in our village, and Fu Niu'er is indeed learning medicine from him now."
"But medicine is a very profound subject. Every doctor has their strengths and weaknesses, and it is impossible to be proficient in everything."
"Having known her for several years, I've noticed that Master Fu Niu is quite skilled at treating external injuries and also good at regulating the body, but I don't know anything else about her."
These words were quite apt, which only made Madam Jia even more eager.
She stepped forward, took Old Madam Li's hand, and said, "Madam, you may not know this, but my sister-in-law is the mother of my niece Wan'er, whom I met at the entrance of the pastry shop last time."
"She had a difficult childbirth back then, and almost suffered a postpartum hemorrhage. Although she survived, she was bedridden and recuperated. She was too weak to manage anything at home or outside, which made Wan'er suffer and develop into a meticulous housekeeper."
"Today, I'm shamelessly asking the old lady to inquire whether the princess's divine physician is available to examine my sister-in-law's pulse."
Upon hearing the name "Wan'er," both Grandma Li and Tao Hongying's eyes lit up.
Especially Old Lady Li, who even regretted speaking so harshly earlier.
At this moment, she quickly tried to smooth things over, saying with a smile, "You really are a kind and loyal person, caring so much about your sister-in-law. Just for you, I'll swallow my pride and ask for you!"
As she spoke, she called to Granny He and instructed her, "Go and ask Doctor Zhang when he's free recently?"
Granny He smiled and agreed, then went out.
Madam Jia was worried, but she still smiled and kept talking to Old Madam Li and the others. Fortunately, it didn't take long for Granny He to return.
She reported truthfully, "Madam, Doctor Zhang is researching new medicines again, and the smell of medicine in the room is pungent. He said that if there are any patients, as long as they don't die, we should wait seven or eight days before making any decisions."
Old Mrs. Li was afraid that Madam Jia would be unhappy to hear this, so she quickly explained, "Dr. Zhang has a short temper. He hasn't been able to figure out the new medicine well lately, so he's in a bad mood. Don't mind him. He's still very serious when he sees patients."
"In that case, in seven or eight days, Dr. Zhang will be able to see patients here. I will send someone to your residence to let you know."
"Alright, thank you, Madam." Madam Jia was not angry at all. Capable people don't have bad tempers, after all, she has the confidence to back it up.
The doctors my elder brother found earlier were all very polite, but they were incompetent!
In the greenhouse behind, Baozhu looked like Grandma Liu visiting the Grand View Garden.
She ran to look at the blooming flowers one moment and picked a bunch of grapes the next, she was overjoyed.
Jiayin followed behind her, eating, drinking, chatting and laughing together.
Although it was dry and cold today, the sun was shining, and the greenhouse was warmer than the house.
The two little girls quickly took off their jackets, their faces flushed from the heat, like two red apples.
Jiayin secretly released the little fox. The little fox swung its big tail and ran and jumped around, making Baozhu extremely happy.
When Old Lady Li and Tao Hongying brought Madam Wen and Madam Jia over, they found it both amusing and delightful to see the two maids playing so carelessly.
As a result, they soon became sweaty from the heat, so they had someone guard the door and took off their coats to spend the summer in the greenhouse.
When the first snow fell, the Marquis's residence sent over two sheep.
A lamb soup was made and shared among the whole village.
The mutton was cut off, rolled up, and frozen into a tube, becoming a mutton roll.
At this time, the brass hot pot is heated, and fresh green vegetables are picked directly from the greenhouse. Various meatballs, fish balls, shrimp, etc. are served, along with freshly sliced mutton. It is simply the best dish for entertaining guests in winter.
As for who sliced the mutton?
There might be a shortage of manpower at home, but when it comes to knife wielders, there's plenty to be found!
From Li Laosi to Ye Shan, they are all competent enough.
The sliced mutton rolls were so thin and delicious, but of course they couldn't eat them!
Today's banquet is for female guests; it's a woman's domain.
Inside the greenhouse, flowers of all colors bloomed in vibrant colors, filling the air with their fragrance.
A variety of green vegetables filled the air with vibrant color, bunches of grapes hung from the trellis, and plump, juicy cucumbers clung to the vines.
The hot pot in front of me has a rich and fragrant bone broth and a spicy and numbing flavor.
The vegetables are refreshing, and the meat is plentiful; every bite is a rare treat.
If it weren't for the howling wind outside the glass dome overhead, whipping the snow into a fluttering motion, no one would believe that this was the dead of winter...
"I'm really enjoying myself with my aunt today. This place is like paradise on earth!"
After eating and drinking her fill, Madam Jia held her flushed face in her hands, and for once, she abandoned her airs as the mistress of the house, acting as if she had returned to her youth, and flirted with Old Madam Li.
"From now on, I'll call you 'Auntie' instead of 'Old Madam.' Auntie, you have to treat me like your own niece. I'll come here every day to beg for your company and stay by your side all the time!"
"Me too, me too!" Baozhu, with a meatball stuffed in her mouth, quickly raised her hand high, afraid that her mother would leave her out.
The Li family and Mrs. Wen were all laughing heartily. Old Mrs. Li said, "Come if you want. I'm getting old and I like my home to be lively. It's a pity that my children are all grown up and not around. I'm finding the house too quiet."
Madam Jia immediately seized the opportunity, saying, "With Auntie's words, I'll shamelessly treat this place as my second maternal home."
People liked her uninhibited manner and found her much more approachable.
Tao Hongying recently started memorizing atlases and brought up the parts that were giving her trouble to ask for help.
Madam Jia spoke eloquently, even more clearly than Madam Wen, and even included some secrets between the families.
For example, which family favors a concubine over their wife, which mother-in-law is unreasonable and torments her daughter-in-law, which second wife is a cousin, making the first wife feel suffocated...
Overall, everyone enjoyed the meal.
After the dining table was cleared away and everyone had a deck chair, they ate fruit and the gossip became even more lively.
Jiayin and Baozhu sat under the grape trellis, eating grapes while eavesdropping on the commotion...
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