The Splendid Brocade of the Painting Physician – Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Seeing the Patient

Although she was older, the woman exuded a mature charm and the dignified elegance of a noble lady from a prestigious family. However, her gorgeous and somewhat flamboyant features, along with the desire and cunning hidden in her gaze, reminded Xiao Jinyu of *that person*.

The younger sister of the current Emperor, the daughter of Emperor Wu of Chen, Chen Baxian, Chen Jianchen.

However, more than a decade ago, she was not a princess, Chen Shili was not the Emperor, and Chen Baxian was not the founding emperor. He was merely a village clerk of humble origins. If it weren’t for his grandfather’s recommendation and the appreciation of the Marquis of Xinyu, the Chen family might never have entered the political center of the Southern Liang Dynasty, let alone become the emperor after replacing the Liang Dynasty.

With the support of the Marquis of Xinyu, Xiao Ying, Chen Baxian gradually rose from a minor oil depot clerk to a prominent frontier official, holding military power. The Chen clan also rose to prominence along with him. As the daughter of the Governor Chen, Chen Jianchen was merely a humble and timid girl from a commoner family at that time. When they met at a banquet by chance, the look in her eyes towards Xiao Jinyu held endless envy and a burning desire that was difficult to decipher.

At that time, Xiao Jinyu couldn’t understand what this desire was. Now that she thinks about it, it was probably the desire to replace her or to surpass her.

Even though she was just a young girl in her early teens, the ambition burning in her eyes was no less than that of a man, very much like her brother, Chen Shili.

More than a decade had passed in a flash. Now, she was no longer Xie Yuqing, and that woman must have changed a lot too, right?

Her thoughts returned to the present. Xiao Jinyu looked at this woman, and this woman was also curiously looking at her.

“You are the renowned physician invited by Seventh Young Master. When did you meet my Xiao family’s Seventh Young Master? What is your surname? What is your name?” Princess Yunyin asked, her long fingernails tapping on a white porcelain cup, her eyes revealing a hint of probing and arrogance.

Xiao Jinyu smiled softly. Fenghuang seemed unable to bear the woman’s interrogative and arrogant attitude and answered first, “Young Master Xiao Xian’s fame has spread throughout Jiangzuo. Who in the world doesn’t know him? Besides, my Qing Gege is here to treat your family’s young lady, not to be interrogated by you. What does her surname and name have to do with you?”

Princess Yunyin’s face stiffened. No one in the entire Xiao Family mansion dared to speak to her like this.

“Audacious! Where did this wild boy come from, daring to speak to our Princess like this?” Sensing her mistress’ displeasure, Nurse Jiang immediately scolded.

However, Princess Yunyin raised her hand to stop Nurse Jiang’s harsh words and fixed her gaze on Fenghuang.

“What a handsome face. So young and already possessing such beauty. I wonder what kind of stunning beauty he will become when he grows up. He would probably surpass even Han Zigao, who captivated Emperor Wen of Chen to the point that he wanted to defy fate and make him his male empress.”

Princess Yunyin sighed suddenly. Nurse Jiang’s old face flushed red. After glancing at Fenghuang, she bowed and retreated tactfully.

“Alright, I won’t ask how you met Seventh Young Master, nor will I ask your names. However, this madam has a condition.”

“What condition?”

“My Xiao family’s young lady is not someone who can be seen by just anyone, not even a physician. If you can cure her, this madam will naturally reward you handsomely. If you can’t, then you… won’t be able to leave the Xiao family.”

“Not leave the Xiao family? What do you want us to do?” Fenghuang asked.

Princess Yunyin smiled enigmatically, not answering directly. She only said, “You’ll know when the time comes.” With that, she instructed an old woman behind her, “Take them to Lingqing Pavilion.”

Such a deliberately mysterious attitude.

Fenghuang disdained to pay attention.

The two followed the old woman for a few steps when they suddenly heard a voice behind them, “Oh, right. Since you are unwilling to reveal your names, you should at least tell me how to address you.”

“My Qing Gege’s surname is…”

Just as Fenghuang was about to answer, Xiao Jinyu interrupted, “Ge.”

“Ge? Could it be that you are a descendant of Ge Hong, the Immortal Ge?”

Princess Yunyin sneered. Xiao Jinyu ignored her. After pausing for a moment, she and Fenghuang followed the old woman to Lingqing Pavilion, where Third Young Lady Xiao resided.

Along the way, they learned from the old woman that Tenth Young Lady Xiao was the only daughter left from the main branch of the Xiao family. The eldest son of the Xiao family, Xiao Qi, was the first son born to Xiao Jian and his first consort, Lady Xiao Yuan. Fourteen years ago, Xiao Qi went against the family’s wishes and married a woman from a lower-ranking scholar-official family, Lady Feng. A year later, Lady Feng gave birth to a daughter but passed away soon after due to postpartum depression.

A year after Lady Feng’s death, the Xiao clan head wanted Xiao Qi to marry into the Zhu family. However, unexpectedly, Xiao Qi turned out to be a man of deep affection, saying that he would observe a mourning period for his wife and not remarry for three years. But before the three years were up, Xiao Qi contracted a cough and also passed away.

Now, only this granddaughter, Xiao Ruoling, remained from the main branch, and she was a sickly one at that, bringing a lot of bad luck to the household. Because this young lady seemed to have a curse on her, anyone who got close to her would suffer misfortune. The entire Xiao family, from top to bottom, even the servants, didn’t treat her well.

