"Both are risky. If I have to choose one, I trust the skills of the imperial physician Guan more!"
Guo Honglei resolutely said, "Master Guan comes from a long lineage of doctors. He has practiced medicine for most of his life. His compassion and skill are renowned throughout the capital, and he is deeply respected. In his spare time, he is often sought after by high-ranking officials to save lives. Now I can only pray to God for mercy, hoping he can save Ye'er."
Jiang Yushu had no other options but to gamble everything on it. "If Imperial Physician Guan could save Ah Zhe, he could surely save our child too!"
Guo Hongzhe nodded solemnly and said seriously, "Master Guan's medical skills are superb and are obvious to all. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be alive today."
"This, this..." Wang frowned, filled with worry, and sighed, "Who doesn't know that the imperial physician is more reliable? It's a pity that he's too far away. He's in Yongzhou, Tuning. Distant water can't quench nearby thirst. Alas!"
Guo Honglei said solemnly, "This situation is urgent. We must make a decision as soon as possible. Instead of rushing to the lower prefecture city to seek medical treatment, why not go to Yongzhou and try it?"
Jiang Yushu quickly wiped away her tears, turned the handkerchief covering the child's forehead, and said in a trembling voice, "It sounds far, but if you compare carefully, it's only two or three days' journey. The West Cang Mountains are high and densely forested, and the mountain roads are winding and tortuous. But once you cross the Cang River, the terrain becomes flat. Yongzhou is almost a plain, with fertile land stretching as far as the eye can see. The roads are wide and straight, and horses can run very fast."
"Really?" Wang and the others had never set foot in Yongzhou, and they hesitated or pondered, remaining silent.
Guo Honglei nodded and replied, "That's right! Once Mom has recovered and is in better shape, I'll go with her son to Tuning someday and enjoy the scenery along the way."
"Mother is old, her bones can't stand the bumps and bruises. Let's forget about traveling." Wang sighed and stroked her grandson's cheek. After a while, she looked up at her second son and his wife and said tiredly:
"Since you have all decided to find Imperial Physician Guan, then, then take Ye'er to Yongzhou. Alas, I can't think of a better way, so I'll just listen to the child's parents."
The others echoed this, saying in unison, "I hope the old imperial physician can save my nephew."
"Good things will happen to those who are lucky. The child will definitely be safe."
"We're leaving tomorrow morning? The carriage needs to be carefully arranged to reduce the bumps."
…
Jiang Yushu forced herself to cheer up, stood up and said, "I'll immediately take people to arrange--"
"You take a rest." Guo Honglei pushed her to sit down and said decisively, "I'll take care of those things!"
The next morning
The carriage was spacious and clean. The seats had been converted into a small bed with a foot-high fence. It was covered with cushions all around and a thick mattress was placed under the mat.
The baby, still in fever and freshly dosed, lay flat on his back, sobbing and looking up at his elders. In just two or three days, the once healthy and lively little rascal had quickly transformed into a listless invalid.
As they were about to part, Jiang Yushu couldn't help but choke up. "Good boy, listen to your father and the nanny. As soon as I have time, I will go to Yongzhou to see you!"
"Wuwuwu..." The baby sobbed in grievance, his voice hoarse, and he was very unhappy about being forced to take medicine.
Wang had watched the child grow from skinny to plump, with the three of them keeping each other company day and night. Naturally, she was heartbroken to see her beloved child leave for such a long journey. With tears in her eyes, she urged, "Yes, yes! Be obedient, and listen to your father. Don't be naughty, and come home when you're well."
"Brother," Guo Yu and Baozhu were inseparable, lying side by side on the fence. He was reluctant to leave and said melancholy, "Please come back soon. Sister Baozhu and I will be waiting for you at home."
"Well, we'll wait for you and play together." Gong Baozhu is always timid in front of everyone.
Afterwards, the family members worked together to coax him, and Guo Honglei rode closer and reminded him, "Okay, it's time to set off. We have to rush to the government office to meet the imperial envoy."
"Know."
Jiang Yushu and others had to help Wang up, slowly get out of the car, and retreat to the side of the road.
"Honglei, please take good care of the child!" The maid handed over a handkerchief, and Wang pressed her eyes.
Guo Honglei immediately bowed and said, "Don't worry, this is natural."
"Take care, second brother!"
