Chapter 88 Ask a Doctor to Check It Out
As Old Lady Wu's birthday drew near, the maids had been trained quite well by Concubine Yun. Chen Qi inspected them one by one and assigned them to different jobs.
The whole family has been busy preparing for these few days, and finally the birthday party day has arrived.
On that day, the Xie family mansion, from the shop to the backyard, was decorated with lights and looked brand new.
In the hall, the screen is decorated with peacocks, and the mattress is covered with lotus.
In the courtyard, flowers are in full bloom and embroidered ribbons are fluttering.
In the garden, a shade shed was built, a stage was set up, and there were acrobatics, musical instruments and singing for the guests who came to celebrate the birthday to rest and enjoy.
In the backyard, the eight-immortal table in the main hall was filled with longevity noodles, cakes, peaches, wine, and fruit.
In the courtyard, there are evergreens, evergreen pines and red flowers, which are very suitable for the occasion.
This birthday banquet lasted for three days.
On the first day, the guests invited were all the officials and their wives in the county, as well as the local wealthy merchants and tycoons. These people had a lot of dealings with the second master of the Xie family on a daily basis, and they accepted the invitation and held a grand banquet in both the front and back courtyards. The banquet was very lively with people toasting each other.
The second day was the day of the birthday banquet. The Xie family only invited close relatives, and Chen Qi's parents, brothers and sisters-in-law were also invited to attend the birthday celebration.
That morning, Xie Yan, as the eldest son, led the entire family to kowtow to their ancestors at dawn.
Afterwards, the younger generations in the family, in order of seniority, kowtowed to the old man and wished him a happy birthday, and presented him with birthday gifts.
Old Mrs. Wu, with a head full of white hair, sat at the head of the table, looking at her children and grandchildren kneeling on the ground to celebrate her birthday. She was so happy that she couldn't stop smiling. It was a very lively day.
On the third day, the birthday party was coming to an end. Most of the guests invited were distant relatives and neighbors, as well as some business partners with whom I had little contact.
Today is the day when the most people come to celebrate the birthday.
Some came to reminisce about the past, some to build relationships, and many more guests who were not very familiar with each other came to broaden their horizons, see the world, and take a look at the luxurious life of the richest family in Pingshan County.
On this day, Chen Qi, as the mistress of the household who entertained guests, had to dress up formally, just like the previous two days. Her hair was adorned with pearls and jade, her hairpins were neatly arranged on her temples, and her skirt was covered with jingling rings and pendants. She wore a bright red brocade skirt embroidered with gold all over. Her waist was as slender as a willow, and her face was as graceful as a lotus.
In her actions, she seemed like a goddess.
At the banquet, there was naturally another round of drinking and chatting.
As guests came and went, Xie Yuduo came to her with a glass of wine, pretending to have something to ask her, but when no one was paying attention, he quietly clinked glasses with her.
"My lady, thank you for your hard work."
Chen Qi smiled and drank only half of the cup. When no one was paying attention, she handed the other half of the cup to his lips.
"Second Master has worked hard too."
Xie Yuduo took the wine from her hand, drank it all in one gulp, and went back to the front hall with a smile.
After the banquet, in the afternoon, a large group of women went to the garden awning to watch opera and listen to music.
The male guests were accompanied by their father-in-law, second uncle and eldest brother, drinking tea and discussing business in the front hall.
Xie Yuduo, who was the most proficient in business, was not present. He was invited by the shop manager to entertain guests in the study in the front.
Under the garden awning, low chairs and high stools were arranged in rows, and the female guests were sitting here to listen to the opera. Food and tea were placed on the small table beside them. The crystal plate was piled high with fragrant pears and tangerines; the jade cup was filled with sweet wine and fragrant tea, which was extremely rich.
A group of maids were fanning, serving tea, wiping the table and arranging fruit, all in an orderly manner.
Old Mrs. Wu sat in the middle, Second Aunt sat on the left, Chen Qi sat on the right, and Sun Xueyi had already gone back to her room.
It had rained in the past two days and the weather had cooled down a bit, but Chen Qi still felt hot. In addition, there were many female relatives around, and the smell of cosmetics was inevitable. Chen Qi was exhausted and felt nauseous and chest tightness.
Seeing that everyone was chatting and listening to the opera, and there were maids to take care of them, so there was nothing to do. Chen Qi said something to her grandmother, and withdrew from the crowd of women watching the opera and listening to the music. She held Xiao Ling's hand and hid in the main hall of her grandmother's yard, ready to take a break.
