Chapter 5: All that could be on Li Man's mind was her calling him "Li Yu." ...
The cunning Qin Song slept in a daze for a long time, only waking up at Shenshi (3-5 PM) the next day. He was still in that austere Taoist temple room, gray and empty.
She opened her eyes, and a worried female voice reached her ears.
"Miss, you're awake? Why is your fever so high?" Yun Qian helped her sit up and picked up the medicine bowl beside her. "Quickly, drink your medicine first."
The bitter and foul smell of medicine wafted into Qin Song's nostrils, and he felt a deep sense of resentment: "I lost. Last night I was hoping to have two wives, but I didn't get either one, and I even made myself sick."
If this gets out, she'll completely embarrass the female protagonist of the restricted novel.
She thought dejectedly. Yun Qian draped the thick clothes she had brought up last night over her shoulders and cursed in a sinister tone, "It's Lu Youchuan again! He's definitely up to no good. Miss, were you not humiliated? Where did he take you in the middle of the night? If he dares to humiliate you, I, I, I... I'll tell the master and make sure he's dead."
"So he carried me back? At least he has some conscience."
Qin Song said indifferently, which made Yun Qian's scalp tingle. "Conscience? Where would he have a conscience? He sent people to surround the mansion all night last night. If it weren't for him blocking the way, I wouldn't have been unable to return all night. You got so sick after only one night away. It's all his fault!"
"It's definitely his fault! I was freezing." Qin Song reluctantly drank the medicine and handed the empty bowl to Yun Qian. "What is Lu Youchuan doing right now? Why hasn't he come to see me yet?"
Yun Qian was completely bewildered. "He left you and went down the mountain, so why would he come looking for you? Miss, you wouldn't have believed the rumors on the street and suspect Master of treason, would you? You absolutely mustn't believe them! Lu Youchuan is ruthless; you mustn't go with him—"
"Don't worry, it has nothing to do with my dad. He made me suffer here, so he has to get me out of here. I don't want to stay in this Taoist temple anymore." Qin Song blew his nose, covered the hot water bottle in his hand, and firmly said, "Fine, he'll come looking for me sooner or later."
As soon as she finished speaking, someone came looking for her.
However, someone else came instead.
"You are... the young master of the Duke of Anguo's mansion?" Yun Qian opened the door, and standing outside was a young man with a straight figure, dressed in flowing white robes, and with a gentle and refined demeanor.
Li Yu nodded politely, "I heard Miss Qin fainted. Are you feeling better?"
Upon hearing the voice of the person who entered, Qin Song felt much better. She sniffed and obediently lay back down on the bed. "Yun Qian, let the young master in."
Upon hearing the voice, Yun Qian obeyed and opened the door as wide as possible, then stepped aside and said, "Young Master, please come in."
Li Yu nodded again, lifted the hem of her dress and stepped inside, but her foot stopped in mid-air just as she crossed the threshold.
He hesitated for a moment, then withdrew his leg and took out a packet of pastries from his sleeve. “It is inconvenient for me to go into Miss Qin’s residence. Speaking of which, I also bear some responsibility for what happened to Miss Qin last night. These are pear cakes that I sent someone down the mountain to buy. Please pass them on to Miss Qin. Miss Qin will inevitably be taking medicine these days. Eating some pear cakes can help relieve the bitterness. I will not disturb you any longer.”
Yun Qian was quite satisfied with this refined young master, but the events of the previous night puzzled her. She slowly accepted the snacks, intending to ask him a few questions, but he had already signaled for her to take her leave.
He had just turned around when a woman's voice rang out urgently: "Wait, Li Yu."
Qin Song dragged his ailing body to the door, still wearing his nightgown. His lips were pale, but his face was flushed from the heat. His breathing was also somewhat short.
She stood inside the door, looking up at Li Yu, her obsidian-like eyes gleaming with a captivating light.
Li Yu turned around and unconsciously froze, her mind filled with only the words "Li Yu" that she had called out.
Yun Qian, who was standing nearby, became agitated first. She supported Qin Song and began to nag, "Miss, you still have a fever. What are you doing running to the door? Don't catch a cold again."
Yun Qian helped Qin Song back into the house, but Qin Song broke free from her grasp and stared intently at Li Yu. "Young Master, since you're already here, why don't you come in and sit down? Is it because I'm not dressed?"
She's determined to devour any prey that comes to her. So what if he's not wearing an outer robe? She'd love to strip him naked too.
However, the other two were unaware of her ambition. After being reminded by her, Yun Qian quickly went back to her room to get her cloak.
When Li Yu met her burning gaze, the scene from last night suddenly overlapped with this moment, and her snow-white shoulders filled his mind, causing him to lose his composure in an instant.
