19 Next Steps
◎ Prepare to find an opportunity to join the army of the General Zhenbei.◎
The next morning, Wu and Chu's father drove to the Li Mansion. The Li family was well prepared. The Li couple did not argue, but apologized in a nice way, and then promised that as long as Miss Chu could accommodate Princess Wang and the child, they would pay double the betrothal gift.
Without the mention of doubling the betrothal gift, Mr. Chu might have been able to maintain a modicum of dignity. But when he heard the Li family was trying to convince him to sell their daughter with gold and silver, he flew into a rage, shouting, "What do you think of our Chu family?" He tore up the engagement letter and stormed out.
The cancellation of the engagement between the Chu and Li families caused a sensation in the capital. Although most discerning people said that the third son of the Li family was a bad person and had let the girl down, some people close to the Li family gossiped and said that it was probably because the second daughter of the Chu family was untalented and ugly that caused the third son of the Li family to look for someone else.
When Lanzhu heard this, she angrily threw her sewing basket.
Her daughter was clearly a beauty, well-versed in medical knowledge. The phrase "no talent, no looks" should be uttered by anyone, not the second daughter! She was filled with rage, but Chu Yufu comforted her, saying that others could say whatever they wanted, as it wouldn't hurt her anyway.
Chu Yufu wanted to laugh at the nonsense being spread outside. What did a man's extramarital affairs have to do with the beauty of his wife? Even if a man married a beautiful woman, he couldn't resist the occasional craving for simple food. A man of good character, even if his wife wasn't perfect, would remain loyal to him. Beauty is in the eyes of a lover. What was the point of blaming women for everything?
It is precisely because of these people and these words that many women in this world continue to be strict with themselves, believing that as long as they are good enough and outstanding enough, they will receive their husband's consistent love. However, they do not realize that they were wrong from the beginning. When it comes to love, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
The dust settled on the broken engagement, and Chu Yufu began to think about her next plan - compiling a medical guide that could be used by the military, in preparation for an opportunity to join the army of General Zhenbei.
She stayed in the room for three days, sorting out the thoughts in her mind and writing them down on paper one by one.
The content is divided into three volumes.
Volume 1: The Four Seasons and the Environment. For example, during the scorching summer heat, forced marches can easily lead to heatstroke. Using squeezed Artemisia annua juice as nasal drops can relieve headaches. For burns caused by open flames, apply sanguisorba officinalis, charcoal powder, and sesame oil to the wound. If these ingredients are unavailable, crushed plantain can be used as an application.
Volume 2: First Aid for Metal Wounds: For open wounds, clean them with gauze soaked in concentrated salt water. If the wound is festering, apply crushed dandelion to the wound, changing it every three days.
Volume 3: Prevention and control of epidemic diseases. If you observe that the tongue coating of soldiers is white like snow, you need to be alert to epidemic diseases and boil water with isatis leaf and isatis root to prevent and control them.
When writing a medical guide, she not only had to consider the marching environment, but also the limited resources. In just a few days, she could only come up with a rough outline of the book, and the content needed to be enriched and improved bit by bit, and she would add more as she thought of it.
She stayed in her yard, reading and writing, but people outside thought that she was deeply traumatized by the incident and had to recuperate at home. Half a month later, when the incident had subsided, Lu Jiaan came to visit her again.
In the Bamboo Jade Courtyard, Lu Jiaan sat in front of a bronze mirror, gesturing on his head with several hairpins he had brought, and motioned for Chu Yufu to help him choose the best one. Meanwhile, his mouth was not idle, and he said in a crisp voice, "Second sister, I have some very gratifying news to tell you today!"
"What is it?" Chu Yufu walked closer, looked down at the hairpin, and asked.
"Li Min's child is gone!"
Chu Yufu was surprised when she heard this: "What's going on? Where did you hear that?"