Seeing that Second Madam's face was pale and sweat appeared on her forehead, Xiao Ling thought that she must be feeling uncomfortable due to the heat, so she hurried to pour her a large cup of cold tea.
Chen Qi took the tea and drank two big gulps before she felt better.
Xiao Ling took a round fan and fanned her, then handed her a handkerchief and wiped the corners of her mouth. She couldn't help but feel distressed.
"You've been so tired these past few days. You haven't been able to sleep well or eat well, and you've lost some weight."
Chen Qi pressed her chest and smiled slightly.
"Everyone is very tired. We'll just have to wait until today's work is done. Tomorrow, I'm going to ask Grandma for a day off so I can have a good rest for a few days."
"I've been feeling so uncomfortable during the day for the past few days, and only feel better when it's cooler at night. And you didn't tell the Second Master to ask him to call a doctor."
Chen Qi shook her head, patted Xiao Ling's hand and told her not to worry.
"It's an old problem of mine, a fever. I've had it since I was a kid, as you know. After these few days, when it gets cooler in August or September, it will be fine. It's not enough to take all those bitter medicines for nothing."
"That being said..."
The two chatted for a few more words, and then another maid came to find Xiao Ling and said that Xiao Wu was in front and wanted to discuss something with her.
Upon hearing this, Chen Qi sent Xiao Ling away, leaving only three or four maids to serve tea and fan.
She had just rested for a while when more female relatives came over to talk to her. Chen Qi forced herself to cheer up and responded to them one by one.
As they were talking, the curtain at the lobby door swayed and an acquaintance came in.
Aunt Zhao.
She has always been thinking about Xie Yuduo's third cousin, her mother.
When Shen Qi saw Aunt Zhao coming over, she felt even more nauseous in her chest.
How come you didn’t remember it and invited her over?
"Hey, niece-in-law, long time no see. How are you these days? I see that the house is decorated very nicely today, so spacious and bright. After all, the old lady is very lucky, and all the children and grandchildren in the family are so promising."
This time, he learned to speak politely and did not mention that Xie Yuduo and his daughter were childhood sweethearts.
Seeing that people were complimenting their elders, Shen Qi didn't know what to say. She offered her seat and asked the maid to serve tea.
"I just went to see the old lady. She held my hand and talked for a long time. I saw that the old lady was old and her face was not very good. I think she was a little weak. I happened to know a good doctor who was also here to celebrate her birthday, so I called him over and he took the old lady's pulse. Everything he said was right. She really liked it and praised it highly!"
Upon hearing this, Shen Qi forced a smile.
"Thank you, auntie, for your trouble."
"Oh my, we're family, so why bother thanking someone? My dear niece, this doctor is quite skilled, and he's also an excellent gynecologist. I see you don't look well right now, so why not ask him to take your pulse while he's here?"
Chen Qi hurriedly said, no need to bother.
But Aunt Zhao refused to do so and kept giving her a lot of persuasion, nagging her endlessly.
Chen Qi did feel unwell today, and she remembered that her mother always advised her to take good care of herself. In addition, she couldn't refuse the kindness now, and she really didn't want to listen to Aunt Zhao's nagging in her ears anymore, so she simply nodded.
"In that case, please come and take my pulse."
The sooner you die, the sooner you will be reborn.
When Aunt Zhao heard this, she smiled happily and hurriedly got up to go outside to call a doctor.
After a long time, the doctor still hadn't arrived, but a few more women came one after another.
Chen Qi has always been good at remembering people but not their faces. She only recognized a few people who seemed to be the aunts, aunts, and sisters-in-law of the Xie family, both young and old, and they all seemed to like to gossip.
When they were watching the play just now, their seats were far away from the main seat where Chen Qi was sitting.
At this moment, they all gathered around Shen Qi and sat, chatting casually.
Chen Qi felt confused.
What are these people doing here instead of going to the theater?
She had a vague bad feeling, so she slowly took another sip of tea and secretly observed everyone's expressions.
Looking closely, it seemed as if these people all had a gleam of eagerness in their eyes as they looked Chen Qi up and down.
This uncomfortable feeling of being stared at made Chen Qi feel particularly uncomfortable.
She put down the tea bowl, made an excuse, and prepared to get up and leave.
Just as I was about to get up, before I could do anything, there was a sound at the door and someone came in, pulling aside the curtain.
"Doctor, please come in. This is the second grandmother of the Xie family."
Chen Qi looked up when he heard the voice, and suddenly saw an old friend.
My head suddenly felt empty.
Baihe Town, Xu You, the eldest son of the Xu family in Xu’s Medical Clinic.
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