He avoided her gaze, turning slightly to the side as if trying not to look at her. He opened and closed his lips several times before speaking gently, "It was my abruptness. I shouldn't have disturbed you so abruptly. Miss Qin is still recovering. I will visit you another day."
"Not at all, not at all. You're welcome to come anytime."
It's best not to wear anything too complicated when you come. Qin Song stared at his neatly dressed clothes and wanted to take them off for him, but then he felt a chill all over his body and couldn't help but shiver.
Fortunately, Yun Qian had already brought a cloak and quickly draped it over her shoulders. Qin Song, who had been looking at the immortal outside the door, said, "Alright, Li Yu, you can look at me now."
The young man outside the door was so embarrassed by her calling him "Li Yu" that he didn't dare to turn his head. His eyes wandered around the courtyard, but he didn't actually see anything.
His courtyard was not without maids; there were several young girls, and his mother even deliberately selected a few with excellent appearance and character, indicating that he could take them into his own room, but he never had any interest in them.
It wasn't that he had never met ladies from prominent families before; he had even been acquainted with the Crown Prince's sister and the late Empress's niece. But he had never seen a woman like her, who seemed as pure as a spring yet moved like a raging fire.
Perhaps she speaks frivolously, behaves improperly, and disregards etiquette, but her eyes are not tainted at all; in fact, they are clear, pure, and brimming with wildness.
She looked frail, but when faced with Feng Jin's hostage situation, she remained calm and even managed to escape on her own, which impressed him greatly.
Because of her sudden appearance and clumsy flirting, he couldn't figure out the reason behind it. He was confused and couldn't help but secretly come to visit her without telling his mother.
But he didn't expect to find himself in such a predicament again; it was all his fault for being too reckless.
He licked his lips, turned around, and after gathering his thoughts, said, "It's getting late, so I won't disturb you any longer. However, I'm truly sorry, Miss Qin was frightened last night. I should have helped her, but my mother was overly worried and couldn't be of any assistance. Please forgive me. Lord Lu is a forceful man; I wonder if the young lady has suffered any consequences—"
"Young Master, you really are here."
Before he could finish speaking, a woman's voice came from behind.
Qin Song rolled his eyes immediately; he knew without even guessing who it was.
This was definitely a lost cause. She didn't even want to put on a show anymore and just wanted to turn around and lie back in bed immediately. She only patiently gave him the secret signal because the gentle Li Yu was standing at the door:
“Young Master, you should go back first. I’m also dizzy and want to sleep a little longer. But if I sleep too much during the day, I definitely won’t be able to sleep at night. If you want to see me, I’ll wait for you tonight.”
It's okay to fail again; good stories always unfold at night, don't they?
Qin Song was disappointed by Xiao Liyu's pedantry and rigidity, but he couldn't help but keep casting his line.
Li Yu was startled by her words for a moment, but Liu Mama, who was by his mother's side, had already come over to him. He couldn't say more about this topic, so he quickly replied, "Yes, Miss, please rest well. I'm sorry to bother you."
As soon as she finished speaking, Granny Liu strode up to Li Yu. Qin Song saw that face was about to come into view and slammed the door shut.
Granny Liu had prepared a long string of seemingly polite but actually hurtful words, but she had no choice but to swallow them back. Holding her breath, she glanced at the tightly closed door and asked in a seemingly kind tone, "Miss Qin, our mistress asked this old servant to send her regards. I hope you recover soon and return to the manor as soon as possible."
Qin Songdu started to walk inside, but upon hearing the last sentence, he smiled inexplicably and replied loudly, "Of course, no need to see me off."
Granny Liu choked so hard her face turned green, and she took a deep breath before she could regain her composure.
Seeing that the usually domineering nanny had been humiliated, Li Yu couldn't help but raise her lips and say in a low voice, "I'm leaving! Don't bother me anymore."
The outside quieted down. Qin Song was feeling really dizzy. He ate some vegetarian food, waited for Lu Youchuan outside the courtyard for a while, but finally couldn't stay awake any longer and went to sleep again.
It is said that illness strikes like a landslide. Even a woman like Qin Song, who can navigate relationships with eight men with ease, is tormented by a slight cold.
A stuffy nose and headache, along with alternating hot and cold temperatures, made it difficult for her to sleep soundly. When she woke up, she was listless and had no appetite. The vegetarian food at the temple tasted like nothing at all.
When night fell, she fell into a deep sleep, and Yun Qian could not wake her no matter how she tried.
Yun Qian quickly went to find the Taoist physician at the temple, but Qin Song's fever was so high that the physician was helpless.
Yun Qian was so anxious that she jumped up and down, and tried several times to help Qin Song up so that he could take her down the mountain to treat her. However, because she was a criminal, she was not allowed to go down the mountain without an imperial order, so she had to lie back down.
