Chapter 31: Talking About Illness
“Young Madam is not sick.”
Chun Yue knelt on the floor, explaining to Mama Huang.
“Young Madam just didn’t sleep well, I took the liberty of making a bowl of Chaihu Guizhi Decoction.”
This was the most common prescription, the maids, young masters, and young ladies in the house would all make a bowl to drink if they felt slightly unwell. The kitchen also always had these medicinal herbs on hand, which could be used for making both medicine and soup.
“If Young Madam is not feeling well, she should tell Madam directly,” Mama Huang said with a stern face, “Our family is not one that can’t afford a physician. And Madam is not the kind of mistress who mistreats her daughter-in-law. There’s no need to take medicine secretly, acting like someone from a poor family.”
Chun Yue’s eyes reddened, and she kowtowed, “It’s this servant’s fault——”
Before she could finish her words, Zhuang Li, who was sitting at the desk inside, walked out.
“So it’s because of this,” she said, “Thank you, Madam. I am indeed not feeling well, but it’s nothing serious. No need to call for a physician, drinking Chaihu Guizhi Decoction will do.” She then looked at Chun Yue, who was kneeling on the floor, “If you had done something wrong, I wouldn’t have d*unk it when you brought it over.”
Is this protecting the maid by taking the blame herself? Mama Huang snorted coldly, no need to rush to appear magnanimous, the one who’s wrong is you.
“If Madam hadn’t come to ask, were you planning to hide and keep drinking Chaihu Guizhi Decoction?” she said with a darkened face, “If Young Madam is unwilling to see Madam, she could have just sent a maid to say so.”
That’s not right, Chun Yue couldn’t help but tug on Zhuang Li’s sleeve, Young Madam, don’t admit to that.
Zhuang Li gently pulled back her sleeve and said to Mama Huang, “It’s not that I’m unwilling to see Madam, it’s that Madam is unwilling to see me.”
Don’t let her admit to this unfilial statement, it’s not for her to correct who doesn’t want to see whom, Chun Yue was astonished.
Mama Huang didn’t expect her to say this either. Her stern face broke into a sarcastic smile, “We all know that Young Madam harbors resentment, but there’s no need to be like this. Even if Madam doesn’t favor you, you are still the daughter-in-law of the Marquis of Dongyang’s Residence. She wouldn’t watch you die from illness without doing anything. You’re wasting your efforts trying to gain sympathy and ruin Madam’s reputation.”
Zhuang Li frowned, she really wasn’t feeling well. She had known earlier that Madam had listened to Xueliu’s gossip and sent for a physician, but since he didn’t come, she thought the matter was over. She didn’t expect Madam to be so persistent, not only sending for another physician but also using this opportunity to reprimand her.
Then she might as well cut to the chase.
“Mama Huang, you misunderstood. What I meant was that there’s no need to trouble Madam with such a small matter,” she said, “Madam Zhuang knows medicine, and I’ve learned some from being by her side. I know how to treat illnesses and understand the severity of the situation. If I were truly seriously ill, I would definitely inform Madam immediately and ask her to call for a physician.”
Mama Huang sneered, “Young Madam, medicine is a vast and profound subject. You can’t claim to know how to treat illnesses just by reading a few books.”
Zhuang Li smiled, “Mama Huang, you can test me.” She looked towards the door, through the curtain she could see an old man standing on the porch, “The physician is here.”
✿✿✿
…….
“This old man only treats illnesses, I don’t make judgments on other matters.”
Zhang Shilin had heard the loud and soft arguments of the women in the courtyard, and he understood in his heart, it was another case of a small illness becoming a big issue.
He had always disliked dealing with the powerful, especially with the inner courtyards. Most of the time, it wasn’t about treating illnesses, but rather using illness to create trouble, to curry favor, to feign weakness, to vent anger.
He was invited in and saw women standing and kneeling in the room, none of them lying down, which further confirmed his guess. After listening to the young woman called Young Madam say, “There’s something I need to trouble Doctor——”
He hurriedly interrupted to make his stance clear.
Don’t trouble him, he was just a physician, it had nothing to do with him.
Zhuang Li said, “It’s precisely for you to judge whether I know how to treat illnesses.”
She knows how to treat illnesses? Zhang Shilin looked her up and down, then looked at Mama Huang, who was standing there with a stern face.
Mama Huang said with a stern face, “Please, Doctor Zhang, be a witness.”
Zhang Shilin frowned, “How do we verify this?”
Zhuang Li gestured for Chun Yue to stand up, then asked the maids in the room, including Mama Huang, to line up.
“I will take their pulses and describe the pulse conditions,” she said, “And Doctor…” she paused here, looking at Zhang Shilin, “I haven’t asked for your name yet?”
