Chapter 53 Visiting the Sick: Her Heart Softened
The man on the couch had his eyes half-closed, his cheeks flushed and sweaty, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead and sliding down his Adam's apple into his loose collar.
"Red face and parched lips, floating and slippery pulse, indicating the pathogenic factors are escaping." The white-haired old doctor finished his diagnosis, his withered hands tucked into his sleeves, "It's a case of wind-cold."
Yue Yining stood before the bed, her brows furrowed: "Is this an illness caused by internal injury today?"
The old doctor said, "Judging from the young master's pulse, he has been feeling unwell for at least three days."
"The eldest son is in good health and is not prone to serious illness. It is likely that he has been overworked recently, has been ill for a long time without medical treatment, and has been suffering from the cold of spring. The fluctuating temperature caused by the cold and heat has led to his sudden fainting."
As expected, it was consistent with Yue Yining's initial assessment.
Yue Yining's brows remained furrowed. After examining her with the four diagnostic methods of traditional Chinese medicine, the old doctor tore off a piece of hemp paper, picked up a pen, and wrote: "First, use three qian of ephedra to relieve the exterior symptoms. After sweating and the fever subsides, replace it with three qian of bupleurum. Take the medicine with a decoction of three scallions and five slices of ginger. After taking the medicine, cover yourself with a thin quilt to induce sweating and avoid exposure to wind."
"My lord, there is no need to worry. This prescription of mine will surely cure your illness."
Yue Yining took the prescription and was about to go out to hand it to the maid when she felt someone reach out and tug at her sleeve.
Yue Yining was taken aback. Turning around, she first saw a wrist that was as white and smooth as jade.
Xie Qingyu on the bed had woken up at some point. He opened his misty eyes to look at her, his fingertips weak, and Yue Yining only needed to gently tug at the hem of his clothes to brush them aside.
But she didn't.
She paused, then slowly followed Xie Qingyu's lead to the bedside, took his cold hand in hers, and placed it back under the covers.
Seeing her return to her side, Xie Qingyu seemed relieved, closed her eyes again, and fell into a deep sleep.
The old doctor stroked his beard and watched silently until Yue Yining turned around again. Then he chuckled and said, "The young master must be delirious from a high fever. He's clinging to Lord Yue like a three-year-old. It's quite rare to see him like this."
Yue Yining did not respond, but lowered her eyes. Xie Qingyu's skin was already pale, and in her illness it was even more bloodless. She could not sleep soundly even with her eyes closed, and the trembling of her eyelashes was heartbreaking.
Yue Yining admitted that she had been too soft-hearted.
Perhaps his life was harder than she imagined. Despite being the eldest son of the Prime Minister's family, he had been suffering from a cold for three days without being noticed by the servants, which allowed it to develop into a high fever. This showed how negligent the people serving him in the courtyard were.
Xie Zhi and his first wife, Madam Wang, returned to their hometown to pay respects to their ancestors, but Xie Qingyu's other siblings remained in the mansion. The fact that the eldest son had invited a physician would surely alert the people in the other courtyards. Yet, so much time had passed, and not a single person in this vast Prime Minister's mansion had come to inquire about Xie Qingyu's condition.
People recovering from illness are often emotionally vulnerable, and his subconscious attempt to stop her from leaving was a genuine reaction from his heart. In this light, perhaps only she could bring him peace of mind in this place.
The old doctor stroked his beard and slung his medicine box back over his shoulder: "The prescription has been prepared. Take the medicine as soon as possible to dispel the cold, and then get some sleep. With the young master's health, he should be able to get out of bed the next day."
"Be careful not to overwork yourself, rest well, and you will fully recover in a few days."
Yue Yining: "Thank you."
The maidservant saw the old doctor out, leaving only Yue Yining and Xie Qingyu in the room. Yue Yining looked at Xie Qingyu, whose breathing was steady on the bed, and sat by the couch for a while before standing up.
Yue Yining closed the door, and when she turned around, she found Yin Yi standing by the door, staring straight ahead without moving.
Upon seeing her emerge, Yin Yi bowed and greeted her, "Lord Yue."