"It happened several days ago, and the servants have spread the news! They heard that Li Min went out to drink wine in broad daylight, and after getting drunk he went to look for Princess Wang. I don't know what they talked about, but the princess was trying to commit suicide, and Li Min accidentally pushed her. The blood was all over the floor, and he just sobered up, and hurriedly asked someone to send Princess Wang to the hospital. The child was not saved, and he himself fell and had bruises all over his face. He became a laughing stock in Beijing!" Lu Jiaan snorted.
Chu Yufu shrugged slightly. This was something she hadn't thought of.
"Okay, let's not talk about that guy anymore. Can you help me take a look at these hairpins? Which one of these hairpins is suitable for me to wear to the Cold-Dispelling Party?" Lu Jiaan was holding three jade hairpins in his hand, one in the shape of a lotus, one in the shape of an orchid, and one in the shape of a crescent moon.
Chu Yufu looked at it carefully and pointed at the crescent hairpin: "This one."
At the end of the year, when the gloom was lingering, the aristocracy in Beijing enjoyed holding winter farewell parties to admire plum blossoms, snow, and ice sculptures. Mrs. Luo, the daughter of the Minister of Rites, loved the festivities and invited her friends to gather every year. Over time, the Luo family's winter farewell parties became a necessary and elegant gathering for everyone to socialize during the winter.
This year's winter retreat was delayed due to the epidemic. Mrs. Luo didn't send an invitation until mid-November, inviting the Chu family to a banquet at the end of the month. But her stepmother probably thought that she had just broken off her engagement and didn't want to ask her to go out and cause gossip, so she didn't tell her, which meant that she wouldn't take her.
Chu Yufu was happy to have some free time.
In the original novel, Cousin Lu recently ran into Prince Zhao on the street, who gave her a gold hairpin, sparking a lingering romance between them. At the Winter Meltdown, Chu Jinhe initiated a conversation with Prince Zhao and recited a poem about snow, drawing applause from the room. In the original novel, Second Miss Chu, at the behest of her elder sister, flattered her and downplayed her cousin, creating a tense atmosphere. Now that her mother hadn't allowed her to attend the banquet, it was a good thing; she didn't want to get caught up in the drama.
Thinking of what was written in the book, Cousin Lu blushed at being ridiculed by her elder sister. She felt a little sorry for what she had done. After a moment's thought, she said, "Everyone will definitely have to write poems to liven up the atmosphere at the Winter Meltdown Party. Why don't you think of a couple of poems in advance?"
Lu Jiaan waved his hands with a bitter face: "I can make up stories, but forget about writing poems!"
Chu Yufu was speechless and could only give up.
Lu Jiaan added, "Why don't we go together? If you take the initiative to look for your aunt, she won't leave you out for the sake of face."
Chu Yufu shook her head: "Forget it, I didn't want to go anyway."
Lu Jiaan wanted to persuade her again, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. Yun Sui walked in and said, "Miss, Madam wants you to come over."
Chu Yufu exchanged a glance with her cousin and replied, "I understand."
Mrs. Wu rarely took the initiative to look for her. After sending Lu Jiaan away, Chu Yufu packed up and hurried to Yunxi Hall. After passing through the hanging flower gate and approaching the main courtyard, she heard a commotion. It was her stepmother and third brother.
"Mom, you are so cruel! My son's leg is still hurting, are you really going to force me to death?"
"Your legs hurt? I didn't see your legs hurt when you were playing with crickets yesterday. You didn't see your legs hurt when you were shouting to go out to listen to storytelling. But today, I asked you to study and your legs hurt! You've been fooling around all day. Are you studying for me?"
"Why not for you? Aren't you counting on me to succeed and bring honor to you?"
“You, you!”
In front of the maids of Yunxi Hall, Chu Yufu couldn't help but raise her sleeve to cover her lips, coughed lightly, walked slowly into the house, and bowed to Wu: "Mother."
Inside, Chu Junze sat crookedly on the armchair in front of the desk, his indigo silk shirt wrinkled like pickled vegetables. He didn't even greet his second sister when she entered. He fiddled with his purple brush with one hand, his neck stiff and his head tilted to the side, staring at the asparagus fern on the windowsill. Wu stood across from the desk, ruler in hand, her face filled with the irritation of a man who had failed to live up to her expectations. She beckoned to Chu Yufu and shouted angrily, "Second girl, come and check on your brother's leg!"