Zhang Shilin said humbly, “Zhang Shilin.”
Zhuang Li looked at him, her eyes deep and unreadable, “Zhang Shilin.” The three words rolled off her tongue, “I will say what pulse condition I diagnose, and you say what pulse condition you diagnose. You are a physician, you understand medicine. If what we say is the same, then I also understand medicine.”
Zhang Shilin seemed a little dazed, slowly repeating her words, then clapped his hands, “Yes, that’s right.”
He looked at Zhuang Li and smiled.
“If what we say is the same, then Young Madam is also a physician.”
…….
…….
“So how is it? Did she get them all right?”
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The Marchioness of Dongyang, who had been leisurely leaning on the couch by the window, having little maids massage her legs, couldn’t help but interrupt Mama Huang’s narration and ask.
At the same time, she noticed the expression on Mama Huang’s face.
Mama Huang had been in the residence for decades, and this was the first time the Marchioness of Dongyang had seen her with such an awkward and helpless expression.
“She got them all right, exactly the same as what Doctor Zhang said.” Mama Huang said, then gave a wry smile, “Young Madam even diagnosed that this old servant has cold phlegm and blood stasis.”
The Marchioness of Dongyang asked in surprise, “Do you?”
Since Zhou Jingyun’s birth, Mama Huang had been by her side for over twenty years. Mama Huang had never even had a cold, in her eyes, she was a robust and strong person.
What is cold phlegm and blood stasis? Is it serious?
Mama Huang hurriedly reassured her, “It’s not serious, not serious at all. It’s just that my legs and feet feel uncomfortable on rainy days.”
Really? I haven’t noticed it in daily life…
The Marchioness of Dongyang’s face flushed red then pale. She didn’t even know that her trusted mama, who served her closely, had problems with her legs and feet. She was too indifferent as a mistress.
“What did he say? What medicine should be used?” she asked urgently, then asked Mama Huang to sit down, “Sit down quickly, you don’t have to stand in front of me in the future.”
A smile appeared on Mama Huang’s face, she knew that the Marchioness of Dongyang was just careless, not a mistress who ignored and mistreated her servants.
“Listen to me, not only you couldn’t tell, even I didn’t feel it.” she said seriously, “It’s just that occasionally, after squatting or sitting for a long time, it’s a little difficult to stand up. But who doesn’t have this problem? I’m old, and besides this, I have no other symptoms. Doctor Zhang also checked and said the symptoms are just starting to show, drinking a few doses of Xiao Huoluo Tang will do.”
The Marchioness of Dongyang breathed a sigh of relief, “Drink, drink. Go to Doctor Zhang’s Baohe Hall and get the best medicine. Don’t wait for the Imperial Medical Academy. Even with good physicians and good medicine, it’s not our turn to use them.”
Xueliu, who was standing by the side, suddenly couldn’t understand what was going on. She couldn’t help but step forward and say timidly, “It turns out I was overthinking it, Young Madam actually knows medicine.” Then she knelt down, “I was the one who startled Madam.”
The Marchioness of Dongyang came back to her senses, oh, there was still this matter.
“If she hadn’t said anything, how would we have known?” she said, then snorted, looking at Mama Huang and asking, “Did she give you a hard time?”
Mama Huang said with a smile, “No, no.”
Zhuang Li could scold Old Madam Xue for being foolish to her face, and Old Madam Xue had no way to refute it. The Marchioness of Dongyang had witnessed it with her own eyes.
This woman seemed gentle and quiet, but she wouldn’t let herself be taken advantage of.
Being confronted by Mama Huang and the physician, how could she let it go? She definitely didn’t say anything pleasant.
“Even if she knows medicine, she was still wrong in this matter,” said the Marchioness of Dongyang.
If she knew medicine and felt unwell, shouldn’t she have told her mother-in-law?
It was wrong for a daughter-in-law to hide and take medicine.
As soon as she finished speaking, Hongxing came in from outside and said, “Young Madam requests to see Madam.” She then asked, “Will Madam see her or not?”
Is she here to apologize?
She still knows her manners.
The Marchioness of Dongyang leaned back on the bolster and said indifferently, “Let her in.”
Should she ask her to take her pulse later and see what she can diagnose?
But what she didn’t expect was that when her daughter-in-law entered the room, she neither apologized nor offered to take her pulse. She just said one sentence.
“Madam, I don’t need Xueliu here anymore.”
The Marchioness of Dongyang sat up in astonishment, and Xueliu, who had retreated to another room to avoid the situation, also widened her eyes.
This Young Madam actually wants to drive her away?!
On what grounds!
