Chapter 7 Chapter 7 "Husband, drink the medicine."...
After declining the Second Young Lady's enthusiastic invitation, Yun Wu returned the same way.
The Duke's mansion was vast, with pavilions, terraces, rockeries, and ponds, each a breathtaking sight. The gardens were filled with vibrant flowers, blooming in the spring. It was said that Madam Xie had planted them herself. Yun Wu admired them for a while, unable to identify any rare varieties, but finding each one beautiful.
There were also many koi fish raised in the lake in the garden. Yun Wu crushed some cakes and threw them into the lake. A large group of fish swam around chasing them like golden clouds.
She admired the scenery along the way, walked back to her residence, and stopped outside to look around. Xie Yi's yard was in a secluded area, but it covered a large area, with trees growing lushly in all four corners.
But when I entered the yard, I found that there were few people inside. It was clearly a vibrant spring day with lush vegetation, but for some reason it made me feel bleak everywhere.
In her previous communication with the Xie family, Yun Wu had heard a lot about her new husband.
She knew nothing about her new husband; she had heard everything from others. They said he was seriously ill and therefore confined to his home, and disliked being waited on by servants. Sometimes even his family couldn't figure out his thoughts. And according to Master Huizhen's predictions about marriage, he wasn't really happy about the marriage.
Thinking of the marriage hexagram that everyone was talking about, Yun Wu couldn't help but feel hesitant.
She had also heard of Master Huizhen's reputation. She heard that he was a highly accomplished monk with great powers. Master Huizhen had calculated a marriage for Xie San and said that they were a match made in heaven.
Good luck!
She and Xie Yi, are they a match made in heaven?
Master Huizhen is a high monk, and monks do not tell lies. But her husband is destined to die early. Can being a widow be considered a good omen?
Xie Yi is not willing to get married, and Yun Wu is not willing to get married either. Can it be called a match made in heaven when two people who are unwilling to get together?
After entering the room and seeing Xie Yi lying on the couch with his eyes closed, Yun Wu thought again: no matter whether it is auspicious or not, they are already married. All she can do now is to accompany this sick husband to his last journey.
As for other things, if you think too much, it may just be a false alarm in the end.
Yun Wu went into the room and placed the gift from the Duke and his wife in the cabinet. When she came out, she found Xie Yi lying there, not even changing his position. He treated the extra person in the room as air, not even giving them a glance.
He couldn't see, but his ears and eyes were sharp. He heard the footsteps going in and out as diligently as an ant, opening cabinets, pulling drawers, flipping through books on the bookshelf, and the clinking of teacups. The sound was getting closer and closer, and then disappeared beside him.
Xie Yi opened one eye.
The newly married lady squatted beside him, her almond-shaped eyes wide open, holding a blanket in her hands, tentatively trying to cover her face with it.
Xie Yi: “…”
Xie Yi stepped back calmly: "What are you doing?"
Yun Wu breathed a sigh of relief. "I saw my husband wasn't moving, so I thought he was asleep. It's late spring now, and although the weather is hot, the wind is a bit strong today, and I'm worried that my husband might catch a cold."
“No need.”
Yun Wu thought for a moment and asked, "It's sunny today, my dear, would you like to go outside and bask in the sun?"
"No."
"When did you get up, my husband? Have you had breakfast yet?"
"I don't want to eat."
"That……"
Xie Yi endured it and said, "If you're bored, you can go out and find something to do."
Yun Wu: “…”
Yun Wu went out obediently.
Seriously ill people rarely have good tempers. For example, Old Madam Yun used to be an unpleasant old lady. After she became seriously ill, she often lost her temper because she was unhappy. Except for her beloved grandson Yun Xin, everyone had suffered from her anger, and Yun Wu suffered the most.
Compared with Old Madam Yun, Xie Yi's attitude was considered kind.
Xie Sanlang also didn't like this marriage. He liked quietness, and having someone around him for no reason made him feel uncomfortable.
After going out, Yun Wuzhen went to find something to do. She called all the servants in the yard over and asked about Xie Yi's daily life.
The servants told him everything they knew and answered whatever was asked.
Xie Yi lived a simple life. He rarely went out. He used to study and practice calligraphy, and spend his time in the courtyard. But after falling into the water, he became withdrawn, disliking people and losing interest in life. Therefore, even during the day, the servants were not within his sight.
"Falling into the water?" Yun Wu asked in surprise, "How could he fall into the water?"
The servant replied, "It was last winter. Zhao Ge'er was playing by the lake and missed a step. The Third Young Master was closest at the time and without a second thought, he jumped in to save him. The servants weren't even as quick as he was. After he was rescued, the Young Master fell seriously ill and was like this when he woke up."
Zhao Ge'er is Xie Zhao, the son of Xie Dalangjun, and is only six years old this year.
Falling into an icy lake in the dead of winter was no small matter. Zhao Ge'er was young and Xie Yi was a sickly person. One negligence could result in death. The servants who were by the lake at the time were all punished. Fortunately, nothing serious happened in the end. The two of them just fell ill and had to drink bitter medicine for a whole winter.
If there was any aftereffect, it was that Xie Yi suddenly became depressed and lifeless.