Chu Yufu paused slightly, frowned, and said with difficulty: "Mother, my brother is not young anymore..."
Mrs. Wu threw the ruler onto the table and said unhappily, "We are brothers. There is no need to be shy. Just look!" She gestured to the maid beside her to lift up Chu Junze's trouser legs, revealing his calves with some bruises.
Chu Yufu couldn't help but complain internally. She wasn't an X-ray machine. How could she tell with her naked eyes how much the fracture had healed? Besides, an acute fracture would cause pain for three to five days. During the recovery period, as long as the injured part wasn't weight-bearing or moved, it wouldn't hurt much. Chu Junze's cries of pain were simply a sign of his unwillingness to learn. The mother and son were fighting, and she had rushed over, thinking something serious had happened!
As for Chu Junze, if he was a good seedling willing to learn, he would not have asked her to marry into the Li family. After she finally broke off the engagement, she had to go to the trouble of seeing him for medical treatment. This naughty kid was too rude. He never looked at her straight in the eye since he entered the room. His nonchalant and dandy appearance made Chu Yufu a little unhappy no matter how good her temper was.
She was unhappy in her heart, but her smile was even gentler. She bent down and pretended to press his calf a few times. Her crescent-shaped eyes curved and she said softly, "Third brother, stretch out your hand. I'll take your pulse."
Chu Junze's face was long. He glanced at his mother and reluctantly stretched out his right hand. Chu Yufu stretched out three fingers and pressed it, carefully feeling his pulse. After a while, she asked him to change his hand and continued to feel for a while. His expression became more and more solemn, his crow-feather eyelashes fluttered slightly, and he let out a soft hiss.
Seeing this, Wu straightened her back and couldn't help but lean over and ask, "What's wrong? What did you find?"
"Third brother's leg is fine. It won't hurt as long as he doesn't run or jump around. The problem is..." Chu Yufu's face was serious.
"What is it?" Chu Junze couldn't help but ask.
"The problem is, your pulse is like a violin string, straight and long, which is a typical case of liver fire inflammation! If the liver qi is not smooth, your mouth will be sticky in the morning, you will be irritable and angry, it will be difficult to concentrate, you will suffer from insomnia and nightmares, and your nightmares will mostly be scenes of chasing and falling." Chu Yufu explained in detail.
"Wow!" Chu Junze sat up straight with his eyes wide open, "Second sister, are you treating a disease or fortune-telling?"
Chu Yufu didn't respond, but said earnestly, "It's hard to concentrate, so you can't study. You get upset when you see a book. This is all caused by liver fire!"
When Wu heard this, she realized it was no wonder her daughter couldn't concentrate on reading. It turned out she had a reading disorder! What else could she do? She stepped forward, grabbed Chu Yufu's hand, and asked anxiously, "Second girl, is there any way to cure this?"
"Yes," Chu Yufu nodded, "I'll prescribe some Longdan Xiegan Decoction for my brother. It will probably be effective after a few days of taking it."
Wu heaved a sigh of relief, and suddenly she began to like the well-behaved and sensible Second Girl in front of her. She thought to herself that although Second Girl might not be very bright, she did have some real medical skills inherited from her mother's family. She patted Chu Yufu's hand and said with a smile, "It's a good thing you're here, Second Girl."
Chu Junze shouted mischievously, "So, what I'm saying is, if I take the medicine, I can learn well?"
"Go away." Mrs. Wu smiled and pushed his head.
Chu Yufu took the pen from the maid and began to write a prescription: "6 qian of Gentiana scabra, 9 qian of Scutellaria baicalensis, 6 qian of Coptis chinensis, 5 qian of Sophora flavescens, 9 qian of Gardenia jasminoides..."
After finishing her writing, she put the pen aside and took the initiative to say, "My brother has worked hard in his studies and was injured a few days ago. How about I make some medicinal food to nourish him?"
Mrs. Wu looked at the prescription and smiled even more brightly: "That would be great!"
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