"Second uncle, bring my brother back as soon as possible."
…
Fang Sheng went along, Nanny Pan and the wet nurse lifted the curtain, Jiang Yushu gave repeated instructions, and after a while, she waved her hand. Everyone watched the carriage go away, and when they returned to the room, everyone sighed, and even Guo Yu and Gong Baozhu did not dare to play around.
The child was taken away by her husband to seek medical treatment far away, and the family suddenly lost a lot of laughter and joy. From then on, Jiang Yushu was busy with official duties while waiting for news, writing letters every now and then to inquire about the child's condition, and worrying day and night.
She thought she would have some free time after settling the summer grain accounts, but after the Mid-Autumn Festival, Ambassador Liang Zuopu, who was in the provincial capital supervising the construction of the warehouse, wrote to her, informing her that the military warehouse was about to be completed, that the work was complicated, and that he urgently needed the help of his colleagues. She had no choice but to pack up the account books and other things with Wei Xu and hurried to the provincial capital.
As a result, the busy work lasted for more than a month, and in the blink of an eye it was the autumn harvest season.
Carts of grain were continuously transported to the military warehouse, and officials were busy urging their subordinates to count and record the grain, and then carefully store it in the warehouse.
Jiang Yushu traveled around until early November, when she finally returned to Heqin in the first snow of winter.
The wheels rumbled as the master and servant chatted to relieve their boredom.
Cuimei, with years of experience, had become increasingly sharp and capable. She spoke enthusiastically, "The letter says the young master has recovered. Calculating the time, he should have returned home by now. Hey, I heard he's not only learned to crawl, but is also learning to talk. I wonder what he can say now?"
Jiang Yushu smiled and replied with emotion: "It is said that the first thing they learned was to call 'Dad'!"
"Hahaha, he's been with the young master for the past few months, so naturally he learned to call me 'Dad' first." Cui Mei laughed happily, "When we meet again when we return home, I'm sure he'll be able to call me 'Mom' soon."
Jiang Yushu's brows immediately lit up with a smile, and then she changed the subject, advising, "When we get back to the mansion, you should rest for a few days. Then I'll arrange for the staff. You should take the annual reward back to Liu Village and hand it over to the farm manager Zhou. Everyone has worked hard on the farm, and it's customary to reward them so that we can have a good New Year."
"yes."
"Xipingcang is different from the local government. We don't have to work until the twelfth lunar month to rest. You've been busy running around with me, and you've worked hard. Take a good rest for two months at the end of the year, reunite with Changrong, and then come back to the county after the Lantern Festival."
"It's not hard, this servant doesn't feel hard at all!"
Cuimei expressed her gratitude, "It's rare that Madam doesn't mind. I'm very happy to follow and serve you. Firstly, I can gain more knowledge, and secondly, I can learn some skills that will benefit me for the rest of my life. This is an opportunity that others can't even ask for."
Women should also be strong... Jiang Yushu nodded with satisfaction and sighed, "But you and Changrong are newly married, but you are living apart. I feel bad about it."
"No, I'm following you voluntarily, not forced." Cuimei blushed, folded her hands and sleeves, and whispered, "Alas, to be honest, Rong Ge is in the army and can't move freely. Even if I wait for him every day, we can't be together often. So, we agreed long ago that Rong Ge would save up his vacation time so that we can rest together at the end of the year."
Jiang Yushu praised: "Good idea!"
Two days later, evening
"Madam, we're home!" The two coachmen pulled the reins happily.
"Please go slower." Cuimei jumped out of the car first and turned around to support him.
As soon as Jiang Yushu got off the car and stood steady, the doorman and servants rushed out of the door and greeted her politely.
"Zou Gui, arrange for someone to move the things in the car inside."
"yes!"
Jiang Yushu hurried, fully expecting to see her child immediately. A moment later, she encountered her nephew and niece running out from the second gate.
"Second aunt, you're finally back!" Guo Yu excitedly approached, and Gong Baozhu followed, calling out, "Second aunt."
"Hey, my dear children, it's snowing, it's hard for you to come out to greet us." Jiang Yushu was exhausted. Holding each of them by the hand, she couldn't wait to ask, "Where's your brother? What is he doing?"
"Brother?" Guo Yu was confused. "My brother is in Yongzhou. I don't know what he is doing."
Gong Baozhu echoed, "Zhu'er doesn't know either."