Doctor Hua came to see him and said he was troubled by his heart. But he had been at home all this time, so what could he be worried about?
Everyone in the mansion was confused, and the servants were even more confused. Yun Wu asked again, "Did falling into the water have any effects on his body?"
The servants looked at each other in bewilderment.
This... Sanlangjun was already a seriously ill person, so it seemed to make no difference whether he was even sicker or not.
Yun Wu inquired about the Xie residence and examined the various rooms within. Xie Yi's compound was large, with numerous rooms and a separate kitchenette stocked with fresh ingredients, which were replaced daily and readily available. Yun Wu searched the storage area, but couldn't find what she was looking for, so she went out to find Doctor Hua.
Doctor Hua was the mansion's chief physician, and he usually looked after everyone in the mansion. Of course, the one he saw most often was Xie Sanlang. He also lived in the mansion, and there were many herbs planted in the yard. As soon as he entered the yard, he could smell a faint bitter herbal scent.
When Yun Wu went there, Doctor Hua was checking the medicinal herbs that were drying in the yard. When he heard that she was here to ask about Xie Yi's health, he naturally told her everything he knew.
Before leaving, Yun Wu caught a glimpse of a small pot of medicine simmering on the stove. The charcoal fire beneath was blazing, and the bitter smell of medicine filled the air. She asked casually, "Is that the medicine my husband is drinking?"
Doctor Hua followed her gaze and said, "That's Second Young Madam's medicine. She's been experiencing a lot of liver fire lately, so she asked me to prescribe a heat-clearing formula. It's ready now."
As he spoke, Doctor Hua walked over, put a clean cloth under the hot handle, poured out the cooked medicine, and ordered the medicine boy to take it to the second young lady.
Yun Wu watched the little boy leave and asked, "Doctor Hua prepares all the medicine for everyone in the mansion?"
"Most of the time, they just pick up the medicine and then go home to make it themselves."
Yun Wu nodded and understood.
No wonder she only saw the medicine stove in the small kitchen, not the medicine bags. Old Madam Yun took medicine several times a day, so it made no sense for Xie Yi not to take it. It must have been brewed here by Doctor Hua.
Yun Wu said, "Doctor Hua, please give me my husband's medicine. I will make it myself in the future. You don't need to trouble Doctor Hua."
Doctor Hua paused and said, "Medicine?"
He reacted: "Yes, yes, the Third Young Master needs to take medicine. Madam Third Young Master, please wait a moment. I will get the medicine for the Third Young Master right away."
He spread out the oil paper, weighed the various herbs on a small scale, packed them into square medicine bags, tied them together and handed them to Yun Wu: "Boil three bowls of water into one bowl of water. Drink it three times a day. When these medicines are finished, I will ask the child to bring new ones, so that Third Young Madam won't have to make another trip."
"Thank you, Dr. Hua."
Doctor Hua stroked his beard and said with a smile, "I haven't delivered the Third Young Master's medicine yet. Thank you for your hard work, Madam Third Young Master."
Yun Wu nodded and went back with the medicine bag.
She often took care of Old Madam Yun when she was ill, so she was used to doing all these things. After returning, she went into the small kitchen and boiled three bowls of water into one bowl of water according to what Doctor Hua said.
The charcoal fire in the small stove was burning red, and hot mist was rising, and steam was escaping from the small kitchen window.
With another person around him, it was hard for Xie Yi not to notice.
He closed his eyes to rest, so his perception became sharper. When he smelled a bitter medicine on the tip of his nose, he had to open his eyes.
A bowl of black medicine was brought in front of him, and the white fingertips holding the bowl were burned red by the bowl wall.
Yun Wu looked at him eagerly: "Husband, take the medicine."
Xie Yi: “…”
Yun Wu: "Husband?"
Xie Yi: “…Just leave it there.”
Yun Wu put it down obediently and didn't leave. She just stood there waiting for him to finish drinking.
As Xie Yi was stared at by her, he suddenly thought of a little bird that had once lingered by the window. It had a plump, fluffy body. After he had fed it with cakes a few times, it would come every day, squatting outside the window with its bright eyes, waiting. But when winter came, it flew away, perhaps to a warmer place, and never returned.
Xie Yi was silent for a moment, then said, "Leave it there. I'll drink it later."
"That……"
"I don't like being looked at."
Yun Wu suddenly understood.
People who are seriously ill are afraid to show weakness. Perhaps in the eyes of some people, even taking medicine is a sign of weakness. She hurried out.
For fear of disturbing his interest in taking medicine, I never stepped into the house again.
The servants brought her the account books, and she became the third young lady of Xie. It was not her turn to manage the household expenses of the Duke's Mansion, but she had to take care of all the trivial matters in the yard.
Yun Wu was sitting on the stone table outside flipping through the account book. The sunlight was bright and the black words on the white paper made her dizzy. It was not until she saw Xie Yi leave that she hurriedly carried her things into the house.
As soon as she put the account book down, she saw the bowl on the table.
The dark brown medicine juice in the bowl had cooled down and was hanging on the white porcelain wall. The bowl was still eight-tenths full, without a drop missing.
He didn't take the medicine.
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