Chapter 22 Like a Dream (Part Two) I believe.
It was rare for Ye Mu to see him smile, and the inexplicable anger in her heart immediately dissipated.
Actually, she couldn't explain why she was angry. Perhaps it was because she saw how poor he was and remembered how he had helped her in their past life. So, when they met again in this life, she secretly made up her mind to help him.
But when he actually faced the desolate four walls, he realized that he was powerless and could not change anything, not even make him more comfortable.
Frustration and helplessness eventually turned into anger at oneself.
"I'm not angry with you." Ye Mu turned her head and snorted, but her voice softened involuntarily. Her gaze swept across the empty walls and she suddenly noticed two neat stacks of books in the dusty corner. Perhaps the room was too dark, and she hadn't noticed them before.
Ye Mu jumped off the meditation couch and went closer to examine it. She originally thought it was a Buddhist scripture such as the Diamond Sutra or the Surangama Sutra, but unexpectedly it turned out to be a medical classic such as the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic, Danxi's Heart Method, and the Golden Chamber Prescriptions. The edges of the pages were worn, indicating that it was frequently read.
Ye Mu's fingertips trembled as she brushed the spine of the book. In her past life, it was Wen Kong who diagnosed her pregnancy.
At that time, Ye Mu had been staying at the temple for over a month. Because she was depressed all day after her marriage, her period was always irregular. Although it was more than two months late this time, she dared not think that she was pregnant. In the previous few times when this happened, the doctor found that her pulse was empty. Instead, her mother-in-law ridiculed her as a fake phoenix and she was humiliated for no reason.
That day, she was searching for Buddhist scriptures alone in the temple's library. When she saw the book she wanted on the top shelf, she stood on tiptoe to reach it. Suddenly, everything went black, and she slumped backward.
In the twilight of waking up, I felt the familiar scent of sandalwood lingering around my nose. When I opened my eyes, I was already lying in Wen Kong's meditation room, covered with a thin, bluish-gray quilt.
Wen Kong sat quietly by the bed, his eyes lowered and his eyelashes drawn. He was gently pressing three fingers on her wrist to take her pulse. When he saw that she was awake, his gaze suddenly darkened. "You are more than two months pregnant and you didn't know it?"
Ye Mu shook his head.
He frowned. "Your body is so weak and cold that it's impossible for you to conceive. Do you even realize that?"
Ye Mu nodded slightly. She knew that she had been taking medicine to regulate her body all these years.
Wen Kong frowned even more deeply and pressed on, "Does Jiang Si know about this?"
Ye Mu hesitated for a moment, then nodded. Although Jiang Si hadn't asked about her health for a long time, she had drunk many of those medicines in front of him, so he should know.
"Do you really have to have this child?" Wen Kong's voice suddenly turned cold, and anger appeared in his usually calm eyes.
Ye Mu had never seen him lose his composure like this. Although Wen Kong was taciturn, he was always calm. Even when her mother-in-law came, he sat upright and intimidated people with his power. But now he was truly angry.
What a strange person! She's pregnant, why is he angry?
What puzzled her even more was the strangeness of the question. She was able to speak with him when she entered the temple, wasn't it because her mother-in-law came seeking an heir? If that was the case, why wouldn't she want this child?
However, his medical skills were indeed excellent. Before she became pregnant, a doctor had said that even if she became pregnant, there was a risk of postpartum hemorrhage. But after Ye Mu became pregnant, she stayed in the temple. Her diet, daily life, and pregnancy care were all arranged by Wen Kong personally, and the delivery went very smoothly.
The temple was a vegetarian place with strict rules, and he even hired a cook to prepare meals for her, with seasonal vegetables, fresh fish, chicken, and duck, so that she could have a different meal every day.
Oh, it's not just three meals a day, Ye Mu recalled, there were also two snacks and a late-night snack every day.
Although she ate many meals, the portions were small. The nourishing soups were all skimmed of oil, making them clear and not greasy. During that time, although her body became increasingly heavy, she did not appear bloated. Instead, she was nourished to the point that her skin and bones became radiant, and her complexion improved day by day.
Even Zijing was amazed, "Fourth Sister is pregnant, but she looks even more radiant. Her complexion is so rosy, she looks even better than before she was married."
Ye Mu originally thought that his medical skills were learned from a master, but she didn't expect that he had started to learn on his own at such a young age. However, the medical books in front of her mostly covered the diagnosis and treatment of various diseases, which made her suspicious.
"Is Master feeling unwell?" Ye Mu asked. "Or is someone in your family sick?"
The room was too cold. Ye Mu's feet were freezing when she stood up, so she went back to sit on the couch. There were blankets underneath, which provided some warmth and made her feel a little better.
"No," Wen Kong said, lowering his eyes. "I just browse through it in my spare time."
He wouldn't say more, so Ye Mu didn't ask any more questions about his family. "Buying these books must have cost a lot of money, right?"