Yue Yining recognized him at a glance as the silver-clad guard who had pushed open the door and seen her entangled with Xie Qingyu. A belated embarrassment welled up in her heart, and she quickly coughed and instructed, "Your young master is still ill. You must take good care of him these next few days and pay close attention to his condition."
"In the future, when he is busy with official duties and cannot take care of his health, you who are his close attendants should also pay more attention to him."
Yin Yi bowed his head: "Yes."
“Then I’ll be going now,” Yue Yining said. “I will come to visit him again in a few days.”
"Respectfully seeing off the Lord of Yue."
After seeing Yue Yining out of the hospital, Yin Yi urged the servants to prepare the medicine according to the doctor's prescription. When the maid brought the medicine in, Yin Yi found that Xie Qingyu had already woken up and was slowly sitting up on the bed.
As Yin Yi entered, his eyes met Xie Qingyu's. His heart skipped a beat, and he didn't dare to look up. "Young Master, the medicine has arrived."
Xie Qingyu hummed in agreement, took the medicine bowl, and drank it all in one gulp.
Xie Qingyu showed no expression when drinking his medicine. His calm and indifferent demeanor revealed no trace of vulnerability. If it weren't for his still pale face, one would hardly guess that he was a patient who had just fainted.
Yin Yi glanced over, utterly unable to fathom what the man was thinking. The Yue Lord assumed it was due to negligence on the part of the servants in the courtyard, but if Xie Qingyu hadn't spoken up, how would they have known he was already seriously ill?
The fact that she can sit up now means she has already regained consciousness, but she is still pretending to be asleep.
Yin Yi couldn't help but ponder the reasons behind it. In fact, from the moment he stepped into the inner room and saw Xie Qingyu and Yue Yining intertwined, he could never return to his former naive and straightforward self.
After the maid took the empty bowl out, Yin Yi was about to take his leave when Xie Qingyu called out to him, "Yin Yi, you stay."
Yin Yi paused, then turned around. "Does the eldest young master have any further instructions?"
Although he didn't look up, he could feel Xie Qingyu staring at him, as if scrutinizing him.
"I heard you were the one who found me unconscious in the inner room," Xie Qingyu said slowly. "What did you see?"
Yin Yi's heart tightened. He knew that if he didn't answer this question well, he was finished.
"Please rest assured, Young Master, I saw nothing," Yin Yi said in a deep voice. "I will never tell a second person about what happened today."
From Yin Yi's perspective, he could see Xie Qingyu fiddling with the black jade ring on her finger, seemingly pondering the credibility of his words.
"...Very well." Xie Qingyu said calmly, "I suppose you wouldn't dare to go out and spread nonsense."
Yin Yi's tense heart suddenly relaxed. He secretly exhaled, then suddenly remembered something and lowered his head again: "When Lady Yue left just now, she gave me some instructions. She said she would come to visit you again in a few days."
The jade ring within sight remained still. Yin Yi heard a soft laugh, not the usual superficial smile, but a genuine and joyful laugh.
"Okay." Xie Qingyu's voice softened. "If she comes again, remember to avoid her."
Yin Yi: "?"
Yin Yi: "May I ask the reason?"
Xie Qingyu seemed to have felt much better after what she had just said, and she no longer cared about Yin Yi's stupidity. "Given her personality, although she won't show it on the surface, she will definitely feel awkward when she sees you again. It's rare for her to come here, and it would be bad if she held a grudge or felt unhappy because of these small things."
Yin Yi's silence was deafening: "..."
In the end, he endured the humiliation and replied with a "yes".
......
After returning to the princess's residence, Yue Yining recalled the burn scar imprinted on Xie Qingyu's right chest.
To be honest, she was completely confused. Scars couldn't be faked, especially since Yue Yining had examined them closely. If Ayu wasn't the real "Xie Qingyu," it was inexplicable why the hidden scars on the two bodies were exactly the same; if Ayu was the real Xie Qingyu, then could the divination have gone wrong?
Unable to contain himself, Yue Yining visited Xie Qingyu again on the third day.
The lingering fragrance of the medicine burner filled the air. Xie Qingyu, draped in a moon-white cloak, leaned against a bamboo couch, the jade ring on her collarbone resembling a half-full moon nestled between the thin mountain ridges.
