Chapter 121 Three Months of Confinement
The Empress Dowager's face darkened, and she threw the prescription in front of Physician Liu: "You old fool, how dare you steal someone else's prescription to claim credit! Guards, demote Physician Liu to a commoner and banish him from practicing medicine forever!"
The guards dragged Physician Liu away. He tried to argue, but was pulled out. The Empress Dowager looked at Ye Wanning and her tone softened: "Good child, I'm sorry you had to go through this. This prescription is your mother's hard work and your achievement. I will reward you with one hundred taels of gold and bestow upon you a plaque that reads 'Her Benevolent Female Physician.'"
Ye Wanning thanked the Empress Dowager and had just stepped out of Chang Le Palace when Pei Zhi came up to her, his eyes full of pride: "I knew it, my Wanning would never let anyone bully her."
"It's all because you helped me find the manuscripts and medical records." Ye Wanning smiled and leaned against him. "Without you, even if I had something to say, I wouldn't have any evidence."
“We’re husband and wife, we should support each other.” Pei Zhi pinched her cheek. “Come on, I’ll take you to eat red bean buns to celebrate your victory today.”
The day General Pei returned to the military camp, the general's mansion was bustling with activity. Early in the morning, Ye Wanning had the kitchen prepare General Pei's favorite mutton soup and sesame cakes.
Not long after it was served, Pei Zhi's stepmother, Madam Liu, sat down next to General Pei with a bowl of bird's nest and said with a smile, "Father, you're back! I just stewed some bird's nest for you. Please have some to nourish your body."
General Pei took the bowl and had just taken a sip when Madam Liu sighed, "This bird's nest was bought with the General's monthly allowance. Recently, the expenses of the General's mansion have been increasing, and I can hardly make ends meet—unlike some people who use the General's mansion's money to subsidize the Ci'an Hall outside, without caring about their husband's family's livelihood at all."
Ye Wanning paused, her hand holding the soup spoon still. She knew Liu would make trouble while she was in the kitchen. Just as she was about to defend herself, General Pei tossed the bird's nest soup on the table aside and looked at her: "Wanning, did Liu say that? Did you really use the manor's money to subsidize Ci'an Hall?"
“Father, I didn’t.” Ye Wanning put down her spoon. “The expenses of Ci’an Hall are all my and Pei Zhi’s private property. I have never touched the General’s Mansion’s monthly allowance.”
"You didn't touch it?" Madam Liu immediately retorted, still wiping her hands on her handkerchief. "I saw it with my own eyes last month when you had Chun Tao take fifty taels of silver from the storeroom, saying it was to buy rice for Ci'an Hall. How could that be false?"
Just as Ye Wanning was about to defend herself, Pei Zhi came in from outside, holding an account book in his hand. He slammed it onto the table with a "thud": "Father, look, this is the General's Mansion's storeroom account book. Last month, Wanning didn't go to the storeroom to take any silver. But Liu Shi secretly took thirty taels to buy a gold hairpin for her niece. It's still recorded in the account book."
Liu's face turned deathly pale, and she reached out to snatch the account book and throw it on the ground. Pei Zhi stopped her: "You want to destroy the evidence? Besides this, there's also the letter you wrote to your niece, saying, 'The sooner Pei Zhi divorces Ye Wanning, the sooner you can marry into the General's Mansion.' Do you want me to read it to Father?"
"You scoundrel! You still want Ye Wanning to be divorced! And you even dare to spend our family's money! I must have been blind to marry you!" General Pei was so angry that his hands were trembling as he pointed at Madam Liu and cursed.
"Father, I...I didn't mean it. I just felt that Ye Wanning was not good enough for Azhi, so I wanted my niece to marry into the family and carry on the Pei family line!" Madam Liu hurriedly explained.
"What's wrong with Wan Ning?" Pei Zhihu stepped forward in front of Ye Wan Ning. "She's kinder than you, more upright than you, and more like a member of the Pei family! You're always sowing discord and trying to harm her. What right do you have to say she's not good enough for me?"
General Pei took a deep breath and said to the guards, "Lock Liu in the woodshed and confine her for three months. She is not to come out without my order!"
The guards lifted Liu Shi up, but she was still crying and shouting, "I'm not convinced! Ye Wanning is just a concubine's daughter, she doesn't deserve to be in the General's Mansion!"
After Liu was dragged away, General Pei looked at Ye Wanning with a face full of apology: "I'm sorry you had to suffer, my good child. I really didn't see the situation clearly before I suspected you. I will never let anyone stir up trouble again."
"Father, you're too kind." Ye Wanning helped him sit down. "Liu Shi was only trying to do what was best for the Pei family, but her methods were wrong. Please don't get too angry and hurt yourself."
Pei Zhi held her hand, feeling so sorry for her that he wished he could take her place: "You're so foolish. She treated you like that, and you still defended her."
“Every family has its disagreements.” Ye Wanning smiled as she served General Pei a bowl of mutton soup. “Dad, drink up, the soup is getting cold. I added some warming and nourishing herbs to this soup, it will be good for your old leg pain.”
General Pei sipped his soup, feeling warm inside. He said to Pei Zhi, "Zhi, it's your good fortune to marry Wan Ning. You must treat her well from now on and never let her suffer the slightest grievance."
"I know." Pei Zhi nodded and put a sesame cake on Ye Wanning's plate. "Eat up, you didn't eat much this morning, don't go hungry."
As soon as the gate opened in the morning, an old woman dressed in coarse cloth sat on the steps, leaning on a cane. Upon seeing Ye Wanning, the old woman immediately rushed over, hugging her legs and crying, "Wanwan's daughter! I've finally found you! I'm your mother's best friend, Granny Wang! Your mother entrusted me to take care of you back then!"
Ye Wanning was startled and quickly helped her up, taking a closer look—the old lady had gray hair and a face full of wrinkles, which she had never seen before.
"Grandma, are you sure you haven't mistaken me for someone else? I know all my mother's best friends, but I've never heard of Granny Wang."
"How could you not recognize me?" The old lady wiped away her tears. "Back then, your mother ran a clinic in the west of the city, and I even helped her get medicine! Your mother loved wearing silver bracelets, and she always wore them when she went out to make house calls. Don't you remember?"
Ye Wanning's heart skipped a beat—her mother, Su Wan, never liked wearing silver jewelry, saying that silver jewelry was cold in nature and would affect pulse diagnosis. This old woman was obviously lying!
"Grandma Wang, please get up. Let's talk inside." Ye Wanning helped her walk into the courtyard. Chun Tao also followed sensibly, giving the guards a wink, signaling them to investigate the old woman's identity.
After entering the house, Ye Wanning poured a cup of hot water for the old woman: "Grandma Wang, what can I do for you?"
“I…I’m so poor lately that I have nothing to eat. My son is dead, my daughter-in-law has run away, and I’m all alone. I heard that you are now a general’s wife, so I came to beg you to take me in. I can help you with laundry and cooking, and I can do any kind of work.”
Looking at her trembling hands, Ye Wanning became even more suspicious—the old woman's hands were rough, but there were no calluses. A person used to doing rough work should have calluses on their hands.
Just then, a guard entered and handed her a note. It read: The old woman is a distant relative of Li Yanran. She accepted fifty taels of silver from Li Yanran and intends to stay in the General's Mansion as a spy.
Ye Wanning sneered inwardly and put down her teacup: "Grandma Wang, you just said that my mother likes to wear silver bracelets?"
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