Although the books had been flipped through a lot, the paper was not yellowed, indicating that they had been bought recently. They also had the "Moxiangge" seal on them. Ye Mu remembered that although the bookstore had only been open for two months, his father often went there because of the wide variety of books, although the prices were not cheap.
Ye Mu said, "Master, now that you're no longer teaching me, is the silver allocated by the temple enough? If not, I still have some personal savings..."
She instinctively reached for her sleeve pocket, but found it empty. Then she remembered that she had left her purse at home with her grandmother when she went out today. She could only feel embarrassed and said, "I didn't bring it with me today. How about I come to the temple every month to ask you for guidance, and you continue to instruct me in calligraphy? I'll give you a portion of my monthly allowance as a tuition fee, would that be alright?"
Ye Mu held up his finger and said, "Let's make this clear first, I don't have much money. I can only pay you two taels a month at most. Is that enough?"
Wen Kong shook his head. "That's not good."
"What's wrong?" Ye Mu leaned forward slightly. "Is it that teaching me is bad, or that I came to the temple badly? Or is it that the money given is too little?"
"It's not good to use your money."
Ye Mu thought to himself, in other words, it's good to teach her, and it's good that she came to the temple, but it's not good to spend her money.
Ye Mu originally wanted to keep a straight face, but he couldn't hide the smile on his lips. He smiled and revealed two shallow dimples. "It's the most reassuring to spend a child's money. Adults have to be careful with every penny of their money, but children's money is just for buying candy and comic books. Master, you can use it as you please."
Wen Kong shook his head again, "I promised the old lady I wouldn't teach you to write."
"Hmph!" Ye Mu was slightly annoyed by his repeated rejections. "It's fine if I don't practice calligraphy. I have to help my mother with accounts and look at ledgers every day. I don't need to practice those lousy characters."
Wen Kong glanced at her, noticing her hunched shoulders, and thinking she must be cold, asked, "Aren't you going home yet?"
"You're trying to kick me out?" Ye Mu became even angrier, so she kicked off her embroidered shoes and let them scatter haphazardly on the ground. She curled up in the thin quilt. "I'm not leaving. I'm staying here today."
Seeing her puffed up in anger, Wen Kong found it amusing, but was afraid of upsetting her, so he simply lowered his head, pursed his lips, bent down and picked up the apricot-colored embroidered shoes, one on each side, and placed them side by side in front of the couch. "Did you win the Dragon Boat Festival competition?"
"How do you know?" Ye Mu didn't want to talk to him, but when he asked about it, she couldn't help but turn around and look at him.
Wen Kong smiled faintly, "You said you want to manage the accounts all day, so you don't need to do needlework."
"It's neither a win nor a loss." Once he started talking, Ye Mu couldn't help but ramble on.
She sat up, wrapped her knees in the quilt, and recounted the events of the day's examination in a rambling manner. "My third sister usually can't even move the abacus beads properly, but that day she answered the questions extremely quickly. I know it's wrong to talk about people behind their backs, but I always felt that Mr. Chen had given her some private guidance. I just haven't found any concrete evidence, and no one would believe me if I told them."
I believe you.
"What?" Ye Mu was taken aback. His answer was so straightforward that she wondered if she had misheard.
“I believe what you say,” Wen Kong repeated, “because I overheard Mr. Zhou and Mr. Chen talking.”
It turned out that on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, the abbot ordered the newly arrived novice monks who were sweeping the temple to deliver newly made mugwort sachets to the Marquis's residence. It was a festive occasion, and the novice monks were all newly ordained children, full of playful spirits. They were too busy to go out and play, let alone accept this arduous task. Wen Kong took the initiative to accept it.
The mansion was indeed much quieter than usual. Most of the servants had gone to watch the dragon boat races, and even the old woman guarding the gate was dozing off against the doorframe. He carried the sachet through the hanging flower gate and saw that the courtyard was full of sunlight, with several sparrows hopping and foraging on the bluestone ground.
Wen Kong followed the secluded path through the side gate, intending to first inquire about Ye Mu's Dragon Boat Festival competition in the third courtyard.
As he passed by an abandoned shed filled with miscellaneous items, he suddenly heard strange noises coming from inside. The sounds were sticky and sultry, mixed with sounds of slapping and bumping. He intended to walk away quickly without looking at it, but as a person of the world, he did not want to pry into other people's private affairs, yet he still managed to catch a few fragments of conversation.
"Thanks to you this time..." Zhou said in a charming and gentle voice, her breath unsteady, "...Although Fourth Sister ruined the whole thing and I couldn't achieve my goal, the old lady still gave me some face and let me take over the management of a few proper shops. You should also help me in this way in the future."
The fabric rustled, and the man chuckled indistinctly, his voice low and husky as he replied, "Second Madam is overflowing with gold, biting so hard, and still not satisfied? What else do you want me to help you with? Hmm?"
A note from the author:
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