"What?"
Jiang Yushu stopped, feeling disappointed and confused for a moment, and asked in surprise: "Is Ye'er not back yet?"
The two children nodded in unison.
A moment later, the main room
After greeting each other, the family sat down.
Wang sighed and reluctantly said, "Thankfully, Imperial Physician Guan was truly exceptional and saved the child. However, the journey was long, and the old Imperial Physician was serving a prison sentence and couldn't leave Tu Ning Guard. It was difficult to get him to see the child once. Hong Lei was afraid the child's condition would relapse, so he didn't dare act rashly. Instead, he sent Fang Sheng back to report that the child was safe."
"First the treatment, then the recuperation, took several months. Last month, Zhongyuan wanted to send him home, but it suddenly snowed in Yongzhou! Oh, it was freezing cold, and Ye'er had just recovered, but he was delayed again."
Wang Qiaozhen leisurely peeled sugar-roasted chestnuts and said without looking up, "It's really too far. It's hard for adults to travel, not to mention the children. There's no other way. I'm afraid Ye'er will have to spend the New Year with his father."
"Oh." Wang was helpless and shook her head and sighed.
Jiang Yushu drank a cup of hot tea, quickly made up her mind, and said slowly, "I haven't seen the child for half a year, and I'm really worried about him. Old Madam, I want to go to Yongzhou to visit him and bring him back when the weather is suitable. Honglei is busy with official duties, and Ye'er shouldn't stay in Tuning for too long."
"Ah?" Wang frowned and thought.
Guo Hongxuan hesitated and said, "The snow will only get heavier. My second sister-in-law is likely to be trapped in Yongzhou."
"Alas, what mother in the world doesn't miss her children?" Wang Qiaozhen thought to herself. She always liked to take care of the household chores alone, and said casually, "Besides, Honglei is a grown man. He should be focusing on his career. Now he has to distract himself with taking care of the children. He must be very busy."
When Wang heard this, she felt sorry for her son. After thinking for a while, she sighed and said, "Okay, Yushu, go to Yongzhou and see if you can bring the child home as soon as possible. Don't let Honglei get too tired."
"good!"
So, as soon as Jiang Yushu got home, she started packing her luggage without even having a rest, eager to visit her children.
Before leaving, she divided her annual salary into two parts, one part was handed over to the company and the other part was kept for herself. She also arranged all the gifts that should be given overnight and asked the housekeeper to send them out on her behalf.
Among them, the salary paid to the government first went to the mother-in-law, and then was allocated to the eldest daughter-in-law to use for the New Year.
"Tsk, this is the only benefit of her being a female official." Wang Qiaozhen patted the box containing the silver, curled her lips, and felt indescribable in her heart.
Snowflakes were falling as Jiang Yushu said goodbye to her family and boarded the carriage again for a long journey.
Late November, Yongzhou City
In order to have some quiet time alone occasionally, Pei Wenfeng bought a small house in the city and hired a cook and handymen to look after the house.
On this day off, he was taking time to write a letter home when two servants suddenly rushed into the study and nervously reported, "Master, Miss Du is here again!"
"She was alone, carrying a food box, saying it was a New Year's gift for you."
"not see!"
Pei Wenfeng's expression changed, his eyes filled with disgust. He slammed his pen on the table and said coldly, "Give the order. From now on, unless I personally allow her, no one is allowed to let her in. Just kick her out."
"But, but..." The two servants looked at each other in embarrassment, seeming to be hesitant to speak.
Pei Wenfeng's heart skipped a beat. "What? What tricks is she playing now?"
The servant answered cautiously, "Miss Du has been very well behaved this time, and she is unusually quiet."
"Besides, she cried and said that she had something urgent to tell you and she had to see you today."
Pei Wenfeng was furious, his face expressionless. "I'm the one being harassed, why should she cry? She doesn't even have any sense of shame, what urgent matter could she have?"
"Miss Du also said that if you don't want to see her, she'll freeze to death at the door." The servant felt helpless. Another person intervened and said, "Alas, people like her can't be driven away. She stays at our door and it damages your reputation."
Pei Wenfeng was silent for a moment, then slammed the table fiercely, stood up abruptly, strode out, and said through gritted teeth, "How unreasonable!"
"'This is intolerable, what is unbearable', she is so shameless, don't blame me for being rude!"
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