She needed to go down the mountain overnight to find a doctor. Even if the imperial physician couldn't do it, she had to bring up the best doctor in the city.
But she's gone down the mountain and won't be back anytime soon. We can't let our young lady be in danger again; she needs someone to look after her.
However, the nuns in the temple have never been very fond of her young lady. Today, they looked at her young lady with strange eyes and even gossiped behind her back. She absolutely cannot ask them to take care of her.
After much deliberation, she went to find Lady Anguo, who also lived in the temple.
“Madam, my young lady is seriously ill, and I need to go down the mountain to seek medical treatment. I beg you to take care of her since she is all alone. I will return as soon as possible after I go down the mountain. I will repay your great kindness with a generous gift.”
Lady Anguo quickly ordered someone to help Yun Qian up.
After a brief inquiry, she was about to agree when Liu Mama, who was standing beside her, suddenly asked, "Miss, the Qin family is not an ordinary household. Why are you alone with Miss Qin? I've heard that only those who are reflecting on their sins are restricted from bringing attendants into the temple. Has Miss Qin committed some kind of offense? What kind of offense is it that even the Grand Secretary cannot protect her?"
Upon hearing Liu Mama's question, the Duchess of Anguo's righteous decision instantly fell silent.
The once-glorious Duke's mansion has long since declined. Among all the sons of the Duke's mansion, not a single one holds an official position of the fifth rank or above. Only the unfavored concubine sister holds up the empty shell of the entire Duke's mansion.
Now that Li Yu has finally passed the imperial examination and will soon be taking up his post in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, there must be no mistakes at this crucial juncture.
Unfortunately, Chief Minister Qin has been under close surveillance by the Censorate recently. Last night, Lu Youchuan actually drew his sword against her, a weak woman, which is probably related to the case of treason. If she gets involved now, it could ruin her son's future, which would be terrible.
She pondered for a moment, and before Yun Qian could reply, who was hesitant to speak, she quickly coughed, "Cough, cough, cough, Miss, your young lady has indeed had a hard time, but I am not in good health. In this cool weather, I cough all night long and really cannot take care of your young lady. If you trust me, I can assign two maids to you. Do you think that's alright?"
Just assign two lowly maids to watch over her. If she recovers, then elevate their status and give them orders from her. They might even be able to curry favor with the Prime Minister. If something happens to the Qin family, then it's just that the two maids made friends in private, and they should draw a clear line between themselves and the family.
Yun Qian instantly understood the Duchess's meaning, but the situation was urgent. Even if she knew what they were thinking, it was better to have someone watching over her than to let her young lady faint on the bed alone.
She gritted her teeth and kowtowed, "Yun Qian thanks you for your kindness, Madam."
Afterwards, he left the Duchess's room with two maids, quickly told them about the care for Qin Song, and gave them all the silver he had on him, hoping that they would do their best in return for the money.
Without wasting any time, she randomly found a carriage in the temple, climbed in, and set off.
As soon as the wheels began to turn, a man in a moon-white brocade robe, accompanied by his entourage, blocked the front of the carriage. "Are you Miss Qin's personal maid? Why are you in such a hurry? What happened?"
Yun Qian was extremely anxious, and spoke very quickly with a sob in her voice: "Miss is seriously ill, I need to go down the mountain to fetch a doctor, please make way for me, young master."
After she finished speaking, she rode off without a second thought.
The carriage bumped along, and Li Yu could tell at a glance that she couldn't drive. He quickly ordered his attendant, A Zhao, "Go, take her down the mountain, and bring up the best doctor in the manor while you're at it."
"Yes." Ah Zhao quickly followed, leaped onto the carriage, and startled Yun Qian so much that she almost dropped the reins.
Ah Zhao quickly helped her up, "Miss, sit tight. This is my young master's carriage. The horse is wild and difficult to tame, so I will drive it."
Yun Qian felt a wave of embarrassment. How did she happen to untie the young master's carriage at that exact moment?
Just as she was about to explain, Ah Zhao spoke up again: "Don't worry, my young master is kind-hearted. He knows that you are the only one taking care of Miss Qin. Now that you have come down the mountain, he will definitely help take good care of Miss Qin."
After he finished speaking, he winked at Yun Qian righteously, signaling her to relax.
Yun Qian was terrified. Her young lady was of marriageable age and if she could be taken care of by a man, why would she bother to find the Duchess?
Besides, you can know a person's face but not their heart. Who knows what kind of character the young master is under his elegant clothes? What if he takes advantage of her young lady?
A note from the author:
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Yun Qian, don't worry, Xiao Liyu is much more useful than those two little girls. [Let me see]
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This humble author continues to beg for comments and collections, helping me transform into a typing machine. Please, KuKu, release your stockpiled drafts! [Please!]
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