Chapter 273 Finding a Good Marriage
Shen Mingyue glanced around the heritage hall and casually asked, "Doctor Ye and my cousin..."
"Lord Pei merely shows concern for ordinary people from time to time; he has no other intentions," Ye Wanning replied.
“Shen Mingyue, Wan Ning’s background is not important; what matters is her medical skills and character. You are not allowed to mention such things again.” Pei Zhi’s voice suddenly came.
Shen Mingyue felt wronged, but dared not refute.
A few days later, Shen Mingyue said to Ye Wanning, "Dr. Ye, my cousin promised me that he would help me find a good marriage in the capital."
As she spoke, she took out a jade pendant: "This was a gift from my cousin. He said it was made by the best jade craftsman in the capital."
Ye Wanning looked at the jade pendant, feeling inexplicably disappointed, thinking that Pei Zhi and Shen Mingyue were engaged. She forced herself to remain calm and said, "Miss Shen is very fortunate."
From then on, Ye Wanning began to distance herself from Pei Zhi. When Pei Zhi came to see her, she was always cold and aloof, and even refused to treat his headache.
"Wan Ning, what's wrong?" Pei Zhi noticed her coldness and felt both puzzled and sad.
"Lord Pei, I have patients to treat, so I won't keep you company any longer," Ye Wanning said, turning and walking into the consultation room.
Pei Zhi stood there, heartbroken. He didn't know what he had done wrong, and he wanted to say something, but he didn't know where to begin.
He stood at the entrance of the Heritage Hall for a long time, watching Ye Wanning's busy figure, before finally leaving silently.
Just then, a chickenpox outbreak occurred near the capital, and many people contracted the disease. Upon hearing this, Ye Wanning took the initiative to lead her apprentice to the disaster area to provide free medical care.
"Girl, the disaster area is too dangerous, you can't go!" Su Ning hurriedly stopped her.
“I can’t ignore the people’s plight,” Ye Wanning said. “I will be careful, don’t worry.”
As she spoke, she took the medicinal herbs and her apprentices and quickly arrived at the disaster area. Conditions in the disaster area were harsh, with a shortage of medical care and medicine, and some people were even hoarding medicine out of panic.
While providing free medical consultations to the people, Ye Wanning kept reassuring them and telling them not to panic.
Pei Zhi quickly learned of the news and, fearing for Ye Wanning's safety, immediately dispatched many people to deliver medicine and food to her.
That day, Pei Zhi personally went to the tents in the disaster area, where he saw Ye Wanning treating a seriously ill patient. Her face was covered in dust, and her hair was messy, but her expression was very focused.
"Wan Ning," Pei Zhi called softly.
Ye Wanning turned around and saw his travel-worn appearance, and the grievances and misunderstandings in her heart eased a little: "Lord Pei, what brings you here?"
Pei Zhi walked to her side: "The conditions here are tough, you have to take good care of yourself." Ye Wanning nodded, said nothing more, and continued to see patients.
In the days that followed, Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi fought side by side in the disaster area. Ye Wanning was responsible for treating patients, while Pei Zhi maintained order and allocated supplies.
Several critically ill patients were in critical condition, and Ye Wanning worked for three days and three nights without rest, almost collapsing from exhaustion. That night, while she was seeing patients, her vision suddenly went black, and she fainted.
"Wan Ning!" Pei Zhi rushed over and hugged her, feeling both heartache and anxiety.
He settled Ye Wanning in a temporary tent, carefully helped her lie down, covered her with a blanket, and then sent someone to cook hot porridge and feed her water.
When Ye Wanning woke up, she saw Pei Zhi standing by her bedside, his eyes red and swollen from lack of sleep. A pang of sadness struck her, and she asked first, "Miss Chen... is she your fiancée?"
Pei Zhi was taken aback, then realized why she was distancing herself from him. He was both angry and amused: "Mingyue is just my cousin. There is no romantic relationship between us."
He explained, "I gave her the jade pendant simply because she is my relative, and I hoped she could have a better life in the capital."
Ye Wanning's misunderstanding was completely cleared up, and her eyes instantly reddened, tears welling up in them: "Then why didn't you explain it to me clearly?"
"I thought you were just tired, I didn't expect it was a misunderstanding." Pei Zhi gently held her hand. "I'm sorry, I made you suffer."
Ye Wanning's cheeks flushed, but she didn't pull her hand away. The atmosphere in the tent became ambiguous; their eyes met, and they could both feel each other's affection.
With Ye Wanning's treatment and Pei Zhi's material support, the chickenpox in the disaster area was quickly brought under control. The people erected longevity tablets for the two, expressing their gratitude for saving their lives.
But the prince of Jiangnan was unwilling to give up and sent people to the disaster area to spread rumors: "Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi are trying to win over the people and have ulterior motives!"
The people were furious and immediately refuted the rumors: "Doctor Ye and Lord Pei are our saviors, how can you slander them like this!"
After learning of their achievements, the emperor rewarded them with many riches and issued an edict praising them: "They are devoted to the people and their merits are immeasurable."
On the return journey, Pei Zhi and Ye Wanning rode in the same carriage. They were quiet the whole way, not exchanging a single word, but their eyes were full of love, and their relationship had taken another step closer.
Back in the capital, Ye Wanning began organizing the medical records given to her by Imperial Physician Li. That day, she discovered several pages of records in the records—these were notes from her mother, Lin Yuewei's, treatment of a patient years ago.
This was another clue she had previously uncovered regarding her mother's "wrongful death." Disappointingly, several important pages of the record had been torn out.
Ye Wanning frowned. Her mother's death was probably not an accident. She told Pei Zhi about it and handed him the medical records: "Lord Pei, my mother's death may not have been an accident. These important pages have been torn out."
Pei Zhi took the medical record and looked at it. His face darkened. "Don't worry, I will help you investigate. Your mother's matter is also my matter. I will not let her die unjustly."
Looking at his resolute expression, Ye Wanning was deeply moved and became increasingly dependent on him.
Pei Zhi sent people to investigate Lin Yuewei's old case, but unexpectedly, the relevant files from that year were all burned, and the investigators were threatened by unidentified individuals.
The threatening man left a note at the door: "Investigate further, and Ye Wanning will be dead or alive." Pei Zhi was afraid something would happen to Ye Wanning, so he asked her to move to a separate courtyard near the Prime Minister's residence for easier protection.
“Wan Ning, it’s very safe here. You can stay here for now. I’ll have people guarding you 24 hours a day,” Pei Zhi said.
"Lord Pei, thank you. But I cannot give up. I must find out the truth about my mother's wrongful conviction." Although Ye Wanning was afraid, she remained resolute.
"I will always be by your side, sheltering you from the wind and rain." Pei Zhi nodded.
In the days that followed, Pei Zhi silently stayed by Ye Wanning's side, helping her gather clues. After a period of investigation, they discovered that Liu Yuan had been an assistant in Lin Yuewei's medical case at the Imperial Hospital and might know something about it.
Knowing that the two were investigating him, Liu Yuan was terrified and deliberately plotted to have Ye Wanning perish in the fire. That night, the villa where Ye Wanning lived suddenly caught fire, and the fire raged fiercely.
"Girl, hurry!" Su Ning pulled Ye Wanning, trying to leave, but the fire had already blocked the doorway. Just as the two were in despair, the guards sent by Pei Zhi rushed in and rescued them.
The guards also captured the man Liu Yuan had sent to set the fire. The man confessed without hesitation, admitting that Liu Yuan had ordered him to start the fire.
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