Xie Qingyu, who had just recovered from a serious illness, had a face as white as snow and lips that were still a light coral color. Compared to yesterday, the look in her eyes was completely refreshed.
When Xie Qingyu saw her enter the courtyard, she waved away the servants standing by the door and softly called out to her, "Miss."
Although Xie Qingyu now appears as a sickly beauty, upon closer inspection, she possesses a unique charm.
Yue Yining silently stopped her sinful thoughts.
She glanced at the official documents on the desk, raised an eyebrow slightly, and said with a hint of disapproval, "Your health has only just improved a bit, why are you in such a hurry to deal with official business?"
When Xie Qingyu saw her sit down in front of her, she smiled and said, "It's nothing, just some documents that need to be reviewed. It won't take much effort."
Xie Qingyu noticed the jade hairpin Yue Yining was wearing today. Silver-white chalcedony is an extremely precious jade material, not to mention its unique double fish playing with a pearl design; only one shop under the Fourth Prince's name in the entire Yanjing could produce it.
Xie Qingyu's smile faded slightly. "The hairpin you're wearing today, Miss, is quite special."
Yue Yining touched the hairpin in her hair: "This? It seems to have been given to me by Lord Ye."
In late March, Ye Miheng also sent some festival gifts to the Princess's residence. She didn't want to accept them, but the maid had already put them away, so she had no choice but to accept them.
“Speaking of which, Ayu, you probably don’t know Lord Ye yet, do you? He’s the apprentice of my master’s friend, so he’s practically my senior brother,” Yue Yining said. “He’s currently working as a strategist at the Fourth Prince’s residence. I haven’t seen him much lately. We were supposed to meet last time, but he took the wrong laxative and had terrible diarrhea, so our appointment was canceled.”
Yin Yi, who was outside the door, suddenly sneezed.
"Ah, I see." Xie Qingyu smiled. "I really don't know him yet."
A maid brought up a fruit platter and some snacks. Yue Yining had come in a hurry and was a little thirsty, so she picked up a piece of fruit and put it in her mouth. Just then, she heard Xie Qingyu say slowly, "Does Miss like this style of hairpin?"
"The Xie family's jade shop just received a batch of Eight-Fold Snow Jade. Its texture is icy white and cool, like solidified frost and snow. It is a kind of precious jade material that has recently become popular in the Jiangnan region," Xie Qingyu said gently. "If Miss likes it, I will have someone fetch a piece and make a hairpin for you."
Yue Yining shook her head and smiled, "You know what I like. I already have enough hairpins, no need to trouble yourself."
Xie Qingyu's fist, which was clenched in her sleeve, gradually loosened, revealing the pinch marks on her palm.
He looked at Yue Yining and suddenly smiled. His gloomy mood brightened because of the first half of Yue Yining's words. "I understand. Then we'll discuss it another day."
......
That day, the eldest princess ended her meeting with the ministers early and returned to her residence in the afternoon.
Wei Yihua wanted to talk to Yue Yining, but was told that Yue Yining had left early that morning.
Wei Yihua sat resting in the pavilion. "What has she been busy with these past few days?"
"Your Highness, Lord Yue visited the Prime Minister's residence to see the eldest son of the Xie family the day before yesterday, and he went again today."
Upon hearing this, Wei Yihua raised an eyebrow: "Why did you go to the Xie residence again? Did Xie Qingyu invite you?"
Su Yue asked the servants before respectfully saying, "Previously, the Xie family would send invitations to invite Master Yue, but today Master Yue took the initiative to say that he wanted to visit him, and he didn't prepare an invitation and just came to visit us directly."
The reason why visits between high-ranking officials were so complicated was that the ministers were all very busy. For older first-rank officials like Xie Zhi, time was measured in units of sand in an hourglass; and for younger high-ranking officials like Xie Qingyu, their affairs were also numerous and they were very busy every day.
Therefore, being able to visit at any time was a great privilege among wealthy and powerful families, representing the host's complete welcome and thoughtful care.
Upon hearing this, Wei Yihua stopped stroking her long, jeweled nails.
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