Therefore, the mistress of the Xiao family, Princess Yunyin, arranged a remote and quiet place for her, especially suitable for recuperation. It was called “taking good care of her health,” and no one was allowed to disturb her.

Standing in front of the gate of the small courtyard, overgrown with weeds and vines, Xiao Jinyu looked at the desolate surroundings, devoid of any signs of life, and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. This was truly an unvisited and isolated “paradise.”

If one were to walk here at night, they might mistake it for an uninhabited haunted house.

“Young Masters, this is Tenth Young Lady’s residence.”

The old woman said. Xiao Jinyu came back to her senses and nodded, then followed her into the inner room. They saw a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl lying on a bed, her thin body as thin as a sheet of paper. The girl coughed continuously, seemingly with phlegm mixed in. A maid with twin buns was holding a spittoon, gently patting the girl’s back. On a table beside the bed was a bowl of half-drunk medicinal soup.

There was also a puddle on the floor, probably from the girl just vomiting.

“Young Lady, you must drink this medicine. You keep vomiting while drinking it. How can your body recover like this?”

The maid looked worried.

✿✿✿

“What should we do? Seventh Young Master repeatedly instructed…”

At this moment, Xiao Jinyu said, “Fenghuang, go bring that medicine here. I’ll take a look.”

The maid, startled by the sudden voice, looked up in surprise. Only then did she notice a servant woman had entered the room, accompanied by two strangers of unknown identity.

The maid immediately recognized the servant woman as Nurse Wei from the mistress’s courtyard. She hastily bowed and greeted, “This servant greets Nurse Wei. I wonder why you have come here? Does Mistress have any instructions?”

In prominent clans, even the servants have a strict hierarchical structure. It’s evident that this maid’s status is considerably lower than the old woman’s.

Having received such respect, Nurse Wei naturally put on airs, “Has your young lady’s condition improved?”

The maid hurriedly replied, “Young Lady, Young Lady’s illness…”

“Has it gotten better, or not? Why are you stammering?”

The maid, somewhat timid, quickly answered, “Yes, this servant dares not lie. Young Lady’s illness is afraid…”

The young girl on the bed immediately shot a glance, sat up, and interjected, “Please convey my thanks to Grandmother for her concern. My illness has improved a lot. Grandmother need not worry.”

Nurse Wei sneered, her words laced with sarcasm, “Tenth Young Lady, there’s no need to force yourself or say such disheartening things. Mistress constantly worries about Tenth Young Lady’s health. After all, Tenth Young Lady’s life was exchanged for by Eldest Master and Madam.”

The young girl’s expression changed slightly. Despite her youth, uncontainable anger seeped from her clear eyes.

“Look, Mistress has invited a renowned physician to examine Tenth Young Lady again.”

Nurse Wei added. Only then did the young girl turn her gaze towards Xiao Jinyu. After a single glance, she said weakly, “No need. Please convey my thanks to Grandmother. My illness is probably incurable. If it were to be passed on to others, it would be unfortunate. Let me accumulate some virtue before I depart.”

“Heaven and earth are the furnace, creation is the craftsman; yin and yang are the fuel, all things are the bronze. In this world, living is inherently a torment. But being alive is your greatest fortune and luck. Since you have this fortune, why seek death?”

The young girl abruptly lifted her head, seemingly finally looking directly at Xiao Jinyu.

Xiao Jinyu had already walked in front of her and sat down by the bedside. In a gentle voice, she said, “Look at me. Extend your hand.”

The young girl was hesitant, but Xiao Jinyu’s voice seemed to bring her an inexplicable sense of calm. She involuntarily extended her hand, a delicate wrist resting atop a folded handkerchief.

Xiao Jinyu placed her fingers on the girl’s wrist. After a while, she said, “Stick out your tongue and let me see.”

After a moment of hesitation, the young girl complied.

After examining her, Xiao Jinyu asked, “Did you fall into the water a month ago? Is that why you have this cough?”

Before the young girl could answer, the maid beside her hurriedly said, “Yes, yes. Young Lady indeed accidentally fell into the pond a month ago. Afterward, she started having a fever and then began coughing.”

A month ago, the ice and snow were still melting. The pond water was likely freezing cold, its bone-chilling coldness imaginable.

Xiao Jinyu saw a hint of vigilance and sorrow in the young girl’s eyes.

After a moment, she stood up and said, “Falling into the water a month ago, the cold entered your body. Although you’ve taken many medicines to dispel the cold poison, it didn’t prevent the cold from penetrating your bones, congealing and lingering. Over time, it led to this coughing illness.”

“Is there any way to treat it?” The maid quickly asked.

Xiao Jinyu looked at the young girl, then glanced at her surroundings. Suddenly, she said, “If it were an ordinary cold illness, it would be easy to treat. But this…” She paused for a moment. “I can prescribe a formula to try.”

“You Tan, quickly fetch a brush for this divine physician,” the young girl hurriedly ordered.

The maid named You Tan quickly responded and retrieved a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone from a chest.

It was just an ordinary wool brush and hemp paper, a far cry from the deer hair brush and high-quality paper she used in her past life.

Xiao Jinyu lifted the brush and began writing on the rough paper. A moment later, as she was about to hand the written prescription to Xiao Ruoling, the Tenth Young Lady of the Xiao family, Nurse Wei, who had been observing, spoke, “Wait. Please allow this old servant to see the prescription, Master Ge. Please understand. Any food or medicine that is ingested must be inspected by our Mistress.”