Seeing her guilty look, Song He'er knew that this person must have lied.
“Madam Zhao, we’ve known each other for so long, you should know my character well. It’s best if we talk things out face to face to avoid misunderstandings later and making us seem distant.”
Zhao Ru broke out in a cold sweat; even with her silver tongue, she could not hide her nervousness.
"I...I'm not sick, it's just that a friend of mine is ill and is staying at our workshop. I just had someone brew some medicine for him. If you don't like the taste, then tell them to brew it in the backyard!"
Zhao Ru explained logically, but Song He'er didn't believe it. If it had nothing to do with her, why were those two servants staring at her so intently?
Zhang Xiu'e also noticed something amiss and tugged at Song He'er's sleeve, implying that she should go and see for herself so that the truth would come out.
“Since your friend lives here, I should go and visit him.” With that, Song He’er started to walk into the room.
Zhao Ru quickly stepped forward and blocked Song He'er's way. "Miss, my friend has smallpox. It might be contagious to you. It's best if we don't go in."
Zhang Xiu'e didn't have the patience to argue with her, so she retorted directly, "This lady is so ignorant of etiquette. This is our young lady's own property. Does she need your permission to inspect her own territory?"
"It's not that you need my permission to visit, it's just that my friend is really sick, and I'm afraid I'll pass on his illness to you."
"I am in excellent health, so I am naturally not afraid of any evil spirits or illnesses."
After saying that, Song He'er pushed Zhao Ru aside and walked directly into that room...
I thought that Zhao Ru's evasiveness was simply because she was hiding some businessman with whom she had a conflict, or perhaps her niece's lover.
But when Song He'er opened the door, she was completely stunned.
The thin, pale-faced person lying on the bed was not Zhao Ru's so-called friend, but Jiang Huaifu, whom she had not seen for a long time!
He was no longer the dashing figure he once was; he lay sickly on the bed, emaciated and completely different from the spirited man he used to be.
Zhang Xiu'e was shocked and immediately vented her anger on Zhao Ru, "What do you mean by this? You trapped him here and didn't let us know. What are you up to? Or do you not know the relationship between Young Master Jiang and us at all? No wonder... no wonder I haven't seen him these days. It turns out you, you slut, hid him. You're just too outrageous."
"I...I'm not...Please listen to my explanation, it's not what you think..."
Looking at Jiang Huaifu's weak appearance, Song He'er knew that he was seriously ill.
Moreover, this illness has dragged on for a long time and has not yet been cured.
No wonder, no wonder she hadn't seen Jiang Huaifu for half a month; it turned out he was being hidden here...
But where did Aqing and Alu go? Why didn't they tell her?
"Madam Zhao, I trusted you so much, yet you deceived me, taking advantage of my trust and ruining it. You knew I knew Young Master Jiang, and you knew I was very worried about his health, so why did you hide it from me? Or do you think you can save him from this predicament?"
Zhao Ru was filled with guilt and wanted to explain, but Zhang Xiu'e interrupted her, "I heard He'er say that you were a person in distress, and that you were saved by Young Master Jiang and our young lady, who gave you food and allowed you to survive until now. But you repay kindness with enmity! Tell me, you have to explain to me clearly today what happened!"
Zhao Ru grew anxious and even squeezed out a few tears. "Yes, I'll explain to you slowly. About half a month ago, Young Master Jiang came to Jiangning on business, but those days coincided with an outbreak of epidemic in the east of the city. For some reason, the young master fainted in this workshop. We invited a doctor to take a look, and he said it was smallpox. Everyone is afraid of such a disease. If it weren't for spending a lot of money, no doctor would be willing to come. My... my niece is deeply in love with Young Master Jiang, so..."
"So you hid him and didn't let us know?" Zhang Xiu'e retorted fiercely.
"No, no, no, we didn't think that way at first. We only knew that Young Master Jiang had a special identity, and we couldn't find out anything about his background or contact his parents, so we settled him in the workshop first. I originally wanted to report to you, but... but my niece said she wanted to take care of Young Master Jiang herself, so that when he recovered, he would remember the kindness of that silly girl. I never expected that this illness would last for half a month... I..."
Although Song He'er was furious, she didn't lose her temper or argue with Zhao Ru in front of the other employees.
"Let me ask you, where are Aqing and Alu? Since you say it was your niece's selfishness that caused this, what methods did you use to prevent Aqing and Alu from tipping me off?"
Zhao Ru breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that he could no longer hide anything from Song He'er, so he had no choice but to tell her everything.
"After the young master contracted smallpox, his two trusted confidants were very worried. Moreover, the medicines from Jiangning were ineffective after a long time. My niece then said that the doctors in the capital were the best, and that many medicines came from remote swampy areas..."
Zhang Xiu'e was furious and wanted nothing more than to punch Zhao Ru.
"So you sent Aqing and Alu away so that your niece could shamelessly stay by his side and take care of him? I've seen shameless people before, but I've never seen anyone as shameless as you."
Song He'er didn't scold her, but walked to Jiang Huaifu's side and carefully examined his condition.
Just as Zhao Ru said, Jiang Huaifu contracted a damp-heat syndrome. The so-called smallpox was simply a disease that was easily contagious and difficult to treat in ancient times when medicine was underdeveloped. In modern times, it would just be chickenpox, which would clear up after a few days of fever. As long as the right medicine is used, it would not take that long at all.
Song He'er turned her head and saw Zhao Ru standing behind her, looking nervous and ashamed. She felt sorry for her.
Upon further reflection, he realized that every pitiful person has their own reasons for being pitiful. So, he had someone summon Zhao Zhu'er.
The woman already knew that her scheme had been exposed, so she was prepared to go all out and her tone of voice became more forceful.
“It was my idea, it has nothing to do with my aunt. If you want to take me to court, I’m always ready.”
Seeing her defiant demeanor, Song He'er couldn't help but sneer, "Where do you get your confidence from? How do you know I wouldn't dare to confront you in court?"
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