Aunt Meng took the silver, thanked him, and ran home.
Zhou Wan found it very strange, but she couldn't quite put her finger on why. She decided to buy some things and go to the steamed bun shop herself to take a look.
The next day, Zhou Wan bought some tonics and went to the steamed bun shop. Upon entering, she didn't see the proprietress who used to greet customers, but only Meng Lang.
Zhou Wan stopped Meng Lang, who was busy at work, and asked in confusion, "Where's your wife?"
Upon seeing that it was the benefactor who had lent him the money, Meng Lang quickly put down what he was doing: "Miss Zhou Wan, my... my wife is behind me, I'll take you there."
Zhou Wan followed Meng Lang to the backyard where the small bed was placed. Meng Lang's wife lay on the messy small bed, coughing incessantly.
Zhou Wan placed the tonics aside and sat down next to Meng Lang's wife. He asked with some concern, "What's wrong with your wife?"
Zhou Wan carefully observed Meng Lang's wife's complexion. It was no longer the complexion of a living person; her lips were as pale as water, showing absolutely no signs of life. If it weren't for her coughing, Zhou Wan would have thought Meng Lang's wife was already dead.
Meng Lang, who was standing to the side, stammered and couldn't say anything, but feeling that his benefactor was the one, he still spoke up: "It's a woman's illness. I don't know why she suddenly became like this. She was fine just a few days ago. This illness came on so quickly." As he finished speaking, tears were about to fall.
Something's not right, this is really not right. Zhou Wan thought to herself. Meng Lang's wife is so young, has never had children, and doesn't do anything reckless, how could she have contracted a disease that's exclusive to women, and with such a fierce onset?
"Did the doctor say what kind of illness this is?" Zhou Wan asked Meng Lang.
"They didn't say anything specific, only that it was a woman's illness," Meng Lang answered truthfully.
Even the doctor can't figure out what's wrong; that's really strange. Zhou Wan frowned.
"What brings Miss Zhou Wan here?" a woman's voice rang out. Zhou Wan turned around abruptly and saw it was Aunt Meng.
Zhou Wan looked Meng up and down and asked, "This doctor is a man. Do you know what illness she has?"
Aunt Meng's face stiffened. She hadn't wanted Zhou Wan to come in the first place. Zhou Wan was a smart person, and if she accidentally asked something, wouldn't that be terrible? All her hard work and plans would be ruined.
"The doctor couldn't explain it clearly, but..." She whispered a few words into Zhou Wan's ear.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Wan immediately became anxious: "Auntie, this can't go on."
Zhou Wan stood up from the edge of Meng's daughter-in-law's bed, lifted the curtain and came out, her face showing genuine worry.
"Oh, to be honest," Aunt Meng sighed, "my daughter-in-law has had a hard life. She was never loved at home since she was little. She finally married into the family and just when she was starting to have a better life, she got this disease..."
As she spoke, she turned away and quietly wiped away her tears.
Since meeting Aunt Meng, and traveling with her from Luoping Village to the capital, Zhou Wan has come to know how difficult it was for her to find her son, and sincerely hopes that this kind and simple old lady can enjoy her later years in peace.
Although I had my doubts before, they have all been dispelled now.
"Here's what I'll do. I still have some money here. Take some more and ask a doctor to come and take a look."
"Oh dear, this won't do!"
Aunt Meng refused repeatedly, not wanting to trouble Zhou Wan too much.
“Auntie, what’s so inconvenient about this? As the saying goes, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Today I’m not lending you money, I’m doing this to accumulate good karma for myself!” Zhou Wan gently advised.
Aunt Meng shook her head again, "I appreciate Miss Zhou's kindness. But you have your own children and are still young, which is the time when you need money. My daughter-in-law's illness has not improved despite taking many medicines. Please don't worry about her, Miss. We can only leave it to fate."
Seeing that she couldn't persuade her otherwise, and being a woman herself, Zhou Wan couldn't bear to see Meng's wife lying ill in bed, so she took it upon herself to find a doctor to examine Meng's wife.
Upon closer inspection, it was quite something.
The old doctor stroked his white beard, his brows furrowed, his face grave, which made Meng's son very worried.
"What's wrong? Please speak freely, Master."
"This woman is not sick, but poisoned."
"Poisoned?" Zhou Wan asked in surprise.
"That's right. This poison is unusual and rare. I only learned about it by chance. The antidote is not difficult to prepare, but it takes time to heal. Take one mace each of Scutellaria baicalensis, Dioscorea opposita, Angelica sinensis, Paeonia lactiflora, Rehmannia glutinosa (processed), Ophiopogon japonicus, and Rehmannia glutinosa (raw), decoct them in water and drink the decoction. Because you have lost a lot of blood during this period, if possible, you can cook black chicken soup to replenish your blood."
The old doctor packed his medicine box and left. Zhou Wan sent someone to fetch the medicine, and then returned to discuss the matter with the Meng family.
"How could this happen? Why did this happen?"
The son of the Meng family paced back and forth anxiously, his face full of worry and timidity.
Zhou Wan couldn't bear to see him like this. Just like her ex-husband, he was clearly a man, but he couldn't shoulder any responsibility and always hid behind his wife. She sat down and looked at Meng Lang's wife, who was bedridden, and Meng's aunt, who was standing silently to the side. "What are your plans for this matter?"
Since the doctor left, Aunt Meng had remained silent. The poison was rare, and she hadn't expected the doctor to be able to diagnose it through pulse diagnosis. At this moment, cold sweat broke out on her back; she could only hope that Zhou Wan wouldn't notice anything amiss and suspect her.
"Waaah..."
A sobbing sound came from inside. It was Aunt Meng. She looked extremely painful and uncomfortable. Her hair was gray and her body was hunched over. She almost collapsed by the bedside as if she couldn't hold on any longer.
"aunt!"
Zhou Wan rushed over to support her and helped her to a chair. Meng's son also eagerly came over.
"Mother, are you alright?"
Aunt Meng covered her face with a handkerchief, still sobbing uncontrollably.
"Madam Zhou...you know my daughter-in-law, what a kind and considerate girl she is...how could she have encountered such a thing? Poisoning...who wants to harm our Meng family!"
She clutched her chest, looking as if she was about to collapse.
Zhou Wan patted the old woman's back tenderly, helping her catch her breath. Looking at this elderly woman, she was reminded of her own mother, who had also worried herself sick over her children.
She gently comforted her, "It's alright, ma'am. It's not necessarily that someone is targeting your family. Maybe there's a problem with the food or the water source?"
Aunt Meng looked at her as if she had grasped a lifeline: "Really?"
“Really.” Zhou Wan nodded. “Some people nowadays seek revenge without any regard for the ordinary people around them, treating human life like dirt.”
"That's good, that's good," Meng's son slumped to the ground, letting out a huge sigh of relief. "I knew our family members were honest and law-abiding, and we've never done anything immoral or unethical. How could someone..."
“However,” Zhou Wan’s tone changed, “it is poison after all. Even if it doesn’t endanger your life right now, you still need to take good care of yourself, otherwise it might damage your vital energy.”
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